I do have an iPad now. They gave them to us this week. We got them on Thursday. We are stilling trying to figure out how best to use them though. It will come with practice I am sure. The only difference that I have noticed is that half of communicating is listening to what they are saying and thinking of how to respond well.
We had zone meeting this week, so that was good. President was there to pass out iPads and to help us set them up a little.
I
got moms letter about self-discipline. I feel like you missed something
important when you were talking about self-discipline and self-mastery
though. Those are both good and important attributes, but one that
almost always goes along with it is something that is expressed
perfectly in Mosiah 5:2. "the
Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us,
or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to
do good continually."
A
lot of times self-discipline carries the connotation of having to
suffer through something that we don't want to do, but have to do
because it is right. That connotation is taken away when we realize that
self-discipline is one of the stepping stones to the enabling power. "A
mighty change in our heart" doesn't just have to be from evil to good.
It can be from good to better to best. Through the enabling power of
Atonement of Jesus Christ we can change ourselves so that the things in
life that we don't always want to do become the things we are the most
excited about. Self-discipline is what it takes for us to practice until
the enabling power changes us.
For
example, at the beginning of my mission I didn't particularly enjoy
having to study for 2 hours every morning. Over time I realized I wasn't
getting as much out of the scriptures as I could during that time. I
decided I needed to change that. At first I tried to just push through
it despite my lack of motivation for it. I did keep on studying for the 2
hours, but I still wasn't receiving the knowledge that I felt I could
have been.
I
asked my mission president what to do to solve that problem and get
more out of my studies. He told me to change my attitude so that I
didn't have to force myself through studies, but that I would look
forward to my time to study. I took his advice and began to pray for the
help I needed. It took a couple of weeks, and some stressful moments,
and a lot of time on my knees, but eventually I began to enjoy my
studies more and more and looked forward to them every morning. Through
my efforts and pleading to my Heavenly Father for help, I have changed
so that studying the scriptures is now one of my favorite things to do
in the day and I get a lot more out of it. Studying didn't change
though, I did.
We are meant to have joy in this life like it says in 2nd Nephi 2:25. "men
are, that they might have joy." Wading and suffering through those
things that I don't want to be doing doesn't sound joyful to me. I know
that life won't always be fun, happy, or easy, but we certainly can try
to help it to be that way by doing our part. And we can at least change
ourselves so that when we do the things that we need to do, we will find
the joy in it. Self-discipline alone will never allow us to become
happy doing the things we are commanded to do. It takes the power of
Christ's Atonement.
When
we combine the enabling power with self-mastery and a little bit of
self-discipline we obtain the power to overcome any disappointment,
pain, or suffering that we face. It also gives us the ability to grow
closer to the Savior and it changes us so that the things that we don't
want to do, but need to do, can become our favorite things to do. Just
like in Ether 12:27. "if
they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I
make weak things become strong unto them." That is when we have
experienced "a mighty change in our heart".
It
seems to me that self-discipline leads to self-mastery, and that
self-mastery leads to the enabling power of Christ, and through the
enabling power of Christ our hearts can be changed to find joy in any
and all of the things He asks us to do.
Just some thoughts I had about it. That's all for this week. kloveyoubye.
Love, Elder Udy
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