Smoothing Out My Rough Spots

1 Nephi 17:46

And ye also know that by the power of his almighty word he can cause the earth that it shall pass away; yea, and ye know that by his word he can cause the rough places to be made smooth, and smooth places shall be broken up. O, then, why is it, that ye can be so hard in your hearts?

If God has the power to change the very crust of the earth that seems so permanent and immutable, He surely has the power to change me--a fleshy, weak, squirmy mortal. He can make rough places smooth. If He can flatten Mount Everest and fill in the Grand Canyon, He can smooth out the rough spots in my character. 

He can also break up smooth surfaces. If He can churn up the West Utah Salt Flats, He can likewise break up my smooth pride, conceit, and self-sufficiency to humble me and bring me to my knees. 

But whatever He can tear up, He can also smooth out again. He won't leave me broken in pieces if I repent and turn to Him for healing.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Loving Kindness

Image
1 Nephi 19:9 And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it, because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men. To be kind is to be sympathetic, helpful, gentle, and loving. So Jesus's loving kindness is His innate nature to be kind because He loves everyone. He is sympathetic to His persecutors because He sees from their perspective. Given what they know and believe and the circumstances in which they live, He understands why they are cruel, vicious, and hateful.  This loving kindness is born out of His atonement. Having suffered all things in the flesh, having lifted every person's burden, having experienced every pain, anguish, affliction, and illness, He knows me personally, intimately, directly, and perfectly. And that knowledge inspires sympathy, not anger; kindness, not r...
Read more

Set God at Naught

Image
1 Nephi 19:7 For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels. To "set at naught" is to ignore and to consider of no worth. This is not ignorance but a deliberate defiance and disregard for God and His laws.  God has created the universe, the earth on which I live, and me. He has given laws and guidelines in the form of commandments that inform me of how best to thrive and be happy among His creations and with others. They are not arbitrary restrictions or punishments. He is telling me how He has set up the universe and designed mortal life to my best advantage.  What arrogance I portray if I take possession of the world He has created for me and then say to Him, "Thanks, but I don't ...
Read more

God's Economy

Image
1 Nephi 19:5 And an account of my making these plates shall be given hereafter; and then, behold, I proceed according to that which I have spoken; and this I do that the more sacred things may be kept for the knowledge of my people. God reveals sacred knowledge to the prophets and then commands them to write and preserve their words so that we may benefit from what the Lord has revealed. This is the purpose of scripture: to give us knowledge. Thus, we do not all have to be prophets to have the knowledge of prophets.  In God's economy, it is more efficient for Him to reveal a truth once and then spread it by the written word among all people than to reveal the same truth a million times to a million individuals, each of whom may receive, interpret, and apply the truth slightly differently. In this way, God doesn't have to start over fresh with each person, but we can build on the learning of others.
Read more