2.114 A Blessing So Great As You Have Never Known

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus calls us the salt of the earth, a bold reminder that our lives are meant to carry his flavor, his truth, and his love to the world. Join me each day to explore one verse of scripture and one thought, striving to stay full of savor and truly live as savory salt. Hello my friends, great to have you with me.

Today let's be anxiously engaged in a good cause and bring to pass much righteousness. We are going to continue our reading inside of Doctrine and Covenants sections 37 to 40. As we dive into sections 39 and 40 today and tomorrow, remember as well that you're going to be reading Mosiah chapters 3 through 7 this week.

If you are keeping pace with the Book of Mormon, as we've been doing here in Savory Salt. This one's an interesting one. Our sections here with 39 and 40 focus specifically on one individual named James Covell.

I don't know if I said that last name correctly. I hope I did. I don't know how pronunciation works for necessarily, but C-O-V-E-L.

He seems to be quite an interesting individual as I've read a little bit of his history inside of the additional resources with sections 39 and 40. Kind of an idea of what starts as a fire ends as a fire or ends on fire as we look at this. And today and tomorrow what I wanted to look at was both sides of the coin according to James's life.

It seems that he was a pastor, a minister, right, for another, I believe it was the Methodist Church, and came across the opportunity to learn about the gospel and then received this revelation. Let's look at Doctrine and Covenants section 39, verse 10. It says, "And you shall receive my spirit and a blessing so great as you never have known." Now this one, my friends, has got me thinking a lot.

Because we know what happens to James as we read section 40. And spoiler alert if you haven't read that one. Tomorrow you're going to read that James decided not to move forward.

Even though he had heard the will of the Lord, here he opted out of the blessings that were promised him. And it made me wonder for me and for you and for us today, what does the Lord have to promise us before we actually take him up on his promises and live the gospel the way that he asks? The things that he has in verse 10 here is nothing new for us, right?

We hearken to his voice. We're baptized, right? We seek to repent, wash away our sins, call on his name.

We seek to pray to the Lord, right? And then receive his spirit. I mean, these are, these sound like the gospel basics, and the promising on the backside is 'a blessing so great as you never have known.' It made me think about scriptures that we have about promises of tithing, where the Lord will literally open the windows of heaven, right?

And see if he would not bless us abundantly. It made me think about the Word of Wisdom and the promises in there. To run and not be weary, and walk and not faint.

It's made me think about ways and places that the Lord has given us promises of his blessings. And yet sometimes, I know for me, and I'm always just speaking for me and my experience, sometimes I don't take the Lord up on those promises. Sometimes I fall short.

And then section 40 as we dive in tomorrow to see that you and I can be partakers of these blessings. Follow the Lord in all that you do. Seek Him.

Do as He's commanded and these blessings are available to you and I. I have witnessed them in my life. I believe that many of you, if not all of you, have witnessed them in your life by living the commandments.

So today it's a call for us to continue living them. We got this. We make a mistake, it's all right.

Repent, get up, stay with it, and stick with the Lord. There's only blessings on the backside of doing so. That's all for today my friends.

Lift up your hearts and rejoice. Cleave unto the covenants you have made and together we will be savory salt. For more information, visit us at www.fema.org.