He Lied!

The Lion King, I think, is one of the best movies I've ever seen.  But one thing I haven't realized until recently is how much it can teach us about the gospel of our Savior Jesus Christ.

I've previously spoken of the conniving Scar's plot to rise to greatness.  His plan works out pretty well, he conquers the pride and rules with an iron fist.  But he didn't plan well for the long-term well-being of himself and his hordes of hyenas.  In the years of Scar's dreadful reign things deteriorate rather quickly.  The Lionesses, who traditionally do the bulk of the hunting, refuse to supply the food for the pride.  Suddenly, all involved are left hungry and desolate.  Even the hyenas realize that all the promises Scar made are not coming to pass.  The mighty kingdom that Scar wanted to establish was never going to be fully realized.

This reminds me of another liar.  Someone who promises us wealth, success, and pleasure if we break the commandments of God and follow him.  The power of the devil is real and he can tempt us in many different ways.  One of the most powerful ways is the same way Scar convinced many African animals to follow his plan.  Satan convinces us that we'll be happier when we're not constricted by so many rules.  We start to see sin as an exercise of our freedom.  Sooner or later, though, we realize just what the lions and hyenas found out: "wickedness never was happiness".  We may find temporary satisfaction or excitement in what we do,  but it's never a good idea to break the commandments of God.  Like Scar and his hyenas we'll be left lonely and spiritually hungry.

I know that God gives us commandments for a reason.  I know from experience that God blesses the obedience of His children.  Disobedience alienates us from God and from the feelings of the Holy Spirit.  I also know that Jesus Christ, The Son of God, has prepared a way for us to receive the ultimate blessing of that obedience: Eternal Life.  We need to follow the commandments and do our part to get to that point.

http://mormon.org/missionaries/

Be Prepared

Disney's The Lion King, I've found out, has a lot of really good messages for us in it.  One thing this movie does well is illustrate the battle between good & evil.  This battle is very real.  There's one scene when Scar is leading his hyena minions in a Nazi-style march about preparation.  Scar's voice echoes in a deep baritone while the hyenas belt out the chorus in an ominous cacophony that'll make the burliest of pachyderms squeal with terror.  The song is entitled, "Be Prepared".  Scar is plotting a complete overthrow of his brother, Mufasa's kingdom.  This plan includes two murders and many lies and deceptions.  Scar is eventually successful in taking over the pride and enjoys years of dominance before Simba finally returns and claims his right to the throne.  With some simple preparation and a reasonable amount of foresight, Mufasa could've thwarted his conspiring brother's plans of wild domination.

It gets me to thinking.  In our lives, we have the same battle between good & Evil.  There are two forces always working on us.  God always compels us to do good- to repent and forsake sin, to follow His son, Jesus Christ.  Satan, on the other hand, always does his best to convince us to do wrong.  Just like the evil and aspiring Scar, Satan is always prepared to get us at our weakest point.  Just like Scar knew his brother Mufasa, the devil knows us and our weaknesses.  We have an advantage over Mufasa though; we know who the enemy is.  If we do all we can to prepare for the temptations that we know the devil will throw at us, we can avoid the catastrophes similar to those Mufasa faced.  We must follow the commandments of God in order to avoid this.  Prayer, repentance, and scripture study are crucial points in thwarting the plan of the adversary.  I know that as we do our best to "be prepared" to fight evil, God will bless us and help us in our preparation.

"Wherefore, gird up your loins and be prepared. Behold, the kingdom is yours, and the enemy shall not overcome." (D&C 38:9 emphasis added)

http://mormon.org/missionaries/

Deliberate Disobedience

At one point in Disney's The Lion King, The mane (main) character, Simba really wanted to escape the confines of his father's kingdom.  He escaped with his (girl)friend Nala, to an elephant graveyard where hyenas rule and the king's dominion is limited.  You've heard the phrase, "curiosity killed the cat".  Well, in this case, it almost killed two lions and a toucan.  They end up barely escaping the wrath of the hyenas, but only with some help from Mufasa, the king.  After this incident Mufasa is chastising his son for his youthful indiscretion.  One line of his lecture always catches my attention more than any other, "You deliberately disobeyed me!".  Mufasa gave Simba explicit directions never to leave the pride.  As the king's son, Simba was guaranteed freedom and protection anywhere in his father's kingdom.  But when outside those boundaries, Simba was a huge target as the heir to the throne.

Similarly, we are "heirs of God" (Romans 8:17).  God is our father and He wants the best for us.  He wants us to be happy so He gives us commandments.  When we obey God and His commandments, we learn for ourselves the blessings that come from obedience.  But sadly, like Simba, we sometimes learn these lessons another way.  When we "deliberately disobey" the commandments of God, we learn firsthand that "wickedness never was [or is] happiness"(Alma 41:10).

Elder David A. Bednar

Most fathers, including the wise Mufasa, have their children's safety and well-being at heart when they give useful and sometimes stern counsel.  Our Father in Heaven knows what we can become, that's why He gives us these commandments.  Just like Mufasa, God wants His children to become like Him.  To accomplish this, we need to avoid dangers and pitfalls.  You could describe this as our own "elephant graveyard[s]" where Satan rules and the Holy Ghost's effect is diminished.  This could be a physical place or simply thoughts in our minds or our hearts.  Whatever the case, we must avoid these dangers at all costs if we are to fulfill our commission as "joint-heirs with Christ".

God wants the best for us.  Commandments are there to protect us and strengthen us.  When we follow the counsel of God we will learn this for ourselves.  Like Simba eventually did, we will see our potential and rise to the occasion.