Two ways to resolve a zit.
Pinch it and pop it, scrap it and push it.
Or
Wash it and let it go.
I think the more we can do the latter in all of life's form of zits then we'll be a lot better off.
27.1.10
25.1.10
Working Out Our Own Salvation by Simple Truths in Mediums of All Kinds
Everybody who is active in the church at one point or another gets bored with the church. After a while we often hear the same messages and doctrines. At this moment we usually either just go through the motions or just stop going all together. Both are about equal in spiritual enlightenment. This is because at some point we have to take it upon ourselves to be doctrinally fed and seek out the gospel messages for ourselves. We have to take responsibility of our salvation.
Growing up in Utah, you can sign up for seminary classes that teach the fundamentals of LDS teachings to youth. I first became so excited about this seminary class that I started going to church on my own and reading on my own. I often stayed after class with questions on the subject and liked my teachers. Then I had a teacher that I didn't really like. He wasn't exciting. He was very strict. I stopped going and caring about Church in general. I made the classic mistake of not taking it upon myself to keep being entertained by what the Lord could teach me.
Sometimes the medium is the only way to keep from falling into disinterest and often new members will go inactive after the missionaries who taught them initially go home or to a new area.
There is a parable of the Ten Virgins and I don't really know the cultural context of it. But they had lamps fueled by oil and some of them were foolish and didn't prepare by getting extra oil for later so they could have lamps lit. Anyway, the oil and the lamp represents our own understading and testimony of the Church and we don't prepare and work out our own salvation then we won't be able to borrow from other people's testimony. Basically, you are in charge of your righteousness and testimony of God. Other people may help you initially but you must be able to be self reliant in a sense of relying on the Lord.
The church talks, lessons, classes, books, magazines, movies, and music can be entertaining but can also get old unless we take it upon ourselves to personally seek out the Lord and seek to get something out of all the messages ourselves.
Scriptures repeatedly tell us "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass."-Alma 37: 6. And "children given words that confound the wise. "-Alma 32: 23
I believe anything true is of value to our souls and we can find things to help us personally by all the mediums the Lord has of preaching His gospel, especially the Holy Ghost which will give us a way of understanding things we've heard a hundred times but in a new light that will be applicable to our lives.
I know the Lord speaks to us by His servants, by the Holy Ghost, and to us directly in a way that if we are looking and asking with real intent He will make it known to us. There are so many simple truths in mediums of all kind, if only we will tune in to the Holy Ghost.
Growing up in Utah, you can sign up for seminary classes that teach the fundamentals of LDS teachings to youth. I first became so excited about this seminary class that I started going to church on my own and reading on my own. I often stayed after class with questions on the subject and liked my teachers. Then I had a teacher that I didn't really like. He wasn't exciting. He was very strict. I stopped going and caring about Church in general. I made the classic mistake of not taking it upon myself to keep being entertained by what the Lord could teach me.
Sometimes the medium is the only way to keep from falling into disinterest and often new members will go inactive after the missionaries who taught them initially go home or to a new area.
There is a parable of the Ten Virgins and I don't really know the cultural context of it. But they had lamps fueled by oil and some of them were foolish and didn't prepare by getting extra oil for later so they could have lamps lit. Anyway, the oil and the lamp represents our own understading and testimony of the Church and we don't prepare and work out our own salvation then we won't be able to borrow from other people's testimony. Basically, you are in charge of your righteousness and testimony of God. Other people may help you initially but you must be able to be self reliant in a sense of relying on the Lord.
The church talks, lessons, classes, books, magazines, movies, and music can be entertaining but can also get old unless we take it upon ourselves to personally seek out the Lord and seek to get something out of all the messages ourselves.
Scriptures repeatedly tell us "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass."-Alma 37: 6. And "children given words that confound the wise. "-Alma 32: 23
I believe anything true is of value to our souls and we can find things to help us personally by all the mediums the Lord has of preaching His gospel, especially the Holy Ghost which will give us a way of understanding things we've heard a hundred times but in a new light that will be applicable to our lives.
I know the Lord speaks to us by His servants, by the Holy Ghost, and to us directly in a way that if we are looking and asking with real intent He will make it known to us. There are so many simple truths in mediums of all kind, if only we will tune in to the Holy Ghost.
When to Follow, When to Lead
We have a realm of responsibility. When we try to control things outside of that realm we fall from firm ground. The Alcoholics Anonymous members have a prayer called the Serenity prayer that says:
"God, Give us the grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed, Courage
to change the things which should be changed,
And the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other."
The distinction of when to follow and when to lead is essential for us to gain so that we may not stretch ourselves too thin or too little. We shouldn't try to control too much and we shouldn't be irresponsible over too little. But the question is how do we know what is within our power and what is not only out of our reach but none of our business?
My wife and I live in an apartment downtown. We had a neighbor move in 2 months after we did. We got along good with him and frequently had chats as we saw him walking his dogs. Then we began to smell smoke in our apartment daily. We told the manager of this and they talked to our neighbor. We also started hearing loud music and yelling from our neighbor after hours and have often been woken up by him in the night. One night we felt it necessary to call the cops. Since then we have had a hard time feeling comfortable in that apartment. He frequently mocks us as he walks by our place and lulls us into arguments about his behavior. We now are trying to get him evicted and/or move away. Right now our management is looking into this and how to best quell the situation. We're very upset.
Now, our responsibility isn't to try and control our neighbor's choices in life. But, we do have a responsibility to make sure that our boundaries are respected. Our neighbor has crossed the line of our privacy. Once he has done that then it is in our responsibility to make sure he follows the rules which are affecting us. He must follow and we must lead. If we were the ones who cause the offense then we must learn to follow the rules. We have taken steps to ensure his irresponsible behavior is dealt with by contacting authorities such as our landlords, the police, and possibly a lawyer. It would be inappropriate and crossing the line for us to reach beyond the laws and take matters into our own hands and try to physically kick him out ourselves. We must follow the laws and policies of the authorities. They must lead and we must follow. We cannot overstep our bounds and think to run the system on the whim of our own personal feelings. That would be out of our realm of responsibility. We must leave it up to the authorities to deal with this by the law and if they fail then we must do what we can to make sure our boundaries aren't disrespected. That might mean moving away or appealing to higher authorities. A church history example of this would be when the saints crossed the plains from the East to settle in the West to escape the persecution. First the saints appealed to the government by the laws of freedom of religion and the right to live safely but we're ignored.
I think an easy answer to the question of when to follow and when to lead would be to follow the Holy Ghost's promptings. Often thats not easy when our thoughts, wants, or feelings cloud our judgment. It is God's realms of responsibility to answer us when we ask with real intent. But, it is our realm of responsibility to not overstep our boundaries in what we are asking. He says "Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you; and if ye ask anything that is not expedient for you, it shall turn unto your condemnation” DC 88:64-65.
Often we must pray to God for an answer or help. Often we must act and follow the laws of the land and of God. Often God is giving us a chance to grow by the adversity of dealing with those who overstep their boundaries, offend us, mock, or challenge us. It is our responsibility to return good for evil. It is our opportunity to forgive and have patience. It is our time to follow God and lead our way to Him when all falls against us. We must always follow the Lord. We must always lead ourselves away from the harm of evil.
"God, Give us the grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed, Courage
to change the things which should be changed,
And the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other."
The distinction of when to follow and when to lead is essential for us to gain so that we may not stretch ourselves too thin or too little. We shouldn't try to control too much and we shouldn't be irresponsible over too little. But the question is how do we know what is within our power and what is not only out of our reach but none of our business?
My wife and I live in an apartment downtown. We had a neighbor move in 2 months after we did. We got along good with him and frequently had chats as we saw him walking his dogs. Then we began to smell smoke in our apartment daily. We told the manager of this and they talked to our neighbor. We also started hearing loud music and yelling from our neighbor after hours and have often been woken up by him in the night. One night we felt it necessary to call the cops. Since then we have had a hard time feeling comfortable in that apartment. He frequently mocks us as he walks by our place and lulls us into arguments about his behavior. We now are trying to get him evicted and/or move away. Right now our management is looking into this and how to best quell the situation. We're very upset.
Now, our responsibility isn't to try and control our neighbor's choices in life. But, we do have a responsibility to make sure that our boundaries are respected. Our neighbor has crossed the line of our privacy. Once he has done that then it is in our responsibility to make sure he follows the rules which are affecting us. He must follow and we must lead. If we were the ones who cause the offense then we must learn to follow the rules. We have taken steps to ensure his irresponsible behavior is dealt with by contacting authorities such as our landlords, the police, and possibly a lawyer. It would be inappropriate and crossing the line for us to reach beyond the laws and take matters into our own hands and try to physically kick him out ourselves. We must follow the laws and policies of the authorities. They must lead and we must follow. We cannot overstep our bounds and think to run the system on the whim of our own personal feelings. That would be out of our realm of responsibility. We must leave it up to the authorities to deal with this by the law and if they fail then we must do what we can to make sure our boundaries aren't disrespected. That might mean moving away or appealing to higher authorities. A church history example of this would be when the saints crossed the plains from the East to settle in the West to escape the persecution. First the saints appealed to the government by the laws of freedom of religion and the right to live safely but we're ignored.
I think an easy answer to the question of when to follow and when to lead would be to follow the Holy Ghost's promptings. Often thats not easy when our thoughts, wants, or feelings cloud our judgment. It is God's realms of responsibility to answer us when we ask with real intent. But, it is our realm of responsibility to not overstep our boundaries in what we are asking. He says "Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you; and if ye ask anything that is not expedient for you, it shall turn unto your condemnation” DC 88:64-65.
Often we must pray to God for an answer or help. Often we must act and follow the laws of the land and of God. Often God is giving us a chance to grow by the adversity of dealing with those who overstep their boundaries, offend us, mock, or challenge us. It is our responsibility to return good for evil. It is our opportunity to forgive and have patience. It is our time to follow God and lead our way to Him when all falls against us. We must always follow the Lord. We must always lead ourselves away from the harm of evil.
20.1.10
Two Wolves
An elderly Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life...
He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me, it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
One wolf is evil -- he is fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, competition, superiority, and ego.
The other is good---he is joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.
This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too."
They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied: "The one you feed".
17.1.10
Faith is a Muscle You Exercise
Just as the body needs to keep in shape so does the Spirit. Bottom line is you cannot keep your spirit in shape and in check without exercising your spirit by Faith. Church is like a gym. The Holy Ghost is your personal trainer. Reading and applying commandments is like your work out and eating healthy is like learning true doctrines. Just as we have a body that needs our care and respect so do we have a spirit that can get weak and have problems without proper care and respect. Work it out!
14.1.10
Temptation Analogy
Temptation is like a balloon that keeps inflating in your face. As it grows and grows, you become more and more annoyed. Finally, you come to the conclusion that you have to do something to get out of this situation. All you can think to stop it is to pop it, but, all you have to do is let it go.
12.1.10
Do What You Want
Sometimes, I find myself confused over the things I want to do and the things I should do. This might be startling but I honestly believe its better to do the thing you want more than the thing you think you should. Because, you can't do a good thing and have it count with God unless you have real intent. Otherwise its not an accepted offering. Moroni says "except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing" -7:6 and this popular scripture in Doctrine and Covenants 58:26-29 says-
For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.
Often I think I should do this or do that and will look for clues but I find that sometimes its just because I'm lazy and don't really care either way but still want to do the right thing. Bu,t "For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
I knew a lot of missionaries in my mission who didn't want to be there. They didn't believe and were only there to appease either their parents or to just have that self righteous title of being a "Returned Missionary" and I wish we could have returned them. I appreciated that they did something they thought they should but what does it profit anyone to do something without real intent or with secret intents? Its mockery.
Do what you want. Do it with real intent. Don't take the sacrament unless you do it with the proper preparation and mentality for it to actually profit you. Remember it is not by works you are saved but by faith. You could be a great person but if you don't have faith then no amount of good choices will save you or give you God's approval.
Doctrine and Covenants 8: 10- "Without faith you can do nothing."
For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.
Often I think I should do this or do that and will look for clues but I find that sometimes its just because I'm lazy and don't really care either way but still want to do the right thing. Bu,t "For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
I knew a lot of missionaries in my mission who didn't want to be there. They didn't believe and were only there to appease either their parents or to just have that self righteous title of being a "Returned Missionary" and I wish we could have returned them. I appreciated that they did something they thought they should but what does it profit anyone to do something without real intent or with secret intents? Its mockery.
Do what you want. Do it with real intent. Don't take the sacrament unless you do it with the proper preparation and mentality for it to actually profit you. Remember it is not by works you are saved but by faith. You could be a great person but if you don't have faith then no amount of good choices will save you or give you God's approval.
Doctrine and Covenants 8: 10- "Without faith you can do nothing."
4.1.10
The Problem of Faith
In the science community we are always taught that results matter, that experiments, and evidences is the only way to know. It is the same with spiritual matters for to gain knowledge we must first exercise faith and be willing to experiment on the word or the spiritual promptings. James tells us that "Faith without works is dead" and Christ says something to the effect of "If ye have faith of a mustard seed ye can move mountains." This kind of faith requires our effort. But, not just any effort. Faith is a spiritual thing and thus requires spiritual effort. It requires our humility and patience.
The problem is that exercising faith is hard. It is work and it needs us to be responsible over it. If you have faith you are either growing or diminishing because it is a living thing within you. If you cast it away or neglect it, then like a plant withering in winter, you will lose what knowledge you had from your faith.
Faith is a seed that if we plant it and nourish it, then we will begin to view the evidences of it and then you can say that Jesus Christ and His teachings are what they purport to be. But, we cannot blame or call the seed a liar for not growing, if we don't plant it and nourish it.
It requires faith to turn on a light switch. It requires faith to shoot a basketball or even get out of bed in the morning. Behold, we might have knowledge but we don't have a perfect knowledge of all things and do we really know what the next moment will bring?
As Nephi said he was "led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." (1 Nephi 4:6). He didn't know beforehand but He had faith in the Spirit of God and thats really all the knowledge we must have concerning our lives- that God will guide you as you exercise faith in Him. Exercise as you would your body.
The ways to grow your faith are simple and small things but can "move mountains." Here are a few most common ones-
1. Prayer- give thanks, ask for things you need, recognize your unworthiness before God
2. Scripture Study- try to explore what they mean and why God would want you to know them
3. Attend church meetings- share experiences or learn from other's testimonies and build relationships on common beliefs
4. Ponder on teachings and how to live the commandments better- when you ponder the teachings they can more fully be put into your outlook on life and you can more easily understand their depth
5. Be mindful of spiritual promptings- the spirit will bring things to our minds that are able to guide us or help others
I know these things will bless you spiritually and give you faith that will surely yield fruit and grow strong over time.
The problem is that exercising faith is hard. It is work and it needs us to be responsible over it. If you have faith you are either growing or diminishing because it is a living thing within you. If you cast it away or neglect it, then like a plant withering in winter, you will lose what knowledge you had from your faith.
Faith is a seed that if we plant it and nourish it, then we will begin to view the evidences of it and then you can say that Jesus Christ and His teachings are what they purport to be. But, we cannot blame or call the seed a liar for not growing, if we don't plant it and nourish it.
It requires faith to turn on a light switch. It requires faith to shoot a basketball or even get out of bed in the morning. Behold, we might have knowledge but we don't have a perfect knowledge of all things and do we really know what the next moment will bring?
As Nephi said he was "led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." (1 Nephi 4:6). He didn't know beforehand but He had faith in the Spirit of God and thats really all the knowledge we must have concerning our lives- that God will guide you as you exercise faith in Him. Exercise as you would your body.
The ways to grow your faith are simple and small things but can "move mountains." Here are a few most common ones-
1. Prayer- give thanks, ask for things you need, recognize your unworthiness before God
2. Scripture Study- try to explore what they mean and why God would want you to know them
3. Attend church meetings- share experiences or learn from other's testimonies and build relationships on common beliefs
4. Ponder on teachings and how to live the commandments better- when you ponder the teachings they can more fully be put into your outlook on life and you can more easily understand their depth
5. Be mindful of spiritual promptings- the spirit will bring things to our minds that are able to guide us or help others
I know these things will bless you spiritually and give you faith that will surely yield fruit and grow strong over time.
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