I remember when I was young and thought about being a father in Zion. To have the Priesthood, give blessings, be the head of the family, how awesome would that be? Now, as a father in Zion, it is awesome to have the priesthood, give blessings, and to raise our children with my beautiful wife!! I wondered before I had five children, why I was never taught about the hard times that would surely come. The times of watching your wife go through pregnancy, the times of your children struggling to find their place in this chaotic world, or the struggles of even finding your own place in this world.
I know why, now. This is what I would tell my younger self about the hard times and the good times. The good times make it worth going through the hard times. I am glad to see that my children struggle so they can become triumphant. I am glad to see my wife go through pregnancy to be able to hold our newborn for the first time. I am glad to go through trials to find out where my Father in heaven would like me to be. As a Father in Zion, our responsibilities cannot be taken lightly.
Frederick G. Williams was put under condemnation:
“But verily I say unto you, my servant Frederick G. Williams, you have continued under this condemnation; You have not taught your children light and truth, according to the commandments; and that wicked one hath power, as yet, over you, and this is the cause of your affliction.”1
He was put under this condemnation for not teaching his children light and truth. We might ask “What is light and truth? How do we find it? and How do we teach it?”
What is Light and Truth?
“The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.”2 Moses experience this exact thing when he walked and talked with God.3 The Brother of Jared experienced it as well when he saw the finger of Christ. He had unstoppable faith where Christ could not shield himself from the Brother of Jared. Joseph Smith taught “When you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon; (i.e.) those things that were presented unto your minds by the Spirit of God, will come to pass; and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until you become perfect in Christ Jesus.”4
How do we find Light and Truth?
“That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”5 Search out our Father in heaven. Abraham was a prime example of how to seek our Father in heaven.
“And, finding there was greater happiness and peace and rest for me, I sought for the blessings of the fathers,and the right where unto I should be ordained to administer the same; having been myself a follower of righteousness, desiring also to be one who possessed great knowledge, and to be a greater follower of righteousness, and to possess a greater knowledge, and to be a father of many nations, a prince of peace, and desiring to receive instructions, and to keep the commandments of God, I became a rightful heir, a High Priest, holding the right belonging to the fathers.”6
He was able to exclaim,”I said in my heart: Thy servant has sought thee earnestly; now I have found thee;”7 We can exclaim the very same thing if we truly seek Light and Truth. We have the same promise because we have been baptized into the same order.
How do we teach Light and Truth?
“Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men.”8 If we don’t seek it ourselves, we will not be able to teach. However, it is a process, and regardless of where we think we are, we should teach our children so they can at least be able to begin their process of receiving Light and Truth. We know we are teaching right when “he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together.”9
“Many of us have been baptized and have received the gift of the Holy Ghost, whose role it is to reveal and teach the truth of all things. With the privilege of that gift comes the responsibility to seek truth, to live the truth we know, and to share and defend the truth.”10
Let’s seek it, live it and share it.
As this new year comes into play, let us set out to be better than we were the year before. Let us be more mindful of those around us to help them when they are going through these trials. Let us be a better father, husband, mother, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, and friend then we were the day before.
As we do these things, we will be “distinguished for [our] zeal towards God, and also towards men;” and we will be “firm in the faith of Christ, even unto the end.”11
Your Brother in the Gospel,
Tyler Smith
1. D&C 93:41-42
2. D&C 93:36
3. Moses 1
4. Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith,sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 151.
5. D&C 50:24
6. Abraham 1:2
7. Abraham 2:12
8. D&C 11:21
9. D&C 50:22
10. April 2015 General Conference, Filling Our Homes with Light and Truth, Cheryl A. Esplin
11. Alma 27:27