Sunday Blues

If you have been raised in the LDS Church and attend at least 40% of the time, then you have memorized the 50-60 hymns that everyone uses over and over again. Lets face it, we use less then half of the tunes in the green book. That is unless you live back east where they try new ones every week only to realize why no one likes to sing them. I have a lot of hymns memorized, being a 24 year veteran of the church and retired church military (DISTRICT LEADER 1ST CLASS, 2005-2007, COLUMBUS MISSION, OHIO).

Since we sing so many of them in higher frequencies, it is easy to often gloss over the words and just sing along. Very rarely do I have a hymn really "hit" me with the text. Such an event happened a few weeks ago in sacrament. Hymn 116, "Come Follow Me" is a prime example. I have sung it many a time and not surprisingly was just singing, not really thinking. Then I read the words below, verses 4 and 5 which for some reason we never sing. Verse 4 seemed to be particularly poignant at the time:

"We must the onward path pursue,
as wider fields expand to view,
and follow him unceasingly,
whate'er our lot or sphere may be."

I dissected this. The onward path? Obvious, the strait and narrow. Wider fields? I thought of a couple of things that this might mean, but the 3rd line puts it into more perspective when it says "follow Him unceasingly." The implication is to ignore the wider fields. 3rd Nephi 14:13 explains it pretty well:

"Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, which leadeth to destruction, and many there be who go in thereat;

Even when we are following Christ, temptations come our way. "Wider fields." Satan makes them look bigger and better each time. He will use EVERYTHING at his disposal to keep us from the strait and narrow path. I can tell you from experience, that the broader the path you take, the more unhappy you will be at the end of it. Men ARE that they MIGHT have joy. Brother Joseph was right, it is the NATURE of our existence. Happiness isn't just a nice little note on the side, it's a COMMANDMENT! When we follow the commandments, we will be happy. That's where it all comes from.

I was going to end the blog here but I just remembered a little experience from the mission field. It occurred in my 3rd area, Greenville, on the outer edge of the mission. I think it was around October when the weather was getting cold. I got myself a nasty little cold. My sinuses were stuffed to capacity and I lost my sense of smell for about 2 days. That meant that anything I ate tasted like nothing. I could feel the texture on my tongue, and imagined what the food might taste like, but there was no taste! Worse yet some members took us to a restaurant and I didn't enjoy a single moment of it. Being a nice guy I didn't bother to tell them I couldn't taste the wonderful food they purchased for us.

If we go down that broad road of the devil, life loses it's luster, spiritual food loses it's taste. Like the Nephites of old, when they were close to ultimate destruction there came a time when they took no more pleasure in their iniquities. They cursed God and waited for death. Life is sweet and peaceful when we are walking in a strait line, gripping that rod with all our might. The sweetness is the reward for obedience, and that is what keeps us going. What gives sweetness to your life? Think about it for a while. Being lead by Satan is like eating food without enjoying the taste.

Next time you sit in sacrament meeting, take a little extra time to scan those verses of music. If you have been looking for something, the Lord may just give it to you out of that little green book. Music is POWER, and it is a sweet mercy that gives meaning to who I am. Don't underestimate those hymns. Even the ones that are sung too often.