Ensign August 2011 Highlights part 2

This article from the August Ensign particularly interested me. Over the past year, I have been pondering the propriety of few things such having a Tea Party at church (even if TEA is not served), supporting another church's Fundraiser over the pulpit even though it is held on the Sabbath, some suggesting that we are not being Christians if we do not open our door to trick-or-treaters on the Sabbath, among other things.

After reading this, I felt the reaffirmation that we need to pay attention to appearances, and do the right thing no matter how others see us. I feel strongly that we need to decide what our standards and values are, and stick to them, even when we are the odd man out.

The Tradition of a Balanced, Righteous Life by Elder L. Tom Perry

Elder Perry outlines 4 things that the Lord expects of us:

1. Keep [our] wonderful physical bodies pure and holy as temples of God.

2. Place preeminence on spiritual learning and knowledge from God.

3. Be a trusted generation and use the foundation of eternal gospel truths to establish standards and values.

4. Seek learning from the eternal truths contained in the holy scriptures.

"Sometimes we may feel that people will not be as accepting of us because of the high standards we have set for ourselves. Still, there are things we just don’t do. We have the Word of Wisdom, which helps us to live a healthier life, a type of life that is conducive to our growth and well-being. We have standards, ideals, and a way of living that are the envy of much of the world. I have found that if you live the way you should live, people notice and are impressed with your beliefs and you have an influence on the lives of others.

"I spent my career in the department store business. Because I was part of a management team, it was important for me to interact socially with local business organizations. The meetings with most of these organizations always started with a cocktail hour. It was a time to mix and get acquainted with the men who belonged to the organization. I have always felt uncomfortable in these social hours. At first I started asking for a lemon-lime soda. I soon discovered that lemon-lime soda looks like many of the other drinks. I could not build the impression I was a nondrinker with a clear soda in my hands. I tried root beer. It had the same problem.

"Finally I decided I had to have a drink that would clearly mark me as a nondrinker. I went to the bartender and requested a glass of milk. The bartender had never had such a request. He went into the kitchen and found a glass of milk for me. Now I had a drink that looked very different from the alcoholic beverages the others were drinking. Suddenly I was the center of attention. There were a lot of jokes made of my drink. My milk was a conversation piece. I met more business leaders that evening than I ever had before at a cocktail hour.

"Milk became my drink of choice at the cocktail hours. It soon became common knowledge I was a Mormon. The respect I received really surprised me, as did an interesting event that started to occur. Others soon joined me in a pure milk cocktail!

"Dare to be different. Live up to the standards we are taught in the gospel.

"“Good physical and spiritual health can help us to stay on the straight and narrow way,” said Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin (1917–2008) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. “The Lord gave his code of health in the Word of Wisdom, ‘a principle with promise’ that modern medical science continues to substantiate. (D&C 89:3.) All of God’s commandments, including the Word of Wisdom, are spiritual. (See D&C 29:34–35.) We need to nourish ourselves spiritually, even more than physically.”²

"How grateful we should be for gospel teachings on the importance of keeping our physical bodies pure and worthy of housing our eternal spirits."

For the complete talk, go here.