Priorities: The True Measure of Devotion

Priorities: The True Measure of Devotion

Lately I've been compelled to take a hard look at my priorities. That statement alone is a dead giveaway that they were/are out of whack. Yet another example of my continued hypocrisy and duplicitous lifestyle.

I have slowly been gathering my thoughts about where my priorities are and why, along with how well they match up with what I know in my heart to be right. Actually, comparing the two hasn't been the slow part. I know where I stand. It's coming to grips with just how much I need to change that is taking time. The adage that you can't teach an old dog new tricks is much more applicable than I expected it to be, and I'm not even in my 30s yet!

Although, I bet that if I could at least do what I was told then my wife would be a much happier person. I'm basically an obedience school drop out.

Anyway, the heart of what I'm getting at has actually been repeated to me several times today in various forms. I take that as being the Lord's way of saying, "I'd use a 2x4 if I could, so take the hint!" This frequent theme can be found first in Exodus 20, and then repeated throughout scripture and modern revelation. It is the first and great commandment God gave to Moses, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3)

The living Christ reiterated and magnified this commandment when he said,

"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

"And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these." (Mark 12:30-31)

As I've pondered over these verses and the various repetitions thereof today, I've recognized that one of the most prominent indicators of true love is devotion. This is definitely the case when considering what loving God entails, especially as the qualifiers of "all thy heart… soul… mind… and [] strength," are concerned.

True devotion requires the careful arranging of priorities so that the kind of time and service inherent in fulfilling the definition of devotion can be met.

The sad truth for me is that I can only say that I show true devotion to one person – yours truly. My priorities give me away in embarrassing fashion. And I'm not just saying this because I'm trying to appear humble or modest. Kristen would be able to confirm the antithesis of both qualities to be my most common traits.

I'm confident that none of the principles I've covered in this post are new to anyone. They just feel new to me because I'm seeing myself through a new perspective. I am in definite need of deciding now who it is that I'm going to be devoted to, and then making the needed adjustments.

Kristen, I'm beginning to understand now what you've been asking for for so long now. I only hope to be able to give you what you deserve in time. I know Heavenly Father is waiting for the same from me too.

A Living Prophet

A Living Prophet

Like many of you, I am profoundly aware of the precariousness of our country's economic situation. Things are not going well, and with more (and worse) financial failures upon us than during the Great Depression we are faced with great risk and constant uncertainty.

As I read through more of the news about our world economy, I was reminded of an article written by President Gordon B. Hinckley titled "The Times in Which We Live," published in the January issue of the 2002 Ensign. I remember reading his words heavily laden with the weight of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I remember hearing them during different conference addresses.

Most specifically I remember these words:

"I do not know what the future holds. I do not wish to sound negative, but I wish to remind you of the warnings of scripture and the teachings of the prophets which we have had constantly before us.

"I cannot forget the great lesson of Pharaoh’s dream of the fat and lean kine and of the full and withered stalks of corn."

As I reflected back on these words and many others in that article, I recognized my own complacency and deep need for change. I had my testimony of the need for a living prophet strengthened. I felt the power of eternal truth.

"[I] thank thee, O God, for a prophet," for without whom I would be in the darkest abyss. I'm already in need of rescue from my own selfish chasm as it is, let alone be left without the light of the restored gospel.

Big Changes... Well, Sort Of

Big Changes... Well, Sort Of

Nobody panic! You are, in fact, still reading my blog that was previously found at www.onegreatwhole.blogspot.com. I've simply made some fancy-schmancy (not really) changes to it that now allow me to post my blog to the URL I initially intended. It's nice having a Blogspot URL and all, but I like keeping things as simple as possible.

So, now I've got a little more updating to do. As you can see, I've switched back to a basic template to better be able to publish content, and I've lost a few of the features I used to have. No worries, I'll be updating this soon with a new look and feel just as soon as I get the time chance (don't hold your breath).

Thanks for reading, stay tuned, and don't freak out if things decide to change yet again. j/k

You Know Something Matters When...

You Know Something Matters When...

I admit that I'm not a very religious blogger, as is evidenced by my sporadic posts and almost non-existent readership (excluding my few and faithful friends – thanks guys!).

So, I find it almost comical when, after several consecutive posts of nearly no traffic at all, I get 6 comments on my latest post within a matter of a day or two. And by comical, I mean mind boggling.

For any of you that are still gasping for air as you recover from laughing at my astonishment over 6 comments, I hope you all pass out. (devilish laugh…)

What this all means to me is that if I want my popularity on the web to grow I should keep writing more polarizing posts (j/k).

In many ways I am beginning to feel like my good friend Jeff V., who so effectively summed things up with, "I [] am just so sick of politics." This is a growing feeling among many, and yet I'm concerned that such frustration is less a result of people not caring about the political landscape anymore and more a result of not knowing how to make a real difference.

Granted, you can follow the advice of our current presidential candidates and get involved in local government, volunteer in your community, and other related activities to try and influence politics. But I believe the real issue is not just our lack of involvement, but a feeling of helplessness at being able to reverse the last 50 years of post WWII policy and politics. Since I'm already going way beyond my initial intentions of this blog to stay as clear as possible from politics, I won't spend the time needed to outline my thoughts on WWII politics. (I know, such a sad loss…)

I do appreciate a discussion I had with Chris Rock after reading his comment on my previous post. We talked about how the differences of belief each of us hold about people, government, social issues, and everything else in between is what has given rise to a fairly polarized political atmosphere. My comment on how Hollywood's perceived endorsement of Sen. Obama should make you want to run in the opposite direction is a direct reflection of these differences.

I do not question Mr. Obama's morals, personal character, or ability to lead the country as a result of Hollywood endorsements. What I run from are the general ideals and values that are held by the extreme left, to which Sen. Obama's voting record will attest he belongs. That is what I believe Hollywood and the liberal media are endorsing. That is what I dislike based upon my personal value systems and beliefs about people and the roles of government. That is not to say that I'm proportionally enamored with the doctrines of the right, just that I personally identify better with more of them than the left.

If for nothing else, I would rather put a cranky, old, creepy Bush wannabe in the White House because of the type of people he would appoint to the Supreme Court. The only way John McCain could convince me to vote otherwise is if his yet-to-be-revealed policies are a disastrous step in the wrong direction.

And that's all folks. My politicking is done. (You can all shout for joy now, it will only hurt my feelings a little bit.) :)

What To Do When Hollywood Endorses a Political Candidate

What To Do When Hollywood Endorses a Political Candidate

It's simple really.

VOTE FOR THE OTHER GUY!

You may not be McCain fans, and I know that I'm not, but I just happened to watch a small part of Russell Brand's monologue opening the 2008 VMAs (I know, what was I thinking), and I was appalled. I won't even give a link to it because of how crass and crude it was. I'm embarrassed to have watched a small part of it. Then to have him endorse Barack Obama for president to cheers of ecstasy was about all I could take.

I'm not saying that a vote for Obama is a vote for evil or something melodramatic like that. I'm just VERY concerned that he gets the heavy endorsement of the world's leading body of propagandized amorality (Hollywood). I seem to recall several scriptures that warn of such occurrences, each accompanied by the same admonition to choose the opposition to such endorsements.

Man I would love to see how Captain Moroni would have reacted to this stuff.