January 14, 2019 - Week 31
Hi Jon!
Well I'm 47 years old today. What an accomplishment! At least I'm still breathing and that's something not all of my friends can say. I don't love birthdays but have come to realize that even though I don't want to celebrate, other people do want to celebrate it because they love me and that's something to cherish. Yesterday mom made a lemon cake for me and tacos for dinner and today Chris and Rebecca are taking me out to lunch so I'm a blessed man. Getting older sucks but it's better than the alternative! No complaints here.
The accomplishment I'm most proud of is sticking with crossfit for over a year now. I still am not lifting the RX weights during my workouts nor can I nail every exercise. I still have severe problems with pull-ups, handstands, and squatting heavy weights. But I have seen a lot of improvement in my performance and mobility and mom says my shoulders are getting really wide. It's not like I want to be a bodybuilder or an underwear model but at least I'm not giving up entirely and being out of shape as I get older.
I went skiing last week but didn't have a great experience. We got 35 inches of snow which you think would be amazing but back mountain was closed due to avalanche danger for two days and then grizzly ridge wasn't groomed for a few days I don't know why so it got really trashed and bumpy. I'm going up after school today so we'll see if the grooming is any better.
I bought season tickets for BYU mens volleyball this year and the season started this week. The first match was against Ohio State which beat us in the national championship last year and we beat them in straight sets. On Saturday we played Ball State and beat them in straight sets before. There are more than 12 home matches we'll go to this season so I'm sure you'll be sick of hearing all the updates.
Chance performed in a play called Annie this week. We saw it and Chance did a really good job. In this production Chance had speaking roles as well as singing and dance routines. He played a character called Rooster who pretends to be Annie's parents to get a reward from Daddy Warbucks. I was impressed by how much confidence he had on stage and it really was a much bigger role than he has had in previous performances. Chance seems to love it and is signing up to do even more shows in 2019.
In your last letter you mentioned that the other missionaries ridicule you for trying to be obedient and I have a few thoughts I wanted to share about that. One of the most important covenants in the temple is the law of obedience, right? Obedience is one of the easiest laws to follow because it doesn't require any new skills or experience - even the smallest child can do it. But it's also one of the most important laws. You can't follow the law of consecration until Heavenly Father gives you money or a job. You can't follow the word of wisdom or the law of chastity until Heavenly Father gives you a body. The only thing you really have that Heavenly Father didn't give you is your agency or will, and that is what you are giving him when you follow the law of obedience.
As a missionary there is another part of the story though. The spirit is like a fine-edged knife. It resides in you and everything that you do will either sharpen or dull it. If the spirit is dulled, you will not be as effective. You may still baptize but you could have gotten more had you been more in tune with the spirit. How do you dull the spirit? That obedience thing is the best way. So stay obedient and keep the spirit finely-tuned. It’s like shaving with a dull razor. You can still shave with it and it works - but to me there is nothing like a brand new one. The hair just falls off and I do not get a rash underneath my neck with a new razor. You keep your razor very sharp by being obedient. You will get a rash under your neck by being disobedient. Some elders completely lose the spirit and really go out and cost themselves an eternity of problems.
Remember when King David was not doing what he was supposed to be doing? He was supposed to be in some meetings and did not go. This was the first mistake. Watch how this compounded on him. Then he saw this naked chick taking a bath. Well he lost the spirit. He went to the dark side of the force. The dark side is as strong as the good side. Remember David could have recovered from this, but since he lost the spirit he said to his guards “That chick is a babe. I’ve got to talk to her - that is all I want to do.” Now because he lost the spirit he did something even worse. Then he makes an even stupider move by sleeping with her. Now he has totally lost the spirit. By this time, he is almost at Satan’s mercy. Then when it cannot get any worse, he has her husband murdered. David really went to the dark side.
The lesson to be learned is that little tiny infractions cause you to lose the spirit. These little tiny infractions can cause you to quickly make larger infractions, which can cause you to really screw up. Stay obedient and keep the spirit. (Use the Force) The path to the dark side is easy. Control your feelings and the force will be with you. Always.
Love,
Dad
Well I'm 47 years old today. What an accomplishment! At least I'm still breathing and that's something not all of my friends can say. I don't love birthdays but have come to realize that even though I don't want to celebrate, other people do want to celebrate it because they love me and that's something to cherish. Yesterday mom made a lemon cake for me and tacos for dinner and today Chris and Rebecca are taking me out to lunch so I'm a blessed man. Getting older sucks but it's better than the alternative! No complaints here.
The accomplishment I'm most proud of is sticking with crossfit for over a year now. I still am not lifting the RX weights during my workouts nor can I nail every exercise. I still have severe problems with pull-ups, handstands, and squatting heavy weights. But I have seen a lot of improvement in my performance and mobility and mom says my shoulders are getting really wide. It's not like I want to be a bodybuilder or an underwear model but at least I'm not giving up entirely and being out of shape as I get older.
I went skiing last week but didn't have a great experience. We got 35 inches of snow which you think would be amazing but back mountain was closed due to avalanche danger for two days and then grizzly ridge wasn't groomed for a few days I don't know why so it got really trashed and bumpy. I'm going up after school today so we'll see if the grooming is any better.
I bought season tickets for BYU mens volleyball this year and the season started this week. The first match was against Ohio State which beat us in the national championship last year and we beat them in straight sets. On Saturday we played Ball State and beat them in straight sets before. There are more than 12 home matches we'll go to this season so I'm sure you'll be sick of hearing all the updates.
Chance performed in a play called Annie this week. We saw it and Chance did a really good job. In this production Chance had speaking roles as well as singing and dance routines. He played a character called Rooster who pretends to be Annie's parents to get a reward from Daddy Warbucks. I was impressed by how much confidence he had on stage and it really was a much bigger role than he has had in previous performances. Chance seems to love it and is signing up to do even more shows in 2019.
In your last letter you mentioned that the other missionaries ridicule you for trying to be obedient and I have a few thoughts I wanted to share about that. One of the most important covenants in the temple is the law of obedience, right? Obedience is one of the easiest laws to follow because it doesn't require any new skills or experience - even the smallest child can do it. But it's also one of the most important laws. You can't follow the law of consecration until Heavenly Father gives you money or a job. You can't follow the word of wisdom or the law of chastity until Heavenly Father gives you a body. The only thing you really have that Heavenly Father didn't give you is your agency or will, and that is what you are giving him when you follow the law of obedience.
As a missionary there is another part of the story though. The spirit is like a fine-edged knife. It resides in you and everything that you do will either sharpen or dull it. If the spirit is dulled, you will not be as effective. You may still baptize but you could have gotten more had you been more in tune with the spirit. How do you dull the spirit? That obedience thing is the best way. So stay obedient and keep the spirit finely-tuned. It’s like shaving with a dull razor. You can still shave with it and it works - but to me there is nothing like a brand new one. The hair just falls off and I do not get a rash underneath my neck with a new razor. You keep your razor very sharp by being obedient. You will get a rash under your neck by being disobedient. Some elders completely lose the spirit and really go out and cost themselves an eternity of problems.
Remember when King David was not doing what he was supposed to be doing? He was supposed to be in some meetings and did not go. This was the first mistake. Watch how this compounded on him. Then he saw this naked chick taking a bath. Well he lost the spirit. He went to the dark side of the force. The dark side is as strong as the good side. Remember David could have recovered from this, but since he lost the spirit he said to his guards “That chick is a babe. I’ve got to talk to her - that is all I want to do.” Now because he lost the spirit he did something even worse. Then he makes an even stupider move by sleeping with her. Now he has totally lost the spirit. By this time, he is almost at Satan’s mercy. Then when it cannot get any worse, he has her husband murdered. David really went to the dark side.
The lesson to be learned is that little tiny infractions cause you to lose the spirit. These little tiny infractions can cause you to quickly make larger infractions, which can cause you to really screw up. Stay obedient and keep the spirit. (Use the Force) The path to the dark side is easy. Control your feelings and the force will be with you. Always.
Love,
Dad
Comments
Post a Comment