Be Not Afraid, Only Believe

I can never hear too much about Daniel. He was one of the most accomplished and faithful saints of the old testament.

Scholars believe that Daniel was between 12 and 17 when he was carried captive into Babylon.

President Uchtdorf labels Daniel as a prince of righteousness. I can think of no higher title to strive for in mortality.

Disregard the ridicule of the ungodly.

Daniel could have avoided the ridicule and indulged in the practices of Babylon. His life would have been easier if he had up until the day that Nebuchadnezzar demanded that his wise men reveal his dream and its interpretation – then Daniel would have had no more light than the other counselors to the king.

There is nothing brave or noble about cynicism. Skepticism is easy – anyone can do it.

Think of it, my beloved young Aaronic Priesthood holders: Daniel was very likely your age when he was taken into the king’s court to be educated in the language, laws, religion, and science of the worldly Babylon.

Can you imagine what it would have felt like to be forced from your home, marched 500 miles (800 km) to a foreign city, and indoctrinated in the religion of your enemies?

Daniel believed. Daniel did not doubt.

And then one night, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that troubled his mind. He assembled his team of scholars and counselors and demanded that they describe the dream to him and also reveal the meaning of it.

Of course, they could not. “No one can do what you ask,” they pleaded. But this only made Nebuchadnezzar more furious, and he commanded that all the wise men, magicians, astrologers, and counselors be cut in pieces—including Daniel and the other young students from Israel.

You who are familiar with the book of Daniel know what happened next. Daniel asked Nebuchadnezzar for a little extra time, and he and his faithful companions went to the source of their faith and moral strength. They prayed to God and asked for divine help at this crucial moment in their lives. And “then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a … vision.”

Daniel, the young boy from a conquered nation—who had been bullied and persecuted for believing in his strange religion—went before the king and revealed to him the dream and its interpretation.

From that day on, as a direct result of his faithfulness to God, Daniel became a trusted counselor to the king, renowned for his wisdom in all of Babylon.

I don’t think Daniel was a youth anymore by the time this happened. He may not have been an old man but he was a man who had already proved his wisdom in the king’s court at least once.

To all of us who bear the holy priesthood of God, I ask, are we like Daniel?

Do we stand loyal to God?

Do we practice what we preach, or are we Sunday Christians only?

Do our daily actions reflect clearly what we claim to believe?

Do we help “the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted”?

Do we just talk the talk, or do we enthusiastically walk the walk?

… The ancient city of Babylon is in ruins. Its splendor is long gone. But Babylon’s worldliness and wickedness live on. Now it falls to us to live as believers in a world of disbelief. The challenge is ours to daily practice the principles of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and to live true to God’s commandments. We will have to stay calm under peer pressure, not be impressed by popular trends or false prophets, disregard the ridicule of the ungodly, resist the temptations of the evil one, and overcome our own laziness.

Being enthusiastic in our obedience is important. Being reluctant removes many of the potential blessings from us.

Satan, our adversary, wants us to fail. He spreads lies as part of his effort to destroy our belief. He slyly suggests that the doubter, the skeptic, the cynic is sophisticated and intelligent, while those who have faith in God and His miracles are naive, blind, or brainwashed. Satan will advocate that it is cool to doubt spiritual gifts and the teachings of true prophets.

I wish I could help everyone to understand this one simple fact: we believe in God because of things we know with our heart and mind, not because of things we do not know. Our spiritual experiences are sometimes too sacred to explain in worldly terms, but that doesn’t mean they are not real

Clinging to what you don’t know leads to loss of faith.

When you and I talk to people about faith and belief, don’t we often hear, “I wish I could believe the way you do”?
Implied in such a statement is another of Satan’s deceptions: that belief is available to some people but not to others. There is no magic to belief. But wanting to believe is the necessary first step! God is no respecter of persons. He is your Father. He wants to speak to you. However, it requires a little scientific curiosity—it requires an experiment upon the word of God—and the exercise of a “particle of faith.” It also takes a little humility. And it requires an open heart and an open mind. It requires seeking, in the full meaning of the word. And, perhaps hardest of all, it requires being patient and waiting upon the Lord.

If we make no effort to believe, we are like the man who unplugs a spotlight and then blames the spotlight for not giving any light.

Unfortunately, this seems to be quite a popular attitude today. If we can put the burden of proof on God, we think we can excuse ourselves from taking God’s commandments seriously and from taking responsibility for our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Brethren, let me be clear: there is nothing noble or impressive about being cynical. Skepticism is easy—anyone can do it. It is the faithful life that requires moral strength, dedication, and courage. Those who hold fast to faith are far more impressive than those who give in to doubt when mysterious questions or concerns arise.

Brethren, I testify that even in the toughest of times, the Savior will say to you as He said to an anxious father on a crowded street in Galilee, “Be not afraid, only believe.”

We can choose to believe.

For in belief, we discover the dawn of light.

We will discover truth.

We will find peace.

Because of our belief, we will never hunger, never thirst. The gifts of God’s grace will enable us to be true to our faith and will fill our soul like “a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” We will experience true and lasting joy.