Hank Smith: 00:00 Hello everyone, welcome to followHIM Favorites. If you’ve been following followHIM Favorites this year, you know that John Bytheway and I are taking a single question from each week’s lesson, and providing some insight. John, this week’s lesson is on the first half of Jeremiah, and there’s a term in the first half of Jeremiah called backsliding. And the Lord keeps using it over and over where he says, “Backsliding Israel.” He does it in Jeremiah chapter three, backsliding Israel, backsliding Israel. And as we were discussing that with Dr. John Hilton on our full podcast, he told us that backsliding is when we return to our sins. We repent, we forsake them, and then we go back.

Hank Smith: 00:49 John, the question this week is how do I keep from backsliding? How do I keep from going back to my sins? What would you say to someone who wants to stay away from their former sins, but they are drawn to them? What do you do?

John Bytheway: 01:00 That’s a good question, because I think all of us have episodes of backsliding. We know better, and so I’m grateful we have the sacrament every week. The Lord gives us so many chances to start again, doesn’t he? The very fact that you would even ask the question, how can I stop backsliding, is evidence that you’re trying to do better, which is so great. For me, I stop backsliding by wearing Velcro jacket. I don’t slide anywhere, but I hope that anyone asking that kind of a question will recognize that just being willing to ask that question shows that you’re spiritually sensitive and aware. And you’re moving forward if you’re worried about backsliding. If they’re really serious things, you go and you talk to your bishop.

John Bytheway: 01:50 And he’ll help you to see the progress that you’re making. Hank, it’s like the stock market, or something. It goes up, but it goes down, but it goes up again and it…

Hank Smith: 02:00 It’s trending up.

John Bytheway: 02:02 That’s exactly it. You’re trending upward. They’re going to be mistakes that you make, and there’s going to be things that you maybe wish you hadn’t have done. But when your overall trend or slope is upward, I think that’s what the Lord’s asking because he knows that we’re going to keep having tough times sometimes with trials and so forth. I just think if you’re even asking the question, it’s evidence that you’re still trying. And once in a while, we’ll backslide, but I love that the covenant path, sure, it has off-ramps, but it has so many on-ramps. You can keep getting back on.

Hank Smith: 02:38 Excellent, excellent. I think two things that have helped me are one, a description that Proverbs uses, and that also that Peter picks up on is he says… And when I tell this to my students, they just are really grossed out by this, but it’s really in the scriptures. It says, “We return to our sins like a dog to its vomit.” It’s such a disgusting idea, but sometimes, I’ll hear our dog behind our couch going, “Blarg, blarg, blarg, blarg.” And my kids go, “Ew!” Right? And they’re like, “Dad, clean it up.” And I say, “Oh, don’t worry. She’ll be back.” And within half hour or so, she comes over and licks it all up. And they’re, “Ew, that’s so gross. It’s disgusting.”

John Bytheway: 03:17 Yeah, it is.

Hank Smith: 03:18 That helps me not return to my sins, right? To go, “Ew, why would I do that? I would never return that like dog to its vomit.” And then the other one that’s really helped me is a parable of Jesus where he says, “There once was a house or a man.” He goes back and forth, a person who has an evil spirit, so that’s a sin. And he casts it out. He casts out the evil spirit, but then the evil spirit, the sin goes out there, doesn’t find anywhere to live. It turns around, and comes back to the house and he finds it empty. What does he do? He moves back into the house. The sin moves back into the man’s life, and brings with him a whole bunch of other sins. Brings him… I think he says seven more sins with him.

Hank Smith: 04:00 Now, he’s worse off than he was before. I think what the Savior meant by that is you have to fill your house with other things. If you’re going to get rid of a sin, you’ve got to fill your life with other things. Perhaps, it’s new hobbies. You’re not just sitting around idle. Maybe you join a team, or try out for a play at school or choir, or you get a new group of friends, something that’s going to fill your house. When those sins come back looking for a place in your life, you’re like, “Hey, I’m sorry, there’s no vacancy here. I don’t have time for you. I’ve filled my life with other things.” Those two scriptural passages have helped me not return to my sins. But like you said John, it’s going to happen.

Hank Smith: 04:43 You’re trending in the right direction is what’s important. You’re coming back every time. You’re picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and saying, “I’m going to try again to overcome.”

John Bytheway: 04:51 I love that parable that you used Hank. Because if you fill your lives with other things, you’ll find some things that you really enjoy doing that are good, that are wholesome things. Well, you’ll want to do those again, and you’ll crowd out the other stuff. I like to use the example of grass and dandelions. When the grass is really thick and good, there’s no room for other seeds, other weeds to come in and plant themselves. It’s nice to have good things to do, but again, the very fact that you recognize and are asking that question is wonderful, says something about where you are. How can I stop backsliding? The other thing I think the Lord is just so wonderful and merciful is that he already has that thing in place.

John Bytheway: 05:28 You are going to need this sacrament table again. You’re going to need to come back here again next week. He knows, “Come back here, let’s renew that covenant again.” And you see the sacrament table there. There is a visual aid of the Lord’s mercy for us right there every week in the chapel.

Hank Smith: 05:46 That’s beautiful, John. Yeah, It’s not a matter of if. It’s not like the bishop stands up and says, “Okay, if anybody sinned, we’ll set up the sacrament.”

John Bytheway: 05:55 Yeah.

Hank Smith: 05:55 “So, anybody?” No, it’s assumed.

John Bytheway: 05:57 All in favor.

Hank Smith: 05:58 Yeah, yeah. It’s assumed that we all need it.

John Bytheway: 06:02 You’re going to need this. I used to tell my ward, “Isn’t it nice that we don’t wheel this table out of a storage room just at Christmas and Easter? But every single week, we can look forward to coming back and getting a fresh start.”

Hank Smith: 06:15 Yep, and it’s okay, it’s okay. And you are going to overcome. Don’t give up, you are going to overcome. Whatever sin it is you’re thinking of, you’re going to get over it. You’re going to get past it.

John Bytheway: 06:26 You’ll be trending upward like we said. Yeah.

Hank Smith: 06:28 Yep, yep. The Lord’s going to bless you and help you, so don’t get discouraged. It’s going to happen for you, just keep trying. We hope you’ll join us next week for another followHIM Favorites. We also hope you’ll join us on our full podcast. This week, we’re discussing these chapters with Dr. John Hilton III. He’s so great, they made three of him. You are going to want to come out and hear that, and then join us next week back here for another followHIM Favorites.