Showing posts with label Sin and overcoming it. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sin and overcoming it. Show all posts
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Show Me A Sign
"Show me a sign!" In the scriptures, we cringe when hearing that and think "There's the end of his destruction." But us--we say show me what to do, how to act, what to decide." Just like Korihor, we are lacking faith when saying these things. (see Alma 30:46)
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Using Satan Against Satan
1. Satan is always there to accuse you:
A. of being unworthy,
B. unable to withstand his temptations, or
C. that what you are doing isn’t all that bad.
2. How many times have you tried to quit a bad habit? Swearing? Sarcasm? Lying?
A. Elder who thought he had committed the Unpardonable sin when he was swearing in the mission.
1. Serious, but not like fornication or adultery
2. Destroys self-esteem and causes loss of the Spirit
B. When were you thinking about? 24X7- thinking about not doing it.
1. Walk around Woodward Park-- seemed like the right thing to do
2. Inspiration-- if you are either think about it, or not thinking about it, what are you thinking about? IT
C. Easy to solve once I knew the problem.
1. Have a Plan A, B, C, D, and E
2. Immediately when you discover bad thought playing center stage of your mind,
Use that as a catalyst to remind you to do something positive.
A. Say a prayer
B. Read a chapter from the Book of Mormon
C. Memorize a scripture
D. Sing a song
E. Do some service
D. Satan isn’t stupid-- he just isn’t intelligent.
1. He sees that you are not doing what he tempts you to do,
2. Plus you do something that takes you one step further away from his kingdom
E. He will back off-- Leave you alone? No, just tries from a different angle.
3. missionary experience in the islands with near girls-- memorize a scripture to avoid temptations.
4. Problems get less intense, further between, not as long lasting, until you have overcome.
A. Once you take on your biggest Goliath, the others are more fun to tackle Until you can take on several at a time. Make perfecting yourself a game-- not an unpleasant burden!
---Obtained from Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
A. of being unworthy,
B. unable to withstand his temptations, or
C. that what you are doing isn’t all that bad.
2. How many times have you tried to quit a bad habit? Swearing? Sarcasm? Lying?
A. Elder who thought he had committed the Unpardonable sin when he was swearing in the mission.
1. Serious, but not like fornication or adultery
2. Destroys self-esteem and causes loss of the Spirit
B. When were you thinking about? 24X7- thinking about not doing it.
1. Walk around Woodward Park-- seemed like the right thing to do
2. Inspiration-- if you are either think about it, or not thinking about it, what are you thinking about? IT
C. Easy to solve once I knew the problem.
1. Have a Plan A, B, C, D, and E
2. Immediately when you discover bad thought playing center stage of your mind,
Use that as a catalyst to remind you to do something positive.
A. Say a prayer
B. Read a chapter from the Book of Mormon
C. Memorize a scripture
D. Sing a song
E. Do some service
D. Satan isn’t stupid-- he just isn’t intelligent.
1. He sees that you are not doing what he tempts you to do,
2. Plus you do something that takes you one step further away from his kingdom
E. He will back off-- Leave you alone? No, just tries from a different angle.
3. missionary experience in the islands with near girls-- memorize a scripture to avoid temptations.
4. Problems get less intense, further between, not as long lasting, until you have overcome.
A. Once you take on your biggest Goliath, the others are more fun to tackle Until you can take on several at a time. Make perfecting yourself a game-- not an unpleasant burden!
---Obtained from Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
Dealing With Flashbacks with old sins
1. What is a flashback? Many times when we were dumb and young we thought we could get away with things. Each bad thought, foolish act, careless word gave a bullet to Satan who would eventually use them against us.
A. we normally didn’t think about the long range effects of our foolishness so now we must deal with the problem.
B. President Spencer W. Kimball’s statement on becoming perfect.
Spencer W. Kimball ABe Ye Therefore Perfect pp. 241-242 (Speeches of the Year, BYU 1974)
To be perfect, then, one must begin early in his life. He or she must become the perfect husband, the perfect wife, the perfect father, the perfect mother, the perfect leader, and the perfect follower. One’s marriage must be perfectly performed and perfectly kept on a hallowed plane. One must keep his life circumspect. Each person must keep himself clean and free from lusts. He must shun ugly, polluted thoughts and acts as he would an enemy. Pornographic and erotic stories and pictures are worse than polluted food. Shun them. The body has power to rid itself of sickening food. That person who entertains filthy stories or pornographic pictures and literature records them in his marvelous human computer, the brain, which can’t forget this filth. Once recorded, it will always remain there, subject to recall--filthy images.
As we have stated before, the way to perfection seems to be a changing of one’s life--to substitute the good for the evil in every case. Changes can come best if we take them item at a time. For instance, it’s not difficult to be perfect in tithe paying, for if one pays one-tenth of his income annually, he is perfect in that respect. It is not difficult to become perfect in avoiding a swearing habit, for it one locks his mouth against all words of cursing, he is en route to perfection in that matter. If one studies the scriptures with all reasonable devotion, he has approached perfection in that matter also.
C. They will likely come at the most inconvenient times (i.e. baptismal experience where 18 year old girl was viewed as centerfold picture Elder had looked at).
D. What can be done? Not too much about erasing the thoughts. A lot can be done about how to approach the situation.
1. AThank you Satan for reminding me what a wonderful blessing the Atonement is and how badly people out there need it in their lives. I’m going to redouble my efforts to spread the Agood news of the gospel to everyone I can.
2. Every time a flashback occurs, stop, read, and ponder the promises associated with the Atonement.
3. Put your life in proper perspective. Likely your transgressions don’t come anywhere near the problems your investigators have experienced. Use your experience with the bitterness of sin to gain greater empathy with those you teach.
4. Pray fervently for relief from the torment (if not from the flashback itself)-- See Alma 36:18-19.
5. Avoid places which trigger the memories.
6. Avoid, where possible, people who were involved in the problems that result in the flashbacks. (JST Matthew 16:26, see footnote to Matthew 16:24)
7. Don’t re-plow the ground by thinking about, talking about, re-experiencing the transgression. Block it from your mind completely and focus on something of your choosing.
8. Get a priesthood blessing for additional help.
9. Remember the point under AUsing Satan against Satan-- have a plan A-E to take the advantage away from Satan. Don’t either think about or think about not thinking about the transgression.
10. Focus your mind on eternal goals and blessings. James 4:7-Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Remember: Unless Satan is successful in getting you to feel unworthy to serve, he knows you will be and effective instrument in God’s hands in winning people away from his kingdom. You need to expect that he will use every imaginable tactic to try to destroy you.
---Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
A. we normally didn’t think about the long range effects of our foolishness so now we must deal with the problem.
B. President Spencer W. Kimball’s statement on becoming perfect.
Spencer W. Kimball ABe Ye Therefore Perfect pp. 241-242 (Speeches of the Year, BYU 1974)
To be perfect, then, one must begin early in his life. He or she must become the perfect husband, the perfect wife, the perfect father, the perfect mother, the perfect leader, and the perfect follower. One’s marriage must be perfectly performed and perfectly kept on a hallowed plane. One must keep his life circumspect. Each person must keep himself clean and free from lusts. He must shun ugly, polluted thoughts and acts as he would an enemy. Pornographic and erotic stories and pictures are worse than polluted food. Shun them. The body has power to rid itself of sickening food. That person who entertains filthy stories or pornographic pictures and literature records them in his marvelous human computer, the brain, which can’t forget this filth. Once recorded, it will always remain there, subject to recall--filthy images.
As we have stated before, the way to perfection seems to be a changing of one’s life--to substitute the good for the evil in every case. Changes can come best if we take them item at a time. For instance, it’s not difficult to be perfect in tithe paying, for if one pays one-tenth of his income annually, he is perfect in that respect. It is not difficult to become perfect in avoiding a swearing habit, for it one locks his mouth against all words of cursing, he is en route to perfection in that matter. If one studies the scriptures with all reasonable devotion, he has approached perfection in that matter also.
C. They will likely come at the most inconvenient times (i.e. baptismal experience where 18 year old girl was viewed as centerfold picture Elder had looked at).
D. What can be done? Not too much about erasing the thoughts. A lot can be done about how to approach the situation.
1. AThank you Satan for reminding me what a wonderful blessing the Atonement is and how badly people out there need it in their lives. I’m going to redouble my efforts to spread the Agood news of the gospel to everyone I can.
2. Every time a flashback occurs, stop, read, and ponder the promises associated with the Atonement.
3. Put your life in proper perspective. Likely your transgressions don’t come anywhere near the problems your investigators have experienced. Use your experience with the bitterness of sin to gain greater empathy with those you teach.
4. Pray fervently for relief from the torment (if not from the flashback itself)-- See Alma 36:18-19.
5. Avoid places which trigger the memories.
6. Avoid, where possible, people who were involved in the problems that result in the flashbacks. (JST Matthew 16:26, see footnote to Matthew 16:24)
7. Don’t re-plow the ground by thinking about, talking about, re-experiencing the transgression. Block it from your mind completely and focus on something of your choosing.
8. Get a priesthood blessing for additional help.
9. Remember the point under AUsing Satan against Satan-- have a plan A-E to take the advantage away from Satan. Don’t either think about or think about not thinking about the transgression.
10. Focus your mind on eternal goals and blessings. James 4:7-Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Remember: Unless Satan is successful in getting you to feel unworthy to serve, he knows you will be and effective instrument in God’s hands in winning people away from his kingdom. You need to expect that he will use every imaginable tactic to try to destroy you.
---Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
Kindergarten Decisions
1. What is a kindergarten decision? One that is simple, easy to make not necessarily easy to keep.
2. They constitute the foundation for a successful mission, marriage, and life.
3. Only make them once and then spend the rest of your time and efforts in keeping your commitment.
4. What are some of the kindergarten decisions which contribute to a successful mission:
a. Keep all mission rules
b. Get up on time and out on time
c. Don’t stay longer than 20 minutes at a members house when getting a referral or a drink of water; not longer than 1 2 hours for a dinner appointment with an investigator.
d. Write President’s letters and letters home every week.
e. Don’t develop a false allegiance to companions.
f. Keep focused on mission.
The list could and should be enlarged according to your mission and your knowledge about what is necessary to hedge up Satan’s most effectively used tactics against you.
5. So you get the drift, let’s list some kindergarten decisions which would contribute to a successful marriage:
a. Don’t flirt with anyone other than your husband/wife after marriage.
b. Think before you speak-- don’t say things that will weaken your relationship even if they are true.
c. Don’t discuss private relationships of your marriage with others.
d. Always begin and end the day with couple prayer
e. Center your lives around Christ and His gospel.
f. Identify problems while they are small and use the gospel to solve them.
You can see that the list can and should be longer and more specific to your relationship. One of the great lessons of life that I have learned is that we don’t fight over things we agree upon. We just don’t know we disagree. Talk to understanding (i.e. talk-a-thon).
6. List a few kindergarten decisions which will make for Celestial living in a Telestial world.
a. Treat everyone with respect and as Christlike as you know how.
b. Don’t let others determine how you act or react.
c. Use the question What would Jesus do? as a measuring stick for your actions.
d. Do everything with eternity in mind.
e. Follow the counsel of the living prophets and the scriptures.
f. Spend some time every day in meditation and pondering to keep life in eternal perspective.
g. Be totally involved in the Church, using repentance daily to stay on the straight and narrow path.
Again, your success in life will depend to a large degree on how seriously you take the idea of making kindergarten decisions and how much energy you spend in following through on them.
7. Satan would have you believe that you can’t control your life--that is why he is called a A liar from the very beginning. (D&C 93:25).
8. Pick on the Goliath’s in your life first. Something you know you must change before you are welcome in the Celestial kingdom. Work on it consciously, asking for Divine assistance (see Ether 12:27).
a. Make a game of overcoming problems (i.e. short temper, sulking, being obnoxious, etc).
b. Recognize and reward mini-successes. (i.e. the Lord called every step good in the creation although none were complete until the very end when He called it Avery good).
c. Refuse to get discouraged when you suffer setbacks. (i.e. masturbation by a missionary-- how long since the last problem? A year. How long had you gone before your mission? Max was a week. Look at the progress. Let’s see if you can duplicate your last record and extend it!)
d. Keep an eternally optimistic outlook-- Satan can’t tolerate optimism.
e. Aim for perfection-- the top of the Spiritual mountain. If you fall short, you are infinitely higher than if you had refused to climb at all.
f. Remember D&C 76:60- speaking of those in the Celestial Kingdom-- They shall overcome all things.
---Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
2. They constitute the foundation for a successful mission, marriage, and life.
3. Only make them once and then spend the rest of your time and efforts in keeping your commitment.
4. What are some of the kindergarten decisions which contribute to a successful mission:
a. Keep all mission rules
b. Get up on time and out on time
c. Don’t stay longer than 20 minutes at a members house when getting a referral or a drink of water; not longer than 1 2 hours for a dinner appointment with an investigator.
d. Write President’s letters and letters home every week.
e. Don’t develop a false allegiance to companions.
f. Keep focused on mission.
The list could and should be enlarged according to your mission and your knowledge about what is necessary to hedge up Satan’s most effectively used tactics against you.
5. So you get the drift, let’s list some kindergarten decisions which would contribute to a successful marriage:
a. Don’t flirt with anyone other than your husband/wife after marriage.
b. Think before you speak-- don’t say things that will weaken your relationship even if they are true.
c. Don’t discuss private relationships of your marriage with others.
d. Always begin and end the day with couple prayer
e. Center your lives around Christ and His gospel.
f. Identify problems while they are small and use the gospel to solve them.
You can see that the list can and should be longer and more specific to your relationship. One of the great lessons of life that I have learned is that we don’t fight over things we agree upon. We just don’t know we disagree. Talk to understanding (i.e. talk-a-thon).
6. List a few kindergarten decisions which will make for Celestial living in a Telestial world.
a. Treat everyone with respect and as Christlike as you know how.
b. Don’t let others determine how you act or react.
c. Use the question What would Jesus do? as a measuring stick for your actions.
d. Do everything with eternity in mind.
e. Follow the counsel of the living prophets and the scriptures.
f. Spend some time every day in meditation and pondering to keep life in eternal perspective.
g. Be totally involved in the Church, using repentance daily to stay on the straight and narrow path.
Again, your success in life will depend to a large degree on how seriously you take the idea of making kindergarten decisions and how much energy you spend in following through on them.
7. Satan would have you believe that you can’t control your life--that is why he is called a A liar from the very beginning. (D&C 93:25).
8. Pick on the Goliath’s in your life first. Something you know you must change before you are welcome in the Celestial kingdom. Work on it consciously, asking for Divine assistance (see Ether 12:27).
a. Make a game of overcoming problems (i.e. short temper, sulking, being obnoxious, etc).
b. Recognize and reward mini-successes. (i.e. the Lord called every step good in the creation although none were complete until the very end when He called it Avery good).
c. Refuse to get discouraged when you suffer setbacks. (i.e. masturbation by a missionary-- how long since the last problem? A year. How long had you gone before your mission? Max was a week. Look at the progress. Let’s see if you can duplicate your last record and extend it!)
d. Keep an eternally optimistic outlook-- Satan can’t tolerate optimism.
e. Aim for perfection-- the top of the Spiritual mountain. If you fall short, you are infinitely higher than if you had refused to climb at all.
f. Remember D&C 76:60- speaking of those in the Celestial Kingdom-- They shall overcome all things.
---Randy Bott, BYU Religion Professor
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