I Need the Other Brother Too

When meeting with my Bishop this past week, we began to have a discussion regarding our undeniable need for the Savior in our lives, including at the beginning, in the pre-existence; now, in what could arguably be one of, if not the most difficult, stretches of the Plan of Happiness; and in the Millennium, in which each of us will kneel before the Lord Himself. My Bishop and I began to express our gratitude for the Savior and how without Him, we would be subjected to the cruelties of the Adversary’s plan; a life filled without Agency, without pure, unquestionable love and without the immeasurable joy that comes when making the right decisions ourselves. We concluded that in spite of the shameless, sometimes brutal attempts to deter every son and daughter of God from the pathway Home; in spite of the hot tears that run down your cheeks when trying so hard to overcome weakness and temptation, or the feelings of loneliness, inadequacy, and defeat every man or woman has or will feel sometime during their mortal experience, each and every one of us needs Satan too. 

I, like so many others, grew up in a good home, with loving parents who taught me the principles of the Gospel and by their example, how to live a righteous life. My testimony had ample opportunities for nourishment and growth as every week, I went to Church, visited with peers, learned of scriptural heroes in Sunday School and the value of Womanhood in Young Women’s.  My love and trust in the Savior was undoubtedly solid by the time I reached adulthood. It is when we reach adulthood, I’ve discovered, that the Adversary and his followers, like to play tricks, confuse, distract, harm, hurt, spoil and alienate. It’s both ironic and frustrating that the older I become and the more mature my testimony grows, it is still so easy for Satan to “get to me”. Why? Why when I know I’m doing good work at my job, I feel like I’m not doing enough? Why when I know I’ve been a good friend, I feel like no one likes or appreciates me? Why when I know I am Daughter to the Creator of Heaven and Earth, I feel as small as a grain of salt? I have a theory, or at least, a theory in progress (consider this the "Gospel of Megan"): Satan knows he was and is wrong. His plan was not God’s plan and would never work.  There was no hope or chance of success. This “failing” makes him angry and while his only success was fooling 1/3 of the Lord’s children in the pre-existence, he hopes to take and make miserable as many sons and daughters, who have already chosen correctly once, down to the depths of his loneliness and self-hatred. It’s because of his own evil pride that he yearns more than anything else to destroy the happiness that comes from following in the footsteps of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So, it makes sense to me that when we are doing the right things and making the right choices, potholes come into our lives. It makes sense to me that when we decide to go to the temple, our calendars “magically” become fuller. It makes sense to me that come Sunday, you’d rather just relax at home instead of curling your hair, slipping on the Steve Maddens and going to Church. It makes sense to me that society thinks young LDS adults are boring because we don’t party in the traditional ways of the world, substituting beer and alcohol for Root Beer Floats and dance floor grinding [ick! so yucky - talk of personal space!] for Guitar Hero or Mario Cart.  It makes sense to me that when we’re adhering to the Commandments and trying our best, certain thoughts can come to mind that don’t come from the Lord, but from that annoying “1/3” who are just trying to make your day a little harder. 

The follow up question might be then: if Heavenly Father is so loving and so merciful, why would He ever let Satan do such things to His children? The reason in my eyes is simple: it is because Heavenly Father loves me (and YOU) and desires each of us to be like Him. This possibility could not be a reality unless we came to Earth, received a body, endured temptations (which only come from help of Satan) and overcome them triumphantly by and only through the Atonement of Heavenly Father’s begotten Son, Jesus Christ.  What a gift! What absolute love encompassed in such a yearning for each of His children. I thank Heavenly Father; I thank Him for letting me endure temptations, struggle through (and sometimes fail) at trials, because in His infinite wisdom, He knew such failings would occur and prepared a way for me to come back to Him. And all the while, allowing me to be the one to choose such actions for myself. And never, ever would or will He allow us to walk and endure alone. He only required this of One and that One overcame. There is a beautiful quote by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland that reads:

“In the Gospel of Jesus Christ, you will have help from both sides of the veil, and you must never forget that. When disappointment and discouragement strike - and they will - you remember and never forget that if our eyes could be opened, we would see horses and chariots of fire as far as the eye can see, riding at reckless speed to come to our protection. They will always be there, these armies of Heaven, in defense of Abraham’s seed”. 

-- For Times of Trouble, 18 March 1980

I know that the Savior lives. I also know that the Adversary is real. He does not like us. He does not want what is best for us. He is the Father of all Lies, he is the great manipulator, he is deceitful and he is the epitome of evil. But, he is also necessary for each of our eternal growth. Without him, we would never know the blessings and peace and freedom that come from living righteously and being embraced by the light of the Gospel and the only true Son of God, the Prince of Peace and Creator of Heaven and Earth, Jesus Christ. Without him, we would never know what it’s like to be forgiven and to be clean, for we would never know what it’s like to be dirty. Without him, we would never know what it’s like to be forgiven, for we would never know what it’s like to have sinned. Without him, we would never know what it’s like to feel sincere, authentic love, for the Adversary knows not what such emotion or action is. By the Adversary’s awful, no-good, terrible, sometimes endless feelings evoked on us, we can be lifted up, embraced, comforted, fortified, and ceaselessly loved by our Heavenly family. I do not thank him, but I do recognize that in this part of the Plan of Happiness, I need Satan too; because without having glimpses of the bad could I ever hope to know, appreciate and thrive in the good.

I know that God lives. I know that He allows us these experiences for our benefit. I know that with these experiences can come heartache, and when such pain comes, the Savior and His Angels will never leave our side. We are His brothers and sisters. We are posterity to a Heavenly King and He will never abandon us. He will never forsake us. We are His treasures and I believe He wants each of us to come Home to Him as quickly as we can. Thank you for allowing me to crash and burn every once in a while, because now I know how to pick myself up and positively move forward. I am grateful and need Jesus Christ; I also admit that I also need the other brother too.