Is there a fundamental change happening in the standards of The Church, or are we just being given more freedom to choose for ourselves?

As we celebrate this most sacred Easter season, we should honor the sacrifice of our Savior by making our lives a sacrifice for him. In other words, taking advantage of the opportunity He gave us to improve ourselves and become what He would have us become.

Every year we stumble into the new year, full of sparkling cider and hoping that the magic of a new year will transform us into something new. Maybe there is a better way.

Motivation is a powerful and necessary fuel that animates our lives. But somehow it can be difficult to stay motivated, even with things we truly want. We get distracted with the ancillary details of how and what we do and sometimes forget why we are doing it. The key is to stay focused on why.

This is the full interview that produced the soundbites for episode number 40 called Live and Let Live. Jae and I talked about many more things than what I was able to get into that episode. If you are interested, here is the whole interview.

There are different cultures developing within our society. We need to have more conversations with those we don't understand or agree with, not less. This is an excerpt from an interview I had with a young non-binary person about the queer community. The full interview will be posted at a later date.

There are many different people and personalities. What effort are we making to understand people that we disagree with? We have more similarities than differences, yet we don't venture outside our own comfort zone. It's time to find a bridge of understanding so we can all get along.

This life is a master class or a dress rehearsal, if you will. What we do in this life is a foreshadowing of who we will be on the day of judgement when we are made permanent, through resurrection. 

We live in a world of quick fixes and instant gratification. But there are some experiences that can only be had the hard way. 

The Book of Genesis records that there was one people and one language. The people at that time tried to build a tower to heaven and God confounded their language and scattered them across the globe. The technology of today has once again brought the world back together. Not unlike those Biblical times, idols are being erected in society through the medium of social media. Worship of these social media gods feels compulsory because of the intimidation and the normalization that is a natural byproduct of the whole world being present on the screen of our phones. We need to stand strong as Daniel who was thrown in the lions den. We need to raise a Tittle of Liberty in our own lives and communities; making a commitment to remain true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

As the spirits from what we call the pre-existence pour onto this planet, we inherit bodies that reflect what nationality we are born to and reflect a host of other talents, disabilities and cultures. But those identifiers are not what we are. But they do serve to help us become who we came here to become. How shameful it will be for us if we judge or mistreat another child of God based on a temporary earthly trait!

In life we want to compare ourselves to the progress of others. That type of thinking is a waste of time. I think the standard will be how much we improved ourselves. 

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is hard. But is it hard...intentionally. There is only one way to true conversion and discipleship and that is by living the Gospel with intention. 

Far too often we judge ourselves based on how few mistakes we make. We are not robots. We were sent here to learn through experience. I think that while we are down here kicking ourselves for yet another mistake, our Heavenly Parents are looking down with great pride at our efforts to be more like them.

We often feel that we have to put on a happy face and tell others that we are doing well when in truth we are hiding grief, pain or just feeling overwhelmed. The key to being ok is being able to admit when we are not ok. When we hide too long, it can have devastating effects on our long term happiness.

We have "unwittingly" allowed the name of the Church of Jesus Christ to become hidden behind nicknames like Mormon Church or LDS Church. Only after people get to know us, do they find out that we believe in Jesus Christ. That is an indictment of our discipleship. We should make a commitment now to never again allow the Church of Jesus Christ to be hidden behind nicknames. 

There is a misunderstanding and even a stigma associated with excommunication in the Church. I would like to offer my perspective about this topic and it's role in repentance.

If there are prophets, the Holy Ghost and the Book of Revelations, do we actually have a choice in the way our lives turn out or is it all decided for us?

Addiction is not something we wake up with one day. It develops over time. Like the frog that doesn't notice the water warming around it, we allow the influences of the world to hook us with things that may prove fatal to our spiritual progression in this life.

I have heard it said that, "there are no atheists in foxholes." A reference to the fact that in our moments of greatest need, we turn to God for help. But what if we treated our relationship with God the same as with do with our earthly parents? In other words, what would happen if you spent time in prayer, on a regular basis, telling God how your day went...

Many of us excuse our behavior because there are no immediate consequences for our actions. We do it just because we can. The phrase "because I can" should be a call to give more and take less. Not because we have to but just because we can.

We have often been told that God loves us despite our shortcomings. I think that phrase is offensive to our Father in Heaven. He gave us our physical bodies and their shortcomings. He does not confuse who we are with the temporary limitations of this earthly life. He loves us, not despite our shortcomings, but because he knows who we really are.

Jesus gave his life for us. We in turn aught to follow his example and give of our lives for others. 

I have always admired the hero's of former generations who gave their lives so that we can live better ones. But is it possible for us to give of our lives in a similar fashion by sacrificing the life we could have had to improve the life of another...

Not everything that leads to bad things constitutes a sin. Yet, as Christians we cannot allow ourselves to indulge in the pleasures of the world or we may end up in a place we never should have been...

Since the beginning of time, each generation tries to pass what they feel is valuable to the next generation with varying success. Subsequently, every generation worries that the next will not survive because their values are so different...today's older generation is no different. The question is again being asked, what if there is no next generation? This question will be tackled in a several part series. Today's episode is from the perspective of a slightly older, Christian generation.

Do we ever consider the enormity of the events and the sacrifice that gave the sacrament, that we take each week, the power to erase our sins. This weeks episode attempts to appreciate the greatest sacrifice that was ever made.

Lehi's dream becomes more profound each day as the world points its finger of scorn at those who believe in Jesus Christ. But as the world grows darker, the light of Christ in our countenance shines brighter and brighter. It will draw those who are looking for truth to us, because the Gospel of Jesus Christ has something to offer...

We all find ourselves in situations when it feels justified to do or not do something that we would normally do, because the circumstance we are in justifies it. There are indeed such circumstances. But what if those circumstances are a unique and perhaps the only real opportunities to show the Lord that we are not fair-weather friends...

One great pitfall that many of us fall into while here on earth is thinking that spiritual knowledge is a thing of itself. To the point that sometimes we go no further than just knowing something is true. But spiritual knowledge is only useful in application.  There is no practical difference between unused knowledge and ignorance.

The Latin phrase E Pluribus Unum meaning, "out of many, one" that is escribed on the back of every American coin,  is a declaration that we are all individuals and yet our lives would be for naught, if it weren't for all the others we share this life with.

This episode explores the simple yet central question of why we need the Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ and why is it not enough just to have the Bible.

Many Christians view heaven as a destination and if we keep just enough of the commandments, we will get to live there. But heaven is a reflection of who we are, not the other way around. We have to develop ourselves into celestial people first, then we will able to live there.

More than any other holiday, Christmas is full of meaningful symbolism. As time goes on many of the symbols begin to generate meaning, to the point that they run the risk of becoming the focal point of our belief, rather than The Gospel that originally inspired them. This episode explores the idea that the symbolism in our lives and in Christmas have become the religion.

If you change the time on your watch, it doesn’t change what time it is. Yet, as a society, we do it twice a year. If enough people believe something, it creates a perception of reality. This episode challenges the perceptions we live in that limit our ability to find and accept truth.

There is a growing divide between the older and younger generations. It is vital for us to find common ground in an ever more contentious world. A wonderful young couple whose views are somewhat different than my own agreed to interview me. The first half is light hearted topics like dating and conspiracy theories and the latter half is about Church culture and judging those who are different than us. This is the first of several interviews that I will have with people who think or believe differently; yet, are beautiful people we should be friends with, despite our differences. 

Please feel free to participate in future shows by leaving a voicemail for me at 530-876-4153. you're welcome to remain anonymous.

In the criminal justice system we are innocent until proven guilty. In the journey to becoming a celestial being,  we are striving for so much more than just not being punished. This episode challenges the idea that just keeping enough commandments will get us into heaven. In order to become true followers of Jesus Christ we need to go beyond just keeping enough commandments.

It's hard not to be envious of people who are independently wealthy; people whose wealth is independent of anything that goes on in their lives. This episode explores the possibility of being independently happy.  Happiness that is independent of the circumstances of our daily life.

It is not enough to just show up to church each week. We must put in effort and work out our own salvation.

This episode explores the difference between the so called sins of commission and the sins of omission.

If we leave this life with nothing more than not having sins, have we accomplished the purpose for which we have come? There is so much more to striving for perfection than just not having sins. In fact, we are commanded to become perfect even as our Father in Heaven is perfect.  Our purpose is not just to return to our Father in Heaven, it is to become like him.

Without a point of reference we cannot spiritually navigate this life. We will inevitably follow the loudest voices in the world, maybe without even realizing it. This episode is about the importance of finding a spiritual point of reference so we can live in the world, without being influenced by it.

For comments and topic ideas, please email me at: VerbalMotivation@gmail.com

Episode #1 - Words are more than just sounds our vocal chords make. They are a type of delivery system for something much more powerful. If you focus on what you want the other person to feel rather than what they hear, your words will reflect a much higher level of communication.          

Please send comment or topic ideas to: Verbalmotivation@gmail.com