An Exercise in Religion

I have always tried to read from the scriptures throughout my adult life. At some point I switched from reading cereal boxes and the newspaper (mostly the “funnies” section) to opening my scriptures as I ate breakfast. It wasn’t necessarily an extensive study, but little bite size chunks.

One common phrase I have come across is “exercise your faith”. I’ve recently seen this phrase in a new light. As a youth exercising faith was described by comparing it to standing at the threshold of a dark room. Your ability to see what’s inside doesn’t increase until you step inside. This demonstrates how faith and action are tied together. I think there is some truth to that, but now I believe there is more.

I think that example describes blind faith. There is another facet to it. To add to the analogy, assume the same situation as before, except you have been told what to expect to see when you enter. Now it is not a hope in random luck, but more like an informed decision whether to enter. You enter because you are searching for something and you expect to find what you are looking for.

The scriptural version of this would be to not just exercise faith, but to exercise faith in Jesus Christ. I probably can’t count all the ways you can do this, but I can share two examples.

The most common way to exercise faith in Jesus Christ is to repent. The promises extended to us for repenting are many, but a summary may be forgiveness, relief from guilt, and the feelings of joy that comes from feeling God”s love. Now, knowing what to expect base on others testimony, you can decide whether to give it a try (exercise faith).

Another way to exercise faith in Christ is to turn to him when the trials of life hit. Trials in this day and age are too many to count and vary so much from person to person. But this much is true, I may not be able to define it, but I promise you’ll know it when you see it. The promise here is not that He will remove our trials, but that he will share the burden and make it feel light. That is the promise. To exercise that faith to receive that blessing, you poor your heart out in prayer. Share your feelings whatever they are. Ask for his help and guidance. He will come to your side and make it easier.

These are to examples of promised results. Exercising faith should not be about blind faith or blind obedience. It’s more like the scientific method. You have been given the hypothesis, the choice is yours as to whether you will test the hypothesis. Is God real and will he hear you? Even if you have the smallest hope that it is, then exercise that faith to see for yourself.

I am so grateful for new insights and perspectives as I read the scriptures. The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know. But this much I do know, that Christ fulfills his promises. I have experienced it in my own life. I’ve put Him to the test and know He is there and is but waiting for us to ask.

References: Book of Mormon (Alma 32:21-43) (Mosiah 24:8-24) New Testiment (Matthew 11:29)

Go All Out or Go Without

A few months ago, my wife and I decided it was time to get our budget under better control. We started looking at where we were spending our money and what it would take to save a little more of it. The end result was we placed ourselves on a strict budget. Since that time, we’ve tried hard to stick to the budget.

Of course Murphy’s law always has a role to play. Things tend to wear out and create an unexpected need. In the past I would have just replaced whatever had worn out without a second thought. Instead I’ve been looking at the budget and noticing when I couldn’t buy a replacement without going over budget. That’s when I remembered an old saying from the Great Depression. I’m not sure when I first heard it, but the memory of it has stayed with me over the years. It goes like this:

Use it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
Or do without.

So I started putting this to the test. I stared repeating to myself this phrase every time I thought I wanted to buy something. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but I was able to find ways to either extend the life or go without on a couple of occasions. When I am successful at making it do, there is a great sense of satisfaction.

This process has also helped me become aware of how much I’ve become entrenched into what I call the technological circle of life. It’s that constant “new and improved” cycle that causes you to dispose of things that work perfectly well in favor of the “latest and greatest”. The modern day version of the older saying would go something like this:

Use it now,
Wait for more,
When it comes,
Go all out!

I find this “latest and greatest” mentality to be ingrained into so many industries. I’ve noticed it in the automobile, computers, cell phones, tablets, and software industries, but I’m sure there are more that can be added to the list. Whatever the industry, I’ve decided it’s easy to get caught up in the media messages and start to want in now!

When that happens the best thing I can do is try to get my rational brain back in the game. I do this in a number of ways, such as review the budget, identify waste, or even a simple needs analysis. Looking at numbers seems to be the key to keeping my purchases more rational than emotional.

I’m going to try and do a better job of ignoring the modern message and stay on the simpler path of use it or decide to loose it. The ironic thing is, the simpler path is also the more difficult path. Wish me luck.

Footnote:

I’d love to hear if you’ve ever observed this in your own life and in which industries.

The Beginning of a Wild Ride

Several years ago my wife and I had the chance to go white water rafting in Denali National Park in Alaska. As it was late in the season, both the weather and the water were cold. As we floated down the river the guide would explain what to expect and point out dangers and how to avoid them.

Our guide shared a personal experience of one particularly dangerous adventure he had rafting. He and his friends were approaching some very rough waters when they heard a large explosion above them and watched a shower of large rocks and boulders land in front of them. Apparently someone was doing so demolition for a road or railway and did a poor job checking for people before detonating the explosives.

As grateful as they were to not be under the pile of rocks, they had no time to dwell on it. The debris that landed in the water significantly altered the rapids they were heading towards. In fact, the changes actually increased the level of difficulty of the rapids compared to what they were expecting. They had little time to look for patterns in the water identifying new dangers and react to them. Fortunately they were experienced rafters and they survived to tell the tale.

Just this month my son became a teenager. He is preparing himself to jump in the waters of grown up entertainment. Up until now I have sheltered my children by building a figurative wall around what my children can be exposed to. Now that they are getting older and growing up, they are starting to be tall enough to see over the wall. I suppose I can just pretend that they can’t see, but I don’t see the point in that. I’d rather stand by their side and explain what they see through the lens of my experience. My hope is to pass on my values and experience and then let him choose for himself.

So very soon, I will be jumping in a raft to start the journey of raising a teenager. Although I’ve been a teenage boy before, this time around will be much different. The movies and TV shows I grew up with were more innocent compared to what’s on the screen now. I feel like an explosion has just occurred up above to change the flow of the rapids. Despite the change, white water rapids are supposed to be fun. We’ll simply have to stay alert, identify the signs of danger and work hard to avoid them. As we do, I’m sure we will have the time of our lives!

Quotes:

“Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.”
-The Family; A Proclamation to the World

“Just as honest toil gives rest its sweetness, wholesome recreation is the friend and steadying companion of work,”
-Elder D. Todd Christofferson

Top Ten List of the Best of the Boy Scouts

This past Sunday I was asked to speak at church about the Boy Scouts. Thought I’d share online the thoughts I’d prepared:

10. Back Packing in the wilderness

There is nothing like escaping the demands of our constantly connected world by heading to the great outdoors. There are no phone calls, emails or text messages to demand your attention. Setting up a hammock, starting a camp fire and enjoying a hardy meal are just some of the luxuries enjoyed in the outdoors. It is also the best way I know to observe the beauty of Gods creation.

9. Mentor from personal experience

When I think of the Boy Scout Program, I think how significant a role mentoring plays. The program lives by the idea of learn a skill then teach the skill. As a leader I appreciate every opportunity I get to share what I’ve learned in my life. Believe it or not, people my age still remember what it was like to be a youth. Being part of scouting allows me to add my experience to the experience of each person I work with. And the same holds true in reverse, the experience of the youth are shared with me and teach me.

8. Give young men experience

Youth today are constantly facing so called “do or die” situations in life. Think about school for instance. In the learning process, students are required to take periodic exams that measure how much they have learned. There are rarely second chances. Once the exam is graded, their grade is set in stone. This process, by its nature, ingrains in each of us this pass or fail concept. Scouting is an opportunity to experience failure in a positive way. Scouting uses the philosophy of “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” It’s a reminder that we need not fear failure, we only need to fear giving up.

7. Teach respect for others

Another important principle that is essential for scouting to work is a respect for others. I know when I was a youth, giving insults and put downs among friends was accepted and even encouraged. It was a competition to see who had the most creative way to tear someone else down. If I had to guess, not much has changed today. In scouting, we cannot allow anyone to tear down. The program has at its core to build up. It’s a place where any young man can join in without fear of being mocked. The only way that this can happen is when each participant respects their fellow scouts and follows the golden rule. We reinforce this idea whenever we can.

6. Teach the importance of service

The scout motto is “do a good turn daily”. A good turn involves putting others ahead of yourself.
It gives joy and satisfaction that you cannot receive any other way. This principle directly relates to the teachings of Jesus. As scouting actively promotes a relationship to God, it is no surprise that service plays a role in its program.

5. A place to Explore

Have you every looked through the list of merit badges that are offered? The list is exhaustive. Here’s a sample of what the boys can earn:

Aviation, Dentistry, Crime Prevention, Gardening, American Business, Athletics, Sports, Communications, Metalwork, Oceanography, Theater, Reading, Nuclear Science, Veterinary Medicine, Engineering, Salesmanship, Entrepreneurship, Electronics, Public Speaking, Computers, Architecture, Archaeology, Plumbing, Cinematography, Journalism, Graphic Arts.

These are just a small fraction of the total list of merit badges scouts can explore.

4. Work in a team environment
3. Leadership

These two go hand in hand. A scout troop is broken into patrols. Each patrol works as a team in all the troop does. This applies when learning a new skill. The first to learn the skill then turns around and helps the others in his patrol. It also applies when preparing meals when camping. They take turns cooking the food and cleaning up the mess afterwards. One of the things I enjoy doing is giving them a problem solving activity and asking them to work together to solve it. It’s fun for both me and the boys.

All of these activities give opportunities for the scouts to have experience in leadership. They lead and conduct the meetings. They teach one another, mentor one another, and gain confidence leading a group. In fact, this is the reason Eagles Scouts are so highly valued in the business world. It shows they have experience in leadership and are good at following through with their goals. Both valuable traits sought after by employers.

2. Week at Scout Camp

I don’t care if you are a boy or an adult, it’s all about scout camp. A week in the mountains with a focus on having fun. You can try your hand at rifle shooting or shotgun shooting. Or perhaps you can try your hand at archery.

And then there is always water. You can spend time in the pool to learn to swim or just to play. You can even challenge yourself by attempting the mile swim. If you’d rather not get wet, you can jump in a canoe out on the lake or go fishing.

If you are craving a real adventure you can try your hand at the fifty foot climbing wall. If the heights don’t bother you, the you can joint the low and high cope courses that promise more climbing and even a zip line through the trees.

Between all the fun, you have time to relax in you hammock and play games at night before bed. It’s no surprise scout camp is number two.

1. Scout Oath & Law

To me, this is the most important thing in the scouting program. I want my sons to grow into men that value living a life of integrity. I realize there is more than one way to achieve that goal, but I have found the Boy Scout program to be successful time after time, so I trust the program.

“On my Honor, I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country,
And to obey the scout law. To help other people at all times,
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.”

There has been one person that has lived on this earth that has been an example for all. He served others and mentored many. He kept His Father in the center of His life. He knew His duty and went about His Father’s business. He lived for us and He died for us. Indeed, the scout oath is patterned to follow the teachings of Jesus. For this reason, I recommend scouting to help all of us to become more like our Savior Jesus Christ and to become closer to Him.

Guiding My Children to God

This past weekend, my wife had a brilliant idea. The kids had Friday off due to the end of the semester so she organized a long distance field trip. Early Friday morning she was on the road to Arizona. The purpose of the trip was to take the kids to see a place of worship.

My wife and I occasional take opportunities to worship at our local temple and enjoy doing so. Our children on the other hand are not yet able to attend. Attendance is restricted to individuals willing to make and keep certain commitments. They have not yet reached that stage in their life where they can make those commitments, so they haven’t been inside a temple.

This was the reason we were eager to drive the distance. Before a new temple begins being actively used, it is opened for tours to the public. The temple they visited is currently in the middle of its open house. As temples aren’t built everyday, it was a rare opportunity for us to share with our children a connection to God.

The first stop upon arriving was the temple. After the six hour trek, the kids were a little restless as you can imagine. Nevertheless, they immediately got in line for the tour. From what my wife shared with me, it could not have gone better. Everyone in the tour group was respectful which created a spirit of reverence. After the tour each of the children were asked what they thought of the temple and had the opportunity to share a little of what they felt.

As I have reflected on this quick trip, I wonder what will happen to the seeds that we tried to plant in their hearts. Each of them will eventually choose their own path, but my hope is that as they do, the memory of a peaceful moment with God will remain with them. That way they will know where to turn to when they have to face challenges of life.

Footnote

Here’s a link to the Temple they visited (not sure how to include a link so I hope this works):

http://www.lds.org/church/temples/gilbert-arizona?lang=eng

The Legacy of Fruit Trees

About a year ago, our family bought a home from a long time friend. She was widowed a few years back and her own health was declining. Knowing she could no longer stay here she wanted to sell us the house. Because of the special circumstances surrounding the purchase, we work hard to take care of it and often still think of it as theirs.

Both my wife and I have a great deal of respect for these two individuals. When the husband died, I made sure to attend and show my support and friendship. I’ve come to enjoy funerals of older friends, not just to show them respect, but to learn about their life when they were young. I was surprised to learn that he grew up during the Great Depression and how that era ingrained in him to waste nothing. I was impressed by how he learned to live frugally his whole life. One example of this was how he always had several fruit trees at any given time planted on his property. Living in his home and harvesting from his trees will always remind me of his way of living.

In contrast, the other day I got in the car and was surprised to hear a man on the radio giving financial advice about home mortgages. To hear him say it, anyone who hasn’t taken out all their equity from their house and invested it was making poor financial decisions. I was disappointed in his obviously biased advice and the misleading support he gave to his convictions. It made me appreciate the example of my friend that much more.

Of course, I understand that following the same financial advice as was given in the twenties and thirties would be insane today (I refuse to put money under my mattress). A modern financial strategy (formulated with a trusted financial advisor) is much more appropriate. The principle of frugality, on the other hand, can withstand the test of time. I doubt their are any competent advisors that would disagree.

I’ve shared this story with my kids before, but I guarantee that they will hear it again. Whether they roll their eyes or complain “not again”, I will persist until the legacy of our fruit trees is ingrained in them. Now…what fruit shall we plant this spring…

After Thought

In order for you to understand just how dedicated my friend was to planting trees I had to share. Along our driveway we have a lemon tree, tangerine tree and cumquat tree. In the back yard we have two types of orange trees (which ripen at different times of year), clementine tree, peach tree and an apple tree. If that were not enough, in the five feet of space between the house and the property line, we have a guava tree and a pear tree. And so you don’t think we live on a farm, we live in the city. He would use every available space he had to plant a fruit tree. We are very grateful he did.

BMX Mom

Yesterday morning I was driving home from a quick errand and saw a rather inspiring site. At the time I was driving a usual route so it was a rather mundane task. My mind wasn’t registering any of the scenery that I’d seen so many times before. During a stop at a red light my awareness suddenly came into focus. The site of a woman in a dress riding what appeared to me to be her son’s BMX bike had caught my eye.

I sat in my car as she slowly rode right in front of me to cross the street. What caught my attention was the combination of her long skirt and the extra small bike. Now that I was truly watching, I noticed a few more things. In her right hand she held two gallons of milk in a grocery bag. In her left hand was another bag full of something I couldn’t identify and on her back was a fairly large back pack, stuffed to capacity. She had a leisure pace to her final destination.

By the time she had made it three quarters of the way across the street, my mind was trying to put together what her story could possibly be. I imagined a woman responsible to house and feed a full house, most likely one of whom was the boy who’s bike she was on. The resources available to her must have been limited as she obviously didn’t have a car. As she discovered he fridge running on empty, she had pulled all her resources together to do what needed to be done.

As I drove away I thought how I wished I would have had the presence of mind to take a picture of what I had just witnessed. She had impressed me as a woman who won’t let an inconvenience paralyze her from action. She is resourceful in finding a way to accomplish her responsibilities. So instead of a picture to show my children, I am left with a thousand words to describe such a trait in the hopes of teaching them to value the same.

So wherever you are, BMX Mom, your example has inspired at least one, and hopefully more. God bless you!!!

A Traditional Father Tradition

The other night I attended a Boy Scout Court of Honor for my son’s troop. It brought back a lot of memories for me. When I was a kid, I was a scout. I went through the entire program, all the way until I was an Eagle Scout. The secrete to my success was my dad. My dad served as the scoutmaster for for myself and all my brothers. He made sure we went camping, learned our knots, knew first aid and could cook for ourselves. He gently pushed us toward our goal when we were dragging our feet. He did this for my many boys, not just my brothers and I.

As a youth, I appreciated the fun activities. Our troop was active outdoors. We would go out every other month on some hike or another. One of the most memorable trips I had was a 50 mile hike with my dad and one other scout. We hiked through the back county of the Sierra Nevada mountains to end up on top of mount Whitney. That experience turned out to be very important to me. During my transition from dependent to independent, I reflected on the accomplishment often. It was a reminder to me that I could do hard things and to never give up.

Now that I’m older and have the responsibility of children of my own, I’ve become aware of another thing that has stayed with me since I was a scout. I was taught how to be a responsible and decent human being. Every week we would recite the scout oath and law. It was rote memorization and at the time I didn’t place much meaning to it. As I reflect now, I realize that there were many times in the years past that the principles promoted in the oath and law came to minds as I considered the which paths I would take in life. That’s what I want to give my sons, as my father gave them to me. So you see, I had to be at that court of honor the other night. I was handing out the awards and presenting the troop slide show just like my father before me.

(To my father who is missed but not forgotten)

Footnotes:

Scout Oath:

On my honor, I will do my best, to do my duty to God and my country, and to obey the scout law, to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong, mental awake, and morally straight.

Scout Law:

A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.

Walking in my footsteps?

Kids add such variety to life. I just have to share a little story. A few weeks my son decided to start his semester science project. There was only one problem, the semester was ending! What a surprise I had when I discovered he had decided (yes, it was a conscious decision) to put off his science project until the very week it was due (I’m talking Monday, not the weekend before). He had exactly two days to finish the experiment as well as the report (it was due Wednesday). I was sure this lack of planning on his part was going to be a disaster. In order to teach him a lesson, we pretty much forced him to work on his own with very little help from us. So that’s what he did.

The experiment he had to do was compare how fast water evaporates with and without salt. As his luck would have it, he ended up getting sick and staying home on Monday. By the time I got home from work, he had put his experiment together and started his report. Despite his progress, it was obviously to me he was a little nervous. It turned out that he was expected water to evaporate much faster that it actually does (especially in winter). The pit in his stomach was from the realization that he may not actually have time to finish his project. So he went to bed and hoped for the best.

His hopes in finishing his project was that enough water would evaporate by the time he got home from school on Tuesday. All I can say is that he must have prayed hard before he went to bed Monday because Tuesday ended being one the hottest and driest days. Sure enough his little miracle happened. So Tuesday he worked his little tail off. Not only did he finish his project, but he also completed all his make up work from being sick the day before.

With the project finally finished, I sat down with him and had a little heart to heart. “He could do better.” “This is not what I expect from him.” “This is not A level work.” I tried everything I could to reinforce that procrastination is not what was right or good.

At that point I was pretty sure he had learned his lesson already. I saw it in his eyes that first night I came home from work. That pit in his stomach when he was uncertain whether he had enough time to finish his project was all he needed. What’s funny I can think of a very specific example when I was his age that taught me the same lesson. For me it was a book report on Martin Luther. I picked him because I thought he would be easy. Everybody knows who Martin Luther King Jr is. My big surprise was to begin learning about Martin Luther, the man who began the Lutheran church. It’s funny how vivid that memory is to me even after all these years.

Oh, and I hope that I was right about him already learning his lesson, because he ended up getting 120 out of 125.

Introduction

When I was in my early 20’s, I used to tell people “I should have been born in the 30’s or 40’s.” I love the music, the styles and the simple way of life that once existed. Of course those eras had problems of its own (such as a major world war!), so I’m not sure I would I would actually go back in time if actually could, but in some ways I see myself as a throwback to an earlier age.

At the same time, there are so many advances in technology that I have readily embraced, I appear to contradict my declaration of being a traditional dad. So here I am straddling the line between the good old days and the modern era. I have decided to take the “that was then, this is now” as a general thread to this blog. As this is my first post I will add a disclaimer to all who read it. I am no expert in history, culture or even the events of our modern era. I write from my perspective; how I perceive things as they are or were. May you find something to think about as you read.