This week I was able to try my hand at elevator pitches! I recorded more than I can count (mostly due
to Jasper’s ‘help’). But writing and
delivering elevator pitches helped me to clearly identify who my target market
is, what makes my services different from my competition, and how I plan on
being successful.
Furthermore, I have recruited a sweet baby to join my daycare
3-4 days a week! I’m friends with her
mom, so I didn’t want to charge her my planned price, but I will still bring in
some revenues anyway. Jasper loves this
baby – she tries to take care of her, covers her with blankies, feeds her
bottles, gives her pacifiers, shows her toys, and talks to her. It’s so fun to watch them interact. They are almost exactly a year apart, so
Jasper is gaining some valuable “big sister” experience!
I also learned about
Phil Romano, an incredible artist and entrepreneur. I absolutely love his
creativity, enthusiasm, and passion (and Macaroni Grill!) – he incorporates these things into so many
parts of his life. He shows a focus on serving and helping others while
success is simply a result of doing so. I love that he doesn’t stick with
just one thing for a long time – he moves forward and creates something
new. I can definitely relate to that mentality – I find myself feeling
bored or claustrophobic when I am doing the same thing for too long. I
need to always be experiencing different things or trying something new.
I feel like life has so much to offer, but we must be willing to accept the
different opportunities we have rather than remaining content within one
opportunity. Sometimes I feel limited in my opportunities or what I can
pursue since I am married and have a baby to take care of, but Romano helped me
feel more able to do what I want to do – life a life full of new experiences
and following my passions in life – even with a family.
This
week’s readings and videos helped me to gain a better perspective on businesses
and their purposes – or what should be
their purposes. It seems that today, so
many businesses are simply concerned with the bottom line rather than what is
best for the long-term success and growth of their company. If you want to leave a true legacy, look beyond yourself, don’t worry about what investors
or shareholders might think, and do what is best for the company as a whole.
We must
always maintain integrity and be true to ourselves and others. Honesty is vital for a company’s
success. While a company may feel like
they can get away with some discrepancies or dishonesties, those things will
always catch up with them in one way or another. Virtue and integrity are vital for a company
as well as for individuals. Those
qualities build trust. If others do not trust you or your company, you or
your company will suffer. If we strive to increase our virtue and integrity, people will
trust us and our businesses will blossom. Rationalization has plagued the
society as business leaders fudge numbers and do what looks best at that
moment.
I also learned more about the purpose of profits. Profits should be used to do something more
or better – not just to accumulate wealth and status. We should make
profits so they can become something greater! Learning about this
perspective has helped me to see the importance of using our resources to
improve the world around us.
I think the most significant thing that I learned was
through the Mentor Session assignment – I can be an entrepreneur starting
now! I always thought that I needed to
finish school first, but that assignment helped me to think of different
possibilities that I can begin immediately.
The one that I am most excited about is starting a home day care
business. The more I think about it, the
more excited I am. I am home every day
with my 1-year old, but I love working and wish I could have a job. Starting a day care business is the perfect
solution for me – I can work while taking care of my baby! I looked into the state requirements for
starting a day care business, and I can start small at first without having any
licensure requirements. If I like how things
are going, I can get my business and day care licenses, get CPR certified, and
care for more children. I discussed my
ideas with my sister and asked if she would be interested in working together
if we wanted to care for up to 16 kids, and she loved the idea as well! I think that day care is something that is
always in demand and I’ve thought about ways to set my day care apart from
others. First of all, my house is
childproof and fun – it’s filled with toys, musical instruments, and we have a
huge, fenced back yard. I would create a
schedule with times for snacks, reading time, music time, dance time, nap time,
etc. I would charge $5/hour for each
child, which is a great deal for parents.
It would also work great for me!
If I started caring for 4 children, that would be a combined
$20/hour! I have also considered the
possibility of offering a sibling discount - $5/hr for the first child and
$3/hr or any additional siblings. That
would make the day care more affordable for parents while still providing an
adequate income for me. It really seems
like the perfect solution for my business and home desires!
This week’s assignments were very insightful for me. I found Randy Pausch’s lecture to be
inspiring and motivating. He gave sound
advice about following dreams – even the small dreams (like winning big stuffed
animals). I think he taught a great
lesson about attitude. He apologized for
not being sad or morose due to his cancer.
He was lively, upbeat, positive, and even mentioned that we should
choose to be Tigger rather than Eeyore.
A couple more things that stood out to me are to show gratitude and see
the best in others. Those are two things
that I can implement more in my life. I
find myself easily irritated by my husband’s lack of help and support at home
and with chores, but if I look for things to be grateful about and see all the
things he does do, I would be a lot less irritated. As I strive to see the best in him, I will
have an increased appreciation and love for him.
Lessons Not Yet
Learned
Our assignments this
week focused on following your dreams and creating a vision. I need to figure out what my own dreams
are. I feel like I don’t know what my
dreams or life vision are or how to follow them. I stay very busy at home with my daughter,
housework, homework, etc. and feel like I don’t even have time for following
dreams, let alone take a shower or have a hobby! I know there must be a way to balance
everything and perhaps better time management would allow me to do more and be
able to follow my dreams. Creating a
list of 50 things to do helped me to see what is important to me and gave me
some great ideas for dreams to follow. I
also found the Stars and Steppingstones article to be very beneficial in
determining how I want to be remembered and what I should focus on now to achieve that.
This week’s introductory assignments have made me so excited
for this class. Being able to read about
the different assignments that we will be doing this semester helps me to feel
confident and know what to expect throughout the course. I always love video assignments and I found
President Hinckley’s words so empowering.
We must always uphold strong ethics and maintain our integrity. President Hinckley’s love for us is so
evident. I also loved what Elder Bednar
had to say about BYU-Idaho being a DPC.
His comparisons between the MTC and BYU-Idaho helped me to gain a better
perspective of my education and the importance of learning with the Spirit. In his talk “You Whole Soul as an Offering”
helped remind me of the true purpose of our education. I shouldn’t only focus on getting all A’s in
my required classes. I should look for opportunities
to learn, take courses that challenge me, and grow from those experiences.
Lessons Not Yet Learned:
I was able to read about how the case studies work in the
class and the importance of them.
However, I have not done one yet, so I will need to learn more about
them as I go. They sound like an
excellent way to learn the material and present opportunities to analyze and contemplate
different problems and situations that we may face throughout our careers. I also want to learn how the information I am
obtaining can be used at home with my family.
Jasper had her 4-month appointment last week! She is now 24 inches long and 11.5 pounds!
She got a cold and as a result, she learned how to blow her nose!
Jasper is extremely social and talkative. She loves to coo and holds several long conversations each day with anyone who is around! She loves to smile and grin at everyone. She has also tried rice cereal a couple of times and is learning how to use a spoon! She is growing up sooo fast!
Jasper helps me with my online classes and particularly enjoys learning about business law. She has also decided that my new iPod Touch should be hers and likes to draw pictures on it. She makes each day so much fun!!! :)
Brooke and I thought it'd be fun to edit Jasper's 20 week ultrasound DVD and put some music to it! Brooke did a great job of clipping out the boring stuff and putting the title screen, closing screen, and music in it! Here it is:
Just 4 more weeks till she's due!!! I'm so excited! :)
I haven’t written for a while since don’t have
my weekly religion blog assignment! My
next classes start up in just over a week.
I’m taking a required Family Foundations course and a Business
orientation one. That’s a total of 3
credits, which will be nice since Jasper will be born in just a few weeks! I had to change my major to Business again
since BYU-I decided to discontinue the English online degree program.
Jasper’s due date is just 53 days away! Here’s a picture of her adorable face from
her 20-week ultrasound. She's almost 33 weeks now! And she is SO CUTE!!! :)
Jasper's 20-Week Ultrasound
My mom and Melanie are throwing a baby shower next month on
the 29th, so I got registered for things at Target.com! It was lots of fun checking out all the cute
baby clothes and things. :) Click here
to view my registry!
We moved from Provo just over a month ago. We live in Sandy now! Brooke & Taylor moved to Sandy too, so we’re
all renting a 5-bedroom house together!
It’s fun. Michael started
teaching Social Studies a couple weeks ago. I reactivated my 24 Hour Fitness membership
and really enjoy swimming lately! I’m
also 10 miles closer to work now, which is awesome! It only takes me 15 minutes to get to work
and I love it! It’s also nice because I
go southbound to work, whereas MOST commuters go north, so I don’t have to deal
with the awful traffic as much. Same
with going home! However, traffic around
the Point of the Mountain often has its way of being sluggish for some reason.
We’ve had a hot summer!
It’s starting to cool down gradually, which is nice! Autumn will be here soon and I can’t
wait! It’s my favorite season. I love the smell of autumn, the golden
sunshine, the colorful leaves, etc. It’s
great!
I quickly
became intrigued by William Blake when reading about his unique religious
views. I was fascinated by his accounts
of seeing visions. As a young boy, he
saw a God put his head to the window.
Furthermore, he also saw "a tree filled with angels, bright angelic
wings bespangling every bough like stars" (Livergood). He continued to experience visions throughout
his life, which undoubtedly inspired and influenced his writing.
Not only
was he a writer, but also an extraordinary artist. He would illustrate his works with beautiful
paintings and relief etchings. The
process of relief etching was a very meticulous one – consisting of
time-consuming steps and careful workmanship.
I think this added so much to his work; making it even more a part of
him. His wife would assist him in the
procedure of relief etching and painting in the colors. This personal touch to his work adds a
significant dynamic to his poems and writings.
Knowing
about the life of William Blake before reading his poems definitely helped set
the context for me. Having some
background information helped me to read his poems with an understanding of his
spiritual interests. I found his poems
to be very insightful and with spiritual meanings as I read them. They express his thoughts, beliefs, and hopes
in a beautiful, artistic way. He is able
to contrast opposing aspects of life and nature. He shows how they are connected and make the
world what it is. This is demonstrated
by his collection of poems entitled Songs
of Innocence and of Experience. The
poems are short and simple, yet packed with deep messages and wisdom. These poems were often read to children, but
the messages are intended for both young and old. The poems are still enjoyed by people of all
ages today.
Chronology
Data collected from BlakeArchive.org Chronology and HumanitiesWeb.org
Chronology
1757 Born in
London, 28 November, to James Blake and Catherine Wright Armitage Blake.
1767 Begins
attending Henry Par's drawing school.
1768 Begins
writing Poetical Sketches.
1771 Becomes an
apprentice of James Basire, the engraver to the Society of Antiquaries and the
Royal Society.
1779 Apprenticeship
with Basire ends and he enters the Royal Academyof Art's Schools of Design.
He becomes a journeyman copy
engraver.
1780 Blake may have
participated in the Gordon Riots in London (June).
He was arrested on suspicion of
spying during his sketching trip on the River Medway.
1782 50 copies of Poetical Sketches are printed.
Blake becomes a freelance engraver.
Blake marries Catherine Boucher on 18
August.
1783 Blake's
father dies in July.
1784 Blake
and James Parker open a print shop together at 27 Broad Street.
He
begins working on An Island in the Moon.
1787 Blake’s brother,
Robert, dies at 19. Robert shows William
a new method of engraving in a vision.
This is how Blake develops relief etching.
1788 First illuminated works, All Religions Are One, and There Is No Natural Religion, are
published.
1789Songs of Innocence is published.
Begins
working on The Book of Thel.
Writes
Tiriel.
1790Marriage of Heaven and Hell is published.
1791The French Revolution is published.
Blake's
mother dies in September.
Blake
illustrates Original Stories from Real
Life by Wollstonecraft.
1793America: A Prophecy, Visions of the
Daughters of Albion, and For
Children: The Gates of Paradise are published.
Blake
engraves Albion Rose.
1794Songs of Experience, The First Book of Urizen, and Europe: A Prophecy are published.
1795Book of Ahania, The Book of Los, and The Song of Los are published.
1796 Begins working on The Four Zoas.
1800 Moves
to Felpham in Sussex to work for William Hayley.
1803 Blake is
charged with treason after a dispute with a soldier. He is put on trial at Chichester and is
acquitted.
1804 Begins working on Milton: A Poem and Jerusalem.
1809 His
work is exhibited at the Royal Academy.
1810 He
begins to suffer bouts of depression until 1817.
1817Hesiod is published.
1820 First
copy of Jerusalem is printed.
For the Sexes: The Gates of Paradise is
published.
1822 The Ghost of Abel and On Homer’s Poetry On Virgil are
published.
1826Job is published.
1827 Blake
dies on 12 August of complications from gallstones.
Biographical
Impressions
The
life of William Blake was lived in ordinary circumstances. He was born in London in 1757 to James and
Catherine Blake. They had seven
children, but two of them passed away while infants. Although he grew up in an ordinary
neighborhood and settings, he lived a fascinating life (poets.org).
His
spirituality added a unique dynamic to his life. He was seen as an eccentric by those who knew
him. His spiritual beliefs, ideals, and
experiences were radical – causing many people to believe him to be either
insane or a genius. From his early
childhood, he saw visions and angels. He
had siblings who passed away as he grew up.
He felt their spirits’ presences throughout his life, especially the
spirit of his brother Robert. He was
visited by Robert’s spirit and was shown the illustration technique of “relief
etching” that he became known for (poetryfoundation.org).
He was very
in tune with his spiritual nature, which I strongly believe influenced his
writing and art. Alexander Gilchrist
wrote a biography on William Blake in 1863 and said that he “neither wrote nor
drew for the many, hardly for work'y-day men at all, rather for children and
angels; himself 'a divine child,' whose playthings were sun, moon, and stars,
the heavens and the earth" (poetryfoundation.org).
His parents
recognized that William was a different child.
They educated him at home and he was strongly influenced by the Holy
Bible (william-blake.org). They
supported his artistic interests and enrolled him in a drawing school at the
age of 10. He began writing poetry
during his time at school. He became an
apprentice to an engraver when he was 14, which provided many inspirational
experiences. Some of these included
sketching assignments of Gothic monuments and architecture, including
Westminster Abbey. These experiences
would prove to be an inspiration to Blake throughout his life and works
(poets.org).
Blake’s
contemplative, spiritual nature enabled and inspired his writing and art. Many of his works reflect his spirituality
and beliefs. His collection of poems
called Songs of Innocence and of
Experience convey deep meanings about life, nature, and that everything has
its opposite. He subtitled the work with
the statement “shewing the two contrary states of the human soul.” He illustrated the collection as well, adding
visual appeal and meaning to his written works.
The Songs of Innocence and the
Songs of Experience are to be read
together, as they mirror one another.
They contrast each other by their different perspectives – the innocence
poems being “happy songs” despite the injustice and suffering of the
world. The experience poems depict the
world through veteran eyes, addressing this suffering, injustice, and evil of
the world (Greenblatt, 81). This
collection, as well as his other works, are greatly influenced by his study of
the Holy Bible along with his spiritual disposition.
“He
produced his personal, spiritual work, and it was this part of Blake's work
that inspired his development of illuminated printing and prophetic books,
written ‘so that the spirits could see them.’ The poems in Blake's Prophetic
Books were exciting texts of a mystical nature, and very few people could
understand them” (skoletorget.no). His
poems and works communicate his spirituality and “his hope that man can
overcome all limitations by means of the spirit within himself”
(skoletorget.no).
Critical
Interpretations
Literary
critic and poet, Keith Sagar, wrote an essay on Blake’s collection of Songs of Innocence and of Experience. He begins his essay by bringing up the
point of dualism. He wrote that Blake,
like most great poets, was “an enemy to dualism.” Instead, he focused on the “contrary” and
sought to unite them holistically.
“Dualistic thinking is so built into
our ordinary language, and the language of philosophy and theology, that the
words hardly exist to enable us to think non-dualistically, holistically, that
is in terms of systems, patterns, relationships, correspondences. But poetry is
such a non-dualistic language, which is why poetry is invariably metaphorical,
and the poet is the connection-man and healer. The language and vision not just
of Blake but of poetry itself insists that the contraries are equally important
and inseparable. ‘Without contraries is no progression’, wrote Blake. He sought
to transform the energies generated by conflict into creative energies, moving
towards mutual acceptance, reconciliation, harmony, expressed in imagery of
music and marriage” (Sagar).
His essay
continues to demonstrate this mutual acceptance or harmony by sharing excerpts
from different poems from the collection.
He starts with Songs of Innocence,
acknowledging their joyful, childlike feel, yet the shadows of experience still
make their presence known. He explains
that Blake’s intention of Songs of
Innocence and of Experience is not to invite us “to choose between them,
that no such choice is possible or desirable, and that we are not simply going
to be offered here the truism that innocent joy is preferable to the sorrows of
experience” (Sagar). Through this
collection of poems, we are able to accept both the joys and sorrows in life as
they must always coexist.
In another
critical essay called Songs of Innocence,
Songs of Experience, the author also brings up the dualism, and the message
of the poems of finding balance and harmony between the good and bad. It uses many examples from the poems to show
the presence of both good and evil. The
author of the essay also identifies the symbolism that Blake uses in his
poems. He uses symbols of joy and
despair in Holy Thursday. I thought some of the examples were very
interesting, such as the symbolism of thorns symbolizing the suffering of
Christ. The author makes a great
statement saying, “though his powerful, vivid use of imagery, personal tone,
and sense of paradox, William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Songs of
Experience, are able to work together in order to express a natural sense of
balance of the human spirit” (Songs of
Innocence, Songs of Experience).
The essay continues to show this
balance through the different poems, using “I Saw a Chapel,” “Holy Thursday,” “I
Heard an Angel,” and “Earth’s Answer.”
The poems express very different perspectives, yet still convey that
both aspects of innocence and experience are necessary. “Blake seems to be emphasizing in these two
poems that although innocence and experience are two very different perspectives,
and are often associated with what is good and what is evil, a person cannot
grow and develop without both, because both states of innocence and experience
contain elements of good and evil. Mankind simply cannot exist without both contrary
aspects of the human soul” Songs of
Innocence, Songs of Experience). This
idea really reminded me of Lehi’s teachings of “opposition in all things” (Book
of Mormon, 2 Nephi 2:11). It is through
this balance that we learn, gain experience, and grow. This is what Blake was teaching through his
poems contained in Songs of Innocence and
of Experience. I love the closing
statement of the essay, which says:
“Perhaps Blake is saying that neither
innocence, nor experience is better, for both are necessary for the growth of
mankind. Maybe the question Blake is asking the reader to think about it not, ‘How
can I completely live in the world of experience,’ or ‘How can I completely
live in the world of innocence,’ rather, ‘How can I learn from both innocence
and experience to grow as a human being?’ Blake seems to emphasize that a person cannot
dwell on regrets, or be completely oblivious to change. Change is inevitable, and regrets are
necessary, and in order for a person to learn about the beauty and importance
of life, one must be able to appreciate the good, as well as learn from the
bad” (Songs of Innocence, Songs of
Experience). I feel like that is an
excellent summary of Blake’s beliefs and intent of writing the collection. We are meant to learn to live in harmony with
these contradictory presences in our lives.
Life would lose meaning without this opposition, and Blake expresses
this very well in his beautiful collection of art and poetry.
Lawrence J. Trudeau wrote an essay on
the collection, sharing a textual history of the work, as well as the major
themes of it. I learned that the most
common edition of Songs of Innocence and of
Experience took about 35 years to produce.
Like the other essays, this one focuses on “the opposition between the
innocent, joyous perspective of the child and the more experienced, less spontaneous,
perspective of the adult” (Trudeau). He
also mentions the contrasts included in the poems and how they reflect English
society of the time they were written.
It was a time when personal, political, and economical freedom was
desired, but at the same time, there was also much apprehension concerning such
freedom and the possible consequences. I
like how Trudeau brought up this aspect of the poems in relation to English
society. He uses “The Chimney Sweeper,”
“Holy Thursday,” and “London” as examples of this social mirror. These poems depict the unfavorable conditions
of children’s work, poverty, and social protest.
Trudeau also includes a “critical
reception” section of his essay, sharing the different opinions, meanings, and
controversies regarding the collection.
He brings up the controversy that exists about the organization of the
collection and the relation of poems with similar titles as well as those that
are different. Trudeau explains this as
follows:
“Many critics have studied the obvious
dialectical pairings of individual poems, such as the contrasting versions of ‘Nurse's
Song’ or ‘The Chimney-Sweeper’ in each section. Others see affinities between
poems that do not have similar titles, such as the cluster ‘Laughing Song,’ ‘The
Little Black Boy’ and ‘The Voice of the Ancient Bard.’ Attempts to establish a direct correspondence
across the board between the two sections have proven fruitless, however. Donald A. Dike maintains that ‘Blake was too
fine an artist to pair off in detail all the poems in the sequences; to get what
he was after, it was enough to do this with a few.’ K. E. Smith suggests that attempts to match up
the individual songs are complicated by the fact that Blake himself changed the
order of the poems several times, moving some from Innocence to Experience.
Smith suggests that Blake was ‘constantly highlighting different paths through
the innocent world,’ rather than pointing to one final, ideal arrangement of
the poems” (Trudeau).
I like the
different viewpoints that this author shared.
It helped me to see the works in not just a spiritual viewpoint, but in
historical context and the meaning of the works in relation to society.
Lastly,
another essay written by Kate, uses very specific examples of poems in relation
to the terms “innocence” and “experience.”
She writes “Innocence and Experience are in opposition to each other.
Innocence is the child, unspoiled by society. Experience is what becomes of the
child when it comes in contact with society” (Kate). The focus of her essay is the comparison and
contrast of the two poems “The Lamb” and “The Tyger.” She shares her thoughts on these poems and
the symbolism used in them. She relates
“The Lamb” to innocence and Christ. The
people and animals in the poem all live harmoniously together without any
sorrow, pain, fear, or night. “They
Tyger,” in contrast, has undertones of experience, with fear and
nighttime. The two poems are opposites
of each other, yet still tie well together to balance each other out, as what
one lacks, the other has.
Principal Critics
S.
Foster Damon was an American critic and poet who specialized in William
Blake. He graduated from Harvard and
became an English instructor. His works
include A Blake Dictionary: The Ideas and
Symbols of William Blake and William
Blake: His Philosophy and Symbols.
Both of these works are invaluable guides on the ideas and symbolism
that Blake shares and uses. He led a
successful career at Brown University. The school’s website has a page about him and
states, “with his interest in alchemy and spiritualism, [he] was especially
qualified to expound ‘the esoteric side of Blake's genius,’ and placed Blake ‘in
his historical earthly setting with true biographical art.’ Damon was to become one of the world's leading
authorities on Blake, publishing several influential books during the course of
his career” (Mitchell).
Algernon
Charles Swinburne, an English critic and writer, wrote William Blake: A Critical Essay in 1868. It contains a comprehensive criticism of
Blake’s poems and prophetic books.
Before writing this book, he assisted Alexander Gilchrist, an author of
a biography on William Blake. “Swinburne
helped prepare Gilchrist’s biography of Blake for publication, but he grew to
dislike the finished book. His disgust culminated in the publication of his own
assessment of Blake’s life and work a few years later. Swinburne’s book is
useful for its commentary on Blake’s prophetic poems‚ works largely ignored by
Gilchrist‚ as well as for its characterization of Blake as a rebel”
(biblioboard.com). His contribution has
remained a valuable recourse for those studying William Blake and his works.
Alexander
Gilchrist wrote the classic biography, The
Life of William Blake. His interest
in Blake’s life began while he was still relatively young. “As
a student, Gilchrist had heard rumours of Blake as the eccentric erstwhile
occupant of Fountain Court, which he passed through every day on the way to his
legal chambers” (guardian.co.uk). He
later decided to begin his great work of a biography on Blake. He spent years compiling materials and
interviewing Blake’s living friends. He
died before the work was completed, so his wife, Anne Gilchrist, finished it
for him. It was published in 1863 and
continues to be “a standard reference work on the poet” (Wikipedia.org).
Creative Response
I created a
video of Blake's illustrations for Songs
of Innocence and of Experience.
This website has extensive information with a biography, bibliography, analyses on various works, and references about William Blake. His poems are also available to read or listen to as podcasts.
This website has a biography, his complete works, and a beautiful slideshow of Blake’s artwork. It also shares links for related pages, museums, and exhibitions.
This website is for a group that is involved with various issues relating to William Blake. Their aim is to raise awareness of Blake’s work and the different historical sites associated with him.
Works Cited
Bibliooard.com. William
Blake: A Critical Essay, by Algernon Charles Swinburne.
This website contains information
about Algernon Charles Swinburne, biographer, expert and researcher on William
Blake. Also contains the Ancient of Days painting by William
Blake that I used.
2 Peter 2:1-19 teaches us to be aware of false teachers and how we can
identify them.
Characteristics of False
Teachers:
Teach Heresies
Deny the Lord
Speak feigned words
Make their teaching a business
Walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness
Despise the government
Presumptuous
Selfwilled
Not afraid to speak evil of dignities
Find rioting as a pleasure
Adulterous
Sinful
Unstable
Speak alluring words of vanity
Promise liberty when bondage results
Covetousness
How this list helps me recognize
false teachers today:
If I hear people with these characteristics or teaching things with
these characteristics, I can know to be weary and that these people are most
likely false teachers. Because the
scriptures share this information, I will know what to be aware of and what
false teachers are like.
Dangers of returning to the “pollutions
of the world:”
2 Peter 2:20-22 teaches us that it’s worse to know righteousness and to
turn back to the “pollutions of the world.”
Doctrine & Covenants 82:3 teaches us that “to much is given, much is
required.” When we are given light and
truth, we are accountable for the knowledge we have and how we choose to use
it. Verse 7 of the same chapter teaches
us that when a person repents, but goes back to their old ways, their old sins
will return to them. If we want to be
forgiven of our sins, we must always strive to live the gospel and keep the
commandments.
The Epistle of James in the New Testament gives wonderful
insights on ways that we can live our religion and follow Jesus Christ.James 1:19 teaches us that we should be swift
to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath.
James 3 teaches us the following:
Things
We Say That Are Offensive to God
Things
We Say That Are Pleasing to God
Cursing men
Speaking badly about others
Praises to God
Blessings
James 4:1-12 teaches us about the effects of worldliness and
how we can counter those effects through our faith and actions:
Symptoms
of Being in the World
Prescription
for Being out of the World
Wars
Fighting
Lusts
Killing
Covetousness
Adultery
Submit yourself to God
Resist the devil and temptations
Draw closer to God
Purify your heart
Speak kindly about others
Humble yourself
I’m so glad we have the scriptures as a reference and that
we have Jesus Christ and his gospel to direct our lives.
Paul concludes his epistle to the Hebrews in chapter 13 with
some great teachings and counsel. Some
of the things he shares include answers to these questions:
How should we treat
strangers and those “in bonds?”
We must love those around us, including strangers and those
in bonds. “Let brotherly love continue” and
“be not forgetful to entertain strangers” because we may not be aware of who
these strangers are. (Verses 1-2)
How is marriage
looked upon?
Marriage is honorable in all. God will judge adulterers and whoremongers. (Verse 4)
What warnings are
given about covetousness?
We should avoid coveting others, but be content with what we
have. We must recognize that God will never leave or forsake us. (Verse 5)
What is “the same
yesterday, and to day, and forever?”
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to day, and
forever. We can always rely on him and
his unchanging gospel. (Verse 8)
How are we
sanctified?
We are sanctified through the blood and Atonement of Jesus
Christ. (Verse 12)
How do we respond to
those who rule over us?
We must obey those that rule over us. We should trust that they have our best
interests at heart. (Verse 17)
Who did Paul ask the
people to pray for?
We should pray for the leaders of the church. (Verse 18)
There are many more great principles and teachings found in
this chapter. I’m so grateful for the
scriptures and the guidance and strength they give me.
Paul taught of Christ’s greatness in the Epistle to the Hebrews. He taught:
Jesus is the Creator, God’s son, and is in the exact image
of God.
Jesus Christ is greater than the angels. His name is more excellent, as well as his
inheritance and calling. The angels
serve Christ.
The words of angels are important, but the words of Christ are even greater.
Jesus is greater than Moses.
Moses was a faithful prophet and servant of God, but Christ was a
faithful son of God.
Paul taught many truths of Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 1 he states:
Jesus Christ is the appointed heir of all things.
Jesus Christ created all things.
It’s through Christ that our sins can be purged.
Furthermore, the scriptures teach us why Christ, the Son of
God, came to earth to experience mortality.
We needed a way to repent of our sins, and he made that possible through
the Atonement. He suffered every
temptation, pain, and sickness we will ever experience. Every emotion we will ever feel, he has felt
it too. Through this, we can rely on him
for strength during difficult times, knowing we are never alone. Because Christ was perfect, yet paid for our
mistakes and sins, we can become perfect through him as we repent and strive to
follow him. I’m grateful for Jesus
Christ and his love for each of us.
Although the scriptures are from ancient times, we can still
use them to find solutions to modern life challenges. For example:
Example 1: People
sometimes argue and complain over petty matters in church meetings of
throughout the week.
Solution: Philippians
2 teaches us that we must be unified and love one another. We shouldn’t let petty issues create strife
or think that we are better than each other.
It says we should “do all things without murmurings and disputings.”
Example 2: Many youth
feel that their parents’ testimony is sufficient for them. Since they have good parents, they rely on
them for all their spiritual strength.
Solution: Philippians
2 states that we must “work out your own salvation” and shine as a light to the
world. President David O. McKay shares
additional insight on this topic:
“An outstanding doctrine of the Church is that each
individual carries the responsibility to work out his own salvation, and
salvation is a process of gradual development. The Church does not accept the
doctrine that a mere murmured belief in Jesus Christ is all that is necessary.
A man may say he believes, but if he does nothing to make that belief or faith
a moving power to do, to accomplish, to produce soul growth, his professing
will avail him nothing. ‘Work out your salvation’ is an exhortation to
demonstrate by activity, by thoughtful, obedient effort the reality of faith. But
this must be done with a consciousness that absolute dependence upon self may
produce pride and weakness that will bring failure. With ‘fear and trembling’
we should seek the strength and grace of God for inspiration to obtain the
final victory. “To work out one’s salvation is not to sit idly by dreaming
and yearning for God miraculously to thrust bounteous blessings into our laps.
It is to perform daily, hourly, momentarily, if necessary, the immediate task
or duty at hand, and to continue happily in such performance as the years come
and go, leaving the fruits of such labors either for self or for others to be
bestowed as a just and beneficent Father may determine.” (David O. McKay in CR,
Apr. 1957, p. 7.)
Example 3: An investigator is considering joining the church, but his
family will no longer associate with him if he does.
Solution: The
blessings of the gospel are incomparable with things we may lose to obtain
it. Philippians 3 discusses this and
says “I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that
I may win Christ.” We “can do all things
through Christ which” strengthens us.
The scriptures teach us that as we “feast upon the words of
Christ” through study, we will know what to do.
This is true for any decision, situation, or challenge that we will ever
face. I’m grateful for the strength and wisdom
that the scriptures provide and that we have them available to use as a
resource in our lives.
