You Are What You Eat

There are a lot of things in the world that compete for our attention.  Whether it is the media, school, friends, religion.  A lot of things are beckoning for our attention.  Our personality, even our character, is determined by our choice of activities and things we do.  It makes sense, what is taken in is what comes out.  If you plant a apple seed, you can expect a apple tree.  There would be no reason to expect a orange tree.

Superbowl

It's playoffs.  The Superbowl is coming fast.  This is the time when the best teams put it all on the line in pursuit of the Lombardi trophy.  Down to the final 4 teams.  The weather is cold, fans are going crazy, and the whole season is on the line.  Doesn't get much better than this.  It is a epic struggle of strength, talent, and wits.  Lots can be said, but it all comes down to what happens on the turf.

Life is a lot the same!  This is it, our mortal experience!  All eternity is based on how we "perform" here in life.  We are fighting against a rough opponent, who is willing to do all it takes to drag us down.  The season is short, some of us might already be in the late 4th quarter.  It is hard, but we have a good coach behind us.  His name is Jesus Christ.  He has been in this big game before.  He had a perfect "season."  He knows the way to victory.  He has given us a super playbook, the scriptures.  He is cheering us on and willing to help in any way to see us win! 

What is the purpose of life?

"Near the end of his life, one father looked back on how he had spent his time on earth. An acclaimed, respected author of numerous scholarly works, he said, “I wish I had written one less book and taken my children fishing more often.”

Time passes quickly. Many parents say that it seems like yesterday that their children were born. Now those children are grown, perhaps with children of their own. “Where did the years go?” they ask. We cannot call back time that is past, we cannot stop time that now is, and we cannot experience the future in our present state. Time is a gift, a treasure not to be put aside for the future but to be used wisely in the present."  This is a quote from Thomas S. Monson from his talk "Dedication Day." 

Justice and Mercy

Rules are great and terrible, depends on which side you are on.  They are important to keep us safe, and they allow us to grow.  What happens if rules are established that we can't possibly live up to?  We are all found in this predicament.  The rules are the rules of Heaven.  We all agreed to live them before we even came to earth, so that we could have a chance to progress.  The problem is that in order to succeed we have to be perfect.  If we can't do it, how can it be paid in full?  I was reading through some old Ensigns the other night, one talk really caught my attention.  I have included a quote from it.  The talk is from James E. Faust.  It's title is, The Atonement: Our Greatest Hope.  This part really stuck out to me:

Why do bad things happen to good people?

Why do bad things happen to good people?   He didn't do anything wrong; why did that happen to him?  These are a couple of examples of questions that some of us have.  I have heard these a few times on my mission.  I have also heard with these the connection between problems happening to good people and the drastic assumption of there not being a God.  This is a bold and not true claim.  I will write about an example of bad things happening to good people, and how they used God to overcome.  My purpose in writing this is to help others more understand the purpose of trials in life, and that how we react to them affects the outcome of the whole experience.

Sick and Tired

For the past few days I have been sick.  It is no fun being sick.  I have a cold; the sore throat is not any fun.  I have been takeing medicine, but I still don't know what is wrong.  The weather has been really cold.  This isn't helping my cause.  I think I need to figure out something different to get rid of this.  Maybe I need to recoup.  On this same subject, I would like to address those of us who may be sick and tired, spiritually, who haven't been able to find help.  To get better takes medicine, it takes change, and it takes time.  Just like what I am going through with the cold, concoring spiritual sickness takes this too.

The Greatest Act Ever Done

I wish to write about the Atonement.  This is the single most important act in all human history.  There is so much I could say about this, but I will only write just a little.  With reverence I wish to address this topic.  First I would like to address why it is so important.  Jacob, a Prophet from the Book of Mormon, wrote,

"Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement—save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more. O the wisdom of God, his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the Eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more. " (2 Nephi 9:7-8)

How can we find stability in a world of trouble?

I can't begin to count how many times on my mission I have heard, many times in many ways, people express a voice of concern because of all the bad in the world.  This is a topic that weighs on a lot of our minds.  I feel like there is a push to find stability and safety.  In the world there is much concern and confusion.  In this quest to find safety physically and spiritually, we must turn to God. 

When we turn to God we seek His Spirit and His words.  We can receive council from God as we study the scriptures.  The scriptures are God's word given to man through His Prophets.  Nephi, a Prophet in the Book of Mormon, said this about the scriptures, "And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would  hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction."  This is found in 1 Nephi 15:24.  If we desire to be safe and have peace, we must study the scriptures.

Be Happy

I have meet a lot of different people on my mission with all sourts of backgrounds.  Some people are wealthier than others, some have more family members, and some are more outgoing.  Even with all of these different backgrounds, everyone seems to have a mutual purpose in life.  The purpose is to be happy.  I have seen that there are a lot of different ideas on how we can be happy or have fun.  I would like to suggest a way that has greatly influenced my life.  The way I have found to true happiness is through God, our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ's sacrifice.  The way to happiness is following Christ's example.  His example is a one of obediance to God's commandments.  We as people do fall short, but that is what his sacrifice is for.