Q. What would Jesus Do? A. Contend for the free exercise of religion.

In a discussion in my Institute class yesterday about detecting and avoiding the deceptions of the devil we discussed some current political trends concerning the free exercise of religion. Well, as “luck” would have it (if you believe in luck :-)) Elder Oaks just happened to give a talk about this very subject this week at the BYU-Idaho Devotional! What luck, eh? Anyway, here is the transcript of the talk: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/witnesses-of-god­

I HIGHY recommend it to you as we all strive to appropriately navigate these sensitive issues.  

Here are a few highlights I pulled out that I think are very apropos to our day and time:

- “We can neglect simple basic truths because we assume they are understood by all, but they are not. We must stress the fundamental truths on which our beliefs are based.
- Those who have used human reasoning to supersede divine influence in their lives have diminished themselves and cheapened civilization in the process.
- We should also assert ourselves against the current trend to refrain from religious references... As believers, we have a duty to preserve the name and influence of God and Christ in our conversations, our lives and our culture.
- A second thing believers can do to stand as witnesses of God is to support public recognition of the blessings of God.
- My third suggestion of what we can do to be better witnesses of God is to contend for the free exercise of religion.
- We should press officials in the executive, legislative and judicial branches of governments to honor the constitutionally guaranteed free exercise of religion.
- the guarantee of “free exercise” protects the right to come out of our private settings, including churches, synagogues and mosques, to act upon our beliefs, subject only to the legitimate government powers necessary to protect public health, safety and welfare. Free exercise surely protects religious citizens in acting upon their beliefs in public policy debates and in votes cast as citizens or as lawmakers.
- We need to support the coalitions of religious leaders and God-fearing people who are coming together to defend our nation’s traditional culture of belief in God and the acknowledgement of His blessings.
- we have a solemn religious duty to be witnesses of God. We must affirm our religious faiths, unite to insist upon our constitutional right to the free exercise of our religions and honor their vital roles in establishing and preserving and prospering this nation.
- The consequence of our failing to speak out as witnesses of God are evident in our Savior’s teaching about the salt that has “lost its savour.” Mixed with other substances — just as we can be diluted by the values of the world — it loses its unique influence on the mixture of the mass.
- We must retain our savour by living our religion and by asserting ourselves as witnesses of God. When we do so, we associate ourselves with those who will enjoy the ultimate victory of truth and righteousness, when “every knee shall bow . . . and every tongue shall confess to God” (Romans 14:11) and the Lord Jesus Christ, whom we worship and whose servants we are.”

Also, FYI - Last September, the Church released several materials that promote religious freedom, including a MormonNewsroom.org topic page with videos, as well as a Support Religious Freedom Facebook page. The Church believes religious freedom is a fundamental human right that protects the conscience of all people, allowing them to think, express and act upon what they deeply believe.

Yesterday I taught my married student Institute classes from the amazing Book of Hebrews. We discussed faith and the analogy of trying to help "Monto Gaunto" (an aboriginal man who has never seen any modern devices) to drink water from the drinking fountain rather than the toilet (which to him would now be odd or disgusting in any way). It occurred to us that "the temptation of the toilet" is always there; i.e. Satan is always trying to lure us back into old patterns because they are "safe." Just the opposite is actually true, taking the steps "into the dark" where The Lord is telling me to go is the safest choice and the one that will lead to the most happiness, but doing that requires 1. A Hope for something that I can't now see, 2. Evidence that the promise-giver is worthy of my trust, and 3. the Action of actually taking the step. It also came out in class that after a while of pressing the button on the drinking fountain and the water always coming out, that very often I will come to it again and find that it doesn't work! Perhaps it has been unplugged, maybe the fuze has blown in the electrical panel, or maybe there is a mechanical error, etc. Regardless, this is now an opportunity for The Lord to teach me and lead me to yet another plateau of knowledge and understanding OR for satan to lure me back with the ever-ready and waiting "temptation of the toilet." It was a great class and I think that we were all edified. I love The Gospel!
Following the 'natual man', weakness, sin and tradition ensnare us in self-made prisons... fortunately, I know One who has keys, who breaks chains, who opens doors, and who heals wounds!

Abortion

Laura shared this article with me. Incredible!

Why my support for abortion was based on love…and lies

by Jennifer Fulwiler

January 24, 2013 - When I was younger, I was always particularly shocked when I heard about societies where it was common to abandon or kill unwanted newborns. In college I once read a particularly graphic description of a family in ancient Greece "discarding" a newborn baby girl. I was shocked to the point of breathlessness. I was also horribly confused: How could normal people be okay with this, let alone participate in it? Nobody I knew would do that! Were people that different back then?!
Because of my deep distress at hearing of things like this, I found it really irritating when pro-lifers would refer to abortion as "killing babies." Obviously, none of us pro-choice folks were in favor of killing babies; to imply otherwise, in my mind, was an insult to the babies throughout history who actually were killed by their insane societies. We weren't in favor of killing anyone. We simply felt like women had the right to stop the growth process of a fetus if she faced an unwanted pregnancy. Sure, it was unfortunate since fetuses had potential to be babies one day, and we recognized that there was something special about that. But, alas, that was a sacrifice that had to be made in the name of not making women slaves to their bodies.
I continued to be vehemently pro-choice after college. Though my views became more moderate once I had a child of my own, I was still pro-choice. But as my husband and I began a religious search that led us to Christianity, we were increasingly put on the defensive about our views. One day my husband was re-evaluating his own pro-choice ideas, and he made a passing remark that startled me. He said:
"It just occurred to me that being pro-life is being pro-other-people's-lives. Everyone is pro-their-own-life."
It made me realize that my pro-choice viewpoints were putting me in the position of deciding who is and is not human, and whose lives are worth living. I (along with doctors, the government, or other abortion advocates) decided where to draw this very important line. When I would come across claims that life begins at conception, I would scoff. Yet I found myself increasingly uncomfortable with my defense:
"A few cells is obviously not a baby, or even a human life!" I would sneer to myself. "Fetuses eventually become full-fledged humans, but not until, umm, like, six months gestation or something. Or maybe five months? When is it that they can kick their legs and stuff?...Nine weeks?! No, they’re not human then, those must be involuntary spasms..."
I was putting the burden of proof on the fetuses to demonstrate to me that they were human, and I was a tough judge. I found myself looking the other way when I heard that 3D ultrasounds showed "fetuses" touching their faces, smiling and opening their eyes at ages at which I still considered abortion okay. Babies -- I mean, fetuses -- seen yawning at 12 weeks gestation? Involuntary spasm. As modern technology helped fetuses offer me more and more evidence that they were human too, I would simply move the bar of what I considered human.
I realized that my definition of how and when a "fetus" became a "person," when he or she begins to have rights, also depended on his or her level of health: The length of time in which I considered it okay to terminate a pregnancy lengthened as the severity of disability increased ("I wouldn't be comfortable with abortion after 26 weeks, unless the fetus had a disability," I once said). It was with a sickening feeling in my stomach that I realized that, under the premise of wanting to spare the potential child from suffering, I was basically saying that disabled babies had fewer rights -- were less human -- than able-bodied ones.
At some point I started to feel like I was more determined to be pro-choice than I was to honestly analyze who was and was not human. And I saw it in others in the pro-choice community as well. On more than one occasion I was stunned to the point of feeling physically ill upon reading of what otherwise nice, reasonable people in the pro-abortion camp would support.
In reading through the Supreme Court case of Stenberg v. Carhart, I read that Dr. Leroy Carhart, an abortion advocate who actually performs the procedures, described some second-trimester abortions by saying, "[W]hen you pull out a piece of the fetus, let's say, an arm or a leg and remove that, at the time just prior to removal of the portion of the fetus...the fetus [is] alive." He said that he has observed fetal heartbeat via ultrasound with "extensive parts of the fetus removed."
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which presumably consists of well-educated, reasonable, intelligent men and women, spoke out against this procedure. When I discovered their reasoning, I felt dizzy. They didn't oppose it because it's clearly infanticide in its most grisly form; they opposed it because of the inconvenience of dismembered body parts. In their amici brief to Stenberg, the ACOG explained in detail why they believe it's better to kill these babies outside the womb, in a procedure they refer to as "D&X":

D&X presents a variety of potential safety advantages over other abortion procedures used during the same gestational period. Compared to D&E's involving dismemberment, D&X involves less risk of uterine perforation or cervical laceration because it requires the physician to make fewer passes into the uterus with sharp instruments and reduces the presence of sharp fetal bone fragments that can injure the uterus and cervix.

There is also considerable evidence that D&X reduces the risk of retained fetal tissue, a serious abortion complication that can cause maternal death, and that D&X reduces the incidence of a 'free floating' fetal head that can be difficult for a physician to grasp and remove and can thus cause maternal injury.

I read the Court documents from Stenberg in a state of shock. A few years before, a friend of mine had her baby prematurely, and I had visited him in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. He was so beautiful, just like the full-term newborns I’d seen, only smaller. Seeing him and the other babies lying there so peacefully in their incubators, I was overwhelmed with feelings of wanting to protect these precious, innocent little babies. So I found myself in a state of cold shock that I was reading of people -- not just fringe crazies, but the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and some Supreme Court Justices -- casually speaking about the inconvenience of the severed heads and bone fragments of dismembered children ("fetuses") the same age as those babies in the NICU.
Click "like" if you are PRO-LIFE!
It took my breath away to witness the level of evil that normal people can fall into supporting. They were talking about infanticide, but completely refused to label it as such. It was when I considered that these were educated, reasonable professionals who were probably not bad people that I realized that evil mainly works by getting good people to believe in lies. I also took a mental step back from the entire pro-choice movement. If this is what it meant to be "pro-choice," I was not pro-choice.
Yet I still couldn't bring myself to say I was pro-life.
I started to recognize that I was no better than Dr. Carhart or the concurring Justices or the author of the ACOG brief, that I too had probably told myself lies in order to maintain my support for abortion. Yet there was some tremendous pressure deep within me that kept me from truly, objectively looking at what was going on here. Something within me screamed that to not allow women to have abortions at least in the first trimester would be unfair in the most dire sense of the word.
It wasn't until I re-evaluated the societal views of sex that had permeated the consciousness of my peer group, took a new look at the modern assumptions about the act that creates those fetuses in the first place, that I was able to let go of that internal pressure I felt, and to take an unflinching look at abortion.
It all begins with sex
Here are four key memories that give a glimpse into how my understanding of human sexuality was formed:

• When I was a kid, I didn’t have any friends who had baby brothers or sisters in their households. To the extent that I ever heard any neighborhood parents talk about pregnancy and babies, it was to say that they were happy that they were "done." Kids seemed like an optional add-on that a couple may or may not choose to add to their marriage, as long as they deemed that caring for offspring wouldn't ruin their ability to have fun together -- which was, as far as I could tell, the main purpose of marriage.
• In sex ed class we learned not that sex creates babies, but that unprotected sex creates babies. After we were done putting condoms on bananas, our teacher counseled us that we should carefully decide when we might be ready to have sex based on important concerns like whether or not we were in committed relationships, whether or not we had access to contraception, how our girlfriends or boyfriends treated us, whether we wanted to wait until marriage, etc. I do not recall hearing readiness to have a baby being part of a single discussion about deciding when to have sex. Not one.
• On multiple occasions when I was a young teen, I heard girls my age make the comment that they would readily risk dangerous back-alley abortions or even consider suicide if they were to face unplanned pregnancies and abortion wasn't legal. Though I was not sexually active, it sounded perfectly reasonable to me: That is how much we desired not to have babies before we were ready. Yet the concept of just not having sex if we weren't ready to have babies was never discussed. It's not that we had considered the idea and rejected it; it simply never occurred to us.
• Even as recently as 2006, before our marriage was validated in the Catholic Church, my husband and I had to take a course about building good marriages. It was a video series by a nondenominational Christian group, and in the segment called "Good Sex" they did not mention children or babies once. In all the talk about bonding and back rubs and intimacy and the importance of staying in shape, the closest they came to connecting sex to new life was to say quickly that couples should discuss the topic of contraception.

Sex could not have been more disconnected from the concept of creating life.
The message I'd heard loud and clear was that the purpose of sex was for pleasure and bonding, that its potential for creating life was purely tangential, almost to the point of being forgotten about altogether. This mindset laid the foundation of my views on abortion. Because I saw sex as being closed to the possibility to life by default, I thought of pregnancies that weren't planned as akin to being struck by lightning while walking down the street: Something totally unpredictable, undeserved, that happened to people living normal lives.
For me, and for many others I knew, being pro-choice was actually motivated out of love: I didn't want women to have to suffer with these unwanted pregnancies that were so totally out of their control. Because it was an inherent part of my worldview that everyone except people with hang-ups eventually has sex, and that sex is, under normal circumstances, only about the relationship between the two people involved, I got lured into one of the oldest, biggest, most tempting lies in human history: To dehumanize the enemy. Babies had become the enemy because of their tendencies to pop up out of the blue and ruin everything; and just as societies are tempted to dehumanize the fellow human beings who are on the other side of the lines in wartime, so had I, and we as a society, dehumanized the enemy of sex.
It was when I was reading up on the Catholic view of sex and new life that everything changed.
I'd always thought that those archaic teachings about not using contraception were because the Church wanted to fill its coffers by pushing the faithful to have as many kids as possible, or something like that. What I found, however, was that their views expressed a fundamentally different understanding of what sex is. And once I heard it, I never saw the world the same way again.
The way I'd always seen it, the standard position was that babies are burdens, except for a couple times in life when everything is perfect enough that a couple might temporarily see new life as a good thing. The Catholic position is that new human life is always a good thing. They said that it's fine to attempt to avoid pregnancy for serious reasons, but warned that if we go so far as to adopt a "contraceptive mentality," feeling entitled to the pleasure of sex while loathing (and perhaps trying to forget all about) its life-giving properties, we not only disrespect this most sacred of acts, but we begin to see new life as the enemy.
I came to see that our culture's widespread use and acceptance of contraception had led to this mentality toward sex being the default position. As a society, we'd come to take it for granted that we're entitled to the pleasurable and bonding aspects of sex -- even when we're in a state of being vehemently opposed to any new life it might produce. The option of abstaining from the act that creates babies when we feel like we'd be unable to care for a baby had been removed from the cultural lexicon. Even if it would be a huge crisis to get pregnant, you have a right to have sex anyway, the cultural wisdom whispered.
If this were true -- if it was indeed morally okay for people to have sex even when they felt that a baby would ruin their lives -- then, in my mind, abortion had to be okay.
Ideally, I would have taken an objective look at when human life begins and based my views on that alone...but the lie was too tempting. I didn't want to hear about heartbeats or souls or brain activity. Terminating pregnancies just had to be okay: Carrying a baby to term and becoming a parent is a huge deal, and society had made it very clear that sex is not a huge deal. As long as I accepted that for people to engage in sex in a contraceptive mentality was morally okay, I could not bring myself even to consider that abortion might not be okay. It seemed inhumane to make women deal with life-altering consequences for an act that was not supposed to have life-altering consequences.
So this idea that we are always to treat the sexual act with awe and respect, so much so that we should abstain if we're vehemently opposed to its life-giving potential, was a radical, new message. For me, being able to consider honestly when life begins, to open my heart and my mind to the wonder and dignity of even the tiniest of my fellow human beings, was not fully possible until I understood the nature of the act that creates these little lives in the first place.
The great temptation
All of these thoughts had been percolating in my brain for a while, and I found myself increasingly in agreement with pro-life positions. Then one night I was reading something, and a certain thought occurred to me. From that moment on I was officially, unapologetically pro-life.
I was reading yet another account of the Greek societies in which newborn babies were abandoned to die, wondering to myself how normal people could possibly accept something like that. Then, a chill tore through my body as I thought:
I know how they did it.
I realized in that moment that perfectly good, well-meaning people -- people like me -- can support gravely evil things through the power of lies. From my own experience, I knew how the Greeks, the Romans, and people in every other society could put themselves into a mental state that they could leave a newborn child to die: The very real pressures of life -- "we can’t afford another baby," "there's no dowry for another girl," "this disability would overwhelm us" -- left them susceptible to that oldest of temptations: To dehumanize other human beings. Though the circumstances were different, it was the same process that had happened with me, with the concurring Supreme Court Justices in Stenberg v. Carhart, the abortion doctors, the entire pro-choice movement, and anyone else who's ever been tempted to dehumanize inconvenient people.
I imagine that as those Greek parents handed over their infants for someone to take away, they remarked on how very unlike their other children these little creatures were: They can't talk, they can't sit up. Surely those little yawns and smiles are just involuntary spasms. I bet you anything they justified their choices by referring to these babies with words that stripped them of their human dignity. Maybe they called them something like "fetuses," and walked away confident that the lives that had been taken were not really human at all.

Reason vs. Faith

Really great talk on reason vs. faith:

http://www2.byui.edu/Presentations/transcripts/devotionals/2004_01_27_millet.htm

Hope on!

"Your playing small does not serve the world."

I think that there is a deep truth in this quote that more people (myself included) need to realize and apply.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.' We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

• Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles", Ch. 7, Section 3 (1992)

"I approve of this message."

The First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Tuesday: 

"We congratulate President Obama on winning a second term as President of the United States.
After a long campaign, this is now a time for Americans to come together. It is a long tradition among Latter-day Saints to pray for our national leaders in our personal prayers and in our congregations. We invite Americans everywhere, whatever their political persuasion, to pray for the President, for his administration and the new Congress as they lead us through difficult and turbulent times. May our national leaders reflect the best in wisdom and judgment as they fulfill the great trust afforded to them by the American people.
We also commend Governor Romney for engaging at the highest level of our democratic process which, by its nature, demands so much of those who offer themselves for public service. We wish him and his family every success in their future endeavors."

This morning when I told Clark and Lauren that President Obama won the election, Clark said, "Dang-it!" (which sentiment I completely agree with); but then Lauren wisely said, "Well, at least it is better than having no president at all." I thought about it, and you know, she is completely correct. This country and it's system is wonderful and inspired. I would much rather have this system than be led by a dictator, a wicked king, or simply whoever has the longest swords and biggest guns. 

Really, what is the big surprise in this election? Religion is playing less of a role in peoples lives. Conservatism is on the decline. Family values are being attacked. More people want the "security" of government programs than the want to work hard for themselves and participate in open capitalism in the marketplace. News flash: these are the last days!

All I can say is... Hope On!

2  We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
3  Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
4  Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.
5  For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.
6  And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost:

(New Testament | 1 Thessalonians 1:2 - 6)

Inviting Christ Into Your Life

Here's the outline for a recent talk I gave in Sacrament Meeting (Oct. 21st) for our Meet the Mormon's Day. I was invited to talk on "Inviting Christ into Your Life."

 

Any of you who know me and my amazing wife Laura have probably wondered: “What did he do to get her to attach herself to him in marriage; and how does he get her to stay with him?”

Well, I think that is a great question and one that deserves addressing.

Here’s how I did it; you might want to take notes: J (these will probably sound familiar to those of you who are married because you probably did the same things to build your relationship with your spouse)

You really only need 8 things:

1)      A Calendar: I let her know that I was available and interested (made time and room for the relationship). And then I asked her for a date. I let her know how long I had in town before I would leave for college, etc.

2)      A Heart: I started to trust her more and more and share more and more of ‘the real me’ with her (faith)

3)      Ears: I had long, serious talks with her where I did a lot of listening (prayer)

4)      A Watch: I would try to spend as much time with her as possible. (thinking of Him, keeping His Spirit near)

5)      Eyes: I would study her and diligently try to change things about myself that were unattractive to her, i.e. the walk around the lake, the “let’s not kiss yet” talk (scripture, repentance, unselfishness)

6)      A Rose: I constantly would strive to put her wishes above my own, i.e. the rose in the glove box; not riding a street bike, etc. (service & obedience)

7)      A Voice: I accepted her proposals, I committed and don’t look back (baptism, temple, etc.)

8)      A Brain: I know that if these things are not repeated constantly the relationship will be damaged. (endure joyfully to the end)

*But remember: We do not need to be perfect, no spouse is, but WE CAN BE FAITHFUL!

Now, the most important relationships in my life and throughout all eternity is not my relationship with my spouse; that relationship is a close 2^nd to the one that matters even more:

“For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.” (Isaiah 54:5)

My relationship with My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is my #1 relationship.

But, I have come to learn that at least one reason why The Lord’s plan has marriage at the very heart of it is because the principles that initiate and maintain a strong, intimate, and lasting marriage relationship are the exact same principles that initiate and maintain a strong, intimate, and lasting relationship with Jesus.

So, as important as that question about my wife was, here’s one that is even more critical: “Travis, how did you get The Savior to attach Himself to you in solemn covenant; and how do you get Him to stay with you?”

Well, here’s how I did it; you might want to take notes: J(these will probably sound familiar to those of you who are already “married” to The Lord, because you probably did the same things to build your relationship with Him)

You really only need 8 things:

A Calendar,  A Heart,  Ears,  A Watch,  Eyes,  A Rose,  A Voice, and A Brain.

1)      Calendar: I let HIM know that I was available and interested (made time and room for the relationship). And then I asked HIM for “a date” (church meetings, etc). I let HIM know what I was willing to give HIM (which wasn’t much at first), but it was a start.  ­­Alma 32:26-27

“Now, as I said concerning faith—that it was not a perfect knowledge—even so it is with my words.  Ye cannot know of their surety at first, unto perfection, any more than faith is a perfect knowledge.

But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.”

Think on the times when you have felt something, when you just KNEW something that you cannot explain.

2)      A Heart: I started to trust HIM more and more and share more and more of ‘the real me’ with HIM (Faith) Proverbs 3:5 - 7

5  ¶ Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

7  ¶ Be not wise in thine own eyes:

“God has not been trying an experiment on my faith or love in order to find out their quality. He knew it already. It was I who didn't… He always knew that my temple was a house of cards. His only way of making me realize the fact was to knock it down.”  (C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed)

3)      Ears: I had long, serious talks with HIM where I did a lot of listening (prayer)

Enos 1:2-8

2 And I will tell you of the wrestle which I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins.

3  Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.

4  And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.

5  And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.

6  And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie; wherefore, my guilt was swept away.

7  And I said: Lord, how is it done?

8  And he said unto me: Because of thy faith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen.

4)      A Watch: I would try to spend as much time with HIM as possible. (thinking of Him, keeping His Spirit near) Luke 10:40 – 42

40  But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?  bid her therefore that she help me.

41  And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

42  But one thing is needful (coming to Christ): and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

5)      Eyes: I would study HIM and diligently try to change things about myself that were unattractive to HIM, i.e. the walk around the lake, the “let’s not kiss yet” talk, i.e. let’s not do anything that will interfere or confuse this relationship (scripture, repentance, unselfishness) Alma 36:17 – 21

17  And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.

18  Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.

19  And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

20  And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!

21  Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains.  Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy.

6)      A Rose: I constantly would strive to put HIS wishes above my own, i.e. the rose in the glove box (service & obedience) How do we know HIS will?

(Amos 3:7 )7  Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

(Luke 1:76 - 78) 76  And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;

77  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,

78  Through the tender mercy of our God;

(Luke 7:27) 27  [Jesus Said] This is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

And the Lord has spoken in our day “Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;  18  And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world  (D&C 1:17-18)

I love Joseph Smith and the other prophets God has called since him, just like God’s people loved Moses and Abraham and Peter in their day; not because of the man himself, but because they reveal Jesus Christ to me and help me know HIM better.

7)      A Voice: I accepted HIS proposals, I committed and don’t look back (baptism, temple, etc.)

(Isaiah 1:18 - 19) 18  Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19  If ye be willing and obedient, [not ‘perfect’ thank goodness]

(Romans 5:6 - 11) 6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

8  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

9  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

11  And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. [ AT – ONE – MENT]

 I know that Jesus Christ not only will make up any difference in the end, but that he makes all the difference right now.

8)      A Brain: I know that if these things are not repeated constantly the relationship will be damaged. (endure joyfully to the end)

(2 Nephi 31:19 - 21)  19  And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done?  Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.

20  Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.  Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

21  And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God.

So, the best “Marital Advice” I can give? Make your spouse (Christ) the center of your life!

Make room for Him at the center, like the bulls eye of a target.  Surround that relationship with strong family relationships, good friends, honest work, uplifting recreation, etc.

Satan is doing all he can to nudge Jesus out of that center spot in our lives by introducing other things that vie for our attention. Some might be evil, but most often they are just distracting; either way, if I give them priority over my relationship with my ‘spouse’ (Jesus), my ‘marriage’ and MY WHOLE LIFE will be in trouble. As living prophets have taught, “if we do not choose the kingdom of God first, it will make little difference in the long run what we have chosen instead of it.”

But, Jesus Christ has restored His church to help us keep Him at the center…

He has given revelation to prophets as He did in the past to help us keep Him at the center…

He has given us ancient and modern scripture to help us keep Him at the center…

He has restored His priesthood authority and has given us baptism, the holy sacrament, and the family  ordinances of the temple to help us keep Him at the center…

And most importantly, Jesus Christ has given us himself, the living, breathing, healing, redeeming Son of God to help us keep Him at the center.

(John 14:18 - 19) 18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

19  Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

Jesus loves us more than any husband ever loved any wife! He will accept our mediocre performance and offering even when it is far less than what I would like to give Him in my heart of hearts. He loves us enough to help us work through the challenge of becoming like Him. He knows how hard it is for us, and is eternally loving and patient with me.

We do not need to be perfect, no spouse is, but WE CAN BE FAITHFUL!