Let's Get Naked

Let me paint a little picture for you guys. Its Friday night and I’m settling down to watch Arizona play UCLA in the Pac-12 basketball championships, which I’m pretty excited about. I’m kind of a spaz when sports are on, so I’m actively pacing back and forth behind the couch, not allowing Jenny to cuddle with me, shushing everyone else in the room, turning up the volume when shushing doesn’t work, and talking to the players in my loudest possible inside voice just in case they might be able to hear me. Just the way I like it. Complete business as usual… except for the fact that virtually every single one of my mom’s neighbors comes through the house and introduces themselves to me and my friends. It’s all I can do to look them in the eyes for a couple seconds without glancing over at the game. What the heck is going on? Why are all these people in my mom’s house? I mean I wouldn’t exactly call my mother a social butterfly (I.E. she borderline hates talking to people), so I doubt she’s throwing some impromptu block party with all our neighbors. So what gives?

Well, this is the exact situation I found myself in a couple months ago while visiting my mom in Mesa. Do you want to know why all those random people were in my mom’s house that night? Well, it definitely wasn’t her idea, I can tell you that much! No, they were there because of a sweet, outgoing young man who lives on the street who happens to have a disability. He was apparently going door to door to every house on the street, retrieving the occupants of each house, and then bringing them back to our home! I’m told he had done this type of thing before, and he even came over the next day a few more times as well. Honestly, it was harmless and even my mom admitted it was a great way for all of the neighbors to get to know each other. It was the type of thing you couldn’t get mad at!

I didn’t think about it too much at all until my Mom texted me the following week. Tragedy had struck one of those “random” neighbor families in the form of suicide. Horrible. One of the people we had just met was gone and I couldn’t even begin to imagine the pain and suffering that family was going to experience. To make matters worse, the family had just moved from across the country and had no friends or family in Arizona. My heart hurt to think of them enduring such a trial all by themselves. I did my best to keep them in my thoughts and prayers, and as I did so I thought it may be prudent to send some help with meals over the next few days. I knew the relief society (the women’s organization in the LDS church) would probably be willing to help out, but I also didn’t want to bombard the family with a slew of people they didn’t even know, so I reached out to my mom with a different proposition. The relief society could just bring meals to my mom, and then she could bring them over to the family. It was a full proof plan. To my surprise, however, she simply told me not to worry and that her and the other neighbors had it covered already. They had started a meal train between them and the family would be taken care of. I was pretty surprised, but I couldn’t help but feel a sense of happiness. I felt that the love and hope of God’s light was being instilled in the hearts of that neighborhood, even amidst the horror of such a traumatic situation.

Now, I’m sure that there were numerous factors that solicited such a response from the neighborhood, but can’t we see the hand of God working in this situation? I choose to believe that young man was on the Lord’s errand that night, helping bring together a community on the eve of one family’s worst nightmare. This is how God often works, involving many in an elaborate web of compassion and mercy in order to serve or alleviate the suffering of just a few. I’ve seen and felt this type of miracle in my life on multiple occasions, and they are the experiences that most strongly illuminate my mental image of our Heavenly Father. They are a manifestation of God’s love and omnipotence in the highest sense of those words.

As God orchestrates these miracles, and yes, they are miracles, it is our sacred privilege and responsibility to assist him in his efforts. I use the word “assist” almost with reservation because in reality, this is God’s work, and he doesn’t need me, you, or anybody else to get it done. I’m brought to think of the words Moses spoke when he saw the full glory of God’s creations: 

“Now, for this cause I know that ^bman is ^cnothing, which thing I never had supposed.” Moses 1:10

God cares about us more than we could ever know, of course. In this same chapter the Lord tells Moses that his only goals or purposes are “the immortality and eternal life of man.” Truly, we are everything to our Heavenly Father who loves us. No, Moses did not mean that we are unimportant or inconsequential to God’s plan, but rather God is in charge, not us. As far as I know, no one from my mom’s neighborhood was even a member of the LDS Church, much less did they hold any type of high-profile calling in it. Hearts were simply open and ready to be directed to help, specifically in the case of the young man. The pure in heart will see God. I don’t believe there is a better explanation of his actions that night.

Jesus called simple fisherman from the sea of Galilea to be his apostles. He called Joseph Smith from a life of poverty and a culture swirling in superstition to be the prophet of the Restoration. Paul, Alma, and Amulek all led lives of sin and unbelief before God called them to be his messengers. It is clear to see that God does not call those who are qualified, but instead qualifies those whom he calls. If this is the case, then can we ever boast of our status in the Church? No! I don’t think very many of us would ever blatantly brag about spiritual accomplishments, but we might do it in more subtle ways. This happens when we do things in the church simply for show or to check them off our list, instead of having a true desire for doing them flow from our hearts. Elder Uchtdorf related this to the “potempkin villages” When we do this, we present ourselves to God with merely a hollow, fragile shell, while the real us is hidden somewhere deep within its confines. 

We need look no further than the first book of the bible for an example of this. The first thing Satan told Adam and Eve to do after they partook of the fruit was to hide their nakedness so that God didn’t see them, so they went and grabbed some fig leaves to cover themselves. Umm…. What? God literally made them! How are they going to “hide their nakedness” from him? He made their nakedness! He knows their nakedness better than they do themselves, and their trying to hide it from him? THAT’S THE DUMBEST THING I’VE EVER HEARD. I can already see the eye roll Eve gave Adam as they walked up to God wearing some twigs and leaves. Are you kidding me?

We might laugh at the symbolism in this story because we know we would never be so foolish, but are we so sure that we wouldn’t be? How often do we attempt to use our service in the Church as a tool to “cover our nakedness?” Do we ever attempt to make others think we are better than we really are by appearing hyper-active in the Church, while in reality we are slowly drowning in a pool of guilt or pain caused by some unseen deed or suffering? The answer is yes. We’ve all been guilty of this to some extent. Well, here is my advice:

Let’s stop hiding our nakedness!!! To do so, let's consider this quote from Bishop Gerard Causse:

"My dear brothers and sisters, are we active in the gospel, or are we merely busy in the Church?"

Have you ever asked yourself what the difference is between the Church of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of Jesus Christ? The Church is the vehicle which delivers the Gospel of Jesus Christ into our lives, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ has the power to heal all human suffering. All of it. The Church itself is not the power, but I feel that we sometimes funnel all our energy into it without drawing on the true source of power, Jesus Christ.  Jesus has nothing to heal, though, if a only bunch of perfect people show up to church every week! So let’s stop coming to church in fig leaves every week and come before God in our “nakedness.” He made us that way and he can help us that way.

So come on down, let it all hang loose. Are you dealing with an addiction? Drugs? Pornography? Bring it forward, let him heal you. Are you gay? Are you struggling with coming to terms with your sexuality? I can’t think of a lonelier path in the Church right now. Please, bring that forward and allow God to guide you with personal revelation on how to navigate that journey. Have you made poor life choices and are now drowning in debt? You don’t have to pretend you’re doing okay. You can drive a less fancy car or wear simpler outfits. Come forward, admit where you’re at and start to get out, by and with the grace of Christ. Do you suffer with mental illness? He understands. He knows why you are the way you are and he can help you heal. Are you struggling with your testimony? Do you feel betrayed by church history facts you’ve never been taught? Are you simply having trouble knowing if God is really there? That’s okay! God will help you right where you are at with your testimony. You don’t have to know everything right now, and you don’t have to pretend to know either. Whatever your “nakedness” might be, God can help you right where you’re at. The first step is simply being honest with yourself. Jesus Christ can help with anything we bring before him with humble and honest hearts. He willingly suffered so that he would no exactly how to help each of us individually. Isaiah saw this many years for Christ actually came:

"4 ¶ Surely he hath ^aborne our ^bgriefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But he was ^awounded for our ^btransgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his ^cstripes we are ^dhealed.

6 All we like ^asheep have gone ^bastray; we have turned every one to his ^cown way; and the Lord hath laid on him the ^diniquity of us all.

7 He was ^aoppressed, and he was ^bafflicted, yet he ^copened not his mouth: he is brought as a ^dlamb to the ^eslaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his ^ageneration? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the ^btransgression of my people was he stricken.

9 And he made his grave with the ^awicked, and with the rich in his ^bdeath; ^cbecause he had done no ^dviolence, neither was any ^edeceit in his mouth.

10 ¶ Yet it pleased the Lord to ^abruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an ^boffering for sin, he shall see his ^cseed, he shall prolong his days, and the ^dpleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his ^aknowledge shall my righteous ^bservant ^cjustify many; for he shall ^dbear their iniquities.

12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto ^adeath: and he was numbered with the ^btransgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made ^cintercession for the transgressors." Isaiah 53:4-12

He gave everything for us, "he took the chastisement of our peace." Let's not take that for granted. The beauty of all of this is not only that God will heal us, but that he will also use us to further his work and bless others even as we falter and struggle with trials of our own. He just needs us to be real with Him, and then he can lead us and direct us through the Holy Ghost. It doesn’t matter if you’re a brand new convert, a former stake president, or even a young disabled boy just showing love to his neighbors. If you’ll come forward in humility, not afraid to show God your “nakedness,” he will use you to do great things in this life. As the famous Nick Werber would say, our accomplishments will be LEGENDARY, we just have to give God the real us 😉

They Say I Did Something Bad

You could say the last two weeks have been an emotional roller coaster for fans of Arizona basketball, and that would be quite an understatement. Friday before last I hosted a movie night for some friends as a much needed break heading into a tough week of midterms. As I settled down on the couch and the movie started, I decided to check the scores of various games happening that night around the country. To my dismay, the very first headline I read stated that Sean Miller, the head coach at U of A, had been caught on an FBI wiretap arranging a payment of $100,000 for one of our star players to attend Arizona. Yikes. Welp, that was the end of Arizona basketball as we knew it! I didn’t watch the rest of my movie as I diligently sat by my phone to read an endless flow of articles that came pouring in. It was a dark night in Tucson, to say the least. In particular, I felt a little betrayed by the whole thing. I had been watching coach Miller for months during games and press conferences, and I even reveled in the opportunity to go to a little Zona Zoo pizza party where I got to see him up close. He reminded me of the many great coaches and mentors I’ve had in my own life, and I saw him as an example of integrity, hard work, and success. I know well as anyone that someone can live a double life and be a completely different person behind closed doors, but this news just didn’t seem to add up with who I understand Coach Miller to be as a person.

The next day was strange. I felt a pit in my stomach all day. My friend Chris stated it well when he said “this feels like a bad breakup.” I waited all day to finally hear the news that Coach Miller had been fired and our star player suspended, virtually ending any hopes we had of making a run in the NCAA tournament in my senior year. He and the school together released a statement that he would not coach in that night’s game at Oregon, but that he was confident he would be “vindicated.” That seemed like a stretch, I mean ESPN, the biggest sports network there is, had reported that the FBI had him on wiretap. That seemed pretty damning to me. ESPN wasn’t just going to just throw something out there without knowing for sure that it had happened, right? No, of course not. Then later that night, an ESPN broadcaster inadvertently announced during the ASU game that coach miller had been fired, which they later corrected. That seemed pretty sloppy on ESPN’s part, but still, there was probably no hope that they had completely screwed this up. Then, on Monday, ESPN issued a change in the timeline to their story, and then another one that same day. Originally they said that the conversation happened in 2017, which didn’t make much sense since the player had officially signed in 2016. They then changed it to 2016, which also didn’t make sense because the FBI wasn’t wiretapping the phone calls back then. I had to ask myself, ”what is going on?” The next day another news source reported they had a source that believed Sean Miller would be exonerated by the tapes if they were released. Twinges of hope were beginning to be felt here in Tucson. It was becoming clear that no one had any real facts in this story, and that none of this was coming from the mouths of the FBI or the NCAA directly.

When Thursday rolled around, Sean Miller held a press conference where he emphatically denied everything and announced that he would be coaching that night against Stanford. I literally jumped up and ran around the LDS institute where I was watching the press conference. Later in the day, the president of the university and the Arizona Board of Regents expressed their support for the coach as well. Here is an excerpt from what President Robbins had to say:

“Earlier this week, we met with Coach Miller at length and asked him direct and pointed questions. He was eager to speak with us and answered every question we asked. At this time we have no reason to believe that Coach Miller violated NCAA rules or any laws regarding the allegation reported in the media. Additionally, he has a record of compliance with NCAA rules, and he has been cooperative with this process.

While some might be tempted to rush to judgment when there is intense public pressure, due process is the bedrock of fair treatment and acting with integrity. With that in mind, we will continue to pursue every avenue of inquiry available to us during an active federal investigation to fully understand the facts. We recognize that investigation is ongoing, and we will continue to be respectful and cooperative through its conclusion. Steptoe & Johnson continues its investigation into our athletics compliance, and we will carefully review and act on its conclusions. We anticipate this report will be thorough and based on facts.

We want to thank our student athletes for the strength they have exhibited during this challenging situation. We are confident that they will continue to respond with commitment, integrity and excellence. Deandre Ayton, who has been subjected to false, public reports that impugned his reputation, has our full support. We ask that the Wildcat Family rally behind these young men and our coaching staff tonight and throughout the rest of our season.”

That was pretty amazing to hear. I believe a number of universities would have fired him as soon as possible, whether it was true or not. Reading this statement from President Robbins made me very proud to be a Wildcat. To top it off, Thursday night in McKale Center, which was my last home game as a student, was spectacular. Sean Miller walked out about twenty minutes before halftime, and all 14,000 people in the arena gave him a standing ovation that won’t soon be forgotten. It was so cool to be a part of something like that, and it told me that Arizona basketball is special. No matter what happens over the next few months or years, this program isn’t going anywhere.

As Thursday’s events still simmered in my mind, I headed over to the institute on Friday morning for our weekly devotional. We watched my favorite talk, “Trial of Your Faith” by Elder Neil L. Anderson, Which I thought was fitting. Here’s an excerpt from it:

“Here is another trial. There have always been a few who want to discredit the Church and to destroy faith. Today they use the Internet.

Some of the information about the Church, no matter how convincing, is just not true. In 1985, I remember a colleague walking into my business office in Florida. He had a Time magazine article entitled “Challenging Mormonism’s Roots.” It spoke of a recently discovered letter, supposedly written by Martin Harris, that conflicted with Joseph Smith’s account of finding the Book of Mormon plates.¹⁹

My colleague asked if this new information would destroy the Mormon Church. The article quoted a man who said he was leaving the Church over the document. Later, others reportedly left the Church.²⁰ I’m sure it was a trial of their faith.

A few months later, experts discovered (and the forger confessed) that the letter was a complete fraud. I remember really hoping that those who had left the Church because of this deception would find their way back.

A few question their faith when they find a statement made by a Church leader decades ago that seems incongruent with our doctrine. There is an important principle that governs the doctrine of the Church. The doctrine is taught by all 15 members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve. It is not hidden in an obscure paragraph of one talk. True principles are taught frequently and by many. Our doctrine is not difficult to find.”

Can we see, from this example and that of Sean Miller, how damaging and misleading the media can be? Here is what I jotted down in my journal during the talk:

“When you’ve made a commitment, you don’t let things sway that. Wait for real facts to make a decision.”

In Arizona’s case, they have a contract with Sean Miller and he is their head basketball coach. If they want to act with integrity, they can’t just terminate that agreement because someone said that someone told them that they heard some tapes of him. They have to wait for real facts, otherwise they are allowing themselves to be controlled by outside sources. They would be empowering more media in the future to report whatever they want because they know it would have the power to completely destroy people and organizations, whether their information is good or not.

In the question of Faith (and I hope that even those who aren’t Mormon can draw parallels from this into their own lives and belief systems), we have made a covenant with Heavenly Father that we would serve Him and His Church. That’s not a commitment we can just break because we read something unflattering. We have the obligation to do thorough research and look for facts. Real facts. People can be unbelievably and shamelessly deceptive, and that should motivate us to get our own answers.

To be completely fair and honest, there ARE things in church history that you aren’t going to be taught at church on Sunday and they will probably make you uncomfortable. Actually, if they didn’t make you uncomfortable I’d probably be a little uncomfortable with you. Just sayin’. I believe, however, that even those uncomfortable things, when viewed in the light of unbiased truth, can serve to strengthen one’s testimony that God can accomplish his work even through very imperfect people.

What makes things especially hard is that sometimes fact and fiction are almost impossible to differentiate with the current information available. Sometimes misinformation is presented as absolute fact (i.e. FBI wiretap, forged letter from Martin Harris). Usually, the bad info is mixed with good info. For example, there most likely is a wire tap of Sean Miller, it just most likely says something different than what was initially reported. Likewise, there are real letters written by Martin Harris, but the forger mixed them in with his fake ones. It would be understandable to be deceived or confused by this. When we are faced with situations like this, that is when we must cherish our past experiences, have faith in what the spirit has already taught us, and wait for more information.

At the end of the day, God’s plan is very simple. It’s so simple that in many cases people don’t think it can possibly be enough. Akin to those in Moses’ day who perished because they would not look upon the serpent that Moses raised in the wilderness. They would not look because of the “easiness of the way.” They were looking for something sophisticated and complex, not something as simple as looking at a snake on a stick. Ladies and gentleman, the gospel is simple. Faith in Jesus Christ, Repenting of our sins, Being baptized by proper authority and partaking of other ordinances, and Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost will lead us to Eternal Life. We have wonderful tools to help us endure to the end, such as prayer, scriptures, temples, family home evening, church callings, and much more. Let us take full advantage of what we have in front of us, and not be swayed by the distracting reports of others or by the simplicity of the way. May God bless you on your journey to find truth. I know he continues to bless me on mine.

Oh, and don’t forget to Bear Down 😉

New Year, New Neighbor

I've been asked a lot over the last few years why I've chosen to pursue optometry as a career. While there are multiple reasons to explain why I've decided on that specific discipline, I think that sharing why I decided to pursue a career in healthcare in the first place might be worthwhile.

My freshman year I was a geology major. In particular, I wanted to be a paleontologist, an idea for which I probably drew inspiration for from Jurassic Park and Ross Geller from Friends. I couldn't think of anything better than going out on digs, making great discoveries, and then writing about and publishing my findings. I still daydream about that some days. At the same time, however, I was also preparing to serve a mission for the LDS Church. A few months after my freshman year, I left to serve in Puebla, Mexico. Frequently I would be asked what I wanted to study when I got home, and for the first year and a half I would tell them I wanted to be a paleontologist (it probably took me that long to learn how to pronounce it in Spanish anyways). As I continued to serve the people around me though, something was happening inside of me. I found that as I put others needs in front of mine I focused less on my own pain and hardships. I was so much happier than when I simply tried to do things for my own sake. It was then that I started to theorize that I needed to find a job that allowed me to help and serve others every day. That would bring true happiness and meaning into my life. I started thinking about what I could do and then we started teaching an optometrist in the city of Izucar de Matamoros. I took interest, and started looking into what I needed to do. It’s all been downhill (well sort of) since then. 

                                           (Slightly cheesy, but I liked this)

I still love paleontology and I'll be getting my minor in geosciences because I've wanted to learn more about it. It will continue to be a hobby and an interest of mine. I'm even sure that I would've had many opportunities to serve others in any field I would've chosen, but for me the right choice was to move towards healthcare. I look forward to being able to individually help people every single day, because I know that will help me to look outside of myself and be truly happy.

In Matthew chapter 4 we read that Jesus, after fasting for forty days, was tempted by the devil three times. He resisted all three temptations and the devil left him. Now, can we imagine being in his shoes? We would be unbelievably hungry and thirsty, and we would probably be exhausted from having to put up with Satan. Right? What would be the first thing we'd want to do? Probably eat, sleep, and drink. Maybe we would look for someone to comfort us? In any case, we would most likely not be thinking about helping anyone else. In fact, verse eleven tells us that angels came and ministered unto Jesus. Jesus received the relief and comfort he must have been yearning for, right? Actually, the Joseph Smith Translation, an inspired revision of the Bible done by Joseph Smith, suggests that the verse be read as follows:

JST Matt. 4:11–12 "And now Jesus knew that John was cast into prison, and he sent angels, and, behold, they came and ministered unto him [John]. And Jesus departed into Galilee …"

Or in other words, the first thing Jesus did after his harrowing experience with the devil was send help to his friend, John the Baptist. He knew that John would be suffering in prison, so he sent angels to comfort him. He was too busy thinking of others to worry about his own problems. This is consistent with Christ's character throughout the scriptures.

(One of favorite examples of the Savior, with the man at the pool of Bethesda)

You may have already heard, but the President of the LDS church passed away yesterday. He was a man I looked up to in a lot of ways. He reminded me a lot of my great grandpa. Always looking out for others and always finding a way to serve. He was called as a bishop at the age of 22, as a mission president at the age of 32, and as an apostle at the age of 36 where he served until he passed away at the age of 90. Few lives could parallel such a one as his in terms of ecclesiastical service. It was, however, the small, individual stories of service that stuck out to me the most. As a young bishop he presided over more than eighty widows in his ward. He did so faithfully, and over the years he attended the funerals of every single one of those widows. He's a man we recognize as a prophet of God. I believe a true prophet not only talks the talk, but he walks the walk. He doesn't just say what Jesus said, he does what Jesus did. President Monson fit that mold perfectly. He will be dearly missed.

I know that when we serve others, in whatever capacity we are able, we find true meaning and purpose in our lives. I know that God made us that way for a reason. If you're having a tough time or are struggling with some of life's many problems, I want to invite you to look around you. I guarantee that there are others with struggles who need help too, and by reaching outward and doing what you can, both of your burdens will be lightened. Find ways to enrich the lives of others, and you'll find that your own life has been brightened along the way. Jesus Christ lives and he has set the example for us. Everything that he did was for the benefit of others. We will be blessed as we strive to emulate his character in our own lives.

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

An excerpt from Elder Quentin L. Cook's October 2008 General Conference address, about President Monson (Maybe a good New Year's Resolution?):

When our beloved prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, was asked on his birthday this past August what would be the ideal gift that members worldwide could give him, he said without a moment’s hesitation, “Find someone who is having a hard time, … and do something for them.”

(President Monson)