Upkeep Costs

I haven't played Magic: the Gathering in ages, yet there's one concept from that game that has stuck with me, even though the concept itself barely ever comes up in the game: upkeep costs. All non-land Magic: the Gathering cards can only be played at a cost, but that cost usually only has to be paid once. However, a relatively small number of Magic cards also have an upkeep cost, which you have to pay at the start of each turn, or you lose the card and its effects. But while upkeep costs are rare in Magic: the Gathering, they're common in real life.

For example, becoming a world-class athlete comes at a cost. It takes a significant amount of training and exercise and discipline to become a great athlete. Yet, even once you've achieved that status, you don't get to keep it unless you continue to pay the upkeep cost. You need to keep training, keep exercising, and maintain a healthy diet, or your physical prowess will start to slip, and others, who are paying those upkeep costs, will begin to excel you. To become a world-class athlete, you have to pay the cost, and to stay a world-class athlete, you need to keep paying that cost.

There is a similar effect in spiritual matters. To achieve a certain level of faith and spirituality, we need to develop that faith and spirituality through prayer and study and other Sunday School answer stuff. But, even once we've achieved that level of spirituality, we need to make an effort to maintain it, or we'll start to slip.

That's happened to me more time than I can count. I try to be spiritual, and I sometimes succeed and become spiritual, but I rarely succeed in putting in the daily effort it takes to maintain that level of spirituality. I reach a relatively high point on the celestial mountain we're all climbing, but then I ease up and end up backsliding. Then, galvanized by my failure, I often put in a herculean effort and reach greater heights again, only to later backslide again when I determine that a herculean effort is unsustainable and I stop paying the cost.

Thankfully, the cost of maintaining anything usually isn't as great as the cost of getting it in the first place. It just takes consistent, near constant effort. This can be accomplished fairly simply by establishing good habits, yet, unfortunately, I generally fail to do that.

So, I know what must be done. I must develop a habit of performing the rituals (like prayer and scripture study) that will help me maintain a healthy level of spirituality. If I don't, I'll continue to go through patterns of highs and lows, if I don't give up on the mountain altogether. I need to develop that habits that'll help me maintain and continually improve my progress up this mountain. I need to pay the upkeep costs, because if I don't, I'll lose everything.

The Blessing of Prophets

3 Nephi 1:20 And it had come to pass, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophets.

We may sometimes forget how remarkable it is that we have prophets at all. The prophets and their prophecies can provide us with valuable warnings about the near and distant future. They can help us prepare for the future and avoid making mistakes that would otherwise take us down bad roads. And, evidently, the prophets have a fairly good track record for their prophecies coming true. I'm grateful that God gave us prophets to let us know what to expect on the road ahead. The prophecies about the future are incredible, but I also think it's incredible that we even have prophets at all.

A Trade Off of Eternity

D&C 104:82 And inasmuch as ye are humble and faithful and call upon my name, behold, I will give you the victory.

Perhaps it's time for me to come to terms with the fact that every choice is a trade off, and in this case, I'm trading obedience for blessings. All choices involve sacrifice. I need to sacrifice some of my willfulness, and perhaps some of my desire to have my questions answered, in order to be humble and faithful enough to qualify for the blessings of God. 

You can't get something for nothing. You can't get blessings without obedience. If I want those blessings, I must humble myself, bend my will to that of God, and obey.

The Lamanites Hath He Hated

Helaman 15:4 But behold my brethren, the Lamanites hath he hated because their deeds have been evil continually, and this because of the iniquity of the tradition of their fathers. But behold, salvation hath come unto them through the preaching of the Nephites; and for this intent hath the Lord prolonged their days.

Can anyone explain this? I have always been taught that God loves all His children, perhaps even unconditionally, so how is it possible that He "hated" the Lamanites?

The last time I disagreed with a prophet, the issue may have been a question of context. I agree that people are less than the dust of the earth in some ways, but I do not agree that people are less than the dust of the earth in all ways or overall. There are ways in which we could both be right, depending on the context.

However, I'm not sure under what context this conflict could be resolved. Maybe God loved each Lamanite individually, but hated them collectively, as a group? That doesn't make much sense to me, but maybe. What makes more sense to me would be to say that God loves the Lamanites, but hated their behavior, but that's not what Samuel the Lamanite said.

Is there a way that God could have loved and hated the Lamanites at the same time? Maybe, but love and hate seem like polar opposite emotions.

I'm frankly at a loss to see how it's possible that God can love all His children unconditionally and also have ever hated the Lamanites. If anyone can explain this, please do. I'd like to understand this.

Permitted to Act For Yourselves

Helaman 14:30 And now remember, remember, my brethren, that whosoever perisheth, perisheth unto himself; and whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself; for behold, ye are free; ye are permitted to act for yourselves; for behold, God hath given unto you a knowledge and he hath made you free.

This sounds very fair to me. God lets us make our own choices, and, unless we repent, He then lets us face the natural consequences of our choices. In fact, even repentance follows this pattern. Repenting is a choice, and the consequence of that choice is forgiveness. I am grateful for the amount of freedom God gives us, and I'm grateful that He lets us make and learn from our own mistakes. I'm grateful for His warnings and for His commandments, but I'm glad that, instead of forcing us to act according to His will, He gives us the freedom to act for ourselves.

My Ideal Self's Traits

I would like to become a better person. I would like to grow and improve as a person until I become my ideal self. At first, I thought I could do this by imagining my ideal self and then acting like that person until I become that person. However, there's one problem with that: I can't do it. I can't imagine my ideal self. I don't know what an ideal version of me would look like. I don't know who I want to become.

Yet, I do know some things. I know some of the traits that my ideal self possesses that I do not. I know some traits that I have that my ideal self doesn't. For example, I may not know exactly how brave my ideal self is, but I know that he's braver than I am.

And, knowing that, I already know enough to start to become more like my ideal self. I know which traits to develop and which ones to diminish.I may not know the full list of traits I should develop or diminish, and it's possible that I've put a few traits on the wrong list, but it's a start. And right now, that's all I need.

I don't know exactly where I'll end up once I've become my ideal self, but I know where that is well enough to take steps in the right direction.

Seeking Happiness - Iniquity vs Righteousness

Helaman 13:38 But behold, your days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head.

This is something a lot of people struggle with. Lots of people seek for happiness in doing iniquity because certain iniquitous acts are a lot of fun, and it can be hard to remember the eternal consequences when our minds are stuck in the here and now. Yet, if we really want as much happiness as possible, being righteous is the way to go. It means sacrificing a certain type of happiness for now in exchange for an eternity of happiness hereafter. Making that choice requires patience, will-power, and faith, but it is worth it. There is infinitely more happiness to be found in being righteous than in doing iniquity.