From: Paul Gage
FASTING, PRAYING, STUDYING, AND LIVING FOR THE KINGDOM OF GOD
JANUARY 29, 2021
God's blessings to all the lovely Saints Around the World,
The spiritual disciplines listed above are all so vital to our living for the Kingdom of God. We are told in Doctrine and Covenants 1:5 e "and also those to whom these commandments were given might have power to lay the foundation of this church, and to bring it forth out of obscurity, and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord am well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually;..." This revelation was given November 1, 1831, just nineteen months after the church was organized. It appears that the Lord was saying that as a "church" they were not getting the job done. It is easy to criticize or "judge" others, especially those who have gone before us, but it is not our calling to criticize or judge. Rather it is to take a close look at ourselves and see what we are accomplishing.
I believe that the True Church of Jesus Christ is alive and well on the face of the earth today. A question we might ask of ourselves is, "Is it living in me"? Can we see the church living in us and through us? If not, how will others see it? How can we, in our time, bring the church out of obscurity and darkness? Perhaps we can get a glimpse in 2nd Peter chapter one, verses 1-13.
It starts out, "...to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Savior, Jesus Christ;" Peter is talking to us. Read the rest of it for yourself, note verses 9-11. In spite of all the obstacles life and others may throw at us, we still are called to be a part of "the living church" and to project it to a world in spiritual darkness.
Sometimes we get into a routine and after a while begin to slack off some. I see this in myself, at times, and realize that I must get back into a proper frame of mind and relationship with Jesus. So, maybe as we are now past the new year resolutions, it might be time have a personal revival. How? By re-examining what we are doing with our fasting, praying and studying and thus, our living for the Kingdom of God.
May the Lord be with you and guide you, ever being by your side to touch you with His Spirit.
May we remember what Jesus said in Matthew 5, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the salt of the earth, ... Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the light of the world." My we go forth in His Name and do the things He has told us to do.
Paul Gage
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