Monthly Message, June 2021
As I think about departing this mortal sphere my mind keeps coming back to why we are here. And we are here for two reasons. First, to get a physical body. Second, to choose what kind of body we will have, which we do by choosing the kingdom we would like to live in for the rest of eternity. [Some persons believe we do not live after mortal death. I cannot prove that we do, but there surely is a lot of evidence that we do. And I believe the evidence. Of course, accepting or rejecting the evidence for an eternity of existence is part of choosing the kingdom we will be in for the rest of it.]
We choose a kingdom for eternity by how we treat others:
If our desires and actions are to bless others in our mortality, we are choosing celestial eternity.
If our desires and actions are to deal justly with others in our mortality, to keep the Ten Commandments, the we are choosing terrestrial eternity.
If our desires and actions are just to feather our own nests in our mortality, then we are choosing telestial eternity.
If our desires and actions are to deprive others to obtain what we want, then we are choosing perdition eternity.
And we choose each day in each action which one of these patterns we wish to follow.
But some follow one pattern one time, then another the next. Where will they wind up? We all finally settle in to the pattern with which we are most comfortable. And in each kingdom apparently there are degrees.
So it all boils down to whether we at any moment choose to do good or evil, to bless or to use those whom we affect. And we get help from Satan to use others and from Christ to bless others. At every moment we can choose to follow Satan or Christ as each tempts and entices us.
We do not get to choose our temptations. But we do choose which temptations we give in to.
That is our agency. And that is our eternity.