Prisons and Perspectives by Kurt S. Johnson
How many of you, of your own free will and choice, would willingly decide to use one-third of your yearly time off work, not to go to Disneyland or the beach, but to pack up your entire family in a car and travel over 2,000 miles, crossing through 8 states, with gas prices close to $5 dollars per gallon, with a toddler needing to stop for a potty break seemly every thirty minutes, to visit old jails where religious leaders were imprisoned, along with other sites where various people your spouse is related to lived and died over 150 years ago? As crazy as that sounds, that’s exactly what I did with my family this past summer, which we thought was great—giving new meaning to the phrase “a peculiar people.”
Desiree’s sister, Delisa, organized their family reunion this year, and because she is the Bushman family history expert, she wanted to lead all of us on a family history tour seeing various historic family sites along with some church history sites in Missouri and Illinois. Now Desiree comes from a big family. There are 8 kids, all of whom attended the reunion this year traveling from places like Utah, Idaho, Texas and Wisconsin to be together. After meeting in Missouri, the 9 vehicle Bushman caravan spent 5 days driving around the Midwest stopping at various historic sites where we’d get out of our cars, huddle together, and someone from the family would read a journal entry or story of a Bushman or Noble ancestor that took place in that location.
It was funny to me to watch people passing by, rubbernecking with puzzled looks on their faces to see so many parked cars and a hoard of 40 people gathered around an obscure marker on the side of the road next to a cornfield.
And even though the stories told were not about my own ancestors, I found it very interesting to hear the histories and be in the places where various events happened in their lives. I was surprised to see how many people on both Desiree’s Mom’s and Dad’s side of the family lived among the early saints and mingled with important early church leaders. She has a rich heritage!
It was so fun to visit Nauvoo, and maybe the most memorable stops on the trip for me were when we visited Liberty jail in Missouri and Carthage jail in Illinois. Both have wonderful visitors centers with missionaries that tell the stories of the imprisonment of the prophet Joseph and other early church leaders. I remember afterward walking out to our car from Liberty jail and seeing a small church building of another faith across the street and wondering to myself what they might think of the masses coming in busses, Suburbans, and minivans from all over the world to visit the site of an old jail that once held Joseph Smith. I would guess that it seems peculiar to some of them that there would be so much interest in such a place.
It got me thinking about why we do the things we do. For example, why do we spend so much of our time, effort, resources, and hard-earned money, in church-related donations, service, and activities? Why would we decide to spend vacation time and money on a trip to visit old jails and historic markers on the side of the road? As I pondered this question, the answer that came to me was one word- “perspective.” The word perspective means “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view”
Today, I’d like to speak on how gaining and keeping a gospel perspective brings blessings and influences us to be different than the world’s norm (maybe even a little peculiar).
Perspective—Liberty Jail
Let’s use Liberty jail as the first example. There are some who may look at Liberty jail as just a place where some religious guy Joseph Smith was imprisoned. I would guess that Liberty jail doesn’t mean that much to many people, and many have probably never even heard of it. But to those with a different perspective, those who have read the Book of Mormon and prayed to know it’s true, for those who have read modern revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants, for those that know that Joseph Smith was a prophet called by God, they then look at Liberty jail differently, with a different perspective, a different attitude, a different point of view.
That cold, miserable lower cell of Liberty jail that housed the prophet Joseph for 4 months during the winter of 1838-39, at one the most miserable times in his life, is then viewed differently. With their perspective, it is an important, significant place. Even though it was cold and dark, the food they were given was rotten, the ceiling was too low to stand up. Even though it was unjust and unfair, it was a refining time in the life of the prophet Joseph Smith and a place where he received profound revelation from the Lord. It was at that time he gained the following perspective for himself through direct revelation…
If thou art accused with all manner of false accusations; if thine enemies fall upon thee; if they tear thee from the society of thy father and mother and brethren and sisters; and if with a drawn sword thine enemies tear thee from the bosom of thy wife, and of thine offspring, and thine elder son, although but six years of age, shall cling to thy garments, and shall say, My father, my father, why can’t you stay with us? O, my father, what are the men going to do with you? and if then he shall be thrust from thee by the sword, and thou be dragged to prison, and thine enemies prowl around thee like wolves for the blood of the lamb;
And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, 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.
Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.
We don’t always share God’s perspective when we are going through difficulties. In Isaiah, we read “my ways are not thy ways”. But life provides us with experiences that can help us gain new perspectives. One of the purposes of coming to earth is to learn and grow from these experiences. To gain light and knowledge. To gain wisdom. The tribulations we are required to pass through in life can be refining if we are faithful, turn to the Lord, and endure them well. The most painful experiences we have in life can serve to deepen our joy.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said,
With time and perspective we recognize that such problems in life do come for a purpose, if only to allow the one who faces such despair to be convinced that he really does need divine strength beyond himself, that she really does need the offer of heaven’s hand. Those who feel no need for mercy usually never seek it and almost never bestow it. Those who have never had a heartache or a weakness or felt lonely or forsaken never have had to cry unto heaven for relief of such personal pain. Surely it is better to find the goodness of God and the grace of Christ, even at the price of despair, than to risk living our lives in a moral or material complacency that has never felt any need for faith or forgiveness, any need for redemption or relief.
A gospel perspective blesses us with an understanding of our eternal identity as God’s children. It gives us a glimpse of our potential, as awkwardly imperfect as we may feel. It gives us a broader point of view knowing that mortality, even though just a small blip in eternity, has great significance in our eternal progression. It helps us to appreciate the role of the Savior Jesus Christ in God’s plan for us and provides motivation to obey God’s commandments and keep sacred covenants. It enriches our lives with purpose and meaning. It comforts us and provides hope when loved ones pass away.
President Nelson’s Perspective—“Men’s Hearts Shall Fail Them”
In a video called “Men’s hearts shall fail them,” President Nelson shares an experience when he was in a small airplane, and then, suddenly, the engine on the wing burst into flames and the plane began to dive toward the ground. The perspective President Nelson had about the situation was very different from the woman seated next him. The woman across the aisle was frantic and uncontrollably hysterical, while our prophet remained calm. He knew he was going to die, and still, was totally calm. He recounts that he was ready to meet God. He said,
If you’ve got faith, you can handle difficulties, knowing that with an eternal perspective that all will be well.
Having an eternal perspective doesn’t make us exempt from heartache. Even our prophet said,
I’ve lived through the death of a wife, and the death of a daughter, I’ve seen the troubles that divorce brings, children or grandchildren go astray, disability, illness, injuries… I’m so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ which offers me that strength in these tumultuous times.
Think for a moment about the difference of going through life with a spiritual, eternal perspective versus without it. For those without, life is kind of like trying to make sense of a 3-act play by only attending the middle of the three acts. Having a gospel perspective provides a greater understanding of God’s plan for his children, including insights into events of our pre-earth life, and also what happens to us after death. An eternal perspective provides answers to the three fundamental questions: “Where did I come from?”, “Why and I here?”, and “Where am I going?” Without an eternal perspective, what sense would we be able to make of this life?
In the words of President Spencer W. Kimball,
If we looked at mortality as the whole of existence, then pain, sorrow, failure, and short life would be calamity. But if we look upon life as an eternal thing stretching far into the premortal past and on into the eternal post-death future, then all happenings may be put in proper perspective.
Elder Rafael E. Pino of the Seventy said it’s like being in a forest and having a tree right in front of our nose. Unless we step back and look around, we won’t be able to see and appreciate the forest for what it really is.
How to Gain an Eternal Perspective
One way to gain and keep an eternal perspective is to regularly attend the temple. Just like those who climb mountains enjoy a different perspective of the world- a vast, more expanded view, those who go to the temple, or the mountain of the Lord, gain an expansive spiritual perspective.
Elder David A Bednar recently spoke in Washington D.C. to members of the National Press Club and said,
The commitments we make in our temple worship help us to see beyond our own self-interest, self-centeredness, and selfishness. Our hearts are changed and turn outward as we learn about God’s plan for our eternal destiny and happiness.
In this past general conference, Sister Tracy Browning suggested ways in addition to temple attendance, that will help us gain and keep a spiritual perspective.
The words and teachings of Jesus Christ as recorded in scripture and messages from His chosen prophets and His Spirit received through daily prayer…and the weekly ordinance of the sacrament can help to restore peace and provide the necessary gift of discernment…in a world that may be cloudy.
She compared doing these things to putting on her glasses in the morning, She said,
When I open my eyes every morning, the world appears very disorienting. Everything is out of focus, grainy, and distorted. Before I do anything else at the start of my day, [I] reach for my glasses to help me make sense of my surroundings and enjoy a more vibrant experience as they help me navigate throughout my day.
I can relate to Sister Browning. I remember putting on glasses for the very first time when a failed driver’s license eye exam required I get corrective lenses to improve my vision when driving. I could not believe how sharp and clear everything looked with my new glasses. Before putting on glasses, I didn’t even know things could look any sharper and clearer. An eternal perspective is the eyeglasses that help to put everything around us into focus. Are we seeing with spiritual lenses, or are we being blinded by the craftiness of men?
“A Peculiar People”
A sign that we are keeping an eternal perspective, is that we find ourselves striving to live a life that’s a little different from the world’s norm. The phrase, “living my best life” so often seen on social media, means something a little different to those with an eternal perspective. To individuals with an eternal perspective, the most meaningful things in life are things that contribute to our eternal happiness. Elder Neil A. Maxwell taught that the hope gained from an eternal perspective “keeps us ‘anxiously engaged’ in good causes even when these appear to be losing causes.” As we gain a new perspective by learning and living according to the teachings of Jesus, our eyes becomes single to his glory, our hearts are changed, and we become new creatures in Christ.
In the youth devotional “Hope of Israel,” President Nelson admonished to “stand out; be different from the world. You and I know that you are to be a light to the world. Therefore, the Lord needs you to look like, sound like, act like, and dress like a true disciple of Jesus Christ… …And if you are sometimes called “weird,” wear that distinction as a badge of honor and be happy that your light is shining brightly in this ever-darkening world! Set a standard for the rest of the world! Embrace being different!”
Sister Haws gave the youth in our ward weird badges in a recent combined activity as a reminder to stand out and be different. In 1 Peter 2:9 we read,
ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
The first part of that scripture talks about being a chosen generation, and from Liberty Jail, the following is now recorded in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants explaining what that means:
Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men.
For those without an eternal perspective, or for those who have lost it, that is what tends to happen. We start to care more about the things of the world and the praise of man. Without a broad, eternal perspective, we tend to make narrow-minded decisions.
We are children of a loving Heavenly Father, who wishes to bless us with all that He has. His purpose is to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life. I know that being mindful of His plan, and keeping a more eternal perspective, influences the way we live our lives—maybe even to the point of taking a crazy road trip to visit old jails and historic markers on the side of the road. May we all continue to be blessed by a greater perspective received through the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
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