Virtue and Strength

From the time we are children, we all have fears. There are things that every one of us is afraid of, and probably one or more things that each of us is afraid of more than almost anything else. Such as a fear of public speaking, or a fear of stepping outside our limits of comfort.

Babies and young children do not have these fears though. Fear is something we learn as we grow older. Fear is not of God, it is of the devil. We learn that in 2^nd Timothy 1:7 which says: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” Only good things can come from God. Trust and love, Strength and Courage, those are what come from God. Not fear.

One of Satan’s greatest tools is fear. This is a time of fear for much of the world. It is a time when the world is taking absolutely a million directions all at once, and we may not always be sure where our country will stand from one day to the next. We must be strong enough to stay on the right path. Sometimes we are weak, and we desire things that cannot be our own. Sometimes we stray, but we are blessed to always know right where that path is again once we start seeking to have it back in our lives.

None of us has always been perfectly faithful to God. Sometimes the temptations get to us. But God is always faithful to us and will always be there for us; in the good times, and in the bad.

With the change to the missionary age requirements, I found myself placed in a situation that I did not think would happen for a couple more years. I am still just nineteen. I have always been desirous to serve a mission, although I did not expect it so soon, and it was still something that had to be carefully thought over. This was one of the few decisions in my life that felt absolutely completely right though. So I am headed out, and really, it is a big deal, and very important. It is not an easy decision, nor is it an easy task. It’s not meant to be.

The world is falling to pieces in so many different directions. There are people everywhere that are suffering just horribly, whether through fault of their own, or through the fault of another. Sometimes our pride or our fear causes us to do things that we would not originally do. Sometimes we are afraid that we are never going to be good enough, sometimes we are afraid that maybe nobody could ever love us like we might want, and sometimes we might just be afraid of the challenges of the future that we have already seen before us.

But This is a time for us to be Strong! This is not a time for us to back down. God has called us to be soldiers in the Army of God, bearing up the armor of righteousness. The world is a scary place. People get killed hurt, or tortured in some way every day. But we do not need to be afraid. When we are filled with the Light of Christ, darkness cannot enter. The Holy Ghost comes upon us, and we are made strong.

God is near us at all times. We do not need to be afraid, although we all have weaknesses of human nature. If we trust in Him, He can make our weaknesses into our strengths. Ether 12:27 says: “And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”

There is nothing wrong with having struggles. There is nothing wrong with being afraid sometimes. We are all human. All of us have our greatest fears. But God is patient and will help us to overcome those fears, no matter how long it might take; Years, a lifetime, or even longer.

When I think of Strength, I often think of Alma. Alma: the Father of Alma the Younger. Alma was a priest in the court of the wicked King Noah. Alma had everything that he could possibly want. His position was, perhaps, envied by many. But when he heard the words of Abinadi, he knew them to be true. He could feel it inside of himself. He had the guts to turn his back on everything that he had previously known and go and believe the words of a prophet that his people had burned to death. He gave up his life of luxury, and took on a life of hardship, and of being hunted by the very people that he used to call friends. But he did it all for the right reasons. He did it all for God. He understood the greater importance of the things of God, and he was not afraid.

In the Bible, God commanded Joshua to, “… Be Strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: For the Lord they God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

As a church, we are still persecuted by the world. We always have been. Each of us that goes out stands as an example to the world. We are all examples to the world at all times. Sometimes you may never know who all is watching you. Sometimes you may not know just how much damage you could cause. You also may never know just how much good you can do for someone as well. So be careful, and always just assume the best of others. Judge only righteous judgments.

Do not speak badly of others. Do not think badly of others. Even if you think that what you see and what you have been told about them are just “facts”, you still do not know the whole truth, so do not act like you do. None of us has the right to speak badly about Anyone. None of us. We must be stronger than that. I would rather think good of a million people and be wrong than to think badly of one person, and then find out I was wrong about that.

Of course, none of us are perfectly good at any of this. But we struggle, and we try. Sometimes we snap and sometimes we lose our tempers. When there are two sides to a heated argument, both are wrong, for the anger that has filled their hearts. That is when we must be humble enough to apologize. Even if we feel that we were not wrong at all.

We all have the ability to judge for ourselves what is right, and what is wrong. The Holy Ghost will guide us. The Laws of Heaven are unchangeable and cannot be determined by a vote. We do not decide what is right and what is wrong, we are simply taught it, and then given the agency to choose for ourselves whether or not we decide to follow it. We cannot, however, ever force somebody else to follow it either.

I know the importance of standing up for what’s right. Edmund Burke once said that, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” We must stand up against wrongs and make our position known. However, it is also extremely essential that we realize the importance of standing up in the right way. If it is just going to be a fight, and there will be absolutely no progress made, do not participate. Missionaries are instructed not to participate in any sort of scriptural battle. Nobody can learn that way, for the Spirit cannot be present.

Fights, and anger, and bashing drive away the Spirit. God will hold us just as accountable if we go around condemning people when we have absolutely no authority to do so. All we can do is teach them, if they will listen; as well as be a really good example of the truths that we are trying to teach to them.

We don’t have to be afraid. God is our strength, and through Him, we can do all things

What is Strength though? And how might we obtain it?

In Mark 5 there is found a story of a woman that had an issue of the blood. She had great faith in God and in Jesus Christ. She knew that if she could just touch the border of His clothing, that she would be healed. When He passed her, she reached out and touched her hand to His clothes, and she was healed. It was her faith that caused her to be healed. The interesting part of this story is in verse 30 where it says: “And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?”

Virtue is often generally defined as purity and cleanliness. But there is another definition that is sometimes overlooked. It is no coincidence that in Greek, that same word actually means Power, and Strength. Our cleanliness and our purity is our strength and our power.

Cleanliness doesn’t have to mean that you have been totally and perfectly clean all the time. Anything that is unclean can become clean once again. It’s not always easy, but it is always, Always worth it. Once sins are fully repented of, they are forgiven, forgotten, washed clean, and they do not ever have to hurt you again. Also, do not let other people’s past flaws be your excuse for continuing to cause them pain. People change. They change every day.

I believe that people are inherently good. We are all sons and daughters of the Most High God. He is the Father of our Spirits, all of our Spirits, not just some. God is good, and there is absolutely no evil in Him. If we came from Him, we could not possibly be automatically evil. All any of us wants is just to be happy. And while certain things may bring temporary pleasure to us, we know the path to true happiness. It is by clothing ourselves in righteousness and seeking after the things of God.

It is a slow process sometimes, but one very much worth every step of time that it takes. Each of us has some things that we must learn to overcome. Don’t be judgmental of anybody that is struggling. Help others. Don’t hinder them. I speak of no one in particular, but just in general. If we cannot be good enough to help those that are in need, and instead just go around telling other people of their flaws or the things that they are struggling with, how do you think we will be treated when we stand in need of their help? How do you think we will feel when we stand before God and need His mercy? Do not judge, or do any form of it. God has said: “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” That is from Matthew 7: 1-3. We need to be better than that. Accusations and back-biting are only signs of immense pride in a person.

To close, I would just like to finish off with one more scripture. It is in Doctrine and Covenants 121, verse 45, and it reads: “Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.”

We don’t need to be afraid. God is always with us, in everything that we do. But we must seek for Him, for He cannot come into our lives until we let Him.

God is my Father, and I know that I can do anything through the strength that He gives me. Jesus Christ is His Son, and my brother. Christ suffered so that I don’t have to. Life is a process and a never-ending journey to happiness. Live your life, and be Strong.

I believe in this Gospel with all of my heart, and I am so excited to have this great opportunity to be able to go out into the world and preach the Gospel to all those who will listen. I know that God will guide us, and that nothing can stop the work from going forward. There is nothing better than to be a servant of the Lord, going forth to share the fullness of the Gospel, knowing of the happiness that it will bring to all those that will come unto Christ.

I believe in God the Father. I know that God has sent us to the Earth to progress and to grow, and that He will be with us in all that we do. I believe in revelation through God’s prophets, as well as personal revelation to each of us.

I know the scriptures to be true as well. 

Tara J. Howard

Written February 2013

Copyright September 2014