"As I Have Loved You"

It's So Easy

A look at parts of Matthew 26:1-5, 14-35; Mark 14:1-2, 10-31 ;Luke 22:1-23, 31-38 and 24:30; John 13:1-38

When we are children and sheltered by our parents and society, we look out at the world and it seems as though it is our play place. Then we become teens, practicing independence and preparing to step out into the world on our own; the world holds so much promise and our future looks so bright. Then we marry, make a home and have children; we promise ourselves, our spouse, our families, and Heavenly Father that our family will be all they should be in the eyes of God and man.

On our way through and past all these stages of life, stuff happens, we err or circumstances take us on a different route than we had in mind. Things don't turn out to be as easy as we thought they would be. The path that seemed clear as we gazed down it from the start, is filled with side routes, thorns and obstacles.

The scriptures give us examples so we can see that even those in privileged positions suffer imperfection as we do. The disciples, who had the privilege to walk side by side with Jesus, had similar overly optimistic visions of their own faith and endurance when faced with trials.

Matthew 26: 31-34 reads:
Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd , and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.
We live in times that make life hard to deal with. (See 2Timothy Chapter 3) Generation after generation we pass down an unspoken web of "shoulds" that entangle us and can potentially distract us from serving the ideals of a Christ like life. We "should" achieve academically at or above a certain standard; we "should" maintain a certain level home, car, decor or life-style; we "should" maintain our appearance and wardrobe according to a certain standard of fashion; we "should" drive our children to achieve this worlds highest standards of excellence in all their activities... ITS EASY
But it's not easy... and it becomes progressively more difficult. None of these things are "bad" per se. They are just things that are easy to get caught up in, with generations of desire for approval creating the ruts we can get stuck in.
Society once thought if they could just create industry that produced gadgets to do our chores, we could all live a life of ease. Did it work out that way?What about the promising future computers were to bring us? How about the technology of today? Will it really make our life easy? Is it really worth it to use the limited time we have in this life to desire, work for, shop for, learn to use and maintain all these "shoulds" and gadgets? Along with each "advancement" comes it's own difficulties and complexities, until we have created, generation by generation, a world that is so complex and dependent that even when we choose to live simply, it is a major undertaking to untangle ourselves from the web the world has bound us in.
How did Jesus show us is the way to live? In those last hours with His disciples He tirelessly and carefully took advantage of every opportunity to teach them and all who would listen. He didn't partake in distracting activities, He knew He had a short time to instill in them what was necessary for them to carry out their own lives and to leave the footprint of scripture, principle, and prayerfulness that can guide each of our lives through this world and back to him.
It's not easy to walk in Jesus footprints, but we can do it. We can find our way through what sometimes seems an impassable path of life. The path isn't what it seemed at first glance, but it is a path we can navigate with the help of the Holy Ghost, the Priesthood, Scripture, the sacred gift of our Ward Family, and the volumes of spoken and written guidance from our prophets past and present.
Let's follow Jesus footprints to stay on the path in our own special journey!

Posted by Sister Linda Roper