Thoughts on Sacrifice

As members of the church, we have covenanted to love and serve the Lord, to keep his commandments, and to put him first in our lives, above all else. In return he promises us eternal life in His kingdom. However, the gift of eternal life does not come without a price. As we all know too well, we are here on Earth to prove ourselves worthy of those blessings our Father wants so much to give us.

Franklin D. Richards, in his talk “Sacrifice Brings Forth the Blessings of Heaven”, said “The law of sacrifice is an important part of the gospel of Jesus Christ and contributes to the building of faith, love, and many other virtues. The dictionary defines sacrifice as “a surrender of some desirable thing for a higher object.” This is undoubtedly true, but it might be observed that the higher object is not always discernible at the time the surrender or sacrifice is made.”

This is the difficult part about sacrifice. It’s kind of like promising my 3 year old a treat when she’s done cleaning up the play room. She just cannot see the future result. She wants the candy now. She’ll say, “But I don’t want to clean up.” And we, as her parents, have to explain that there isn’t a choice, she must do it. We have to teach her that she must put forth the effort required to reap the reward.

Many of us, being the carnal creatures that we are, function the same way. It’s hard to sacrifice and put forth the effort when the end-goal, eternal salvation, seems unattainable...so far into the distance.

Elder Won Yong Ko of the 70 said, “Occasionally there is a time gap between the sacrifice and the blessing. The sacrifice may come according to our time schedule, but the blessing may not come by our, but by the Lord’s, calendar. Because of this, the Lord comforts us by saying, “Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work” (D&C 64:33).

When sacrifice is required, in our mind and spirit we sometimes feel like my 3 year old does when asked to clean up. “But I don’t want to! It’s hard!” And if you’re a stubborn individual, like me, it takes a while to learn that those hard things aren’t going to just go away- even if we avoid them for a time, our loving Father in Heaven will usually help us to find another opportunity for growth.

Joseph Smith’s life was clearly a great example of dedication and sacrifice. While in Liberty Jail the word of the Lord came to him: “… If thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; … if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” D&C 122:7

About this Elder Franklin D. Richards said, “Here the Prophet was specifically told that these tribulations and sacrifices would be for his good, as undoubtedly the Liberty Jail experience was preparing him for coming events. It is a great story of sacrifice and blessing.”

We are not asked to sacrifice our lives, as Joseph and Hyrum Smith did. In this day, we are not called upon to live the whole law of consecration and give all of our time, talents, and means to the building up of the Lord’s earthly kingdom. We don’t have to endure public ridicule, we don’t have to give up all of our earthly possessions and leave our homes, and we aren’t asked to give our lives. Usually the things we’re asked to give are much smaller and much more irrelevant. In his talk about sacrifice, Elder Franklin D. Richards shares, “As a young man I had an important decision to make. Congressman Milton H. Welling offered me an appointment to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland. This was an outstanding opportunity for a fine education and experience. After careful and prayerful consideration, I declined the appointment and accepted a call to go on a mission. This was a decision that required some sacrifice and greatly affected my life. However, while on my mission I wrote my parents from Boston, Massachusetts, “From my mission I have gained much. … I wouldn’t trade the last two years for anything. They have been wonderful in bringing a realization of life in its true sense.” Yes, my sacrifice, if it could be called that, was bringing forth the blessings of heaven.

Later in his life, Elder Richards was called to be the president of the Northwestern States Mission. He said, “It came at a very difficult time for me to leave my business. Many of my friends, members and nonmembers, said to me, “The Church is asking you to make a great sacrifice.” I replied to each, “I feel it is a real opportunity. When President McKay set him apart, he was promised that it would be the happiest period of his life. “It wasn’t the easiest experience of my life, but it was the happiest—another experience in my life where sacrifice brought forth the blessings of heaven to me and my wife.”

According to Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “The law of sacrifice is that “we are willing to sacrifice all that we have for the truth’s sake—our character and reputation; our honor and applause; our good name among men; our houses, lands, and families: all things, even our very lives if need be.

Elder Won Yong Ko said, “Maybe it is more difficult to make the small sacrifices in our daily lives. For instance, it could be regarded as a small sacrifice to keep the Sabbath day holy, to read the scriptures daily, or to pay our tithing. But these sacrifices cannot be easily made unless we have the mind and the determination to make the sacrifices that are needed to be able to keep those commandments. As we make these small sacrifices, we are compensated by more blessings from the Lord. King Benjamin said, “And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever” (Mosiah 2:24). And, as he did with his own people, King Benjamin encourages us so that we will receive more blessings as we continue to obey the Lord’s word.

In the Book of Mormon, Lehi’s family sacrificed ALL they had when they were commanded to leave Jerusalem. We know from reading those chapters that Lehi's family was affluent and had great possessions. Yet they left it all and went into the wilderness without knowing what was to come. Laman and Lemuel weren’t really excited about this plan. They murmured and complained the whole way. 1 Nephi 17:21 “Behold these many years we suffer in the wilderness…we might have been happy.” How often do WE think the same way? Do we question the sacrifices we are asked to make or choose not to make them at all while rationalizing to ourselves, for example:

“ I can’t afford to pay tithing, but I need a nicer car- my payment will only increase a little.”

“I have time to go to the temple, but it’s such a nice day I’d rather go golfing.”

“I shouldn’t take this job, because I have to work on Sundays, but it pays a lot more so it will really help our family.”

While Laman & Lemuel were lamenting the loss of their riches, they were missing out on an experience that could have built their strength and character. We, likewise, are each given different circumstances and experiences in our lives in order to help us achieve our greatest potential. Without fail, sacrifice will be required in whatever we do.

Sheri Dew has a book called, “If Life Was Easy, It Wouldn’t Be Hard”. I love her direct manner and clear-cut style of speaking. She says "If you're serious about sanctification, you can expect to experience heart-wrenching moments that try your faith, your endurance, and your patience." We cannot aspire to enter a celestial world if we have not made celestial sacrifices. Elder Bruce R. McConkie said “In order to gain celestial salvation we must be able to live these laws to the extent that we are called upon to do so.”

So when those opportunities arise, we have the option to respond to the call, or we have the choice not to follow, and therefore forego the blessings that our Father has in store for us. He is waiting to bless us. I often think of Him like a proud parent watching his child in a race- He wants us to succeed, He is cheering us on, He is praying for us and hoping that we will make the right choice. However, sometimes we feel distanced from Him and it feels like everything is against us. I sometimes wonder, why does it have to be so difficult?

The Prophet Joseph Smith taught: “A religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation… and through this sacrifice, and this only, God has ordained that men should enjoy eternal life” (Lectures on Faith, p. 58)

The depth of our spirit and character is directly related to the depth of the sacrifices we are willing to make. Attending the temple as often as time permits, attending weekly sacrament meeting and renewing our covenants, paying a full tithe, serving others, reading the scriptures personally and as a family, and praying daily to maintain communication with our Father in Heaven and plead for His spirit to be with us and in our homes. These things may require the sacrifice of other activities. Unfortunately, we’re not given a timeline in which we will see the benefits of our sacrifices. In fact, we may not see the benefits in this life at all. One thing that is true, however, sacrifice requires faith.

Thinking about this subject reminded me of a life-changing experience I had last summer. My two running buddies and I decided to do a Fall marathon. We printed out our training schedule for the next 4 months. We dedicated ourselves to that schedule, running twice during the week and long runs every Saturday. Gradually our mileage increased until we reached the dreaded 18-20 mile runs. It was hard work. There were lots of ice baths, ibuprofen, and even had some visits to the physical therapist. But I knew that all the training and sacrifice would pay off when I crossed the finish line. Then, just two weeks before the marathon, a major injury popped up one day during a routine run. There was a horrible pain in my right knee and I soon found out it was my IT band. I was devastated to think that all my effort would be for naught. Here, after 4 months of training, I couldn’t even complete a 3 mile run, never mind 26 miles. Over the next two weeks, I made many visits to the PT, iced my leg twice a day, and did hours of stretching. I did not run at all during that time. I had no idea what would happen on the day of the race. I stood at the starting line with my two friends and a heart full of hope. But after just 1.5 miles the horrible pain came back. I couldn’t believe it. I had so much faith! I was so sure that I was going to be healed and that everything would be fine. After mile 3 I told my friends to just go ahead. I didn’t know what to do. I told myself I would push through to the ½ marathon point and allow myself to stop there if I had to. An amazing thing happened however… as I ran/walked the next 10 miles, I prayed silently and I felt strength. I thought of all the sacrifice and work I had put into this goal and I felt great (mentally that is). My leg still hurt- I was running a little lopsided- but I kept going. When I reached the mile 13 station, I couldn’t stop. I was already ½ way done! In my mind I thought of the countless hours of training, the three pairs of shoes I’d bought, the dedication to my goal… I couldn’t quit. Now, don’t get me wrong, the next 13 miles was very difficult and I won no awards for my 5-hour finish time, but I felt like a champion when I crossed that Finish line.

I know that like my marathon experience, when we make big sacrifices, it will bring great blessings. The road is not always smooth- there will be detours and bumps along the way. But when we sacrifice to follow God’s Will and to be his disciples, we will be prepared for future experiences and we will become the person that our Father in Heaven knows that we can be.

D&C 88: 22 “For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory.” When we prove that we are able to follow this celestial law, we will qualify for the blessings of eternal life. I hope and pray that I can be worthy of those blessings.