🪶 What Is the Real Test of This Life?
🪶 What Is the Real Test of This Life?
I’ve been thinking about something lately.
Not in a big scholarly way.
Just in a sit-on-the-porch-and-think-about-it kind of way.
You hear people say all the time that life is a test.
And the scriptures say that too.
In the Book of Abraham the Lord says we came to earth to be proved.
For years I thought that meant something complicated.
Like we were supposed to come down here and perfectly follow a giant checklist of religious rules.
But the older I get, the simpler it looks.
I’m starting to think the real test is this:
Will we learn to listen to the Savior’s voice?
That’s it.
🌾 The Iron Rod
In the Book of Mormon there’s the vision of the iron rod.
Most of us grew up hearing that the iron rod is the word of God.
And that’s true.
But the word of God isn’t just something printed on paper.
The Savior is still speaking.
Sometimes it’s just a quiet nudge inside your heart.
Something simple like:
• Be patient.
• Go help that person.
• Say you’re sorry.
• Slow down.
• Trust me.
Those little whispers are actually His commandments for that moment.
Holding to the iron rod just means holding to His voice.
🧭 When Religion Gets Complicated
Now here’s where things get interesting.
I grew up around wonderful people in the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Good people.
Kind people.
People who love the Savior.
But somewhere along the way something started happening.
We began turning the gospel into boxes to check.
Go to church.
Attend meetings.
Complete callings.
Go to the temple.
Do the program.
Stay busy.
And sometimes I wonder if we started doing things just to stay busy.
Not because the Savior actually asked us to do them.
🏛️ Questions That Cross My Mind
Take temple covenants for example.
Many people go faithfully, and that’s admirable.
But sometimes I sit there and wonder if people really understand what they’re promising.
For instance, the law of consecration.
Does that mean I literally need to rewrite my will and give everything to the church?
Or is the Lord trying to teach something deeper about the condition of our hearts?
These questions aren’t meant to criticize anyone.
They’re just honest thoughts that come up when a person starts trying to listen carefully for the Savior’s voice.
🐍 The Other Voices
And that ties back to something I wrote earlier about demons and darkness.
People sometimes think evil comes from devils jumping into people.
But when you read scripture, most of the problems actually start with voices and ideas.
False teachings.
Systems where people slowly start giving their agency away.
The Book of Mormon shows this over and over.
Korihor’s philosophy spreads.
Nehor’s priestcraft spreads.
Secret combinations spread.
Not because demons possessed everyone.
But because people started listening to the wrong voices.
🕊️ Bringing It Back to the Test
So maybe the test of this life isn’t about perfectly following every rule someone hands us.
Maybe the real question is much simpler.
Am I listening to Christ?
Because if we really listen to Him…
He will guide us.
Sometimes He’ll ask us to go to the temple.
Sometimes He’ll ask us to help a neighbor.
Sometimes He’ll ask us to slow down and rest.
Sometimes He’ll ask us to change something we thought was correct.
🌅 The Gentle Way Christ Works
I don’t think the Savior is up there with a clipboard grading our religious performance.
I think He’s doing something much kinder.
He’s teaching us how to recognize His voice.
Little by little.
Day by day.
And the more we listen…
The clearer that voice becomes.
🪶 A Simple Thought
Maybe the real proving of this life isn’t about passing some giant exam.
Maybe it’s simply about remembering something we already knew before we came here.
That the safest way through this world…
Is to hold to the iron rod.
And the iron rod is simply this:
Listening to the Savior.
___________________________________________________________________________________
📜 THE REAL TEST — AS SCRIPTURE DESCRIBES IT
If the real test is learning to hear Him…
we should be able to see that clearly in scripture.
And we do.
🕊️ The Command Was Always to Hear Him
- Book of Mormon — 3 Nephi 11:7
- “Hear Him.”
👉 Not: master a system
👉 Not: memorize everything
👉 Just: hear Him
🌾 The Iron Rod Defined
- Book of Mormon — 1 Nephi 15:24
- “The word of God… will lead them…”
👉 The word doesn’t just inform
👉 It leads
🌿 Christ Speaks Personally
- Bible — John 10:27
- “My sheep hear my voice… and they follow me”
👉 That’s relationship
👉 Not performance
🔥 The Spirit Teaches in the Moment
- Book of Mormon — 2 Nephi 32:3
- “Feast upon the words of Christ… [they] will tell you all things what ye should do”
👉 Not just what to believe
👉 What to do next
🕊️ Peace Is How He Confirms
- Doctrine and Covenants — D&C 6:23
- “Did I not speak peace to your mind?”
👉 His voice doesn’t confuse
👉 It settles
🔁 TWO WAYS TO LIVE THIS LIFE
| Checklist Living | Listening Living |
|---|---|
| “Am I doing enough?” | “What is He saying?” |
| External pressure | Internal guidance |
| Fear of missing something | Trust in being led |
| Busy | Directed |
| Performance | Relationship |
🌱 A SIMPLE WAY TO TEST IT
When you’re making a decision, big or small:
👉 Am I reacting to pressure…
👉 or responding to His voice?
That one question clears a lot of noise.
🪶 FINAL THOUGHT
If we really strip it all down…
the test may not be:
👉 how much we did
👉 how perfect we were
👉 how well we performed
But simply:
👉 Did we learn to recognize Him…
and follow when He spoke?
Because the ones who make it through…
aren’t the ones who checked every box.
They’re the ones who knew His voice.
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