Great to Talk Last Night

Mi Familia!

It was so great last night talk to my favorite peeps. It was a fully joyful experience to talk about the happy and difficult things of missions. We can all empathize with each other for the hard times and yet none of us can fully understand what each other has gone through.

I have been somewhat aware and yet probably still naive about how blessed my life has been. We do not have to experience slavery, lifelong ignorance, death of loved ones, war, and so much more. And yet the purpose of this life is to do difficult things and overcome the natural man. I have thought a lot lately about this and how this task is possible. We are told to deny ourselves of all ungodliness, to be temperate, and bridle our passions by Alma. These thoughts led to reading on the topic of Self Control in the Topical Guide. There Spencer W. Kimball says: "if you can conquer yourself, you can conquer the world."

We eat our big meal of the day at lunch. I first began thinking about this after a meal where I had eaten more than necessary. Consequently, my stomach hurt, it was harder to walk to afternoon appointments, and I was tired. Why do we do things that hurt us more than helps us? I know that excess calories add fat, makes our minds less sharp, and decreases our physical ability. All forms of gluttony are focused on what the body wants now: alcohol, drugs, laziness, anger induced violence, fear induced inaction, immorality etc.

But, I believe "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul," in the words of Henley.  In the fourth missionary discussion it says that God does not want to just aggravate the natural man; he wants to eliminate it. The challenge of this life is that we are given a weak form, where we are tempted to indulge ourselves, but we can still take steps toward the Savior. Regardless of our experiences, trials, and tests, we can learn Christlike attributes and give ourselves to God. So, I began to wonder how this can happen. How can we gain dominance over ourselves and become a child of light and good works? I have come to the conclusion that through planning, study, and faith filled goals, we can become clear on what we want to be. We can then set priorities and ask for spiritual help. This process is simple and yet incredibly difficult. But, "that which we persist at becomes easier, not the nature of the thing itself but rather our ability."

In obedience we free ourselves because the better part of our nature is free to flourish. This is intelligence.

As we work with families here, we have been suggesting that they write their goals as a family after discussing the standards they want to follow. If they are having trouble with drugs or alcohol, we ask them to write down the things they are not going to do every day. We then ask them to pray and rely on the one true power in this world.

Love you guys,