Neal A. Maxwell didn’t come down here to play, he came down to preach. At least, that’s what it seems like to me. His General Conference talks are full of clarity. We are expected to choose; not wallow, not blow where the winds take us, not accept our lot in life, and not settle. By choosing, we choose God, His Son Jesus Christ, eternal life, and everlasting joy.

Some people think that free agency means they can choose to not believe, to be disobedient, to do nothing, even to follow the Father of Lies if they want. But, because we live in a fallen world, we are already subject to Satan. We can either stay separated from God or choose to be redeemed out of this world by our Savior. That is the choice. And this is what Elder Maxwell says in all of his talks, over and over again. In this talk, he says,

Real disciples absorb the fiery darts of the adversary by holding aloft the quenching shield of faith with one hand, while holding to the iron rod with the other (see Eph. 6:16; 1 Ne. 15:24; D&C 27:17). There should be no mistaking; it will take both hands!

Our choice is to hold on because if we relax and let go, we will be lost.

When we choose to take upon us covenants and keep them, we become “spiritually safe” and “armed with righteousness and with the power of God.” Without these covenants, active and honored daily in our lives, we are powerless against Satan and simply become fodder to him, because he will literally eat us alive.

It is Jesus Christ who has prepared a way for us to escape. He offers us His power. Again, in Elder Maxwell’s words,

Of course Jesus noticed the tremendous temptations that came to him, but He did not process and reprocess them. Instead, He rejected them promptly.

Isn’t that a good description of what some of us do? We accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, but then use it to socialize, or manipulate it to suit our occasional obedience without letting it interfere with our own individuality. We think we have all the time in the world to process and reprocess both good and evil; rehashing the events in our lives, rehearsing empty promises and even conveniently choosing both sides occasionally. Though we’ve been told that Satan knows our weaknesses, somehow, we still think we can outsmart him, or control our own situation. What we forget to realize is that soon our right to choose will be gone and Satan will hold us captive.

Like Jesus, we must reject Satan promptly. And thank Jesus vocally and regularly and sincerely. He is the one who chose to save you and me with His own blood.

No wonder, when Christ comes in power and glory, that He will come in reminding red attire (see D&C 133:48), signifying not only the winepress of wrath, but also to bring to our remembrance how He suffered for each of us in Gethsemane and on Calvary!

Our goal is to overcome the world not become like the world. And whereas our Savior has already overcome this world, all we have to do is choose Him.

Parting the Veil painted by Jon McNaughton