18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments—then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.
My favorite analogy about the commandments helping us be happy is this story told by General Primary President as she says :
(Sister Patricia P. Pinegar, general president of the Primary)
A little boy went to the park with his father to fly a kite.
“The boy was very young. It was his first experience with kite flying. His father helped him, and after several attempts the kite was in the air. The boy ran and let out more string, and soon the kite was flying high. The little boy was so excited; the kite was beautiful. Eventually there was no more string left to allow the kite to go higher. The boy said to his father, ‘Daddy, let’s cut the string and let the kite go; I want to see it go higher and higher.’
“His father said, ‘Son, the kite won’t go higher if we cut the string.’
“‘Yes, it will,’ responded the little boy. ‘The string is holding the kite down; I can feel it.’ The father handed a pocketknife to his son. The boy cut the string. In a matter of seconds the kite was out of control. It darted here and there and finally landed in a broken heap. That was difficult for the boy to understand. He felt certain the string was holding the kite down” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1999, 84; or Ensign, Nov. 1999, 67–68).
How exactly are commandments like kites, you may be asking? The string along with the tails and drogues keep the kite flying high and in control, just as the commandments help us to live happy and controlled, or protected lives.
“Cecil B. DeMille, producer of the movie The Ten Commandments, made this observation:
‘Some, who do not know either the Bible or human nature, may see in the orgy of the Golden Calf only a riot of Hollywood’s imaginations—but those who have eyes to see will see in it the awful lesson of how quickly a nation or a man can fall, without God’s law.
“If man will not be ruled by God, he will certainly be ruled by tyrants—and there is no tyranny more imperious or more devastating than man’s own selfishness, without the law.
“We cannot break the Ten Commandments. We can only break ourselves against them—or else, by keeping them, rise through them to the fullness of freedom under God. God means us to be free. With divine daring, He gave us the power of choice.’ (Commencement Address, Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year, Provo, 31 May 1957.)” (LDS Old Testament Student Manual, pg.127)”
A little boy went to the park with his father to fly a kite.
“The boy was very young. It was his first experience with kite flying. His father helped him, and after several attempts the kite was in the air. The boy ran and let out more string, and soon the kite was flying high. The little boy was so excited; the kite was beautiful. Eventually there was no more string left to allow the kite to go higher. The boy said to his father, ‘Daddy, let’s cut the string and let the kite go; I want to see it go higher and higher.’
“His father said, ‘Son, the kite won’t go higher if we cut the string.’
“‘Yes, it will,’ responded the little boy. ‘The string is holding the kite down; I can feel it.’ The father handed a pocketknife to his son. The boy cut the string. In a matter of seconds the kite was out of control. It darted here and there and finally landed in a broken heap. That was difficult for the boy to understand. He felt certain the string was holding the kite down” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1999, 84; or Ensign, Nov. 1999, 67–68).
How exactly are commandments like kites, you may be asking? The string along with the tails and drogues keep the kite flying high and in control, just as the commandments help us to live happy and controlled, or protected lives.
“Cecil B. DeMille, producer of the movie The Ten Commandments, made this observation:
‘Some, who do not know either the Bible or human nature, may see in the orgy of the Golden Calf only a riot of Hollywood’s imaginations—but those who have eyes to see will see in it the awful lesson of how quickly a nation or a man can fall, without God’s law.
“If man will not be ruled by God, he will certainly be ruled by tyrants—and there is no tyranny more imperious or more devastating than man’s own selfishness, without the law.
“We cannot break the Ten Commandments. We can only break ourselves against them—or else, by keeping them, rise through them to the fullness of freedom under God. God means us to be free. With divine daring, He gave us the power of choice.’ (Commencement Address, Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year, Provo, 31 May 1957.)” (LDS Old Testament Student Manual, pg.127)”
In my own life there have been times that I have strayed from the truths of the gospel that I knew. From experience I can testify with assurance that living a life with effort to keep the commandments and follow the counsel of the Prophet and church leaders - is not just happier, but also much more meaningful, exciting, lasting, peaceful, joyful, and overall allows for greater accomplishment in all areas.
I am thankful that God has given us guidelines and commands to follow while still allowing our agency for us to choose for ourselves. These blessings we have show me just how much Father in Heaven loves us.
I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen
Thank you so much for this post! I have been searching without success for this kite analogy to the commandments and finally found it here! I'm especially grateful you included the citations too!
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