Volunteer -- Take II

You know those times when you sit around with friends and talk about what you really "ought" to do.  Well I came away from one of those in April sometime convinced that we were serious.  The more people I talked to, the more excited I got.  So I did it - I submitted the sanctioning papers to the national governing body, I created a web site, I went out and contacted sponsors, set up the registration account, opened a bank account started a 501c3 not for profit corporation and (wait for it...) I'm directing a triathlon this weekend.  We have been in the paper three times, my wife is training for the triathlon, my supervisor is volunteering to help under me (a little awkward), and 70 people have signed up to date paying 65-75$ each.  We have raised around $4,000 for the local pool.  It will be neat to see what they can do with it.
This has been a big whirlwind of adventure for me - I feel grateful the Lord put me in position to step back and try my hand at these things.
These experiences have not only been exciting to me, they have blessed many of my relationships.  They  have also streamlined my views about volunteerism -- It feels wonderfully patriotic to seek to build your community.  It feels great to put your self to considerable trouble to make a difference.  Seeking to be anxiously engaged in a good cause has helped me come to know myself better and feel more connected to my community.     

"Hesed"

Recently I was made aware of a Hebrew word as part of my preparation to teach the Old Testament this year.  The word is "Hesed."  Hebrew terms, the teacher explained were more general than English terms usually - I found this one deeply personal nonetheless.  Hesed is translated in the Old Testament as mercy, loving kindness, or goodness in the King James Version.  In Hebrew it denotes, "an attitude of man or God which arises out of a mutual relationship."  It is shown in "the little things a person does in a covenant relationship to express love." 
As I thought about "hesed," my mind was drawn back to Elder Bednar's address regarding the "tender mercies of the Lord" noted by both Nephi and himself -- that God would have his favorite hymn sung in General Conference before his first address.  That sure beats unexpected flowers for my wife - it is certainly more personal - and more covenant focused.  Then I thought how many many more opportunities a person has to show love in little ways in a covenant relationship - I can show my wife and my God my love and loyalty today by pushing out any impure thought that may enter my mind.  I can show my love to my family by studying the scriptures with the intent to be led in my daily decisions in the home.  I can show love by praying silently for the welfare and happiness of my wife and children, these and countless others can fill my days.
What is infinitely more impressive though is the was my Father in Heaven shows his love to me.  What a wonderful thing it is to be alive another moment to experience his beautiful and powerful love.  What a beautiful concept is encompassed in the Hebrew word "Hesed!"

Paved roads

One of the things that I have had the opportunity to do while living here is to go into the woods to cut firewood.  My first trips were with my woods-wise colleagues from work.  Something that I soon learned was that the rougher the road seemed, the more likely it was that we would find the wood we were looking for along it.  There were times I was quite surprised that their little trucks could even get in to the places they did - yet they always came out again full of wood - for less turns of the tire too. 
As I've studied Church History and the Doctrine and Covenants this year I have found the same thing to be true of the lives of Church members early in this dispensation.  It seemed that the more they tried to stay on the right path the more difficult it became.  Many of those early members were driven from their homes two or three times, some were imprisoned, and nearly all faced sickness and exposure to extreme degrees.  The straight and narrow path is indeed steeper than it seems - and perhaps I hope from time to time that it were better paved.
There is one "Griffin" mentioned in the Doctrine and Covenants who lived during that time and faced those difficulties.  I remember my disappointment when I discovered that he Selah J. had abandoned the faith because the way was too hard.  He left for the pavement I guess
Recently I have felt the Lord wrenching my very heart strings - not dramatically or in powerful display, but He has consistently called me from a way of comfort, success, and pleasure to a different path.  Somehow again I had expected that this different path would be more immediately rewarding than it has been to this point.  This week has in fact been more difficult than most.  Yet somehow, there is peace in the plain road.  Perhaps it is less passable - less paved - because it is meant for the travel of just a pair at a time - me and my Lord.

Embracing Technology

I have been impressed wit the sheer number of Church websites there are.  It seems as if many of them are quite new and have popped up in the last year or two.  Here is a sampling of those I am aware of:
lds.org (new church website)
youth.lds.org (youth website)
providentliving.org (food storage and emergency preparedness site)
combattingpornography.org (site name tells all)
familysearch.org (site name tells all)
vineyard.lds.org (service opportunities to assist the Church workforce)
ldsces.org (website for the Church education system)
apps.lds.org/LeadershipPatterns (leadership pattern website for the Church workforce)
store.lds.org (online materials distribution)
lds.netdimensions.com (workforce learning site)
josephsmith.net (resources on Joseph Smith)
mormon.org (introductory site/ profiles of members)
radio.lds.org (official church internet radio station)
A pretty good number I would say - and I'm sure I don't have them all.  This list doesn't include any unofficial sites that are also great resources either.  I am impressed with the recent way the Church has embraced the digital age and leveraged the internet as a tool to build the Kingdom.

Volunteer!

Though we don't volunteer for callings in the Church, in the case of Zion's camp it is almost seems as if they did.  Because they chose to volunteer for Zions camp many them were trusted in the highest councils of Church.  One might well ask, "What voluntary choices affect one's service in the Church today?"  I suppose that the choice of career may have something to do with it.  Not that some careers are preferred above others, but rather that the availability some careers provide for Church service allows for greater investments of time and effort.  Similarly choices involving hobbies and whether or not to magnify ones calling likely have a significant effect.  What if I had less hobbies and was able to magnify my service my service in the Church more fully?  I need and seek perspective on this one - not that I desire to attain a certain calling or position, but rather that I desire to be of better service where I stand.

The Standard of Zion

I was studying about Zions Camp recently.  It is an episode in Church History beginning in February of 1834.  The saints in Missouri had been forced from their homes and were in dire straits on the bank of the river and in neighboring Clay County.  Joseph Smith had received sections 101 and 103 of the Doctrine and Covenants directing the saints to organize and go reclaim the land of Zion.  Perhaps they had thought more upon the reality of their status as victims, than on the word of the Lord regarding the reasons why He had allowed them to become victims of such circumstances.  Like I have felt before, I can imagine the saints feeling more anxious to avenge their just cause than correct the faults that allowed it to be brought upon them. Zion's Camp ends up not accomplishing it's stated purpose of redeeming the land of Zion just as the Missouri saints had failed in their attempts to build Zion.  Ironically both failures have come of the same reasons - transgressions and contentions have stopped them.  The saints had been able to establish settlements both before and after the attempt at building the city of Zion.  Their failure comes when the standards for such a society are raised and they neglect the spiritual foundation upon which such a society should be built. 
When I consider the effect of Enoch's Zion, it isn't really any wonder that Satan fights so hard against the establishment of such a powerful force for good as Zion is - in community, in home, or in heart

Race AND Wait

So I have been training with a buddy for a 10k race for the past 6 weeks.  He invested in this plan online and decided that it was the perfect way to end the racing season.  I found a way to swing the training also and signed up for the race.  I was excited about the prospect of putting my effort into a good plan and seeing what I could achieve.
The race was last weekend on the 16th and because it lined up with the fall break, we made a family vacation out of it.  To make a long story shorter, the race went great!  I felt great the few days before the race and went out there feeling like I had nothing to lose and I might as well lay it on the line -- so I did.  I finished over a minute and a half under the goal time I had set and trained for and made it to the podium taking first in my age group and 5th overall.  It felt awesome!  What really is remarkable though is in some of the events surrounding my race.
As I arrived at the venue, I noticed a fellow runner warming up for the race.  He looked like he might be familiar, but at the same time I knew I hadn't met him before.  I wasn't sure how to describe it then, but in retrospect it seems the Lord pointed him out to me - made me notice him for some reason.  Not thinking much of it, and being excited for the race, I brushed the notion aside and began my own warm-up routine.  As we filed into the starting chute I found myself standing by this man.  I introduced myself and found out a little about him. His name was Josh.  I introduced Josh to my running buddy who had just showed up, and small talked a bit.  I found out he was shooting for the same time I was, yet he seemed a little less confident about going for it than I was.  I suggested in a non-committal way that we might run together and he replied with the same "yeah maybe" type of feeling. 
I was determined to start fast, and so I found my place in the first hundred yards of the race behind the front three.  That was where I stayed too - I was passed in the first half mile by the guy who ended up finishing just in front of my, but that was it.  I spent the rest of the time somewhat isolated on the course.  As it turned out I didn't run with anyone.
After the finish I quickly found a position on the last corner to stand on and cheer the runners coming in.  Josh was the next one I knew to come in.  After his finish I introduced him to my family and he hung around us for the next half hour or so.  I remember being surprised with his comfort with us and have felt a sense of regret since then that I didn't build a better relationship with this man.
It dawned on my the next day in Sunday school.  We were studying Isaiah 40:28-31 which includes the verse "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; and they shall run, and not be weary; and shall walk, and not faint."  I knew in that moment that this is exactly what had happened.  The Lord was teaching me how to race and wait upon Him.  He had given me the opportunity to lift another - an opportunity that I didn't fully take advantage of for two reasons.  First, I was ill-prepared - I didn't have a Book of Mormon with me, and second, I was distracted by my race.  I felt then and feel now that the Lord will provide me opportunities to lift others and share the gospel if I will but look for them (I feel that he will allow me to race well this way too).  This learning has excited me - I can't wait to "wait!"