Heart t' Heart

[ScottPart2]

Thoughts on the basic apparent contradiction between "having the power to choose" and "admitting we of ourselves are powerless."

John 13:

  13 Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.
  14 If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet.
  15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.
  16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.
  17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

I have a hard time following this even when I believe it; I have to submit and surrender my will right at the moment I want it most, to submit my will to Jesus as he submitted his to the will of the Father. I am so weak. How is it to be done? I can only do it with the help of the Savior—but even then I have to be willing to surrender and call on him in that moment, knowing he will help me and I won’t "get" to act out. Sometimes I am simply not willing. “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.” How do I get there Lord?

Lord, do you have counsel for me?

It is not meant to be easy—it’s the basic choice each person has to make once they receive the truth, even if the truth (which requires sacrifice of will=a broken heart and contrite spirit) will nearly always cross the will of the natural man.

I know I have to choose thee, but can you make me less weak so I can do that even in difficult moments?

The task of this process is to help you find that choice and that strength within yourself.

But I don’t feel like I have that strength or that choice within me. Is it there, but I am simply unwilling to use it, so it feels like I don't have it?

It is there for each person or there would be no point to making you have to find it and reach for it. It is the basic gift to mankind; the chance to choose God over the natural man.

Then what help can I ask for in doing so? I thought I could ask thy help in what I am not strong enough to do on my own?

It is not that you choose to be strong. It is that you recognize your weakness and choose to call upon me—even while knowing that I DO have the strength and will fight and win the battle. You have to be willing to choose to call upon me—knowing full well that I am able to fight and win these struggles, and your natural man longings will not be satisfied.

The choice is still yours, even if the battle is mine. If you truly surrender to me then I will conquer each time and a part of you will feel empty, not given what it needs. This will diminish in time if you are willing to follow me and call upon me.

[Wendy J]

Scott,
Thank you so much for posting this. I always love reading when others are willing to post their conversations with the Lord.

I loved so many things you said:

"I have to submit and surrender my will right at the moment I want it most"

"The choice is still yours, even if the battle is mine."

Much love,
Wendy

[cognitions]

Thank your Scott for posting that. I really do benefit from those simple lessons about how the process works for the greatest power we have: free agency. I have struggle to come to terms with how this simple concept works. In the past I have prayed to the lord and said "please take this addictive behavior out of my life" expecting the next day that no temptation could derail me. The Lord wants us to want it so bad, to work for it so hard. A talk by Elder Richard G. Scott comes to mind:


"Our Father expects you to learn how to obtain that divine help by exercising faith in Him and His Holy Son, Jesus Christ. Were you to receive inspired guidance just for the asking, you would become weak and ever more dependent on Them. They know that essential personal growth will come as you struggle to learn how to be led by the Spirit."

I have changed my methods for tackling this evil addiction by taking actions myself such as coming on this forum, reading scriptures, praying and most importantly relying on the mercies of the Lord. i know the Lord will make me work hard and struggle and this is the opportunity I have to show to him how bad I want to give up this addiction.