STRENGTHENING OUR SPIRITUAL FOUNDATIONS
If you have
ever read the Lord of the Rings books or seen the movies, you might recall the
battle which took place at Helm’s Deep.
It was a fortress and refuge built up against the solid towering
mountains. It was a place which had always
withstood the attack of its enemies throughout the history of the people of
Rohan. It had never fallen. So, when the evil Orc armies began to attack, the King ordered all of the people to retreat into Helm’s Deep where
they could outlast and hold off the invasion attempts. The King was confident in their security in
this time-tested and proven stronghold.
But as the
orc army attacked, their brutality, relentlessness, and endless numbers were unexpected!
They assaulted the causeway and the main door
with a battering ram. They used ladders to try and scale the high, protective walls. And yet the defenses held. Despite the
attacks, the King remained confident and proclaimed, almost in a challenge to his
enemy, “Is that it? Is that the best you can muster?”
But the enemy had discovered one, small, previously unnoticed weakness in the foundation
of the protective walls. It was a small
drain hole.
And the enemy seized its
opportunity. Using a new tactic, they set an explosion, breached the wall, and
began to overrun the castle and those who were fighting to defend it.
As the people were falling and retreating
deeper into the fortress in an effort to protect themselves, King Théoden, is
in shock, and declared, “What can men do against such reckless hate?” He was caught unawares at the relentless
brutality of the attack and did not know that a weakness existed in the previously
sure and solid foundation of his fortress.
Now consider
some of what Pres. Russell M. Nelson just taught and encouraged us to consider
in this latest conference.
“…it is now
time that we each implement extraordinary measures—perhaps measures we have
never taken before—to strengthen our personal spiritual foundations.
Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. My dear brothers and sisters, these are the
latter days. If you and I are to withstand the forthcoming perils and
pressures, it is imperative that we each have a firm spiritual foundation built
upon the rock of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
So I ask each of you, how firm is your foundation? And what
reinforcements to your testimony and understanding of the gospel are needed?”
How much
have we considered and followed up on these invitations? Have we begun to look at our own spiritual
foundations, and prayerfully asked the Lord to show us what weaknesses and previously
unknown spiritual drain holes might exist and make us vulnerable to attack? Have we asked Him how we might go about
filling those potential weak spots and fortify ourselves more completely? Is our foundation sure, solid, and
FULLY anchored to the Rock of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ?
It seems we
have been warned repeatedly over the past several years, that between now and
when the Lord comes again, the attacks of the adversary against our spiritual
foundations will be intensified, relentless, brutal, unexpected, and in ways we
have never been assaulted before. And we
cannot rest upon our previously successful attempts and measures of defense. We have been repeatedly counseled,
encouraged, and pleaded with to take new, extraordinary, and unprecedented
protective measures and preparations if we hope to survive the attacks.
I also find
another interesting comparison in the Lord of the Rings stories and what the prophet
is trying to tell us, in regards to temple worship and the urgency of gathering Israel
through covenants on both sides of the veil. This is in relation to the battles of
Helm’s Deep and also the enemies unprecedented assault on the white city of Minas
Tirith.
In both
battles, the enemy was only overcome and defeated because supportive armies and
outside friendly forces came to offer support to those who were defending their
walled cities which were being overrun.
And in the case of Minas Tirith, it was an army of deceased warriors,
who had been summoned to fulfill their covenants and oaths to fight for the King,
who eventually provided the strength in battle to overcome the evil forces and
prevent the walled city from falling.
I find those
parallels fascinating in relation to the work and service in the temple, as we
strengthen not only our own spiritual foundations through our worship and service
there, but also provide opportunities for our deceased ancestors to make covenants
with the Lord through proxy ordinances.
And as we serve in their behalf, I believe many or most of them are so
grateful, that they in turn seek to do all they can to then protect and guard us
through our mortal journey and the attacks of the adversary.
And oh, how I think we will need the strength of our ancestors as we face the unprecedented attacks in the months and years ahead. Now is not the time to shy away from our temple covenants, service and worship, or to hesitate or doubt because of small procedural changes which the Lord may be implementing to Hasten the Work of this important gathering of friendly forces on both sides of the veil.
It is also interesting to note, that in both battles in the Lord of the Rings series, the outside help only came in the final hours. The defenders had to determine to "fight to the last man" and be willing to endure to the end, whatever that end might be, or else they would have been swept off before the help finally came to deliver them.
In similar manner, we must hold faithful and true to the knowledge we have and the covenants we have made. We worship a God of the 4th watch, who often steps in with His divine deliverance only after we have proven ourselves fully committed to the cause. So Hold strong and battle on, even when the odds seem out of your favor!
Pres. Nelson
adds, “The temple lies at the center of strengthening our faith and spiritual
fortitude because the Savior and His doctrine are the very heart of the temple.
Everything taught in the temple, through instruction and through the Spirit,
increases our understanding of Jesus Christ. His essential ordinances bind us
to Him through sacred priesthood covenants. Then, as we keep our covenants, He
endows us with His healing, strengthening power. And oh, how we will need His power in the days
ahead. We have been promised that ‘if
[we] are prepared [we] shall not fear.’ This
assurance has profound implications today. The Lord has declared that despite
today’s unprecedented challenges, those who build their foundations upon Jesus
Christ, and have learned how to draw upon His power, need not succumb to the
unique anxieties of this era. …I plead
with you to seek—prayerfully and consistently—to understand temple covenants
and ordinances. Spiritual doors will open.
You will learn how to part the veil between heaven and earth, how to ask for
God’s angels to attend you, and how better to receive direction from heaven.
Your diligent efforts to do so will reinforce and strengthen your spiritual
foundation. …Please believe me when I say that when your spiritual foundation
is built solidly upon Jesus Christ, you have no need to fear. As you are true
to your covenants made in the temple, you will be strengthened by His power.
Then, when spiritual earthquakes occur, you will be able to stand strong
because your spiritual foundation is solid and immovable.”
May we
double and re-double our humble efforts to prepare, seek the Lord’s help in
discovering and fortifying the previously undetected weak spots in our
foundations, and build up and summon our friendly, supportive, outside forces
to help us stand strong and overcome the attacks of the adversary, and stand
with humble confidence and faith upon the Rock of our Redeemer, whose foundation
in sure and cannot fall.
“And now, my
sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is
Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil
shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when
all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power
over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the
rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon
if men build they cannot fall.” – Helaman 5:12
