Hey, Who Turned Out the Lights!!
Lesson 2l – A Righteous Example Influences Others My mother lives in Henderson, Nevada which is a suburb of Las Vegas. She moved there when I was 18 and I can still remember my first visit and the lights! Vegas is a city of many lights that never seem to go out, and just as in every city, there is good and evil to be found. Nephi, quoting Isaiah in 2 Nephi l5:20, points out to us that there are "those who will call good evil, and evil good. Those will "put darkness for light, and light for darkness". Can you tell the difference in the "light" that is offered? If you turn to 2 Nephi 12:5 or Isaiah 2:5 - Isaiah invites us to "walk in the light of the Lord". As you walk in the light of Christ, you have the opportunity to influence others. Are you a good influence or like the Flu Bug on the commercial where he knocks on the door, comes in and makes himself at home, and makes everyone living there miserable? Or maybe you are at a party with a group of friends when you notice that a certain young man or young woman begin to participate in something you know is inappropriate…someone you admire. Does it make you want to shout, "Hey, Who Turned Out the Lights!!!!" When I was a freshman in high school, there was someone in my life who I looked up to. I wanted to be just like her. I spent hours copying her handwriting, studying the way she fixed her hair, the way she walked and talked. She was my hero and a major influence in my life. I thought I would follow her anywhere…. Finally my day had come, or at least I thought so. I was invited to "hang out" with her and a group of her friends. Imagine my surprise when I was offered my first joint. Suddenly my world stopped as I watched her start smoking, telling me it was okay. I was stunned. This is not what I expected. This is not what I expected from someone I’d admired for so long and I wished I could be anywhere but there and I felt terribly sad. There are many turning points in our lives. Satan is not going to tempt us just once. He is going to work on us and try to wear us down. Our friends can have a tremendous impact on our lives. Alma the Elder discovered this the hard way when Abinadi stood before King Noah. Alma had the courage to speak up and told the King he believed the words that Abinadi had spoken and he pled with the King to let Abinadi leave in peace….Alma had to flee for his life. (Mosiah l7:2-5) Later, King Noah succumbed to peer pressure. While talking with Abinadi, King Noah release him, " for he feared his word; for he feared that the judgements of God would come upon him." Did Noah know Abinadi was telling the truth. Yes - I believe he did. But the priests lifted up their voices against Abinadi and King Noah was stirred up in anger and delivered Abinadi to be slain. ( Mosiah l7:11-13) Each of us will have times in our lives when we may have to flee from a situation to save our spiritual lives. Somewhere I had the courage within me to say "no thanks" and I left the room. My relationship with my "hero" changed from that moment on and has never been the same. The light I had once felt had dimmed and I didn’t like the darkness I was feeling. I have often thought of that pivotal moment in my life. I could so easily have followed her…I had for so many years. But at a turning point in our lives, she turned left and I turned right, and our lives have been on different paths since. There are many lights in this world vying for our attention and at a time when I needed greater light, the light of Christ was there for me. I know also that same light was there for her – she just choose not to follow. Christ taught many things while upon the earth. One of the last things he taught his apostles, was that He set the example – He left the light on so that we would not be lost in the dark…."For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you" (John l3:l5) In 2 Nephi 31:l2 Christ said,"....wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do." Isn't there comfort in knowing you have a leader, someone who has been there before, who knows the way, who will show you how to do it? At some point in your live, you have to decide who you are going to follow. I can remember playing follow the leader when I was younger. My little sister would also play, but she didn’t know when to stop and continued to follow me around ..sometimes to my dismay. I'm grateful the Christ invites us to "follow him" - wants us to follow Him and to never stop. I love the primary song – Do As I’m doing, Follow Follow me – Do as I’m doing, Follow Follow me. Every once in a while look behind you to see who is following and ask yourself, "Is the example I set worth following? Am I a follower of Christ? Know that - "That which is of God is light, and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light" (D&C 50:24) When we set a good example, we increase the light around us as those who follow us also radiate the light of Christ. You can choose to be a single candle or you can be a light in a candelabra as you surround yourself with others who also radiate the light. Joshua told us "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. He could just as easily have said, "we will follow the Lord". Last night as I took some garbage to the trash I looked up into the sky and thought of the childhood poem "Star light – star bright, first star I see tonight,…." On a clear night you can look into the sky and see a million lights. Some are brighter than others. Some really catch your attention as they twinkle in they sky. Wendy Watson used the term, "Spiritual Wattage" in a talk she gave at Woman Conference in l997. Have you ever thought about your wattage? Are you a 50 watt, Are you a flashlight – a bright light that leads others
in moments of darkness, Maybe you're a stop light – you’ve stopped
progressing. And when someone shouts, "Hey, who turned out the lights – you can be the light that helps to safely guide others back to Christ. (c) 2000 Alice Gifford
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