Sis. Nolan gave our lesson today on Chapter 19 - Temporal and Spiritual Blessings from the Word of Wisdom.
The manual says, "Daniel was a prophet of God, and he was a prophet because he kept the
commandments of God. I would like you … to take this message with you.
Daniel observed the teachings of God with his companions, with reference
to the kind of food and drink they should have, and refused to accept
the food that was served upon the king’s table."
Sis Nolan asked, "How do you politely refuse items that are against the Word of Wisdom?"
The manual goes on to say, "The gospel of Jesus Christ is to preserve souls, of which the body is the tabernacle, for eternal happiness....Our Heavenly Father in his kindness and love [warned]: “In consequence
of the evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of
conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you and forewarn you by
giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation.” (D&C 89:4.) … The purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ
is to prepare us to understand the beauty of life as the Lord has
indicated it should be lived, by telling us how we may avoid the things
that are destroying the world."
"I pause to ask....are we worthy to be called Saint?"
Sis. Nolan reiterate this question. If you think about your week, are you doing things that qualify you to be worthy to be called among the Saints?"
Sis. Nolan related a few stories from Pres. Monson's talk from the recent Priesthood session. She encouraged us all to read it if we haven't already. From that talk...Are we seeing people for who they can become? Or are we judging them on who they are now? Christ loves them just as much as anyone else. What if our sins smelled of cigarette smoke? or we all came to church with our biggest sin written across our backs....How many would feel comfortable to attend?
The lesson rounded out talking about how to teach our families the obey the Word of Wisdom...the best way is to obey it ourselves.
"...the
best evidence of our faith in that law, that we believe it came from
God, is a consistent observance of it in our lives. We may preach
it all day long, but if we transgress it in practice, our example may
be disastrous to those we love better than life, for they will feel that
they can safely follow where we lead. Let
me plead with you, search the Word of Wisdom prayerfully. Do not just
read it; search it prayerfully. Discover what our Heavenly Father gave
it for. He gave it to us with a promise of longer life and happiness,
not if we fail to observe it, but if we observe it. Read the Word of
Wisdom in the presence of your families and set the example. If we will
do that Zion will continue to grow. If we will do that the Church of the
Lamb of God will continue to become a power for good in the world."
Thank you Sis Nolan!
- Sis Pyrah