Pondering
The Words of the Prophet
Hello
friends and neighbors. I thought I would share some thoughts on our
recent message from the prophet (September 2014 - Message from the First
Presidency).
The
message from the First Presidency this month is titled " Are We
Prepared? ". In the words of the Prophet, "We live in turbulent times."
This is the message the Lord wants shared by Home Teachers to every
member of the Church throughout the world. That alone is significant!
When
I first began reading his cute little story about the service project
at the chicken farm, I was tempted to skim through it without giving it
much thought. Then I recalled President Clare telling us that President
Monson does not just tell cute stories, but like the Savior speaks in
parables.
After
pondering this for a few weeks it finally became clear what he meant in
his story at the beginning of his message. For those that read his
message, "Are we Prepared?", President Monson begins with an odd story
about a chicken ranch. Like me, your initial read may have regarded this
as a story of a sentimental memory that vaguely had something to do
with the Church farms. However this is a parable with deep significance.
The
key to understanding the parable - which has to do with getting us
prepared -- is to realize that the members of the Church are the
chickens and the workers are the general Church leadership - especially
the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve.
Here's his story:
"In the vicinity
where I once lived and served, the Church operated a poultry project,
staffed primarily by volunteers from the local wards. Most of the time
it was an efficiently operated project, supplying to the bishops'
storehouse thousands of fresh eggs and hundreds of pounds of dressed
poultry. On a few occasions, however, being volunteer city farmers meant
not only blisters on the hands but also frustration of heart and mind.
"For instance, I
shall ever remember the time we gathered the Aaronic Priesthood young
men to give the project a spring-cleaning. Our enthusiastic and
energetic throng assembled at the project and in a speedy fashion
uprooted, gathered, and burned large quantities of weeds and debris. By
the light of the glowing bonfires, we ate hot dogs and congratulated
ourselves on a job well done.
"However, there was
just one disastrous problem. The noise and the fires so disturbed the
fragile population of 5,000 laying hens that most of them went into a
sudden molt and ceased laying. Thereafter we tolerated a few weeds so
that we might produce more eggs."
He then goes on with his message, which is, in my own words:
1)
Don't assume the Church has food for you; they have been telling you to
get your own supply. Like the chickens who went into a molt - supplies
may run dry suddenly due to bumps or hiccups in the economy.
2) You need more than food; you need clothing and the "other necessities of life,"
3) He chides the members who have not done so, but instead "have a supply of debt and are food-free," and
4) Counsels us to set aside money and get out of debt "as quickly as you can."
Perhaps President Monson is trying to tell us
that he is caught between the need to warn us about preparing for the
future, and the sensitivity of the saints to be alarmed that something
bad is on the horizon. He could use words of "destruction and fire," but
that would be counterproductive; the "fragile population" of members
would stop living their lives in a productive, one-egg-a-day kind of
way. Once some chickens get it into their minds that the sky is falling,
their lives will become unbalanced and fearful.
So
instead of telling us WHY we need to prepare, he tells us HOW we need
to be prepared. And those that believe he's a true prophet, will just
have the faith and prepare regardless of the details. Kind of like, "He
who has ears to hear", will hear or feel the importance of the words.
President
Monson said that it would be best for "every family in the Church to
have a supply of food, clothing, and, where possible, other necessities
of life." In reading an old talk by President Benson, I found this exact
quote. Exactly. Even the four commas are in the same deliberate places.
However, there is one change: President Benson said that where
possible, we should have fuel. Our current prophet expanded this to not
just include fuel, but recognized that there are other "necessities of
life" for which we must have on hand. Some of these things we can easily
identify. But some of these "necessities" require us to know "WHY" and
for what we are preparing for. For this, I believe you must either use
the Spirit of revelation promised to guide you, or the accounts of other
inspired individuals whose words don't risk causing the membership of
the Church to go into a sudden molt.
When something is mentioned in all the
cannons of scripture, I believe it is not just a coincidence, but has an
intended extra measure of significance. In the Bible, The Book of
Mormon and several times in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord has
told us that He wants to gather us to safety, even as a hen gathereth
her chickens under her wing.
But in all three accounts, He laments that there are those that simply
"would not." We need to listen to the Lords mouthpiece -- the Prophet --
and prepare, so that when the call from danger is declared to the
Church, we will be ready. In the First Presidency Message before this
month's, we were reminded of the law of the harvest; we reap what we sow
... nothing more.
As
many of you know, the Christensen's have felt strongly prompted to
prepare for coming calamities. Like many others in our ward, we were
very specifically told by the Spirit to leave homes in other parts of
the country and directed to relocated exactly where we are today. I'm
convinced that we truly are in the days of tribulation prophesied in the
scriptures. Whether we live to witness the Second Coming, in our
lifetimes, is yet to been seen, but I hold this as very possible. I even
believe we may see miracles that even surpass those witnessed by the
Children of Israel when they were called to gather and leave Egypt. But
before Christ returns, there will be serious calamities for which we
must prepare.
President
Monson's closing words are these: "Are we obedient to the commandments
of God? Are we responsive to the teachings of prophets? ... We live in
turbulent times. Often the future is unknown; therefore, it
behooves us to prepare for uncertainties."
Notice
he didn't say "The future is unknown, therefore ..." If anyone has had
the future revealed to them-- and many have -- he has! And then he
closes with this interesting and ominous warning: "When the time for
decision arrives, the time for preparation is past."
Notice again that he didn't say, "When the time for calamity
arrives, the time for preparation is past." This is what we would
expect would be said. But he used the word "decision." "When the time
for decision arrives, the time for preparation is past." This is
because, I suspect, there will be a decision for each of us to make.
When the time for the decision arrives, all our preparation must be
pre-accomplished.
These are just my impressions. I encourage each of us to seek the promptings of the
Spirit to confirm the validity and timeliness of our prophets' message
and what it means to you and your family's life. Please act on any
impressions! And please feel free to share this with others you know.
Blessings,
Brother Kyle Christensen
September 22, 2014
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