Influences that keep people away from the most desirable fruit are mists of darkness; shame, scorn, embarrassment, mockery, and scoffing; forbidden paths or strange roads; and the fountain of filthy water (see also 1 Nephi 12:16–18).
Influences that encourage people toward the most desirable fruit are the strait and narrow path and the rod of iron to hold onto (see also 1 Nephi 11:25; 15:23–24). Since one cannot necessarily see the tree—the end is not in plain sight—faith is required.
“Great Mist”
Mist consists of thousands of tiny water particles that obscure our view and confuse us. Examples of the world’s “mists of darkness” and the “strange roads” that many people take include distractions offered by the sports and entertainment worlds; the vile allurements of the pornography producers; the enticements of money and its power to obtain the things of this world; the seductions to satisfy, even in perverse ways, the lusts of the flesh through substance abuse, illicit sexual relations, and so on. The master of evil knows no bounds for deceiving, blinding, covering up, justifying, misguiding, and keeping us—in every way possible—from clearly seeing and pressing forward to the fruit that gives life. The only sure way of holding steady on the path to the tree of life is to hold to the rod. We have been reminded that the iron rod does not pass through the lobby of the great and spacious building. The iron rod is the word of God, especially the Book of Mormon. By continually holding onto the iron rod—the daily habit not just of reading but of searching, pondering, and treasuring up—our path is made secure. Holding onto the word of God cannot be loose or haphazard but must be a tight grip, a constant grasp.