Each new day of life is an opportunity for us to learn some new and interesting things. The wise man gleans as much as he can from his life experiences and with his new-found knowledge and wisdom is able to chart and navigate his course in life. With all of his learning, he also learns that some obstacles in life can be overcome by using a little common sense.
A man wishes to visit his family for the holidays. The family lives some distance away from the man so he plans his trip, purchases his airplane ticket, and arrives at the airport the day of the flight, in time to catch the flight. However, if the man does nothing more than that, he will never reach his destination to spend the holidays with his family. He has to physically get up when he hears his flight number announced and board the airplane that will take him to where he needs to go. And so it is with life, as long as we stay comfortable and complacent with life’s mediocrity and wish to stay in our comfort zones and not move from where we are, we will never get any further in life. We have indeed reached our destination. In order to get “there” from “here” requires some action and mobility on our parts. The same applies to the blessings that we receive in life. We cannot just sit by and expect to have blessings fall from the sky. Many blessings that we receive in this life depend on our willingness to do something and then we receive the blessings in return for our actions. In order to take full advantage of the life that we have been given, we need to spend more time doing something and less time just sitting around doing nothing.
Mothers are the true heartbeat of any home, and the greatest gift that a father can give his children is to love their mother. Mothers are choice daughters of our Heavenly Father. By loving their mother, the father is teaching his daughters the character traits to look for in a future husband, and he is teaching his sons howa man has respect and honor for the blessedness of womanhood. He is teaching both daughters and sons that mother is a very special person who should be respected, honored, cherished, and never taken for granted. There is beauty all around when there is love at home.
A very hard lesson for some people to learn and comprehend is that we must earn the respect that we receive. Respect is never demanded. A military commander can lead and command his troops, and his troops will follow, but that does not mean that they are following him out of respect – they are obeying orders. He will only gain their respect when he has demonstrated that he is deserving of their respect. In that same vein, there is also such a thing as self-respect. If you expect others to respect you, you must first show that you have respect for yourself. It is not so much our words that condemn us, but more times than not, our actions speak a myriad of words that prove that we do not even have self-respect. If we want others to respect us, it all begins within ourselves.
From my own personal experiences and observances I have found two basic concepts to hold true in reference to the home: (1) if you want to know the true heartbeat of any home, take the time to get to know the mother. It is usually the mother that sets the tone and atmosphere for the home, and (2) if you want to get an idea of how a young man will treat his future wife, take the time to see how he especially treats his mother. If he has no respect for his mother, the very one who gave him life, he will not have respect for a wife someday either.
I am thankful for my loving Heavenly Father. In spite of all of my faults, shortcomings, and failures, He has never left me nor forsaken me. He is always right there beside me. He never slumbers or sleeps. He does not have a telephone, but I still can call Him anytime, night or day, seven days a week and I never have to leave a message for Him to return my call because He personally answers all incoming calls. He does not have a Facebook account, but He is my dearest and closest friend. He does not have a Twitter account, but where He leads me, I will surely follow. He does not have a LinkedIn account, but I know His credentials and He knows mine. He does not need a YouTube account to display the majesty and wonder of His creations, all I have to do is open my eyes and behold the beauty and the splendor of it all. I have but “One Life To Live” but I take great comfort and solace in knowing that He loves and cares for “All [His] Children.” There are no “Secret Storm(s)” in my life that I have to endure for He knows all about them. He is my eternal “Guiding Light.” He is always with me even to “The Edge of Night.” Even if I must walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I need to fear no evil, for His rod and His staff, they comfort me. He is my Day Star and my Song in the night. He alone is worthy of all praise!
Gossip is an unwise and oftentimes unlearned man’s attempt to seem knowledgeable of some truth, but yet he has no evidence to substantiate that which he is proclaiming as the truth. The words of gossip are cold and bitter. It has a tongue that is as deadly and poisonous as the bite of an asp or the sting of a scorpion. It destroys friendships, relationships, and even families. The wise and learned man goes near its lair with great caution avoiding being caught in its snares and thus forever becoming a prisoner tangled in the mangling threads of its web.
The Savior taught His disciples and then commissioned them and sent them forth to do those things which He had commanded them to do. In the same way, those of us who profess we are Christians are Christ’s disciples and He has commissioned us and commanded us to go forth and do the things which He needs and wants us to do. We are on a spiritual journey of which the road we travel will not necessarily be an easy one to navigate. However, when faced with trials, temptations, and challenges along our way, the question that should come to mind is not, “What would Jesus do?”; rather the question we should ask is, “What would Jesus have me to do?”
I very often hear people proclaim when speaking of the condition that our world is in today that the times have really changed. I disagree. The times have not really changed, but have continued to roll on with time itself. In reality, it is the people living in the times that have changed. Those things which once seared our conscience are now mere fleeting thoughts. What was once considered unquestionably wrong has now in some circles been declared undeniably right and vice versa. We live in a society where so many people live by the philosophy, “Everybody is doing it, so it is alright.” So, does that mean that if I do not know how to swim, but everyone is jumping off a high tower into freezing cold water, I should follow suit? I say nay. In some instances we have gone from a society that was ever learning and ever seeking the truth to a society that can no longer discern what truth is, oftentimes accepting “half-truths” as truth, when actually a “half-truth” is the footstool for a whole lie. Sadly, we have missed the mark in understanding that the easiest way to allow Satan and his minions to gain a toehold into any area of our life is to lay the welcome mat for him and invite him in as our guest.
Isn’t it amazing how some people find it hilarious to berate and belittle other people to the point of causing deep hurt and contention. Oftentimes these same people will get some of their “friends” to hop aboard their “merry” bandwagon to help spread salt on already deep and festering wounds. However, when the tables turn and the proverbial shoe is on their foot, they are quick to complain and cry, and when reminded that they are getting a taste of their own medicine, they are quick to respond, “But, it isn’t the same thing!” Why isn’t it the same? When I was growing up people used to say, “If you can’t take it, don’t dish it out” or “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.” I humbly suggest that there is an even GREATER rule that we should follow and live by, and that rule states that we should ALWAYS do unto others as we would have them do unto us. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to the rule. If we would follow this rule, we would find that we will be able to better live in peace and harmony with one another.
As long as those of us who know what is the right thing to do sit quietly by with our arms folded, legs crossed, and mouths closed, and in essence become sleeping giants while there is a great revolution in full force going on around us, the wicked of the world will continue to believe that they are the greatest and we are the servants in their proverbial kingdom who are always willing to obey their every command. We must awake and rise from our slumbers, and with clarion voices let it be known that they are not the greatest, but indeed the minority. We must let it be known that we will not fall servant to them, but we who stand on the side of truth and right shall be the ones who will reign triumphant when this revolution has ended. The evil in the world may seem to have its stronghold, but it is truth and that which is the right that will always prevail.
Of Common Sense 