Half Way

Today as we were driving along Woodmont Boulevard, we saw a near accident.  A small white Volvo was pulling out of a parking lot onto the main road.  The driver of the Volvo hesitated as they were pulling out.  Why?  Because there was a big yellow BUS heading in the very direction of that little white car!  As the driver of the bus blared her horn, the Volvo sped out of the parking lot and drove away. 

The driver of the Volvo was half way in and half way out. 

In the Gospel of Jesus Christ, there is no "half way in, half way out" scenario.  We are either faithful members of His Kingdom, or we are not.  We are either followers and believers, or we are not.  We may fool ourselves at times into thinking that we only need to follow some of the commandments.  We only need to be morally clean sometimes.  We only need to go to church sometimes.  We only need to follow the prophet sometimes. 

This is a false way of thinking!

This is exactly what Satan wants us to think!  We can't be half way in or half way out.  We need to decide now where our loyalty lies.  The prophet Lehi tells his sons:

We have two choices.  Let us be wise and choose liberty and eternal life!

I love the following quote by President Monson:

"You live in a world where moral values have, in great measure, been tossed aside, where sin is flagrantly on display, and where temptations to stray from the strait and narrow path surround you.  Many are the voices telling you that you are far too provincial or that there is something wrong with you if you still believe there is such a thing as immoral behavior. . . . Does this make immoral behavior acceptable? Absolutely not! The commandments of our Heavenly Father are not negotiable!”

Don't get stuck being half way in or half way out.  Today, that Volvo easily could have been in a terrible accident because he tried to be half way in the lane.  But, just as the car was able to get all the way in the lane-we too can be completely devoted to Jesus Christ.  The way to do that is through repentance.  We can ALL repent!  We can all have liberty and eternal life!  We need to be more wise about our choices, more diligent in our commitment to God, and more valiant when faced with temptations.