Sometimes spiritual breakdowns come because of sin (and sometimes they don’t). Sometimes they come so gradually that we hardly notice them.
Sometimes we feel that we have no more to give.
When we are in the light it enables us to make righteous choices based on truth.
“If we become comfortable with darkness it is unlikely that we will let the light in.”
At the recent solar eclipse many people made great efforts to get into a narrow band of darkness on a bright day.
We should make at least that much effort to get into spiritual light, even when it seems to be only narrowly available.
Every time you love the gospel or reject wickedness the light grows brighter.
When it comes to our physical well-being, we accept aging and illness as part of our mortal journey. We seek the counsel of professionals who understand the physical body. When we suffer from emotional distress or mental illness, we seek the help of experts who treat these kinds of ailments.
Just as we face physical and emotional trials in this mortality, we also face spiritual challenges. Most of us have experienced times in our lives when our testimony burns brightly. We also may have experienced times when our Heavenly Father seems distant. There are times when we treasure the things of the Spirit with all our hearts. There may also be times when they appear less precious or of diminished significance.
Today I wish to speak of spiritual wellness—how we can find healing from stagnation and walk a path of vibrant spiritual health.
Sometimes spiritual illness comes as a result of sin or emotional wounds. Sometimes spiritual breakdowns come so gradually that we can scarcely tell what is happening. Like layers of sedimentary rock, spiritual pain and grief can build over time, weighing upon our spirits until it is almost too heavy to bear. For example, this can happen when our responsibilities at work, home, and church become so overwhelming that we lose sight of the joy of the gospel. We might even feel as though we have no more to give or that living the commandments of God is beyond our strength.
But just because spiritual trials are real does not mean that they are incurable.
We can heal spiritually.
Even the deepest spiritual wounds—yes, even those that may appear to be incurable—can be healed.
My dear friends, the healing power of Jesus Christ is not absent in our day.
Whatever causes our spiritual ailments, they all have one thing in common: the absence of divine light.
Darkness reduces our ability to see clearly. It dims our vision of that which was at one time plain and clear. When we are in darkness, we are more likely to make poor choices because we cannot see dangers in our path. When we are in darkness, we are more likely to lose hope because we cannot see the peace and joy that await us if we just keep pressing forward.
Light, on the other hand, allows us to see things as they really are. It allows us to discern between truth and error, between the vital and the trivial. When we are in the light, we can make righteous choices based on true principles. When we are in the light, we have “a perfect brightness of hope” because we can see our mortal trials from an eternal perspective.
We will find spiritual healing as we step away from the shadows of the world and into the everlasting Light of Christ.
In the Doctrine and Covenants we read, “The word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”
This profound insight—that light is spirit, which is truth, and that this light shines upon every soul who comes into the world—is as important as it is hopeful. The Light of Christ enlightens and saturates the souls of all who hearken to the voice of the Spirit.
Without light we walk tentatively or fearfully. This leaves us stumbling along in uncertainty and feeling as if we cannot make progress.
If you open your mind and heart to receive the Light of Christ and humbly follow the Savior, you will receive more light. Line upon line, here a little and there a little, you will gather more light and truth into your souls until darkness has been banished from your life.
God will open your eyes.
God will give you a new heart.
God’s love, light, and truth will cause dormant things to spring to life, and you will be reborn into a newness of life in Christ Jesus.
The Lord has promised, “If your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things.”
This is the ultimate remedy for spiritual sickness. Darkness vanishes in the presence of light.
If we become comfortable with darkness, it is unlikely that our hearts will change.
For change to take place, we need to actively let the light in.
Night is nothing more than a shadow.
Even in the darkest of nights, the sun does not cease to radiate its light. It continues to shine as bright as ever. But half of the earth is in darkness.
The absence of light causes darkness.
When the darkness of night falls, we do not despair and worry that the sun is extinguished. We do not postulate that the sun is not there or is dead. We understand that we are in a shadow, that the earth will continue to rotate, and that eventually the rays of the sun will reach us once again.
Darkness is not an indication that there is no light. Most often, it simply means we’re not in the right place to receive the light. During the recent solar eclipse, many made great efforts to get into the narrow band of a shadow created by the moon in the middle of a bright sunny day.
In a very similar way, spiritual light continually shines upon all of God’s creation. Satan will make every effort to create a shadow or get us into a shadow of our own making. He will coerce us to create our own eclipse; he will push us into the darkness of his cavern.
Spiritual darkness can draw a veil of forgetfulness around even those who once walked in the light and rejoiced in the Lord. Nevertheless, even in moments of greatest darkness, God hears our humble petitions, as we pray, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
This such a good and rich analogy.
As a bearer of God’s priesthood and as a disciple of Jesus Christ, you are a bearer of light. Keep doing the things that will nurture His divine light. “Hold up your light” and “let [it] shine before men”—not so that they will see and admire you, but “that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”
My dear brothers, you are instruments in the hands of the Lord with the purpose of bringing light and healing to the souls of Heavenly Father’s children. Perhaps you do not feel qualified to heal those who are spiritually ill—certainly not any more than a post office employee is qualified to help with arthritis. Maybe you face spiritual challenges of your own. Nevertheless, the Lord has called you. He has given you authority and responsibility to reach out to those in need. He has endowed you with His sacred priesthood power to bring light into the darkness and uplift and bless God’s children. God has restored His Church and His precious gospel, “which healeth the wounded soul.” He has prepared the path to spiritual wellness, to find healing from stagnation and move toward vibrant spiritual health.
Christ’s light brings hope, happiness, and healing of any spiritual wound or ailment. Those who experience this refining influence become instruments in the hands of the Light of the World to give light to others. They will feel what King Lamoni felt: “This light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and … the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul.”
My dear brethren, my dear friends, it is our quest to seek the Lord until His light of everlasting life burns brightly within us and our testimony becomes confident and strong even in the midst of darkness.
I love how he always calls us his “dear friends.” I know that he truly feels that way toward all of us.
Leave a Reply