October Conference Thoughts

I said I’d take little longer to post my thoughts on this year’s October conference addresses.  Now I’m ready.  There were several talks that hit home for me, so I’m going to focus on them in this post.  I’ve also decided to use a different format than I did in April.  If I like it, I think I’ll use it as my permanent way of presenting my conference thoughts (unless something better comes along later J).

“Which Way Do You Face?” – Elder Lynn G. Robbins:  This talk affected me because I could see myself in it.  There have been times in my life when I have inverted the first and second commandments and found myself trying “to please others before pleasing God.”  None of those situations have worked out well for me—they always come back and bite me in a way I hadn’t expected.  Elder Robbins was very straightforward with this subject.  He pulled no punches and I liked that.  In this day and age when so many people are trying to convince those of us with religious convictions that we are out of step with mainstream thinking and ought to modify our views, by compromising and trying “to save face with men, [we] can unwittingly lose face with God.”  I came away from this talk with a greater desire to do what I can to stay true to Father by keeping myself pointed and focused toward Him and not to the teachings of the world.  (full talk here)

“The Sacrament—a Renewal for the Soul” – Cheryl A. Esplin:  On the heels of Elder Robbins’ talk came this address from Sister Esplin.  Whereas Elder Robbins talk had made me squirm in a way that hopefully will bring about proper change in my character, Sister Esplin reminded me that the way for me to overcome my “natural man” tendencies is through the partaking of the sacrament: “The sacrament becomes a spiritually strengthening experience when we listen to the sacrament prayers and recommit to our covenants.”  Another part that was exciting for me was her take on the Aaronic Priesthood brethren and what they are doing for ward members when they bless and pass the sacrament emblems to the congregation each week: “Aaronic Priesthood holders represent the Savior when they prepare, bless, and pass the sacrament. As a priesthood holder extends his arm to offer us the sacred emblems, it is as if the Savior Himself were extending His arm of mercy, inviting each one of us to partake of the precious gifts of love made available through His atoning sacrifice—gifts of repentance, forgiveness, comfort, and hope.”  The reason I loved this comment the moment I heard it was because I knew immediately that I had to find a way to include it in my Aaronic Priesthood lessons.  I am trying to incorporate women’s voices into them when possible.  So far, I’ve been able to do so in the final lesson, but now I’ll be able to pull this quote into the lesson on the sacrament prayers.  I very much appreciated her words.  (full talk here)

“Free Forever, to Act for Themselves” – Elder D. Todd Christofferson:  A wonderful talk about the relationship of moral agency with justice and mercy.  Also, however, I liked how Elder Christofferson made it plain that we can’t just sit back and do nothing when it comes to receiving God’s grace: “God intends that His children should act according to the moral agency He has given them … It is His plan and His will that we have the principal decision-making role in our own life’s drama. God will not live our lives for us nor control us as if we were His puppets”.  He explained that justice is “an essential attribute of God” and we cannot expect Him to paper over our sins, pat us on the head, and let us into His kingdom without making proper changes in our character: “Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and His grace, our failures to live the celestial law perfectly … Justice demands, however, that none of this happen without our willing agreement and participation.”  Our ability to make choices gives us the capacity to grow, but it does not give us the ability to wipe away or alter God’s truths just because we don’t like or agree with them: “To those who believe anything or everything could be true, the declaration of objective, fixed, and universal truth feels like coercion … But that does not change reality. Resenting the law of gravity won’t keep a person from falling if he steps off a cliff. The same is true for eternal law and justice. Freedom comes not from resisting it but from applying it. … If it were not for the reality of fixed and immutable truths, the gift of agency would be meaningless since we would never be able to foresee and intend the consequences of our actions.”  Good stuff.  (full talk here)

“Joseph Smith” – Elder Neil L. Andersen:  This one touched me because of the way Elder Andersen testified of the prophet.  In recent years, social media appears to have become the court of quick and “definitive” opinion.  Once something (a quote, a video, a blog post) goes viral, people seem to go from 0 to 60 in a matter of seconds to make their opinion known on the said subject.  No matter how hard we may try to challenge every cyber-space misquote or half-truth maligning the character and mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, we may sometimes feel as if we’re bailing water from a boat with a teaspoon.  Elder Andersen reminds “the sincere inquirer that Internet information does not have a ‘truth’ filter. Some information, no matter how convincing, is simply not true.”  I liked his answer to the question: “Why does the Lord allow the evil speaking to chase after the good? One reason is that opposition against the things of God sends seekers of truth to their knees for answers.”  Honestly, the only way a person can truly receive answers about the prophet is by going to his knees and sincerely asking the Source.  I have done so, and the spiritual blessings that have come into my life because of my testimony of Joseph Smith and the work he started continue to enhance my life.  (full talk here)

“Come and See” – Elder David A. Bednar:  There are people who wonder why it is that we send missionaries out to Christians as well as people who are not Christian.  Elder Bednar’s explanation for our focus on missionary work: “When we invite you to attend church with us or to learn with the full-time missionaries, we … are inviting you to hear the restored truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ so you can study, ponder, pray, and come to know for yourself if the things we are sharing with you are true.”  We have something that fills us with joy and brings us peace (at least it should).  It is human nature to share something like that with others.  But for members of the Church, our reason for sharing the gospel is deeper than that: “Our desire to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ with you is a reflection of how important these truths are to us.”  The story Elder Bednar shared about his boys was wonderful and emphasized this point very effectively. (full talk here)

Random Thoughts:  The new wrinkle of allowing foreign language speakers to give their conference addresses in their native language was interesting.  I think it would have been better though, if either the sound of the speaker’s voice was muted more to allow better hearing of the translator or subtitles be employed.  I don’t know.  Maybe I’ll be more used to this new practice next time and it won’t matter as much.  Elder Scott gave a great talk, as usual, but he seemed to be suffering from a cold which was causing him breathing problems.  The timing of his breathing coupled with the look on his face made me wonder if he was thinking: “I’ve told you all these things before, why won’t you listen?”  I know this was not the case, but that was the random thought that popped into my head at the time.  Until six months from now … J

Meet the Mormons

Back in August during his address at Campus Education Week at BYU, Elder David A. Bednar extended to members the invitation to “to sweep the earth with messages filled with righteousness and truth—messages that are authentic, edifying, and praiseworthy—and literally to sweep the earth as with a flood” (check out the talk here).  I’ve said in two other posts that I wasn’t sure why I was writing this blog, but, after watching the video replay of Elder Bednar’s address, perhaps I’ve been a part of the “little trickle” he referenced (very little, I suppose).  By continuing with my efforts, I hope my little trickle can join the “big flood.”  One way or another, as I've said before, I’ve decided to hitch my wagon to this horse, so I’ll keep at it. J

Anyway, Elder Bednar offered several examples of ways the Church and its members have used social media as a way to disseminate the gospel message.  The final example he referenced was a feature film, called Meet the Mormons.  Originally, it had been approved to be played in the Legacy Theater in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and selected visitor’s centers.  Elder Bednar announced that the movie would be released “in select theaters in the United States and then, later, in visitors’ centers and on television, Internet movie channels, and social media channels.”  Yesterday, the movie was released nation-wide in theaters and one of our local movies houses decided to offer it.  Today, we went to see it.

The movie profiles six members of the church.  One of the aspects of the film that made it interesting for me was that only one person actually lived in the Utah area.  The bishop (now the stake president of his stake from what I understand), Jermaine Sullivan, lives in Atlanta, Georgia; the coach, Ken Niumatalolo, who is the head coach for the Navy football team, lives in the Washington D. C. area; the fighter, Carolina Muñoz Marin, lives in Costa Rica; the candy bomber, Gail Halvorsen, now lives in Arizona; the humanitarian, Bishnu Adhikari, lives in Nepal, and the missionary mom, Dawn Armstrong, lives in the greater Salt Lake area.  I liked this aspect because it helps to show that Latter-day Saints not just concentrated in Utah (although they are J).

The first impression I had as I watched the film was that each segment felt like an expanded “I’m a Mormon” spot.  All of them did a good job of showcasing the highlighted person, but in some cases I was left wanting more.  For example, the first segment on the Atlanta bishop was fascinating.  I was very interested in how the film showed him interacting with his ward, his family and his extended family.  It’s hard for me to put my finger on it as I write my reaction, but as we talked about the film afterward, I expressed how I wanted to know more about him.  I suppose this is a testament to how well the filmmakers did with the movie: leave them wanting more, J but I liked the insights into his life and how the movie showed that a “Mormon” bishop is just a normal person trying to do his best in life.

I think my favorite segment was about the man from Nepal, Bishnu Adhikari.  First of all, I found it so amazing to find out there is a branch of the Church in Nepal!  I have to admit, a part of me wanted to know more about the members of that branch and what it is like for them to be members of the church in Nepal.  But, this desire was overshadowed by Bishnu.  What a fascinating person.  To see how he is trying to help the people of Nepal by helping them to build schools and obtain water for their towns was very cool.  One of his daughters and his wife was interviewed, but I would have like to know a little more about his family.  I was interested to see the interaction he had with his father.  But the thing I liked the most was the comment he made at the end of his segment.  He said, “I’m not perfect, but I’m perfect in trying.”  That comment really hit home for me because that sums me up completely.  I am confronted constantly with the fact that I am not perfect, but I’m trying and I know that is what Heavenly Father wants of me.

The film gave me more background on the candy bomber, Gail Halvorsen.  I had heard parts of his story over the last couple of years.  His segment took those parts, along with other unknown details, and wrapped them into a nice package.  It was a reminder to me how small and simple things (what might seem to be tiny acts of service) can make a huge impact (see Alma 37:6).  The lady kick boxer from Costa Rica was a different twist.  The aspect of her story that I liked was that even though she was good enough to be a professional, she wanted her focus to be on her children and helping her husband train other people in the sport.

With Ben’s desire to serve a mission, the final segment about the missionary mom, Dawn Armstrong, was very poignant.  Even without that personal connection, her story was very powerful; another one of those situations to show how involved our Heavenly Father is in our lives whether we realize it or not.

All in all I thought the time was very well spent.  I’ve read a couple of reviews where the reviewer slammed the film for not being some “hard hitting” documentary about the Church, its views, its warts and son on.  These criticisms ignore the fact that this film is designed to be shown in Church visitor centers.  It only became a widely released film because the leadership of the Church felt that it should be released as such to begin.  All that aside, I liked it and we hope to obtain a copy when it is released by the Church for home distribution.

More Playing Time and Significant Progress

Because Isaac plays on the JV football team, his games begin a 4 p.m. in the afternoon.  This earlier start time has made it impractical for me to go to his away games (except for the game in Big Bear which was on a Saturday and the final game against Excelsior charter school which will be local).  This bugs me a little bit because my parents were in the bleachers for almost all of my games.  As I think about it, about the only games they didn’t attend was the yearly basketball away trip to Baggs and Encampment, Wyoming—yes, the town’s name is Baggs; I’m not making it up.  I can get off work and hour or so earlier for home games and get up the hill, usually close to on time.  Thankfully, Isaac appreciates the fact that I’ve done my best to make the starts of his home games—an interesting prospect given the idiosyncrasies of Southern California traffic.

I found myself a bit on the peeved side (I’m cleaning up my usual word) as I headed up the hill for today’s game.  Traffic had worked in my favor, even for a Friday, and I had made good time.  When I pulled off the exit to make the final 6 or so miles to the school, I looked at the clock on my dashboard and realized I had a good chance of getting into the stands by kickoff.  I would have made it to this last home game on time, but I guess the refs started it five minutes earlier than advertised.  Upon arrival, I saw the game was in progress!  Jennifer told me Isaac had been on the field for the kickoff.  I missed it!  I will admit; I wasn’t very happy.  Fortunately, Isaac got more chances during the game to come on the field for extra points and kickoffs and this time, I remembered to ask Jennifer to bring the video camera.  I was able to get pictures of him during his other times on the field.

The JV squad lost the game (they slept-walked through the 1st half and were down 3 touchdowns before they finally woke up and scored twice, but the deficit was too large to overcome).  I guess I could say that Isaac is “paying his dues” as a freshman.  Being that this is his first year of playing tackle football, he is learning the ropes.  It seems as though he is improving, but with players who are better than he is ahead of him, he spends most of his time on the sidelines.  I totally get it.  While Cokeville didn’t have a JV team, I spent most of my time on the sidelines my freshman year as well—and rightfully so.  I’m grateful for the opportunities Isaac has had to play.

Ben was down on the field during the game.  Jennifer told me he had been asked to run the scoreboard.  At first, I couldn’t figure out how he could be running the scoreboard walking along the sidelines of the football field as he was.  Jennifer pointed out a device in Ben’s hand and told me he was controlling the scoreboard with it.  I was impressed.  I watched as he followed the teams along the sidelines.  He would always remain in sight of the head referee in order to see the different hand signals telling him to start or stop the clock.  At halftime, Ben showed me the scoreboard controller.  At one point, during a lull in the action, the head referee and he had a conversation.  Ben told me later the ref had told him he was doing a good job and they had a conversation about Ben’s plans after high school.  He was hoping to be able to run the clock during the varsity game, but was told only an adult can do so.  He was disappointed, but rules are rules.

The thing that amazed me even more than Ben controlling the scoreboard with a handheld device was watching him walking and interacting with people along the sidelines.  Ben completed his pain management program last week.  I wrote a post about our Family Day visit to the program and how impressed I was with the people involved and the time they were taking with Ben.  Now that he is finished with the program, the progress he has made during these last eight weeks has been amazing.  I am reminded of our vacation and of Ben’s stay in the hospital.  During our vacation, he had wraps around his left wrist, right ankle and left knee.  He sometimes had trouble standing and walking.  During a picture taking session, with Sandra's family, I had to stand next to Ben in order to help him remain standing.  By the time he had his appendix removed, he had wraps around both ankles and wrists with all the other problems previously mentioned.

Today, as I watched him walk the sidelines, I noticed he had a bit of a limp because of his knee (which is now in a brace), but he was walking without his cane because he wanted to see if he could go without it for a prolonged period (he told me later he was feeling the effects of not having his cane by the time the varsity game ended).   The ankle and knee wraps are gone.  He is walking better and has moments when he doesn’t need his cane.  A couple of weeks ago, as I watched him break the bread for sacrament, I realized he wasn’t grimacing because his wrists weren’t bothering him.  I wrote this post about the “process” he had been going through in order to accomplish this priesthood ordinance on a weekly basis.  Now, that processes has been replaced with a return to a more normal routine.  As parents, Jen and I are very happy with the results we have seen.  We know we were led to this program by a loving Father in Heaven.

Ben isn’t pain free; he and pain will be companions the rest of his life.  However, with the techniques he has learned; the strategies he was been given; and the exercises he’s been taught, Ben has discovered how to keep the pain at a lower level and how to pace himself in order to not become overwhelmed.  This has been a tremendous blessing.  Ben has also fully recovered from his appendicitis.  When I think of all the prayers and fasting and good wishes he received from family, ward members, and friends over the last several months, I find myself very grateful for everything done in his behalf.  One of the fringe benefits of his newfound confidence is that he has been given the chance to play the part of Jonathan in his drama class’ presentation of Arsenic and Old Lace.  I believe this will be in November.  I am very much looking forward to it.

Now THIS Is Ironic

A couple of months ago, I wrote a post about the upcoming Cokeville miracle movie and I started it with a paragraph about how Alanis Morissette has ruined the definition of irony for a generation of people.  Well, last night as we walked out of the church building after the missionary farewell fireside, I came face to face with a sign that hovers closer to the realm of irony than coincidence.    I didn’t want to lump this in with yesterday’s post because it would have taken away from the spirit of what I was writing, but it’s too good to not mention.

We were some of the last members to leave the chapel yesterday because of the three missionaries we ended up talking to and because we saw Elder Keller, who is now an AP.  When we saw him as we were headed toward the foyer, we had to stop and talk to him as well.  As we exited the building, a red, neon sign across the street to the northwest of the church building caught my eye.  I looked ... and looked again.  What I saw was this:

The irony of the sign made me laugh and point it out to my family.  On one lot stands a church building housing adherents who practice not drinking coffee and keeping our language clean and across the street is this coffee shop named Bad Ass Coffee!  The ultimate in irony would be for members of the wards who meet in this building to immediately patronize this coffee shop after hearing sermons preached against such conduct, but the situational irony was enough for me. J

Missionary Farewell Fireside

We did something different for the Sunday morning session of Conference by inviting people over to the house for breakfast.  Well, actually, Jennifer did the inviting and I volunteered to make the breakfast; Sunday is my normal cooking day.  The catalyst for this new wrinkle in our Conference watching routine was the fact that Elder Stephens is going home tomorrow and if we wanted to have him in our home one more time before he leaves, we would need to have the missionaries over for breakfast.  Jennifer also invited the Ward family and Amanda, Lilly and Amanda’s boyfriend, Bobby as well.  Unfortunately, Amanda, Lily and Bobby weren’t able to make it, but we had a good time was still had with our slightly smaller numbers.

I was quite happy with my kitchen performance. J  Should have listened to the tickle in the back of my head last night urging me to prepare the green peppers and onions for one of the scrambled egg batches—my idea had been to have one batch with and one without (you’d think by now I learn that whenever I think, “Nah, I can do that tomorrow” inevitably “tomorrow” never works out like I plan).  Nevertheless, the cinnamon rolls, scrambled eggs, sausage and pancakes turned out well and everyone was satisfied (at least, no one keeled over half-way through the session J).  I’ll write about my Conference thoughts in a later post.

Elder Hurst serves as Elder Stephens' arms.

I haven’t really written about the missionaries I’ve worked with over the 15 months I’ve served as the ward mission leader.  That is an omission on my part that I should try to correct.  We’ve had great young men assigned to our ward and I don’t see any reason why it won’t continue.  The progression over the last year or so has been interesting to observe.  Missionary work in the ward started slowly when I began this calling, but I’ve seen it build each month.  It’s been great to watch the priesthood brethren step up to fulfill their team-up assignments and to learn that both the brothers and sisters in our ward are helping out by going to lessons or having those lessons in their homes without being assigned.  I’m confident that one of the reasons we’ve been having the success we’ve enjoyed is because we’ve showed Father in Heaven that we are willing to step up and help out the new converts become part of the ward family in whatever way we can.

Another picture; just more "normal"

Elder Stephens has been a great force for good while he has served in our ward.  One of the things I’ve appreciated about him is his desire to finish strong.  I don’t know if I hadn’t heard (it wouldn’t be the first time I wasn’t paying attention), but I didn’t know he was close to going home until a few weeks ago.  Sometimes it’s too easy to begin to coast as the end of the mission approaches.  I saw it when I was in the field and I’ve seen it in missionaries since I’ve been home.  With Elder Stephens, I didn’t have to worry him “taking a play off” (as I’ve heard sports announcers say) or even a series.  He has struck me as someone who was constantly trying to do his best all the time.  Because of my appreciation of his desire to work hard and the impact he has made on my family (Isaac nicknamed him “Smiling Man” because he always seemed to have a smile—at least when we saw him) and the ward, we wanted to go to the farewell fireside to show our support for him before he left to return home.

Turns out, we had more reasons than Elder Stephens to be there tonight.  Elder Hurst, another missionary who had served in our ward (Isaac called him “Big Man”), was also preparing to go home.  As an extra bonus, Jennifer had a tender mercy extended to her when she learned of a sister missionary who was also participating in the fireside.  Roughly 18 months ago (where does the time go? J), Jennifer went to a meeting at the Stake center (I honestly don’t recall whether I was there or not; Jen says I wasn’t) and met Sister Heine at the end of the meeting.  Sister Heine was, at the time, a convert of a year and a half who had come out on her mission.  She was new to the mission (2 weeks at the most) and was feeling a bit overwhelmed.  To help her, Heavenly Father put Jennifer in her path.  The two of them made an immediate connection and Jennifer was able to tell Sister Heine her conversion story and told her about the impact two missionaries she had never met before were able to make on her just by being at the right place at the right time.

Jennifer and Sister Heine

Jennifer’s only regret about her meeting with Sister Heine was her failure to get a picture taken with her (Sister Heine was serving in a ward that didn’t meet in our building) and she was never able to make a connection with her again—until tonight.  That “chance” encounter (I don’t believe in coincidence anymore when it comes to these types of things) stuck with Sister Heine throughout her mission.  When we walked into the chapel, she immediately recognized Jennifer.  We sat near the front on the right side of the room to allow Ben to be able to stretch out his legs.  At the end of the fireside, as the Elders and Sisters left the chapel to go to the cultural hall, Sister Heine and Jennifer waved to each other excitedly.  Not only were they able to exchange information, but Jennifer was finally able to get her picture taken with Sister Heine to fulfill the desire she had 18 months ago.

I have enjoyed the opportunity to work with the Elders who have been assigned to our ward during the time I have served as ward mission leader.  I have seen how having these good young men in our home has helped Ben and Isaac in their desire to serve a mission.  I’ve seen Isaac open up with them to the point where he gives them nicknames and playfully messes with them.  Jennifer and I have been able to assist them in teaching lessons and to be the member support they’ve needed in many different ways and that has been good for us also.  Frankly, if not for the opportunity to serve with the missionaries and to help out with the investigators and new converts, I probably would have imploded due to some of the stress Ben’s situation has brought at times, but the chance to look outward and not inward has made a huge difference to me. J

An Amazing Weekend

Stock photo from lds.org

Today was the culmination of an amazing weekend.  Our ward had 8 confirmations to start our Sacrament meeting as 8 of the 9 people baptized on Friday and Saturday were confirmed members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and given the gift of the Holy Ghost.  This has been an amazing journey.  The Elders (Keller & Bowman, Stephens & Boss) have been working very hard to prepare these people for baptism, but it hasn’t just been their efforts alone in this process.  The members of our ward have been stepping up and assisting in very meaningful ways as well.  It’s been great to have my weekly meeting with the Elders and learn that not only are the assigned brethren showing up for the weekly team-up, but that both brothers and sisters of the ward have been stepping up to assist in teaching at times other than Tuesday.  With Ben going through his pain management program and he and Jennifer being gone until after 7 on those three days during the week, I haven’t been able to go out with the Elders when they’ve called.  I’ve felt bad, but they’ve understood.  I come home, have to put dinner together, race over to the school to pick up Isaac and Xavier from football practice, drop Xavier off and return home either just ahead or right behind Jennifer and Ben.  It appears, however, that other members have gone in my place when the Elders have asked and that has been wonderful.

I was able to conduct the baptismal service held Friday night, but there was a moment when I wasn’t sure if this would actually happen.  I had brought church clothes to work, planning to change just before I left for the day, but some last minute work projects made me run a bit past the time I had planned to leave; I had no time to change and then realized I needed to get gas before I got on the freeway L.  I was able to leave a half hour early from work in the hopes that I would be able to make the 5 p.m. start time for the baptisms.  The last several Friday’s traffic has been good, not great, but with minimal slowdowns.  Not so on this Friday.  By the time I reached the 210/15 split, traffic ground to a 25 mph crawl.  Oh, the humanity!

I called Jennifer to let her know what has happening.  My commute became a slow motion nightmare as I watched the clock on my dashboard move closer to 5 o’clock and realized I wasn’t going to make the meeting on time.  Just as I was about to call Jennifer again, she called me.  By this time, traffic had finally loosened to a point where I was traveling at almost normal speeds.  My prospects of arriving on time, however, were non-existent.  I knew I was going to be 15 to 20 minutes late.  When I finally pulled into the parking lot of the church building, I learned that others who were going to be part of the program had also been caught in the traffic mess coming up the pass.  Also, the Rodriguez family, who were scheduled to be baptized that day, had been experiencing problems with their van and the Elders weren’t sure if they were going to make it or not—they didn’t, but were baptized the next day.  I’m grateful that Keyon and Lashele Ward, Suse Bissonnette and those in attendance weren’t upset we started 30 minutes late.  The service was good; the Spirit was there in abundance; and everything turned out very well. J

One of the bonuses of the baptisms was their location.  Elder Stephens & Boss were having a difficult time securing a site because of either preparations for or plans surrounding the Women’s Conference broadcast on Saturday.  Finally, they had to turn to the Hesperia Stake and found the Hickory building to be available.  I served in Hesperia during my mission.  One of the wards my companionship was assigned to (I don’t recall which at the moment) met in the Hickory building.  I might possibly have entered that ward building once not long after my mission, but if not, I hadn’t been inside the building since I was transferred from Hesperia to Mira Loma.  The memories were thick in that room for me.

After the service, I was standing in the hallway and had a moment when I almost expected a younger version of myself, wearing a black, lightly pinstriped Mr. Mac suit, to appear around the opposite corner and come walking down the corridor.  What would I have said to him?  I wouldn’t have wanted to disrupt the space-time continuum and give out too much information.  Still, I could see the me of today telling my missionary self to not let go of the gospel because of the wonderful blessings that would come later on if I remained faithful.  Those blessings, like the one experienced today, would help to shape who I am today and continue to mold who I want to become in the future. J

“What the What?”

I had an interesting revelation today.  No, it wasn’t an earth-shattering spiritual blowout or anything of that nature; just an unexpected piece of information offered to me.  Gumball and Penny have been a part of our family for over a month now.  We have really enjoyed having them.  I had forgotten how much I liked having a cat who would sit with me and allow me to pet him or her without wanting to tear the flesh from my hands.  I haven’t made any goofy cat videos, but they’ve been hilarious to watch as they run around the house and play with one another.  At times, one will run to one side of a door and the other will remain on the other side and they will then attack each other’s feet under the door.  Anyway, I’m getting off the subject.  Gumball was sitting with me and I was giving him a tummy rub when it suddenly dawned on me that … well, he isn’t a he; he’s a she.  I suppose I’ve had an inkling about the possibility of a difference in gender for a week or so, but I haven’t really pursued the suspicion until this evening.  Instead of a brother and sister combo, we’ve got a sister and sister tandem.  We’ll stick with the name Gumball.  We’ve used it for too long to change midstream.  Not that this is some sort of epic revelation.  Kingdoms will not rise and fall and the earth will continue to spin on its axis, but when I first introduced our new furry friends in this post, I called them a boy and girl because that was what we had been told.  Now no one will be confused if I call them both “she” from this time forth … hopefully. J

Tithes and Offerings (Lesson 32)

In Genesis, we read of the time when the Lord renewed with Jacob the covenant previously made with his grandfather, Abraham.  In response, Jacob “vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go ... then shall the Lord be my God: And … of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee” (Genesis 28:20-22, emphasis added).  Years earlier, Abraham had willingly contributed of his substance to the Lord.  Upon returning “from the slaughter of the kings” (Hebrews 7:1), he met “Melchizedek, king of Salem” (Genesis 14:18), the great high priest, and to “this same Melchizedek ... Abraham paid tithes of one-tenth part of all he possessed” (Alma 13:15, emphasis added).  From these scriptural accounts, we learn that the law of tithing is not new.  It was a commandment practiced during the time of Abraham and was carried down through the Old Testament.  If we believe that God “is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (1 Nephi 10:18), we should not be surprised to find that a law established for His people living in Old Testament times would be renewed with His Saints in the latter-days.

In a revelation to the Church given July 8, 1838, the Lord declared: “And this shall be the beginning of the tithing of my people ... Those who have thus been tithed shall pay one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever” (D&C 119:3-4).  A letter from the First Presidency, dated March 19, 1970, defined a proper tithe in this manner: “The simplest statement we know of is the statement of the Lord himself, namely, that the members of the Church should pay ‘one-tenth of all their interest annually,’ which is understood to mean income.”  Interest means increase; increase is defined as income.  Based on this definition, when we receive income, the Lord has commanded we pay one-tenth of that income to Him through his Church.

Why have we been given the law of tithing?  The Lord answered this question when He declared to the Old Testament prophet Malachi, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, and prove me now herewith ... if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (Malachi 3:8, 10).  We have we been given the law of tithing because our Father in Heaven desires to bless us with such abundance that our cups cannot receive them all.  He cannot do this, however, unless he tests our faithfulness; and one of the greatest ways He accomplishes this is by asking us to return to him a tenth of what we earn.

The blessings referred to are both temporal and spiritual in nature.  “I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes,” God declares through Malachi, “and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground” (Malachi 3:11).  While this promise can definitely be seen as temporal—saving crops from locusts and pests, the “devourer” could also be a name for Satan—the fruits of the ground meaning the spiritual fruits that accompany a desire to follow God and His Son Jesus Christ.  Either way, the Lord promises to protect us from temporal or spiritual devouring.  I have seen many temporal blessings come to me and my family because Jennifer and I made the commitment to be full tithe payers at the beginning of our marriage—anonymous gifts; money received from unexpected sources; repairs that didn’t cost as much as first feared.  To some people, these incidents might be brushed aside as coincidence or luck, but to me, they have been a reaffirmation of the temporal blessings promised by the Lord to those who pay their tithing.

Of even greater significance, however, are the spiritual blessings that come when we pay our tithing.  There are many, but I will focus on one: the opportunity to attend the temple.  Consistent temple attendance allows us to receive, as President Thomas S. Monson declared, “everything the Church has to offer” (Ensign, May 2011, 93).  In order to have this blessing available to us, it is imperative that we follow our Father in Heaven’s commandments; doing so will enable us to receive this amazing blessing.  Three months after the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred, Brigham Young taught this principle to the Saints when he admonished: “Enter steadily and regularly upon a strict observance of the law of tithing, ... then come up to the House of the Lord, and be taught in his ways, and walk in his paths” (History of the Church, 7:282).

Because each temple is dedicated as “The House of the Lord,” Heavenly Father sets the standards for qualification to enter His house.  One of the requirements to be worthy to enter the temple is that we must be a full tithe payer.  Elder Hales explained: “The strict observance of the law of tithing not only qualifies us to receive the higher, saving ordinances of the temple, it allows us to receive them on behalf of our ancestors. When asked whether members of the Church could be baptized for the dead if they had not paid their tithing, President John Taylor, then of the Quorum of the Twelve, answered: ‘A man who has not paid his tithing is unfit to be baptized for his dead. ... If a man has not faith enough to attend to these little things, he has not faith enough to save himself and his friends’” (Ensign, Nov. 2002, 26-27).

Tithing is a test of our faith.  To give a tenth of our income to the Lord is not always an easy thing to do—in fact it may always be a difficult thing to do, but the blessings we can receive from the Lord in return for our faithfulness far surpasses the sacrifice.  The question might be asked: Why would God require us to pay tithing in order to enter the temple?  Consider these facts: Our Father in Heaven has blessed us with our mortal lives; He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to atone for our sins and break the bands of physical death; the strength we have to work and maintain ourselves and our families is bestowed upon us by Him; He has given us this Church as a way for us to come closer to Him through the mediation of our Savior; He has directed His latter-day prophets to build temples, which enables Him to endow us “with power from on high” (D&C 38:32); He waits for us, with open arms, to return to Him in His kingdom where He will bestow upon us, if we have proven ourselves faithful, “all that [He] hath” (D&C 84:38)!  For all of these things and more, our Father asks us for a tenth of our income.  When you consider what He is asking of us in light of what He already gives us or is promising to give us, can we truly, in our heart, say that He is asking too much of us?

“Tithing is a principle that is fundamental to the personal happiness and well-being of the Church members worldwide, both rich and poor,” taught President James E. Faust. “Tithing is a principle of sacrifice and a key to the opening of the windows of heaven ... Members of the Church who do not tithe do not lose their membership; they only lose blessings” (Ensign, Nov. 1998, 58-59).  When we show our faith and sacrifice to Heavenly Father through the payment of tithes, he truly will “open ... the windows of heaven, and pour ... out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”  I know this is true for I have seen it happen in my own life again and again.

Becoming

While preparing for the Melchizedek Priesthood lesson this morning, I was looking in the November 2000 conference Ensign for a quote from Elder Holland and came across Elder Oaks' talk "The Challenge to Become" again.  In the Gospel Principles lesson on charity, I focused solely on his quote concerning that important attribute.  This time, I read the entire talk and the overall concept he taught struck me.  The idea dovetailed into something I'd been thinking about since meeting with the missionaries yesterday.  I felt impressed to bear my testimony about this gospel truth during Sacrament meeting today, and I want to mention those thoughts (as best as I can recall them) in this post with the addition of added scripture verses and quotations.

The Savior's command to the Nephites, his followers in Jerusalem, and to us is to "be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect" (3 Nephi 12:48).  Later, to drive the point further, Jesus asked His new world apostles, "Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be?" and then answered His question, "Verily I say unto you, even as I am" (3 Nephi 27:27).  This is a lofty goal; a very high ideal.  Because we live in telestial circumstances, we find ourselves making mistakes left and right as we struggle to achieve this goal.  If we allow it, this commandment could cause paralysis ("If I make a mistake, I'm doomed.") or defeatism ("I can't live up to this standard!  What's the point of trying?  I give up!").  However, as I grow older, I have come to realize that the obtainment of perfection in this life is not what the Lord is concerned about.  Instead, He is much more interested and focused on what the goal helps us to become.  Elder Oaks explained that "the Final Judgment is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts—what we have done. It is an acknowledgment of the final effect of our acts and thoughts—what we have become. It is not enough for anyone just to go through the motions. The commandments, ordinances, and covenants of the gospel are not a list of deposits required to be made in some heavenly account. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a plan that shows us how to become what our Heavenly Father desires us to become" (Ensign, Nov. 2000, 32, emphasis in original).

I my opinion, the measuring stick Heavenly Father uses in His evaluation of each of us (His children) has more to do with our effort than anything else.  Allow me to illustrate:  Yesterday, Isaac played in his first ever tackle football game.  He's wanted to play this type of football for a long time, but the little league team in the area had a very pricey yearly admission fee (with other costs along the way).  Consequently, the closest he's come to "real" football is a couple of flag football teams courtesy of the local city leagues (here's a picture of him running for a touchdown when he was 6).  Midway through the 4th quarter, the opposing team had scored and was getting ready to try for the extra point.  I saw the coach walk up to Isaac and talk to him.  Immediately, I had a feeling he would be going in for the kick-off return and I tapped Jennifer on the shoulder, "Isaac's going in."  Sure enough, as our team prepared for the kick-off return, Isaac ran onto the field.  He was in the front line.  The moment he entered the game, my attention was riveted on him (so much so that I forgot to take a picture of him L).  He got in a stance and readied himself.  As soon as the football was kicked, I watched as he prepared to block the opposing player who was running toward him.  He put his arm up in a blocking motion (a "flipper" as he called it later), and readied himself.  There was a collision of bodies ... and Isaac found himself on the ground.  To his credit, he jumped up and ran off to try and find someone else to block.  Before he could make any effort to do so, his teammate with the ball was tackled and thus ended his very first game experience.

After the final horn sounded, I walked up to Isaac and told him, "I'd rather see you get knocked on your butt trying to do what you're supposed to do, then see you stand there letting people run past you without making any effort at all."  I also told him I was pleased to see him get up quickly and try to stick with the play rather than lay there on the ground until the whistle blew.  According to Isaac, his coach had also singled him out after the game, telling the team he'd rather play a scared kid who would at least try than a lazy kid who wouldn't do anything.

This brings me back to my earlier statement.  Often in life we see the opponent coming toward us.  We get our "flipper" up and get in our stance and think we're going to handle our block ... and get run over and knocked on our hind quarters instead!  I don't see this scenario as the definition of perfection.  Perfection would be for us to block the opponent and sustain a textbook block until the whistle blew.  Instead, we find ourselves staring up into the sky wondering what the heck happened.  At that moment we can think to ourselves, "Oh, no, the coach will never let me play in another game ever again!" or "I did everything right and I still got knocked on my can!  What's the point?  I give up," or we can get up and try to get back into the play as quickly as possible.  Isaac could have allowed the first two thoughts enter his head and continued to lay on the ground, but he didn't.  He got up and tried to get back into the play.  His effort was rewarded not by a scolding, but by the coach telling the rest of the team he was the type of player he could use on his team.  I believe Heavenly Father is the same in that regard.  He's not going to "upbraid" us (see James 1:5) for getting knocked on our backside while trying to do what we've were sent into the game to accomplish.  He's going to see us as someone He can use; someone He can work with to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39)—ours as well as others.

At the same time, however, it's important to also recognize that Father isn't interested in "checklist" discipleship, hitting our benchmarks and moving on without a backward glance.  Nephi understood the importance of thinking in terms of becoming instead of checklists.  After a lengthy explanation of the importance of baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, Nephi asked, "And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay" (2 Nephi 31:19)!  Nephi recognized baptism to be the beginning, not the end of the journey.  Baptism allowed the disciple to step through the gate on to the strait and narrow path.  From that starting point, Nephi encouraged the man or woman in Christ to "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men" and  if he or she does these things while "feasting upon the word of Christ, and endur[ing] to the end" (2 Nephi 31:20), then he or she will become "perfected in [Christ], and ... then is [Christ's] grace sufficient" (Moroni 10:32) to make up the difference for what we lack.  Elder Oaks taught, "The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan by which we can become what children of God are supposed to become. This spotless and perfected state will result from a steady succession of covenants, ordinances, and actions, an accumulation of right choices, and from continuing repentance. ... Now is the time for each of us to work toward ... becoming what our Heavenly Father desires us to become" (Ensign, Nov. 2000, 33).

I am grateful for this concept.  I've made plenty of mistakes along my mortal journey, but I am grateful for repentance and the opportunity to overcome my mistakes.  There have been times when I thought I was ready to block the opposing player running toward me and been knocked tail over teakettle.  I am thankful that my Eternal Coach hasn't given up on me and has continued to let me play.  When I consider who I am today as opposed to who I was when I returned home from my mission, I realize I've made some significant progress.  I also realize, however, that I have a long way to go.  Once again, I am grateful for the things my boys teach me and for the opportunity I have to share my testimony of Christ's teachings with others.