stay in the boat!
From the Huffington Post dated July 24, 2014:
Nearly 500 Mormons joined a Facebook event for a mass resignation from the LDS Church on Thursday to protest the recent excommunication of Kate Kelly and disciplining of John Dehlin, two prominent activists in the Mormon community.
Give me a break!
These days, we in the church are all trying to stay afloat in a lifeboat in shark-infested waters. Now sometimes we may not like the other people in the boat with us. Or we may not agree with those who are leading us. Or maybe we’re uncomfortable for whatever reason. But no matter what, how stupid is it to jump out of the boat right into the jaws of the hungry sharks!
The fact is, we have a prophet of God in the boat with us, and God Himself has promised that this prophet will never lead His people down the wrong path. In fact, he is doing all in his power to help us get safely home. Didn’t these people ever sing, “Follow the Prophet” in Primary? Didn’t they understand what they were saying and why it’s important?
One of the best things I’ve ever seen about the importance of staying within the church was a talk by Brad Wilcox called “His Grace is Sufficient.” Below is an excerpt from that talk:
“We will all be resurrected. We will all go back to God’s presence. What is left to be determined by our obedience is what kind of body we plan on being resurrected with and how comfortable we plan to be in God’s presence.
“But the older I get,...the more I realize that in the final judgment it will not be the unrepentant sinner begging Jesus, 'Let me stay.' No, he will probably be saying, 'Get me out of here!' Knowing Christ’s character, I believe that if anyone is going to be begging on that occasion, it would probably be Jesus begging the unrepentant sinner, 'Please, choose to stay. Please, use my Atonement—not just to be cleansed but to be changed so that you want to stay.'
“The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can go home but that—miraculously—we can feel at home there. If Christ did not require faith and repentance, then there would be no desire to change.
“Think of your friends and family members who have chosen to live without faith and without repentance. They don’t want to change. They are not trying to abandon sin and become comfortable with God. Rather, they are trying to abandon God and become comfortable with sin.
"...there should never be just two options: perfection or giving up. When learning the piano, are the only options performing at Carnegie Hall or quitting? No. Growth and development take time. Learning takes time."
I hope I can always say with Joshua, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” And that means listening to His appointed one. And taking the time to learn what God wants us to know -- to be what God wants us to become.
Whatever happens, however you feel, no matter if you’re offended or hurt or disagree, you are still much better off, not to mention safer, if you just stay in the boat!
