In the descriptive paragraph atop this blog, I define it as the story of my relationship with the scriptures. As I’ve been tracing “what went wrong” (see the last two posts if you haven’t already) in recent years, one of the clearest causes I’ve identified was letting my personal scripture study fall by the wayside. One of the great joys of my repentance has been a new courtship with the scriptures, and so far, we’ve had some really great dates!
I’ve tried hard to study the weekly “Come,Follow Me” chapters each week, as well as some conference talks and personal
topical study. The first week I started really re-committing to a
never-miss-a-day habit of scripture study back in February, the “Come, Follow
Me” chapters for the week included Doctrine and Covenants 14, and a study
activity in that week’s personal study outline included
a list of cross references for verse 2, which compares the scriptures to a
sword. Each cross reference lists another metaphor for the scriptures. It was a
delightfully appropriate thing to focus on as I rebooted my scripture study habit
and explored how I want to use the scriptures going forward. I’d like to share
some of the insights I gained from that activity.
The initial verse the activity references from the reading
block, as mentioned, is Doctrine and Covenants 14:2, which says:
Behold, I am God; give heed to
my word, which is quick and powerful, sharper than a
two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore
give heed unto my word.
This initial metaphor makes the scriptures sound almost menacing at a first glance. But looking at each descriptive word used here, I think we see a different message:
- The Word is QUICK: It creates change, and does so rapidly, as soon as we humbly receive it. I’ve distinctly noticed a rapid, incredible change in my life over the last two months as I’ve re-immersed myself in the scriptures each day.
- The Word is POWERFUL: It facilitates MIGHTY change. In other passages the Lord specifically points to the scriptures as one of the great conduits to unlock the blessings of the Atonement in our lives. How much more powerful could it get than that?
- The Word is SHARP: Like a sword diving joints and marrow, the scriptures divide between good and evil. It can be painful to receive the truths when they cause us discomfort! It is not something to be taken lightly.
The Word as a Sword is not meant as a threat—though it contains
a warning to give respect. It is a reminder of the immense power of the
scriptures to change our lives if we allow it to pierce our hearts.
Following is a collection of the additional insights I
gained about the scriptures by reading the other references in the “Come,
Follow Me” activity:
Psalm 119:105 reads:
Thy
word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
A favorite religion professor at BYU used to tell me, “A
psalm a day keeps the devil away, so if every day you read a psalm while eating
an apple, you can go all day without seeing any doctors or lawyers!” All joking
aside, the psalms truly are beautiful and number 119 is one of the greatest (as
a child randomly perusing the scriptures during sacrament meetings, I loved
looking through that one just because it has the letters of the Hebrew alphabet
listed throughout, and I thought they looked cool).
I love the imagery in this line. The Word is a lamp to our
FEET. It is a guidance system, showing us which way to walk. It often isn’t
going to show us everything—just enough to help us move forward a bit in the
right direction. Sometimes we may be left a little confused because we don’t
have enough light to see the whole journey.
Isaiah 55:10-11 reads:
For as the rain cometh down, and
the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and
maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to
the eater:
So shall my word be that goeth
forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall
accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I
sent it.
Matthew 4:4 reads:
But he answered and said, It is
written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God.
These two passages both speak of God’s Word as nourishment.
Isaiah compares it to rain that nourishes the land, while the passage from
Matthew compares it to bread that nourishes the body. Isaiah’s comparison mentions
that God expects a return on His investment when He sends the rain, and so with
us and the scriptures. He sends them to grow our souls. We recently had a
Family Night lesson with our children where we compared our testimonies to
plants. We don’t have a particularly great track record with house plants, and
some of them often look pretty scraggly. But some are very resilient, and even
if pieces of them die, they can usually be nourished back to health. The longer
we go without adding the water of God’s word consistently to our testimonies,
the weaker they get. But as soon as we begin watering again, we revive and nourish
the plant.
The bread analogy also in instructive in its phrasing, that
by the Word of God we LIVE. Our whole lives our made better by studying the
scriptures. It doesn’t just nourish our testimonies. Our marriage, our
self-worth, even our skills and talents can all be improved upon when we take
time each day to feast upon the Bread of Life.
First Nephi 15:23-24 reads:
And they said unto me: What
meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?
And I said unto them that it was
the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold
fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the
fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away
to destruction.
Alma 32:28 reads:
Now, we will compare the word
unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart,
behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your
unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to
swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will
begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or
that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth
to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.
Here we see two particularly famous analogies from the Book
of Mormon. In the first, perhaps the most famous comparison in Latter-day Saint
theology, we have a comparison reminiscent of the lamp in Psalm 119: it is a
guidance system, but not one which shows us the entire path, just enough for us
to rely on one step at a time. Much has been spoken previously and talks have been given about the differences in results
for those who never grabbed the rod, versus those who merely were “clinging” to
the rod, versus those who were “continually holding fast.” I have seen that
difference keenly in recent years. I’ve seen how reading your scriptures is
better than not reading, but better still is studying them. The
difference is a matter of intent, of effort, and perhaps approach.
The second analogy here, from Alma, connects to the earlier
nourishment analogies, but here the formula is flipped: the Word is the seed
and WE have to nourish it to let it grow within us. And of course we see and
feel the true growth of ourselves as we do. But, like the rod analogy, there is
a suggestion here of effort needed. As a poor graveyard of dead houseplants
that have entered the doors of our home can testify, plants need constant care,
not just casual appreciation.
If you are looking to increase your scripture study, the
best advice I can possibly give is to keep a study journal. A wise seminary teacher
told me, “your pen is your lightning rod for inspiration!” I have found this to
be remarkably true. When I approach the scriptures with journal and pen in hand
and write the date at the top before I begin, it’s like I’m telling the Lord, “I
am read to receive, so please send me something!” I then just start writing down
my reactions to what I’m reading and sometimes learn a lot more that way. On
occasion, I even find this is the best way to unlock spiritual moments of true
revelation while studying. Deep moments like that won’t happen every time you
study with a journal, but I’ve rarely ever had them happen without.
I’m happy to say that for two months as of today I haven’t
missed a day of at least reading the scriptures, and most of those days it has
been real studying. That’s the longest streak I’ve had in years, and so far
just in these two months I’ve seen incredible healing, on par with that received
through therapy, connection, and other parts of my repentance process. And, of
course, that makes sense: the scriptures are a direct conduit to the power of
the Atonement with its transformative power.
