Scripture Thought
1 Nephi 8:19-20
I have been lacking in my commitment to scripture thoughts. Since I seem to be in a limbo of sorts, I have decided to at least keep something in the blog, so you may see several of these in the next little while. On to Nephi:
Lehi seems to have made it. He found the tree, he partook of the fruit, he sought his family and beckons them to do the same. Why then does the vision continue? What else is there to learn? What do you think?
This is what I see:
We are here for more than just finding and partaking of the fruit of the tree of life. Once we have partaken, there is a great deal we need to continue doing. We must still live in a world of craziness. We need to know how to keep the peace, joy, and happiness that comes from partaking of the fruit and still associate with those that do not or have not found such a path to follow. It is not always easy. Is this what Lehi was to learn? Is this what we are being taught in these verses? I don't know, maybe.
Lehi starts with the path that leads to the tree. Along side it is an iron rod. It helps those who are on or following the strait and narrow path. I don't know how many times I have read this verse, heard references to it or thought about it in my own personal pondering, but I know it was years before I actually studied it.
Notice the spelling of strait. I don't think this was a mistake. When you hear references to this verse, I think we always think of a straight line. We think of the shortest and fastest path between two points, where we are and where we want to be. However, the more I think about life and the paths that we are all on, I don't think that this is the imagery we were supposed to conjure up in our minds.
It was a strait path. How do we describe a strait? If you look up images of straits, they are not very straight. To me, they look like a never ending series of winding paths. They may all get to the same place, but they don't always get there the same way. One could get seriously lost in a strait. I wonder if that is not the message being delivered here. It does not matter where we are coming from, once we find the strait, we can arrive at the right place, we just need a guide to get us there. That guide would be the iron rod, the word of God, that will not lead us a stray.
I think it is important to note as well, that straits are not always smooth paths, they can be treacherous. It is not always smooth sailing once on the path. Making it to the other side takes work, focus, effort, and time. There will be times that we may slip, stumble, falter, or get winded. The important thing here is to keep holding to the rod and keep moving forward as best we can.
I wonder what it was like for Lehi as he watched those of his family grasp the rod and move through the strait. Could he see them from the tree? Did they just vanish from his sight and he had to hope they would make it? I don't know. I know how much concern, time, effort, and prayer I spend hoping my family will make it through the strait. I know how much I struggle on my own path. How must our Heavenly Father feel? What does he see?
Hold tight. Make it a part of your lives. If you are not grasping the rod tightly now, re-evaluate and grab on. Don't let go.
I have been lacking in my commitment to scripture thoughts. Since I seem to be in a limbo of sorts, I have decided to at least keep something in the blog, so you may see several of these in the next little while. On to Nephi:
Lehi seems to have made it. He found the tree, he partook of the fruit, he sought his family and beckons them to do the same. Why then does the vision continue? What else is there to learn? What do you think?
This is what I see:
We are here for more than just finding and partaking of the fruit of the tree of life. Once we have partaken, there is a great deal we need to continue doing. We must still live in a world of craziness. We need to know how to keep the peace, joy, and happiness that comes from partaking of the fruit and still associate with those that do not or have not found such a path to follow. It is not always easy. Is this what Lehi was to learn? Is this what we are being taught in these verses? I don't know, maybe.
Lehi starts with the path that leads to the tree. Along side it is an iron rod. It helps those who are on or following the strait and narrow path. I don't know how many times I have read this verse, heard references to it or thought about it in my own personal pondering, but I know it was years before I actually studied it.
Notice the spelling of strait. I don't think this was a mistake. When you hear references to this verse, I think we always think of a straight line. We think of the shortest and fastest path between two points, where we are and where we want to be. However, the more I think about life and the paths that we are all on, I don't think that this is the imagery we were supposed to conjure up in our minds.
It was a strait path. How do we describe a strait? If you look up images of straits, they are not very straight. To me, they look like a never ending series of winding paths. They may all get to the same place, but they don't always get there the same way. One could get seriously lost in a strait. I wonder if that is not the message being delivered here. It does not matter where we are coming from, once we find the strait, we can arrive at the right place, we just need a guide to get us there. That guide would be the iron rod, the word of God, that will not lead us a stray.
I think it is important to note as well, that straits are not always smooth paths, they can be treacherous. It is not always smooth sailing once on the path. Making it to the other side takes work, focus, effort, and time. There will be times that we may slip, stumble, falter, or get winded. The important thing here is to keep holding to the rod and keep moving forward as best we can.
I wonder what it was like for Lehi as he watched those of his family grasp the rod and move through the strait. Could he see them from the tree? Did they just vanish from his sight and he had to hope they would make it? I don't know. I know how much concern, time, effort, and prayer I spend hoping my family will make it through the strait. I know how much I struggle on my own path. How must our Heavenly Father feel? What does he see?
Hold tight. Make it a part of your lives. If you are not grasping the rod tightly now, re-evaluate and grab on. Don't let go.
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