Jun

3

The growing spiritual void

Filed Under Ensign Articles, Ezra Taft Benson, Magazines, Prophets, Spencer W. Kimball, Spirituality, Teachings | 2 Comments

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I haven’t really watched a commercial in years, so it was bound to happen. As I got ready to watch something that was void of commercials, the a/v component that brings my computer files to my TV failed. So I ended up flipping through the channels. That’s when it occurred to me.

Something I’m familiar with, but I’ve since grown away from - or filled. I’ll call it a spiritual void, others may just call it a void or emptiness and some may not even realize they are a victim to it. But it’s effects are all the same. People want to fill it - and that’s where the problem lies.

Before I started writing this I went looking for some subject material and came across an article written for Islam, but it brought up a very good point. It said:

Look to the hard-core sports fan. He spends his life supporting specific teams, financially, physically and emotionally. He attends every game, either in person or vicariously over the TV. He buys the memorabilia. He is devastated when they lose, and he reaches Paradise when they win… Sounds strange. We need to just change the way we look at it. This person is completely preoccupied with sports because his life lacks something else. This is how he has chosen to fill that spiritual vacuum.1

I knew what I had filled my life with before I came back to the Gospel, and it wasn’t sports - but I hadn’t thought enough through it to even make a connection about those who become so fanatical about anything. Don’t get me wrong, having goals and being motivated is good, but this goes beyond that.

Look at the increase of “Reality” shows. What is the main goal of anyone of them? To gain an amount of money, but what is lost?

Each of these shows require people to participate, people to sell their lives for the chance to win money, how empty a person must be to sell their life just for a chance to win money.

How have we gotten here?

It’s occurred to me that there’s been a gradual move towards secularism. By that I mean the removal of anything spiritual from our lives. We were listening to a speech given by Ezra Taft Benson in 1970, title “The American Challenge” 2. In it, you’ll hear about the problems they faced then, which sound a lot like the ones we have today - so the expansion of secularism isn’t something new, it’s been going on for awhile - I would even hazard a guess since day one.

Last night we had a discussion with our children about proper Sunday activities. I was feeling a little bit overwhelmed with the war and battle games my boys play all day everyday - so I talked to them about what Sunday means.

Spencer W. Kimball stated:

It is a day on which to read good books, a day to contemplate and ponder, … a day to study the scriptures and to prepare sermons, a day to nap and rest and relax, a day to visit the sick, a day to preach the gospel, a day to proselyte, a day to visit quietly with the family and get acquainted with our children, a day for proper courting, a day to do good, a day to drink at the fountain of knowledge and of instruction, a day to seek forgiveness of our sins, a day for the enrichment of our spirit and our soul, a day to restore us to our spiritual stature, a day to partake of the emblems of his sacrifice and atonement, a day to contemplate the glories of the gospel and of the eternal realms, a day to climb high on the upward path toward our Heavenly Father 3

This is basically what we decided would be great Sunday activities. But what does this have to do with the rest of the topic?

Well, this is just one thing that can be done to shore up the loss of spirituality in the world. While this doesn’t seem like much, it is a lot. Think if everyone observed the Sabbath in this manner, if all the stores closed, and sports weren’t played. How more spiritual would the world be?

While I know this isn’t the only answer, there are so many other things that have transpired to bring us to this point, but it is something we can change now.

As we talked in our discussion, I admitted my own failings when it comes to Sabbath observence and explained to my children that I would make a concerted effort to raise the bar - “Good Better Best“.

  1. Filling the Spiritual Void By Shariffa Carlo ↩
  2. The American Challenge Benson, Ezra Taft ↩
  3. Teachings, 216 ↩