Covenant to Hold the Pass

What does it mean to actually choose a side? This week Cydni and Sher discuss the baptismal covenant, what God promises in return and what it means to choose His kingdom.  Also, Cydni's son has been quietly panicking for five years about getting dunked twice. This week's episode is "Covenant to Hold the Pass" and we are so glad you are here!

This Week's Challenge
During sacrament this Sunday, take a few quiet moments to reflect on the day you were baptized and what it felt like to make that covenant with God.

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Show Notes

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Transcript

Episode 166 - Covenant to Hold the Pass

[00:00:00] 

Cydni: Because of this topic, I asked my middle son specifically if he remembered his baptismal day and what he remembered about it. I wasn't prepared for his answer. He has been waiting five years to confess something to me. He said "If you remember, I had to get baptized twice because my toe came up." And he's always been deeply worried that the second dunk crossed out the first action, so he's actually never been baptized. So he's afraid that they, like, evened out. and it doesn't count. then he was like, "But maybe if that's true, I could get baptized again, and then I could be forgiven for the last few years too."

Sher: That's a good plan. He's a thinker.

Cydni: Welcome to the Cydni and Sher Podcast. I really am excited about the baptism topic, and it's because of Robert D. Hales. Something changed in me in this last week because of his talk. And you know how I love a near-death experience. I did not know, but [00:01:00] he kinda had one, just like, Jeffrey R. Holland. You know how he kind of implies that he got pretty close to heaven

yeah. And if you remember, Holland comes back, and he has a message, and he's very serious about it. And he said, "However much you pray, pray more." I've been really reflecting on why I'm so impacted by near-death experiences, especially because everyone in my home is making fun of me over this.

But I just think if you almost die, you're just rejuvenated for life. You wanna, live better. And what if you see heavenly things? I wanna know what that person is going to say because they're going to be pretty passionate about whatever they saw. So Jeffrey R. Holland came back, and he's like, "Guys, pray more." I would say that's pretty important. Guess what Robert D. Hales talks about?

Sher: Eat more tacos?

Cydni: That would be me. Like, guys, there's no tacos there. And then everyone would be like, "She didn't go to heaven." Tacos would be in heaven, so get your life in order.

Sher: How, how do you know tacos will be in [00:02:00] heaven?

Cydni: If everything we believe is true, Sher, tacos will be in heaven. Okay. My bad. Otherwise, what did I sign up for? If I'm gonna choose the right, give me some guacamole. Is that too much to ask? I don't want a planet. I want a taco bar. I am certain that's how my interview before I came to Earth was. They were like, "You could have your own planet." I'm like, "Mm, no. But if you give me a taco bar that I could eat whenever I want- and always be super fit and healthy and never have inflammation, I'm in."

Sher: I'm sure you'll get your wish,

Cydni: Thanks. That's what I'm living for every day. But Robert D. Hales did not talk about tacos. He came back also with the same enthusiasm to preach more boldly, not be afraid of what anyone says, to live the gospel to a higher degree, and he came back to talk about baptism.

Sher: I should have guessed that since that's the topic

Cydni: I know. I thought it was obvious. I thought I, threw a easy ball for you to hit out of the park, and you didn't. But you have tacos on the mind Focus, Sher. Okay, I'm focused. The reason this really has [00:03:00] stuck with me is that two apostles have, gotten incredibly close to the other side, came back with an important message, and both of the messages have been basic gospel principles.

Nothing spectacular and amazing and here's new information, but the core, the foundation. Pray more. Pray more intentionally. And then Robert D. Hales coming in to say, "We need to understand baptism. We need to make sure our children understand what is happening when they get baptized, and how important it is."

It's a basic principle, and so is prayer, but if these men came back with these messages and that level of enthusiasm, it's probably worth studying and listening and making sure we've got our foundations down well.

Sher: I really like that, 'cause it does show that really what we need to get a handle on and focus on is understanding the basics of the gospel, and then make sure that we're doing that, that we are actually living our baptismal covenants, that's really what [00:04:00] it comes down to. And sometimes, I don't know about you, Cydni, but I like to overcomplicate things and make things maybe more difficult than what they really need to be.

Cydni: Oh, no. I don't relate to that.

Sher: I can tell.

Cydni: That was sarcasm. I know. Oh, 

Sher: But as Cydni said, though, what we're gonna talk about today is our baptismal covenants Let's go back to last month where we talked about the Spartans holding that narrow pass in Thermopylae. The pass that they were holding and they were not allowing the Persians to get through- Was only 50 feet wide.

 And the Spartans chose that pass, that specific location, because it turned their disadvantage, which was being entirely outnumbered, it made that irrelevant . So in other words, even though they were outnumbered, they found a spot where they could stand their ground. And that's what we're doing when we are making a covenant with God. This is where we are choosing to stand our ground and hold His pass.

so on this earth we may be outnumbered, and we might be fighting in the shade of all the [00:05:00] arrows that are flying at us, but when we covenant with God, we are choosing Him. We're choosing to fight with Him. We're choosing to be on His side. God wants that pass to hold, and he's using us to help Him complete His work. Because he's gonna win, and that pass is going to hold, so it's just a matter, are we gonna choose to help Him or hinder Him? Either way, He's gonna win.

So I decided I wanted to go on a little history rant today and the reason is because the people who founded this country, and some of the people who colonized it, understood that in order to start a new city like Plymouth or a new country like the United States, it could only succeed if we stood at that pass with God. And both the pilgrims and George Washington made a covenant with God.

Washington's was at his inauguration in 1789. And I went over this about a month ago, but just really briefly, in Genesis 49, this is where Jacob gives his sons blessings. And he's passing the covenant that God gave to [00:06:00] Abraham, and then Abraham to Isaac, then Isaac to Jacob, and then from Jacob to his sons.

He's passing that covenant on. So Washington opened the Bible to this page- and then he kissed that page after taking the oath. So in essence, in my opinion, what Washington was doing is renewing the covenant with God, acknowledging that He is our King, and that in order to be free, we need to follow Him.

Now remember that John Adams wrote that our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. So this experiment of self-governance it will not work if we don't keep the covenants our founders made and that we have made with God.

Now, before Washington, there were the Pilgrims, and before the Pilgrims got off the Mayflower, they signed the Mayflower Compact. And the Compact starts with this, Cydni: "In the name of God, Amen." That's the very first words written [00:07:00] down on it. this entire document is putting God over it and God first. It's not an earthly or regular contract or agreement.

It's a covenant between the Pilgrims, each other, and God. Later on, it says in it, " For the glory of God and advancement of the Christian faith." This is their purpose or their mission statement. It was to glorify God and spread Christianity. The Pilgrims made this covenant with God so that their colony, Plymouth, would be dedicated to building up the Kingdom of God, and they would be known as Christians. Now, the reason I'm bringing this up is because We are doing the same thing when we get baptized. We are making a covenant with God that we will be known as Christians and help build the Kingdom of God. We are coveting that this is where we choose to stand for the rest of our life and throughout all eternity. Like the Spartans, we are choosing to hold this narrow pass. 

Ephesians [00:08:00] chapter 2 verse 19 it says, " ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God." Let me tell you why this scripture is really important to me, because when we make this baptismal covenant, we become fellow citizens of God's kingdom, and this is what the pilgrims were doing as well as George Washington.

Cydni: I love the idea of becoming fellow citizens of God's kingdom. That helps to remember how we're supposed to see each other and how we're supposed to treat each other. And I've been so lucky with my new calling, because I get to, at church, participate in all the baptisms now. I'm kind of just out in the hall making sure everyone gets what they need, and everything's flowing as smooth as possible with my scheduling and organizational skills.

That's a joke. Mostly we get callings that are going to stretch our very soul, and probably stretch the soul of everyone else around us, which is what's happening currently. But that aside, I have been so blessed to [00:09:00] be at baptisms once a month, and, I have already been so blessed by it because of how amazing it is. The first time I was at someone's baptism that I didn't know, just a little child that was eight years old and excited to get baptized, this little girl sprinted into the baptismal room- So excited. she could fly. She was lit with joy, and she couldn't wait to see it.

And so we went ahead and opened it early for her to see what the font looked like, and we let her come and touch the water. And I just felt this feeling that I think I need to be a little bit more enthusiastic about what's going on around me, sometimes we make these things so small, so matter-of-fact, so check it off the list, so transactional, when it is so important, and it's life-changing.

And I was thinking when you were talking about becoming fellow citizens of God, that we also remember that we're taking Christ's name upon us. And just this last Saturday, I was at a baptism, and I listened to a grandmother [00:10:00] so sweetly talk to her grandson and . She told him, "Just like you've taken your parents' last name when you were born, you're now going to take Christ's name as you get baptized." And in the talk Robert D. Hales gives... he says, "When we are baptized, we take upon ourselves the sacred name of Jesus Christ. Taking upon His name is one of the most significant experiences we have in life, yet sometimes we pass through that experience without having a full understanding."

And since we've talked about the basics, I don't know that I could be reminded of the basics in a better place than watching eight-year-olds with their families participate in their baptismal promises, and having a grandparent or an aunt or a sibling or a parent express to them what's going on when they're making this covenant.

And they're doing it in such a delicate and childlike manner. But no matter how big the baptisms have been, if there's lots of cousins [00:11:00] and family or if it's been just a small little family, whether it's been in English or Spanish, we've seen both, the Spirit, as they preach about the basics of the gospel, to have faith, to repent, to be baptized, the Spirit is so powerful and so strong.

And I think that's why I know Titus r- remembered getting dunked twice, but all my children remember they felt so warm and happy. And it's the basics of the gospel that bring the Spirit to testify to our hearts that truth.

Sher: Cydni, I love how you just reminded us and broke it down that it is basic and it is simple, and I reflected on my baptism and how wonderful I thought it was, and how excited I was to make that commitment with Christ and take that next step in my life.

maybe that is something that we need to reflect on a little bit more, is how wonderful that moment was and how, like your kids said, it was just so warm and peaceful. And when we make that covenant and say we're gonna [00:12:00] take the name of Christ upon us, and we become fellow citizens, . As I said before, we are becoming part of God's kingdom. So, like all governments, its citizens they have certain rights as well as certain responsibilities within that government.

I just quickly wrote down some of the rights and responsibilities that we have as being citizens in God's kingdom, and believe me, this is a very short list because there are a lot. But I thought maybe we could start with responsibilities. So these are just some of our responsibilities that we have in order to be good citizens in God's kingdom.

And the ones I thought of, because we're talking about baptism, the first one, obviously, was to keep our covenants. And we do this by being obedient to the commandments of God and obviously being obedient to the covenants that we made with God. I also thought our job is to build up the Kingdom of God by sharing the gospel and being an example to others.

Also, we should love God with [00:13:00] all our hearts, as well as love our neighbors, and we should serve both. Also the thing that just popped into my head were the basic Sunday school answers, like read our scriptures, pray, go to church, attend the temple, things like that. Those are the basics that are going to help us get back home to live eternally with our Savior and our Heavenly Father. Now this is the cool part.

If we're able to keep and uphold our responsibilities or covenants that we have as a citizen in God's kingdom, if we do this, God in return gives us rights or blessings. And the first blessing that I thought of is the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost will lead us, will guide us, comfort us, direct us. The Holy Ghost helps us receive personal revelation and brings that peace into our life. Another blessing or right that we receive from God is we have access to the Atonement, which brings us hope and peace and someday eternal life, and the ability to return to live with our Savior and [00:14:00] our Heavenly Father.

And then also, a total introvert. I would be perfectly happy in my little turtle hermit shell forever, but because of going to church, it gives me a community, and it gives me a reason to get to know and to meet people. And so it naturally gives us that extended family. So these are just a few things that we are blessed with, 'cause there's so many more, but we could do a whole episode on our responsibilities and our rights in the Kingdom of God. 

Cydni: Since we talked about repentance last week, I would say that we could add that one as well, that it is a responsibility for us to repent. And as we talked about last week, repent is to turn, to make a change, to turn away from. And not just that, but to turn towards God. And I have two thoughts about that. One, I found out just recently that the lyrics to a very common baptismal song, When I Am Baptized, that the lyrics were recently changed. once upon a time, the second [00:15:00] verse said, "I know when I am baptized, my wrongs are washed away, and I can be forgiven and improve myself each day," which are beautiful.

But they've recently changed it to, "I know when I am baptized, I choose the Savior's way, and I will be forgiven as I turn to Him each day." And I think that's such a subtle change, but so important. As Elder Hales really talks about in his talk after he returns to general conference after missing two, he's so passionate about making sure our children understand the covenants that they're making and how important it is.

And I felt like this song the lyric change helped to illustrate how important it is to not just repent, but to choose to turn to our Savior every day. And also it reminds me of a Brad Wilcox analogy. He says if you were to go on a long journey, you would never expect to jump in the car, fill up the [00:16:00] tank once, and get to and fro.

That would be ridiculous. And so getting baptized once and never thinking about it again is not the plan. he said to consider the sacrament that you get to take every Sunday like stopping at a gas station, that you get to stop, you get to top off the tank, and you get to continue, and that it's such a blessing to keep us going because we are gonna run out of gas, but we can come and get refilled, be rejuvenated, that we can repent and that we can change, and it's a beautiful thing.

Sher: And I haven't done this but that would be a really good time to reflect on when you were baptized and how you felt. I mean, mine was forever ago, obviously, but the memories that I do have reflect on how wonderful that day was. That would be a good thing to ponder as well, I think, during the sacrament time,

Cydni: I love that. I'm gonna do that. We'll make that the challenge. Stay tuned for the challenge. And there's another quote I wanted to share from Brigham Young when he is [00:17:00] talking about baptism. He says, "All Latter-day Saints enter the new and everlasting covenant when they enter this church. They covenant to cease, sustaining, upholding, and cherishing The kingdom of the devil and the kingdom of this world.

They enter the new and everlasting covenant to sustain the Kingdom of God, no other kingdom. They take a vow of the most solemn kind before the heavens and the Earth, that they will sustain truth and righteousness instead of the wickedness and falsehood, and build up the Kingdom of God instead of the kingdoms of this world."

I loved this quote so much to put the importance on the decision that we're making. When we get baptized, we're choosing a side, and when we take a sacrament, we are reminding ourselves that we made a covenant to remember Christ and to remember what He has done for us. And we can no longer participate in the kingdom of the devil, Sher. You [00:18:00] gotta quit doing it. I'll try. If you're participating in the kingdom of the devil, Stop right now. 

Sher: Well, what I was gonna say before you brought up the kingdom of the devil, it goes back to holding that pass. We're choosing to hold that pass with God. You know, this is a troubled time, and we seem to be getting outnumbered at that pass- But We need to focus on the fact that God is going to win and that Satan will lose.

And so we hopefully can keep our baptismal covenants and continue to stay with God's kingdom and not choose the other one, 'cause I don't wanna be over there. 

Cydni: Yes, to hold the pass, but also come what may because they did not walk out of that alive, but they did save Greece? You just told me, and I was like, "Is that the right thing? Did they save Greece?" Yes. They just saved the taco shops- 

Sher: They made it so that Greece had enough time to get themselves together to fight the Persians off. They needed a few days, and they held that pass long enough to be able to do that. But everyone originally there were [00:19:00] gone . And, we don't know what's gonna happen. We don't know where we fit in God's plan, so it is kind of a come what may. We'll fight under the shade of the arrows. We'll do whatever it is that we need to do because we don't know. But we made this covenant at our baptism, we did choose a side, and the side that we chose was God's. 

Cydni: And I also think it illustrates so well that their sacrifice was because of their fellowship in the Kingdom of God, really, and that's how we're supposed to see it. That we're trying, and we're gonna pass the baton to the next who are gonna try. But before us, so many people made sacrifices so that we could have the freedoms that we have now, so it really is a community effort to have the freedoms we get to enjoy. 

Sher: So Cydni, while I was studying I- Landed on 4th Nephi chapter one, I really love this chapter and the reason I do is because it gives a list of what life would be like if everyone chose to be baptized and kept their covenants once they were made.

[00:20:00] And I'm gonna paraphrase it. I'm just gonna list all the blessings that come with a whole community and society and culture choosing to be citizens in the Kingdom of God.

So here it is. " and as many as did come unto them and did truly repent of their sins and were baptized in the name of Jesus, and they did also receive the Holy Ghost. The people were all converted unto the Lord upon all the face of the land and there were no contentions and disputations. Among them, and every man did deal justly, one with another. And they had all things in common among them. Therefore, there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free and partakers of the heavenly gift."

I just love that everyone's equal in the Kingdom of God. There's no separation. And it's just so beautiful. But continuing on, 'cause It just keeps getting better.

"And there were great and marvelous works wrought by the disciples of Jesus, insomuch that they did heal the sick and raise [00:21:00] the dead and cause the lame to walk and the blind to receive their sight and the deaf to hear, and all manner of miracles did they work among the children of men.

And in nothing did they work miracles save it were in the name of Jesus. And the Lord did prosper them exceedingly in the land. They were blessed according to the multitude of the promises which the Lord had made unto them, continuing in fasting and prayer and in meeting together oft, both to pray and to hear the word of the Lord."

They just are going back and practicing and re-practicing the Sunday school answers that we're talking about, and look at this beautiful society that they created. But Cydni, there's more. "And it came to pass that there were no contentions among all the people in all the land, but there were mighty miracles wrought among the disciples of Jesus."

And it came to pass there was no contention in the land because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people. And there were no envyings, no strifes, [00:22:00] nor tumults. Nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of laviciousness, and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God.

There were no robbers, no murderers, neither were nor any manner of ites, but they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the Kingdom of God. And how blessed were they, for the Lord did bless them in all their doings, yea even they were blessed and prospered, and there was no contention in all the land.

If we choose to keep our covenants, this is what we all can have someday. This is the kind of society, kingdom that we will be a part of. honestly, I can't wait. It is so beautiful. This really can be ours when we get through all of this nonsense.

Cydni: That's a pretty beautiful illustration of what it looks like if everyone comes together and loves God and loves their fellow men. . This week's challenge comes from Sher, about 15 [00:23:00] minutes ago. You're welcome, Cydni. I just really loved that idea. So our challenge, is for all of us to think about and reflect on our own baptisms during sacrament this upcoming Sunday. 

Sher: This brings us to our final thoughts. The Spartans held the pass at Thermopylae because they chose the right ground to stand on. The Pilgrims held the pass when they signed the Mayflower Compact before they ever set foot on shore. Washington held the pass when he placed his hand on Genesis 49 and kissed the covenant of our fathers. And we hold the pass every time we honor our baptismal covenants. When we choose God's side, we become fellow citizens of His kingdom with rights, responsibilities, and His power behind us. and as 4th Nephi shows us, when a people truly covenant with Christ and keep that covenant, the result is the happiest society ever created by the hand of God. And this shows us that [00:24:00] pass is worth holding. This is our prayer From Cydni and Sher 

Cydni: High five. High five. High fives, I read, are good for you. Did you know that? Oh, I start. You start. Remember the taco idea? This might be a better idea. A club, a taco club. Mm-hmm. Let's have a taco club. I hope you're not worried about this is how it's gonna go the whole time. The rest of the time's gonna be so smooth. I'm not worried. Like usual. I'm not worried. it's so interesting that they're like, "I almost died. Let's talk about prayer." I'm like, "That's the message?" Yeah. Can't they be like- Yeah ... "What is the secret password?" Mm-hmm. 

Sher: Do you want me to keep blabbing? I think so. 

Cydni: They did help, hold, held, hailed, hid. What? They did hold the pass. 

Sher: Thanks for joining us. 

Cydni: We're so glad you're [00:25:00] here.