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In the past weeks I have spilled my resentful guts all over the page. The vent was appreciated. As the dust of my soul settles I do believe that a potential for silver linings exist in the blizzard clouds.
- I think this church Presidency/Q15 wants a less programmed church
- I think making room for personal or group study is a huge step forward
- I think our biggest stumbling block is our local membership
- I want the Christ Focused Effort to succeed for all of us
I am choosing to move forward in
mybest Christ Centered Way. My way will be different than some of our leaders. When I get weary I will immerse myself in inspiration from Uchtdorf, Okazaki, and the New Testament. I will work to love “my enemies” to the best of my ability. I will definitely pray for them, as they pray for me. Thanks for riding along the past couple weeks. I love having this space to process in.
I’m off to connect online with my fasting sisters and let them know I fasted 11 days.
The “no Mormon” thing bemuses me a bit but I can live with it. Christ-centered worship 100% though. But yes, I love the fact we are getting away from the ultra-correlated church of the 80s and 90s. We’ve also streamlined local leadership which makes life a lot easier.
As the current presidency is new, I would also like to praise the previous presidency, on how much I appreciate the new scriptural edition, temple films, and emphasis on service to the needy (which I believe RMN will continue from TSM). So while there has been one serious dilemma over the last few years, I find the rest to be mostly positive.
Future changes? What I would really like to see is more local input on ward and stake boundaries. We have areas in our ward that really belong to our smaller neighbor to the west in every secular sense – political administration, zip code, public transport, identity etc – yet they’re lumped in with us. Our rural growth model needs to change – and again, local input. Base it on transport hubs not just the biggest settlements at least to begin with.
3 words: Two Hour Church!:thumbup: Roy wrote:
3 words:Two Hour Church!:thumbup:
I’m easy about that one. My view is quality not quantity is paramount.
I know some people are delighted by the change.
I struggle with this one too. The church deserves credit for: 1. Changing Home Teaching to make it less box checking, negative, and more inclusive of female youth.
2. Going to 2 hour church.
3. Combining the Priesthood Quroums
4. The humanitarian work it does do…
5. A commitment to youth programs and youth in general. I can’t deny that when my daughter started attending a Ward in a different stake, the Bishop allowed her to participate fully with the rest of the Ward. And this in spite of policy. There were some negative Nancy’s/Ned’s in the process, but overall, they did the right thing. And now she’s whole, married in the temple and firing on all cylinders. The ostracized us as a family but that doesn’t negate what they did for my daughter.
6. Trying to elevate the role of women in decision-making in the church.
7. The good things people on the front line have done for me because they believe.
These are general steps toward making our church a much better place for good experiences. And there needs to be credit where credit is due.
I admit I’m a bit of a grumpy old bear when it comes to the church – I give myself credit for trying for decades to make it work. But I don’t know what it will take to erase the negative experiences. I thought about writing to the people who had wronged me so badly years ago, but it wouldn’t do any good. In fact, it might endanger my current situation if they forward anything I write to my Stake President.
So, I guess my goal is to prevent myself from tainting future generations.
The strange part is that I truly am HAPPIER in my current state than I ever was a full-fledged member. Sure, there were those spiritual highs after teaching appointments on my mission, but still, my overall level of happiness is higher on the fringes…
SD – That is beautiful. I am happy for you and your daughter. I have liked both being fully in and half way out. Right now half way out is perfect. SilentDawning wrote:
And now she’s whole, married in the temple and firing on all cylinders. The ostracized us as a family but that doesn’t negate what they did for my daughter.
As a tangent. Last night DW and I met with 12 yr old DD about personal progress. DD has been taking some time to plan her “personal progress” projects on sunday but then not doing well at the follow through. We discussed various options including just opting out of personal progress on one extreme or making it mandatory (must be completed daily before electronic time) on the other. DD opted to continue as we do currently. She will plan out her project on Sunday and it will be on her to follow through based on her interest level and competing priorities. She wants to do the individual projects as their own reward and is not interested in earning the necklace and medalion. I see this as a victory for self determination with parental support.
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