Does an Eye single to the Glory of God lead to One Heart?

If we must lead with the heart to become Zion, what does that look like in real life?

How do we get our own individual heart right before God?

Because it is an individual effort first and foremost, before it can be a group effort. In fact I believe that once individual hearts are right before God, there actually isn’t much difficulty involved in a group of people coming together and having one heart.

All of the “effort” and “difficulty” has already been overcome by our individual effort to get our own heart right with God.  Zion is simply the fruit of two or more people who have their hearts right with God.

So, how do we get our heart right with God?

I believe it has to do with having an eye single to the Glory of God.  If our eye is not single to the Glory of God, we will have errors introduced into our understanding. 

In Luke 8:15 (Luke 11:34-35) we are told:
“The light of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is single, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is evil(not single), your body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in you be not darkness. If your whole body therefore is full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle lightens a room and does give you light in all the room.”


The NLT states it this way:
“Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is unhealthy, your body is filled with darkness. Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness. If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.”


T&C 86:12 (D&C 88: 67-68) tells us:
“And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole body shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehends all things. Therefore, sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God…”

Does the word ‘single’ mean 100%?

In the Bible we are presented many times with the idea of single-mindedness as the way to align one’s life with God’s purposes and priorities, rather than our own desires and priorities.

Single-mindedness suggests a deliberate and consistent focus, free from distractions or competing priorities. As opposed to double-mindedness, which leads to instability and hinders our spiritual growth.

JSH 11:2RE (D&C 4:2):
“...O you that embark in the service of God, see that you serve him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength, that you may stand blameless before God at the last day.”


In the Book of Mormon, Moroni 10:32 it says:
“Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness. And if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ.”


The Covenant of Christ says it like this:
“Come unto Christ and be made complete in Him, and reject all ungodliness. And if you reject all ungodliness and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then His grace is sufficient for you, so that by His grace you can be complete in Christ.”

It seems pretty clear that God requires ALL of our heart, might, mind and strength. That our eye be single to His glory alone.

This is a high bar. It seems that none of us will be able to meet this standard 100% of the time. And yet, it is what God requires of us. Moroni tells us that IF we will love God with ALL of our might, mind, and strength, THEN Christ’s grace is sufficient for us and we can be complete and perfected in Christ.

 IF we desire God’s glory above all else, IF we devote ourselves to God and give them our whole heart, IF we will do that 100%, THEN Christ’s grace is enough to make us complete–through our day by day, moment by moment yielding to the Spirit of God.

If we are holding back and are only offering 90% or 80%, then it's not our whole heart yet and it cannot produce the fruit we seek.

To the degree that we will not yield to the Holy spirit and instead heed our own natural man is the degree that we are setting up our own god. 

T&C 54:3 says:
“They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walks in his own way and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol which waxes old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babyon the great which shall fall.”

We all know that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. There are many scriptures that teach us that people can commit much sin while thinking they are serving God. We are told that many will knock at the gates of Heaven expecting to be let in and yet the gatekeeper will say: You never knew me. Depart from me you that work iniquity.

The scriptures quoted above seem to indicate that if our eye is not single to God’s glory, then darkness will be introduced into us and we will have a hard time discerning it.

Having our eye single to the glory of God, offering up our whole heart, might, mind and strength seems to be the way that leads to us comprehending all things and being made complete, and thus suitable for Zion, through Jesus’ grace.

I intend to repent/refocus my heart even more fully on the Lord. To allow the spirit of God to refine me even further so that I can be even more at 'one heart and one mind' with my husband, family, friends and all who likewise seek the glory of God above all else.