The Enduring Power of Covenants
As a young boy of just eight I vividly remember the thrill of anticipation leading up to my baptism. I had such high expectations, genuinely believing I'd feel something monumental and immediate. When that clear distinct feeling didn't arrive, I was a bit confused. I think I expected instant blessings; an immediate transformation. Reflecting on my baptism more than 50 years ago and everything that has unfolded since, I now understand it all so much more clearly.
The experience of entering into the covenant of baptism, along with the many covenants I've made with the Lord since, has been the very fabric of my life's greatest blessings. It wasn't about an immediate overwhelming feeling or change, but rather about the profound power that has quietly and consistently unfolded in my life. I now truly realize the immense power and blessings that have come to me, not from a single moment, but from the simple faithful choices I've made each time I’ve expressed my trust in the Lord through countless acts of covenant making and covenant keeping.
Covenants Are a Partnership: When we make a covenant with the Lord we enter into a sacred relationship. We promise to exercise faith, to strive to obey His commandments, and to put forth diligent efforts to make righteous choices. In return, we are blessed to feel His loving guidance, strength, and support through all of life's circumstances. President Russell M. Nelson taught that a covenant relationship with God, “... allows Him to bless and change us.... If we let God prevail in our lives, that covenant will lead us closer and closer to Him.” (“The Everlasting Covenant,” Liahona, October 2022)
a covenant relationship with God, “... allows Him to bless and change us.... If we let God prevail in our lives, that covenant will lead us closer and closer to Him.”
President Russell M. Nelson
Gradual Transformation: The growth and change that comes from covenants are frequently a process of refinement. Like a river carving a canyon, ongoing effort and a heart willing to be guided by the Spirit gradually shape us into who the Lord intends us to be. This transformation might be subtle day-to-day but becomes undeniable over years and decades. I may not have felt different immediately after my baptism but the choices I made because of that covenant, day in and day out, have clearly led to significant growth in my life.
Spiritual Maturity: My journey from an 8-year-old expecting immediate change to an adult recognizing profound long-term blessings reflects growing spiritual maturity. With time and experience we can each learn to discern the Lord's hand in our lives in more nuanced ways. We begin to see how seemingly small acts of faithfulness rooted in our covenants lead to significant outcomes.
The Abundant Blessings of Covenant Keeping
Each covenant I’ve made since my baptism has added to a cumulative store of blessings, knowledge, and spiritual power. It's not just one covenant, but the pattern of covenant keeping that has truly unlocked the floodgates of heaven in my life. As I reflect on my covenants, I see the Lord’s tender mercies giving me:
- Courage to choose to serve a mission, get married in the temple, and have children;
- Faith to keep trying even in the face of the failure of my career;
- Unconditional love for my children even when they wander;
- Strength to forgive a business partner who cheated me;
- Hope of forgiveness through the Savior’s atoning sacrifice that allows me to continue to repent notwithstanding my weaknesses; and
- Peace to deal with the death of my parents.
King Benjamin taught, 'And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.' (Mosiah 2:41)
While there's much I don't yet comprehend, this I know with certainty: God holds a special love for those who covenant with Him, for those who choose daily to serve Him and His children, and for those who strive to become like Him. I am profoundly thankful for my wise parents and their righteous example of entering the waters of baptism which set a path for me to follow. Because of these covenants and the palpable blessings I've seen in my life from striving to keep them, I know the Lord lives and loves me with tender mercy. My heart is His and I choose each day to act in faith, following His divine example.