Storehouse of Faith

What would I do if the government made it illegal for me to go to my church?  Do I have enough faith to remain strong for a long period of time?  Do I have the conviction to go and visit my brothers and sisters and have small gatherings in my home, knowing that I might be arrested if I do these things?  Would I be strong enough in my faith that I could with stand the questioning of my friends and others?  When people tell me that my beliefs are wrong could I defend what I know is true?

This very thing happened in Ghana in 1989.  The Saints there tell the story of their 18 months while the church doors remained locked and guarded.  Several of them were arrested and held in jail for several days because they admitted and were proud to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  They remained strong, supported each other, this trying time seemed to bring out the best in them.  How is this possible?  Wouldn’t their lives have been so much easier if they just turned their backs on the church?

Like so many things in the history of the Book of Mormon and the church, we will have trials but I think the difference is what we have done before those trials.  Have we built up our “Storehouse of Faith”? So then the question becomes do I have enough faith to joyfully endure to the end?

In 1997, Elder Neal A. Maxwell “For I Will Lead You Along” talks about how as the church grows and strengthens, so will Satan’s power.  He then goes on the say “Happily, even though the world worsens around us, there will be many, many fine and wonderful men and women of all races and creeds—and of no religious creeds at all—who will continue to lead decent and useful lives. Besides, as Mormon said, scriptural commentary on declining conditions is not communicated “to weigh thee down,” but, instead, to help us live so that Christ may “lift thee up” Moroni. 9:25

He continues by saying that what he is saying should not be an alarm, but he is saying this so that we “might be noticing and preparing. Prophecies are given, in part, that we “might know and remember” that these things “had been made known … beforehand, to the intent that [we] might believe”  Helaman 16:5. Today’s inattentive people will be like an earlier, desensitized people who “began to forget those signs and wonders which they had heard, and began to be less and less astonished, … and began to disbelieve all which they had heard and seen”  3 Nephi 2:1”

In his October 2004 Conference Address “Where Do I Make My Stand?” President Faust asked, “So where should each of us make our stand?”  He goes on to explain that “As we demonstrate our devotion to God by our daily acts of righteousness, He can know where we stand.”

In Helaman 3:35 we read how the believing and humble part of the Nephites fasted and prayed often and that they grew “stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in their faith of Christ,” this filled their souls with joy and purified their hearts and they yielded “their hearts to God”.  This is how we will build up our “Storehouse of Faith”.  It is hard to be humble, Satan and the natural man have different ideas, but our spirits can be so much stronger if we too yield our hearts to God. 

So, is my storehouse full enough?  Well, I think that it takes a lifetime to fill our storehouse. That’s why we are here, right? But am I doing the best that I can?  I try each day to do a little better than the last. Through this great Pathway program that I am privileged to be a part of this year I am focusing on specific Christ-like attributes that are helping me make changes in my life for the better.  The last four weeks I worked on faith and saw how my faith and knowledge have grown.  I still have a long way to go but I am more aware of what I need to do, now onto the next Christ-like attribute!!