The Lens of Lenses: How Knowing God Changes What You See, Say, Do—and Become
Part 2 of a series on discovering your divine nature—A Father's Day tribute to Abba, the Father of Fathers
In a flash, God showed me the truth using my own life—scenes of birth, growth, and stewardship. Though the image here may depict a direct communion with God, the truth I received was rendered in the language of my life. The message was no less divine. The Father delights to reveal who we truly are.
This lens doesn’t stop at insight. It reforms your thoughts, refines your words, redirects your actions, and remakes your soul—to be like Abba.
On this Father's Day, I'm moved to share something I wrote recently—a tribute to the ultimate Father. While we honor earthly fathers today, my heart overflows with gratitude for Abba, the Father of Fathers, who revealed to me my divine nature and set me on the path to become like Him. This is my offering of thanksgiving to the One who fathered us all.
As a child, did you sing "I am a child of God"?
I did.
Did I know what that meant?
No.
The journey to know God doesn’t begin with sight—it begins with trust. Faith leads to knowledge, and knowledge to transformation.
I knew enough to pray to God, but by and large, He was unknown to me. Like explained in a powerful book—the Lectures on Faith—that members were asked to memorize by the First Presidency in the days of Joseph Smith, I had merely "an idea" of who God was (Lectures on Faith 3:3).
When Christ First Had My Back
I believe the first scripture that truly connected me to God was when I learned that the Prince of Peace said it would be better to have a millstone wrapped around your neck and be thrown into the ocean than to offend one of His little ones.
Even in childhood pain, I knew Christ had my back. He taught me that I mattered—that the Father defends His own.
This reference sank deep into my soul as a child.
For the first time, I felt like Christ had my back. I felt justified and defended in my victim mentality. Yes, I experienced what most would call physical and emotional abuse, but now—some 40-ish years later—I understand it takes two to tango. My step-mom had good intentions. But that’s not the point.
The reality was this: I knew Christ knew me. He opened the door for communion with God. After six years and many prayers, I really knew He knew me—when my dad asked if I wanted to move, and I did.
Still, I had but an "idea of God."
The Awakening That Changed Everything
Two years later, in my senior year of high school, I’d moved to live with my aunt and uncle. I hadn’t attended church much, but a friend pointed out the power of repentance:
The power to change.
The power to come unto Christ and be made whole.
The gift of being forgiven.
When I learned I could start fresh, my heart soared. I ran to my ecclesiastical leader to get square with the Lord.
Two bishops taught me to come unto Christ and trust Him. So I did.
The Vision That Transformed Everything
I got square and received my patriarchal blessing. I fasted with full purpose of heart to receive it, then again the next week when I received the written version—so I could understand it.
When I read it for the first time—a practice that has become a lifelong habit—I encountered a single line that opened the heavens.
It told me whose image I was created in: a son of my Father and Mother in Heaven, with divine potential.
In that moment, my mind was opened in a hologram-like image (think R2-D2 sharing Leia’s message). At 18, I had read maybe five books total. I wasn’t a scholar. But right there in my mind’s eye, like a thought caption in a comic book, I understood:
The purpose of life
Who God is
My relation to Him
I didn’t see God’s form. I saw scenes from my life—helping kittens and colts through birth, raising them to adulthood.
God taught me with my own experiences, according to my language and understanding (2 Nephi 31:3).
First, I realized I could become anything in this life—a doctor, lawyer, businessman.
Then the real unveiling: I could help create worlds without number.
In a hologram-like flash, God spoke to me through scenes I knew—bringing new life into the world. These images of colts and kittens became a divine parable: I, too, was born to grow, become, and one day create. Not by sight, but through the Spirit, I came to understand my eternal potential—to be like Abba.
I jumped up and ran to my aunt.
“Did you know we are sons and daughters of God?”
“Like, do you know what this MEANS?”
We smiled and hugged. I was elated, full of joy—transformed from the inside out.
The Day I Gave My Life to the Lord
Within weeks, I heard a prophet say, “The Lord could do more with your life than you could.”
A still small voice whispered, “Why don’t you let Him?”
My heart replied: “Let Him I will!”
That was the day I gave my life to the Lord.
To prove His word
Test His ways
Live His plan
Be like Abba
This altered my life forever.
From Idea to Actual Knowledge
Just like in Lectures on Faith 3:2–5:
Idea: I prayed, hoping God was real.
Correct idea: A friend helped me see God’s mercy.
Actual knowledge: A vision confirmed my life was aligned with Him.
God’s love is real. Palpable. Transformational.
What This Knowledge Has Produced
This lens of lenses has guided me for 30+ years. It’s taken me:
To college
To honors graduation
Into marriage with a divine daughter of God
To raising six children
And far beyond
God is good. And YOU are His child.
Your Turn to Awaken
Take this lens deep into your soul. Release the sleeping giant within.
Not the Greek Kraken, but the divine light of Christ in you. It will:
Enlarge your soul
Fill you with hope
Overflow you with divine purpose
It is in there. God’s kingdom is within you.
The Promise and the Path
Let this lens become your daily guide:
Read best books
Study deeply
Learn your divine role
As the Bible Dictionary teaches: "As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God…prayer becomes natural and instinctive."
With this light, you’ll know which books, thoughts, relationships, and actions are aligned.
Joseph Smith taught we must "learn how to make yourselves gods, like the Gods before you."
This lens clarifies the path.
The Lens of Lenses Revealed
The divine lens doesn’t distort—it reveals. When you see yourself and others as children of God, the world comes into focus with eternal purpose.
This lens doesn’t distort like rose-colored glasses—it clears your vision.
Everything you consume is now filtered through one question:
“How will this help me fulfill my purpose to be like Abba?”
That question will change everything.
You will not just strive for goodness—you will move toward holiness. Not worldly kingship, but divine heirship.
To receive the divine nature is to receive God’s honor—His power coursing through your soul, lifting you beyond the natural man, and transforming you into the likeness of Abba.
Becoming Who You Were Meant to Be
So be done with lesser things.
Let this lens of lenses lift your vision, refine your soul, and redirect your life.
You are a child of God.
Not just in word—but in eternal reality.
Let His work and glory lift you to your potential. Then:
Live with purpose
Love with power
Lead with light
Now is your time to shine—in the yoke of Christ.
Rise up and be like Abba.
See what He can do with your life.
Let Him I will.
In the next post, we'll explore how you're not an empty vessel to be filled, but a divine source to be tapped—and how living in the source of living waters will transform everything about how you approach learning, growing, and becoming like Abba.