To Run and Not Be Weary.

More success points! Are you ready?

1. You have to run faster, even though you're out of breath.

Back in November, our mission ran a 5K (3 miles). Just so you understand, I am not a runner. I love sprinting, but long distance? It really isn't my favorite thing on the face of the planet. Training and getting ready for this has been one of the hardest things that I have ever done. I worked really hard, and there were some days were I just didn't want to try running anymore. My goal was to finish in 40 minutes. I ran a practice on the Saturday before, and finished at 38 minutes! When the actual run came, I finished again in 38 minutes. I was so proud of myself. I have never done nor thought I ever could do anything like that.

On occasion, we feel tired spiritually. Things don't go our way, or we feel like we can't do the run anymore. If we only prayed to our Heavenly Father when we were in trouble, we would be in trouble. Those moments when we don't feel like going to church, reading our scriptures, or praying are the moments when we need to the most. From the Book of Mormon, we read that,

"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; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."

-2 Nephi 31: 19-20 (Emphasis added)

Keep pushing forward! As you keep moving, you will find God blessing you with strength to go miles beyond what you first imagined possible.

2. You have to fight when you are already injured, bloody, and sore.

This is basically the same principle as above. When we go through a trial, we feel very battered afterwards. After running both my trial 5k and the actual 5k, I was sore! Hard times can put us through the ringer! However, when we remember that there is something to learn in every hardship, trials become easier. Having an eternal perspective makes all the difference!

The key is remembering that your weak things can become strengths. When we feel weak, the best place to turn is to the Savior. He exhorted,

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."-Matthew 11:28

Christ felt each of your scars before you experienced them. Trust that he knows how you feel. When you are denied multiple times, childhood dreams become harder than you thought, or things aren't working out, remember who felt all that first. Stand tall and push forward. The greatest Being who ever lived has already won your fight!

3. You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that are unparalleled. 

For this section, I would like to refer you to my post titled "Because of Him". Jesus Christ's atoning sacrifice makes it possible to overcome the greatest obstacles- sin and death. We can do anything, because of Jesus Christ! One of my favorite scriptures comes from the book of Romans, in the Bible. It reads,

"Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

-Romans 8: 34-35, 37-39

Because nothing can separate us from the love of God, nothing can separate us from his ultimate act of love- his atoning sacrifice. When we rely on the ennobling power of the atonement, we will be strengthened. I know quite a few people that I have looked at and thought, "I could never do what you have done, or go through what you have gone through." I am reminded every time I think something similar that everyone's challenges are individual, and because of Jesus Christ's atonement, we can meet deadlines and deliver results beyond reason. All because Christ did it first. I am so grateful for his atonement that makes it possible for each of us to overcome trials and come out on top- every time. Have faith in Christ. Trust in him. Humbly follow the Son of God, and I promise that you will feel his guidance and power in your life!

He Is the Gift.

CHRISTMAS.

What's the first thing you think of? Presents, trees, snow...presents. Hopefully family falls in there somewhere. Christmas is a really busy time- shopping, food, crazy grandchildren. There are so many different things going on that we lose a little of what is really going on.

I learned this lesson so powerfully last year. As a missionary, we don't have a whole lot of stuff. I had the chance to teach people about the importance of Christ during the time we celebrate his birth. He is the Son of God. He was born in a stable in the most humble and lowly of circumstances. Said Jeffery R. Holland,

"I wonder if (Joseph) felt the sting of tears as he hurriedly tried to find the cleanest straw and hold the animals back. I wonder if 
he wondered: “Could there be a more unhealthy, a more disease-ridden, a more despicable circumstance in which a child could be born? Is this a place fit for a king? Should the mother of the Son of God be asked to enter the valley of the shadow of death in such a foul and unfamiliar place as this? Is it wrong to wish her some comfort? Is it right He should be born here?” But I am certain Joseph did not mutter and Mary did not wail. They knew a great deal and did the best they could. Perhaps these parents knew even then that in the beginning of his mortal life, as well as in the end, this baby son born to them would have to descend beneath every human pain and disappointment. He would do so to help those who also felt they had been born without advantage."

(https://www.lds.org/ensign/1977/12/maybe-christmas-doesnt-come-from-a-store?lang=eng)

To help those who also felt they had been born without advantage. What a statement. Jesus Christ was born in such a way as to better understand and identify with you. The Lord of Hosts and King of Kings was born on this earth as a gift to both you and me. A gift is different than a present- gifts require something of you. Jesus Christ was a gift to us. God watched His Only Begotten Son be born in the humblest of places and grow into a man who would always be doing His will, and always be rejected for it. He watched His precious Son preform the atonement, feeling every emotion in the human spectrum. He watched as His Son hung on the cross, blood dripping from both his hands and his crown of thorns. He watched as His Son arose three days later triumphant over the grave, making it possible for all His other children to do the same.

This season, remember Christ. Remember that he is the gift- the ultimate gift. Give more than you get, and then give more. Forgive that person you've been holding a grudge against. Spend time with your family, playing games and telling stories. Read the Bible of the birth of your Savior, both together and individually. Take time to ponder what it means to you, and what you can do to give it even more meaning. When you do, share what you learn with others. Embrace the gift of Christ, and share that gift with all around you in the way that you live and what you say. As you do, I promise you peace. His teachings will improve the quality of your life as you learn and follow him more closely. I know he is the Son of God. I know he lives, and I know that he is the gift!

Turn That Frown Upside Down.

I wanna take a break from some of the pre-written steps of success to write one of my own! Look at me, being all creative...I'll go back to the list next time!

1. You won't get anywhere without the right attitude.

Attitude is everything! If you don't have the right attitude about something, you won't get very far. Think about it. If you were asked to clean your room, and you did it with a grumpy disposition, were you very productive? Probably not. But if you did it with some good music going, happily dancing around...could you see the floor after a few minutes? I know I sure could!

Our mission came up with something called the Loser List. It's a list of attitudes or attributes that we don't want to have. It goes as follows...

The Loser List

Self-justification

Denial

Excuses

Blame

Apathy

Self-pity

Victim

Hiding

Running away

Lying

Covering up

Procrastination

Indecision

Rebellion

Anger

Judging

Gossiping

Complacency

Demanding

Giving up

Withholding forgiveness

Pride

Jesus taught that we should become like him. Are any of those things you can imagine Christ doing? I have a hard time seeing him giving up, or lying. He is the best example of the opposites of all these things. So what are some of those opposites? Lucky for you, I've already made a list!

The Winner List!

Self-justification/Responsible

Denial/Acceptance

Excuses/Accountability

Blame/Accountability

Apathy/Faith in Christ

Self-pity/Service

Victim/Prevail to the end

Hiding/Accountability

Running away/Faith in Christ

Lying/ Integrity

Covering up/Obedience

Procrastination/Diligence

Indecision/Knowledge, Faith in Christ

Rebellion/Humility

Anger/Patience

Judging/Contentment

Gossiping/Virtue

Complacency/Diligence

Demanding/Patience, Humility

Giving up/Hope

Withholding forgiveness/Charity

Pride/Patience, Charity

Doesn't reading all those good things make you feel so much better? Developing the attributes of Christ builds a better character, and that in turn builds a better attitude. If we turn to Christ and change our natures, we will find the best kind of success- the success of becoming who God knows we can be!

Prevail to the End, Part Two!

Per request, I am going to keep going with the 19 Things to Help You Find Success, and how the gospel of Jesus Christ can help you find that! I'll do two or three at a time till all nineteen are on here. The few for today are going to deal mainly with how to handle failure, or what the world would term as failure. So, to start...

1. You have to make mistakes and look like an idiot.

This is one of my favorites, probably because I am so good at it! However, I'm going to change this one a little bit. If I had written this, I would have taken out the part about looking like an idiot. 

We know that everything good comes from God. Satan, on the other hand, wants us to feel bad about ourselves, especially when we make a mistake. So, when you do goof up a little, don't spend time convincing yourself that you are dumb or stupid. Don't let anyone else convince you of that, either. Mistakes are a part of life!

Think of the story of Adam and Eve. From the Book of Mormon, we learn a little about what their life was like in the beginning. As you read this, pay attention to the fruits of Adam and Eve's mistake (see what I did there?).

"...if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end. And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin...Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy."

-2 Nephi 2: 22-23, 25

If Adam had not eaten of the same fruit as Eve, we would not be here! Our Father in Heaven's plan would not have moved forward. Our mistakes, if we learn from them, will help us to progress. If we never did anything wrong, would we know what was right? If we always won every activity we did, would we know the motivation losing sometimes gives us? Would we appreciate what we have? The answer is no. God will make everything for our gain. So the next time you make a mistake, remember to take it as a chance to progress!

2. You have to try, fail, and try again.

Like we just talked about, failure is a part of success. The two always come together. Some people get stuck in the try, fail, and give up cycle. The task they are trying to complete starts to look unconquerable because they haven't made it in the first, or even the second try. Does this sound like something you have felt before?

The easiest way to get out of discouragement is to increase in hope. Hope will lead us to faith, and vice versa. For me, having a hope in Jesus Christ helps give me the desire to pick myself up and keep going. A favorite verse of mine in the Book of Mormon reads that,

"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

-Ether 12: 4

From that verse, I have come to understand that having hope in Jesus Christ will make me a sure and steadfast person. By being sure and steadfast, I will be lead to doing good things. Even if I don't see right away the results of those good works, I have hope that they are there, and I feel better about trying again. The Lord looks at our hearts. Are our desires in the right place? Any continuous act on a righteous desire can be counted as a success. What you learn in the process of trying, trying, and trying again will be more valuable to you than it would have been if you had completed something perfectly the first time.

3. You have to feel unsure and insecure when playing it safe seems smarter.

This is another really good one. Remember how we talked about growing pains? Lots of people know the phrase that if there is no pain, there is no gain. Think of some of the most rewarding experiences you have had. Did they come as you watched from the sidelines, enjoying a nice warm seat? Was it when you simply

strode on stage and received Participation award? Hopefully not! I would think that many of the rewarding experiences each of us have had come from those moments when we stepped out of the dark shell we call comfort and into the shining light of vulnerability. Nothing easy is ever worth it. The experiences that push us to walk a little straighter and stand a little taller are evidences that God is taking the time to work out our wrinkles. Because our Heavenly Father loves us, He wants us to become our best. In 2011, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said,

"“Look for the way that the Lord will consecrate your affliction for your gain...He loves you. He wants you to have the choicest blessings that God has for you. When we do the things that God has commanded us to do, it causes us to be closer to our Savior. We can hear His voice through the Holy Ghost. We can feel the peace He speaks to our hearts. And we can know that our feet are on the path that leads us to our Heavenly Father and to exaltation.”

-Dallin H. Oaks (https://www.lds.org/prophets-and-apostles/unto-all-the-world/rising-from-the-rubble?lang=eng)

Don't be afraid to step out there! One of my past companions shared a story with me about her mother. Every time she would tell her mom that something scared her, her mother would encourage her to do it so that she could conquer her fear. Now, when she feels scared about something, she remembers the advice and support from her mom. Our Heavenly Father does the same for us. He prompts us to become better, and on occasion, that pushes us somewhere we haven't been before. The only change we need to be afraid of is the change that brings us farther away from Christ. Draw closer to Christ by overcoming your fears and becoming who our Father in Heaven knows we can be!

Prevail to the End

While going through one of my mission binders, I found a paper tucked in the back that I had forgotten about. It is called "19 Things to Help You Find Success". For the life of me, I can't remember where it came from, but as I read them again, I was struck by some of these principles! So many of us want to be successful. We want to achieve, to excel, and to progress. That is what we were sent here on earth to do. The way that we do that is by overcoming obstacles we encounter in our lifetime. I want to talk about two or three of the success points, and how the gospel of Jesus Christ helps us to overcome our challenges so that we can ultimately prevail.

1. You have to be kind to people who have been cruel to you. 

Marvin J. Ashton once said,

"Greatness is best measured by how well an individual responds to the happenings in life that appear to be totally unfair, unreasonable, and undeserved."

https://www.lds.org/bible-videos/videos/to-this-end-was-i-born?lang=eng#gallery=

Not every relationship we have is going to be all sunshine and roses. When we choose to rise above retaliation and spite for wrong actions done to us, we choose to place ourselves on a higher ground. I can think of no better example of this than that of the Savior. He faced the worst kinds of mistreatment. He was spit upon, called names, and mocked on all levels. He heard thousands crying for his crucifiction. However, Christ's love for them overpowered their actions towards him. While on the cross, he plead with the Father on their behalf.

"Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

-Luke 23: 34

Now, I am not perfect at this. However, the peace I have found from forgiving is incredible. Forgiving brings an increase of self-confidence that would otherwise hide under anger and frustration. If forgiving is hard, pray and ask God to help you love those that have harmed you. As you do your best to journey towards forgiving others, you will find that God will be your biggest support. The best way to counteract hate is to be filled with the pure love of God!

2. You have to invest in yourself even though no one else is. 

I do want to make a slight correction to this one. If I had been smart enough to write these, I would put that you have to invest in yourself because someone else is. You are a child of God! Could you imagine that, as his child, God would not do His very best to help you make the highest achievements possible? I love the way that Paul explains this concept.

"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ...For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

-Romans 8: 16- 18

I love this! All of our hardships on earth don't even compare to the glory inside each of us! Doesn't that just make you feel a little more special? Growing pains are good, because it means that our loving Heavenly Father is taking the time to help us grow. We shouldn't back down from the divine potential bursting out of each of us! Marianne Williamson put it so beautifully when she said,

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

- Marianne Williamson

Don't live your life in fear believing that no one cares about you. Live in faith, believing that God is rooting for you and will help you shine!

3. You have to keep moving forward towards where you want to be no matter what's in front of you.

During this life, we must walk by faith. There are some things that we cannot see nor hear, but can still know with absolute certainty that they are there. Have faith that Heavenly Father has a plan for  you. Read your scriptures, pray, and be in places where you can feel his influence so that you can know what that plan is. Even if things don't seem to be working out, following the direction of the Holy Ghost will lead you to events and circumstances that will make you a better person. Matthew Holland, son of Jeffery R. Holland, explained that,

"Sometimes in response to prayers, the Lord may guide us down what seems to be the wrong road—or at least a road we don’t understand—so, in due time, He can get us firmly and without question on the right road. Of course, He would never lead us down a path of sin, but He might lead us down a road of valuable experience. Sometimes in our journey through life we can get from point A to point C only by taking a short side road to point B."

-Matthew Holland, Wrong Roads and Revelation, July 2005 New Era

I know that my experiences in life haven't all been pleasant, but I also know that each one of them has gotten me exactly where I needed to be and have kept me on the path of where I needed to go. Continue in confidence to follow the teachings of the Savior, even when it may seem that everything is fighting for you to stop. Continue in confidence to be an example of Christ, even if you have to stand as that example alone. I promise that as you keep moving forward in faith, you will find within yourself greater strength to make the best of all that this life will hand you.

Walking By Faith and Not Sight

This morning, I was studying the Book of Mormon and found some interesting life principles. The  Book of Mormon begins in Jerusalem with the prophet Lehi and his family. They have been commanded to leave the city because God is going to destroy it, and the Jews want to take Lehi's life. Nephi and Sam, the younger brothers, go willingly. However, Laman and Lemuel, the older brothers, complain and murmur the whole way.

"And it came to pass that the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness. And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him. And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness...And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their father. And they did murmur because they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them."

(1 Nephi 2: 1-3, 12)

I love the faith of Lehi and Nephi. Leaving everything behind must have seemed hard, but they believed that God had something greater in store for them. In fact, a short time after, Nephi is promised some amazing blessings from God about being a ruler, teacher, great nations, and a promised land as inheritance. That alone shows that the Lord is going to bless the faithful with things greater than what they left behind. Like all other blessings, they are based upon faithfulness. Then, Lehi tells Nephi that he needs to go back to retrieve important knowledge about their ancestors, and revelations about Christ's coming. Nephi doesn't say, "Come on! The Lord just told me I am going to have all these great things! He's already promised them to me. I already have them, so why can't I have them now?!" Instead, his reply was full of faith and obedience. He said he would go, because he had a testimony now that God could make anything possible when he asks it of us. Lehi is then relieved, and he knows that Nephi has been blessed with obedience and diligence.

"...Laban hath the record of the Jews and also a genealogy of my forefathers, and they are engraven upon plates of brass. Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness. And now, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a hard thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them, but it is a commandment of the Lord... I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. And it came to pass that when my father had heard these words he was exceedingly glad, for he knew that I had been blessed of the Lord."

(1 Nephi 3: 3-5, 7-8)

Laman and Lemuel, however, aren't feeling the same way as Nephi. They go on this adventure, but they do so begrudgingly. They don't want to, because they don't believe in the promises of God. After a failed first attempt, they want to quit!

Both in missions and in normal lives, we sometimes do the same. We are promised blessings, are asked to do something from God, and we do it. But when we aren't given blessings immediately, we become discouraged. We start to think "I am doing all the right things. I am being obedient and following commandments! Why am I not being blessed for it? Doesn't Heavenly Father see what I'm doing?"

One of the greatest lessons my own dad taught me was that everything is more appreciated and special to us when we work for and earn it ourselves. If Heavenly Father just gave us blessings immediately all the time, would we appreciate them as much? Would we value them as highly as we do if we didn't have to do anything for them? Laman and Lemuel didn't want to work to receive a reward. They wanted it to be easy so that they could go home and complain more. Nephi, however, still had a testimony that God was striving with them. He taught his brother's a little about the principle of faith in adversity, and then continued forward.

Sometimes, God doesn't give us immediately what we want or need because He wants us to be faithful and diligent. The blessings we get will be much sweeter and more rewarding when we have put our whole selves towards them. We may start to feel that if we aren't seeing

results, then we aren't being obedient. That may be the case, but more often than not it is simply because our Father in heaven wants us to learn to trust him and be faithful/diligent to what he has already asked us to do! The Lord is always aware, and will bless us at the perfect moment according to his perfect timing!

The Two Word Sermon

A part of being on this earth is imperfection. As humans, we tend to judge one another based off of those imperfections. This is called bullying, and it comes as a result of pride. President Ezra Taft Benson described perfectly what pride is and how it effects us.

"Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart, or core, is still missing. The central feature of pride is enmity—enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means “hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.” It is the power by which Satan wishes to reign over us...We are tempted daily to elevate ourselves above others and diminish them."

(https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/04/beware-of-pride?lang=eng)

When we no longer have love or even an inclination of true kindness towards the people around us, we fall to pride. It truly is the stem and root to all other sins. It tells us that we are better than everyone else, therefore we are higher than the people around us. C.S. Lewis once said,

“Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. … It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone.”

- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

God did not create us to be above or even beneath one another. Pride doesn't just come from the top down, but also from the bottom up. From the same talk, President Benson stated that,

"Most of us consider pride to be a sin of those on the top, such as the rich and the learned, looking down at the rest of us. (See 2 Ne. 9:42.) There is, however, a far more common ailment among us—and that is pride from the bottom looking up. It is manifest in so many ways, such as faultfinding, gossiping, backbiting, murmuring, living beyond our means, envying, coveting, withholding gratitude and praise that might lift another, and being unforgiving and jealous."

(https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/04/beware-of-pride?lang=eng)

There is no possible way that a person can treat another in such an un-Christlike way and feel good about themselves and even if they do, the effects are temporary. That is because nothing that comes from Satan is permanent. That isn't how it works. The only way to have true, lasting happiness is by following the example of Jesus Christ. Never have I read an account of Christ calling someone names. Never once have I read an account of Christ demeaning another person. Never once have I read an account of Christ complaining, exalting himself, or expressing jealousy of another. All of the accounts of the Savior are of love. In fact, when asked what the greatest commandment was, he responded,

"...Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

(Matthew 22: 37-39)

A good way to measure where we are on the path of following this is by answering a few questions.

1. Do you harbor a grudge against someone else?

2. Do you gossip, even when what you say may be true?

3. Do you exclude, push away, or punish others because of something they have done?

4. Do you secretly envy another?

5. Do you wish to cause harm to someone?

If you are hesitant in answering any of these, may I suggest a two word sermon given by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf-

Stop it.

It is that simple. We are here to act and not be acted upon. We have the ability to overcome the natural man tendencies that tell us it is ok to harm another person, or that it is right. Let us become more like the Savior and strive to develop charity for all those around us. If we have the goal to keep the commandments, we will love God. When we love God, we will see beyond the earthly imperfections of others. We will love them for who they are inherently- brothers and sisters of God right along with us. The best way to overcome pride and the effects of is praying for and developing a character of love. I have felt such a change in my own life as I have learned to love and forgive. I promise that it is possible to see past imperfections and love people for who they can become!