I am so excited to be here tonight. You have had such a fun, action-packed day. From my understanding you got to choose from a variety of classes like dance instruction and yoga, speed dating, and financial literacy. I remember attending youth conferences like this at your age. It was so fun to meet youth from other stakes and attend the fun workshops. Eat a delicious dinner. The worst part of these conferences was always when they made you sit quietly for an hour or so before the dance, listening to some boring speaker. I’m so glad I could finally ascend to becoming the worst part of your youth conference experience. I have arrived. I have finally reached peak adulthood.
The theme of this awesome day has been “Launch Out into the
Deep.” If you had to pick a graduation theme from the scriptures, I can’t think
of a better one than this.
Who here took the time to read the verse this conference’s
theme was found in? Luke 5:4. That’s about what I expected. No worries, I’ll
read it for you:
“Now
when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and
let down your nets for a draught.”
Now here’s a bit of backstory. In the previous chapter of
Luke, the Saviour had healed Simon’s mother-in-law, who was “taken with a great
fever.” This miracle took place in Simon’s house, so it is safe to say that
Simon likely knew by Luke 5 that Jesus was no ordinary man and had even
witnessed the healing of his mother-in-law.
Going back to Luke 5, the Saviour finds himself being
crowded by a group of people eager to hear more of the word of God. He is
standing on the edge of a lake and floating nearby are two unused fishing
ships. The fishermen, including Simon, have completed their night of fishing
and are now cleaning up and preparing to go home for some rest. Jesus asks if
he can use one of these ships as a sort of stage to teach the crowd of people
from. Simon agrees and pushes him out a little and the Saviour proceeds to teach
the people. Meanwhile, it’s safe to assume that nearby Simon continues to work
at untangling and cleaning his fishing nets while half listening to the
Saviour. He’s likely exhausted from being awake all-night fishing and to top
that, he didn’t catch a single fish. This is undoubtedly disappointing as he’ll
be coming home empty handed with no food for his family and no money from the
sale of his excess fish. Simon had a bad night. He’s probably really looking
forward to getting home and sleeping before having to return to his fishing
boat again that night. We don’t know how long the Saviour taught from Simon’s
boat, but there’s a chance that Simon may have wrapped up his chores and has
been waiting for Jesus to finish up so he could pull his boat back ashore and
secure it before leaving. His patience may have been wearing thin. He was very
likely relieved and ready to go home when the Saviour concluded his remarks.
But then, here we arrive at Luke 5:4, which we already know says:
“Now
when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and
let down your nets for a draught.”
And now Simon faces a dilemma. He respects the Saviour and
knows there is something different about him. But the Saviour isn’t a fisherman,
since all the real fishermen of that time and area knew that the best fishing
was at night, when the fish couldn’t see the nets and swim around them, and the
cooler temperature brought more fish to the surface. Fishing in broad daylight
just wasn’t how they did things back then. And Simon is tired and doesn’t want
to undo all the difficult preparation he’s already done of folding and cleaning
his nets.
Can you imagine the thoughts likely going through Simon’s
head at this moment? Why in the world would this carpenter’s son from Nazareth
tell me, Simon Peter, a successful fisherman with two boats, to set out in
broad day light, likely with other fishermen still nearby who would see see me
being foolish, to fish where there are clearly no fish, to undo all the work I
have just done, which I’ll then have to repeat all over again. Like, sheesh,
this isn’t “Take Your Kid to Work Day,” if this guy wants to see a fishing demo
why can’t he just come back tonight? I’m tired, I’m depressed, and I want to go
home. But how Simon responds changes the trajectory of his entire life. We read
in verse 5:
“And
Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have
taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.”
Somehow, Simon was able to put aside his physical discomfort
and disappointment. To disregard what any nearby fisherman might think of him
setting out during the day. To ignore his better judgement and obey the call of
the man who had healed his mother-in-law and seemed to draw a crowd everywhere
he went. And this is what happened:
“And
when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their
net brake.
And
they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they
should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that
they began to sink.”
Despite all logical reasoning,
Simon and his partners find themselves struggling to return to shore with what
is likely the catch of a lifetime. Choosing to “launch out into the deep” has
proven to be an enormous blessing and it is only the beginning of all the
miracles and blessings they are going to witness at the hands of the Saviour.
My two greatest take aways from
this story and the phrase “launch out into the deep” are these:
1)
Simon Peter was commanded to do something vastly
different from what all the other fishermen on the Sea of Galilee were doing
and
2)
He was given a difficult task, requiring a lot
of extra effort, when it would have been so much easier to remain on land and
go home for some rest.
Let’s explore these thoughts and
how they apply to you today, standing at the cusp of young adulthood.
Whether you want it to happen or
not, your time in High School and the Youth Programs of the church is going to
come to an end. You might be super excited about this, or filled with a
paralyzing dread like I was. Yup, I was one of those. I would have gladly
signed up for grade 13 if such an option existed. Some of you are going to
serve missions, some of you may head south to a church school or just any
post-secondary school anywhere, and some of you may decide to start working
right away. No matter what your plans are, adulthood is coming for you, and
it’s exciting!
With the way your lives have been
super charged with technology and social media, I think it’s safe to assume
you’ve seen a movie or a reel or a post or 500 that have given you snippets of
what the world deems as normal young adult behaviour and experiences. Hook-ups
and hangovers, am I right? It’s pretty obvious that the lifestyle and choices
you have been raised to pursue and make as members of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-Day Saints is in grave contrast with what the world glorifies.
If you haven’t already found yourself in a situation where you are the anomaly
in a group of people, whether it’s with your classmates or coworkers, that time
is fast approaching. Just like Simon Peter probably looked over his shoulder to
see who was watching when the Saviour told him to “launch out into the deep,
and let down your nets,” you too have been commanded to live a life wildly
different from the norm. Abstaining from drugs and alcohol, keeping the sabbath
day holy, paying tithes and offerings, and obeying the law of chastity.
Choosing to obey each of those is different, and President Nelson, in his 2019
Youth Devotional title “Hope of Israel” both encourages and praises this
striving to be different. And I quote:
“…
be different from the world. You and I know that you are to be a light to the
world. Therefore, the Lord needs you to look like, sound like, act like, and
dress like a true disciple of Jesus Christ. Yes, you are living in the world,
but you have very different standards from the world to help you avoid the
stain of the world.
With
the Holy Ghost as your companion, you can see right through the celebrity
culture that has smitten our society. You can be smarter than previous
generations have ever been. And if you are sometimes called “weird,” wear that
distinction as a badge of honor and be happy that your light is shining
brightly in this ever-darkening world!”
It didn’t take me long to realize
how different I was when I began going to school at NAIT in Edmonton. I soon
learned that swearing happened a lot outside the bubble of Raymond. Like a lot,
a lot. Especially when your program is just down the hall from the trades
school. But I chose to lean on the church for comfort while adapting to my new
surroundings, and therefore I chose to be different. While attending an
institute class, we were encouraged to invite a non-member to come with us to
our next class. I had begun to make a friend at school and after mustering a
lifetime’s worth of courage I extended the invitation. To which she gave the
incredulous reply: “You want to me go to an institution with you?” Like I had
just invited her to come to an insane asylum with me. Long story short, she
didn’t end up coming, she definitely thought I was a bit weird, but we were
still friends and I was blessed with the experience of realizing that
missionary work isn’t as terrifying as it seems and I can survive making someone
think I’m weird.
I challenge you to have the
courage to be different, to actively choose to be different. Choosing to serve
a full-time mission is different. Choosing to live like a true disciple of
Jesus Christ is different. Choosing to “launch out into the deep” was very
different for Simon Peter but remember how blessed he was for having the
courage to be different! I encourage you to “launch out into the deep,” CHOOSE
TO BE DIFFERENT.
My second takeaway from the
beginning of Luke 5 was how difficult the task was that the Saviour gave to
Simon Peter. In less words, the Saviour essentially asked Simon to sail far
from the shore and to undo all the work he had just done untangling and drying
and folding. Work he’d have to repeat all over again once he got back. Choosing
to follow the Saviour at that moment was probably the most difficult thing that
Simon could have done. But he did it anyway and was richly blessed for it.
So what am I getting at here?
Should you go out of your way to find the most difficult way to do things, like
washing your clothes by hand and completing your math homework without a
calculator? Not quite. I like the way Mitt Romney explains it in his commencement
speech he gave at Southern Virginia University back in 2012, with the same
theme as our conference today:
“Launch
out into the deep. Don’t live in the shallows; live in the deep waters. Grasp
every ennobling experience that’s available to you. Embrace every dimension of
living that challenges you, that educates you, that elevates you. Live for
purposes greater than yourself. Lose yourself in the service of others. Reach
beyond the shallowness of selfishness and complacency, and mindless conformity
and of indulgence. This is the promise: launch out into the deep and your nets
will be filled.”
By now you’ve probably discovered
that there are entertaining and easy ways to pass your time. You may have even
found yourself spending an hour or two on your phone or playing video games and
been amazed at how the time flies when you’re having fun. It would be so
carefree and nice to float through life unencumbered and at your own leisure,
right? To just stay on the shore and politely turn down any challenges that
take you out of your comfort zone and into the deep. When you finally move out
on your own, whether it’s to serve a mission, attend school, or work, you’ll
soon realize that the only person with the authority to get you off the couch
and doing the difficult task of “launching into the deep” is yourself. And some
days it’s going to be downright difficult to pull yourself away from your damn
phone. You heard me right, I just cussed at the pulpit, and I feel a little
bad, but I mean the word literally! Your phone, or anything that keeps you from
growing and fulfilling your potential, is a damn, stunting your forward
momentum. I hesitate to share this quote from C.S. Lewis, but after reading it
as a young adult not much older than you are now, fewer quotes have resonated
as deeply and impressed upon my mind the importance of holding myself
accountable and refusing to give in to the easy way out. In Lewis’ book “The
Screwtape Letters” you read the correspondence between a “junior temptor” named
Wormwood and his experienced senior “demon” uncle. Uncle Screwtape offers all
sorts of advice on how to bring the downfall of man, the following quote
included:
“It
does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is
to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing. Murder is no
better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed the safest road to Hell is
the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings,
without milestones, without signposts.”
Now please don’t run home and tell
your mom and dad that I said looking at your phone too much is like murder and
going to send you to Hell. That isn’t true at all. What I hope you take away
from that quote and this part of my talk is that there are so many easy
distractions and excuses that will keep you on the shore of life and prevent
you from the joy and growth of what occurs when you “launch out into the deep.”
I love the way Sister Chieko N. Okazaki, a former First Counsellor in the
General Relief Society Presidency, describes this. She first lists the vibrant
activity to be found on the beach, how it would be so easy to spend your entire
life there basking in the endless distraction and entertainment a beach has to
offer. But then she adds:
“…
the Saviour wants us to pull for the deep, to launch into the deep water,
because he has treasures for us that simply don’t exist and can’t exist in the
sand, the froth, and the constant activity of the beach…
The
deeps are not just the deep knowledge of the gospel but also the deeps in you.
I hope you have a beach part of your personality where there’s a lot of
scrambling and laughing and sunning. But I hope there’s also a part of you that
wants to leave the shallow, sandy self and go into the deep.”
If you allow free time and
distractions to steal time from meaningful things like developing friendships,
giving service, discovering and pursuing new talents and hobbies, and setting
aside time each day to grow closer to your Saviour and strengthen your
testimony, you may find yourself edging away from the Light and coming to
regret and mourn all your wasted time and potential. Choose now to make time
away from the beach, time in the depths where you can be challenged and grow, a
priority. Follow in Simon Peter’s footsteps and heed the call to “Launch out
into the deep,” for you will inevitably be blessed, just as he was.
By now your mind might be swirling
with choices you can make that are both different from the norm and even
difficult to stick to, decisions that require sacrifice and result in
blessings. For the sake of time, I’ll only dive into one, a choice you face now
that is completely different from what the media portrays as normal teenage and
young adult behavior, and a choice that can be difficult to remain true to. Any
ideas what fits those criteria? If you’re thinking “The Law of Chastity,”
you’re correct. Now, if you’re anything like I was at your age, there’s
probably some kind of alarm going off in your head letting you know things are
going to get awkward because she said chastity and that means talking about sex.
I’ll admit if chastity and marriage were ever brought up when I was in your
position at a youth conference, I would tune right the heck out. Just retreat
into my head and turn up the volume on my inner dialogue so I couldn’t possibly
focus on or hear what the speaker was saying. “I wonder if so-and-so is staying
for the dance. He probably won’t ask me to dance anyways because I’m so tall.
Don’t listen to the talk… Just hum your favorite hymn!” I realized when I got
older that I did this because I had been primarily taught about sexual intimacy
using shame and fear. So, I was ashamed when chastity was brought up and afraid
to listen. I actually had the privilege of speaking to the youth in Raymond
about chastity last fall. I must have been asked to speak here again tonight
because the youth from Raymond need to hear a talk about chastity twice.
Kidding. But please, before I proceed, promise you won’t tune me out and I
promise I will not talk about chastity and sexual intimacy using shame and
fear. In fact, I might even make you laugh.
So when I spoke last fall, I began
my talk with introducing a Disney movie that I think is the PERFECT analogy for
chastity. Let’s see if you guys can guess the movie based on this quote
(Raymond youth – no cheating!):
“In the beginning, there was only
ocean, until the Mother Island emerged: Te Fiti. Her heart held the greatest
power ever known; it could create life itself.”
You’re right – Moana. So how the
heck is Moana a good analogy for chastity? Honestly, I can’t even watch the
movie anymore without relating it to chastity. To share it with you, I’ve
broken it into three parts.
First, in this analogy, you
are Te Fiti and you have the greatest power ever known; the power to create
life itself. Can we take a second to celebrate these facts? “We are created
‘in the image of God’ (Genesis 1:27) which means that our bodies, including our
sexual organs, are a divine creation.”[1]
Our anatomy is divine, AND the way it functions, is divine. There is nothing
dirty, gross, or shameful about yourself. In fact, President Nelson calls our
bodies a “transcendent miracle.”[2]
Each of us has the power to create LIFE – not “just a baby,” but a life as
unique and complex as your very own. The fact that your body is made in the
image of God and has the power of creation like God makes YOU Godlike,
or divine. You have been entrusted with something magnificent, a superpower,
“the greatest power ever known.” This is not something to be ashamed of or
embarrassed by.
Now, if you’ve had the chance to
take any biology classes, you’ve learned that there are involuntary functions
and processes run by our autonomic nervous system, like your heart rate and blood
pressure. You cannot simply will your heart into beating faster. You do not
have control of your heart. But there are actions you can take to speed it up,
like running, or slow it down, like sleeping. Guess what, digestion and sexual
arousal are also controlled by your autonomic nervous system, meaning, there
will come times where you have no control over a sudden response, like your
stomach grumbling because it’s hungry, but you do have control over how you
react. Let’s talk about fasting and the response of your digestive system and
how you react, but in the back of your mind think about how this correlates
with sexual arousal. During your fast you may suddenly feel hungry. Someone
might start talking about food or you might see someone eating and then feel
hungry. We would never condemn ourselves as being a bad person because we feel
hungry while fasting. But there are ways we could choose to cope with our
hunger that would be problematic. Would constantly scrolling through pictures
of food on your phone be helpful during your fast? Would telling jokes about
food or talking about all the food you want to eat be beneficial to your fast?
Because you’re at this wonderful
age of life where you’re just saturated with hormones, you’re going to have
thoughts or feelings that are sexual in nature. This is normal and good.
Acknowledge them, be grateful for them because it means your body is working.
But just like when you’re fasting, recognize that that feeling will soon pass
and there is no need to act on it now. You have control over how you react to
your body’s autonomic responses. This is called mindfulness.
Okay, the next part of the
analogy is “But in time, some began to seek Te Fiti’s heart.” If you’re
familiar with the War in Heaven and Plan of Salvation, can you guess who it is
that seeks to demean and frustrate the sanctity of your “power to create life
itself?”
The adversary. Not only do we
have a physical body and Lucifer does not, we also possess the ability to
create physical bodies for more of God’s spirit children. Can you imagine how
frustrating this must be to him?
Elder Bednar sums this up so
wonderfully: “Because a physical body is so central to the Father’s plan of
happiness and our spiritual development, Lucifer seeks to frustrate our
progression by tempting us to use our bodies improperly. One of the ultimate
ironies of eternity is that the adversary, who is miserable precisely because
he has no physical body, entices us to share in his misery through the improper
use of our bodies. The very tool he does not have is thus the primary target of
his attempts to lure us to spiritual destruction.”[3]
How does Lucifer tempt us to use
our bodies improperly? I’m sure we could come up with a pretty extensive list,
but for the sake of brevity, I’ve come up with 3 big ones that I think nearly
any temptation could be categorized under.
The first one is shame.
Remember how I said I felt shame and fear while learning of chastity while
growing up? Who do you think those feelings came from? From the very beginning
of human existence, the adversary has been trying to convince us that we should
be ashamed of our bodies and sexuality. Do you recall how in the garden of Eden
after partaking of the fruit, Adam and Eve hid themselves from God and sewed
clothes of fig leaf?[4]
Shame is a powerful weapon the adversary is well versed in using against us.
What does this look like in your life today?
He uses shame to make you too
embarrassed or afraid to ask your parents for answers or guidance. He uses
shame to attack your self-worth. Have you ever heard that little voice after
you’ve made a mistake that asks, “what’s the use in trying?” or “I might as
well just do this again because I’ve already messed up.” The adversary loves it
when he can convince you to give up and just settle where you are, when he can
get you to rationalize more mistakes because you’ve already made the one. Why
try to change when you’ve already messed up. Or I’ll change later, after I make
a few more mistakes.
If you’re struggling with
pornography, or content that is sexually suggestive, shame is how the adversary
is keeping you captive. Shame makes you think you need to keep this struggle a
secret. Or that there is no use in trying to escape. I assure you that this is
not true. Not a single person here tonight is perfect, and there is no shame in
that. Your parents and bishop are here to help, and I can almost guarantee that
if you came to them for help, they would reply with sympathy and love.
The second way the adversary
tempts you to use your bodies improperly is through what I like to call your
“Hunger for Experience.” Your “hunger for experience,” is your nearly
insatiable desire to experience everything life has to offer. You’re at the
stage of life marked by anticipating and experiencing firsts: going to the
temple, going to dances, getting your learners and drivers licenses, going on
first dates, having your first kiss. Being your age is EXCITING! It is natural
to want to experience the thrill of holding hands and kissing, cuddling and
dating. You likely hear the rumors or stories about just how “far” your peers
have taken their intimacy and likely feel a curiosity and desire to have a
similar experience.
Lucifer loves to capitalize on
this “hunger for experience” – the thrill of trying new things is easy to
manipulate into overstepping boundaries that are there to keep you safe. He’ll
make it seem like everyone else is trying this, that it’s okay to become more
intimate. Sadly, oftentimes the thrill of simply experiencing something clouds
your judgment regarding how to best experience something.
A prime example of this is my
first kiss. Shortly before I turned 16, my Mom could tell I was itching to get
kissing, so to help prevent me from doing some hasty she said if I could wait
until after turning 16 to have my first kiss, she’d buy me a blizzard from
Dairy Queen. This was a very tempting offer. Not long after this, while hanging
out with my friends, their boyfriends introduced me to a friend of theirs from
Hillspring. That should have been my first warning. Anyone here from
Hillspring? I’m kidding by the way – Hillspring people are great. Anyways, it
felt like fate had aligned us two third wheels and pretty soon we were what my
Dad likes to call “an item.” Did I really like him? No, not really. Did I even
really know him? Nope. I made it pretty clear that we couldn’t kiss because a
blizzard was on the line, which was when he told me he’d buy me a blizzard if I
did kiss him. I didn’t need much more convincing than that and before I knew
it, I was having my first kiss. And I kid you not, this is what went through my
head: “This is it?” I did not understand the hype one bit. It meant nothing to
me and was even a little gross. The worst part is, we didn’t even last long
enough for Mr. Hillspring to even buy me a blizzard. This is a prime example of
how your “hunger for experiencing” something NOW ends up sacrificing what could
have been the best experience. Do I regret my first kiss? Yeah. It would have
been nice for it to have been with someone that meant something to me and for
it to have been a genuine act of affection. Don’t be like me and waste your
firsts on people you don’t truly care about, for cred, because everyone else is
doing it, because you want to prove yourself, or because you weren’t patient
enough for it to be with the right person at the right time. You will regret
it! Recognize that there are experiences that are best reserved for within
marriage, specifically any act of sexual intimacy.
The last method I think that
Lucifer utilizes to tempt youth to toy with the law of chastity is by something
I’ve defined as willful ignorance. Willful ignorance is when you’ve
convinced yourself that you truly don’t know something is breaking the law of
chastity. Forgive me, but this is the part of my talk where I speak frankly. I
have heard of too many stories where young men and women have engaged in
blatant sexual behaviour all the while claiming they didn’t know it was against
the law of chastity.
You might have noticed during a
recent general conference that changes to the Strength of Youth were announced.
I love the changes, the youth of the church, meaning literally each one of you
here tonight, have been called to live a “higher law,” just like the followers
of Christ were while he was on the earth. Just like the specific and strict
rules of the law of Moses were fulfilled in Christ and replaced by a higher
law, each one of you here tonight has been called to adhere to a higher “For
Strength of Youth” guide than the one your parents and leaders were raised to
follow. You are choice spirits, and your Father in Heaven is so aware of your
abilities and strength of character. You recognize that just because the
clear-cutting language of what you shouldn’t do has been removed from the “For
the Strength of Youth” pamphlet, it doesn’t mean you have license to suddenly
do what is no longer listed. In the Doctrine and Covenants we read:
“For behold, it is not meet
that I should command in all things; for he (or she) that is compelled
in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant”[5]
I believe in your heart of hearts
you know what is breaking the spirit of the law of chastity. You know that
playing games in cars where you remove articles of clothing is breaking the
spirit of this law. You know that taking pictures of yourself in any stage of
undress or nakedness to be texted or shared is also breaking the spirit of this
law, not to mention the fact that these photos when shared or viewed improperly
constitute a punishable felony. Don’t do these things.
You also know that acts of
intimacy where you are touching another person’s private and sacred body parts,
with or without clothing, is breaking the spirit of this law. You know that
oral sex, touching your mouth to those sacred body parts of another person, is
sex, and is breaking the law of chastity outright. Stop twisting what isn’t
specifically listed or communicated regarding chastity to mean it isn’t
breaking this commandment. Stop selling yourself short, surely you feel it in
your mind and in your heart and no amount of negotiating with yourself has you
truly convinced that sexual loopholes aren’t exactly what they are: sex.
Instead of playing mental mind games to rationalize appetites and actions,
embrace that you have the agency to make these choices for yourself, and then
choose to be proud and protective of your ability to create life itself.
Finally, the last part of my
analogy. If you’ve been trying to sneak ahead and think of what the third
part of my Moana/chastity analogy is, you might have come to the conclusion
that it has something to do with Te Ka. Well, you’re right – if you break the
law of chastity, you’re going to turn into a demon of earth and fire. Kidding.
Just as in Moana, there are consequences to the heart of Te Fiti being taken,
there are undoubtedly consequences when your powers of procreation are misused.
You will not be instantly turned into a lava monster, but you will experience
consequences that are more like what Moana’s home island of Motunui undergoes.
Do you recall the gradual decay the island was slowly experiencing? How the
coconut groves were dying and the fishermen could no longer catch food?
Ironically, one consequence of
engaging in sexual intimacy outside of marriage is the toll it takes on the
relationship. What you may convince yourself is done to display deepened
feelings of love for another person oftentimes ends up creating such feelings
of guilt and regret that the relationship is no longer healthy and happy. Other
consequences you might be familiar with include such things as sexually
transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancy. I wish to focus on the gradual
consequence that only you can truly notice. As members of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we are familiar with the saying that “The Holy
Ghost cannot dwell in unclean temples,” but do we understand what losing the
gift of the spirit might look or feel like?
There have
been moments in my own life where I felt a diminished presence of the holy
ghost. I would describe these times as when the spirit of contention seemed to
reign, as I was more easily provoked to anger and frustration. The shame I
spoke of earlier also began to creep in and play a looping soundtrack of
negative self-talk in my mind. Lastly, a loneliness and loss of direction
seemed to settle in my heart. Each of these feelings would creep into my life
gradually until I’d find myself miserable. And no matter how much I tried to
fix things by reading my scriptures or saying more prayers, there was ever only
one way to make things right: repentance.
President
Nelson has taught us that “repentance is required of every accountable person
who desires eternal glory [and]… is the key to progress.”[6]
You have seen in Moana how the heart of Te Fiti is returned and the mother
island returns to her lush and beautiful self. You too have been blessed with
the ability to be made clean and new. No matter the sin or the size, through
the Atonement of Jesus Christ, each and every one of us has the miraculous gift
of being able to approach the Lord in humility, to recognize and apologize for
our shortcomings, and thus repent of our sins. If you know or think you may
have broken the law of chastity, take President Nelson’s instructions to heart,
he told us last spring:
“Please
do not fear or delay repenting. Satan delights in your misery. Cut it short.
Cast his influence out of your life! Start today to experience the joy of
putting off the natural man. The Savior loves us always but especially
when we repent…”[7]
If you fear you have already
broken the law of chastity, please do not allow the lies of being broken or
used or irredeemable to enter your head. As a church, we are familiar with
repentance and the gift we are given of a fresh start and new beginning each
and every week when we partake of the sacrament. This applies to you too. You
can choose now to be different from the world and committed to keeping a
difficult gospel principle. You can “launch out into the deep” in many ways,
including keeping the law of chastity.
Before I close, there is one last
interpretation of “the deep” I want to share with you. There will come “deeps”
in your life that you do not choose to “launch out into.” Whether you have
chosen to remain on the shores of life or have valiantly launched yourself “out
into the deep,” you will encounter trials, adversity, pain and unwanted change.
This is inevitable. There is no “Get Out of Trials Free” card here on Earth. Some
of your trials will be consequences of your own actions, while others will be
the results of factors beyond your control. I have no doubt that some of you
sitting in this room have already encountered some of the greatest hurts that
this life has to offer. My heart goes out to you.
I’m no different than you in this
regard. I have had heartaches and heaviness, sorrow and suffering. Something I
may possess that you have not had the time to acquire is the blessing of
retrospection. I’ve lived long enough that I can look back on my trials and
remember the light that was at the end of each tunnel, something you may not
have discovered yet as you trudge through the thick of your adversities. There
have been trials in my life that have convinced me I would drown in the downpour
of my tears, that I would be forever flooded with fear, and spend the remainder
of my life in the shadows of an overcast sky of overwhelm. You may be able to
relate.
But I want to remind you, as
residents of southern Alberta and southeastern British Columbia, each of us is
familiar with the importance of rain in our areas. Usually around this time of
year or further into the spring and summer, our church leaders will bring our
attention to the dire need of moisture, whether it is to aide in the growth of
crops or to help reduce the risk of wildfires. If we haven’t been already,
we’re encouraged to pray for rain, perhaps even organized as a stake to fast
for the life giving and sustaining moisture we need. We beg with our Father in
Heaven for the rain because we know the blessings that exist once the rain
clouds have cleared away. So it is with our trials. The overcast mind, the
downpour of emotions, what appears dark and cold and dreary, is what brings us
some of our richest blessings once the clouds part.
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:
“Adversity helps to develop a depth of character that comes in no other way.
Our loving Heavenly Father has set us in a world filled with challenges and
trials so that we, through opposition, can learn wisdom, become stronger, and
experience joy.”
I promise you that I have yet to
encounter a trial that has not blessed me, refined me, and brought me closer to
my Saviour. As a young girl, the terror of discovering my beloved dog dying in
a beaver trap prompted me to utter the most earnest prayer I had in my life.
Without that trial, I would not have been blessed with the lifelong testimony
that Heavenly Father hears and answers my prayers, as my dad was able to free
and save my dog. Years later, my dad’s life would be in peril after a horse
accident. Multiple doctors encouraged my mom, sisters, and I to say our
goodbyes. After accepting that my father’s life here on earth was likely over,
my testimony of the Plan of Salvation and eternal families was carved into
stone upon my heart. I knew I’d see my dad again. Fortunately, our family was
gifted a miracle and my dad is still here today. As a young newlywed, my mental
health took a turn for the worst. As I trudged through what my doctor called a
“major depressive episode,” I became convinced that the joy and light I had
felt earlier in my life was essentially over. As darkness consumed me and
almost my marriage, I managed to direct my faith towards my Saviour and the
advice and care of my family and doctor. As the clouds began to part, I
realized that that trial had gifted me with a newfound depth of compassion and
Christlike love for the people around me. As I stand before you today, I again
find myself encompassed by the rain clouds of adversity. 2023 has been the year
I found out I was pregnant with my 5th child and discovered that
deception and broken covenants would bring the end to nearly 11 years of
marriage. The rain and my tears have seemed to never cease this year. But I
know from experience and from a hard-won testimony of the Gospel that the sun WILL
eventually come out and that I WILL find myself blessed for my faith and
endurance. By no fault of my own, I have been “launched out into the deep,” and
it is hard, but I know when I return to the shore that I will return a refined
and richly blessed daughter of God because of it. So it is with you. There are
deeps you get to choose to pursue, and there are deeps that you will be thrown
into. Choose to see the trials you endure for the rich blessing of moisture
that they are. The sun will always come out after a rain. And the trials you
have endured will be for your benefit.
I would like to close with my
testimony…
[1]
Ensign, August 2020
[2]
Russell M. Nelson, “Your Body: A Magnificent Gift to Cherish,” New Era,
Aug. 2019, 2.
[3]
David A. Bednar, “We Believe in Being Chaste,” Ensign, May 2013, 43.
[4]
Gen. 3:7-10
[5]
D&C 58:26
[6]
Russell M. Nelson, “The Power of Spiritual Momentum,” Ensign, 98.
[7]
Russell M. Nelson, “The Power of Spiritual Momentum,” Ensign, 98.
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