CAN you open it?

Christmas time is here! So that means I am going to write a blog about something completely random, so here we go! 

   Can openers, they unlock the goodness of what has been stored in a can of your favorite soup or tuna or whatever you kids eat these days. The can opener really is one of the few things you can use to get past the can neatly and easily. And once you do, you are able to enjoy whatever awaits beneath the seal.

   In today's world, the true meaning of Christmas is on the downfall. Much of the world is seeing just the material part of Christmas and miss the real meaning of it. It is like we are taking our can of Campbell's® Chunky Baked Potato with Cheddar and Bacon Bits Soup, and just appreciating the outside of the can and not getting to the real meaning of having a can of soup. But when we allow Christ to be the can opener for our Christmas Season, we will begin to unlock the true meaning of Christmas, Christ himself!

My prayer is that we all remember to keep the Savior as the Center of out CHRISTmas. Don't just look at the material part of it, because without the soup, it is empty. Let this holiday season the most fulfilling you have had, with Christ in the center. 

CHECK OUT THIS WEBSITE
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Cleaning up

One thing I dislike just as much as the next person is cleaning up! I really don't care to make my room presentable, sanitary, or anything of that matter, I just want to live in it. But, As always, whether at home or in college, I am asked to clean up my room. Something I grew to be very good at through this has been hiding the mess. I find space under my bed, in my closet, or really anywhere that is not noticeable to the naked eye. I would make it look just nice enough that when my mom would come check she would be somewhat satisfied and stop getting on my case about it.

In most cases, my mess would accumulate to be so large that I no longer had anywhere to hide it and it would be overwhelming and not fun to handle. I would finally realize that my problem was so large, that I could not neglect it any longer and inevitably I always take the long, arduous process of cleaning, organizing, and folding.

The result though of my hard work, a sense of accomplishment. I, at that moment, did not want my room to get messy again, I wanted it to stay clean and spotless, especially after all the time and hard work I had put into making it look nice. These feelings didn't last more than a couple weeks at the best until the mess began to accumulate all over again. Now it may just be me being an inherently messy individual, because others are probably a lot cleaner than me, but that is a non germane tangent of my introspection of life. Now may we return to the aforementioned field of contemplation. But somehow at sometime, it gets messy again, hopefully I have learned my lesson by now to just clean as I go. That would make it a ton easier!

I am sure the real life application is basic and straightforward. As we go through life, we can accumulate a plethora of filth that keeps us from being clean in the eyes of God. Luckily, we have been given all of the necessary tools to make our lives as clean as we can make our rooms and even cleaner! 

Test Time

Test taking, some love it, some despise it, but it is an essential part in evaluating knowledge and progress in different settings but mainly in School. I truly enjoyed taking tests when I had studied, and understand the material I am being tested on. I love displaying the knowledge I have obtained through my hard work and effort in the classroom and at home. But, when I refuse to study and I slack off, I go into the test nervous and usually start with one sincere and distressed prayer to not fail! 

Did anyone else have that really super awesome teacher who would sometimes let you take a test with your textbook out? I know I had a few of those, and those were some of my favorite tests! I was just able to take a problem, look up the answer, and fill it in on the paper! What a sweet setup! But looking for the answer always took more time, so it was always helpful to have studied and know the answers beforehand. Well, Heavenly Father is just like that super awesome teacher! Life is one big test for each of us. We will be rewarded based on how well we do and how we deal with different problems we face. God loves each of us enough to bless us with all of the ways in which He wants us to face each problem. What is the textbook? Well you can probably guess it is the Scriptures! We can find the answer to all the problems we face in life within those inspired verses. We can also seek more answers through the words of our modern day Prophets by listening to General Conference.

I suggest following the same basic idea as the test. Study beforehand. KNOW the scriptures and the guidelines your Father in Heaven wants you to live. Be ready and aware of the different situations and problems you could face in life and know the correct way to handle it. If there ever comes a problem that you don't have the knowledge of what to do, look it up! Study it out in the scriptures and review past conference addresses. This, even though may take more time, is better than making a wrong and rushed decision, the consequences are just not worth it.

So enjoy your open book test! Study up and get all of the answers you will need. God is there to help, we were not sent here to fail, but to succeed gloriously! 

In Your Face

When I think back to the good ole football days, one of the main aspects of life on the practice field was the coaches. Football coaches, as many may know, are not known to be tranquil or quiet at all! In fact, they are often loud and in your face! Having a coach yell at you is probably one of the least desirable situations I can think of next to watching one of the Twilight movies! 

I used to think that when a coach was yelling at me that I was just making him angry because I couldn't do what I needed to correctly. This was largely demotivational to me and made me think that not only was I not a good player, but I had no potential compared to all of the other players that were doing so well and seemed to be far more experienced than myself. 

I was severely mistaken in my thoughts. After talking with one of the coaches, he told me that the reason they yelled at me and some other players so much is because they see the potential in us that we don't see. When we aren't doing things the way they know we can, they let us know it. One coach even told me when you aren't getting yelled at is when you need to worry. That basically happens when you do the wrong thing over and over basically showing the coach you aren't willing to listen.

This is similar to how our Heavenly Father interacts with us. He doesn't usually get up in our face and yell at us like coaches do (unless you are Mahonri Moriancumer). He will still show us in different but distinct ways that he does care. He sees our potential and puts us through trials and tribulations so that we can grow to that potential, to be like Him. So when tough times come, don't get discouraged, know it is because God loves you and wants you to grow. He is always there to help and will show you the way you need to go. He cares for you and loves you and only wants the best for you, and I know that to be true!

ONE

If anyone knows me, they know I love the game of Rugby! I love to tackle people and I love the competition, but the main thing about it is I love how unified of a game it is. In order to compete at any level, you team needs to work together in harmony to accomplish the common goal, to win the match! When all the players are on the same page and work together, it is much more effective and can compete against teams that may have more skill or talent. As a team, you strive to be ONE, each player has his own purpose that he needs to fulfil. No single person can cover all positions, each person is left to rely fully on each other player to do what they are supposed to do. When people are careless, they can be penalized putting the team in a worse position to win. But when everyone does their job they really become ONE as a team.

The parrallels between this and Heavenly Fathers plan is striking! He has asked us to be ONE. John 17:21-22 states

"That they all may be ONE; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be ONE in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be ONE, even as we are ONE" (emphasis added)



Here, Christ is addressing His Father in Heaven concerning the apostles to become ONE even as He and the Father are ONE. We know that He is one with the Father in purpose, mindset, Spirit, Priesthood, the list goes on and on. He wished for His disciples to be that way and wishes for each of us today to be that way as well.

So how exactly are we to become ONE? We must remember our goal, Life Eternal. With that goal in mind, figure out where your role is in Heavenly Fathers plan. When we recieve callings, magnify them. When someone is in need, help them. Uplift, inspire and remove any hate or malice from your heart. Hate and contention will drive the Spirit away and in sports, when there is contention in the team, you don't trust eachother and don't play effectively. Everyone on the earth is on the SAME TEAM! President Uchtdorf said in a General Conference address "When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges or wanting to cause harm — please apply the following: Stop it!" When we can move past all of those negative feelings and work together against the REAL adversary, the world will be a better place and it will make it easier for all of us to reach our eternal goal! So let's win the game, work together, love one another, and become ONE.

What message are you getting?

Many of you who are reading this probably just checked your cell phone within the past few minutes or so. And if you didn't you probably just did because I made you think about it. There are many messages that come to us every day that try and catch our attention, things that try and persuade us one way or another. Commercials, text messages, billboards, facebook, salesmen, email, friends, politicians.... The list goes ON and ON!

Which message is most important to you? Well, many of these messages are here to distract us from the message our Heavenly Father wants us to pay more attention to. That is the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! His message is UNIVERSAL and for everyone on this earth to enjoy. The message is study the scriptures, pray, learn more of the truth, and build your own relationship with your Savior. Live the Gospel and focus on the message that matters. Share the message too and help others realize what they might be missing out on!

Who is your Superhero?

As children, we all loved to dress up as our favorite superheros, some of us even like to dress up like them as we get older. Like me for instance, I made an appearance at a birthday party as CAPTAIN AMERICA!

When we see these Superheros, we want to be just like them, we want to fly, shoot lasers and webs, have super speed. Whatever it it is, we emulate them for it and want it. We are willing to do anything to be like them. 

So think to yourself you do you try to emulate most in your life? Who do you always try and become like? Is it Captain America? Spiderman? Who should we be emulating in our lives? 

You got it! Jesus Christ should be our Superhero! He lived an absolutely perfect life and set the perfect example for us to follow by word and action. He was baptized by John who held the Priesthood to perform it, He taught the Gospel to those in need. He healed served those around Him and gave everyone an opportunity to turn to Him and find the answers to salvation. 

We should take our lives and try and make our actions, words, and thoughts what the Savior would do, say and think if He were in our shoes. Doing so will sanctify us and help motivate us to be a little better every day and to reach our goal of Eternal Life!

Good Dog!

Dogs, a mans best friend! Being in Montana, I can safely assume that most people who read this will have a dog or at least know someone with a dog! And whoever knows the first thing about domestic dogs knows that they are first and foremost completely reliant on us humans for food, water, care, shelter, and love. They know that we control their life while they live in our homes. We can also train these dogs to do different tasks, such as sit, roll over, and even "fetch my slippers!" (That one is WAY COOL!!!) When these dogs are obedient to us and our commands, we reward them with treats and extra love, but when they are disobedient and destructive, we correct their actions and maybe even punish them so they know what they are doing is wrong.

This relationship is a lot like ours with our Heavenly Father! We are all reliant on Him to give us what we need to survive every day, to bless us when we are doing right and to correct us when we are wrong. We owe EVERYTHING to Him and if we remember this, we will be more willing to be obedient to His commandments which will in turn bring blessings into our lives which will be better than a treat!

King Benjamin puts it best:  "For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?" (Mosiah 4:19)

When we humble ourselves and put our faith in the Lord, we can reap all of the blessings He has in store for us and if we are obedient, He will teach us all the things that we need to do in order to return to Him!

This is my Dad, he is the man!

My very own father featured on mormon.org, check it out and share with friends!

Keeping Clean

Imagine. You are in school and you come home and walk into your bedroom. There is a note left on your door which reads

I will be gone for a period of time

I don't know how long I will be, but I will be back when the boss tells me to go home.

When I return home, if your room is clean to the following criteria, I will take you out for some ice cream!

Your room must

• Have nothing on the floor
• Your bed must be made neatly
• Be vacuumed
• All of your clothes washed, folded, and put away in their correct spots
• Smell nice

 I can't wait to see your clean room, but remember, if there is anything out of place, you don't get the ice cream.

          -Dad

Now, who wouldn't want to go get ice cream with their dad! So he could return at any point, it could be a couple minutes it could be weeks, you don't know! So what do you do? Wait until he get's home to throw everything under the bed and make it seem like you kept it clean? Do you work on it little by little and hope he doesn't come back before you are done? OR do you clean whatever mess is presently there, and make sure that everything stays in order at ALL times? Obviously the safest choice is the last one, and even though it requires the most effort, it is the most worthwhile path to choose. 

This can be compared to our lives. Christ told us the criteria that we need to follow. He WILL come again, we won't know the time, all we know is that He will be back. So how will you live your life? Will you keep living an unclean life and try and make things look like there is nothing wrong when the time comes, or will you try and rid yourself of vices one at a time and hope that you will repent in time and finally be ready. Or will you do what it takes NOW to clean up, get active and do what it takes to be clean and then to stay clean. My earnest prayer and desire is that we will all take this life seriously, that we will do what it takes to be living a mortal life worthy of all the blessings that our Father in Heaven is waiting to give us, namely Eternal Life. I know that this is something that is possible for ALL of us to do, no matter how messy our rooms are right now!

Where are YOU in Lehi's dream?

Among one of the more famous stories told in the Book of Mormon is the story of Lehi's vision of the Tree of Life. If you are unfamiliar with the story, click here. In the story there are various groups of people, I am going to go through what are the attributes of those in each group and you can try and find out where YOU are in his vision.

Some of the symbols in this vision are the Tree of Life which the fruit thereon is a representation of the love of God. The mist of darkness is the evils and temptations of the world that keep us from seeing the end goal of reaching the tree. The straight and narrow path is the way leading to the tree and the iron rod follows that path and is the guide for those who wish to stay on the path. The iron rod is representative of the word of God.

The First group of people Lehi talks about are those who were clinging to the iron rod and made their way through the mist of darkness and came and partook of the fruit of the tree. BUT after they partook of the fruit they became ashamed due to the scorning, scoffing, and mocking coming from the people in the great and spacious building. They then fell away into forbidden paths of darkness. These are the people who have tasted God's love, but due to either persecution, trial, embarrassment, or whatever it may be, they turned away from the love they felt. They compromised their joy for what is either popular or appealing.

The second group are the people in the great and spacious building. They were dressed exceedingly fine and mocked, laughed at, and scorned those trying to make their way to the tree of life and also those who did. They are the people who in any way tried to hinder the the people from partaking of the fruit and really hindering the work and glory of God. (Moses 1:39) These are the people in our time who mock those who try and come closer to God. Those who, in any way, hinder others spiritual progression. They are also those who hold up for themselves the treasures of the world and value those more than the things of God. They can also be those who condemn, condescend, or drag down those who are trying to live a good life, but isn't acceptable to this group.

The next group are those who took hold of the rod and pressed forward, holding fast to the rod. Once they reached their goal, the tree, they fell down at the foot of it and partook of the fruit that had fallen down. They disregarded the people over in the great and spacious building and enjoyed the fruit that was desirable above all other fruit. These are the faithful and valiant, the ones who don't care what others say, they do what they know is right. They don't compromise for anything less. They are the honorable and commendable. The one's who are always focused on the eternal perspective. 

Another group of people are those who are lost in the mist of darkness. Some of them may be trying to cross the river to get to the great and spacious building, but can't find their way there. Others are just lost not knowing where to go or how to get back on the path. These people are the ones who have fallen off the path, they either desire riches and wealth, or are lost in sin and transgression, so much so that coming back to the path is daunting and seemingly impossible.They need the help of those holding to the rod! They need to know there is a way back to the path.

I am sure reading this you can identify with some of these people. Even some members of the Church can find themselves in places like the great and spacious building. Sometimes we drag others down or demean them to make ourselves feel more righteous. That is not where we should be! When Lehi was righteous and partaking of the fruit, he desired for others to have that same blessing. He didn't try to hog the fruit all to himself and withhold it from those who may have wandered off the path and then returned. 

I would encourage all of you to figure out which group YOU are in and then to do what it takes to get to where you need to be. For many of you, you know what you have to do, if you don't, click the chat with missionaries link on the right side of the page. So let's all hold to the rod and follow the word of God, he will lead us to where we need to go ALWAYS.