Excerpts from a talk by Elder Rasband April 2019
President Russell M. Nelson has taught, “In coming days, it
will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing,
comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.”…
Brothers and sisters, we are at war with Satan for the souls
of men. The battle lines were drawn in our pre-earth life. Satan and a third of
our Father in Heaven’s children turned away from His promises of exaltation.
Since that time, the adversary’s minions have been fighting the faithful who
choose the Father’s plan.
Satan knows his days are numbered and that time is growing
shorter. As crafty and cunning as he is, he will not win. However, his battle
for each one of our souls rages on.
For our safety, we must build a fortress of spirituality and
protection for our very souls, a fortress that will not be penetrated by the
evil one.
Satan is a subtle snake, sneaking into our minds and hearts
when we have let our guard down, faced a disappointment, or lost hope. He
entices us with flattery, a promise of ease, comfort, or a temporary high when
we are low. He justifies pride, unkindness, dishonesty, discontent, and immorality,
and in time we can be “past feeling.” The Spirit can leave us. “And thus the
devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.”
When we build a fortress of spiritual strength, we can shun
the advances of the adversary, turn our backs on him, and feel the peace of the
Spirit. We can follow the example of our Lord and Savior, who, when tempted in
the wilderness, said, “Get thee behind me, Satan.” We each have to learn by the
experiences of life how to do that.
Such righteous purpose is well described in the Book of
Mormon when Captain Moroni prepared the Nephites to face attacks from a
deceitful, bloodthirsty, power-hungry Amalickiah. Moroni constructed fortresses
to protect the Nephites “that they might live unto the Lord their God, and that
they might maintain that which was called by their enemies the cause of
Christians.” Moroni “was firm in the faith of Christ” and was faithful “in
keeping the commandments of God … and resisting iniquity.”
When the Lamanites came to battle, they were astonished by
the Nephites’ preparation, and they were defeated. The Nephites thanked “the
Lord their God, because of his matchless power in delivering them from the
hands of their enemies.” They had built fortresses for protection on the outside,
and they had built faith in the Lord Jesus Christ on the inside—deep in their
souls.
What are some ways we can fortify ourselves in troubled
times…?
We are obedient…
We trust the Lord…
We stand for the truth…
We make and renew our covenants by partaking of the
sacrament and by worshipping in the temple…
We should have integrity in all that we do…
Your testimony of Jesus Christ is your personal fortress,
the security for your soul. When my great-grandfather and his fellow pioneers
built the Heber fort, they put up one log at a time until the fort was “fitly
framed together” and they were protected. So it is with testimony. One by one
we gain a witness from the Holy Spirit as He speaks to our own spirit, teaching
“truth in the inward parts.” (Build a
Fortress of Spirituality and Protection By Elder Ronald A. Rasband. GC April
2019)
