We first looked to purchase a dress. We couldn't find one she liked, and the ones we did find were prohibitively expensive. I thought back to the times when my mother had created dance costumes, prom dresses- all made specific to my taste and for much less than they could be bought- and felt a desire to give that kind of gift to my daughter. But a dress? That sounded way too complicated! I had long ago accepted that I was not seamstress material. But, my mother had repeated often, as she sewed clothes for us, that it wasn't hard, if you were just careful in following the pattern. I decided to entertain the idea she was right, and my daughter and I went to check out the possibilities found in the fabric stores. We found a pattern we loved, marked for beginners, and the perfect materials. I remember trying hard to hide my nervous trepidation as I paid for the materials. The amount was very reasonable- provided we actually got a dress out of it! This time, I carefully followed the pattern and instructions, and although it took a week, my daughter had her dress. As I have remembered her in that dress I have thought, "What a difference it makes when you want to learn and are ready and are willing to follow the pattern designed by one who has already succeeded and mastered what you are trying to do."
Moses 1 is one of the chapters of scripture that turned this experience from a life lesson, to a personal parable of eternal significance. In Doctrine and Covenants 52:14 the Lord promises, "I will give unto you a pattern in all things that ye many not be deceived." And that is what this first chapter of Moses is all about. I find it so remarkable, such a testament to the Lord's love, and the careful preparation of His instructions to us, that as part of the restoration, we were given the Book of Moses. In the church curriculum, when the Old Testament is studied, it begins with Moses 1. And Moses 1 is a perfect, compact, information packed example of what I have come to call the "Lord's pattern for growth and learning." And it is not limited to Moses. It was while reading this chapter that something clicked- I realized that what Moses experienced in this chapter paralleled a pattern seen in the lives of other righteous individuals including- but certainly not limited to- Adam, Abraham, Joseph, Isaiah, Lehi, Joseph Smith, Peter, and even the Savior. It is, among other things, the Lord's tutorial on how to approach this mortal experience and the study of His word to really learn. Here is my take on that pattern:
Step 1: I believe this step is most eloquently phrased by James, "If any man lack wisdom."(James 1:5) Before the Lord can teach us anything, we have to choose him as our teacher. I mentioned a handful of men above, and for each of them, the scriptures also provide and example of someone who chose to maintain that they did not "lack wisdom." For example, both Moses and Pharaoh witnessed the miracles of the Lord, but their responses, and where those responses led them, were very different. The same can be said of Peter and those who plotted the Savior's death, of Nephi and Laman, and the list could go on.
I think my favorite insight from Moses 1 with regard to this step is that we don't have to be perfectly humble and teachable for the Lord to answer our prayers and tutor us. It is after he has the first marvelous teaching session recorded in this chapter (which verse 17 tells us was sometime after Moses' initial call) that Moses says, "Now for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed."(Moses 1:10) Moses' experience illustrates the remainder of what James taught. The Lord will "give liberally" and "upbraideth not." The key is to "awake and arouse you faculties, even to experiment upon (the Lord's) words." (Alma 32:27) Which brings us to step 2.
Step 2: Inquire (or search, ponder, and pray). As Moses' experience shows us, this is not an idle asking, but an active, deeply involved inquiry. Like most words used in the Old Testament, the word translated inquiry denotes active involvement and could also be translated as "seek" or "search." It indicates an intense desire to find and obtain something. I have come to believe that this life boils down to an opportunity to discover for ourselves what we most desire, or as the Savior put it, "where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Luke 6:21) And where our heart is usually dictates what we do with our time.
One thing my children have taught me is that questions are not always inquiries. For example "Why can't I….?" from the lips of my teenagers is usually not an opening for me to explain or teach. Rather, from their perspective it is the beginning of trying to show me why they know better than me. Although there lips ask a question, they are completely uninterested in the information I have to offer. In retrospect, I can see that the times I have felt frustrated and doubted the Lord was there, I've approached Him with a similar agenda. It is asAlma described:
It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him. And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full. (Alma 12:9-10)
Step3: Manifestation (or spiritual experience): I think this is the Lord's favorite part of this mortal growth regime. Think how many times in the scriptures he laments that we will not gather to Him, learn from Him, and receive the gifts he has prepared for us. (Matthew 23:7, Doctrine & Covenants 29:2, Exodus 14:13-14, Isaiah 48:2, Doctrine and Covenants 88:33- there are lots more.) "Truly the Lord delights to bless those who love and serve him". (See D&C 76:5.) (Spencer W. Kimball, “Becoming the Pure in Heart,” Ensign, May 1978, 79) Our obedience, or searching and inquiring of him - these are ways we exercise our agency to "authorize the Spirit to teach (us)." (Elder Richard G. Scott, "To Acquire Spiritual Guidance", Ensign, November 2009, p8.)
Step 4: Trial (Hold on). In 2 Nephi, Lehi teaches his son: "For there must need be opposition in all things" so that through experiencing opposition we could come to know righteousness, happiness, and joy. (2 Nephi 11:11,13,25) In other words, life is hard. No matter where you are born, not matter what your race or religion, life will hold difficulty and pain. Believe it or not, it is part of what we came here for. It is not comfortable or fun- and I am in agreement with President Hinckley, that I'll take as little of that opposition as the Lord deems necessary for me. But the question is not whether we as mortal beings can escape adversity- we can't- it is whether that adversity will be wasted suffering or through the miracle of the atonement become an important part of building our eternal muscles. In keeping with the muscle theme, I like to remember when things are not as I wish, that I have accepted the services of the master trainer and I am now in midst of a "celestial training experience."
One of the things I love about this chapter is the way that the Lord's allowing the adversary to come and add "resistance training" to Moses' growth regimen, is smack dab in the middle of two remarkable, wonderful manifestations from the Lord. Most of us learn "line upon line,here little and there a little."(Isaiah 28:10) And our oppositional moments are also not always this intense. Nor can we always see the interconnectedness between are difficult moments, and how the Lord has prepared us so they can be times of important growth. So the way Moses successfully hung on and got through this visit from Satan is very helpful. He was afraid- he was very afraid. I've thought of how easy it would've been (because I've let it happen) to allow that fear to lead to questions like: "Why is the Lord allowing this?" "Didn't he promise, when he called me out of the bush that He would be with me?" (Exodus3:12) Where is He?" Which in turn could lead to thoughts like, "I can't stand against this powerful being." "I regret it, but the Lord isn't here and I have no choice but to bow, or he will destroy me."
But Moses thoughts seemed to take a different tract all together. One that affirms a pattern we see over and over again- he remembered what he had already learned and what it felt like to feel the Lord's presence. He did what Paul counseled and "cast not away…(his) confidence,trusting in the Lord's recompense." (Hebrews 10:35) And in looking to what the Lord had given him, he found himself prepared- for instance he relied upon the knowledge that he is "a son of God, in similitude of his Only Begotten." And he remembered it with gratitude: "Blessed be the name of my God for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else where is they glory, for it is darkness unto me…I will not cease to call upon God, I have other things to inquire of him." (Moses 1:13,15,18)
That last line brings to mind Peter's experience in John 6. At the end of the chapter many who had thought the Savior was the promised Messiah, left from following Him because what he taught in that chapter didn't make sense to them or fit with what they thought the messiah should be doing and saying. The Savior asks Peter if he will also go and Peter replies, "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the word of eternal life."
Mormon reacted in the same pattern, as we can see when he wrote his son about the destruction and pain brought about by his peoples' choices. These choices deeply impacted Mormon's life in horrible, painful ways, and he doesn't in anyway deny that, but he also wrote," My son, be faithful in Christ, and may not these things which I have written grieve thee, to weigh thee down unto death; but may Christ lift thee up….And may the grace of God the Father,…be, and abide with you forever." (Moroni 9:25-26)
His son, Moroni, in turn, described this faith, this holding on to the promises of the Lord as an "anchor to the souls of men." (Ether 12:4) Doesn't that just describe what we sense in Moses' words?- An anchor that held him through this storm?
Step 5: Greater Manifestation (Witness). Again, I love this fairly compact chapter because we can see that not only did Moses receive more, but the very opposition he struggled through- the Lord allowing Moses to literally meet Satan and have personal knowledge of him- means that Moses was able to gain so much more from what the Lord then taught him. Out of 84 times the title Satan is used in our standard works, 34 are in the Book of Moses alone. (So I have two things to remember here: 1) Adversity works the same way in my life, and 2) having realized that learning about Satan and the way he works is a repeated theme in the next chapters, I can ride on Moses' coattails a little bit and learn a little more what he learned as I go through the rest of this book.)
Finally, (really!) we need to realize this is a pattern of growth that is never over, never at a standstill, and never done. The last step is: repeat. But not in a futile, running like hamster on its wheel kind of thing. No this is a taking it to the next level kind of thing. I particularly love the way President Eyring explained it while acknowledging that one of the oppositions we face as we grow is the call to greater service:
The tough part of that reality, however, is that for Him to give you that increased power you must go in service and faith to your outer limits.
It is like building muscle strength. You must break down your muscles to build them up. You push muscles to the point of exhaustion. Then they repair themselves, and they develop greater strength. Increased spiritual strength is a gift from God which He can give when we push in His service to our limits. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, our natures can be changed. Then our power to carry burdens can be increased more than enough to compensate for the increased service we will be asked to give (Henry B. Eyring, “O Ye That Embark,” Ensign, Nov 2008, 57–60).
Doesn't that just describe what happened for Moses? Remarkable what can happen when you willingly follow a pattern established by one who has successfully completed the project and who promises you all that you need to do likewise.
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