It is possible that one of the ways we can determine the depth and reality of our faith and discipleship is by considering the degree to which we have or experience real peace in our lives.
Think about that for a second. Do we who profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ - who promised rest to those who seek Him - rest? Or do we feel burdened with expectations and responsibilities and desires that are yet unfulfilled? Are we complaining? Are we irritable, judgmental or impatient?
If we are experiencing these things, then perhaps we are not yet exercising true or complete faith in the Lord.
It is important to understand that finding peace or rest through Jesus Christ does not mean to live a life without any sorrow, affliction or suffering. |
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has also commented, “life has its oppositions and conflicts,” and “[w]e all have highs and lows” which could include “times…[of] deep sorrow or suffering or fear or loneliness…of piercing spiritual hunger.”[5]
The existence and experience of difficult and challenging times is not evidence of the condemnation of the Lord or the failure of our discipleship; but where I believe we fall short is if we allow such experiences to rob us of the feelings of peace and assurance we can have in the promise of Jesus Christ, “I will give you rest.”
Of course, I write this as a fellow traveler on the path of sorrow as well as on the path of salvation. I fail often to rely faithfully on my Saviour for peace and comfort. In writing these things, I seek to remind myself of who it is on whom I should rely, in whose compassionate heart I should trust, on whose strong arm I should place hope. I am taught, and I believe, that that person is Jesus Christ.
In this regard, I would like to quote at length from the same talk by Elder Holland from 1996 that I mentioned earlier:[6]
Perhaps you know people in [your community] — or in your own home — courageous people who are carrying heavy burdens and feeling private pain, who are walking through the dark valleys of this world’s tribulation. Some may be desperately worried about a husband or a wife or a child, worried about their health or their happiness or their faithfulness in keeping the commandments. Some are living with physical pain, or emotional pain, or disabilities that come with age. Some are troubled as to how to make ends meet financially, and some ache with the private loneliness of an empty house or an empty room or simply empty arms. |
I think we know that there are three sources of such difficulty.
- One is the ordinary imperfection of life, the varieties of nature that bring trivial discomforts, such as rain on a picnic day, and more significant sorrows, such as death or illness in the lives of us all.
- Another, we believe, is the influence of Satan and his angels, who seek to mislead us and tempt us and cause us to do things which bring harm in our own lives and the lives of others. They whisper encouragement to do wickedly, and they whisper discouragement to make us believe that we can do, or deserve, no better.
- Finally, a third source of difficulty in life is our own sinful conduct, or decision to give in to the natural impulses of our bodies, or to the deceptions of Satan, or in some other way to turn from the wisdom and goodness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to live according to some other way.
Elder Holland continued:[7]
…[W\e declare to all the world that for real and abiding peace to come, we must strive to be more like th[e\ exemplary Son of God… Many among us are trying to do that. … Some of us, on the other hand, need to make some changes, need to make greater effort in gospel living. And change we can. … In seeking true peace some of us need to improve what has to be improved, confess what needs to be confessed, forgive what has to be forgiven, and forget what should be forgotten in order that serenity can come to us. If there is a commandment we are breaking, and as a result it is breaking us and hurting those who love us, let us call down the power of the Lord Jesus Christ to help us, to free us, to lead us through repentance to that peace “which passeth all understanding.” |
We often think of repentance as being a change of behaviour, a change from bad actions to better ones; eliminating sin and replacing it with righteousness; but, interestingly, this is not the literal meaning of the word in the scriptures. In the New Testament, at least, the Greek word which is translated as “repent”[8] is actually a word which simply means, “to change one’s mind or perceptions.” That is, it is actually much closer to what we mean when we say “to convert” – meaning to change one’s view of the world – than “repent”.
In the New Testament, then, the call to repentance implies that correct action will follow when we apply correct thinking and perception.
Therefore, I would suggest that if we are struggling under our the inevitable burdens and afflictions of life, and do not feel peace, we need to repent – we need to change our minds and our perceptions.
Jesus said, “be of good cheer.”[9] The Angels and the Spirit of the Lord have declared, “fear not.”[10] Who are we to say to the Lord that our fears are justified and our lack of peace is acceptable because of the difficulties we have in our lives?
We need to repent.
But the truth is that many of us are, or feel, trapped by the moods, fears and other feelings that come to us because of our afflictions.
As Elder Holland said, there are amongst us those who are “carrying heavy burdens and feeling private pain, who are walking through the dark valleys of this world’s tribulation. Some may be desperately worried about a husband or a wife or a child, worried about their health or their happiness or their faithfulness in keeping the commandments. Some are living with physical pain, or emotional pain, or disabilities that come with age. Some are troubled as to how to make ends meet financially, and some ache with the private loneliness of an empty house or an empty room or simply empty arms.”[11]
It is hard – often very hard – and sometimes seemingly impossible – to crawl out from under these burdens and experience the light of that peaceful day that Jesus promises to give us. For this purpose the Lord has given us a precious gift, a sacrifice that each of us can make in someway to embrace his grace, and find his peace. This is the gift of Fasting.
Of this gives, through the prophet Isaiah he said, "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?" [12]
Fasting is a practice through which we can strengthen our hearts and focus our faith to call upon the power of God to bring salvation and liberation from immediate, real and material burdens that afflict us or others around us.
One young elder who had come home after his mission shared that there was a period of time during his mission when he experienced exceptional success, finding himself and his companion guided every moment by the Holy Spirit to find people who were sincerely seeking the Lord in their lives. He explained three factors relevant to their success:
1. They prayed frequently, up to 40 times a day.
2. They obeyed every mission rule.
3. They fasted.
When listening to his story, I recognized that his first two points demonstrate the key pattern of conduct that brings the Spirit into our lives: to pray and to obey; and then it occurred to me that the third point, fasting, is a literal combination of them both.
Like obedience, fasting is to sacrifice one’s wants to discipline one’s behaviour; and like prayer, it is to draw one’s heart out to the Lord.
In this regard, it seems to be that fasting is probably the most efficient, effective and immediate way that any one of us can seek to call upon the Lord and to express to him our sincere devotion and desire for His presence and power in our lives.
This is not, however, advocacy for frequent fasting, although there might be times in your life that require it. In the Church, our Fast Sunday fasts are probably frequent enough. And they carry an added element that more perfectly matches what the Lord has said our fast should be. Again, from Isaiah, [13]
Is [the practice of the Fast] not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? |
Through fasting, you can come to know your Lord, not merely to know about Him; because he will come to you, and dwell with you, as he promised his disciples when he said, “If a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”[15] It was in that same conversation that he then said, [16]
"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."
I believe these promises are ours as well. I believe that when we draw our hearts out to the Lord in sincere fasting for the welfare, safety and salvation of others, we find the Lord’s presence and his peace more fully in our lives regardless of whatever challenges we must endure.
There are those who cannot physically fast. The "Law of the Fast" does not require you to comply in practice, but you can still participate in principle. You can still pay a fast offering; you can still pray for the liberation of souls from hunger and affliction, and from the yoke of bondage; you can still, as Isaiah says, and as we all must do, [17]
take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity.
Or, in other words, take steps to ensure you are not creating burdens that others must bear, or judging them unrighteously in any way, or otherwise being proud or selfish - standards all of us must meet to live, let alone to fast, worthily.
You can also borrow from the words of King Benjamin, when he says, "I say unto the poor…I would that ye say in your hearts: I give not because I have not, but if I had I would give." [18] Applying that principle, one who cannot physically fast (for reasons of health, pregnancy, etc.), can spend a fasting period, such as Fast Sunday, praying to the Lord, "I fast not because I cannot, but if I could I would." Surely, such a prayer uttered in sincerity by one whose health or other circumstances do not permit him or her to fast will have as much effect in the eyes of the Lord as the righteous fast of any other person who is able to do so.
I started out referring to the invitation of our Lord to come unto Him and find rest. I travelled from there through the principle of repentance to fasting. My purpose is to testify that through fasting we can find a key that helps progress penitence and lead to peace. And, in the end (or perhaps this is simply, "in other words"), as Isaiah's words exemplify, it is a tool the Lord has given us to help us develop that charity that makes our hearts like his and draws him into our lives in a way we might not otherwise be able to experience.
[1] Matthew 11:28.
[2] Isaiah 57:21.
[3] Mosiah 18:19.
[4] Moses 7:37.
[5] Holland, Elder Jeffrey R., “The Peaceable Things of the Kingdom,” October 1996 General Conference, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Ibid.
[8] Metanoia.
[9] I.e., Mark 6:50; John 16:30; Doctrine and Covenants 61:36.
[10] E.g., Lamentations 3:57; Luke 1:30; Doctrine and Covenants 98:1.
[11] Ob. cit., footnote 5.
[12] Isaiah 58: 6.
[13] Isaiah 58: 7.
[14] Isaiah 58: 8-12.
[15] John 14:23.
[16] John 14:27.
[17] Isaiah 58:9.
[18] Mosiah 4:24.
Adapted from a talk delivered in 2010, the exact date not being recorded. It was delivered in either the Walkterton or Stratford Branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.