Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Three Scriptures That Describe Me

One of the challenges of the day was to find three scriptures that represent me and to share them with someone close (or the entire Internet).

The first scripture that came to mind for me was Alma 26:12:
Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.
I can definitely relate to the part about being weak, but I can also relate to the part about gaining strength from the Lord. I have been helped by God in my life frequently, and there have been many times when I was able to do something that I was only able to do because I had God's help.

Another scripture that I would like to use to describe me is Alma 53:20:
And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all—they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.
This verse refers to the 2000 stripling soldiers, whom I read about during a special 15-minute scripture study session this morning. Much of it clearly applies to me; I am a young man abundant in strength and activity. I also have some courage, or so I would like to believe. I'm not sure if I am always true in everything with which I am entrusted. I always try to be honest, but I am not always faithful in meeting my obligations, especially when those obligations are given to me rather than taken upon myself. If you give me a task, I might not do it (unless I work for you), but if I give myself a task, I'm far more likely to try to stick with it.

I'm not sure about a third verse. I've covered weakness, and I've mentioned the stripling soldiers. What else is there to me besides being a far-too-human paladin?

Mosiah 2:17
And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
I could stand to learn more wisdom, but more than that, this verse describes me because I have devoted a lot of myself to service. I regularly serve my fellow beings, and I frequently serve God. In fact, that's one of the reasons I occasionally feel weak: I'm not good at turning down opportunities to serve (though I sometimes wish I was). But service isn't a bad thing to be known for. I'm glad God reminded me of that scripture, rather than, say, Alma 12:14:
For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence.
 Or Moroni 9:4:
Behold, I say unto you that ye would be more miserable to dwell with a holy and just God, under a consciousness of your filthiness before him, than ye would to dwell with the damned souls in hell.
Or basically any verse with the word "wo" in it.

Service can be tiring, frustrating, and discouraging, but it sure beats damnation. And I'd much rather be described as someone who gives too much service than as one who is doomed to be cast down to hell. There are worse scriptures, is what I'm saying.

I feel like those three scriptures, combined, describe me pretty well. I'm weak, except for when I get God's help. I'm young and active and physically strong, and generally a good person. And I give service. If you know of any verse of scripture that you think would describe me better than those first three do, feel free to suggest it in a comment, but until then, I think those may be the three verses of scripture which best describe me.

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