Remembering God’s love will strengthen your spiritual resilience and protect you from the trap of spiritual apathy.
I peered out through the dense fog at the Ribeira da Torre Valley of Santa Antão, Cape Verde. As the clouds parted and sunlight illuminated the view, my jaw dropped. Enormous mountains covered in lush green grass and flowers bordered a deep valley speckled with small homes and farms. I was in awe at the beauty that God had created for us, His children.
PHOTO BY LUKE ELLIS CRAVEN
In a recent General Conference address, Elder Ulisses Soares talks about the awe and wonder we can experience when we remember the goodness of God. He shared, “The wonder I refer to is the sensation of emotion, awe, or amazement common to all who wholeheartedly center their lives on the Savior and His teachings and humbly recognize His presence in their lives.”
Elder Soares also makes us aware of the opposite of spiritual wonder: spiritual apathy. He mentions the Nephites who lived after Christ’s visit to the Americas and their own downfall into apathy: “[The Nephites] began to be less and less astonished at a sign or a wonder from heaven, …[disbelieving] all which they had heard and seen” (3 Nephi 2:1).
I don’t think there is anybody who can say that they’ve seen every beautiful thing this world has to offer. In fact, most people create bucket lists that include the awe-inspiring places they want to see someday. Maybe you have one. But what if we each had a “spiritual wonder bucket list” as well? Not for places we want to see, but for testimony-building experiences we want to have. God has so much in store for us, so why aren’t we creating a bucket list for those moments?
Elder Soares teaches that when you center your life around Christ, you’re promised “the kingdom…and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours” (D&C 78:18). Let your Savior help you recognize the beauty and wonder of your own life by putting Him first.
Read and watch Elder Ulisses Soares’s talk “In Awe of Christ and His Gospel”.
Source: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/?lang=eng
—Abby Haralson, Latter-day Saint Insights
FEATURE IMAGE BY QUANG NGUYEN VINH
Find more insights
Discover more about how you can build your spiritual strength through awe and wonder with President Russell M. Nelson’s talk “Now Is the Time”.
This is so beautifully written, Abby. I love the idea of a “spiritual wonder bucket list.” Thank you for sharing your insight!
Thank you Lynda! I appreciate it, as well as all the teaching and mentoring you gave me as a Primary kid 🙂
Abby…. I’m just now seeing this. What a beautiful artful writing! A spiritual Bucket List is the perfect idea…. A gift we can all give ourselves this holiday season and all year long! Thank you for sharing this!