Gremlins and Their Rules!

Look how cute!

Who's seen the movie Gremlins? If not, go see it... like, right now. If you have, how awesome is that movie? Pretty awesome. I love that movie, because it's not only highly entertaining, and filled with neat little creatures (both the Mogwai and the Gremlins), but it also teaches a very valuable lesson. Not just in how to defend yourself from attacking gremlins or responsibility for pets. The Mogwai come with three very specific, very easy directions to follow: Don't feed them after midnight, don't get them wet, avoid bright light. All you have to do is those simple things, and everything is alright. How hard is that? You just play with your little Mogwai, give him a cool name like Gizmo, follow the rules, and you have nothing to worry about. But of course, it being a movie, it would be quite boring if nothing went wrong. The rules are broken, and pandemonium breaks out. The adorable little Mogwai turns into a not-so-adorable Gremlin. Cue zany antics, more mishaps, and lots of entertainment, and you've got yourself a great movie! But how much easier would life have been for Billy had he just followed the rules?

Oh geez!

Billy's story isn't too different from us. There are rules we have to follow all the time: traffic rules, rules in the classroom, rules our parents give us. There are lots of rules out there. But, most are pretty darn simple to follow. We think about the gospel: We're given rules, commandments, to follow. They're not at all difficult. We aren't expected to do anything we can't handle, and are promised great blessings in return. It should be pretty simple to just go through with it. And of course, just like with the Mogwai, there are consequences to not following these simple rules. These repercussions can make things very difficult for us. We don't want to have to deal with negative side effects, and luckily can very easily avoid that, simply by following the commandments. We can keep our Gizmo a cute, furry little Mogwai, and not have to worry about dealing with a scaly, malicious Gremlin. So, are we willing to follow the simple instructions, and avoid having things get out of hand?

LDS FC: Our Manager

You thought I was done, didn't you? Well, the game of football doesn't only happen on the field! There's a lot done on the sidelines, by the supporting cast. The manager is a noble position to hold on the football club. It takes years and years to work your way up to that spot, and then several more years to be someone of note. You really have to perform well under pressure, and whip your team into top shape to be regarded as a manager.
There are many notable coaches and managers out there who have worked their way to a solid grounding, including Carlo Ancelotti, Arsène Wenger, Sir Alex Ferguson, Andre Villa-Boas, Jose Mourinho, and Bob Bradley. These men are incredible in their line of work, and are just as renowned, and sometimes even more renowned, then their players. Much as it pains me to admit such things about Wenger and Ferguson, give credit where credit is due. The manager is the one who calls the shots. He organizes everything, from practices to workouts, strategies and game plans, and makes sure everything runs just as smoothly as possible. They need to know the game inside out and backwards, but more importantly, they need to know their players.
A good manager knows each of his players strengths and weaknesses, where the perform the best, and how they react under any circumstance. They know their players almost perfectly. And because of this knowledge, they can make the perfect lineup against another team. Their understanding of what threats the other team brings, and their own team's potential and capabilities allows them to make the best possible decision. Even when others, including the players themselves, don't understand just what the manager was thinking, he knows what he's doing and (usually) is making the right call. He stays in the background, not on the field scoring the goals, but if it wasn't for the manager, nothing would get done.

Ok, I think it's pretty obvious where I'm going with this... process of elimination would lead you to the conclusion that the manager is none other than our Heavenly Father. He knows us all perfectly! He knows our strengths and weaknesses, and how we'll react under any situation. He knows where we would fit best, what purpose we can accomplish, and who we would work with. He knows exactly what threats Satan has in store for us, and is thus able to make the perfect line up to fight him. He gives instructions to the players, from the background, the sidelines, and encourages where He can, but He can't (and won't) come on to the field and play the game for us. He can't score the goals or block the shots, He can only give us top notch leadership, and help us to train and practice to prepare ourselves. It's still our game, and we're still the players, but we have the best Manager ever to help us to win! No one knows the game, His own players, and the other teams' players better than our Heavenly Father. All we have to do is listening to his advice, cause it's good. He knows what's up. Nothing out there is a surprise to Him. There are no trick plays, no secret weapons, no sudden, last minute switch ups that He doesn't know about, and the He can't combat. The team is only as good as its manager, and is there any better manager than God, Himself? He's undefeated! And undefeatable. So, that cup is as good as ours, as long as we're willing to play as a strong, cohesive unit, and listen to the counsels of our coach!

Unlike our Heavenly Father, however, not all mangers are perfect...

Captain Planet! He's our Hero!

Do you remember the show Captain Planet? Such a cool show! A bunch of kids with crazy rings fighting the bad guys, and when it gets too much for them to handle... Call in the blue guy! That's right, Captain Planet! He's our hero! He steps in, and with his superpowers (which were always rather ambiguous), he would save the day! Good stuff! And all the kids had their rings, and they represented different things: Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, Heart... I'm still not entirely sure where Heart comes into play, or what exactly it means, but it was always the last one mentioned, so it must be important! And, of course, when they put their rings together (well, not really together, more just pointed them in the air in the same direction), the magic energy things would join in, summon Captain Planet, and he'd enter with his famous line: "With your powers combined, I am Captain Planet!" Cue '90s inspirational music to set the mood for the heroics! And of course, those weren't just any kids, they were Planeteers! What a cool name! Run around, wear a cool ring, summon a blue superhero, and get a cool name for doing it. All they needed were jackets with their name and logo on it! All their villains in some way represent the problems facing the stability and well being of the environment, and it's their job to not only save the world, but educate people how to take care of it. But, it's through all of their efforts that they can get the job done.
We often run into big problems in our life, and need some help. I'm sure we'd all love to have some superhero show up and save us. Unfortunately, that doesn't really happen. No caped crusader will come and beat the bad guy. We can't just sit back and watch as the situation is cleanly resolved. However, we aren't left alone. Our Heavenly Father has given us a protector, if you will. Someone to comfort us, to guide us, and to help us. This is the Holy Ghost. We are able to summon Him at any time to help us out in a bind, but there are certain things that need to be done, certain "powers" that need to be "combined". We need faith, obviously, as that is the beginning of everything. We also need obedience to the Lord's commandments, and to be worthy of this gift. We need to study the scriptures, and understand what the Holy Ghost is, and how it can help us. We need to pray, to tell our Heavenly Father what we need, and to ask for the Holy Ghost to help us out. With these powers combined, we can have the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, to swoop in and help beat the bad guy! Pretty simple things to do to get the great gift of the Holy Ghost! It's incredible how much the Lord is willing to do for us, and for how little He asks in return! 

Tight Like Unto a Dish

In the opening chapters of Ether, we are introduced to Jared and his brother (aptly referred to as the brother of Jared). The brother of Jared communes with the Lord, and is told to build barges. This brings up many questions: how many? how? how will we breath? how will we see? All valid questions, and all answered by the Lord.
In construction of the ships, the Lord lays out the exact designs, "and they were built after a manner that they were exceedingly tight, even that they would hold water like unto a dish; and the bottom thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the sides thereof were tight like unto a dish; and the ends thereof were peaked; and the top thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the length thereof was the length of a tree; and the door thereof, when it was shut, was tight like unto a dish." (Ether 2:17). In being tight like unto a dish, the barges were sealed against the water, so there was no worry of them filling and everyone sinking, which would be bad. They know it will be tight because these were the designs given to them by the Lord. Now, the issue of them being tight like unto a dish did present one problem, the problem of air supply. If it's airtight, then no more air can come in, and once the air in the barge is gone, they'll all suffocate. This is pretty simply solved, the Lord instructs the brother of Jared to simply put a hole with a stopper to allow air in, then stopper again when water starts coming in.
I'd like to focus on "tight like unto a dish". This is said many times in the verse in description of the barges. Everything, the top, bottom, side, and door are all tight like unto a dish. What does that mean for us? The benefit for the barges was that it would for sure keep out all the water. That was the main danger being presented to them (that and sea monsters), and what they worried most about. We're just going to set off on this grand voyage in these big wooden barges, in the wide open sea, with absolutely no knowledge of where we'll be or where we're going? We'll drown! But, thanks to the Lord's instructions, that didn't happen. We can seal ourselves. We can make ourselves tight like unto a dish the same way the brother of Jared did with his barges. By following the Lord's instructions and doing as He says, we protect ourselves from the dangers that surround us and want to get in and drown us. As we make our lives tight like unto a dish, we are better able to avoid/resist temptations, and keep ourselves afloat, guided by the Lord, towards that promised land. And all the while, the Lord will provide us with air to breath, and light to see. Are you tight like unto a dish?

Behold I have given unto you my gospel...

13 Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.

14 And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—

15 And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works.

Those are three of the most powerful verses I've read in the scriptures. They come from 3 Nephi chapter 27. It is a perfect summary of Christ's purpose, and His. He died for us, that we may be lifted up. It's through His pain and suffering that we are to be saved. We have the chance to repent because of it, and we may choose to do so, and to follow His commandments, to receive our Eternal glory. We will be judged according to our works, as pointed out here, as well as in the Bible (Revelation 11:18; 20:12,13). Through our faithfulness and obedience will we be rewarded. The Lord asks us simple things to do, and if we do them, we have great things to look forward to.

It's not that we work our way into Heaven. We aren't going to be told we're saved because we did good things. Scriptures don't say that. Jesus Christ suffered and died on the cross to give us the opportunity to be cleansed of our sins. No unclean thing can enter into the Kingdom of God, and we are all unclean. We all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It is only through Christ's Atonement that we may be saved, because it is only through repentance that we may be cleansed, and repentance calls upon the Atonement. We are saved by grace, and judged according to our works. The Lord has laid out a plan, and expects us to follow it. We may choose to do so, and be rewarded, or not, and suffer the consequences. Every act of obedience brings blessings. Every step down the straight and narrow path brings good results. We cannot and will not be punished if we are living righteously, and we cannot and will not be rewarded if we are not. We have guides to know what to do: we have the Scriptures, and we have a Prophet. Thanks to these blessings, we never have to wonder. We can always find the answer to our questions, and always know which direction to take.

The Lord suffered great and terrible things for us. We are indebted to him more than we'll ever be able to repay. The least we can do is honor Him, respect Him, and follow His commandments. We're asked to do pretty easy things, and it's the least we can do for what He did for us. Plus, even with the great debt that we are in, He still blesses us. So, through simple obedience and righteous living, we get even more blessings, and we show our respect to our Heavenly Father, and His Son.

Like the Potted Plant...

We are all plants. All of us. Doesn't matter what kind of plant you are (ok, it kind of does), but we're all plants. And what is something we all learned in 5th grade science about plants? Plants use photosynthesis to eat. How do plants do this? They need certain things: air, water, light.
If you have a house plant, and you want it to survive, you have to take care of it. You make sure it gets water. There will (almost) always be air around it. It needs sun... you can't provide sun, but you can put it in a place where there is sun. Now, the more sun it gets, the more it'll be able to produce all that stuff that it needs to to feed itself. If we just put it in the windowsill for a few minutes a day, it probably won't do so well. Where as if we put it in the windowsill, and just let it go, it'll do great.
When we quickly read our scriptures, or say a quick, meaningless prayer, or do any of the things we should be doing grudgingly and half-heartedly, we are cutting ourselves off from that sunlight. The more we do things like scripture study, praying, church attendance, and more, the more we expose ourselves to the Spirit. We put ourselves in the windowsill when we follow the commandments of God, no matter how small they are. That Spirit is able to more fully fall upon us, and bless us with even greater blessings. The more we do these things, the more we'll feel the Spirit, and the better off we'll be.