Sunday Lesson, June 7th

Why do we get taught and hear the same things several times?  The more times you repeat patterns of thought the more likely you will be to remember that information. Repetition is a key part of learning. We discussed a talk given during conference this spring by Elder Wilford W Andersen, The Music of the Gospel.  He starts his talk out with a radio interview that he listened to:

                He was listening to a young doctor who worked in a hospital in the Navajo Nation. The Dr told of an experience he had one night when an old Native American man came into the emergency room. The young Dr asked the man how he could help him. The man looked straight ahead and said nothing. The Dr feeling a little impatient said, “I cannot help you if you don’t speak to me. Tell me why you have come to the hospital.” The old man looked at the Dr and said. “Do you dance?” The Dr thought maybe his patient was a tribal medicine man, who according to ancient tribal customs, wanted to heal the sick through song and dance rather than through prescribing medication. The Dr said “No, I don’t dance. Do you dance?” The old man nodded yes. Then the Dr asked, “Could you teach me to dance?”  The old man’s response was this, “I can teach you to dance, but you have to hear the music.”

Elder Andersen says that sometimes in our homes (we as individuals) learn the dance steps, but are not as successful in hearing the music. As the old medicine man well knew, it is hard to dance without music. Dancing without music is awkward and unfulfilling – even embarrassing. Elder Andersen asks, have you ever tried it?

D&C 8:2 reads, "Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart."

- Elder Andersen said, “We learn the dance steps with our minds, but we hear the music with our hearts. The dance steps of the gospel are the things we do; the music of the gospel is the joyful spiritual feeling that comes from the Holy Ghost. The dance steps require discipline, but the joy of the dance will be experienced only when we come to hear the music.”   DANCE STEPS = THE THINGS WE DO     MUSIC = HOLY GHOST

There are those who ridicule members of the church for the things we do. That is understandable. Those who dance often appear strange or awkward or, to use a scriptural term, “peculiar” to those who cannot hear the music. Have you ever stopped your car at a stoplight next to a car where the driver was dancing and singing at the top of his lungs, but you couldn’t hear a sound because your windows were rolled up? Didn’t he look a little peculiar? If we learn the dance steps without learning to hear and to feel the beautiful music of the gospel, we will over time become uncomfortable with the dance and will either quit dancing or, almost as bad, keep dancing only because of the pressure we feel from others who are dancing around us.

We should ask ourselves if there are some of these “dance steps” that we do just going through the motions.

  Elder Anderson shares two things we need to be doing to hear the music…

1^st – We must keep our lives attuned to the correct spiritual frequency. Elder Andersen likens it to finding your favorite radio station by carefully turning the radio dial. It has to be lined up perfectly with the stations frequency. As we approach the number we hear static. When we finally make the precise alignment our favorite music can be heard clearly. In our lives, we have to align with the correct frequency in order to hear the music of the Spirit.

When we are first baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost we are filled with the music that accompanies conversion. But the spirit will not endure unkindness or pride or envy. If our lives are out of tune with the music of the gospel, we need to tune them up.

Elder Bednar teaches, "Everything that invites and entices us to do good and be good is from God."

2^nd – When we feel the music we need to recognize it. Attributes that lead to an increasing spiritual influence are by long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, persuasion, sincere love. These are the attributes that tune our hearts to the music of the gospel. When they are present, the dance steps will be performed more naturally and joyfully.

These things do not come all at once. It takes diligent practice. If you are not hearing the music of the gospel in your home or life; please remember these two words: Keep Practicing. With God’s help, the day will come when the music of the gospel will fill your home with unspeakable joy.

Even when performed well, the music will not solve all of our problems. There will still be crescendos and decrescendos in our lives, staccatos and legatos. Such is the nature of life on planet earth. But when we add music to the dance steps, the sometimes complicated rhythms of marriage and family life tend to move toward a harmonious balance. The Holy Ghost will be our constant companion.

In addition to this points and this talk I want add some words of President Eyring from the Women’s session of conference:

*** He speaks to women and our role as comforters. He says that “you can and must be an important part of His giving comfort to those who need comfort. You can play your part best if you know more of how He answers those prayers for help.  Many are praying to Heavenly Father for relief, for help in carrying their burdens of grief, loneliness, and fear. Heavenly Father hears those prayers and understands their needs. He and His Beloved Son, the resurrected Jesus Christ, have promised help.

At baptism we promise to help bear one another’s burdens. To mourn with those that mourn, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort.

-          We can pray - to know how to help the Lord comfort others.

-          We can help  -  Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father sent the Holy Ghost as the comforter to his disciples to help.

These reminders given to us are important. We aren’t just taught something once and expected to remember it. We learn through repetition. We get to listen to conference, talks in sacrament, lessons in Sunday school and RS. Often times it is a topic that we have heard before. Through the Holy Ghost those talks and lessons can touch our hearts and minds in a way that we need to hear. In the way that Heavenly Father can speak to us as individuals and our specific needs. Let us not take that gift for granted.