“Agency: A Gift from God,” Come, Follow Me: For Individuals and Families at Home (2015), 36–39
“Agency: A Gift from God,” For Individuals and Families at Home, 36–39
Agency
February 2016
Agency: A Gift from God
An old legend tells of a grandfather teaching his grandson about the importance of making wise choices. “A fight is going on inside all of us,” he said to the boy.
“It is a terrible struggle, and it is between two wolves. One is evil: he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, lies, pride, and ego.”
He continued, “The other is good: he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.”
Fascinated and a little frightened, the grandson asked, “Which wolf will win?”
The old man simply replied, “The one you feed.”
What Is Agency?
Agency is the ability to choose and act for ourselves. It allows us to show God that we will choose to obey His commandments of our own free will. Heavenly Father wants us to seek His direction and act in faith.
Our Heavenly Father has given us the ability to choose eternal life by following Jesus Christ (see 2 Nephi 2:27). The right to choose and to act for ourselves is called agency.
We had agency even before we were born. During the premortal Council in Heaven, the principle of agency was one of the main points of the conflict between the followers of Christ, who wanted to preserve agency, and the followers of Satan, who wanted to “destroy the agency of man” (Moses 4:3). As a result of his rebellion, Satan was cast out of heaven with his followers (see D&C 29:36–37). Since then, Satan has continued his efforts to destroy our agency (see 2 Nephi 2:18, 27).
Why Is Agency Necessary?
Agency allows us to express our desires through our choices and to learn from those choices, making our mortal life a period of learning and testing. When planning the mortal creation of His children, God said, “We will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them” (Abraham 3:25). Because we are able to choose, we are accountable for our actions (see Helaman 14:30–31).
How Do My Choices Affect My Freedom?
When we choose to obey God’s commandments, our agency is preserved, our opportunities increase, and we progress. When we choose to disobey, the opposite is true—our abilities to act and progress are diminished (see D&C 29:40).
Elder Robert D. Hales taught this truth in the following story:
“In my youth I learned an important lesson about how our actions may limit our freedom. One day my father assigned me to varnish a wooden floor. I made the choice to begin at the door and work my way into the room. When I was almost finished, I realized I had left myself no way to get out. There was no window or door on the other side. I had literally painted myself into a corner.
“Whenever we disobey, we spiritually paint ourselves into a corner and are captive to our choices. Though we are spiritually stuck, there is always a way back. Like repentance, turning around and walking across a newly varnished floor means more work—a lot of resanding and refinishing! Returning to the Lord isn’t easy, but it is worth it” (“Agency: Essential to the Plan of Life,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 25–26).
How Does Heavenly Father Guide Me in My Choices?
God will hold us accountable for our actions at the Final Judgment (see D&C 101:78). However, He does not leave us alone but offers us guidance and direction through commandments and inspiration. As we pray for His help, God will answer. Elder Richard G. Scott taught:
“He will reply in one of three ways. First, you can feel the peace, comfort, and assurance that confirm that your decision is right. Or second, you can sense that unsettled feeling, the stupor of thought, indicating that your choice is wrong. Or third—and this is the difficult one—you can feel no response.
“What do you do when you have prepared carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a reasonable time for a response, and still do not feel an answer? You may want to express thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence of His trust. When you are living worthily and your choice is consistent with the Savior’s teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. … God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision” (“Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2007, 10).
When we use our agency to make righteous decisions, we come to know Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and become more like Them.
Record Impressions
What is the Spirit teaching me about agency? What personal experiences come to mind? What am I being inspired to do to act on what I’m learning?
A Simple Pattern for Family Learning
Prepare
What can we study in preparation to learn together? What questions do we have?
Learn
What scriptures, stories, experiences, or quotations can we learn about together?
Act
How will we act on what we learn?
Family Discussion and Family Home Evening
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Consider sharing the story of the two wolves, found at the beginning of this study outline. What good things are we doing to feed the “good wolf”? How can we avoid feeding the “bad wolf”?
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You could sing “Choose the Right Way” (Children’s Songbook, 160) and create actions relating to each line of the song. Consider important decisions that family members are currently facing, and talk about how they can make good choices.
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Consider telling a story about an ancestor who made a difficult choice to choose the right, or show the video “No Regrets” (LDS.org). What can we do to follow this example?
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You could make a family poster like the title of liberty (see Alma 46:11–20) that lists things that safeguard religious freedom (for ideas, see the quotation from Elder Robert D. Hales in the “Prophetic Teachings” section of this study outline). Why do you think Moroni wanted his title of liberty on “every tower” in the land? (Alma 46:36).
Additional Study
Scriptures
John 8:34; 2 Peter 2:19; 2 Nephi 2:11–16, 28–29; Alma 40:12–13; 41:3; Moroni 7:5–6, 12–17; Moses 1:1–4; 7:32; Abraham 3:24–25.
General Conference Talks
Quentin L. Cook, “Choose Wisely,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2014, 46–49.
D. Todd Christofferson, “Free Forever, to Act for Themselves,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2014, 16–19.
Other Resources
“Agency,” Gospel Topics, topics.lds.org.
“Agency and Accountability,” in For the Strength of Youth (2011), 2–3.
Prophetic Teachings
President Russell M. Nelson
“My dear brothers and sisters, each day is a day of decision, and our decisions determine our destiny. One day each of us will stand before the Lord in judgment. We will each have a personal interview with Jesus Christ” (“Decisions for Eternity,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 109).
Elder Robert D. Hales
“As we walk the path of spiritual liberty in these last days, we must understand that the faithful use of our agency depends upon our having religious freedom. We already know that Satan does not want this freedom to be ours. He attempted to destroy moral agency in heaven, and now on earth he is fiercely undermining, opposing, and spreading confusion about religious freedom—what it is and why it is essential to our spiritual life and our very salvation. …
“… We are responsible to safeguard these sacred freedoms and rights for ourselves and our posterity. What can you and I do?
“First, we can become informed. Be aware of issues in your community that could have an impact on religious liberty.
“Second, in your individual capacity, join with others who share our commitment to religious freedom. Work side by side to protect religious freedom.
“Third, live your life to be a good example of what you believe—in word and deed. How we live our religion is far more important than what we may say about our religion” (“Preserving Agency, Protecting Religious Freedom,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2015, 111–13).
President Ezra Taft Benson
“Usually the Lord gives us the overall objectives to be accomplished and some guidelines to follow, but he expects us to work out most of the details and methods. The methods and procedures are usually developed through study and prayer and by living so that we can obtain and follow the promptings of the Spirit. … Today those spiritually alert look at the objectives, check the guidelines laid down by the Lord and his prophets, and then prayerfully act—without having to be commanded ‘in all things.’ …
“Sometimes the Lord hopefully waits on his children to act on their own, and when they do not, they lose the greater prize, and the Lord will either drop the entire matter and let them suffer the consequences or else he will have to spell it out in greater detail. Usually, I fear, the more he has to spell it out, the smaller is our reward.
“We should be ‘anxiously engaged’ in good causes and leave the world a better place for having lived in it” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson [2014], 66).