One of my favorite scriptural one-liners is “free to choose” (2 Nephi 2:27). There lots of important aspects of this phrase (see the end of this post for one of my favorite quotes on this topic), but the one I’m thinking about today is, what will I choose to let go of?
Some of us might have some negative behaviors or thoughts that we need to let go of. Others of us will are simply too busy and need to do less. Either way, we need to let go. What happens if we don’t let go? I love the lesson from this video and I hope you love it too:
Don’t be trapped.
Don’t be the monkey.
Let go.
We are free to choose. What will we choose to let go of?
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PS – here’s one of my favorite quotes connected to 2 Nephi 2:27. It comes from a talk given by Elder David A. Bednar.
I have been frankly puzzled as I have listened to members of the Church say: “I have my agency. I don’t have to live the law of tithing or the Word of Wisdom. I don’t have to be chaste.” I would suggest such individuals do not understand the doctrine of agency. You and I exercise agency in the making of a covenant. When we enter into a covenant with God, we voluntarily surrender a portion of our agency. And the consequences that come from violating the covenant are not within our control. It is not simply a matter of freedom to choose; rather, it is a matter of becoming covenant breakers. Think of the song Choose the Right. It does not say, “Choose what you want when you will.” Agency is linked to a course of choosing the right. That is why we have agency. What did the Father say in the premortal council? “And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all [emphasis added] things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them” (Abraham 3:25). Agency is to be used in choosing the right.
Brother and sisters, we have received a precious gift. Agency is available in our lives through the Savior’s atonement. The only gift you and I can ever give Him is a voluntary surrender of our hearts through that agency. As we make covenants, we yield to Him a portion of our agency and basically say, “Precious Savior, dear Redeemer, do with me what you will.” I testify that so doing brings happiness.
