And Ye Shall Offer A Broken Heart

Great study today in Acts, chapter 5. Although this story seems dramatic at first glance, the symbolism behind what occurs definitely applies to us as we navigate this crazy life. So at the start of this chapter, we are introduced to Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, who sell a piece of land for a certain amount of money. Once they receive the money, they "[lay] it at the apostles feet" (Acts 5:2).

Peter observes that they are not being entirely honest and have kept part of the profit for themselves, instead of giving all they had, like they are implying. He confronts Ananias,asking, "Why hath Satan filled thing heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained,was it not thine own? After it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God." (3,4). After Peter's confrontation, Ananias, overcome by the guilt and fear of his actions, dies. His wife, Sapphira, is also confronted by Peter, and shortly after, also dies out of fear and shame.

So....what exactly is this story trying to teach us here? Seems kind of intense, right? Here's some thoughts after reading:

• God cares about the condition of our hearts
• God wants all of our heart, wants us to willingly come to Him
• Ananias and Sapphira's shame/fear caused them to "give up the ghost"
• Our shame/fear cut us off from God

Bottom line, God loves us all individually. He gave His only perfect Son so that all of us can live with Him again, He gave us our bodies, our spirits, our families- everything we have is because of Him. The only thing He cannot take by force and that He does not already own is our hearts. So all He asks in return for all He does is that we love him with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength. And even then, that is for our own good, so that we qualify for eternal life and are prepared to live joyfully in this life and in the next. Everything He does is to help us progress and to be the happiest we can be.

So why was Ananias and Sapphira's offering not enough? Why did Peter chew them out for holding on to some of the extra profit? It was because their hearts were not completely dedicated to God- their hearts were not willing to give him everything they had. Christ tells us: "And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit." (3 Nephi 9:9,20) It wasn't about the money they were withholding- it was the fact that they were not willing to give God all of their hearts.

There are so many other examples in the scriptures that illustrate this concept: Cain's offering not being what God instructed and also being evil because of the condition of his heart, the pharisees not giving as much as the widow and her two mites because they were not giving all they had, the rich young ruler who could not part with his possessions when asking what more he could do, etc.

Also, I found it interesting that once confronted with their decision, both Ananias and his wife, Sapphira "gave up the ghost." (Acts 5:5, 10). It doesn't say that God struck them down or punished them for their behavior- they both forfeited the will to live. Whether it was because of overwhelming shame or fear of what would happen to them, it doesn't specify in the chapter- but I feel the point of including their deaths shows us what will happen spiritually to each of us when we choose not to give all of our hearts to God. When we choose to give into shame or fear over what we've done, we distance ourselves from God, intentionally or unintentionally. When we choose not to give all we have to him, we intentionally cut ourselves off from his presence, spiritually dying as we withhold parts of ourselves from him.

So where are you holding back? What parts of your heart are you not giving to God right now? The wonderful thing is, once we recognize we are with holding, we have the capacity to change, no matter how hard it is. I know that God loves you and is so proud of all you are doing. I know He loves each of us and that everything He does is to help us here in mortality, and especially in the life to come. I hope you have a great week!

Emily  

Rise Up and Walk

Great study today relating to my focus last week on turning weaknesses into strengths!

In chapter 3 of Acts, Peter and John come across a man lame since birth. This man spends his time begging for money and food in front of the temple to earn a living. As Peter and John draw closer, they tell him to look at them and focus on what they say. He turns his attention to them, "expecting to receive something of them," (5) which I'm guessing means he expects money from them to help him get food later on. 

Instead of providing this man with what he thinks he needs, Peter and John give him something far greater: the ability to walk. This man has never had the capacity to walk, and I'm guessing, in turn, has not had the opportunity to rely on his own strength to care for himself. Peter tells the man he has no money to give, "but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk." (6) What happens next is incredible, "And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, leaping, and praising God." (6-8)

What just happened here? This man, who has not ever had the ability to walk has been changed in an instant. His whole life has been influenced by this weakness, from not being able to get himself where he needs to go on his own, to not being able to support himself (hence the begging in front of the temple). Instead of giving him the money he wants to buy himself food and help him survive, Peter and John provide a way for him to provide for himself by granting him the ability to walk. I feel like this story is a beautiful way of demonstrating Christ's capacity to turn our weaknesses into strengths.

Without Christ's help, we are like this man, unable to walk on our own and limited in our resources and ability to progress. However, with Christ's help, we are granted the capacity to walk, or to have our weaknesses turned into strengths. Looking at walking symbolically, there is so much power that comes with what that entails. When we have the ability to walk, we can choose our path- whether we take steps to draw closer to God, or whether we will choose to walk away from him. When we are unable to walk (again, symbolically) we are stuck and our progression is hindered.

I love that Christ wants us to walk on our own. He wants us to willingly choose to follow him, to give our weaknesses to him and willingly live in a way that we can return to the presence of God.

Great study- I'm very grateful for what I learned today.

I hope you have a great week!

Much love,

Emily

That Ye May Be the Children of Your Father which is in Heaven

Matthew 5

All of the examples Christ gives imply that he is not just looking at your outward actions, but he is looking at the condition of your heart

-"Ye have heard it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be danger of the judgement. But I say unto you whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgement" (Matthew 5:21-22)

-"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time: Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." (27-28)

So why does that matter? Why does it matter what your heart, thoughts, and inner workings are?

From what I gather, it all comes down to who you are and who you will become. Actions are based off of internal thoughts, beliefs, and where your heart is. If you are angry or upset with someone internally, even if you treat them well externally, you are only doing yourself damage in the long run. Eventually, your true inner feelings will come out, one way or anther, whether it's through a snarky, rude remark, the way you treat them (intentionally or unintentionally, etc), or anything else, you are the one who suffers most on the inside.

Why is it important to learn to treat ALL (not just those who are kind to you, but everyone) with respect?

Christ says that if we are really to be the light of the world (following his example) we need to treat others the way God treats them. Why? 

"That ye may be the children of your Father which is in Heaven: for maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good and sendeth rain to the just and on the unjust."

"For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your father in Heaven." (45-48)

Looking at the Greek translation of perfect gives us "teleos." According to the Greek translation, there are three main ideas associated with this word:

1. that which is complete — which contains all the requisite parts.

2. that which is so good that nothing of the kind could be better.

3. that which has attained its purpose.

So looking at being perfect like God indicates that we are complete and have the capacity to still feel the whole spectrum of human emotions (think of Enoch seeing God weep). I feel, the biggest difference between us and God at this point, is that because He is a complete (perfected) immortal Being, He has a full understanding of how to appropriately express His emotions. That doesn't mean He still doesn't feel anger, disappointment, grief, pain, discouragement and sadness. It means that His love for us is also complete (perfect), which allows Him to look beyond our flaws, mistakes, and weaknesses, and allows Him to help us become the best we can be.

If we are to become like our Father in Heaven, the best way to do that is to follow the perfect example of Christ, who is the light of the world. As we follow His example and become like Him, we will shine that good old light as well.

Some others reasons to learn to become like God:

-Preparing us to be earthly parents one day- learning to love and respect your children even when they act against your beliefs

-Preparing to be Heavenly Parents one day

I think reading this chapter overall reminded me the importance of checking my motivations, emotions, and actions on a consistent basis. I know I still have a lot of work to do with keeping my emotions in check, and I know that one of my weaknesses that I want to improve on is making sure I don't let my emotions cloud reality (like getting anxious or frustrated or upset over an issue that is not really as big a deal that I think it is).

I'm grateful for the chance to improve my weaknesses through God's help, and by doing so, improve my relationships with those around me. Hope you have a great day!

Emlily

"Then Will I Make Weak Things Become Strong"

Hey howdy hey. It's been a while. I'm excited to be back.

I'm focusing on the theme of Christ's promise to turn weaknesses into strengths- and I am loving it. Lately I feel like I've been doing pretty poorly in a lot of areas of my life- work, school, friends, helping my direct community, as well as those around the world, calling, and painting, just to name a few. I think it's all part of being human, but it has been quite a difficult balance trying to figure out how to give my best in all, not just some areas of my life. And it's hard to know where to exactly focus your time and energy when there are so many things demanding your attention (which I know goes for the whole human family- not just me). Also, with all of the events going on in the world, locally and globally, it can be really discouraging as whole to feel like anything you do can make a difference.

Despite all these overwhelming feelings of hopelessness, inadequacy, and concern for how on earth I can help and how I'm supposed to get everything done, I feel like through sincere prayer and some great scripture study, I'm slowly learning (or relearning, rather) how giving it all to Christ makes all the difference. Although we may be weighed down by our own weaknesses, or the weaknesses of others, we are promised by Christ and by a few of his disciples that with his help, our weaknesses can become the best part of ourselves.

"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 if sufficient...for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong..." Ether 12:27

How beautiful is that?

I love the idea of taking something seen as negative and converting it to a positive. I love that Christ doesn't demand that you acquire a new personality, or that you act just like such and such down the road- all he requires is that you open your heart to him and he can help you see the gifts of your imperfections (that's right, just referenced good old Brene Brown). Often, our weaknesses are simply strengths that have been warped in an unhealthy way. As Christ states in that scripture up above, "I give unto men weakness that they may be humble..." He gives us weaknesses to help us grow. To help us empathize, and most importantly, to help us draw closer to him. If we can look at our weaknesses not as trials, but as gifts and chances for us to grow, we will learn far more about how to better love and respect ourselves, as well as the world around us.

This idea is also shared by Debbie Ford, author of Dark Side of the Light Chasers (great book if you're looking for something new to read). Basically, she emphasizes that we all have a "light shadow" (our strengths) and a "dark shadow" (our shortcomings, imperfections, weaknesses). These two shadows work to balance each other, and when we embrace both, we are able to more fully practice self compassion, forgiveness, and love, which in turn we can share with others around us. Ford encourages us to see that our dark shadow, our weaknesses, are merely opportunities for us to find new strengths. Someone might point out that you're blunt, which you see as a weakness of being mean. However, if you look at how it can potentially turn into a strength, like allowing you to be honest and open with others, which means others know you are trustworthy, reliable, and capable of communicating effectively, with Christ's help you can turn your weaknesses into some of the best parts about yourself.

Other quick thoughts:

Ether 12:27

• Weaknesses keep us humble
• Humility turns us to God, thru God weaknesses are strong
• Find the gifts of your imperfections!

Phillipians 4:13

• Testimony of Christ can help us through moments of personal doubt/frustration

Alma 26:12

• Recognizing where you've been helps you to keep progressing
• Gratitude for God's strength allows you to help others

I loved this study and I look forward to learning more! Hope you're having a lovely week!

Emily