Show Notes for Episode 24 of the Teach Me to Walk in the Light Podcast. The act of deceiving others has been around since time began – so has the master of deception, Satan himself. Learn how Satan gains followers and the importance of “Be not deceived.” Includes FHE suggestion, a teaching tip on how to start ministering, and a fun Fall family tradition. This episode goes along with the Come, Follow Me – for Individuals and Families for the week of September 23-29.
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**This Episode goes along with the Come, Follow Me – For Individuals and Families for the week of September 23-29, 2019.
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PERSONAL STUDY
1.You may have heard the story, of the disruptive, noisy boys in a Sunday School class who were asked by their exasperated teacher why they bothered to attend Sunday School. One of the more impudent boys replied, “We came to see you perform a miracle.”
The teacher walked slowly over to the boy and menacingly responded, “We don’t perform miracles here, but we do cast out devils!” (For resource, click HERE)
2. Galatians 6:7
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
3. The movie “Catch Me If You Can” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks and #1 New York Times Bestseller “Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake” are both about one of the most well-known con artists of all time, Frank William Abagnale Jr. They are both based upon true events from Abagnale’s life. (For more information on Frank Abagnale, click HERE)
4. China Counterfeits, click HERE
5. The act of deceiving others has been around since time began – so has the master of deception, Satan himself. We first knew Satan as our brother up in heaven before the world was created. The scriptures teach us that he was one of our great leaders, “an angel of God who was in authority in the presence of God.” (D&C 76:25-28) But because of his pride and desire to have God’s kingdom all to himself, he fell and our war in heaven began.
6. Elder Larry R. Lawrence, Ensign article “The War Goes On,” click HERE
7. To Satan, this is not just a game to see how much he can get away with or how many people he can convince to follow him before his time runs out. To him, this is still an all-out war. To him, he still has a chance to hurt those who have put him in this situation, who fought against him in the pre-existence. To him, he still has a chance to hurt our heavenly parents as he leads away their beloved children. He is well-aware of what his fate will be, but he is not going to go down quietly. So how does the “father of lies” take down as many of the Lord’s followers as he possibly can? (2 Nephi 9:9) By doing what he does best, deceive.
8. Counterfeit is defined in the dictionary as “made in exact imitation of something valuable or important with the intention to deceive or defraud” (For resource, click HERE)
9. One of Satan’s greatest tools in which he uses, is counterfeiting gospel principles. He strives to take anything that is good and of eternal value and make an imitation. An imitation that is as worthless as a counterfeit hundred-dollar bill. Elder Lawrence pointed out some of Satan’s counterfeits today. He said, “one of Satan’s counterfeits for faith is superstition. His counterfeit for love is lust. He counterfeits the priesthood by introducing priestcraft, and he imitates God’s miracles by means of sorcery.” He continues by pointing out that, “Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God, but same-sex marriage is only a counterfeit. It brings neither posterity nor exaltation.” (The War Goes On)
10. A hypothetical account that Elder Quentin L. Cook told once at a BUY Devotional. Click HERE for devotional. Click HERE for the account in an Ensign article. You can also find it on my blog post, by clicking HERE
11. Elder Neal A. Maxwell:
How tragic it is that so many mortals are mercenaries for the adversary…and are…bought off at such low prices. A little status, a little money, a little praise, a little fleeting fame, and they are willing to do the bidding of him who can offer all sorts of transitory “rewards,” but who has no celestial currency.
12. What is someone left with when the counterfeit happiness they were pursuing doesn’t pan out like they thought it would? It leaves them with exactly what Satan wanted them to have -painful feelings of heartache, regret, and emptiness. Remember, Galatians 6:7, for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. In verse 8 it says: For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption.
13. Dallin H. Oaks:
…If we indulge in drugs or pornography or other evils that the Apostle called sowing to the flesh, eternal law dictates that we harvest corruption rather than life eternal. That is the justice of God, and mercy cannot rob justice. If an eternal law is broken, the punishment affixed to that law must be suffered. Some of this can be satisfied by the Savior’s Atonement, but the merciful cleansing of a soiled sinner comes only after repentance (see Alma 42:22–25), which for some sins is a prolonged and painful process…
If we choose the wrong road, we choose the wrong destination. (For resource, click HERE)
14. Whatever path we choose to be on, will determine where we’ll end up. We reap what we sow. If you live a life according to worldly desires, you will receive punishment for that corrupt lifestyle. If you live a life of faith and repentance, you will harvest a reward of exaltation.
15. Don’t let Satan deceive you with thoughts like: “It’s ok, everybody does it,” “Just this once, it won’t hurt,” “It’s my choice, I can do whatever I want,” “That’s just who I am,” or “There is no God, therefore there is no Satan.” If you haven’t noticed, Satan’s way is pure selfishness – it’s every man for himself, it’s doing anything and everything that makes ME happy.
16. The scriptures even say in the last days, “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, … disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, … despisers of those that are good, … lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (2 Tim. 3:1–4). Satan promoting selfishness only makes sense because it’s the exact opposite of what Christ teaches. Christ teaches us that the way to happiness is by loving God and loving our neighbor – it’s not being lovers of ourselves.
17. Satan cares nothing for you. He could care less about your happiness. There is “no heart he would not break, no life he would not take, no soul he would not destroy…” (Messages of the First Presidency, comp. James R. Clark, 6 vols., Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965–75, 6:179).
18. Do not be deceived in thinking that nobody will ever know of the sins that you commit. No matter how secretive you are, God always knows. And He has repeatedly warned us that the time will come when “[our] iniquities shall be spoken upon the housetops, and [our] secret acts shall be revealed” (D&C 1:3; see also Morm. 5:8; D&C 38:7). Remember what Paul said, “Be not deceived, God is not mocked.”
19. Heavenly Father did not send us here to fail. He wants us to return back home to him and has done everything he can to provide us the way to do so. Remember, darkness can never overshadow light. Even the tiniest light can dispel darkness. Light overtakes the darkness every time. It’s the same with us when we fill ourselves with heaven’s light by reading our scriptures, going to the temple, and going about doing good – we overtake the darkness. Only when Satan succeeds in deceiving us, do we become vulnerable to his power and the light within us diminishes. But if we hold to the rod, heed the counsel of God’s prophets and our church leaders and heed the promptings of the spirit, we will not be deceived and Satan will not win. Satan can’t win if we don’t let him. But it is up to us.
20. Be not deceived, that is my prayer. Don’t fall for Satan’s counterfeit happiness – it is not real, it does not last.
FHE
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TEACHING TIP
Jean B. Bingham once said,
“Jesus smiled at, talked with, walked with, listened to, made time for, encouraged, taught, fed, & forgave. He served family & friends, neighbors and strangers alike, and he invited acquaintances & loved ones to enjoy the rich blessings of his gospel. Those ‘simple’ acts of service & love provide a template for our ministering today.”
My tip today is don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone and make a new friend. That is basically what ministering is all about.
There are many times I have heard sisters say that they don’t feel like they have any friends. I believe it’s in part to the fact that everyone is so busy. But friendships don’t have to be that complicated or time-consuming. Often times, we just want to feel noticed – that someone actually knows we exist.
If you haven’t made contact with those you’ve been assigned to minister to, let me make a few simple suggestions on how to start.
- Pray for them and ask the Lord how you can help them.
- Smile at them and say hi to them at church.
- Drop off their favorite soda or drink to them.
- Text or email them a funny or serious quote and let them know you hope they have a great day.
I love texts, I love sodas, I love it when people say Hi to me at church. These are all things that are so simple yet so effective. It will make your ladies feel like they’re not being ignored and that you do know they exist. It will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
#taketimeforfamily
Make one of these yummy popcorn recipes.
- Twix Caramel Popcorn, click HERE
- Sweet and Salty White Chocolate Popcorn, click HERE
- 15 recipes from Taste of Home including Gingerbread Caramel Crunch, Maple Crunch, Buffalo Ranch, and Chocolate Mint, Click HERE
- 50 Flavored Popcorn Recipes from Food Network including Frito Pie, Bacon-Jalapeno, Everything Bagel, Click HERE
Make it a weekly or monthly tradition and/or add a board game to make it a fun family game night.
Yours Truly,
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