Things to Act and Things to Be Acted Upon
In the Book of Mormon, in 2 Nephi 2:14, the prophet Lehi teaches his children, saying, "And now my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning ; for there is a God, and he hath created all things both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon".
As I was reading this yesterday, the last part stuck out to me. If God created 'things to act' and 'things to be acted upon' then which one are we, as his children?
2 Nephi 2:26 says, "And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil ; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given."
So as God's children we were created to act--to stand up, to exert ourselves!
The truth is that is easy to do the bare minimum. Once you've caught a current it isn't that hard to just let it take you along. It doesn't require much and it feels relaxing in the moment. I've always had difficulty with self-mastery. I think we all have in some areas of our lives.
But I think God means to tell us that we have a responsibility not to let circumstances or worldly, exterior forces choose our paths for us.
I think that to act for myself and not to be acted upon means to learn to do something consistently--to be committed and to push through when the world tries to break our determination.
It might be making your scripture studies more meaningful, or waking up to your alarm in the morning--it might be eating more healthy or overcoming a weakness you've found in your life. Whatever it is you want to do, know that you have been given the power to act.
One of our greatest challenges as beings on this earth is putting off the natural man within. The natural man within each of us loves to be acted upon. It loves to find excuses, to indulge in selfishness, laziness, and really to do very little for the good of the world.
But if what Lehi says is true (and I know it is) then God expects more of us. Not only does he expect more of us but he created us to be capable of so much more. Why did he create us that way? Because it is the path to the greatest happiness imaginable. We are God's children and we have so much potential!
As I look back on my own life so far, I can see times of light and times of darkness. The times of light happened when I was acting and the times of darkness when I allowed myself to be acted upon.
Today I want to choose to act--even when the path to diligence, dedication and consistency seems hard to master.
Self-mastery is possible. We all have the potential to become great at it! It isn't only for the apostles and prophets. It also doesn't need to be a virtue we wait to cultivate in our old age. God gives each of us this power. The path may seem hard at first. I know it looks daunting from where I stand. But Heavenly Father never leaves us alone. He gives us power as we take steps forward and seek his help.
To close with a quote from Harold B. Lee, "You must learn to walk to the edge of the light, and then a few steps into the darkness; then the light will appear and show the way before you".
I'm grateful for daily reminders of the great responsibilities and expectations that God has for us. May we has as much faith in our potential as he does. And let's remember that when we fall he is always there to help us back up so we can begin again.
Stéf
As I was reading this yesterday, the last part stuck out to me. If God created 'things to act' and 'things to be acted upon' then which one are we, as his children?
2 Nephi 2:26 says, "And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil ; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given."
So as God's children we were created to act--to stand up, to exert ourselves!
The truth is that is easy to do the bare minimum. Once you've caught a current it isn't that hard to just let it take you along. It doesn't require much and it feels relaxing in the moment. I've always had difficulty with self-mastery. I think we all have in some areas of our lives.
But I think God means to tell us that we have a responsibility not to let circumstances or worldly, exterior forces choose our paths for us.
I think that to act for myself and not to be acted upon means to learn to do something consistently--to be committed and to push through when the world tries to break our determination.
It might be making your scripture studies more meaningful, or waking up to your alarm in the morning--it might be eating more healthy or overcoming a weakness you've found in your life. Whatever it is you want to do, know that you have been given the power to act.
One of our greatest challenges as beings on this earth is putting off the natural man within. The natural man within each of us loves to be acted upon. It loves to find excuses, to indulge in selfishness, laziness, and really to do very little for the good of the world.
But if what Lehi says is true (and I know it is) then God expects more of us. Not only does he expect more of us but he created us to be capable of so much more. Why did he create us that way? Because it is the path to the greatest happiness imaginable. We are God's children and we have so much potential!
As I look back on my own life so far, I can see times of light and times of darkness. The times of light happened when I was acting and the times of darkness when I allowed myself to be acted upon.
Today I want to choose to act--even when the path to diligence, dedication and consistency seems hard to master.
Self-mastery is possible. We all have the potential to become great at it! It isn't only for the apostles and prophets. It also doesn't need to be a virtue we wait to cultivate in our old age. God gives each of us this power. The path may seem hard at first. I know it looks daunting from where I stand. But Heavenly Father never leaves us alone. He gives us power as we take steps forward and seek his help.
To close with a quote from Harold B. Lee, "You must learn to walk to the edge of the light, and then a few steps into the darkness; then the light will appear and show the way before you".
I'm grateful for daily reminders of the great responsibilities and expectations that God has for us. May we has as much faith in our potential as he does. And let's remember that when we fall he is always there to help us back up so we can begin again.
Stéf
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