I should start by defining what home teachers are. Not just for someone who might read this that isn't a Mormon, but I used to be in the Elder's Quorum Presidency & have seen the percentage of how much actually gets done, so there are probably lots of Mormons who are a bit foggy on what these mysterious "Home Teachers" are. In a nut shell, men are paired up & given 3-5 families to go visit once a month. These visits help to offer assistance to needs that the family might have, they also serve to uplift & strengthen the home.
For the first time in a dog's age I have home teachers in my house on a regular basis. I don't necessarily see both of them together at the same time, but they do both put in the effort to fulfill their callings & my family is grateful for that. Cory came over last month, and in conversation he was able to articulate to me something that I've felt for years now. He said that the only thing he missed about not being a member of the church was the ignorance. He missed the feeling that it didn't matter if he slept in on a Sunday.
My coworkers do not understand when I tell them that I don't miss alcohol, or drugs, or any number of the sinful aspects of my past. I promise that I don't. What I do miss though is how nothing really mattered. There were no eternal consequences. Everything seems different now because I have been endowed with the knowledge that this life is our time to prepare to meet God. Life is the test, and every choice I make influences where I stand with the Lord. Is this being kind? Is this being a good representative of the church? Is this in harmony with the Gospel Principles?
It almost sounds like a bad thing, but it's not. There is just no standing still, you are either getting closer or farther away. The best athletes in the world don't complain about training because it helps them achieve excellence, so I sure won't complain about having a mindset that has gotten me to a much better place than I'd have been without it.
One thing the leadership of the church has asked, is that we refrain from R rated movies. The school of thought here is that we can't control what others do or say around us, but we can control the media we take in, so let's not let filth into our minds any more than we have to. Rob Veinot committed me a few years ago to not watch R rated movies, so I don't. I am "safe" in the world of PG-13, until someone said that it's totally cool to still say one F word without getting that R rating, so make sure to throw it in even if it's totally out of place with what's going on.... oh, go ahead & say S%&# in PG-13 movies as much as you like.
So the S word is everywhere, movies, the CBC, rock music, and I'm told it's also on the walls in Bob Sagat's bathroom. My friends say it, my Mormon friends say it, I'd had enough. Last night in my truck on a ten hour drive I decided that I'd just let my guard down & go for it. ...I couldn't do it. My mind has been trained & it's just not possible for my lips anymore.
I'm not being preachy, because I've got a lot of improving to do. I'm just happy that on that drive I climbed a little closer when I could have slipped a little further away.
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