Something in the Way She Moves

There are a couple of James Taylor songs that sum up how I feel about my wife and her soul saving influence in my life. I am so grateful for her love, patience and example of unwearied diligence. "She has the power to go where no one else can find me and to silently remind me of the happiness and the good times that I know"


Something In The Way She Moves
Something in the way she moves, or looks my way, or calls my name
that seems to leave this troubled world behind.
And if I'm feeling down and blue or troubled by some foolish game,
she always seems to make me change my mind..

And I feel fine anytime she's around me now, she's around me now almost about all the time.
And if I'm well you can tell she's been with me now.
She's been with me now quite a long, long time and I feel fine.

Every now and then the things I lean on lose their meaning
and I find myself careening in places where I should not let me go.
She has the power to go where no one else can find me and to silently remind me
of the happiness and the good times that I know, and then I just got to go then.

It isn't what she's got to say but how she thinks and where she's been.
To me, the words are nice, the way they sound.
I like to hear them best that way, it doesn't much matter what they mean.
she says them mostly just to calm me down

And I feel fine anytime she's around me now, she's around me now almost about all the time.
And if I'm well you can tell she's been with me now.
She's been with me now quite a long, long time and I feel fine.



Mean Old Man
On my own
How could I have known?
Imagine my surprise
Just a fool
From a tree full of fools
Who can't believe his eyes
Imagine my surprise

I was a mean old man
I was an ornery cuss
I was a dismal dan
I made an awful fuss
Ever since my life began
Man, it was ever thus
I was a nasty tyke who was hard to like

I had to misbehave
I did things in reverse
Refused to wash or shave
I was horrid to my nurse
I got back what I gave
Which only made me worse
I had to have my way
Which was bleak and gray, oh dear

Living in here
One hundred years of rain
Such a drag
This riches to rags
With just myself to blame
A dirty low-down shame

Silly me
Silly old me
Somewhere outside my mind
Clever you
Walking me through
Willing to lead the blind
Just in the nick of time

Who gets a second chance?
Who gets to have some fun?
Who gets to learn to dance
Before his race is run?
Who gets to she'd his skin?
Who comes up born again?
Who was a mean old man
'til you turned him into a golden retriever
Puppy dog
Who's a good boy?
-

Don't demand things that are unreasonable

"Be patient with yourself. Perfection comes not in this life, but in the next life. Don't demand things that are unreasonable. But, demand of yourself improvement. As you let the Lord help you through that, He will make the difference." ("Men's Hearts Shall Fail Them" Elder Russell M. Nelson shares a personal story to give encouragement for when we feel "weak in the heart.")

Unrestrained Bluntness

I have had some interactions online that immediately came to mind when I read this comment.

"So many people think unrestrained bluntness is the ideal simply because it is honest - not realizing that honesty can be expressed in numerous ways. Sometimes boldness is necessary - but sometimes, though true, it is cruel, lazy and cowardly." Papa D
-

Yielding to the Enticings

When I woke up this morning it was clear what I was to do.  

I had been angry with my son when I hit him with the pillow. I didn't realize it at the time but I was upset when he made that noise while I was reading the scriptures. The noise I could barely hear. When I asked if him if he was making noise, he just smiled like he thought it was funny. My thought was that he was not showing me respect and I was upset. Then when he was messing around with his brother and threw the pillow at him, I acted without thinking. I picked up a pillow and hit him with it.  I did it in anger, to force him to submit to me.  

So I was angry with my son. I wanted him to submit to me before he made the noise. To not do it in the first place.  I didn't not want him playing fun when I was reading scriptures. I was upset when he pointed out that I was angry and that I should be setting the example. I was stewing last night.  

I apologized to my son in the car before we left this morning. I let him know that it was not OK for me to be angry even if I felt that I was being disrespected by my son. I also let him know that the right thing to do if you do get angry is to admit what you did wrong and apologize. If it happens one to one, then you apologize one to one. If it happens in public, you apologize in public. I said I was planning to apologize when our family was together again tonight.

It was this scripture that helped me to recognize my fault and what I was to do to be reconciled.
D&C 42:88-93

 88 And if thy brother or sister offend thee, thou shalt take him or her between him or her and thee alone; and if he or she confess thou shalt be reconciled.
 89 And if he or she confess not thou shalt deliver him or her up unto the church, not to the members, but to the elders. And it shall be done in a meeting, and that not before the world.
 90 And if thy brother or sister offend many, he or she shall be chastened before many.
 91 And if any one offend openly, he or she shall be rebuked openly, that he or she may be ashamed. And if he or she confess not, he or she shall be delivered up unto the law of God.
 92 If any shall offend in secret, he or she shall be rebuked in secret, that he or she may have opportunity to confess in secret to him or her whom he or she has offended, and to God, that the church may not speak reproachfully of him or her.
 93 And thus shall ye conduct in all things.

I also thought of this scripture, Mosiah 3:19. Am I to submit to the Lord because He is an angry God? Because I am afraid of what my punishment will be? Or because I am afraid that He might be angry with magma simmering just underneath the surface? 

No that is not right. It is not the way God is. If I am to have the respect of my children, I am to model the behavior of my perfect Father in Heaven. God may reprove betimes with sharpness but not because He loses his temper. Because he gives correction at the time when it will be received best. He does it with the sharpness or exactness of the Spirit.  In a way where we will only receive it if we are willing to listen.  

Then I have received the challenge from the Holy Ghost to change. To turn my face to God. To turn to the better way. To leave behind anger and all its chains. It is because God loves me and is willing to reason with me to teach me the ways of happiness that I have the respect I have for God. I love Him because His first loved me. He loves me enough to correct me in a timely and uplifting way.

-Richard

The difference between confessional belief and convictional belief

Here is a good essay on the difference between confessional belief and convictional belief.  The following gives a good taste of it.

I’ve never heard my dad preach about the importance of self-reliance. Rather, he simply invested in several years worth of food storage and water, planted a garden and an orchard, purchased chickens, and learned how to care for bees. 

I’ve never heard my dad sermonize about caring for the elderly. Rather, he simply invited his mother-in-law to live in his house, spent hours remodeling the bathroom so she could more comfortably use it, remodeled her bedroom to give her more space, and is currently building a ramp so that she can drive her wheelchair into the backyard and enjoy the outdoors.

What Mormons Believe About Jesus Christ

I just came across an article that describes in detail what Mormons believe about Jesus Christ.  To me it is a comprehensive and accurate essay of my beliefs of Christ, though a little academic.

It is "excerpts ...taken from an address to the Harvard Divinity School in March 2001 by Robert L. Millet, former dean of religious education at Brigham Young University"

The money quote from the article,

Given the challenges we face in our society — fatherless homes, child and spouse abuse, divorce, poverty, spreading crime and delinquency — it seems so foolish for men and women who believe in God, whose hearts and lives have been surrendered to that God, to allow doctrinal differences to prevent them from working together.

On how we differ from traditional Christianity about Jesus Christ.

In an effort to satisfy the accusations of Jews who denounced the notion of three Gods (Father, Son and Holy Ghost) as polytheistic, and at the same time incorporate ancient but appealing Greek philosophical concepts of an all-powerful moving force in the universe, the Christian church began to redefine the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. One classic work describes the intersection of Christian theology and Greek philosophy: “It is impossible for any one, whether he be a student of history or no, to fail to notice a difference of both form and content between the sermons on the Mount and the Nicene Creed. … The one belongs to a world of Syrian peasants, the other to a world of Greek philosophers. … The religion which our Lord preached ... took the Jewish conception of a Father in heaven, and gave it a new meaning.” In short, “Greek Christianity of the fourth century was rooted in Hellenism. The Greek minds which had been ripening for Christianity had absorbed new ideas and new motives.”[i] 

What is the result? Such Platonic concepts as the immutability, impassibility and timelessness of God made their way into Christian theology. As one group of Evangelical scholars has stated: “Many Christians experience an inconsistency between their beliefs about the nature of God and their religious practice. For example, people who believe that God cannot change his mind sometimes pray in ways that would require God to do exactly that. And Christians who make use of the free will defense for the problem of evil sometimes ask God to get them a job or a spouse, or keep them from being harmed, implying that God should override the free will of others in order to achieve these ends. ... 

“These inharmonious elements are the result of the coupling of biblical ideas about God with notions of the divine nature drawn from Greek thought. The inevitable encounter between biblical and classical thought in the early church generated many significant insights and helped Christianity evangelize pagan thought and culture. Along with the good, however, came a certain theological virus that infected the Christian doctrine of God, making it ill and creating the sorts of problems mentioned above. The virus so permeates Christina theology that some have come to take the illness for granted, attributing it to divine mystery, while others remain unaware of the infection altogether.” [Clark Pinnock, Richard Rice, John Sanders, William Hasker and David Basinger, The Openness of God: A Biblical Challenge to the Traditional Understanding of God (Downer Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1994), 9–10.]

A quote given from Joseph Smith in the article.

Why should it be thought a thing incredible that the Lord should be pleased to speak again in these last days for their salvation? Perhaps you may be surprised at this assertion that I should say ‘for the salvation of his creatures in these last days’ since we have already in our possession a vast volume of his word [the Bible] which he has previously given. But you will admit that the word spoken to Noah was not sufficient or Abraham. … Isaac, the promised seed, was not required to rest his hope upon the promises made to his father Abraham, but was privileged with the assurance of [God’s] approbation in the sight of heaven by the direct voice of the Lord to him. … I have no doubt but that the holy prophets and apostles and saints in the ancient days were saved in the kingdom of God. … I may believe that Enoch walked with God. I may believe that Abraham communed with God and conversed with angels. … And have I not an equal privilege with the ancient saints? And will not the Lord hear my prayers, and listen to my cries as soon [as] he ever did to theirs, if I come to him in the manner they did? Or is he a respecter of persons? (Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, comp. Dean C. Jessee (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1984), 297–301; spelling and punctuation corrected.)

 I loved the story of the beginning of the dialog Robert Millet has had with evangelical Christians.

A number of years ago a colleague and I traveled with two Evangelical Christian friends to another part of the country to meet with a well-known theologian, author and pastor/teacher in that area. We had read several of his books and had enjoyed his preaching over the years. As a part of an outreach effort to better understand those of other faiths (and to assist them to understand us a little better), we have visited such institutions as Notre Dame, Catholic University, Baylor, Wheaton College and various religious colleges and seminaries. We met this particular pastor and then attended his church services on both Sunday morning and Sunday evening and in both meetings were impressed with the depth and inspiration of his preaching. 

The next day we met for lunch and had a wonderful two-hour doctrinal discussion. I explained that we had no set agenda, except that we had admired his writings and wanted to meet him. We added that we had several questions we wanted to pose in order to better understand Evangelical theology. I mentioned that as the dean of religious education (at that time), I oversaw the teaching of religion to some 30,000 young people at Brigham Young University and that I felt it would be wise for me to be able to articulate properly the beliefs of our brothers and sisters of other faiths. I hoped, as well, that they might make the effort to understand our beliefs so as to represent accurately what we teach. 

Early in our conversation the minister said something like: “Look, anyone knows there are big difference between us. But I don’t want to focus on those differences. Let’s talk about Christ.” We then discussed the person of Jesus, justification by faith, baptism, sanctification, salvation, heaven, hell, agency and predestination, premortal existence and a number of other fascinating topics. We compared and contrasted, we asked questions and we answered questions. In thinking back on what proved to be one of the most stimulating and worthwhile learning experiences of our lives, the one thing that characterized our discussion, and the one thing that made the biggest difference, was the mood that existed there — a mood of openness, candor and a general lack of defensiveness. We knew what we believed, and we were all committed to our own religious tradition. But we were eager to learn where the other person was coming from.

Jesus is the "prototype of all saved beings, the standard of salvation" see Lectures on Faith, 7:9

How should we react to those who do not consider us Christian?

Knowing what I know, feeling what I feel and having experienced what I have in regard to the person and power of the Savior, it is difficult for me to be patient and loving toward those who denounce me as a non-Christian. But I am constrained to do so in the spirit of Him who also was misunderstood and misrepresented. While it would be a wonderful thing to have others acknowledge our Christianity, we do not court favor nor will we compromise our distinctiveness.

"through Christ which strengtheneth me"

Here is a good lesson from "Believing Christ: A Practical Approach to the Atonement" by Stephen E. Robinson May 29, 1990. (mp3)

Sometimes the weight of the demand for perfection drives us to despair. Sometimes we fail to believe that most choice portion of the gospel that says he can change us and bring us into his kingdom. Let me share an experience that happened about ten years ago. My wife and I were living in Pennsylvania. Things were going pretty well; I'd been promoted. It was a good year for us, though a trying year for Janet. That year she had our fourth child, graduated from college, passed the CPA exam, and was made Relief Society president. We had temple recommends, we had family home evening. I was in the bishopric. I thought we were headed for "LDS yuppiehood." Then one night the lights went out. Something happened in my wife that I can only describe as "dying spiritually." She wouldn't talk about it; she wouldn't tell me what was wrong. That was the worst part. For a couple of weeks she did not wish to participate in spiritual things. She asked to be released from her callings, and she would not open up and tell me what was wrong. 

Finally, after about two weeks, one night I made her mad and it came out. She said, "All right. You want to know what's wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong. I can't do it anymore. I can't lift it. I can't get up at 5:30 in the morning and bake bread and sew clothes and help my kids with their homework and do my own homework and do my Relief Society stuff and get my genealogy done and write the congressman and go to the PTA meetings and write the missionaries . . ." And she just started naming one brick after another that had been laid on her, explaining all the things she could not do. She said, "I don't have the talent that Sister Morrell has. I can't do what Sister Childs does. I try not to yell at the kids, but I lose control, and I do. I'm just not perfect, and I'm not ever going to be perfect. I'm not going to make it to the celestial kingdom, and I've finally admitted that to myself. You and the kids can go, but I can't lift it. I'm not 'Molly Mormon,' and I'm not ever going to be perfect, so I've given up. Why break my back?"

This is one of my favorite talks ever.  It brings me hope.  I came to recognize that the Savior is called this because he saves.  Robinson uses a funny illustration, "What good is it to have a savior if no one is saved? It's like having a lifeguard that won't get out of the chair. 'There goes another one down. Try the backstroke! Oh, too bad, he didn't make it.' "

I particularly like the analogy of a merger.  Me as a bankrupt small business and the Savior as a large corporation with much assets.  We merge and my liabilities merge with His assets and together we are solvent.  The merging is the covenant he uses another analogy that fits even better, Marriage.

He proposes to us a covenant relationship. I use the word "propose" on purpose because it is a marriage of a spiritual sort that is being proposed. That is why he is called the Bridegroom. This covenant relationship is so intimate that it can be described as a marriage. I become one with Christ, and as partners we work together for my salvation and my exaltation. My liabilities and his assets flow into each other. I do all that I can do, and he does what I cannot yet do. The two of us together are perfect.

I love the Savior.  I know that I am ever in need of His help.  As I work the plan of His proposal I overcome the effects of sin.  If I fall and stumble, He is there for me, if I will allow the covenant relationship to work.  If I allow Him to help me to save me from the less than good in me.

Update:  I changed the title of this post from "I can't do it" to "through Christ which strengtheneth me" from Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me".  I like focusing on the positive the reality of what my covenant relationship with Christ enables.  Not the inaccurate negative of the original title.  I used the original title because surrender to God is so important.

See also parable of the piano

"three things are necessary"

From the Lectures on Faith 3:2-5:

Let us here observe, that three things are necessary, in order that any rational and intelligent being may exercise faith in God, unto life and salvation:
First, the idea that he actually exists.
Second, a correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes.
Third, an actual knowledge that the course of life which he is pursuing, is according to his will.

I have quoted this passage many times on my blog.  It is center to my faith and walk with God.

"Today I will be a follower of Jesus Christ"

"Today I will be a follower of Jesus Christ"

It is this quote from Richard Bushman that caused me to write about him today.  He has been called the "Mormon Explainer".  And I really liked the way he responded to a question about The Book of Mormon musical on broadway, "'The Book of Mormon' is like looking into a fun-house mirror; the reflection is hilarious but not really you"

Deseret News recently wrote and article about Bushman.  I recommend it to you. "Being a Mormon in a Mormon Moment"