"I," said the dove from the rafters high, "I Cooed him to sleep that he should not cry. We cooed him to sleep my mate and I. "I," said the dove from the rafters high.

I've recently become familiar with the Christmas song, "The Friendly Beasts." On a surface level it is a creative approach to telling the nativity story through the eyes of the animals that could have witnessed the birth of the Savior. Kids love this little tune, especially when you do the voices and sounds of the different animals mentioned. I've come to love the song for that reason along with one of more personal application. This song presents the story of various animals all contributing to the nativity story with their nature given abilities. Each serves the Babe in Bethlehem by giving what it could however small it seemed. We too, like these animals, have been given unique abilities that we are to use in His service. It is some whom are called to carry the burdens of others, some to provide comfort and warmth, and some to sooth and cheer with song. May we all choose to discover and develop these special abilities that we may serve those around us.

Runnin' with the MoTab

I took up marathon running as a hobby a few years ago. Along with the new hobby came a few new accessories: shoes, shorts, and an mp3 player just to name a few. Like many other runners, I found that music helped make the time I spent running a little more bearable. I was able to take my mind off any fatigue I felt running and enjoy some great tunes. I created a number of playlists that allowed me to choose different genres of music each time I went out; anything from rock-and-roll and alternative to dance and pop. The more upbeat and fast paced the song the better it seemed for my running. Music has always been a large part of my life, and I’ve always tried to select music which has influenced my life in a positive way. The combination of a good run and a good beat has always resulted in such a rewarding experience. During a rather busy phase of my training one spring, I decided to try something completely new with my running playlists. I decided to dedicate my listening during a two hour run to some music from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Up to that point in my life, music from the choir had always been played as a sort of background music on Sundays. Even as I began to run I couldn’t convince myself that this type of music would do any good in helping me keep my desired pace. Midway through my run I was able recognize the benefits of my music decision. Unlike the rush of energy I got from my fast upbeat music, the choir music helped provide a mental state much like that of an in-depth scripture study. My mind was in a different place, one that could be influenced by the spirit so much more. I continually recognized so many blessings that the Lord has given me and my family. A most memorable experience I had while running to the music of the Tabernacle choir came on a country road in the Ogden Valley. The sun was just barely peaking over the mountains; the horses in the adjacent pasture ran beside me in the crisp country morning air while all at the exact same time I heard the glorious climactic crescendo of a favorite hymn of praise. How could I be so lucky to experience such a sight accompanied by such wonderful sound. It wasn’t that the stars had aligned in any extraordinary way; but that my mind had been aligned and my thoughts prepared to appreciate and recognize the magnitude of the simple beauty that surrounded me. How grateful I am for these experiences and for wonderful music that reminds me to look to the heavens for direction and thanksgiving.

General Conference

The older I get, the more enjoy watching General Conference. This October conference was wonderful. Not that anything new was said that hasn't been said before, but the messages resonate differently within me based on life's current situations. How comforting is it to hear that continuing to persevere and live the gospel is the best answer for finding peace in our ever changing world today. I particularly enjoyed Elder Worthlin's message. It would do the world so much good if we were all able to control anger a little better and have more of a sense of humor about things. Sitting in the choir loft also adds a unique perspective on the logistics of conference. It is amazing to see so many people filing in the building with such reverence and to see them all exit in the same fashion; to be able to see a bit of the teleprompter and catch the brethren sharing comments off the script every now and again, and to see the producers sit and drive the production so calmly. It is an honor to be present. It is a blessing to hear the messages live. It is amazing how much more you can learn by reviewing the same messages a month or so later in the Ensign or on DVD. What a blessing to have leaders who have been called of God to lead and guide us these days. May the Lord bless them in all their efforts.

Home

A while back as I was driving to work, I had the realization that my day would pretty much turn out awful if I wasn't able to make it home in the evening for some reason. I considered this observing the different people walking around the streets of SLC, did they feel the same way? Did they have homes they enjoyed being in, homes with loving families?, homes providing a refuge from the world, homes providing peace and comfort? I feel fortunate that my home provides those things since I realize that isn't always the case for everyone. All my life the over arching goal of each day has always been to return home. If I'm out of town for work or on vacation my most important goal is still to return home. I guess I never think of it as a goal since it is pretty much a given each time. It is at this point I consider returning to my heavenly home after this life's existence. The plan of salvation outlines where we've come from, why we're here on earth, and to where we'll go after our mortal experience. The plan has been established so that we can return home to live with our loving Heavenly Father and inherit all that is his. How badly I want to return to that home with my family as well. No big secret in accomplishing this, it is the effort that at times seems daunting. If one simply applies him/herself each day to return to their earthly home with a clean heart and clean hands, I would submit that this individuals actions would merit a ticket back to our Heavenly home upon leaving this life. How could that person's actions direct them elsewhere? Sure we all experience problems, trials, weakness and temptation in this life; it is for that purpose that we are here. If our response to these situations in life is to return home with a clean conscience each day, returning home to our Heavenly Father will be a natural progression.

This Ring Around My Finger

The other day I was asked what CTR meant. I don't think I've ever been asked that question, I almost fumbled at knowing what to say. Choose the right. I guess I just figured that everyone, especially along the Wasatch Front, knew what it meant. It is good to be reminded that is definitely not the case. I realized that not only was I guilty of making this assumption, but I was also guilty of wearing this silly ring everyday without taking any thought about what CTR stood for myself. I like to think that I'm pretty good at not purposefully making 'wrong' decisions, but every now and again the reminder is helpful. What would it be like if by investing in and donning the CTR ring correct decision making was guaranteed? If that is what is supposed to happen, I deserve a refund. I manage to make the wrong choices more than I'd like to admit. More than just being a reminder to make wise or 'correct' decisions, I find CTR helps me remember how grateful I should be to have the decision to make in the first place. This is why we're here in this life right? I find my children respond well to choices. Example: "Would you like to go to bed now with a bedtime story or play for five more minutes and go to bed without a story?" Either way they get to bed on time which is what I want along with choosing how they'd like to manage the last few minutes of their day. It is good practice for them in decision making. Bedtime stories and playtime are one thing, I'm sure we'll get into right and wrong very soon. In the meantime I'll work on improving my own decision making abilities with the help of my trusty ring.

Tools and Talents

It is important to remember that our Heavenly Father isn't going to do something for us that we can do for ourselves. Much of our personal revelation is simply remembering what we can do for ourselves. We remember the tools and the talents that we've been given on this earth to solve life's problems. Tools can be things like the scriptures, and prayer. Our talents are those special abilities that we use fulfill our different roles. Effective communication is a talent for example that can be used in all aspects of life not to mention church callings. We've been given these things to serve one another and in so doing we grow and find true happiness. We find ourselves by loosing ourselves. On an individual level, there is no limit as to what we can accomplish as we apply our talents and effectively use the tools the Lord has provided. If this is the case for individuals, think about what can happen when this is applied within families and neighborhoods, wards and stakes. The result is synergetic, and praise be to our loving Heavenly Father who has orchestrated for his children a stage where this is all played out. We can benchmark our personal growth as we remember his love for us in reaching new heights. In addition to those talents that we've been given, we've been promised that if we use them in service that we'll be able to discover additional abilities. These are certain to enrich our lives as well as the lives of those around us with thoughtful application; bringing to us a greater understanding of joy and peace.

The Easiest Hard Thing To Do

The easiest hard thing to do—to explain the nuts and bolts for coordinating a home teaching visit is about as easy as making a peanut butter sandwich. Take party “A”, the peanut butter, and put it together with party “B”, the jam, keep it all together and enjoy between two slices of bread. The recipe for home teaching is taking party A, the Johnson family, and put it together with party B, the home teachers, and keeping them together within the fabric of gospel living. Easy right? Home teaching is one of the more important programs of the church, shouldn’t we all be happy that it requires so little of us? Home teaching companionships generally have 2-3 families to visit, and visits don’t need to be longer than 15 minutes, the frequency is monthly, and the message is prepared for you in the church’s monthly edition of the Ensign. Further, we’ve all been blest with the advantages of present technology; gadgets that help us schedule and organize our lives, as well as do things quicker. Still with all of these advantages in our corner, it is human for all of us to shirk this responsibility from time to time. Yes, I just used the word ‘shirk’. Home teaching took on a different light for me once I moved out on my own; both in giving visits and being visited. It meant more for me to receive a home teaching visit from someone with the same busy schedule that I had. I was blest to also have opportunities to pay visits to families ranging on a spectrum of ‘needing and enjoying the visit’ to ‘not so excited for the home teachers’. Regardless of the family’s reception of the monthly visit, I’ve tried to make my preparation the same each month which has always given me an opportunity to bear testimony of various principles of the gospel. It’s always nice to study the gospel individually; however, combining individual study and sharing what you’ve learned with others goes together as good as peanut butter and jelly. Crunchy peanut butter of course.

These are not supposed to be the best two years...

This week marks nine years since I returned from serving a two-year church service mission in Lima, Perú. The best two years of my life is cliché, and in my opinion completely untrue. Indeed, up to that point they may have been the best, but the nine since have been incredible. It is likely that my time since returning from serving a mission has been so satisfying because of the time I gave in missionary service; because of everything I learned and experienced south of the equator. For me, communication was a key lesson learned; communicating in the Spanish language, communication with a loving Heavenly through prayer, and learning just how the Holy Ghost can communicate to the listening ear. The Spanish was foreign for only a month or two before becoming a joy to speak. In every opportunity I’ve had to use the language post-mission I can still feel the love that I have for the Peruvian people I served in every syllable I speak. Communication through prayer took on a whole new life in Perú. For me I learned to make it more personal through keeping in mind the needs of others. Answers became evident as I learned to recognize communication through the spirit. Still small voice is right. If you were to condition yourself to be able to listen to an actual still small voice, a whisper, at all times, you’d be just fine. The trick with being able to hear the communication of the spirit is to be able to block out the rest of the noise around you. Noise comes in a myriad of forms; visual, situational, musical, etc… It’s the shiny object in the corner of your eye that gets you to take your eye off the ball. Missionaries aren’t exempt from the noise; putting on the name tag doesn’t automatically make it go away. The practice, however, of keeping focused only on the gospel for such a long time period has definitely helped recognize and block the noise I encounter each day. The past nine years have provided a number of missionary opportunities as well. Very different opportunities than knocking doors and teaching discussions, but very special. Communicating the joy that I feel as I recognize the blessings given to the human family in our Heavenly Father’s great plan of salvation is a relished interaction to me; especially when the listener’s ear can tune out the noise in their sphere.

Behind This Curtain

Nearly every Elder’s quorum that I’ve been a part of has met for class on the stage adjacent to the cultural hall. If there hasn’t been a stage in the church they’ve met in the cultural hall itself with the basketball hoop hovering over the head of the instructor. There is no clock, the walls are bare, and the backdrop is a stage curtain. This is quite the contrast from the microphone equipped, doily adorned, cross stitched décor of the relief society room. Has there ever been a revolutionist elder who has challenged this bland stage environment? Introducing art to the walls perhaps? Or at least equipping the space with a clock. Would Elder’s Quorum be different should such a change occur? Most likely not, at least not noticeably. Elder’s quorum changed for me once I realized that only a fraction of elder’s quorum curriculum is taught within the walls of the church. The other half is taught elsewhere in the service of others. The backdrop here may include a grape vineyard, palettes of sod, and moving boxes. What is practiced here is the application of what is discussed on stage: that holding the priesthood is all about exercising the Lord’s will here on earth. It is about building up His kingdom through serving others and standing as a witness of His truths at all times. The application is the more important part for me. Many times when I find myself struggling through the classroom routine of lackluster participation, lame excuses for being unprepared to teach, and cliché husband jokes, I like to think that we’re all just excited about getting out and doing some service rather than sit through a class. Despite the stereotypical characteristics of Sunday quorum activities, I do submit to the idea that there is something there for the spiritually prepared each week. It’ll just come after the time has been turned over to the instructor, a count of who needs a manual has been taken, and right before the instructor asks, “How much time do I have left?”

Mouse Traps and Missionaries

I remember finding a mouse in my home one evening, in fact, four nights straight I discovered this mouse in different locations of my home. Something had to be done. I needed a trap or some poison to exterminate my little house guest. I wasn’t too excited to use a traditional spring loaded trap. I didn’t want the kids to find it accidentally and the option also seemed like it could get a little messy. Poison makes good sense, but the last thing I wanted was a dead mouse lost inside my home somewhere, only to be found the day we replace the clothes dryer. Something had to be done quickly so I crossed my fingers for an alternative option to purchase at the store. I discovered a non-messy, non-poisonous glue-trap solution. This was the one for me. I set it out at night and was as excited as a kid on Christmas morning when I checked it the next day. One night was all I needed to catch my mouse and kick him out of my house. I taught the gospel discussion class on missionary work the following Sunday. Interestingly enough, I found some correlation between mouse traps and member missionary work (not that missionary work has anything to do with traps at all). Choosing what to do as a member missionary can be somewhat like choosing a mousetrap; select the method that is most suitable for you and your situation and then execute your plan envisioning success. Knocking doors and beginning gospel discussions is one way to go about missionary work; serving a full-time mission is another. But those aren't the only ways to be a missionary. May we not forget the many other ways to share our feelings for the gospel; ways that are both effective and within our means as well as our social strengths. Getting to know all of our neighbors better, inviting others into our homes, blogging and offering service are just a few of the opportunities we all can take to strengthen our relationships with others. However we’re most comfortable sharing our feeling about the blessings the gospel brings, may we do it with all sincerity and love.

We'd like tah turn the time over to...

Of all the things one can find on the internet, there can never be too much of that which is noteworthy, positive, holy, helpful, and true. Any subject or discussion that leads a reader to finding an increase of peace, joy, and purpose in their life is worthwhile; such is the purpose of this blog. My life's foundation is founded in the teachings of Jesus Christ. I am a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS and Mormon Church are also common church titles). The gospel of Jesus Christ answers the questions we all have in life--big and small. It brings peace to one's heart in trials and in a troubled world, helps us recognize and care for our blessings, and helps us understand the purpose of life on this earth. The future posts in this blog are written for those who enjoy talking about the gospel, who have questions about the gospel, and those who each day wish to improve their lives by growing closer to our Father in Heaven.  Many gospel topics will be reviewed from The Book of Mormon to the Word of Wisdom.  I'm certain there will also be commentary about the funny things that Mormons do and say. Join the conversation. Comments and questions are welcome.  The time is ours till about 5 minutes after the hour where then we'll sing the closing hymn and the benediction will be offered by Brother So-and-so.