Cessation of Posting

          There is a time for things to start, and there is also a time for them to end.  The purpose of this blog has been to help people come closer to Christ.  In fact, that is the great objective of my life.  I have learned a lot from the posts I have written, and I hope and pray that they have touched the lives of those who needed them the most.

          What I feel in my heart is that the purpose of this blog has been completed.  I accomplished what I set out to do.  It is time to move on.

          Elder Scott once said, " We need not worry if we can’t simultaneously do all of the things that the Lord has counseled us to do. He has spoken of a time and a season for all things. In response to our sincere prayers for guidance, He will direct us in what should be emphasized at each phase of our life. We can learn, grow, and become like Him one consistent step at a time."

          I know that that is true.  There is a time for everything under the heavens.  And there is also a time to end.  I pray that each of you that have read this blog will go forward in faith and accomplish all that your Father in Heaven knows that you can do.  I hope that you will arise and shine and be like Him.

          The time has come for me to focus on other projects.  I trust that with the Lord's help, they will be even greater tools in His hands to bring to pass His righteousness.  Know that I love you, and that I have written what I have written for your sakes.  Not mine.  I hope that my words will help you in your quest to follow the Savior.

          Finally, I want to acknowledge the Lord's help in anything good that has come from this blog.  It is His work.  He is the one who performs the miracles.  With His help, we can do great things.

          I would like to share with you my testimony that I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.  He did in reality die for us.  His Atonement extends beyond the immensity of space and to eternity.  He is intensely concerned about each one of us.  Joseph Smith was His servant in initiating a work that will sweep the world and ultimately save it.  I know that Thomas S. Monson is a literal prophet and that his words are God's words.  The Book of Mormon is true.  The Plan of Salvation is real.  Zion will come.  All of these things I know for myself, independent of all others.  It is true, and it is wonderful.

Your Fellow-Servant,

Gavin Chatterley

"Sunset," no changes made, by sunny_mjx, "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode"

Litmus Test

          This week I'm taking a break from the normal format of my blog posts.  The following is an email that I sent to a close friend of mine:

Dear Xxxx,

    I've been thinking about how putting our hearts into anything that isn't God is wrong.  The scriptures teach that we should love God with all our "heart, might, mind, and strength."  That was true in the mission, too.  We knew that we had to serve God with all our hearts.  We learned that anytime we put our hearts into something else, like ties, food, writing home, etc., it compromised our ability to put our hearts into our missions.

    I believe that normal life is the same way.  We are required to spend our time on things that take our effort or attention that are  secular in nature, but if we put our hearts into those things, we compromise our ability to put our hearts into God.

    It's much easier to live life with our hearts placed on other things around us.  Giving our heart only to God is painful.  Caring about others more than ourselves is also important and does not compromise our ability to give our hearts to God.  But so many other things that seem good really do compromise our ability to give our all to Him.  Sometimes we think that we are doing something for others when we really aren't.  Sometimes we are really doing it for ourselves, and when we try to force it into a shape that benefits others in some way it seems to work for a little while, but ultimately leads us away from what is most important.  That is because the nature of our engagement with the activity is self-centered.  Because the activities are not inherently evil and seem to have the potential to really help people, it is easier for us to be deceived by it or even lie to ourselves about the nature of what we are doing.  We may feel like there is heavy opposition against us, when in reality it is just ourselves making a mess of things.

    A rule that have I developed for myself is that if any activity makes it more difficult to place my family in the center of my life I will cut it out of my life immediately, not matter how innocent or even good it may seem.  It has struck me that there are some people who I greatly respect that at times in their lives have had to repent and course correct in order to make their families the most important thing.  I think to myself:  "If I love and respect these people so much, and even THEY had to repent, I will have to exert every effort to avoid the same mistake."

     I never want to make that mistake, Xxxx.  I want my family never to doubt that I value them more than anything else in my life.  I want to be true  to them from the very beginning of my family until the ends of eternity.

     Here is a question:  Has your opposition of the idea that a prophet can never lead the Church astray made it easier or harder for you to make your family your top priority?  Has your work and schooling choices made that harder or easier?

    Remember that God said, "Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever."  and "Look unto me in every thought."

     Does following the Prophets and Apostles as completely as if hearing the Lord himself make it easier or harder to make our families the highest priority?

     I know what my answer to that question is.

Love,

Gavin

          A litmus test is a question that is asked to determine, in a black or white manner, if something is good.

           Here are some of mine:  Does the activity make it easier or harder for you to care about another person's happiness  more than your own?  Does the activity make it easier or harder for you to genuinely help others when they need it?  Does it increase your ability to love?  Does it make it easier or harder for you to follow the Spirit?  Does it invite clarity or confusion?  Does it  bring you closer or farther from the promises in your Patriarchal blessing?  Does it put a piece of your heart into something that is not God or His children?  Does it make it easier or harder to make your future or current family your first priority?

          I believe that if we as we honestly evaluate our lives on the premise of these questions and act accordingly, our lives will truly be pleasing to God.

Givers and Receivers

          What is the greatest gift you can give to another?  Is it your time?  Your concern?  Sacrificing something that means a lot to you?  Certainly which gift is best depends on the situation.  There is one gift that the Savior often gave that may not be obvious.

          "Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35).  Because so much happiness comes from being able to make a positive contribution for others, sometimes the best thing we can do for them is to be helped by them.

          When we help others there is often a tendency to think of ourselves as above them, at least in some sense, even if we love and respect them.  It takes humility, and true love, to let others serve us so that they can feel happy and elevated.  To be clear, that does not mean that we should be selfish.  It simply means that when others try to do nice things for us, and we let them, we are giving them a key to happiness.

          Why is it so intuitive to us that we should accept Christ's sacrifice for us, and yet so difficult for us to allow others to do the dishes for us, give us rides to the grocery store, or any other small thing?  Zion is to be of one heart and one mind.  I do not believe that that can occur without a constant flow of giving and receiving between all of the saints.  I am not saying that we should limit the amount that we help others.  What I am saying is that we should pair out willingness to serve others with a willingness to be served.  From experience I know that sometimes the latter is harder,

          The following comes from the life of the Savior:

          "And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment" (Luke 7:37-38).

          I think that most people in Christ's situation would feel a little embarrassed about amount of affection the woman was showing.  But instead of pushing her away, the Savior gave her the priceless gift of the opportunity to serve the Son of God.  Sometimes the best way to rescue the damsel in distress is to let her rescue you.  The word "let" doesn't mean that you didn't legitimately need rescuing.  It may be as simple as acknowledging something beneficial that she did for you that she might not have thought was important.  It may be that you could have turned to someone else but chose her instead.

          Balance is difficult, but when the most important principles are in our hearts they emerge naturally in our actions.  So serve others.  Love them, help them and sacrifice for them.  But among all that, let others love you back.

"Coupelle opalescente Etling - Etling opalescent dish," no changes made, by Etienne https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/legalcode

Agency and Good Gifts

          Human beings are capable of amazing things when they work together with God.  It is amazing to me that considering how much God knows about our lives, circumstances, and what will make us happy, how little we understand the same, and how high the stakes are, that God lets us forge our own path so often.  Even when we follow His inspiration completely, our lives in so many ways are still up to us.

          If I were in God's position, it would be very tempting to micromanage us, especially as we navigate the most important decisions, such as education and marriage.  It would be natural to want to control all of our decisions so that we would never get hurt unnecessarily.  But it is more important to Him that our path be uniquely ours.

          My favorite part of the Meet the Mormons movie was the story of the Candy Bomber, the man who, during the USSR blockade of East Germany, airlifted candy for the local children in addition to the food that the US was supplying the country.  The part that stood out to me the most was how the Lord inspired him.  He was at the end of his first run to East Germany when he happened to talk to some German children standing near the fence.  As he turned to go, he felt a clear impression to go back to the fence.  Upon returning, he gave the children a stick of gum.  They enjoyed it so much that he decided that he had to do something to help them.  And that was when he decided to begin airlifting candy.

          Now what strikes me the most about this story is what God didn't do.  He didn't sit him down on a stump somewhere and say, "Listen, son.  These German children haven't so much as smelled candy in a very long time.  Even just a small piece of candy would lift their spirits.  I want you to start airlifting candy to them so that the East Germans will maintain enough good morale to withstand the Soviet blockade."  If He had, no doubt that the Candy Bomber would have obeyed.  But God didn't do that.  Instead, He merely whispered, "Go back to the fence."  He knew what the result would be.  He knew the man's heart.  But He wanted it to be his own decision.  Because that is precisely what makes the story so beautiful.

          The Candy Bomber may have chosen a myriad of other ways to help the children that would have been equally impactful.  But he chose this one, and that was what made it special.

          It is interesting to consider that Jesus may not only give us blessings because the Father commands Him to, but also from His own initiative because He has compassion on us.  For example, from His visit to the Nephites, we read, "And it came to pass that when Jesus had thus spoken, he cast his eyes round about again on the multitude, and beheld they were in tears, and did look steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer with them.  And he said unto them: Behold, my bowels are filled with compassion towards you" (3 Nephi 17:5-6).  And then He healed their sick.  He didn't say it was because the Father commanded Him to, but rather because of His own compassion.

          It is true that God blesses us in response to our agency.  But it is also my experience that His blessings far outweigh our requests.  We might ask for an angelic visitation to confirm the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, and He gives us the even greater witness that comes through the Holy Ghost.  We might ask for a miracle, and He responds by strengthening us so that we can change our circumstances.  Think about it; whether the miracle comes through us or through some impressive outside means, our request has been granted and our circumstances changed.  But by changing us, God not only answers our prayers, but also gives us something more: a strength of character that we can use and carry with us the rest of our lives.  Often even His "no" answers are but the segue to an even greater "yes."

          Agency is one of the greatest gifts that God gives.  Not only our own agency, but His.  He chooses to help us, guide us, love us, and protect us.  No one commands Him to; He does it of His own volition.  And, in the end, that is what makes it so beautiful.

"Gift Giving Just Around the Corner:-)" no changes made, by Kasla. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/legalcode

"Waterfall", no changes made, by Sudipto Sarkar. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/legalcode