Who is allowed to tell me what to do? Should anyone be able to tell me what to do? Put it another way. Who do You recognize as authoritative in terms of your life, your decisions, your behavior?Who will you listen to?
Friends are people we trust. They will sometimes tell us the naked truth but more often share their opinions in the form of suggestions. Rarely do friends tell us what to do. Parents tell children what to do. But if you are reading this you are likely not a child.
Between adults, the context of being instructed makes all the difference. If you sign up for a continuing education class at your local community college, you are not only willing, but desiring to be instructed. The instructor will tell you how to shake your hips in a cha-cha or how to hold your hands on the pottery wheel. And you accept this person telling you what to do because you see them as expert or having authority. You allow your boss to tell you what to do at work. Or maybe you do the telling. But even that builds resentment over time.
But there are many more contexts in which we are unwilling to de directed. In many cases our unwillingness is justified and essential. Should we allow the government to tell us what to do? I’ll give that a qualified “maybe”. My observation is that in general, most people simply do not like being told what to do.
So I come back around to the initial question. Who will you let tell you what yo do?
There are people on earth that you should let tell you what to do. Aside from your doctor. Those people are prophets. Living prophets. Men who actually speak to God. And the great thing is they tell us what God said. So it’s not so much a prophet telling you what to do but God. I find that people in general are resistant to even letting God tell them what he wants them to do. They are more likely to follow a doctors instructions than God’s.
What is the quality that makes one willing to be guided by god? It’s humility. And it sounds simple, but it’s not easy to be completely humble or without pride. “Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.” (D&C 112:10)
An example:
A man I know as god’s living prophet today has repeatedly warned about letting media filled with sex & violence into your home. But I have friends who let it happen anyway, under the pretext of “not wanting to shelter their kids”. They are choosing not to allow God to direct them. Kids will be exposed to the evils of the world in sufficient quantity without opening a channel into your own home. Send them to school and work and sports, etc. and they will see unavoidably see what the world offers.
The point of our homes as refuges from the world is to give our kids a place where they can see and feel the difference between the world and the gospel & plan of salvation offered by Jesus Christ. And that can happen when you are willing to let God tell you what to do.
Another example:
I am professionally ready for promotion to the next level of my profession. I know this because I am starting to anticipate what needs to be done before my immediate supervisor. That doesn’t make him deficient. It only proves that I’m ready for more. I have been for some time. My problem is that there are no opportunities available or presenting themselves. I grow frustrated. I am finding it hard to trust in The Lord and his will and schedule. Am I willing to let Him tell me to stay in my current employment?
God’s gift to all men of agency ensures that we may go our own way. But when we choose to yield our pride and follow the counsel, guidance and instructions of The Lord given through his prophets, I know we are blessed. And when we individually seek for guidance directly from God thru our own prayers, we will be happier. God’s guidance is often not what we want, since I’m sure he sees things differently than we do. Do we have the humility to accept his guidance?
By: Mark Robins
