A Litmus Test

"If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say?  And why are you waiting?"  ~Stephen Levine


"When something is missing in your life, it usually turns out to be someone."  ~Robert Brault


"No road is long with good company."  ~Turkish Proverb




There is a wonderful, enabling power in "living with clarity," in knowing our priorities and guiding each day accordingly.  Consider:


IF we believe the most precious blessings in our lives to be the people which enrich each day (be they spouse, child, parent, sibling, friend)...


IF we seek to be good stewards over these precious gifts of the present, the better to prepare for the eternal relationships with which God desires to entrust us (Matthew 25:21)...


IF we desire to "schedule our priorities" rather than "prioritize our schedules" (Steven Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People)...


IF we champion fidelity to the beautiful joys of real, interpersonal, committed relationships with our fellow children of God in deed as well as in word...


THEN regarding each of those marvelous, multimedia, multitasking, technological tools that increasingly impact our daily lives, perhaps we should ask ourselves one simple question: 


Does this strengthen or weaken my most important relationships?


Technology can be both enabling and distracting, and the different options are seemingly endless!  Email, smart phones, downloadable movies, computer games, online social networking...


Whatever it may be, does it strengthen or weaken our most important relationships?


When we don't live each day in line with our priorities, we may feel as though "we see through a glass, darkly," (1 Corinthians 13:12) but the Lord is able to open our eyes and enlighten our understanding (D&C 76:12).


May each of us experience the light and happiness that comes from living with clarity.

On Purpose

“When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind.” -Seneca


“The purpose of life is a life of purpose.” -Robert Byrne


Internet "surfing."  Web "browsing."  We might as well call it "digital drifting."  So much of today's online activity is characterized by its apparent lack of purpose.  So much of the "time-saving" technology at our fingertips becomes a jumbled array of "time-killers" instead.  


We float from news article to news article nodding sagely at incredible amounts of information that rarely focuses our minds.  We bounce from blog to blog, laugh at a few friends' posts and consider those relationships "well-maintained."  We poke a few Facebook friends, upload a few pictures, and never quite get around to baking that plate of cookies for the lonely neighbor next door, but we will!  Right after we watch that next movie preview on Youtube...


In a way we're playing with fire.  The internet's a wonderful thing when it keeps us out of the DMV, Post Office and Bank line.  It's a magical tool when we need to write sincere letters to friends, download a spiritually motivating speech, conduct research for that next term paper, or purchase edifying music at the click of a button.


And it's poison to our souls when it keeps us from living in the moment, accomplishing real-world goals (Do you really "water" your virtual plants in that online video game?  How long did you spend deciding on your blog's new wallpaper?), and giving others our undivided attention.


Life is meant to be lived with purpose.  We are taught to be "anxiously engaged in" good causes with those around us, not numbly disengaged with trivialities from afar. (D&C 58:27)  


So what will we do with the time we are given today?  Whose lives will we bless?  What burdens will we lighten?  Whatever we do, may it be said that we did it "on purpose."