I used to attend a class called Zion Women.  It was a class in developing spirituality and becoming a Zion Woman.  I am reminded about one of the lessons that was taught in thatclass, and it was about flaxen chords.  There is a scripture in the Book of Mormon that talks about these flaxen chords.  It is:  2 Nephi 26:22.  It reads:  

 22 And there are also secret combinations, even as in times of old, according to the combinations of the devil, for he is the founder of all these things; yea, the founder of murder, and works of darkness; yea, and he leadeth them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever.

This scripture makes me think about my life the way it was.  You see, the devil is very wise and cunning.   Every time we come near unto him by choices, he wraps a very thin flaxen chord around us.  That little thin chord is not a huge hindrance if there is only one of them.  It is like taking a piece of thread and wrapping it around ourselves.  We can easily break free, but when we start wrapping multiple threads around us, we start to become bound, and it gets increasingly hard to break free.  To prove my point, get a spool of thread and tear off 11 pieces of thread of equal length.  Take one of the pieces of tread and grab both ends of the thread and pull and try to break the thread in the middle.  This is done without too much difficulty.  Now, take the other 10 pieces and twist them up together so that they become one thick piece of thread.  Now, try to break the string in half.  Now the task becomes difficult.

This is exactly what satan does to us.  As we make bad choices, he throws a flaxen chord around us.  Sooner or later, just like the combined 10 pieces of thread became difficult to break, so will it become difficult for us to break free from his hold.  This is what my life was like when I was eating so poorly.  He had so many flaxen chords wrapped around me that all I could see was darkness, and for a while, I could not find my way.  It wasn’t until I reached out to the Lord for help that things started to change.  As I started to pray and read my scriptures, the Lord started helping me break those flaxen chords one by one.  I still have some around me, but every day, the Lord gives me a little more strength to break another chord.

It is because of the love and the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that we are able to repent from our sins and break free of the ties that bind us.  I am grateful for His love, and His willingness to suffer all things for me so that I have this chance to start over and reclaim my life.

Rechel