“Beware Lest Thou Forget”

“Beware Lest Thou Forget”
Lesson 17,Compiled by Maren Hale

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 6; 8; 11; 32
Board: OUR GOAL IS, AS WAS THAT OF ANCENT ISRAEL, TO PUT GOD AND CHRIST AT THE CENTER OF OUR LIFE.
INTRODUCTION

EXPERIENCE: Reminders in my home of the covenants I have made.

Here are some important objects that I love to look at in my home that remind me of the Lord and the covenants I have made with Him:
● Family pictures – We love our children and feel a responsibility to guide them back to their Heavenly Father – they are our stewardship and we want to be with them and other loved ones eternally.
● Genealogy books – Hardy Heritage, John R. Winder, David Eccles…
I feel blessed to have ancestors who loved the Lord. They sacrificed in many ways so that their posterity could have the blessings of the gospel.
● Music that invites the Spirit – Reid Nibley’s “Quiet Classics”
For me, music such as Reid’s CD sooths my soul and gives me joy.
● Scriptures and Church books – Elder F. Enzio Busche’s book, Yearning for the living God These books light the way for me. They help me feel
the spirit and give me direction in my life.
● Plaques – “If you love me, keep my commandments.”
This plaque reminds me daily to do what is right and hold on to the iron rod through my actions and through prayer.
● Temple picture – Salt Lake Temple
I am reminded of where I made sacred covenants and where I can go to serve, receive peace, and commune with the Lord.

QUESTION: Is there something special you have in your home that reminds you and your family of your devotion to the gospel and to the covenants you have made? [I love religious art, so I have chosen prints that remind me of things of the spirit:”
● Adam and Eve grieving for their son, Abel
● Christ in the temple as a boy
● Missionaries teaching a Danish family
● The resurrection of Christ
● The Vienna Opera House (my grandfather was the missionary who opened up the Church in Vienna).
● “The First Grief” (a young woman listening to another woman who is sad – it shows compassion)
● The well-know Christ by Heinrich Hoffman

I always put prints in my children’s rooms that made them reflect on their testimonies and the gospel – “The Sacred Grove,” “Adam-Ondi-Ahman.” “Liberty Jail,” “the Kirtland Temple,” “The Armor of God,” photographs of ancestors who lived the gospel.]

Part of our lesson today is about the physical objects that the ancient Israelites used to remind themselves of the Lord and their covenants with him. Physical objects can be powerful reminders for us, also.

BODY

In the Book of Deuteronomy there are 3 sermons or discourses given by Moses prior to his departure from Israel in which he summarized the Mosaic code. At this time, Israel was camped in Moab, across the Jordan from the promised land. Joshua would soon lead them in their battle against the Canaanites to posses the promised land.

Imagine with me the setting for this event:
● A great congregation or conference of tens of thousands, possibly millions.
● A nomadic people that had lived in the desert for decades.
● A aged prophet of 120 years about to deliver his final admonition to a
people he has loved as a father.

The Old Testament Student Manual states:

“Moses speaks like a dying father to his children. The words are earnest, inspired, impressive. He looks back over the whole of the 40 years of their wandering in the desert, reminds the people of all the blessings they have received, of the ingratitude with which they have so often repaid Him, and of the judgments of God, and the love that continually broke forth behind them; he explains the laws again and again, and adds what is necessary to complete them, and is never weary of urging obedience to them in the warmest and most emphatic words, because the very life of the nation was bound up with this; he surveys all the storms and conflicts which they have passed through, and beholding the future in the past, takes a survey also of the future history of the nation, and sees, with mingled sorrow and joy, how the three great features of the past – apostasy, punishment, and pardon – continue to repeat themselves in the future also.” (Keil and Kelitzsch, commentary quoted in Old Testament Student Manual, p. 216)

QUESTION: How do we talk to our children, our posterity, about the direction of their lives?

EXPERIENCE: Gary Norton at his father’s funeral

As I visited with Gary Norton last week at his father’s viewing. He mentioned to me the recent temple trip he had been on where his siblings and father had drawn closely together to share things of the Spirit. He told me how poignant those experiences with his father had been to him.

EXPERIENCE: Sister Julie G. Beck at her father’s funeral.

Elder William Grant Bangerter recently passed away. His daughter, Relief Society general president, “Julie Beck, spoke of a recent conversation she had with him where he asked her what her mission in life is. He asked what his purpose was and why individuals are here on earth. She then recalled her father’s answers – responding very powerfully to his own questions. He said:

‘We are here to develop ourselves and build the kingdom of God. A high level of employment is an interesting thing. But serving as a bishop and leader is something very special. …I was not sent on earth to be a farmer or a carpenter, I was sent to serve and respond where I was sent and be carried around the world in the Lord’s service.” (“A light to all who knew him,” Church News, May 1, 2010, p. 13)

We, like the prophet Moses, should talk to our children and grandchildren about the direction of their lives.

In Deuteronomy, Chapter 6, Moses instructs the people to keep the commandments.

SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 6:1-5

1. Now these are the commandments, the statues, and the judgements, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to posses it:

2. That thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statues and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of they life; and that thy days may be prolonged.

3. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey.

4. Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

5. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

These verses contain the core message of the Book of Deuteronomy:
● To love the Lord with “all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (v.5)
● To keep the commanments “all the days of thy life.” (vs. 2)
● And that the Lord requires thee, “but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy hear and with all thy soul.” (Deut. 10:12).

The reasons Moses gives for these instructions are that:
● “That thy days may be prolonged.” (vs. 2)
● “that it may be well with thee,” (vs. 3)
● “that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath
promised thee.” (vs. 3)

QUESTION: Is the message any different in our day? [Some laws and ordinances may be different, but the message stays the same – Word of Wisdom]

OUR GOAL IS, AS WAS THAT OF ANCENT ISRAEL, TO PUT GOD AT THE CENTER OF OUR LIFE.

Our study of the Old Testament reveals that ancient Israel struggled to follow these instructions.

QUESTION: What challenges do we face in attempting to live a God-centered life?
[People we are with have different standards (work, school, media)]

EXPERIENCE: Paddling against the current

When I was a young girl, I attended a camp in Canada where we went on long 5-day canoe trips. We paddled down lakes to rivers, and that repeated itself. When our direction on a river was against the current, we would sometimes encounter terrific rapids and currents along a stretch of a river. If we worked hard paddling in very strong rapids, we could only slow our rate of passage with the current. There was no way, floating along in our canoe that we could paddle upstream. We would usually find ourselves quite a way from where we started. The only way to stop our progress down stream was to paddle over to the side, get out, and portage past the strong rapids.

Living in the world is much like trying to resist the current in a river. Though the flow in the river may seem gentle, it can have great power in certain areas. If we are not careful, the flow of the current of different thoughts and standards can sweep us far from our destination before we realize what is happening. At times like this, we need to get away and walk past temptations.

SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 6:6-7

6. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

7. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

These verses reminded me of something my mother wrote. She states:

“The principal lessons a parent must teach are those of spiritual values. Elder Boyd K. Packer has suggested that when children are interested or teachable, parents need to ‘seize the moment.’ (Boyd K. Packer, Teach Ye Diligently, p.110) “When they are spiritually hungry, feed them. Unknowingly, I followed this precept. We discussed gospel concepts freely while preparing salad, driving to a music lesson, or sitting around the dinner table. It was as commonplace to talk about the Atonement or the Second Coming as to converse about what was happening in Congress or in the fourth-grade math class.
“President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., has said that Latter-day Saint children have a spiritual maturity that must not be underestimated. ‘They are eager to learn the Gospel,’ he said,’ and they want it straight, undiluted (J. Reuben Clark Selected Papers, ed. David H. Yarn, Jr., p. 246).’” (Maren Eccles Hardy, “You Can’t Afford Not To,” Ensign, March 1989, pp. 24-25)

“Do our children know what we know?” asked Elder Robert D. Hales during April General Conference.

“Our duty to God as parents and leaders begins with leading by example – consistently and diligently living gospel principles at home.”

Elder Hales said that parents lead by understanding the hearts of their children and by walking alongside them on the gospel path.

He said, “To truly understand their hearts, we must do more than just be in the same room or attend the same family and Church activities. We must plan and take advantage of teaching moments that make a deep and lasting impression upon their minds and hearts.”

“The greatest influence on a child does not come from an interview with the bishop or some other leader, “but from the regular, warm, friendly, caring interaction with parents.”

Most important in these interactions with youth is “asking them questions, letting them talk, and then being willing to listen, yes listen, and then listen some more, even hearken with spiritual ears!” (“Our Duty to God,” Church News, April 10, 2010, p. 21)

QUOTE #1
Elder Robert D. Hales: “It is our imperative duty to help youth understand and believe the gospel in a deeply personal way. We can teach them to walk in the light, but that light cannot be borrowed. They must earn it for themselves. They must obtain their own light of testimony directly from the source of spiritual light—God Himself—through prayer and study and pondering. They must understand who they are and who Heavenly Father wants them to become. How do we help them?”
(“Our Duty to God: The Mission of Parents and Leaders to the Rising Generation,” April 2010 General Conference)

EXAMPLE: Ada Taylor’s funeral yesterday. Her daughters said, “We were taught at her feet. She was our example in prayer, scripture study, and listening.”
In General Conference, Elder Francisco J. Viñas said, “In order to more effectively teach the things pertaining to righteousness, it is important to understand that, in addition to imparting information, we must facilitate revelation. This way, the person being taught can feel the desire to know these principles for himself or herself.” (Things Pertaining to Righteousness, April 2010 General Conference)

We need to teach our children to recognize when they feel the Spirit.

QUOTE #2 He continues his council in Quote #2.

Elder Francisco J. Viñas: “In a time when the family is under attack from the forces of evil and when the conditions in which we live are not so very different from those that Alma experienced, the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve have set forth in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” that “parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness” (November 1995, 102).
“This includes nurturing, supporting, and teaching children in all things pertaining to righteousness so that they may remain firm, with their “loins girt about with truth, having on the breastplate of righteousness, and [their] feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace” (D&C 27:16). (“Things Pertaining to Righteousness,” April 2010 General Conference)
And finally, from April General Conference – Elder David A. Bednar spoke of parents’ sacred responsibility to help children act and to seek learning by faith. “The spiritual understanding you and I have been blessed to receive, and which has been confirmed as true in our hearts, simply cannot be given to our children. The tuition of diligence and of learning by study and also by faith must be paid to obtain and personally “own” such knowledge. Only in this way can what is known in the mind also be felt in the heart. Only in this way can a child move beyond relying upon the spiritual knowledge and experiences of parents and adults and claim those blessings for himself or herself. Only in this way can our children be prepared spiritually for the challenges of mortality.” (“Watching with All Perseverance,” April 2010 General Conference)
We are being told again to prepare our children spiritually.

QUOTE #3: He give us a promise at the close of his talk:
Elder David A. Bednar: “I bear witness that parents who consistently read and talk about the Book of Mormon with their children, who share testimony spontaneously with their children, and who invite children as gospel learners to act
and not merely be acted upon will be blessed with eyes that can see afar off (Moses 6:27) and with ears that can hear the sound of the trumpet (Ezekiel 33:2–16). The spiritual discernment and inspiration you will receive from the combination of these three holy habits will enable you to stand as watchmen on the tower for your families – “watching . . . with all perseverance” (Ephesians 6:18) – to the blessing of your immediate family and your future posterity. I so promise and testify in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen. (“Watching with All Perseverance,” April 2010 General Conference)
SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 6:8-9 [speaking of the words of God – covenants]

8. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

“The Jews took these verses literally, inscribing scriptural passages on tiny pieces of parchment, folding them, and putting them into tiny leather boxes about 1 ½” square. These boxes were then tied to the head to be over the forehead, or on the left biceps, suggesting that the wearer would ‘fulfill the law with the head and heart’…

“The mezuzah (Hebrew for ‘doorpost’) was a parchment with a scriptural passage on it inserted into a tiny, cylindrical box. It was attached to the door frame. It became customary for Jews to touch or kiss the mezuzah each time they left or entered the home.” (Old Testament Student Manual, p. 218)

QUESTION: What objects or things to we wear to signify a reminder of our covenants?
● Temple garments
● Tradition of deacons wearing white shirts to pass the sacrament
● Respectful, church attire to Sunday meetings
● Modest clothing
● CTR rings

THE THINGS WE DO IN OUR HOMES SHOULD REMIND US OF THE LORD, HIS WORDS, AND OUR COVENANTS WITH HIM.

Some choose to spend hours watching television, surfing the internet, playing video games, or talking on their cell phones; while others choose to interact with family members, read books, study, develop musical talents, prepare a healthy meal, serve someone, or work keeping up the home and yard.

“Recent studies conducted by a Stanford University research team have revealed that ‘what we watch’ does have an effect on our imaginations, our learning patterns, and our behaviors.

First, we are exposed to new behaviors and characters. Next, we learn or acquire these new behaviors. The last and most crucial step is that we adopt these behaviors as our own.

One of the most critical aspects of human development that we need to understand is the influence of ‘repeated viewing’ and ‘repeated verbalizing’ in shaping our future. The information goes in, ‘harmlessly, almost unnoticed,’ on a daily basis, but we don’t react to it until later, when we aren’t able to realize the basis for our reactions.

In other words, our value system is being formed without any conscious awareness on our part of what is happening!” (Denis Waitley, Seeds of Greatness, p. 55)

This research team discovered that all that we see and hear around us has a dramatic effect on the way we live our lives.

QUOTE #4: President Ezra Taft Benson tells us that we must counteract the negative influences we encounter.

President Ezra Taft Benson: “[People who are] captained by Christ will be consumed in Christ….Enter their homes, and the pictures on their walls, the books on their shelves, the music in the air, their words and acts reveal them as Christians,” (Ensign, November 1985, pp. 6-7)

SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 8:2-3

2. And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.

3. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.

During the forty years in the wilderness Israel learned:
● To be humble
● To be obedient
● And that man lives not by bread alone, but by the word of God.

Deuteronomy 8: 11-14

11. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statues, which I command thee this day:

12. Yet when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;

13. And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;

14. Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;

In the wilderness Israel also learned gratitude.

QUOTE #5

Elder Robert D. Hales: “Gratitude is a state of appreciation, an act of thanksgiving, which causes us to be humble because we recognize an act of kindness, service, or caring from someone else which lifts us and strengthens us.
“In some quiet way, the expression and feelings of gratitude have a wonderful cleansing or healing nature. Gratitude brings warmth to the giver and the receiver alike.” (“Gratitude for the Goodness of God,” Ensign, May 1992)


Deuteronomy 8:18-20

18. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

19. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.

20. As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.

We learn here the importance of realizing that all our blessings come from the Lord. We are nothing without Him.

QUOTE # 6

President Harold B. Lee: “[Brigham Young said, ‘The worst fear I have about this people is that they will get rich in this country, forget God and his people, wax fat, and kick themselves out of the Church and go to hell. This people will stand mobbing, robbing, poverty and all manner of persecution and be true. But my greatest fear is that they cannot stand wealth; and yet they have to be tried with riches, for they will become the richest people of this earth.’
“Many years of experience have proved that statement to be a prophecy that has been fulfilled.” (Decisions for Successful Living, p. 212)

Moses tells us that prosperity and freedom might cause the people to forget God, yet, that same prosperity and freedom can further the Lord’s work.

QUOTE #7

President Spencer W. Kimball: “The Lord has blessed us as a people with a prosperity unequaled in times past. The resources that have been placed in our power are good, and necessary to our work here on the earth. But I am afraid that many of us have been surfeited with flocks and herds and acres and barns and wealth and have begun to worship them as false gods, and they have power over us. Do we have more of these good things than our faith can stand?
“Many people spend most of their time working in the service of a self-image that includes sufficient money, stocks, bonds, investment portfolios, property, credit cards, furnishings, automobiles, and the like to guarantee carnal security throughout, it is hoped, a long and happy life.
“Forgotten is the fact that our assignment is to use these many resources in our families and quorums to build up the kingdom of God – to further the missionary effort and the genealogical and temple work; to raise our children up as fruitful servants unto the Lord; to bless others in every way, that they may also be fruitful.” (Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 357)

A GREAT PART OF OUR CHALLENGE HERE ON EARTH IS TO LEARN TO MANAGE OUR STEWARDSHIPS AND RESOURCES WELL.

SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 11:26-28

26. Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;

27. A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:

28. And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

QUESTION: What other gods are we tempted to go after?
● Material goods
● Physical vanity
● Intellectual superiority
● Constant recreation
● And a host of other ills

QUOTE #8: President Monson spoke in Conference about those ills.

President Thomas S. Monson: “Permissiveness, immorality, pornography, dishonesty and a host of other ills cause many to be tossed about on a sea of sin and crushed on the jagged reefs of lost opportunities, forfeited blessings and shattered dreams.

“My counsel for all of us is to look to the lighthouse of the Lord. There is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gale so strong, no mariner so lost but what its beacon light can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. The lighthouse of the Lord sends forth signals readily recognized and never failing.” (“A Word at Closing,” 180th General Conference, April 2010)

CONCLUSION

SCRIPTURE: Deuteronomy 32:1-4

1. Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

2. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:

3. Because I will publish the name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.

4. He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a god of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

QUESTION: Why is Jesus Christ called the Rock? [He is our sure foundation]

SCRIPTURE: Helaman 5:12

“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 the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”

Brothers and sisters, I’m grateful for my firm testimony that Christ is our Rock and our Redeemer. May we reverence Him, love Him, and remember our covenants with Him.


References:

Bob Beardall Gospel Doctrine Lesson
Church News
Denis Waitley, Seeds of Greatness
Ed Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, Teachings and Commentaries n the Old Testament
Ensign Magazine
General Conference talks
Maren Hale, personal experiences
Old Testament Student Manual
Quotes as noted in lesson