Today in Relief Society we talked about Elder Peter Johnson's talk from October's general conference: Power to Overcome the Adversary
Buckle up for a lot of quoting, because there's so much awesomeness in this talk.
"How do we find peace, remember who we are, and
overcome the three Ds of the adversary?"
Elder Johnson began his talk by saying, "...thank you for all you do to become, and to help others become, true
followers of Jesus Christ and enjoy the blessings of the holy temple.
Thank you for your goodness. You are wonderful; you are beautiful."
DECEPTION
After Moses' vision (Moses 1:4&6), Satan tried to deceive him. Elder Johnson said, "The adversary was relentless in his attempts to deceive Moses, but Moses
resisted, saying, 'Depart from me, Satan, for this one God only will I
worship, which is the God of glory.' Moses remembered who he was—a son of God.
The Lord’s words to Moses apply to you and to me. We are created in
God’s own image, and He has a work for us to do.
The adversary attempts
to deceive by having us forget who we truly are. If we do not understand
who we are, then it is difficult to recognize who we can become."
DISTRACTION
Elder Johnson warned that "the adversary also attempts to distract us away from Christ and His covenant path. ...technological advances are amazing, but if we are not careful, they can distract us from fulfilling our divine potential.
Let us be careful and not casual in our use of technology. Continually seek for ways that technology can draw us closer to the
Savior and allow us to accomplish His work as we prepare for His Second
Coming."
DISCOURAGEMENT
"Lastly, the adversary desires for us to become discouraged. We may get
discouraged when we compare ourselves to others or feel we are not
living up to expectations, including our own."
In his talk, Elder Johnson related a personal experience when "feelings of discouragement
and doubt began to take hold, almost overwhelming [him]."
My dear friends, please do not let anyone steal your happiness. Do not compare yourself to others. Please remember the loving words of the Savior: 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.'
Elder Johnson said the way to overcome "the three Ds of the adversary" is to...
First, remember that the first and great commandment is to love God with our heart, might, mind, and strength. All that we do should be motivated by our love for Him and for His Son. As we develop our love for Them by keeping Their commandments, our capacity to love ourselves and to love others will increase.
We will begin to serve family, friends, and neighbors because we will see them as the Savior sees them—as sons and daughters of God.
Second, pray unto the Father in the name of Jesus Christ every day, every day, every day. It is through prayer that we can feel the love of God and show our love for Him. Through prayer we express gratitude and ask for the strength and the courage to submit our will to God’s and be guided and directed in all things.
I encourage you to “pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, … that ye may become the sons [and daughters] of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him.”
Third, read and study the Book of Mormon every day, every day, every day. My Book of Mormon studies tend to go better when I read with a question in mind. As we read with a question, we can receive revelation and recognize that the Prophet Joseph Smith spoke truth when he declared, “The Book of Mormon [is] the most correct of any book on earth, … and a man [or a woman will] get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” The Book of Mormon contains the words of Christ and helps us remember who we are.
Lastly, prayerfully partake of the sacrament every week, every week, every week. It is through covenants and priesthood ordinances, including the sacrament, that the power of godliness is manifest in our lives. Elder David A. Bednar taught: “The ordinance of the sacrament is a holy and repeated invitation to repent sincerely and to be renewed spiritually. The act of partaking of the sacrament, in and of itself, does not remit sins. But as we prepare conscientiously and participate in this holy ordinance with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, then the promise is that we may always have the Spirit of the Lord to be with us.”
As we humbly partake of the sacrament, we remember Jesus’s suffering in that sacred garden called Gethsemane and His sacrifice on the cross. We express gratitude to the Father for sending His Only Begotten Son, our Redeemer, and show our willingness to keep His commandments and to always remember Him. There is a spiritual enlightenment associated with the sacrament—it is personal, it is powerful, and it is needed.
Elder Johnson left us with a promise. He said, "My friends, I promise that as we strive to love God with all our heart,
pray in the name of Jesus Christ, study the Book of Mormon, and
prayerfully partake of the sacrament, we will have the ability, with the
strength of the Lord, to overcome the deceptive practices of the adversary, to minimize distractions that limit our divine potential, and to resist the discouragement that diminishes our capacity to feel the love of our Heavenly Father and His Son. We will come to fully understand who we are as sons and daughters of God."
