TITLES

Once upon a time, there was a kingdom where every person had to carry around their credentials. Before two parties could enter into any type of transaction, they had to exchange credential lists and read everything that was true about the other person. The credential list was magical. No person could modify their list directly. Only by their actions, choices, and deeds could they either add words to or remove words from that list.

One day, a traveler from a foreign land entered the kingdom and was hungry. It was late, and all the shops had closed for the night. Not wanting to wake anyone, he went over to a fruit stand, lifted up the burlap covering, and took an apple. He resolved to return the next day to pay the merchant.

The next morning, he walked up to the merchant with his money, and, before he could explain his situation, the merchant demanded the traveler's list. He didn't have one, so the merchant gave him a piece of paper. When the traveler touched the paper, words began to appear as if by magic. The traveler was pleased to see many of the words that described him, however, his heart sank, and an awful pit formed in his stomach when the word thief appeared on the list. He was an honest man and the many other words on his list confirmed this trait. Yet since he hadn't yet made restitution for taking the apple the night before, the universe had labeled him as a thief. Without another word, the merchant dismissed him and refused to do business with him.

Before I continue the parable, I want to discuss this list. Think about all of the adjectives or titles that could possibly be used to describe you. Occasionally, I have had dreams where the people have floating stacks of labels above their heads for all to see. For one of these labels to stick, it must be true. If an untrue title is added to the stack, it simply slides off, but true titles that make it into the list are, for the most part, permanent. In most cases, each of us has earned those titles. These labels (titles, adjectives, or whatever you want to call them), are part of us. Each choice we make in our lives further defines who we are, and we earn a title.

Some of these labels are neutral. They are neither good nor bad. They’re typically the ones that are forced upon us with little or no effort on our part. When you were born, you automatically got two labels, child and either son or daughter (depending on whether or not you have a y-chromosome). Your mother automatically earned the label Mother. Even if she had already earned that label once before, she earned it again because she’s your mother. Your father, whether present or not, automatically earned the title Father. Every child born has a mother and a father. It takes one of each to produce a child. That’s biology, and I’m not going to go into that here.

Other neutral titles we've earned on our list include things we've worked really hard for or things that describe who we are. I've worked very hard for the title of Programmer. I've taken a lot of classes and worked in the technology field for nearly twenty-five years. Wood Worker was added to my list when I was fifteen years old and I realized I really enjoyed working with wood. When I was in Highschool, I played Quarterback on my high school football team. That label is a little dusty, but it's still there. It cannot be removed. I cannot go back in time and change it.

Some of these labels are good and highlight good, moral choices we have made in our lives. The traveler in the story was an honest man, so he probably had the word honest in his list. Other good labels added to our lists might include words such as trustworthy, loyal, or friendly.

I attended the funeral of a friend a while ago, and the people who spoke about this man used many good words to describe what kind of life he led. I sat there listening to these people describe how good a man he was; loving, caring, and humble were on his list. When the funeral ended, I sat there hoping that such things will be said about me at my funeral. Have I done enough to add those words to my list?

Some of our labels are not so good and highlight things we typically don't want others to know about. Spiteful or envious might be on our lists. One word on my list that I’ve worked VERY hard to remove is quitter. When I was the quarterback for my high school football team, the team blamed me for every loss. They wouldn’t work with me, or with each other, so we lost almost all of our games. I went to my coach and told him that if the team wasn’t willing to work with me, I wasn’t willing to work with them, and I quit. It is still, to this day, one of the biggest regrets I have and I don’t think I’ll ever get over it. It’s different if you quit when you know you're beaten, but I still had time. I still had the time and ability to finish and quitting was a cowardly choice to make.

I was bullied and pushed around by jerks in my neighborhood and at school. One day when I was in the sixth grade, I finally had enough. I punched the ogre in the face. He sucker-punched me back and we both were sent to the principal's office. Fighter might have been added to my list that day, but I don't know if it was a good word. I got into a fight every now and again, and although they helped make me who I am today, it probably wasn't the right way to handle the problem. That being said, There is one VERY IMPORTANT truth that everyone must understand: Even Jesus Christ braided a whip and beat the moneychangers in the temple. Diplomacy doesn't always work, and sometimes you have to fight back. This is an important lesson I learned when I punched the bully, and I hope everyone has a chance to passionately stand up for something. In the words of Sammy Kershaw: You've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything.

But I digress. This isn’t supposed to be about me. Take a moment and think about your list. What is on your list? Are there things you're proud of? Are there words that need to be removed? How are words removed?

The traveler was sad. He wasn't a thief, but until he was able to pay for the fruit he took, he would forever be labeled as one. The merchant wouldn't talk to him. Trusting a thief is a huge liability for any merchant who makes a living selling things that could otherwise be taken without payment. Was the traveler judged too harshly?

The traveler returned later that day and found the merchant's son who was more willing to listen to the traveler's story. The traveler explained the situation; that he had taken the fruit because he was in need and he was here to pay for what he had taken. The merchant's son gladly accepted the man's money, and the traveler was pleased to see the word thief fade from his list. A new word took its place: forgiven. The traveler had made a full restitution and was forgiven of his deed. He wasn't a thief, and it was unfair for the universe to label him as one.

In life, we have the opportunity to be each of these people. Oftentimes, we find ourselves being the merchant who, without regard for another's good points, focuses on the bad. We hold grudges against those who have wronged us. We even make snap judgments against people who we perceive to have wronged others, even if we don't know the circumstances. What if another merchant had seen the traveler take the apple, but didn't witness his restitution. Would that merchant even look at the traveler's list or would they dismiss him without even verifying whether or not what he believed was true?

We all are the traveler. How many items on our list would we like to remove? Have you ever told a lie? Even the whitest of white lies still adds the word liar to the list. Are our thoughts clean and pure? Outwardly we may seem like the nicest person; gracious and caring. Yet if we are vile and vindictive in our hearts, those words stain our page. We must always act in such a way that we can always be proud for someone to see our list. If there are things on your list that embarrass you, or that devastate you, I implore you to seek restitution for those things.

In my parable, the three people have distinct names. The merchant is our Heavenly Father. In the Doctrine and Covenants, section 1 verse 31, He states that He "cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance." The merchant in the parable turned the traveler away because he saw the word thief on the list. It doesn't matter if his list had a million good entries and only this one bad item, the merchant could not let even the tiniest misstep slip past. So it is with our Heavenly Father. In order to enter into His presence in the Celestial Kingdom, we must be absolutely and utterly pure. If we falter even slightly, even to the nth degree, we miss the bar of perfection and are not worthy to enter. Such are the laws that govern the eternities.

We are the traveler. Each of us is living this life with our precious list. We know what's on the list and we know what is not on our list. Are you happy with your list? I know there are things I’m not pleased with on my list. We may be content now, but when we stand at the judgment bar, we will not be clean and we will need someone to listen to our case and help us. We will be frantically looking for someone to vouch for us.

The merchant's son in the parable is obviously the Lord Jesus Christ. He has the ability to listen to us and forgive us of our sins. Restitution is different for every sin, but it is absolutely possible. Just as the traveler paid for the apple, we too can repent of our sins. Repentance is more than feeling bad for what we have done, it is the act of changing our lives so that we do not commit the sin again. I don't know how the judgment is going to work out, but I think we're going to have our list and we are going to check off every item on the list. The good items will be blessings for us, but the bad items will condemn us.

Then, we will have to supplicate ourselves to the Son. He was perfect and was punished under eternal laws. The law of justice demands payment. It doesn't care who makes the payment, but payment must be made. If we have done what He asks of us; have kept His commandments, and have repented, we are entitled to the Power of the Atonement. Payment will be made, and we will be forgiven.

Items can be removed from our list. The Lord said, “Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.” (D&C 58:42). Just as the word thief was removed from the traveler’s list, so too can our items be removed from our list through the Atonement. When that happens, and we stand before God with our list, how blessed a day it will be when the only items on our list are the positive, good ones. As the scriptures say, that day will be “well with us.”