"It’s YOUR Responsibility to…"

It is so hard when I feel I’ve heard it all before … and then the next meeting is a different person in a new calling saying the same thing again.

I liked my last SP who would spend more time teaching from the scriptures and expounding doctrine on Christ and God’s Love, nothing to do with “be your brothers keeper and get out there and home teach” – but the doctrine would inspire me, then I would want to go serve others and be anxiously engaged.

More church meetings need to understand that. Teaching doctrine does more to change behavior than talking about behavior does to change behavior (paraprhased from Elder Packer).

Oh yes, and I also get tired of hearing it. But by now I’m at a point where it all goes in one ear and out the other. I do look for opportunities to serve and help people though. And I think HT is a great concept so I try to do it. I’m learning to become a true blue, dyed in the wool buffet Mormon.

Orson, I can’t argue with that. That is what it all boils down to.

Having agreement on that, it seems difficult for me then to know how to prioritize where to put my love. Should I miss my daughter’s soccer game to go with the missionaries to show love to a new member? Should I show love to my leaders by obeying their council to go to priesthood meeting rather than help my wife at home who is asking for my love and support.

Elder Oaks gave a great talk on Good, Better, Best. Sometimes I find it hard to know which and when some fit into which category, and there is no hard-fast rule…it is situational, IMO.

I would begin by patting yourself on the back for even recognizing your frustration. So many people (and I used to be one of them) would simply internalize the message, beat themselves up, and continue to try and do more…

I love the concept of being a true, blue buffet mormon…because if we try and eat everything at the buffet, we end up being “heavy” and overloaded and then can’t function at our best.

When I start to feel frustrated at the messages and mantras, it has helped for me to turn them around into a more positive statement/reminder for myself (which many individuals have posted already).

My most important job right now is to love myself and take care of myself so I can…

–love the Lord

–love my neighbor

And, I have to take responsibility for living close to the Spirit and communicating with my Heavenly Father so He can guide and direct me to the most important activities for the moment, the hour, the day, week, month, etc…

It is so much easier to have a checklist of “things to do” that make me feel like I am being a “good person”. I believe it is a more difficult (but a more rewarding path) to seek true discipleship by being close to our Heavenly Father and seeking His guidance to know what that good, better, best is for each of us.

When I remember those things, I find that I don’t get frustrated as much by the mantras because I can remind myself that I get to choose what is most important both to me and my Heavenly Father (and I get to let everyone else make their own choices about how they spend their time). Believe me, I am far from being perfect at this, but as I have headed in this direction, I have been amazed at how much more meaningful my daily activities have become and how much easier it is for me to kindly say “no thanks, that doesn’t fit into my schedule right now”.

This is another important part of detachment. The guilt and pressure you feel is not really external – coming from others. You feel it because you have agreed to feel it.

When you let go of that, then you have to take accountability. Accountability is different from responsibility. You TAKE accountability. You are GIVEN responsibility. Responsibility comes from others to us. Accountability comes from within you, outward. And you are either accountable or you’re not. You’re accountable for whatever you know intrinsically you are accountable to do. It’s like the difference between your calling in life someone giving you a calling.

Maybe responsibility is the practice until we are ready to identify what we are accountable to do.

watching TV on Sunday

Sleeping longer than is needful

Questioning the Doctrine

I’m in a lot of trouble then. Those are the three things that bring me true happiness, especially the sleeping part

I can’t think of better acts of “rest” to do on the “day of rest”