Of Crossings and Commandments
- Adam Simpson
- Nov 10, 2019
- 5 min read
One evening earlier this week, I was driving home rather late at night - at least, it was after dark. I drove onto Gordon Avenue, a familiar street marking the route home that I have taken thousands of times. Along that section of Gordon lies a train crossing. Any of my fellow Layton residents can agree that few things are as annoying as that train crossing! At the most pivotal moments of travel - those times when you’re rushing, an emergency has just happened, you have a change of plans, anything - a train ALWAYS comes and forces you to wait an additional 2-10 minutes. Anyways, as you can probably guess, that night when I was coming home, I was stopped at the last second by flashing lights and lowering barriers. I was anxious to get home, so this unwelcome delay didn’t help my attitude.
I sat at the front of the line of cars waiting for the supposed train to come by when my mind started wondering as it always does in that waiting line.
“There is a clear path across the tracks. All I would need to do is reverse a little, scoot over to the wrong side of the road, cross diagonally across the tracks back to my side, and off I go! It seems like this train won’t even come anyways - I’ve been sitting here for 60 seconds and still no train. Let me just put the car in reverse and…”
BAM
The classic Utah Frontrunner train came whizzing by at its 80-90 mph speed, shocking me out of my planning and back into reality. And then, just as soon as it appeared, it was gone. The barriers rose, and I continued on my path, 2 minutes behind schedule, but safe.
I was struck by this common experience in a way that I never had been before. I’ve been stopped at that same crossing hundreds of times, but never had I realized the profound lesson it can teach us.
In a rather obvious metaphor, let’s consider the barrier as a divine law from God - a commandment - and the train as the negative consequence of transgressing that law.
My attitude while waiting was one of impatience and frustration. I didn’t enjoy waiting. I knew that if I just took 10 seconds to sneak around the barrier (which I would not do everyone, don’t worry!) I could drive off and save heaps of time. No train had come yet, so it probably wouldn’t come in the 10 seconds it would take for me to get around. But then, just as that thought passed through my mind, the train was there. Had I taken that trip around the barrier, I would have been either crushed or flying through the air - or both. After seeing that train, my attitude shifted from anger towards the impeding barrier to gratitude for the life-saving barrier.
Are the commandments not the same way sometimes? I think of one of my all-time favorite scriptural phrases, coming from a wise King (pictured here):
“I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God” (Mosiah 2:41)
At first, I did not feel I was blessed. Rather, I focused on the time being wasted. Yet, as soon as I witnessed the destruction that awaited me on the other side of that barrier, I felt incredibly blessed. I believe that following a commandment is an act of faith. That "blessed state" often does not come until we live that commandment for a long time, receive additional understanding or peace through the Spirit, and continue to live all of God's laws.
I was also happy once I was able to move again. I reckon that people see commandments as restrictive - as the opposite to progress. They stop us from doing things and prevent us from being “free”. However, this metaphor says something much different. Yes, I was temporarily halted, but that 2 minutes of waiting is a small price to pay for saving the remaining 80 years of my life. So too are commandments progressive, but only with an eternal perspective can we see that.
The “signs of the two Vs” teach this same principle. In the first V, shaped like a ^ sign, you begin with much freedom, until you rise to the constrictive point. This represents having the freedom to go around the barrier and onto the tracks, but at some point getting smashed by the train. The second V, shaped like a traditional V, begins with some restriction but opens up to infinite space as you keep rising. That constrictive point at the bottom is like our 2 minutes of mortality - or 4 minutes if you refer to Elder Gary E. Stevenson’s conference talk - which, if lived according to God’s laws, allows for eternal progression in the life to come.
And progression is happiness and joy - in fact, it’s “never-ending happiness” as the scripture states.
Now, this train analogy can feel a bit harsh. All of us bypass the barriers at times. Some do get smashed by adversarial trains - I met many of those people throughout my mission - but most others just get beaten around a bit by smaller, fiery darts. I’ve been stung by a few of those due to following “my own understanding”, as have you. Lucky for us, a Savior has allowed us to get back to the path safely. And most of us have. But that doesn’t mean we should cross the barrier again, just in case we get smashed by that train.
This last week I met up with a good friend from high school. We were in the same friend group and had many classes and sports together. He’s not a member of the Church, though getting to know him that would not be an easy thing to guess. He was always Christlike. Anyways, we met up and caught up on the last 2 years of each other’s lives. Come to find out, he has had a hectic 2 years, full of great blessings but also difficult trials. He had, in essence, stepped around the barrier, and, to a lower degree, been hit by a train. His actions - and sorrowful actions of others - had caused him a bit of misery at times. We talked openly together about the Church, about temples, about trusting in God, and about the future. We both agree that difficult things have happened to us, but we both looked forward with faith and conviction. It was humbling to see this good friend trust in a loving God, though he had many reasons not to.
Coming home from a mission has its difficulties. At times while out in Sydney, I felt like I had not only a small metal barrier but a large concrete wall keeping me from the deadly train. Missionaries have many rules to maintain that safety. Granted, it was still possible to scale that wall and land on the tracks, which some did, but I did not. Then coming home, that wall goes back to the metal barrier, which can easily be maneuvered around. Self-discipline and faith are anchor characteristics in avoiding that temptation. Thank goodness Christ has helped and will continue to help me develop those qualities.
I close with the words of the late Elder L. Tom Perry, who said:
“A useful way to think about the commandments is they are loving counsel from a wise, all-knowing Heavenly Father. His goal is our eternal happiness, and His commandments are the road map He has given us to return to Him, which is the only way we will be eternally happy.”
Not only are commandments preventative, but they are progressive - if we are patient and faithful enough to realize it.
Thanks for reading! As always, I love you all heaps and heaps, and am grateful for your support of this truly “simple” blog. Until next time!
Adam Simpson
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