“And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.” (D&C 84:46). We may not often think about it, probably because we are so rarely in a position to notice it, but the world gives off its own light. If we were to stand on the surface of the moon, we would notice that the Earth is much brighter in the night sky than the moon is when we are looking up at it from Earth. We often fall into the trap of becoming so paranoid about becoming influenced by the darkness and evil that we try to cut ourselves off from the world as completely as we can. In doing so, we are in danger of throwing out the baby with the bathwater. The world is one of our Heavenly Father's creations. He created it with the same goal by which He creates everything - to bring joy and light and beauty into the universe. Yes, because of Adam and Eve’s transgressions, not to mention all of the transgressions, sins, and short-sightedness of all of their descendants, the world has become corrupted and there are mixed into it evil and darkness and malice and tragedy. But just because there are spots of corruption does not mean that the light and beauty of God's original creation can not shine through. The Lord has promised us that He will enlighten us “through the world” if we hearken to the voice of the Spirit. With the Holy Ghost as our constant companion, we can witness and take part in all of the light and beauty and goodness that is in the world. This is light and knowledge and truth that we can not attain if we lock ourselves in because we are too afraid of becoming of the world that we dare not venture into the world. I know there are many wonderful things in the world for us to discover that will enlighten us when we let the Spirit be our guide.
