“In the beginning was the Word,… All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. Wherefore, he is possessor of all things; for all things are subject unto him, both in heaven and on earth, the life and the light, the spirit and the power, sent forth by the will of the Father through Jesus Christ, His son.” (D&C 50:27) “For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” (D&C 84:45) And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understanding; Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space.
When we have a hard time understanding a particular statement by a wise person or that which we might read in the scriptures, all we have to do in order to be enlightened by it, is to live it (the scripture or wisdom) for just a short time. Then, all of a sudden ‘eureka’, our mind will comprehend and enlightenment will shine through the fog. For example: “To be deeply buried in the affairs of earth as to perceive no light whatever from the larger or spiritual sphere of being, is a calamity.” (Nels Nelson). The merciful (translated normally as kindness) shall obtain mercy. To judge as you would be judged. Too, let your light so shine, that men will see your good works. “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness (shadow) at all.” 1 John 1:5 When we are too buried in the things of earth we are blinded by darkness, not light. Light does not cast a shadow; a shadow will only appear as another object comes between the light and the object being lit. The shadow comes from the object not from the light. We have been told to, “Let (y)our light so shine before men, that they may see (y)our good works, and glorify (y)our Father (who)which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) The candle that lights another loses no light of its own. The key is to keep anything, or things, from coming between the light and yourself. Yet there are so many things in and of the world that tend to block or at least reflect our light away. I remember reading from Alma, in the Book of Mormon, where Alma was teaching King Lamoni, and, “He (Alma) knew that King Lamoni was under the power of God; he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness. Yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul…” (Alma 19:6) By believing and/or living the teachings of Christ, that light will light up our minds as well as our soul and both will be brighter.
I remember, as a youth, long before television was invented, listening to radio shows. Our old console radio had more static than it had pure sound, but after school was out and sometime before supper in the afternoon. The ‘Shadow’ would come on, and my brothers and sisters and I would sit on the floor around that old radio to listen to the Shadow. After an Ivory Soap commercial we would hear a deep and scary voice say, “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.” Of course, the shadow would know, because the shadow was formed by the object, or objects that were lurking in the hearts of the men who were casting the shadow.
I, at first titled this thought as “On, “The Path of ‘Self Indulgence’ or…” referring to following the path of Christ. But, my writing (thinking) started taking a different direction so I changed the title. These are opposite behaviors, as a self indulgent person is a selfish, self centered person who indulges in things and behaviors that brings him comfort irrespective of others. Self Indulgence is the behavior of those who have not yet received the light of Christ; those whose minds have not been lit up as was King Lamoni’s. The self indulgent person’s mind has not yet been ‘infused with such joy. May God bless us and help us to live in the light and to allow it to ‘light up our minds’, as it did Lamoni’s, that we may hear the wisdom that will diffuse the darkness. The darkness that allows and encourages ‘self indulgence’, and is known by the ‘shadow’.
The quotes below were from various authors that I have saved over the years. But they say better what I am thinking than what I could say myself. In so far as you succeed in losing yourself in the service of others, in that measure will happiness come to you, and you will reap a harvest of bliss. “It is in loving, not in being loved, the heart is blessed. It is in giving, not in seeking gifts, we find our quest. Whatever be thy longing or thy need, that do thou give; So shall thy soul be fed, and thou indeed, shalt surely live.” “Cling to self and you cling to sorrow, looking about for a new delicacy wherewith to stimulate a deadened appetite; and how bloated, burdened, scarcely any food at last is eaten with pleasure.” Truly; “He that seeketh his life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life shall find it.” Abiding and real happiness can only be found by centering ourselves in that which is permanent. If we would but look back upon our lives, we will find that the moments of supremist happiness were those in which we uttered some word or performed some act of compassion or self denying love.” Another has said, “Be content with what you have but not with what you are.” We should absorb as much light as we can and let nothing come between ourselves and that light that may cause a shadow of darkness within us.
In the book, ‘Wisdom of Israel’, A Tzaddik was asked, “Why is it that the pious man seems less eager to persuade others to become virtuous than the impious man to gain companions in wickedness?” He replied: “The man of piety walks in the light and is not afraid to walk alone, whereas the man of impiety walks in darkness and is anxious for company.”