One of the most challenging aspects of being a single member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is keeping an eternal perspective. An understandable frustration for singles is, “when will I meet him/her?” “Will it ever happen in this life?” “Am I going to be single forever?” While the answers to these questions are individual between the particular member and the Lord, everyone can cope better by working to maintain an eternal perspective along their life’s journey. This phrase to “keep an eternal perspective” is often given at church, yet is rarely defined or clarified. To maintain an eternal perspective is simply to keep the big picture in mind spiritually. To think of every situation and moment in life as a temporary circumstance. To remember our standing before the Lord and to keep in mind our potential, eternal state in the next life each step along the way in this life.
Two Key Scriptures:
There are two noteworthy scriptures that can aid us in having and maintaining an eternal perspective. First, understand and remember that our main job as members is to “love God and our neighbor”. When Jesus was asked by a lawyer which was the greatest commandment, he replied with the following:
Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
--Matthew 22:36-40
To utilize this scripture to maintain an eternal perspective, remember this rule of thumb in your choices from day to day. You can ask yourself, “does doing (or not doing) _____ better show love to God and/or my neighbor?” If so, that is a good choice to make, if not, it is better not to do. Simple, but not necessarily easy.
A second scripture to help you maintain an eternal perspective is to remember it is your job to live in a worthy, valiant fashion through continual repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. And to continually remember and strive towards your goal to go to the celestial kingdom:
And again we bear record—for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony of the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just—They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given—That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power; And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.
They are they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things—They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God—Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. And they shall overcome all things. Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet. These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. These are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign on the earth over his people.
These are they who shall have part in the first resurrection. These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just. These are they who are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly place, the holiest of all. These are they who have come to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of Enoch, and of the Firstborn. These are they whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of all. These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood. These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical.
--Doctrine & Covenants 76:50-70
All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed and set forth upon all who have endured valiantly for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
--Doctrine & Covenants 121:29
Keeping these scriptures in mind, you can maintain an eternal perspective by always remembering the end goal and objective of where you would like to end up in the next life (the celestial kingdom) as well as what is required to get there (worthiness and valiancy through continual faith and repentance).
A Promise of Companionship:
When worthy and valiant in this life, an eternal companion is assured if that is your desire and choice. Remember this promise, as I have repeated in other articles in this series:
Many of the most important deprivations of mortality will be set right in the Millennium, which is the time for fulfilling all that is incomplete in the great plan of happiness for all of our Father’s worthy children. We know that will be true of temple ordinances. I believe it will also be true of family relationships and experiences.
--Dallin H Oaks, The Great Plan of Happiness, General Conference, October 1993
Final Thoughts:
By keeping an eternal perspective, you can better maintain the patience and longevity needed to stay worthy, valiant, and strong in the gospel until the end, whenever your status changes from single to married—and it will. Because “…neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.”—1 Corinthians 11:11.”
Dr. G
P.S. If you can questions, comments, or a future article request for me, feel free to contact me at drgilchrist@yahoo.com.
P.P.S. Please consider supporting us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/ldsdimension
| 2019-12-30 | Randy Gilchrist | Healthy relationships |
About the author
Hello, my name is Dr. Randy Gilchrist (aka "Dr. G"). I am a licensed clinical psychologist, a licensed marriage & family therapist, and a certified hypnotherapist in private practice in Roseville, CA (www.dr-rg.com), practicing since 1997. Also, I am happily married in the temple (Manti) since 1996 and have 4 sons. I am a volunteer writer and contributor to LDS Dimension. I use my training, education, and experience to share insights with LDS Dimension on all things of interest to the LDS dating community. Please read my articles and columns on this site to assist you in your online dating journey. Also, to be considered for an answer in a future Q and A column, please email me your dating/relationship oriented questions to drgilchrist@yahoo.com. Finally, I also offer a powerful, effective worldwide custom hypnosis recording service just for LDS Dimension members for weight loss, pornography, and many other issues of concern to those in the LDS dating community (please learn more now at www.dr-rg.com/lds; email me questions to drgilchrist@yahoo.com).