Alma 7

ETERNAL LIFE
FAITH VERSES FEAR

Alma 7:15-16

 15 Yea, I say unto you come and fear not, and lay aside every sin, which easily doth beset you, which doth bind you down to destruction, yea, come and go forth, and show unto your God that ye are willing to repent of your sins and enter into a covenant with him to keep his commandments, and witness it unto him this day by going into the waters of baptism.

 16 And whosoever doeth this, and keepeth the commandments of God from thenceforth, the same will remember that I say unto him, yea, he will remember that I have said unto him, he shall have eternal life, according to the testimony of the Holy Spirit, which testifieth in me.

I think these scriptures illustrate the importance of where our heart is--there will our treasure be also. When we set our hearts on the things of our Heavenly Father, then we will be blessed. In these scriptures, we are promised eternal life. Keeping His commandments gives us safety. It keeps us on the pathway to His Kingdom. As we covenant through baptism that we are His, we witness to our Heavenly Father the desires of our hearts.

I also like in the beginning of verse 15 how it says that we should "fear not". I think many things that beset me are because of my lack of faith, or rather my fear.

Here is an excerpt from a talk I wrote that I feel illustrates this point:

In order to have the courage to follow these scriptural accounts of standing alone, we must have faith in the Lord, and not be fearful of the outcome. The second part of our scripture states, “be not afraid”. When we are fearful, we allow the world to get in the way of our ultimate goal and our faith is weakened. I think I am just beginning to understand the process of fear and faith. A few weeks ago, I had an experience while at Roaring Springs, with my kids, that has broadened my understanding. 

The day my children and I decided to go was the day the management at Roaring Springs planted decoys to test their lifeguards. While we were in the Lazy River, one of those "testings" occurred. All of a sudden, a panicked lifeguard was pointing, running, and blowing on her whistle. As I turned to see what she was pointing at, I could see a lifeless toddler on the bottom of the pool. My brain went on autopilot, and I gripped tighter to Jacob as I began running towards the child's body. I'm not sure why I didn't let go of Jacob, so that I could better help the child. Jacob was on a tube, and completely fine, but my mind didn't register that I needed both of my hands to better assist the drowning child. Instead, I tried frantically to lift the body with my one remaining hand. I felt alone as onlookers watched my struggle. When the lifeguard finally arrived, she quickly pulled the child the rest of the way out of the water. It was then that I realized the child was only a mannequin—a decoy in an effort to train the lifeguard. I walked away from the lifeguard and the limp mannequin, crying silently. I was grateful to have been wearing my sunglasses. I was hoping that they were shielding my children from my grief. I kept chiding myself for being upset--all the while, grateful that it WAS a mannequin and not a real child. I think this experience was simply too close to home for me.

When I was seventeen, my brother drowned. When he died, I found myself afraid to participate in water activities. My father told me that I couldn’t allow fear to control my actions. He taught me the importance of being faithful and not fearful. He taught me that it was a choice. This experience at Roaring Springs took me back eighteen years to the time when my brother was pulled out of a river, and as I walked around the Lazy River at Roaring Springs, all of those fears came rushing back.

I have a little guy who has had to deal with many fears. I have prayed and pondered of ways to help him. We have spent many hours facing his fears—fears of riding a bike, fears of swimming, fears of sleeping in his own bed. For the last three years, fears have been a constant struggle for my little man. There were times when I thought we would never overcome; however, this year has been a major breakthrough for us with many of his fears. This last week we went to a family reunion in Lake Powell, and my brother-in-law—having no idea of Jacob’s struggles—complimented Bryan and I for teaching Jacob courage. He said, “You and Bryan have done an amazing job with Jacob. He’s not afraid of anything.” I had to laugh. Out loud. And then I felt a surge of gratitude for the Lord’s hand in helping us overcome. 

As Jacob has struggled with fears, I have never related his fears to me; however, after my experience at Roaring Springs, I now think his struggle has partly been for me and I’m learning powerful lessons on fear. There are two lessons I’m beginning to understand. First, I believe fear works against faith. It pulls me away from my Heavenly Father. I may not understand everything in my life, there may be uncertainties, and most definitely there will be bad things that happen--I cannot prevent that. Fearing the bad will not stop the bad from coming.

When we face our fears with faith, God is near. He has offered us that promise. We must be believing. In D&C it states, "Search diligently, pray always, and be believing and all things will work together for your good." That is what faith is all about--it is believing that no matter what happens it is for our good. That doesn’t mean that bad things won’t happen—it just means that whatever happens will be for our good.

The second lesson I am learning, is that living by faith, not fear is something I need to choose daily. When my faith is strong, I feel confident. I am able to face the difficulties of each new day. In these moments, I am seeking the Lord, I am praying, and I am making Him a part of my life. It is in these moments that I am full of faith. And then there are times when I allow my problems to overwhelm me. I feel anxious, and worried—I forget to seek the source of my strength—(my Heavenly Father)—and I react poorly to the situations in my life. I am beginning to think that these are moments of fear.

It seems to me to be contradicting when I know that the Gospel is true (Gregory Clark, “Some Lessons on Faith and Fear, BYU Devotional, May 6, 2008), and yet I have to continually remind myself to choose faith rather than fear. Let me illustrate with a story from the Bible.

On a boat, in a stormy sea—Jesus was awakened by his apostles:

“Master, carest thou not that we perish?” (Mark 4:38).

The Lord calmed the storm, and then asked them, “Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith?”(Mark 4:40).

The disciples had sat at the Savior’s feet. They had witnessed the Savior’s power. The Savior was on the boat with them, and they knew that the Savior’s mission on earth was not yet complete; however, at that moment—it was difficult to see past the raging storm. It was explained in a BYU devotional that, “their memories of His works and His words and their hope in the future reality of His promises were not, at that moment, nearly so real to them as the storm…at that moment, the only things they had perfect knowledge of were the intensity of the storm, the fragility of their boat, the depth of the water, and their distance from the shore. At that moment their mortal senses were filled with fear: They could see and hear and feel the threat of their circumstances” (Gregory Clark, “Some Lessons on Faith and Fear, BYU Devotional, May 6, 2008).

The BYU devotional further explains that we know the gospel of the Restoration is true, but what we don’t know is how or when our trials will be resolved. The Lord has promised us that He will be with us, but at times—living in the day to day moments—it is easy to be uncertain (Gregory Clark, “Some Lessons on Faith and Fear, BYU Devotional, May 6, 2008).

Every day we have choices where we can choose to be fearful of the outcome, or we can choose to have faith. Let me illustrate with a personal story. A few years ago I backed into a dear friend’s brand new car. I found myself consumed with thoughts of expenses. Expenses of higher insurance rates and of fixing her car—even a little bump can cost several hundreds of dollars, or even thousands. One evening I was lamenting my concerns to my husband when he said, “Carrie, where is your faith?” I have to be honest—previous to his comment—I had never considered it a matter of faith; however, as soon as it was suggested, I knew I had not been faithful. Immediately, I repented, and I chose to have faith that it would all work out.

When President Hinckley spoke at his wife’s funeral he said, “It isn’t as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don’t worry. I say that to myself every morning. It will all work out. . . . Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us. . . . If we will put our trust in Him, if we will pray to Him, if we will live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers” [Gordon B. Hinckley, quoted in Latter-day Counsel, “Excerpts from Addresses of President Gordon B. Hinckley, ”Ensign, October 2000, 73; see also “Put Your Trust in God, “Ensign, February 2006, 63].

17 And now my beloved brethren, do you believe these things? Behold, I say unto you, yea, I know that ye believe them; and the way that I know that ye believe them is by the manifestation of the Spirit which is in me. And now because your faith is strong concerning that, yea, concerning the things which I have spoken, great is my joy.

I love that Alma says that his "joy" is full through sharing the Gospel. I feel the power of my testimony burn within my own heart. I know this Gospel is true. I feel it as I speak of Christ. I feel it as I search the scriptures. I feel it as I fulfill my calling. I feel it as I mother my children. I know my direction in this life, because of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I truly hope that someday my testimony will help others see what I feel, and experience the same joy I experience.