Latter-day Saint FAIR-Cast

Jennifer Roach Lees holds a Master in Divinity as well as a Masters in Counseling Psychology. She is a licensed mental health therapist and lives in Utah.

The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Genesis 6–11; Moses 8 – Jennifer Roach Lees appeared first on FAIR.

A Flood and a Fresh Start

by Autumn Dickson

This week we read about a couple of classic Bible stories, one of which is Noah and the ark. Let’s read a couple of verses.

Noah was led to build and ark, and then he went into the ark with his sons. God shut them up in the ark, and then this happened.

Genesis 7:19-20, 23

19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered.

20 Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.

23 And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.

The earth was completely covered with water, and everything was destroyed except for Noah, his family, and the animals who went with them.

The Guide to the Scriptures teaches us that, “During Noah’s time the earth was completely covered with water. This was the baptism of the earth and symbolized a cleansing.”

There is so much symbolism here, but I want to talk about one of the most important aspects of this symbolism. When we are baptized or take the sacrament, our sins are washed away and we start over.

The earth was filled with violence and corruption. Every imagination and thought of the people was evil continually.

That is a lot of cleansing. I have a feeling that you have not yet reached this point in your life. I have a feeling that if you’re reading Come Follow Me posts, your imaginations and thoughts aren’t evil continually. Maybe you’ve got some flaws that you can’t kick, but I’m guessing that if you’re inviting good into your life, you can’t possibly be thinking about evil continually.

And if God can wash away all of that evil at the time of Noah, He can wash away your sins too. He can make the baptism as “big” as it needs to be. He can “flood the earth” so to speak if that’s what it takes to wash away the sins that you do have. And that little tiny piece of you that is trying to do well and good will be preserved and provided with an opportunity to start over.

Every Sunday when you take up that little piece of bread and that little cup of water, you are remembering how the Lord paid for your sins. There was a tremendous amount of suffering, both in the flood and in the Garden of Gethsemane. Honestly, it’s crazy to think that there was more pain in that one night in the Garden of Gethsemane than there was during the flood.

But it is done. The suffering already happened. The price was already paid. It was a gift.

The gift offered is not automatic salvation. When Noah and his family were preserved, it wasn’t automatic salvation. They weren’t going to immediately experience joy just because all of that evil was all swept away. They still needed to build something after the water was gone. What would they build in the blank slate that the Lord gave them?

The gift is that the Lord is going to provide you an opportunity to build your life again without being weighed down by past sins. And you get to use that gift all the time, every time you repent.

We go to church on Sunday, we take the sacrament, we wash away all of the evil, and the Lord leaves the good. He doesn’t wipe away all of our flaws. Noah and his family weren’t perfect. He just wipes away all of the residue of sin, and from there, we begin to build again.

What are we going to bring into our new world? What will we bring into our new selves? As you look at the landscape of your life, it has been washed clean again. What will you create? What will you turn your life into?

Because it is about building. This is a story of grace, and it is a story of what we create with what we were given. Hopefully, we take the blank slate and choose to build up incredible things that bless us and bless those around us. We are given frameworks and blueprints that we can use to build our lives. It is not enough to want something beautiful built; the Lord gives us the beautiful opportunity to do the work alongside Him.

And as time moves on, hopefully we don’t need an entire flood every time we choose to take the sacrament. Hopefully the cleansings get smaller and smaller as we become more and more Christlike.

You may still grieve. I don’t think Noah and his family walked away from this experience lightly. I think they walked away with a lot of sorrow for what happened alongside the gratitude for being saved. Like Noah, washing away your sins won’t erase the memory of it. Even though it may bring grief, it’s a gift. It’s a gift because it can prevent you from walking down the path towards an earthwide flood again. It will bring depth to your gratitude. We don’t want to forget what happened, not really, despite the pain it may bring.

I testify that the Lord can wash away what you have. I testify that there are so many parallels with the flood and our own lives that can teach us about what the Lord did and what He offers. I testify that He did not automatically give us salvation; He gave us a blank slate so that we could build something worth having, so that we could enjoy eternity like He does. I testify that He will keep washing as long as it takes, as long as we need to build what He has in mind for us.



Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award.

The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Genesis 6–11; Moses 8 – Part 1 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

It’s Okay to Not Be Okay

by Autumn Dickson

In Moses 7, Enoch watched some of the most devastating events in human history. He watched the earth be traumatized. He watched violence and the consequent justice of God. There was death and abundant evil. I’m not sure I want to see the vision that Enoch saw.

And as Enoch watched these traumatic events, he also observed this.

Moses 7:28 And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains?

The God of heaven looked at what was occurring on the earth and wept. At one point in Enoch’s journey, he even “refused” to be comforted, and yet, God wasn’t angry with Enoch’s deep depression. There are things that will feel dark and unbearable even as we approach being like our Heavenly Father. In fact, there are things that will feel dark and unbearable simply because we are becoming more Christlike.

When Enoch asked Him why He could cry, the Lord responded with this.

Moses 7:32-33

32 The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency;

33 And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood;

The Lord is saying, “I chose this. I helped create this plan. I created all of this, gave knowledge to them, and I gave them their agency. I asked them to love each other, but they hate each other instead.”

The Jews in the Holocaust were the children of God, but so were the Nazis. Those who perished in the attacks on 9/11 were the children of God, but so were those who attacked. Abel was the son of God, and so was Cain. The children of God included the Israelites, the oldest sons of the Egyptians, and the slave drivers.

Regardless of wickedness, God loves and mourns His children. Regardless of what His children chose to become and regardless of the justice that He will choose to rain down, God knew His children when they were young and innocent. He loved them and cared for them.

He had to face what it meant to put the Plan of Salvation into motion. He had to face the victims who perished and those who continue on suffering. He has to face His children who are perpetrators and mourn the fact that they refuse to come be a part of the family. Despite all that they did, He has to face what it means to separate them from the rest of the family in order to preserve any semblance of peace and happiness within the rest of the family.

He shoulders that burden, and despite being from all eternity to all eternity, it weighs on Him. Despite His omnipotent strength, the weight that He carries is heavy. Can something be heavy when you’re perfectly strong? Apparently.

Is it okay to be upset even when you know the happy ending? Apparently.

Let’s take it a step further. Is it righteous to be upset even when you know the happy ending?

I think sometimes I picture God as colder than He really is. I picture Him without all of His emotions because for some reason, I have come to associate omnipotence with being above that kind of thing. What if the opposite is true?

As Enoch became more like God, as God taught him immense things in this vision, “his heart swelled as wide as eternity.”

Perhaps eternity (and therefore this life) is not about becoming so powerful and knowledgeable that the suffering doesn’t affect you. Perhaps looking forward with an eye of faith is not about saving yourself from deep and hard feelings.

Deep feelings are a part of eternity, deep feelings that are both happy and sad. If we are trying to become like God, then deep feelings will be a part of it. And if Enoch is to be believed, our feelings only grow deeper as we learn and experience more.

Even as I write this, I keep trying to take this principle further, but the Lord is stopping me. Perhaps that is the principle He is trying to teach me; that is the principle He is emphasizing today.

Deep feelings, and not just the happy ones, are part of an eternal existence. How does that change how you approach life? How does it change how you approach your difficult times?

I testify that God’s eternity is full. I testify that part of that eternity is difficulty and grief because the happiness and joy would be hollow without it. I testify that we can lift up our hearts and be glad despite the other half of our eternity being heavy to bear. They come together. We do not need to fear that depth. I testify that because of Jesus Christ, we can feel hope alongside that difficulty.



Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award.

The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Moses 7 – Part 2 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.

Jennifer Roach Lees holds a Master in Divinity as well as a Masters in Counseling Psychology. She is a licensed mental health therapist and lives in Utah.

The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Moses 7 – Jennifer Roach Lees appeared first on FAIR.

Why We Build Arks When We are Saved By Grace

by Autumn Dickson

Moses 7 is powerful. There is so much. I have so many thoughts, but let’s keep it to a few. One of those thoughts came to me while reading this verse.

Moses 7:43 Wherefore Enoch saw that Noah built an ark; and that the Lord smiled upon it, and held it in his own hand; but upon the residue of the wicked the floods came and swallowed them up.

Noah and his family were surrounded by wickedness and danger. They built an ark, and the Lord protected them. The rest of the people were wiped out by the flood.

I want to draw your attention to two details. Noah built an ark, and the Lord held it in His hand. There is a type in this. Let’s talk about one of my favorite subjects: grace and works. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is frequently attacked for not being Christian because we believe that we will be judged by our works and desires and not just by whether we believe in the right Jesus. Other Christians believe that it’s just about accepting the Savior, not following Him. They believe that you don’t have to do anything. Some believe that if you try to do anything, you’re only taking away from His glory (or so I’ve been told by some of my friends; I recognize that there are nuanced beliefs within the Christian faith in general). I know others believe that it’s all about belief and works simply follow belief, but the works are just not necessary.

It is extremely important to note that Latter-day Saints believe 100% in grace. We believe that works are necessary, but works don’t save us. Christ saves us. Works are necessary, but they perform a different function, not saving

As I read the bible, over and over and over and over and over I get the message that the Lord does require works even if it’s not ultimately the works that do the saving. There are places in the bible that more directly teach this concept, namely in the letters of Paul, but there is also story after story after story that teaches this principle. Noah and the ark is just one of these stories. Noah and the ark can teach us about how Christ does the saving, and it teaches us about why the Lord requires works and will judge us by our works.

What do we learn from Noah’s story? How does Noah’s story teach us about grace and works? Let’s talk about it.

First of all, let’s look at it before Noah even builds the ark. The Lord saved Noah and his family because they were righteous. There is a type in this. Noah and his family weren’t perfect, but they were righteous. And even though they loved God, it didn’t save them. It just meant that God saved them. Would God have saved them if they hadn’t built the ark? My personal opinion is no. Why would He command Noah to build an ark if He didn’t actually care whether Noah built it?

Let’s look more specifically at Noah and the ark and not everyone who died in the flood. Our verse teaches us that the Lord held Noah’s ark in His hand. That’s the grace right there. The Lord protected Noah. The Lord saved Noah. The verse could have said, “Noah obeyed God and built the ark, and it saved him.” But that’s not what it said because that’s not what Latter-day Saints believe. In fact, it doesn’t even specifically say that God looked upon Noah, smiled at him, and saved him. It very specifically says that God looked at “it,” as in, the ark. God looked at the works of Noah. The works didn’t save Noah, but God looked at the works, judged them as good and smiled at them, and saved Noah.

If God is the one who saved Noah, then why did He have him build an ark? Why perform works?

That’s the million dollar question for Latter-day Saints. We believe that we are saved by grace, 100%. So why build an ark? Why do we believe in doing our best and performing works if the ark doesn’t do the saving?

It’s because God has to judge. He has to judge who will destroy heaven and who will be able to appreciate heaven and preserve it. He could have saved all the wicked by smiling at them and holding them in his hand, but the wicked would have destroyed heaven. They would have made it as miserable as they were making the earth with their violence and idolatry. They wouldn’t have been able to enjoy heaven because of their choices, because of their works. Beyond that, they would have ruined heaven.

Our works don’t save us, but God judges us by our works and saves us accordingly. That’s what Noah’s story is teaching us. The works don’t save us; they just allow us to appreciate heaven and preserve it. They determine whether God steps in with the atonement of Jesus Christ, saves us, and brings us back into our heavenly home.

So do Latter-day Saints believe that we are saved by works? No. We believe we are judged by them, but we believe that Christ does the saving with His atonement.

I think parents of addicts understand this more than most. If you have a child who is extremely addicted to dangerous drugs, you don’t keep bringing them back into your home just because they love you. They would destroy your home and any heavenly feelings that reside there. Even if you have the power to keep taking care of everything despite their addiction, I would hope that you wouldn’t bring them back in to destroy everything (unless God says differently, listen to Him for specifics). If you do choose to bring them back in, then it’s not home anymore. It’s not heaven so no one really got saved anyway.

So you make a judgment call. You pray your guts out for the child. You love the child, but you separate the child because of their works. You judge their works and preserve the home. If they repent and truly change, then they get to come back home. Not because of their works. Quitting drugs doesn’t pay for the house; it just makes it so that you trust them enough to bring them home.

I think it’s important to also note that not everyone’s ark looks the same. That’s one of the beautiful things about the atonement of Jesus Christ. It removed the absolute justice that kept us from heaven. It enabled Christ to be the judge and save who He decides to save. Some of us will build an ark. Some of us will look at the barren desert before us and be lucky to build a canoe, but you know what? The Lord judges perfectly. He looks at your entire situation and what you have, and He judges perfectly.

I testify that the Lord saves us with His grace. I testify that your ark is not enough to save you. I testify that even though your ark can’t save you, it builds you and God judges you by your circumstances and your ark and determines whether you’re going to contribute to our heavenly home. I testify that the relationship of works and grace is taught all throughout the bible.



Autumn Dickson was born and raised in a small town in Texas. She served a mission in the Indianapolis Indiana mission. She studied elementary education but has found a particular passion in teaching the gospel. Her desire for her content is to inspire people to feel confident, peaceful, and joyful about their relationship with Jesus Christ and to allow that relationship to touch every aspect of their lives. Autumn was the recipient of FAIR’s 2024 John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award.

The post Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Moses 7 – Part 1 – Autumn Dickson appeared first on FAIR.