Reading and Thinking

I've been reading a book series.  Not only is it recommendable, but it has helped me with my own testimony.  The books, written by Jan Karon, begin with "Life in Mitford" and follow the ins and outs of an Episcopalian Priest in South Carolina.  It is a delightful series, clean, and filled with vignettes of a life well lived in the service of God and others.

I know it is a work of fiction, but here are the things I've gleaned from it:

1.  Sometimes having the truth of the restored gospel makes us into those people we hear about in those polls taken concerning the opinions of non-LDS towards their LDS acquaintances that cause us to gasp because clearly we are just misunderstood.  I think it's pride and an unwillingness to allow faithful peoples of other sects the small truths that they do have.  In the same way that they claim we cannot be Christian, despite obvious proof to the contrary, we/I tend to forget that they, too, are following Christ to the best of their abilities.  Reading these books (I know they are fiction) has given me a glimpse into the lives of people who depend on the Spirit and talk to Heavenly Father much the way I do.  Jan Karon couldn't write this way if she didn't know these things.

2.  Sometimes I get swayed by the sweetness of books.  I spent my whole youth clamoring to be an archaeologist because I loved mysteries and I loved history.  There was a small stint where I wanted to be a veterinarian after reading "All Things Bright and Beautiful".  If I was young today, I might dream of growing up to be a thumping good wizard.  I'm firm enough in my testimony of the gospel that I'm not going to become an Episcopalian, but reading the (fictional) life of one of its ministers opened up a new world to me.

3.  Having a minister makes the membership spiritually lazy.  They count on this man for everything, to the point where he literally (and fictionally) bears the spiritual burden of all of their souls.  They come to him for prayers-- they don't have the ability to pray themselves or don't find themselves worthy?  They don't take care of the needy, spiritual or otherwise, because they know he will do it for them.   The membership's function is to attend each Sunday, enjoy (or not) a sermon, join committees to manage the activities of the church, and if they are deacons, they are a board that runs the business parts of the church.  They don't seek their own revelation in their lives.  They come to him, their priest, to be saved in Christ.  

4.  I love the full gospel.  I love the way it flows and makes sense.  While Jan Karon clearly has a relationship with the Trinity (though I wonder by her writing how the Trinity works, because she sees them as distinct beings with their own jobs, but traditionally rolled into one supreme being) and understands many principles, there are gaps that can only be overcome with the living gospel of Jesus Christ.  I love that I don't have to depend on someone else's testimony.  I can have my own.  I can receive revelation for my life, my family, and my calling.  I can go to Heavenly Father, with only His Son, Jesus Christ as my intercessory.  I can serve those around me with out waiting to be asked.