Lesson from Elder Dallin H. Oaks’ talk on Desire
Main Point: “Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions.” – Elder Dallin H. Oaks
· There are lots of things we want/need but we need to prioritize our desires because the things at the top of our lists is what we work hardest to achieve.
§ Elder Oaks said, “Readjusting our desires to give highest priority to the things of eternity is not easy. We are all tempted to desire that worldly quartet of property, prominence, pride, and power. We might desire these, but we should not fix them as our highest priorities.”
· What should be our highest desire?
o Be an eternal being
o What does becoming an eternal being mean to you?
o What qualities are required to become an eternal being?
§ Forgive all who have wronged you
§ Put welfare of others before yourself
§ Love all of God’s children
o These things can be difficult. “If this seems too difficult – and surely it is not easy for any of us – then we should begin with a desire for such qualities and call upon our loving Heavenly Father for help with our feelings.” –Elder Oaks
o Moroni 7:48 “pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that [we] may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons [daughters] of God;”
How do we develop desires?
· “When we have a vision of what we can become our desire and our power to act increase enormously.”
· Let’s talk about 3 essential desires
o Food – basic need, but we can overcome this desire by a stronger desire to fast.
o Shelter – another basic need, but can be overcome by a stronger desire…Elder Oaks’ desire to fulfill a boy scout requirement to spend a night in the woods.
o Sleep – I so don’t get enough! Story about Captain Cox of the Richfield National Guard during the Korean War. One night, when the enemy had broken through the front lines, the captain told his perimeter guards to phone him each hour on the hour all night long. This kept the guards as well as this Captain awake. He was asked, “How could you do that?” His answer, “I knew that if we ever got home, I would be meeting the parents of those boys on the streets in our small town, and I didn’t want to face any of them if their son didn’t make it home because of anything I failed to do as his commander.”
Let’s turn to the Book of Mormon to learn the importance of desire.
· Does anyone know the story of Enos?
· He was praying for forgiveness, and after he received it he then “began to feel a desire for the welfare of [his] brethren” (verse 9).
· Now before we read verse 12, I want you to watch for 3 essentials that preceded the promised blessing. “And…after I had prayed and labored with all diligence, the Lord said unto me: I will grant unto thee according to thy desires, because of thy faith.” What are the three things? Desire, labor, faith
§ Last week, on Friday, when Craig was getting off the bus, the lens of his glasses fell out. He ran home in tears to tell me what happened. I decided to take this opportunity to teach Craig about prayer and faith. My desire as a parent is to teach my children the right. After he calmed down, we sat down and I asked him what he thought we should do? He didn’t know. So I asked him, “would you like to say a prayer? Do you believe that Heavenly Father can help us? He said, “Yes”. So he said a very sweet prayer asking that his bus driving might be able to find his lens. I then called the school and told them the situation and they said they would call the bus driver and get back to me. In the meantime, I told Craig that we should go look for it by the bus stop, just in case it had fallen in the street or on the sidewalk. So we looked, and didn’t find it. The school called back and said the bus driver didn’t find it, but I could call transportation to see if they could do a more thorough search. So, I called them and they said when the bus got back, they would sweep and look. A little while later, they called back and said “Sorry, we didn’t find it”. We were a little disheartened, but I told Craig that maybe it fell out before he got on the bus and we would just have to wait out the weekend until I could call the school. He said okay. Monday morning rolls around and I’m thinking I’m just going to have to go buy a new lens. Craig reminded me to call the school before he left for school. So I call the school just thinking there’s no way a tiny clear lens is going to be found. The secretary looks in her “box” and it’s not there. I knew Craig would be sad, but I just decided that I’d just go order a new one. About 20 minutes after I called the school, the school called me…Craig’s lens had been found. I was a little shocked and extremely grateful. Craig was ecstatic and when we got home, we said a prayer of thanks. I know this seems like a silly story, but with my desire to teach my son, my son’s faith, and a lot of labor, we were able to be a part of a little miracle. I believe that Heavenly Father knew the desire of my heart and helped me teach Craig a simple principle that will help strengthen his testimony.
I just want to close with this quote from Neal A. Maxwell,
“When people are described as having lost their desire for sin, it is they, and they only, who deliberately decided to lose those wrong desires by being willing to ‘give away all [their] sins’ in order to know God. Therefore, what we insistently desire, over time, is what we will eventually become and what we will receive in eternity.”
I am striving to hopefully one day return to our Heavenly Father’s presence, and I know that I will get there by doing the little things and asking for my Heavenly Father’s help with my righteous desires. I know that if I set my priorities right and make correct choices, Heavenly Father will help because I know he wants each of us to come live with him again.
I challenge you all to reevaluate your desires and priorities and make changes if necessary to stay on the path of righteous desires. And remember, it’s your choice. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
