June 29, 2010

D&C 72, 78-80, 82-83
72
Administer according to their WANTS, not needs.
82
-Inasmuch as you have forgiven one another your trespasses, even so I, the Lord, forgive you.
-Leave judgment alone with me, and I will repay.

Today's reading focused on the law of consecration, and more broadly on how we treat those around us. A few things stood out to me while I was reading which I found important. The first was in D&C 72: 11 which tells us to administer according to the wants of those we are serving rather than their needs. I was talking to Ryan on Sunday about his calling which is financial clerk. Out of curiosity I asked him what our ward pays for, to help the less fortunate in our ward. He said that they pay rent, car payments, and cell phone bills most often. This kind of surprised me. I see rent, and maybe a car payment (if it is your only car, cheap, etc.) as necessities and as something that the ward could step in and help out with, but cell phone bills wasn't something I considered a necessity. Personally, I would cancel my cell phone service before asking the ward for a handout.
However, I think there is a principle being taught here, that I am grateful our bishop has chosen to hearken to and obey. We are to care for people's wants and not just their needs. I don't know circumstances of why people need help financially, and thankfully I am not the one who has stewardship to judge that. I am glad though that our bishop looks out for the wants of those he serves and not just their needs.
The other thing that stood out to me today was in D&C 82. I really liked the verses which state, "-Inasmuch as you have forgiven one another your trespasses, even so I, the Lord, forgive you," and "leave judgment alone with me, and I will repay." What a comfort it is that we are not responsible for judging individuals. I do get on a soapbox a little bit when people use these scriptures to say that we should NEVER judge. False, everybody makes judgments. Elder Oaks taught us that we are never to pass final judgment, and we should only judge actions and not individuals and leave the rest up to the Lord.
I think there is a comfort in this distinction. We don't have to worry about what other people do, unless it is harming us. It is easy to judge something and say, "That is not good for me." The danger comes in when we say, "That person is evil because of the things they do which are not good for me." I think this is the message that the Lord is portraying at the end of section 82. He is reminding them to make friends with their enemies because it will be to their advantage, but not to engage in the activities that they do.