"Gratitude in Every Circumstance"

My parents are serving the Lord in Africa. Sometimes it is very rewarding, and other times depressingly difficult. To anyone who is having difficulties in life right now, this talk offers some advice that you might find helpful in your moment of hardship. Reading/watching a conference talk ... it really works!

https://www.lds.org/…/2014/04/grateful-in-any-circumstances…

Here is one of my favorite parts:

"This type of gratitude transcends whatever is happening around us... It blooms just as beautifully in the icy landscape of winter as it does in the pleasant warmth of summer."

I remember a two day hike I went on as a boy scout with my troop. We were doing some difficult climbs and practicing our repelling, and to make the trek easier we decided to bring our sleeping bags without our tents. After the first day's journey, we camped on the gentle slope of a stretch of pure granite rock. It could have been ideal -- my father and I, our group of friends, and all of us resting peacefully under the stars in their natural brilliance -- but then it began to rain! Each camper had to do what he could to waterproof his bag. I borrowed two large trash bags to cover mine, but I'm pretty sure they didn't do much. Surrounded by the sound of rain and by the cold, damp water creeping in at the seams, I found sleep impossible and was miserable through most of the night. 

We got up early and hung up the bags to dry, and mine was the worst: the water ran off in a constant stream. The frigid air made packing difficult, but one of the younger adult leaders, Brother Bach gave me a hand. We squeezed all the water we could from the sleeping bag, rolled it into my backpack, and set out for civilization.






I was grateful to be moving again, and I was finally feeling warm and dry! And yet, talking it over with Brother Bach, he said he'd had a blast that night. I was confused. "Well, I was soaked, cold and wet," I said, "and could hardly sleep. Why weren't you miserable too?"

"I was also cold and wet and miserable," he replied, "but I still had a blast!"

We walked on, and I thought about his response. And I began to understand. He had had the same challenges, but he was simply the kind of person who looked at life, even the tough spots, as a wonderful adventure!

"In grief, we can still lift up our hearts in praise. In pain, we can glory in Christ’s Atonement. In the cold of bitter sorrow, we can experience the closeness and warmth of heaven’s embrace.

"We sometimes think that being grateful is what we do after our problems are solved, but how terribly shortsighted that is. How much of life do we miss by waiting to see the rainbow before thanking God that there is rain?

"Being grateful in times of distress does not mean that we are pleased with our circumstances... Being grateful in our circumstances IS AN ACT OF FAITH in God."

Techniques of Gospel Teaching

In June 14th of this year (2015), I taught the Gospel Essentials class, on the topic of faith. It was a straightforward lesson, focused on the text of the Gospel Principles manual, and more especially, on the scriptures referenced therein. As I reflected on the half-hour of teaching time, I decided that I had done a good job, but that I could also stand to improve upon my skills at engaging the audience. I recalled a training video we had watched at our latest stake conference, which had given direction to teachers about balancing classroom-wide discussion with focus on key doctrines:

"Sometimes I feel we think that if we had a discussion, we did the job, and it's over. And it seems to me these discussions all need to lead to an inspired conclusion, that's doctrinally-based."

In my case, I taught with a direct, leading style. While I invited questions and comments, I noted that the class was especially reticent. Some more encouragement could have made a valuable difference in the dynamic, and made the lesson more inspiring and thought-provoking. What could I do better next time, I wondered, in such a situation? I found an answer in the next thought from the training:

"[Discussion] often starts with a good question. And I think we've learned that the caliber of the answers is often related to the caliber of the question."

Ah, yes! A good teacher will ask inspired questions. I recall asking several questions, but they were on the fly and seldom really meaningful. Next time, I can plan out some really meaningful, engaging questions ahead of time. And this is all described in Chapter 2 of the missionary teaching manual, Preach My Gospel! I love when personal experience confirms the value of something I read. (Speaking of personal experiences, it may also have helped to have thought of a few ahead of time, to illustrate the principles.)

Although it's hard to do, PMG also teaches that a good gospel teacher must also live the gospel. The teaching helps with the living, of course, by the feelings and thoughts it inspires, but the living also helps with the teaching. It seems that people will learn more, in the long run, from what I do outside of the classroom, than from what I say in the short time we spend together within it. A lesson for life! Our private decisions play a large part in determining our public influence. How much more, when teaching about aspects of our character, should I be in practice with that aspect? I am sure that my abilities to relate about faith in the class certainly benefited from my efforts to live the principle, and the more I had been engaged with it, the better I could have conveyed its value and truth.

Elder Holland wrapped up the video training meeting by quoting Paul and Christ and calling teaching "about as fundamental a task as we have in the gospel, from earliest childhood to our senior citizen days." He said that we are all the product of whatever it is we have been taught, and testified that the Savior was the Master Teacher.

The Substance of Government, and What Follows

I rarely discuss politics. Perhaps it is because I often disagree with what is commonly said. It's not a reason not to talk about the disagreements, of course, but I like to avoid the conflict when I can. My strategy of avoidance, I know, will only be a temporary one. I knowingly put the conflict aside until a time of maturity, a time when the benefits of the resolution of differences outweighs the costs of the conversation. So today I make an experiment in my blog, and raise a political topic which has found its way again into my thoughts. Consider this quote by a well-known AI scientist, mathematician and rationalist:

"The substance of a democracy is the specific mechanism that resolves policy conflicts.  If all groups had the same preferred policies, there would be no need for democracy—we would automatically cooperate." --Eliezer Yudkowsky

Now read the quote again, but substituting 'government' for 'democracy'. Does having a successful community/nation rely more upon mutual policy agreement, or upon having an adequate mechanism for resolving disputes (an adequate government)? Promoter of good government have an interest in convincing people that government is necessary absolutely, but government as a mechanism of conflict resolution is clearly not necessary amidst a people who have no conflicts, and is little necessary for a people with few conflicts. Consider this quote by Joseph Smith, Founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, in response to the (paraphrased) question, "How are you, one man, able to govern so many people so effectively?":

"I teach the people correct principles, and they govern themselves."

Is it the best we can do solely to promote the right kind of national government? Or is it a time to remind ourselves that the better we govern ourselves -- our inner selves, our interpersonal relationships, our families, our communities, our cities and counties and states -- the less need we have for government on a higher level? (I am setting aside international relations for brevity's sake.)

Governments resolve conflict, but we pay a price in taxes, displacement of labor from the work force, and less-than-ideal compromises. They have assisted us through the centuries, but they are not sufficient. The quest of government, the quest for lasting peace and prosperity, takes peace, love, trust, understanding, and every true principle, and it starts within the minds and hearts of people like you and me.