Cleansing the Inner Vessel

 "It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened."

Luke 13:21 

 "...now I would that ye should remember that God has said that the inward vessel shall be cleansed first, and then shall the outer vessel be cleansed also.""...behold it will be expedient that we contend no more with the Lamanites until we have first cleansed our inward vessel,..."

Alma 60:23-24

     I am sure you are wondering right about now what these two verses have in common. Let me tell you. Consider the first of the two, and liken the leaven to corruption and the meal unto us. When we have even a small portion of corruption in us, and we let it fester we will eventually be consumed by it. Therefore, as we learn in the second reference, our first and foremost responsibility is to cleanse the inner vessel first, before we cleanse the outer vessel. There are challenges and struggles all around us, but until we ourselves are prepared and ready to face those challenges we will never be able to overcome because the challenges within will destroy us. You must destroy the enemy within your walls or your walls become useless, and the enemy behind them irrelevant.

    I have learned in a very profound way that as a missionary we cannot ask people to change their lives, or even help them change their lives if we haven't changed our lives first. We must be our first convert, or as Mahatma Gandhi put it, "We must be the change we wish to see in the world." We all have weaknesses whether or not we recognize them, and we all have need to cleanse the inner vessel. It seems like a daunting task to extinguish the evil within when their is so much evil in the world around us pushing down on us. However, we are not without hope, for Christ has left us a profound promise of peace and encouragement. It is found in his words of comfort to the prophet Moroni, where he says:

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." 

 Ether 12:27

    Come unto Christ; cleanse your inner vessel; strengthen your defenses, and help all whom you love to do the same. "And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God." (2 Nephi 31:21) I love you all, I hope you have a wonderful week, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.