"...firm in the faith of Christ..." (Alma 27:27)

I did some weaving, basket weaving the other day. It was so theraputic. I was able to finish a basket, (I like to call them vessels) by putting on a rim and some decorative handles. It was a larger vessel that I wove a few months ago and has been sitting on my shelf waiting for a rim. A rim is a necessary part of a vessel so that it won't fall apart when you use it or move it around. It keeps everything in place, firm and and immovable so that you can pick it up and not worry that your spokes are going to shift. It gives the whole structure strength and helps the vessel keep its shape. It can be decorative or very simple. But it is important part of a vessel.

As I was attaching the rim I thought of all the elements of this vessel and how much we are like them. We are stronger when there are more of us, just like the spokes in a basket, when there are more, they are stronger. They support and sustain each other. This is just like attending church. We go so we can be strengthened and lifted, "to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of [our] souls...and to partake of bread and [water], in remembrance of the Lord Jesus" (Moroni 6:5-6; see also Acts 1:13-14). The rim of a vessel binds everything together and keeps everything firm and in place. We need each other. That is part of the reason we gather together each week. We are able to strengthen each other and help each other remain "firm in the faith of Christ" (Alma 27:27).


The weavers can be very simple or quite elegant. But there are some very basic types of weaving that must be learned before you can implement the fancier types of weaving. Basics are so important in weaving because everything else builds on them. Without a strong understanding and practice of the basics, the other types of weaving will not hold up and it is very difficult to learn to weave without this basic knowledge. The basics of the gospel are exactly the same. We must have this foundation first before we try to learn the more difficult "weaving" of the gospel. If I am ever struggling I go right back to the basics and I find the simple answer not only in weaving, but also in the gospel. Some of  the basics of the gospel are: faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and repentance (turning our heart, mind, and will to God) (see Article of Faith # 4); reading, studying, and pondering the word of God (see 2 Nephi 32:3; Proverbs 15:28; D&C 138:1); praying to the Father in the name of Christ (see Ephesians 6:18; Matt. 6:6; 2 Nephi 32:8-9); follow the example of Jesus Christ by being baptized, and then each Sunday renew those same covenants by partaking the sacrament (see Matt 3:13-17; Alma 7:15; 2 Nephi 31:13; 2 Nephi 31:5). If I have missed church in a long time, I can tell. I have missed being filled not only by associating with the good people who are there trying as I am to be strengthened and to lift, but I really miss being fed by partaking of the "nourishment" that I receive when I recommit myself to following my Savior. The words in the sacrament prayer: "willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments which he has given them" reminds me of exactly what I committed to doing when I was baptized. And the promise of the Father to us: "That they may always have His Spirit to be with them" (D&C 20:77) is so powerful~ this is the kind of protection, power and knowledge that we all need in this "wrestle" we are in every day (see Ephesians 6:12). By weaving the basics into our very hearts, the core of our vessel, we become ready for the "rim" which shapes us, and makes us truly "committed" (Psalms 37:5), "firm" (Helaman 15:8, and ultimately "converted" (Alma 23:6).

The rim helps us keep our shape. Shaping a vessel is work, not hard, but needs attention. If you pull the weavers  tight or let them loose you can change the shape of your vessel. A rim, keeps your weaving "firmly" in place. Just as the Nephite's and the Lamanites, people in The Book of Mormon who would go from righteous living to unrighteous living at various times, were tried in their faith or work, we too are tried in our faith. We get to decide whether or not we want to become "firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling [our] souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of [our] hearts, which sanctification cometh because of [our] yielding [our] hearts unto God" (Helaman 3:35) or we can choose to be "stiffnecked" (see 2 Chronicles 30:8) or "rebellious...which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not" (Ezekiel 12:2). I used to want to do everything my way. I would always say, "No one will tell me how to do it" and I would have to do it my way. I ruined a lot of reed that way while trying to weave my own vessels without knowing or doing the basics. It just didn't work. What is interesting is that I got stronger and stronger in my abilities as a weaver when I humbled myself and learned the basics. It is the same as I follow Jesus Christ when I "wax stronger and stronger in [my] humility" I get "firmer and firmer in the faith of Jesus Christ" (Helaman 3:35). I'm not perfect by any means. And I am so not perfect in humility. But, I am trying to get better at recognizing my constant need for Christ in my life. A good vessel starts with the basics and ends with conversion, "firm in the faith of Jesus Christ" (Alma 27:27).

I promise, that as we learn to weave the basics of the gospel into our lives, into our vessel, which is symbolic of us, we are putting on the "rim" of conversion, being "firm in the faith of Christ" (Alma 27:27). We are becoming "converted unto the true faith; and [we will] not depart from it for [we are] firm, and steadfast, and immovable, willing with all diligence to keep the commandments of the Lord" (3 Nephi 6:14). We do all this, with the help of the Master Weaver, Jesus Christ. This I testify.