Establishing the Cause of Zion:
The Desires of our Hearts part 1
I got asked to teach Doctrine in Covenants in Seminary this week. I was super excited about this, because I have been wanting to study the D&C in greater depth. It was Scott's favorite book of scriptures, but I never understood why until recently. The lesson was on a topic that has become of special interest to me since Elder Bednar's BYU devotional. I wanted to share some of my thoughts and insights as I believe this chapter 11 holds the key to understanding how our desires and doing the Lord's work facilitate us on the consecrated covenant path.The word desire is repeated 8 times in D&C 11 verses: 3, 8, 10, 14, 17, 21, and 27. I have learned that repetition is the Lord's way to draw our attention to important concepts in the scriptures. He says whoso desireth to reap... (vs3), as you desire of me so it shall be done unto you... if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good... (vs8), if thou wilt desire of me in faith... (vs10), all things whatsoever you desire of me... (vs14), according to your desires (vs17), if you desire, you shall have my Spirit ... (vs21), all who have good desires (vs27).
Hence our righteous desires are the root of any blessing we seek to obtain, and making sure that they are righteous is the key to receiving those things that the Lord is so eager to give us. How do we know where our true desires lie? Not just the things that we say, but the things deep in our heart? This is an important question, because in the end, we know that we are judged by the desires of our hearts.
I think the best way to be introspective is to ask ourselves... If I had a free day with no obligations, how would I choose to spend my time? Would you want to watch sports, or movies, go out to eat, get your nails done? Would you catch up on extra work, or visit a friend? Would you want to spend time with family, or study your scriptures? How would you parcel that day and what portion would you willingly give to the Lord... not out of obligation, but how much would you want to give Him?
We are all on a different spectrum. If I asked this question to someone who had deep seeded addictions, I would get one desire; a average member of the church would give me another, and President Monson another still.
How would the Savior answer that question? Where would His desires be?
That is where we need to be some day, where He is, but thank goodness we don't have to come all that way on our own. We start where we are...
Alma 32:27 But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than adesire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.We start with one desire and we nourish that through obedience. In the beginning it is a tender plant and we have to take care to not let that desire die. As we continue to faithful act that plant becomes mature and it is fruitful unto us.
Alma 32:42 And because of your adiligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the bfruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst. 43 Then, my brethren, ye shall areap the brewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth cfruit unto you.That fruit is the blessing promised to us by our Heavenly Father. What is the specific blessing of being obedient and acting on righteous desires? The blessing is to feel joy and to receive a greater portion of the spirit of God or a greater portion of light. What does that light amount to? It is the knowledge and attributes of divinity found in spiritual gifts.
As we find the fruit to be "delicious" to us, new desires are planted in our hearts. It is interesting to me that fruit is always filled with new seeds. Those desires grow and become fruitful. What starts as a seed, the 'smallest particle of faith' or the 'desire to believe' eventually if nourished becomes an orchard.
This is the how the Savior enables us to go from bad to good and from good to better.
We do not have to plant all of the seeds at once, and as the trees mature they can withstand periods of drought and high winds. The planting and care of an orchard can seem like an enormous task with just a single seed to begin with. Fortunately we have a master Gardner near by who will instruct us if we simple turn to Him for help.
God's work and glory is to bring to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. (Moses 1:39) His goal is to get us to desire to become like Him, and then line upon line to school us so that we, in the end, do have the same desires as He does.
I invite you to study the scriptures in this message in addition to other scriptures and conference talks about desire.
Seminary Teacher's Manual for D&C 11-18
Maxwell, Neil A. "According to the Desires of Our Hearts," Oct 1996
Oaks, Dallin H. "The Desires of Our Hearts" Oct 1985
