Heart, Might, Mind and Strength

Recently we were in the kitchen making a meal and my son said something that stopped me in my tracks - I can't remember now what we were talking about, but I mentioned doing something with my "whole heart" and he responded "heart, might, mind and strength!" I was blown away first of all that he even knew that phrase but then I couldn't get it out of my mind.

It comes from a scripture that I became very familiar with as a missionary that goes: "Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day." (D&C 4:2)

This year we've spent a lot of time focusing on developing the 'minds' of our children (and myself) as we started homeschooling. We've been trying to spend more time on developing our 'hearts' as we improve our relationships with eachother, handle emotions in a healthier way, develop more compassion for people. The kids find opportunities right and left for developing strength as they learn to use their little bodies (I'm hoping to get my own back in shape though!). It's the might part that I am pondering lately. What does might mean?

In the new testament a lawyer tempts Jesus by asking him what he needed to do to attain eternal life. I find it interesting that Jesus responded "thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy ^aheart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself." Luke 10:27

Here instead of "might" he uses "soul". Isn't that interesting? The topical guide entry under "might" also lists "power", "authority". Another word that seems fitting to me is the word influence. I think what the scripture is getting at is that we need to use all of our power and influence in serving God. Our experience, knowledge, abilities, talents, position, social influence, access to opportunities - our entire being and sphere of influence. That's pretty big!

So that new understanding has motivated me to do more in my own life to serve God with more might - more of who I am both privately and publicly, with less fear about how it may impact my 'reputation' or perceptions of others. For me, this includes getting more involved in civic life and helping my country and community. I am looking into ways to become more active in local issues because I think it is where Americans can have the greatest impact for good in our nation's issues.