Take your time. It will be OK.

"Whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world." (Ether 12:4)

Buckle up.

This is the age of speed.  In the time it takes us to read those words, thousands--millions--of electronic messages just circled the globe.  Multitasking is now the norm.  Our phones aren't "smart" unless they sell our stocks, answer our email, and map our routes to the nearest overnight Fedex shipping point.  We are conditioned to think, decide and act while moving at 90 miles an hour (in a 55 zone).

But when it comes to the important people in our lives, maybe we would do well to slow down.  Maybe we would do well to savor the conversation pauses, the quiet moments simply spent together, the slow, organic progression of a dearly held relationship.  

And if a child goes astray, a spouse disappoints, or a close friend grows withdrawn, and momentary discouragement clouds our eternal perspective, perhaps we would do well to take our time, to look forward with faith, and to remember that as long as we struggle forward in our own inadequate way, reaching out to help those around us, things will be OK.  In this life and the next, we and our loved ones will be alright.

As a dear friend once taught me: "Give it a week.  A lot can happen in a week."

You Are Always Worth My Time

"'Heaven' isn't just a place where we feel loved.  'Heaven' is also a place where we are made to feel important." -Anonymous


"In truth, people can generally make time for what they choose to do; it is not really the time but the will that is lacking." -John Lubbock

Time.

By its very nature, it is finite, limited, ephemeral, and never seems to be around in sufficient quantities when we really need it.  If the value of a commodity is determined by demand vs. supply, then time is among the most precious treasures known to man.

How important, then is the investment of this ever-dwindling gift of mortality!*  What a wonderful affirmation of a person's importance to us, be they spouse, parent, child or friend, when we give unconditionally of our time!  Many of us make the mistake of "fitting" our loved ones into our predetermined schedules.  Perhaps we would do better to fit our schedules around quality time with our love ones.

What tremendous good it does when we help another feel that they are worthy of our time!  What tremendous growth comes when we ensure that we keep ourselves worthy of theirs.

*And in the interest of time, why rehash an already excellent article on the subject?  To whit:

http://lds.org/general-conference/print/2011/10/a-time-to-prepare/?lang=eng

A Beautiful Day

"The abundant life is a spiritual life. Too many sit at the banquet table of the gospel of Jesus Christ and merely nibble at the feast placed before them. They go through the motions—attending their meetings perhaps, glancing at scriptures, repeating familiar prayers—but their hearts are far away. If they are honest, they would admit to being more interested in the latest neighborhood rumors, stock market trends, and their favorite TV show than they are in the supernal wonders and sweet ministerings of the Holy Spirit." -Joseph B. Wirthlin, The Abundant Life


"Decide what media you are going to participate in before you actively participate....Many evils of the Internet could be avoided if, before we even use the computer, we plan what worthwhile tasks we will undertake, accomplish that task, and then get off." -Anonymous


The past twelve hours could be summarized as follows:

• Spent the evening with friends instead of watching a movie
• Woke up to watch the sunrise instead of updating online chat status
• Took a phone call from a little sister instead of surfing Facebook
• Watched and pondered a General Conference talk instead of watching a Youtube clip
• With little time left before work, wrote a quick "online to-do list," checked it off, got back to real life
• Looked at my watch--7:30 AM

Today will be a tangible, "real" day...

and it feels so good.

"Love at Home" or Bust!

"The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ." -The Family: A Proclamation to the World


"There is beauty all around when there's love at home." -Love at Home, LDS Hymnal

In our quest to faithfully live and experience reality, is there anything more real than our relationships with others?  Are there any relationships more central to our happiness and well-being than those found in the family?  How disappointing when our tender hopes for the ideal family described above rudely meet the realities of daily living in an imperfect world!

But what if the gap between "the ideal" and "reality" is smaller than we think?  A gap that we, with our loved ones, could easily bridge?  Why would we settle for less?  Nobody, whether single or married, wealthy or poor, healthy or sick, childless or child...ful; nobody wants to settle.  To "settle" implies that we have accepted much less than we could have had.  It implies a willingness to trade our fondest, if temporarily unrealized, desires for something of much less worth, all because of its ready availability.

So if nobody wants to settle (above all in matters of family love) why do we do it so often?

When cheap professional accolades replace long-term, hard-won family tranquility as our ultimate focus, we settle.

When we gratify our pride in the moment with sharp retorts, rather than develop a habit of soft, loving responses, we settle.

When we selfishly substitute pornography, romance novels, or virtual socializing for real, worthwhile relationships, we settle.

When we overindulge in food or slovenly, ultra-casual dress, making ourselves less attractive to our (current/future) spouses in the process, we settle.

When family conversations become a cacophony of self-centered diatribes rather than a symphony of selfless listening, we settle.

When online video games or frivolous gossip sessions replace quality, nurturing time with our spouses or children, we settle.

When enervating expressions of doubt override enabling faith and the mutual courage to trust; when nagging replaces encouragement*; when our "love" and "affection" become conditional, we settle.

It is a constant challenge of mortality to learn to press forward with an eternal perspective, with that "perfect brightness of hope" that leads so naturally to a "love of God and of all men." (2 Nephi 31:20)  We refuse to settle for anything less from life than steadfast "Love at Home" when we replace instant gratification with eternal reward.  When we sow daily acts of kindness, solicitous selflessness, tender and unconditional affection, ready encouragement, an unwavering loyalty, the harvest of family love that we reap will multiply throughout the ages.

As "children of God" (Romans 8:16), we are rightful heirs to our own heavenly home.  A loving family is promised to all who faithfully live with an eternal perspective.

Why settle for anything less?

*As an example of wonderful encouragement, a gentle challenge lovingly issued with the absolute confidence that those challenged are equal to the task, see this stirring address by Elaine S. Dalton:
http://lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/love-her-mother?lang=eng

I've Been Thinking of You

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." -Matthew 6:21


"Twas her thinking of others made you think of her." -Elizabeth Browning

I've been thinking of you.

I mean, I have a lot on my plate.  Plenty of very important distractions, you know.  Pressing chain emails to perpetuate, online banking accounts to *ahem* balance, photos to upload, songs to download, favorite Youtube clips to forward, smart phones with which to fiddle, blogs to peruse (oh, the irony) and twitters to, um...tweet.

But through it all, I find my thoughts consistently bending gently in your direction.

I think about hopes you've shared with me, about experiences we've braved together, about the tremendous good you have brought into my life.  I think about how you manage to bring out the best in me.  To quote an ancient prophet, "I am mindful of you always in my prayers." (Moroni 8:3)  I pray for your successes and happiness, both just as sweet to me as if they were my own.

You might be a parent, a spouse, a child or a friend.  You might be sitting on the couch next to me or waking up on the far side of the world.  Perhaps we saw each other just yesterday.  Perhaps we haven't locked eyes in years.  But with desire and practice, thinking of your well-being before my own becomes instinctive.  Being "mindful of you" makes considerate service effortless, makes sincere gestures natural, makes the sweet moments of life all the more frequent.

Thank you for shielding me from the despairing darkness of a self-absorbed life.

Thank you for gracefully introducing me to the, light, the hope and the joy that come from truly living that divine counsel of old:

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." -John 15:13