"Sanctify the Lord of Hosts himself, and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
And many among them shall stumble and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken."
2 Nephi 18:13-15
Interesting imagery here with God being a sanctuary, but also a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, etc. We know that God is unchangeable (Moroni 8:18), so it must be our perception of him that makes the difference here. To some he is a sanctuary, and to some he is an offense, not because he is different, but likely because some of us accept his help, and others rejecting, wanting something different... expecting God to conform to them instead.
Too many of us are looking for a God and a church that accepts us, along with our sins. And if this or that one doesn't, then they can't be right, because obviously we are right. Instead though, perhaps we should be looking for God and for the truth... to know the reality of his existence, and then properly to learn truth from him. If we run up against God's rock and break ourselves, it isn't God that is trying to shatter us, but perhaps we need to crack open our outer shell to let in the light. We need to see the truth and change ourselves to be in tune with it, not the other way around.
God loves us, and wants us to come to him. He offers us sanctuary. Let's find whatever it is within ourselves that is holding us back from that, and let's pray to learn and change. God isn't trying to destroy us, but he gently reminds us that he is wiser than we are. He will teach us the errors of our ways and help us to understand, if we can be open to the truth.
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