Choice

"Use boldness, but not overbearance; and also see that ye bridle all your passions...". 

These words found in Alma 38 entered my mind as I was reading the book of Ether this week. Or maybe these words have just been on my mind in general as I work to bridle my passion of wanting to eat every tasty thing in sight. Bridle yourself Cammy! Calm down girl.

 All bridle means is, to control. I'm not going to stop having one soda a day, but I will be the boss and tell my body "no" when it begs for five more or when my brain sneaks in a little thought like, "you deserve one". No, I don't. I don't deserve to be unhealthy. Not physically or spiritually. 

So how does this play into the book of Ether? Well, we watch a whole civilization fall because they were unwilling to bridle their various passions. Soon after the brother of Jared died, the Jaredite society, which had been built upon the foundation of Jesus Christ, began to fall away. The warning of this possibility is revealed as the people fail to follow the brother of Jared's  prophetic counsel in regards to their desire for a king. In Ether 6:23 he shares, " Surely this thing leadeth into captivity." 

Then, Jared (the actual Jared, not the brother of ) replies, "Suffer them (permit them) that they may have a king. And therefore he said unto them: choose ye out from among our sons a king, even whom ye will." And so they did. They ignored the warnings of the prophet. Their passion was to have a king. They needed one! This was the most important thing! This passion was the focus, it was not controlled. So, they were awarded their king and eventually it led to their captivity; their captivity to Satan and destruction.

But, it's their turn on earth right? (A friend of mine, named Liz, told me recently that her mother states this to her whenever she disagrees with a decision she's made. "It's your turn on Earth Liz." Too Funny. )

We are all agents unto ourselves and have the, "inalienable right to submit our will to whatever power we choose". These are great words of wisdom I heard in a talk this week by Brother Nate Williams. Essentially he shares we are given the choice to obey or reject prophetic counsel. What a gift it is to have the ability to bridle our passions and opt instead for a believing heart. To choose to follow the counsel of Jesus Christ.

In the book of Ether I love seeing the bouts of goodness the people choose to exhibit once in awhile amidst all the evil polluting their lives. Like when Corihor repented and was not only forgiven by Shule but was awarded power once again in the kingdom. Or when Nimrah recognizes that his Father is evil and gathers a small group together to join the more righteous group under Omer.

We are challenged to do the same. Even if the prophetic counsel we are rebelling against seems so minuscule at the time it will definitely have eternal ramifications.When our passion is fashion it may seem hard to dress modestly. When our passion is entertainment it may be hard to keep the Sabbath day Holy. When your passion is food (who me?) it may be hard to follow the Word of Wisdom. But, when our passion is following our Savior Jesus Christ all other passions can be bridled. This I know.

p.s. remember how the word passion is The Beloved's least favorite word? Ha! I need to make sure he reads this. :) He'll love it for sure.