Top Five

Last night I was sitting at a friend's house eating dinner and I had this idea to make a top five talk list for each Apostle. The more I thought about it, it seemed rather difficult to make a top five list for each Apostle because it would be rather subjective for each person. My wife loved to hear Elder Richard G. Scott speak because she felt he was so personal, and how he talked about his wife. I lean more towards Elder David A. Bednar for the heavy doctrine and straight forward approach, and Elder Jeffrey R. Holland because of his passion and love for the gospel. Just in saying that one might think that I am implying that Elder Holland loves the gospel more than any one else, and that is not what I am saying. What I am saying is that his delivery comes across as very passionate. And so you see the problem with coming up with a top 5 list for each speaker. One might find what one apostle said this past General Conference had very little impact on them, but a talk that he gave ten years ago, reached far deep into their soul and changed their life for ever.

Nonetheless, I would like to start sharing with you some highlights of various talks that have helped me in certain moments, or just talks that I have really enjoyed. To start off I would like to share a little gem from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland,  (yes, he is my favorite and I threaten my children with their lives if they make any noise when he speaks at General Conference).  "The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent" was a talk given back in October of 2007, which was when a man named Mitt Romney was debating about throwing his hat into the ring for the 2008 presidential election and also the start of what some would call the "Mormon Moment." Where was I? I was sitting in a chapel in Huntington Beach as a very young missionary approaching the 6 month mark and I left this session ready to preach the gospel from roof tops and call every person I saw to repentance. Up to this point I had heard all my life that we weren't Christian because we didn't believe in the same Jesus as everyone else. I heard it several times on my mission how the Trinity perfectly explained how God was Jesus Christ and was the Holy Ghost. However, Elder Holland pointed out the issues with this, stating " Indeed no less a source than the stalwart Harper’s Bible Dictionary records that 'the formal doctrine of the Trinity as it was defined by the great church councils of the fourth and fifth centuries is not to be found in the [New Testament].'"

He goes on to explain, "So any criticism that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not hold the contemporary Christian view of God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost is not a comment about our commitment to Christ but rather a recognition (accurate, I might add) that our view of the Godhead breaks with post–New Testament Christian history and returns to the doctrine taught by Jesus Himself." Imagine me, 20 year old missionary ready to light up the world. Did you hear that? We, the "Mormons", are more Christian  than Christians. Who would have thought? But why is it so important to be able to understand the Godhead and the belief that God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, are three separate divine beings? Why is this such an important belief? Elder Holland asks it in a different way, "How are we to trust, love, worship, to say nothing of strive to be like, One who is incomprehensible and unknowable? What of Jesus’s prayer to His Father in Heaven that “this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent”?"

Elder Holland bore such a powerful witness that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. I encourage you to take a moment and listen or read his talk. Click the link!

Getting it Out!

I haven't wrote something in a very long time it feels like. It is kind of weird, I write some what regularly for things at work, school, with my kids, and so on, but I don't ever seem to write anything productive that I want to write. I am not sure why every couple of years I get this itch to write and start writing something good. Not sure if I am hoping to one day write a book. I don't feel like I am the expert of anything and I also don't feel like I have any cool stories from work or home to share, and I am awful at retelling stories or telling jokes. Some of the things I see on a day to day basis I don't feel like I can or should write and post on the internet. And now as I have gotten to this point I feel like I am out of things to say, but yet still feel like there is so much still inside of me to say. What is it? What is it that I want to share and let out? Or is it nothing at all? Or is it just me needing some sort of stimulation that I normally don't get in any other way. I don't know. I wish I know. Maybe I will try to find the book I bought a couple years ago "642 things to write about" and just see what comes out. See what it says and what I find.

Do you think every one has a story inside of them waiting to come out? How long have people had this problem? And how did they deal with before we had Facebook and blogging and all the different platforms to spill our guts? To share our story or even build and create our talents. Or did people even worry about this type of thing? Has it just been something that has come along due to the advances in technology and the abundance of food, shelter, and increased health care that we have? I don't know. Maybe as time goes by, I will find some answers to these questions. Or maybe, I will get better at writing.