Take Heed
Greetings!
I find myself with a little extra time this morning and have a feeling that I won't have the normal time tomorrow as we will probably be on the road most of the day between here and there, then on to another place further, and back to there.
So, as my butt cheeks started going numb from sitting on a cement spectators bench, while watching 15 events of the 500, I decided to take advantage of the free time and share what has been on my mind this week. I hope I can give it justice.
I started the week pondering Acts 20:28-30. It is a great warning that I know is usually associated with a branch, ward, or stake. However, with the prospects of certain proposals that took place last weekend, my mind was taken down a different path.
"Take heed therefore unto yourselves,.." this is where it all begins isn't it. We must first start with ourselves, knowing who we are, who we want to become, recognizing who we can be come, seeing ourselves as God, our Father, sees us, and living accordingly. If we do not have this, we really have nothing. How many people do we know that spend their entire lives trying to achieve these things. There are some that have visions, get there only to find that without the last two parts, seeing ourselves as God, our Father, sees us and living accordingly, the vision is vain. Many find themselves starting over or giving up. It is a sad result of those who live only in this world and not live with aspirations of both worlds.
So, this is where I start. Where are you? Do you have the vision? Do you understand that it does not matter where you are? You can start from that place and move toward the desired destination. The path you take may be filled with different challenges than mine. It may have different terrain, colors, bumps, and bruises, but if you include God's vision of you in it, we will get to the same place. It requires us to commit to it.
"...and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers..." First and fore most is you. Then, as you make commitments to others, spouses, children, parents, siblings, family, callings, work, and more, if with the vision we have been talking about, you become overseers. Do you see that plan coming together here? Some of these things we choose to oversee, some of these things we asked to oversee as a result of the choices we make. We become overseers of our spouses, the children that could result from that assignment/choice, our siblings(not chosen, and in-laws that come with choosing), our parents, etc. You get the idea. When we make the choice or commitment, we commit to it all, the good, the bad, and the ugly. The promise is, that if chosen in partnership with God, we will rejoice in good, be carried through the bad, and blinded to the ugly that it will be come sweet.
This is such a powerful set of scripture. I encourage you to ponder it deeply. I know that my pondering continues and I have only touched upon the highlights of my thoughts and impressions.
The week has been good.
The Queen has trained most of the week. I have just been hanging around trying to do the same. We had a very nice dinner with Tall Man and Ehl-Bo(sorry for the misspelling in the past), her parents and siblings. The Professor joined before scurrying off to do homework. And SnackPack missed it all together. He says he was there in spirit. It was an enjoyable evening that allowed us to get to know each other better and make sure that Tall Man and Ehl-Bo are not first cousins of sorts. We do share similar roots in the family tree.
Besides joining us for dinner, the Professor has been busy almost every night this week with either a class, visits, or a project of sorts. I know she had a class on Friday, but I was not there to find out the outcome or the purpose. She has officially been announced as next years ALPS, for 5th. This will mean a world of changes in the months and years to come. We are all looking forward to the transition.
Tall Man has been stuck in the crook of Ehl-Bo all week. She did her best to schedule something everyday of her winter recess that included him. We just need to keep reminding him that it will all work out. If given the choice, I would have followed in his parent's footsteps. They did not care what happened at the event. They were just told when to be there and asked for a list of people to invite. The rest was handled. We know the date, time, and place. Eloping is still an option of sorts and we can forget the rest.
SnackPack did as much as he could NOT to go to school this week. He has been tapered for several weeks of late. Not school on Monday due to a holiday. He had no reason to start early on Wednesday due to the tapering. Then Thursday, he hit a couple classes before saddling up the pony and heading south for the weekend. I have been fortunate enough to join him the past couple days. I remind him that the adventure is in being, not always, being the best. He did improve some times, made some memories, and had some fun. That has all been worth it.
I hope your week was as full of events and memories.
I find myself with a little extra time this morning and have a feeling that I won't have the normal time tomorrow as we will probably be on the road most of the day between here and there, then on to another place further, and back to there.
So, as my butt cheeks started going numb from sitting on a cement spectators bench, while watching 15 events of the 500, I decided to take advantage of the free time and share what has been on my mind this week. I hope I can give it justice.
I started the week pondering Acts 20:28-30. It is a great warning that I know is usually associated with a branch, ward, or stake. However, with the prospects of certain proposals that took place last weekend, my mind was taken down a different path.
"Take heed therefore unto yourselves,.." this is where it all begins isn't it. We must first start with ourselves, knowing who we are, who we want to become, recognizing who we can be come, seeing ourselves as God, our Father, sees us, and living accordingly. If we do not have this, we really have nothing. How many people do we know that spend their entire lives trying to achieve these things. There are some that have visions, get there only to find that without the last two parts, seeing ourselves as God, our Father, sees us and living accordingly, the vision is vain. Many find themselves starting over or giving up. It is a sad result of those who live only in this world and not live with aspirations of both worlds.
So, this is where I start. Where are you? Do you have the vision? Do you understand that it does not matter where you are? You can start from that place and move toward the desired destination. The path you take may be filled with different challenges than mine. It may have different terrain, colors, bumps, and bruises, but if you include God's vision of you in it, we will get to the same place. It requires us to commit to it.
"...and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers..." First and fore most is you. Then, as you make commitments to others, spouses, children, parents, siblings, family, callings, work, and more, if with the vision we have been talking about, you become overseers. Do you see that plan coming together here? Some of these things we choose to oversee, some of these things we asked to oversee as a result of the choices we make. We become overseers of our spouses, the children that could result from that assignment/choice, our siblings(not chosen, and in-laws that come with choosing), our parents, etc. You get the idea. When we make the choice or commitment, we commit to it all, the good, the bad, and the ugly. The promise is, that if chosen in partnership with God, we will rejoice in good, be carried through the bad, and blinded to the ugly that it will be come sweet.
This is such a powerful set of scripture. I encourage you to ponder it deeply. I know that my pondering continues and I have only touched upon the highlights of my thoughts and impressions.
The week has been good.
The Queen has trained most of the week. I have just been hanging around trying to do the same. We had a very nice dinner with Tall Man and Ehl-Bo(sorry for the misspelling in the past), her parents and siblings. The Professor joined before scurrying off to do homework. And SnackPack missed it all together. He says he was there in spirit. It was an enjoyable evening that allowed us to get to know each other better and make sure that Tall Man and Ehl-Bo are not first cousins of sorts. We do share similar roots in the family tree.
Besides joining us for dinner, the Professor has been busy almost every night this week with either a class, visits, or a project of sorts. I know she had a class on Friday, but I was not there to find out the outcome or the purpose. She has officially been announced as next years ALPS, for 5th. This will mean a world of changes in the months and years to come. We are all looking forward to the transition.
Tall Man has been stuck in the crook of Ehl-Bo all week. She did her best to schedule something everyday of her winter recess that included him. We just need to keep reminding him that it will all work out. If given the choice, I would have followed in his parent's footsteps. They did not care what happened at the event. They were just told when to be there and asked for a list of people to invite. The rest was handled. We know the date, time, and place. Eloping is still an option of sorts and we can forget the rest.
SnackPack did as much as he could NOT to go to school this week. He has been tapered for several weeks of late. Not school on Monday due to a holiday. He had no reason to start early on Wednesday due to the tapering. Then Thursday, he hit a couple classes before saddling up the pony and heading south for the weekend. I have been fortunate enough to join him the past couple days. I remind him that the adventure is in being, not always, being the best. He did improve some times, made some memories, and had some fun. That has all been worth it.
I hope your week was as full of events and memories.
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