We Shall Be Like Him

As my children get older and are around more kids their age in school and other activities, we have more conversations at home about being “normal.” I am sometimes accused of not being “normal,” to which I certainly do not t disagree. The problem is, of course, that the Lord’s invitation to us never was to be like everyone else. Instead, the Lord said to the children of Israel: “Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth” (Deuteronomy 14:2). They were to be different from their neighbors because they had made covenants with Him and had promised to follow His commandments. Peter used similar language when he wrote this to the church: “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9). The Lord doesn’t want us to be “normal” if that means to be like the world; we should be a peculiar people by seeking to live by His marvelous light in a world filled with pride over its possessions and popularity.

               Elder Rafael E. Pino spoke in the most recent general conference about a “normal” that we should seek out. He spoke of what habits should become normal for our families as we strive to live the gospel of Jesus Christ, including scripture study, prayer, partaking of the sacrament, and participating in temple and family history work. He questioned, “How do we feel when we hear these four things? Are they part of our normal lives? There are many other traditions that could be part of the normality we have adopted, thus letting God prevail in our lives.” In addition to these foundational gospel practices, he suggested a scripture that will help us determine what should be normal in our families: “There are many other traditions that could be part of the normality we have adopted, thus letting God prevail in our lives. How can we determine what will be the normal things in our life and in our family? In the scriptures we find a great model; in Mosiah 5:15 it says, ‘I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works.’” This led to the title of his talk and summary of his message: “Let Doing Good Be Our Normal.” To be normal as defined by the world is not a compliment, but if doing good to others and our neighbors is a normal part of our lives then we will be getting closer to being the peculiar people that the Lord wants us to be. We need not worry about getting compliments from the great and spacious building because of how we live our lives—they will always be “in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come at and were partaking of the fruit” (1 Nephi 8:27). But if we will strive to center our daily activities around Jesus Christ and to become His holy people, we will be living “after the manner of happiness” despite our difference from the world (2 Nephi 5:27). And we will be preparing for that day we yearn for “when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure” (Moroni 7:48). He is the only normal that we should care about and strive to emulate.