Doctrinal Essays

I've noticed a pattern in any kind of frustration that I've ever experienced. It's an amazing discovery because when patterns are found in problems it is easier to find solutions for them - and I believe I have a solution to frustration or anxiety of any kind. It comes from an understanding of our hearts, minds, and will power. My eight year old came home one day from school with a book about idioms. He died laughing as he read the text and looked at the artists’ literal interpretation of the idioms contained in the book. You might imagine the literal cartoons that would go along with figurative expressions like ‘I laughed my heart out’, or ‘keep your eye on the ball’. Everyone in the family thought the book was very entertaining, and we still find that the images come back to our minds when we hear certain idioms. But I have since come to recognize the frequent use of idioms in American vernacular and now appreciate them for more than their entertainment value. Idioms ...

In my profession as a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) scientist, much of my time is spent in the observation of locations and events, and their spatial relationships, trends, and patterns. Understanding these conditions always paints a clearer picture and leads to truer understanding of the big picture. This 'nerdy' type of analysis has extended into my personal spiritual life. I have observed the inevitable trend of spiritual location and movement in my own life, and in the spiritual lives of others. Understanding these patterns, relationships, and more importantly, the causes of spiritual movement can aid in the goal of a spiritually constant life, and ultimate confident reunion with God. Position is an intrinsic component of movement. Two positions become manifest when movement occurs; the position before, and the position following the movement. The second position is always higher or lower, ahead or behind, or better or worse than the first position - never the...

There is a noteworthy scriptural concept related to movement, which involves no movement at all. It is the exact opposite of movement. Where one has no spiritual movement, one is still, or in other scriptural synonyms, set, fixed, unwavering, firm, steadfast, and immovable . The last three words appear often together and have become to me the triad of spiritual steadiness. Lehi understood the power of steadiness and wanted it for his disobedient spiritually wavering son Lemuel. He expressed his desire in these words: "O that thou mightest be like unto this valley, firm and steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord!" (See 1 Ne. 2:10) [1] . Lehi was apparently moved by the silent and steady power of the Valley of Lemuel, and saw it as a fitting spiritual analogy for his spiritually wavering son. When my wife and I were first married, we went on the famous Table Rock hike in the Grand Teton mountain range. A deep feeling of reverence and awe overt...