Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing…

  Okay, I ‘m catching up on the last few weeks now. These last few weeks has been full of challenges, and also great rewards.
  I caught a cold and was down and out for a few days. I was asked to speak in our Sacrament meeting (church service). Elliot was sick for a while, then Joni caught it too as that cold wandered through our home. One huge blessing I feel from practicing this plan of NOW is that when I don’t accomplish my goal completely, even though I feel a little disappointment in myself, I am still awaking pretty early, studying the Book of Mormon every morning, and drinking a lot of water.
  How awesome is that?
  I can still be happy with myself and have compassion for myself at the same time that I am being stern and reproving myself with sharpness to do better right NOW.

In Bed             10:30 – 1:00  (avg 11:30)
Awake              6:15 – 9:00  (avg 7:10)
Morning Gospel Study    25 min
Exercise        17 min (dumbbells + walk/run)
Water                            3 Glasses


  I was asked to speak in church about having the Holy Spirit with us, and keeping the Spirit with us. I was really scared and nervous to speak in front of so many people (so many = more than 1 or 2), and so many people that know so much more than me on any Spiritual subject. I labored for a few weeks with all the energy I had, for knowledge and guidance to speak on this subject. I wrote a hand full of talks and had twice as many ideas for talks.
  On the Sabbath day that I spoke, I left all my notes and talks and things at home and decided to put my trust in the Lord and pray for the Spirit to speak. After my sweet Mother spoke, we sang a song, and I stood up to the pulpit to talk. I felt very calm and looked out at all the people in my ward (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in my neighborhood), I saw dear friends and people I truly look up to, and really good people that have always been so kind to me and my family. I felt all my fears leave, I felt love enter my heart, words came to me, and I spoke.
  I am so grateful for the love Heavenly Father has for us all. His wisdom is endless! We always hear people speaking or teaching a lesson say that the experience of studying for the assignment has taught them more than they could ever teach from giving the talk or lesson. THIS IS TRUTH! I think in His wisdom, He calls on everyone one at a time to study and learn and to seek after truth given by the Holy Spirit. Therein strengthening our testimonies and love for one another, learning the doctrine of His gospel from Him personally.
  I’m so grateful to have been taught a path to know for certain for ourselves, individually the truth of anything we truly desire to know. The Book of Mormon has taught me this path over and over it is talked about in the Bible and in the Book of Mormon. Moroni 10:3-5. Look it up again. Ponder how merciful the Lord has been from Adam all the way through all the history of the Earth until right now, how he has been merciful to you in your own life. If you are grateful and feel the love of the Savior as you ponder, that is the Holy Spirit speaking love and peace to your heart and mind. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth! And by the Holy Ghost you may know the truth of all things.  And from the Bible: James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
  The main experience I spoke about, in church, happened when I was in the temple earlier that week…
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
  In answer to my prayers, these words came to me as I was sitting in the chapel of the temple. I thought, “What a great scripture to ponder!” and thanked the Lord for this idea, then asked Him to help me expand this thought. I thought, “Okay, let's say this temple that I am sitting in right now is my body. 
The first thing that came to my mind was that everything is bright and clean and healthy. There are many people that serve the Lord by keeping the temples clean.
I then thought of the outside of the temple, it is always very clean and tidy and the inner parts of the temple are not revealed from the outside. It is a very modest house.
In order to enter the temple we need a temple recommend. This question came to my mind, “Do my thoughts need a temple recommend? Or do I allow any thought that comes into my mind to stay and go as it pleases?”
I thought of the baptisms we do for our ancestors and friends. Do I forgive everyone and see everyone as children of God and my literal brothers and sisters? Do I try to help lift there burdens? Do I see the beautiful and good things in them?
Do I have the covenants that the Lord has given to me in constant remembrance, like a song being sung inside of me throughout everyday?
Am I continually pondering the words of life?
Am I always praying?
Am I always holding my wife's hand?
Do I have a celestial room that is bright and pure and quiet? A peaceful place where I can hear and feel the whisperings of the Spirit?
Am I being found true and faithful to the light and knowledge and covenants I have been given?
Am I receiving errands and commandments to accomplish from Heavenly Father everyday?
Do I report back each night having accomplished everything I have been asked to do?
Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
Does the Spirit of God dwell within me?
Are there places in my temple that the Spirit would be offended by?
These thoughts went on and on as I served in the temple that day. It seems like these symbols could be endless.
  I spoke of other things also, but I wanted to write about this experience.
  This experience has been a light added upon all these promptings I have been given to improve my life NOW. It has helped me to spread out and improve on every aspect of my life and to do a little more. It has especially brought me a greater sense of gratitude and love for my sweetheart. And for our amazing boy. It has also helped solidify my faith in “laying my treasures up in heaven” and trying to purge my life of selfish passions and desires. It has helped me to look upon life as an opportunity to be of service to my fellow brothers and sisters. It is helping me to hold an eternal perspective. I will work to keep it.
 
Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God; D&C 88:119
 
  I am taking this scripture literally since we are the temple of the Holy Ghost. This awakening has started me on this course of cleansing my inner vessel in trying to establish my body as a house of God. I will continue the trek.
  Joni and I (and Eli) have started on this journey to establish our own house too. We have been cleaning 1 area of our house at a time and organizing things so that our house is not a mess and so that it’s easier to clean when it does get messy. I have seen Joni smile a lot more and this makes me very happy. It feels nice to have a clean home.

Behold, mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion. D&C 132:8

  I am nowhere near perfect, but I believe that because of the Savior’s sacrifice I can be. I have to work and serve without delay. There is much love to be claimed right now!
   AWAKE!   ARISE!

…Loose him, and let him go.

  This past week has been ROUGH!   Lots of busy days ended up being late nights.
  I’ve read my last post a few times during the week to remember to treat myself good and to continue with hope to live a little better than the day before.

                            (highs + lows)
In Bed                    10:30  2:15
Awake                    6:15   7:29
Gospel Study         30min
Exercise                25min (1 mile)
Nutrition               2-3 good meals   
                              4 glasses water  
  

  Wednesday mornings have become my solo temple time.  This was inspired by my good friend Kevin Flanagan telling me about his Tuesday morning temple sessions for the last 5 years!  This last week, after changing into my temple whites, I reached into my suit pocket and pulled out a name card of one of my male ancestors out of the huge stack I have.  After reading the name I pulled out (randomly), I instantly felt Heavenly Father’s love.  The name was the same name as a person that I had been angry with for a few years and never really let it go... 

“With variations of characters and circumstances that story could be repeated many times over in our own day. How difficult it is for any of us to forgive those who have injured us. We are all prone to brood on the evil done us. That brooding becomes as a gnawing and destructive canker. Is there a virtue more in need of application in our time than the virtue of forgiving and forgetting? There are those who would look upon this as a sign of weakness. Is it?

I submit that it takes neither strength nor intelligence to brood in anger over wrongs suffered, to go through life with a spirit of vindictiveness, to dissipate one’s abilities in planning retribution. There is no peace in the nursing of a grudge. There is no happiness in living for the day when you can “get even.”

…“Father, … forgive our debts, as we forgive our debtors”( Matt. 6:9, 12).

…“To err is human, to forgive divine.” (Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism, 2:1711). There is no peace in harboring old grudges. There is no peace in reflecting on the pain of old wounds. There is peace only in repentance and forgiveness. This is the sweet peace of the Christ, who said, “Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God” (Matt. 5:7). Of that I testify in the holy name of Jesus Christ, amen.” (GORDON B. HINCKLEY “Of You It Is Required to Forgive” Nov 1980 Ensign)

  For a while now I have been pressed by the Spirit to just let this go and forgive. I kind of thought that I already had… But the feeling I have felt, is that I need to write a letter to this person. So for the the past few months I have thought about what I would say.  Most times my ideas would lead to “getting even” or casting judgment. I don’t want to be like that. I want to be a good man, and a disciple of my Savior who has forgiven me for countless things.

  So many talks and scriptures lately have spoken to me about this. At our last Stake Conference, Pres. Warnick talked about forgiving. He challenged us to forgive anyone that we are holding animosity towards or holding a grudge against for something they may have said or done, to you or to someone you love. He gave an analogy of when the Savior raised his friend Lazarus from the dead…

  Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.

   And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.

  And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

  And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

  …He said that we need to let the Savior forgive, and unloose those who have wronged us, and let them go. To unloose our grudges and ill feelings and anger we have towards anyone, and let them go.

  I love this analogy. And I want to obey and I want to be forgiven.

  That morning at the temple when I read that name, I instantly felt Heavenly Father’s love for me. I also instantly felt his love for this person and opened my heart to see them in a whole different light. I felt humbled and very grateful.

  So last night, I sat down and wrote a long letter. I really hope and pray that they take it in the light that it was written. I am grateful to this person for a lot of reasons, and I’m concentrating on those things and the special feelings and light the Lord gave to me at the temple, when I think of them from now on.

 

  

 

Realistically

  This week has been really good and has taught me a handful of lessons. 
  One lesson it has taught me is that I know I can do this!  One big reason that I know I can do this is that I am looking forward to my mornings everyday.
Here are my “week 1” results:

In Bed               10:30 - 11:15 average

Awake                7:35 - down to 6:59

Gospel Study     25 min

Exercise            15 min

Nutrition           2 good meals

                              3 1/2 glasses of water

“And it came to pass that the servant said unto his master: Is it not the loftiness of thy vineyard—have not the branches thereof overcome the roots which are good? And because the branches have overcome the roots thereof, behold they grew faster than the strength of the roots, taking strength unto themselves. Behold, I say, is not this the cause that the trees of thy vineyard have become corrupted?” Jacob 5:38

  Acting on the wisdom of this scripture from the Book of Mormon and from my own personal experiences, I am working towards my goal slowly, methodically, and with effort. Though I am also being REALISTIC because I want these roots to be strong.
  Being unrealistic about accomplishing goals has been a stumbling block for me in the past. I have expected amazing results from myself and have been disappointed in myself for not accomplishing them. I believe this is wrong and I have been working on stopping this abusive cycle. I really feel like we need to be kind to ourselves, give ourselves a break, and have compassion. I’m taking these words as comfort to my weaknesses and my strengths: 

“For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:” Isaiah 12:10

“That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.” D&C 50:24

  Here is a summary of my mornings, this last week.

Awake! Pray…

Go up and fill my stein with ice and water.

Sit down in a quiet room alone, with a nice chair and bright lights on. Set my alarm for 20 min. Study the Book of Mormon. After alarm goes off, finish chapter.

Find General Conference talk to listen to and press play. Set alarm for 5 min. Get down on floor and stretch legs and arms and back and mid section and neck with good breathing.

After 5, put on shoes and hop up and start walking on treadmill (yeah I know, not very tough, but man it’s cold outside) after timer on treadmill ticks 3-5 min crank it up to a jog or a run after 1-3-5 min (1min twice, 3 min twice, 5 min 3 times) slow it back down to a walk for another 3 min or so.

Water…taste…good…

  So again, by this time everyday it’s been about 8am or a little after and I have accomplished:

Prayer

Gospel Study

Exercise

2 glasses of water 

  I’m not really sure how to end a post. So I’m just gonna say this…
  This plan has already given me so many joyful rewards and blessings.
  My favorite so far is that Elliot (our baby boy) wakes up right around when I’ve finished each day, and my morning grogginess has almost met it’s match entirely by then. So we eat breakfast together with Mama, and talk and play a little before I leave for the day. 


  I love that boy, and his Mama.

Awake!

"Without change something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken." Frank Herbert's, Dune (Duke Leto Atreides)


  GOALS

“Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated” (D&C 88:124)
  Retire Early - Arise Early
  10:30pm - 5:30am

  "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)
  "Study the gospel of Jesus Christ in the morning, to begin your day." (personal revelation given to me for me)
  "...seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith." (D&C 109:7)
  "Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.
  And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
  And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." (Moroni 10:3-5)
  1 hour of Gospel Study everyday
  5:45am - 6:45am

  “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
  "And the spirit and the body are the soul of man." (D&C 88:15)
  "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth..." (Genesis 1:27-28)                                                

  Exercise Daily

  7:00am – 7:30am

  "Do you know that it is your privilege so to live that your minds may all the time be perfectly within your control? Study to preserve your bodies in life and health, and you will be able to control your minds." (Brigham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 190)
  "And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health to their naval and marrow to their bones; And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures. And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. And I, the Lord, ...promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them,... & not slay them." (D&C 89:18-21)
  Healthy Nutrition
   (still in the works) until further notice:
  2 good meals everyday
  5 glasses of water everyday

 
  There it is. These are my goals (and personal commandments given to me) to awake my mind and body and to live on "my" path to have joy and to fill the measure of my creation. With healthy portions of the following added into all my days...
   Work-Serve-Smile-Forgive-Love-Enjoy