Walking in the Light

In the last General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, President Eyring spoke about the light each of us have inside of us as described by Moroni in Moroni Chapter 7. This was my assigned topic for a church talk on the 2nd Sunday of September. I began with a cute joke I found in a book on LDS humor. There was this boy who got a call from the home teacher. After not letting him talk to either parent or sister or the fireman or the police who where at his house, he let him know it was the boy they were looking for. I used this as an analogy that it is ourselves who sometimes refuse to be found so that the Lord can lead us to the light. Walking in the light of the Lord is a choice. We have been given the light, but unless we decide to walk by its presence, we will not be able to see what is so easily attainable. The Lord wants to fill our lives with the light of his true Gospel if we will just let him. I pray that I can let him be my Light.

Fighting Pornography

Do we sometimes sanitize our public face to keep others from knowing who we really are? I just had a dream that to me was so erotic that it woke me up. This is not the dream that I hope to have, but when our past is filled with such things, it is hard to eliminate them from our thoughts. So having them, what do you do? Personally, I get up and go do something else. Satan will use everything we do or see to prevent us from reaching out to our Heavenly Father for help. I have sung hymns, read a book, played on the computer or held onto my wife. My next step is to get on my knees and pray for strength to stop such thoughts. I have struggled with this for my entire life. I remember in Japan while on my mission, the street was filled with signs of naked women. I could not keep my eyes from staring at them. Satan's influence was rampant and I could not control myself. I would not have anyone believe that I acted on the thoughts, but once a seed is planted, it is so much easier for satan to control what we think and lead us down to destruction. Addiction could easily follow. Fortunately, my companion was a better influence and led us to better pastures. The internet has allowed this influence to creep into our homes. I have a filter on mine, but it has not always been so. President Hinckley frequently warned us about the dangers of pornography and I can see were he was so right. Research also backs him up. I read where the brain activates while viewing pronography the same as it dues while using marijuana or cocaine. While this may feel good at the time, it leads to a crash that leaves you feeling drained and depressed. I pray that anyone who is caught in this trap may turn to Jesus Christ and plead for his help and then follow the counsel of the Prophet and seek help. The Lord loves us and will not leave you to wander in the wilderness.