Finding Reality in a Fake World

Four years ago, I wrote a post about how worldly mirages can lead us away from the gospel path, the people we want to be and the lives we want to live. I quoted President Benson then, who said, "Without [Christ] we would be lost in a mirage of beliefs and worships, born in fear and darkness where the sensual and materialistic hold sway. We are far short of the goal he set for us, but we must never lose sight of it; nor must we forget that our great climb toward the light, toward perfection, would not be possible except for his teachings, his life, his death, and his resurrection" (April 1964).

Many years before I wrote my post, Elder Packer shared a parable that illustrates the same principle illuminated by President Benson. The parable was shared again by Elder Stephen Owen in a recent conference. He said Elder Packer told of a severe winter in Utah when deep snow had driven the deer very low into some of the valleys. Seeing that the deer were out of their natural habitat, some well-meaning agencies tried to respond by bringing in hay for the deer to eat. Unfortunately, many of the deer were later found dead. Those who handled the animals afterward said that their stomachs were full of hay, but they had starved to death. The deer had been fed, but they had not been nourished.

Considering this parable left me thinking again about how much in the world is not real. We make fake food (what Michael Pollan calls, "edible, food-like substances"), play fantasy sports and read fake news. There are drugs for fake highs and alcohol for induced relaxation. Many of us use social media to make pseudo-connections and act as fake experts.

Many people in the world have fake relationships, including "romantic" relationships that are the fantasized result of pornography, masturbation, online chats or one-night stands. We play electronic games that give us fake success as we pretend to be sports team managers, army snipers or home remodelers. We say this is virtual or simulated reality, but there isn't much reality in it at all.

Fake wrath is a thing now with angry mobs who are mad only because they've been told they are supposed to be. Fake victimhood is a thing too, especially when someone else has a turn doing something well. The news now reports fake disasters, fake emergencies and fake threats. There are fake religions, fake causes, fake truth and fake science. It's literally unbelievable.

In most cases, fake things are relatively simple to detect because they are hollow. They are positioned to appeal to the natural man or woman in each of us-- to prey on primal reactions and manipulate our thoughts and behavior-- offering little substance beyond sensual pleasure. Our physical instincts are powerful, which is why these temptations can be difficult to overcome even when we detect them.

Reality is the remedy for a fake world. Prophets have repeatedly plead with the saints to put down our devices, avoid pornography like an insidious disease, be slow to offense and abstain from drugs and alcohol. While the devil deals in deceptions, the Lord whispers simple truths to sober minds. 

The Prophet Jacob taught anciently: "The Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls" (Jacob 4:13).

Elder David A. Bednar added, "Obedience opens the door to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. And the spiritual gifts and abilities activated by the power of the Holy Ghost enable us to avoid deception-- and to see, to feel, to know, to understand, and to remember things as they really are" (Things as They Really Are, May 2009).

There is nothing more real than our Creator, Redeemer and Advocate, Jesus Christ. He lives. He made all that is real. His Atonement is real and powerful. His gospel leads us down the path of truth to real happiness, real peace and real strength that we can enjoy in this life and after we die. He fulfills all of his promises; and with his help, each of us can discover what is real in our lives.

Our world is filled with mirages and misleading, though appealing, philosophies. Some would try to convince us that we can live our lives as if at a dessert buffet, gluttonously filling our hearts, minds and bodies with guilty pleasures and sweets that have no nutritional value. Choosing to follow the world will leave us in a hungover state of spiritual lethargy and darkness. We may gain information or entertainment for awhile, but we will be left with feelings of emptiness, loneliness, dissatisfaction, and of being unacceptable to God, to ourselves and to others. Our souls will slowly die of spiritual starvation.

As disciples of Christ, we must choose instead to follow our Savior, Jesus Christ. As we fill our lives with real things that are uplifting, true, faith-inspiring and good, the light of the gospel will illuminate what is real. "If your eye be single to my glory," the Lord taught, "your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things" (D&C 88:67).

We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul-- We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things (Articles of Faith 1:13).

How to Catch a Monkey

Monkeys can be hard to catch. They are small, fast and able to jump from tree to tree. A person might never expect to catch a monkey if not for a well-known trick that works with incredible consistency.

To catch a monkey, all one needs to do is put a hole in a coconut or container that is large enough for a monkey's hand but too small for its fist. Baited with a piece of fruit or another desirable object, the monkey will reach in to grab the bait but will not be able to remove their fist from the trap. Unwilling to let go of the prize, the monkey can then be easily caught or even killed.

In March 1831, Leman Copley was caught in a metaphorical monkey trap. Although he had been baptized some time before, he still held to some of the teachings of his prior congregation among the Shakers. "Some of the beliefs of the Shakers were that Christ's second coming had already occurred and he had appeared in the form of a woman, Ann Lee; baptism by water was not considered essential; the eating of pork was specifically forbidden, and many did not eat meat; and a celibate life was considered higher than marriage" (D&C 49 section heading).

Responding to Joseph Smith's inquiry about these subjects, the Lord explained that the Shakers, "desire to know the truth in part, but not all" and that they "are not right before me and must needs repent" (D&C 49:2). The Lord then addressed the teachings in question, reasserting the principles of the gospel and directing Leman Copley and others to teach these principles to the Shakers.

The Shakers are not the only ones with their hearts and hands in a monkey trap. Too often we can find ourselves holding on too long to a political opinion, a bad habit, worldly philosophies or praise, or a grudge against someone else. When we refuse to let go of what might seem like a prize, we risk being caught and spiritually destroyed.

To be right before the Lord, we must desire to know all the truth He has revealed and strive to live by what we know. If we do this, the Lord promises he will "go before you and be your rearward; and I will be in your midst, and you shall not be confounded". With faithful repentance and honest seeking for truth, we can avoid the monkey traps of life.

A Mirage of Beliefs and Worships

In 1983, magician David Copperfield wowed a live audience when he made the Statue of Liberty disappear before their very eyes, even shining strobe lights through the open air where the Statue once stood to satisfy even the staunchest skeptics. Or did he?

Most magic tricks are illusions that rely on a combination of distractions, perceptual distortions and creative engineering. Copperfield employed all of these elements to deceive and delight his audience: the dark of night and two large pillars on stage restricted the audience's view, stage lighting and a fake radar system gave the audience false cues about what they were seeing, and loud music helped to hide a slow rotation of the stage and seating area. When the seating area had turned so that Lady Liberty was safely hidden behind one of the pillars, the curtain came up and spotlights confirmed nothing but open air. The audience, now disconnected from the reality of what they were seeing, applauded in astonished approval.

In the audience of a magician, we are delighted by the unexpected and the unexplainable. It's far less charming when, often without even knowing, we are confronted by illusions in our lives that have been creatively engineered to distort our perception and distract our pursuits. Like the mist of darkness in Lehi's vision, the world offers an abundance of false cues and figurative loud music that will ultimately disconnect us from reality and lead us down broad roads where we wander off and are lost (1 Nephi 8:23). In the midst of the mist we may unknowingly become blinded to true principles and deceived by errant thinking, social pressures, cynicism and doubt.

President Benson said it this way:

Without [Christ] we would be lost in a mirage of beliefs and worships, born in fear and darkness where the sensual and materialistic hold sway. We are far short of the goal he set for us, but we must never lose sight of it; nor must we forget that our great climb toward the light, toward perfection, would not be possible except for his teachings, his life, his death, and his resurrection" (April 1964).

Mirages are optical illusions that most often occur when light is refracted by hot air. They can be difficult to discern until we approach where they appear and discover nothing but a hot emptiness.

The mirages of the world are just as real in appearance and just as void upon arrival. The pursuit of worldly mirages can lead us far away from the person we want to be and the life we hope to have.

Consider, for example, the mirage of money. Most of the world's money today is found in the data banks of computers. The bank has a number stored for me and a number stored for you. If you think about it, that's really all you have-- a number. Our economies can function based on these numbers sitting on computer databases because we have all agreed to pretend the numbers we have are valuable. We accept addition for our hard work and subtraction in exchange for the things we want.

We are playing the same game whether our currency is a number on a computer, a stack of paper bills, gold and silver, or a 20-foot chunk of donut-shaped limestone as once used on the Micronesian island of Yap; there is little inherent value to any of these items-- it's all an awesome game of pretend we play our entire lives. In fact, it's so awesome and can get us so many things (even a trip to the Micronesian island of Yap) that it is easy to believe that a bigger number at the bank or a larger accumulation of those things will make us happy.

The trouble is, money isn't real in the first place. We made it up because it was easier than trading livestock and loaves of bread. We made it up to help us all get the food and shelter and services we need. We didn't make it up to make people happy; and those who build their happiness on money will find they are just as disconnected from reality and the real things that can really make them happy as someone in the audience of a great magician.

Like a dark mist or a mirage, much of what we encounter in the world is empty or contains too little substance to provide a foundation for real joy and happiness. Many build their identities on their academic or athletic achievements, only to find these are subjective and temporary. Status and fame are often fleeting. Recreation and fun lose their appeal when tragedy strikes and our hearts are heavy. Pornographic images cannot love us back. Video game victories are erased by a drop of water or a poorly placed magnet. Labels placed on us, whatever they may be, eventually fade and peel.

In 2001, Bishop McMullin warned of the mirage of worldly preoccupation with self. "The highs are counterfeit," he taught, "the lows are disparing. Love, kindness, personal fulfillment, and genuine self-worth are found in service to God and others, not in service to oneself" (An Invitation with a Promise, 2001).

Similarly, Elder Bednar has taught that "sadly, some [men and women] in the Church today ignore 'things as they really are' and neglect eternal relationships for digital distractions, diversions, and detours that have no lasting value." He continued:

Please be careful of becoming so immersed and engrossed in pixels, texting, earbuds, twittering, online social networking, and potentially addictive uses of media and the Internet that you fail to recognize the importance of your physical body and miss the richness of person-to-person communication. Beware of digital displays and data in many forms of computer-mediated interaction that can displace the full range of physical capacity and experience (Things as They Really Are, 2010).

In these prophetic warnings about the mirages of the world we see that there are many ways we can be fooled into giving up what matters most for an attractive illusion. However these illusions may deceive our senses for a time, they cannot quench our thirsts for purpose, joy, love and belonging.

Prophetic teachings also teach us about what is real: Loving and kind relationships filled with service and communication, covenants such as baptism and eternal marriage, physical experience and a grounded knowledge in things as they really are enhance our lives and bring lasting satisfaction.

In Lehi's dream, the iron rod through the mist of darkness was the word of God. If we are lost in a mirage of beliefs and worships without Christ, certainly with Christ we are anchored in reality and receive a clearer focus on what we want most in life. Like watching a magic trick after we have learned the trick, we are better able to discern reality when we embrace the word of God in the scriptures, revealed through modern prophets and written on our hearts by the Holy Ghost.

Jacob taught:

The spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls (Jacob 4:13).

Ultimately, the spirit and the words of the prophets will lead us to our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the living water that can quench our thirst. He has blazed a trail through the mist and engraven the path upon the palms of his hands. Through his atonement we find healing and strength, love for self and others, compassion, knowledge, service, power, lasting joy and eternal glory. Though the world will offer innumerable counterfeits and illusions that leave us with only vacant space, holding to the word of God will safely guide us through this life and back to that God that created all that is real.

Who Told You?

After Adam and Eve had eaten the forbidden fruit, our Heavenly Father visited them in the Garden of Eden. Upon hearing that Adam hid himself because he was naked, God asks, "Who told thee that thou wast naked?" (see Moses 4:12-17)

Adam had transgressed the law and so may have been reminded by this question of his unauthorized actions. The Lord chastises those whom He loves.  Yet, God's inquiry was surely not about catching Adam as much as it was about teaching him. Adam had transgressed because he allowed others-- Eve in some accounts or Lucifer directly in others-- to persuade him to believe and act in a way that violated the commandment he had been given. God's question invited Adam to look to the sources of his beliefs and actions to determine their truth and worthiness.

Virtually every scriptural account is a story of individuals choosing which sources to believe and act upon. Despite Joseph's loyal service, Potipher chose to listen to the lies of his adulterous wife and threw Joseph into prison. Years later, the king of Egypt chose instead to listen to Joseph and so saved his entire nation from a seven-year drought.

Herod's soldiers, Jews that knew God had commanded thou shalt not kill, listened instead to the voice of their political leader and boss when they killed all of the infants and toddlers in and around Bethlehem at the sign of Christ's birth. At the same time, Joseph and Mary fled with their newborn to Egypt despite no evidence of any pending danger because Joseph listened to the voice of God's messenger in a dream.They left all they knew, all that their society would have considered normal, because they recognized the source of a single dream.

Lehi explained that 'the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by one or the other' (2 Nephi 2:16). These enticings come in every aspect of our lives as we choose which sources we will allow to influence our beliefs and actions. They may affect the language we use, how many children we have, what media we choose to consume, our political views, the food we eat, how we manage resources like time and money, and thousands of other choices we will make in our lives.

With each decision, even many of those that may seem small or insignificant, we choose whether we will listen to the voice of the Lord or to some other source. Moroni explained that 'every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.' On the other hand, 'whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God... is of the devil' (Moroni 7:16-17).

As we reflect on our own motivations and the sources we choose to believe, it is helpful to put ourselves in a figurative Eden where the Lord inquires, 'Who told you that was important?', 'Who told you that was good?' or 'Who told you to act and believe in that way?' Are the gospel of Jesus Christ and the teachings of his modern prophets informing our thoughts and actions or are we listening to some other voice?


In our daily lives, there are many other voices vying for our attention. Deceptive messages are wrapped in the rhetoric of love, a powerful consensus or trend, an animated 'family movie', peer-reviewed science, glamorous endorsements, laws, workplace mandates, incredible special effects or seemingly small habits that don't seem so bad.

We keep our baptismal covenants when we evaluate the sources of what we choose to believe by Moroni's standard: 'Does this persuade me to believe in Christ?' As we remain willing at all times to listen to the voice of God and his prophets, the Lord will guide our lives through the deceptions and droughts that surround us.