Taking His Name

bryceggorrell
Apr 10, 2023
4 min read

Updated: Sep 22, 2024

Who do you follow? Who are among your influencers?

Today's world offers no shortage of people to follow. Mine is only one among many voices claiming to offer things that can add value to your life.

It is possible to spend all your life chasing the latest media, and never catch up. For example, each day much more than twenty-four hours' worth of content is added to YouTube. Thus, it is impossible to watch all that is available.

Something that has brought a lot of peace and direction to me is by thinking about what it means to take upon me the name of Jesus Christ. This idea is central to the covenant relationships made possible by the atonement and gospel of Jesus Christ. At baptism, we covenant to take upon us His name. In the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, we renew our commitment to always be willing to take upon us His name.

How do we actually take upon us His name?

How do I seek to accomplish such a magnificent charge?

One way I do this is by remembering a story from the time of Adam and Eve:

“And Adam and Eve, his wife, called upon the name of the Lord, and they heard the voice of the Lord from the way toward the Garden of Eden, speaking unto them, and they saw him not; for they were shut out from his presence. And he gave unto them commandments, that they should worship the Lord their God, and should offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord. And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord.

And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me. And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth.

Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore.”

Moses 5: 4-8, emphasis added

All That Thou Doest

For me, this one aspect I'm sharing now is as simple as seeking to worthily label each of my actions as having been done in the name of Jesus Christ.

Notice the angel told Adam to do ALL he does in the name of Jesus Christ. Not only “spiritual” or “religious” things, but everything he does.

If applying the label of the Savior's name is appropriate, I'm keeping the charge given to Adam and Eve, and am looking to Christ in every thought, even when having to do the mundane tasks of daily living. When beginning an activity, I look to its end. If concluding my action with "In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen" would be blasphemous, I instantly know that action would not be pleasing to God or helpful in my progression spiritually, socially, physically, or intellectually.

Can I appropriately conclude a conversation by saying, “In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen?”

If a gossip session, no. If the time was used to nurture friendship, to build someone and share light, yes!

Can I rightly say that I visited that certain website in the name of Jesus Christ?

If an inspiring, uplifting educational experience, yes! If some cheap time-wasting like fruitless arguing or another destructive indulgence such as pornography, absolutely not!

This approach has given me a tight filter for how I spend my time and what kinds of experiences are worthy of it.

My tagline, Improving Our Time, comes from Amulek, a teacher in the Book of Mormon. He says:

“And now, my brethren, I would that, after ye have received so many witnesses, seeing that the holy scriptures testify of these things, ye come forth and bring fruit unto repentance.

Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you.

For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.

And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.”

Alma 34: 30-34

-----