The Spiritual Journey of Becoming
The Spiritual Journey of Becoming
By Tami Allen
Because of our Come Follow Me focus on Moses and the Israelites this month, I have been thinking a lot about their story. We know their story is important because it is alluded to over and over in scripture. Not only in the Old Testament, but afterward in the New Testament, and then in the Book of Mormon it is also mentioned frequently. There are important lessons the Lord wants us to learn from their experiences if we are willing to be teachable.
This week the introduction to the lesson said, “Even on foot, it wouldn’t normally take 40 years to travel from the wilderness of Sinai to the promised land of Canaan. But that’s how long the children of Israel needed, not to cover the geographical distance, but to cover the spiritual distance: the distance between who they were and who the Lord needed them to become as His covenant people.” That got me thinking about my own life, and my own wilderness experiences. So many times in my life, when I have faced trials or hardships, and felt like I was lost in a wilderness of sorts, I have wondered about what the Lord was trying to teach me. When I read this passage, a light bulb went on! It's not always about what the Lord is trying to teach us—sometimes it is about who the Lord is helping us to become!
In a talk called “The Challenge to Become”, Elder Dallin H. Oaks explains:
“The Apostle Paul taught that the Lord’s teachings and teachers were given that we may all attain “the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). This process requires far more than acquiring knowledge. It is not even enough for us to be convinced of the gospel; we must act and think so that we are converted by it. In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something.”
For the children of Israel, this process took place over 40 years in the wilderness. For us, the process is much the same. This week I will celebrate my 48th birthday. Luckily, I am not the same person I was 40 years ago. During that time, through experiences the Lord has given me, my testimony has grown along with my faith and trust in my Heavenly Father, and my Savior Jesus Christ. The spiritual distance between who I was, as an 8-year-old child who was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and a 48 year old wife, and mother is immense. I can hardly remember that wide eyed girl of my childhood and the hopes and dreams she had! But that was where I began my journey of faith.
As I have wandered in my own wilderness the last 40 years, with a little perspective and time, I can look back and see that even in my most difficult and challenging moments, the Lord was with me. I can see that yes, He has taught me many important lessons about life, and people, and the principles of the gospel. But more importantly, I can see how he has helped me to change, to grow, to BECOME a better wife, mother, and disciple of Christ. I can see how experiences where I suffered hardships have deepened the empathy and compassion I feel for others who suffer. I can see how experiences where I didn’t have enough of what I needed have helped me to become someone who wants to make sure I minister to others in their need. I can see how the Lord has helped me to become more Christlike, even through my difficulties and challenges.
I have also realized over and over in my 48-year journey that the experiences I have and the times I may feel lost and as if I am wandering are not always about me. Because I have a husband and 6 children who are also on this journey, I get to be along for the ride while they learn lessons that the Lord specifically prepared for them. Many times along the way, I have questioned and wondered “why me?” when a particular challenge has come along—only to find out later that there was a specific reason for that challenge for one of my children or my husband. My job during those times is to sit back and watch while they are becoming who God wants them to be. He has patiently reminded me over and over that He is their parent too!
Elder Oaks teaches:
“The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan by which we can become what children of God are supposed to become. This spotless and perfected state will result from a steady succession of covenants, ordinances, and actions, an accumulation of right choices, and from continuing repentance. “This life is the time for men to prepare to meet God” (Alma 34:32). Now is the time for each of us to work toward our personal conversion, toward becoming what our Heavenly Father desires us to become.”
If you are feeling lost in the wilderness, or like you are wandering from place to place with no real purpose, I challenge you to ask the Lord not only what He would have you learn—but to really look inward to see who he would have you BECOME. God gives us specific challenges to help us to become more like Him. As we learn from the children of Israel, these challenges are not always fun or easy! He literally put roadblocks in their path on their way to the promised land because He knew that as they were—THEY WERE NOT READY. If we notice that we are facing roadblock after roadblock, and we don’t feel like we are progressing, it may just be that we aren’t ready yet for that next part of our journey.
Elder Stephen W. Owen said:
“I urge you to spend some time in quiet conversation with Heavenly Father. Ask Him: “What lack I yet?” The answers may surprise you. The path of conversion—the road between who we are and who Heavenly Father wants us to be—is a long one. Don’t let that discourage you. Learn from your experience; let it humble you. Submit to some tutoring from the Lord. Remember that the Savior loves you. He has promised, “Be of good cheer, for I will lead you along.”
If there is anything I have learned on my own journey in the wilderness, it is that His promise is absolutely true! Even in my most difficult challenges and my deepest suffering, I have felt the Lord next to me, leading me along. I have learned to trust Him implicitly, even when I don’t understand. I have learned to have faith in things I cannot yet see, and hope in my Savior when I am weary and can no longer bear the burdens I am faced with. Most of all I have learned that becoming what the Lord would have me be is not something that happens quickly. It is a spiritual journey that will take a lifetime, but it will be so worth it in the end when we stand before Him, confident that we have become a disciple that He would be proud of.
