Elder Bednar began with a memorable description of a pair of hunting cheetahs. He described how watching for hours how a pair of cheetahs stalked a large group of topis on African grasslands led to discussing what was observed and identifying valuable lessons.
What lessons did you draw from this description?
What, or who, do the cheetahs and the topi represent?
Elder Bednar highlighted three lessons:
– beware of evil’s beguiling disguises
– stay awake and be alert
– understand the intent of the enemy
Lesson #1—Beware of Evil’s Beguiling Disguises
‘…spiritually dangerous ideas and actions frequently can appear to be attractive, desirable, or pleasurable. Thus, in our contemporary world, each of us needs to be aware of beguiling bad that pretends to be good. As Isaiah warned, “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” ‘
‘Even if “everyone is doing it,” wrong is never right. Evil, error, and darkness will never be truth, even if popular. ‘ (Russell M Nelson, General Conference, April 2014)
Do you see any examples of beguiling bad pretending to be good?
How difficult is it to stand up for truth when evil, error and darkness are popular?
‘In a paradoxical period when violating the sanctity of human life is heralded as a right and chaos is described as liberty, how blessed we are to live in this latter-day dispensation when restored gospel light can shine brightly in our lives and help us to discern the adversary’s dark deceptions and distractions. ‘
What deceptions and distractions do you discern as coming from the adversary?
See Colossians 2:8 Beware lest any man aspoil you through bphilosophy and vain cdeceit, after the dtradition of men, after the rudiments of the eworld, and not after Christ.
Lesson #2—Stay Awake and Be Alert
‘Constant vigilance is required to counteract complacency and casualness. To be vigilant is the state or action of keeping careful watch for possible danger or difficulties. And keeping watch denotes the act of staying awake to guard and protect. Spiritually speaking, we need to stay awake and be alert to the promptings of the Holy Ghost and the signals that come from the Lord’s watchmen on the towers. ‘
What are some of the ways in whiuch we can stay awake and be alert?
Do you have any examples of how you and your family have been blessed by being alert to either the promptings of the Holy Ghost or the signals from the Lord’s watchmen?
‘ Focusing our lives in and on the Savior and His gospel enables us to overcome the tendency of the natural man to be spiritually snoozy and lazy. As we are blessed with eyes to see and ears to hear, the Holy Ghost can increase our capacity to look and listen when we may not typically think we need to look or listen or when we may not think anything can be seen or heard. ‘
What does it mean to be spiritually snoozy and lazy?
How can we deal with worldly distractions?
Lesson #3—Understand the Intent of the Enemy
Sun Tzu wrote in his famous book, The Art of War, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
What is the intent of our enemy?
‘One of the ultimate ironies of eternity is that the adversary, who is miserable precisely because he has no physical body, invites and entices us to share in his misery through the improper use of our bodies. The very tool he does not have and cannot use is thus the primary target of his attempts to lure us to physical and spiritual destruction. ‘
Why is the way we use and treat our bodies of eternal import?
Elder Bednar ended his address with an invitation, a promise and a testimony.
The invitation:
‘I invite and encourage you to reflect on this episode with the cheetahs and the topis and identify additional lessons for you and your family. ‘
Do any of the things discussed strike a particular chord for you and your family?
The promise:
‘I promise that the blessings of effective preparation and spiritual protection will flow into your life as you are watchful unto prayer vigilantly and continually. ‘
How will being watchful unto prayer prepare and protect you?
The testimony:
‘I testify that pressing forward on the covenant path provides spiritual safety and invites enduring joy into our lives. And I witness that the risen and living Savior will sustain and strengthen us in times both good and bad. Of these truths I testify in the sacred name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen. ‘
Do you have a testimony that staying on the covenant path provides safety and invites joy?
(NB: Passages in italics are excerpts from Elder Bednar’s talk)
Latter-day Bloke 