The interpretation of my life

I’m curious what exactly Nephi expected when he asked the Spirit for an interpretation of his father’s dream. 

Maybe he would just be shown each element of the dream and get a verbal explanation of what it represents. That would have been cool!

But instead?

Nephi was taught the absolutely most important lesson that any of us can learn.

Christ is always the answer. 

Don’t understand that Tree of Life vision? Study Christ’s life. 

An angel shows young Mary holding a little child. And immediately, Nephi knows that the Tree is the Love of God.

An angel shows Christ preaching. Nephi then knows that the Iron Rod is the Word of God. 

He is shown Christ’s life, from his baptism to his crucifixion, and then he sees the world conspiring against the 12 apostles. Nephi now knows that Great and Spacious Building is the Wisdom and Pride of the World.

The angel shows Christ visiting the Americas and converting Nephi’s posterity, but then shows how they fall away a few generations later. Nephi knows the Mists of Darkness are the Temptations of the Devil. 

Christ WAS the interpretation of the dream. 

And Christ is the interpretation of the journeys we take, too. 

When we stay close to the Savior and learn about his life and his teachings, we see more clearly the meanings for everything we go through. 

We see that a phone call from a friend is the Love of God.

We see that the 3 verses we were able to read while trying to feed a toddler are the Word of God. 

We see that the witty Instagram page we follow has started to have a negative effect on our minds and is the Wisdom and Pride of the World.

We see that our commitment to perfectionism is becoming our own Mist of Darkness.

Christ is the interpretation of all things, both great and small. 

Artwork by James Johnson

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black