Tuesday, May 31, 2016

TRANSFER-mers: More Than Meets The Eye

 (Have I used that title before? If I have, I am so sorry) 
H-h-h-h-h-h-h-ey! How are you all doing? Don't answer that (unless you are willing to write to me about your life, too).
In case you were perplexed by my absence of an email yesterday, I will now call those of you who passed judgement on me to repentance by reminding you that yesterday was Memorial Day, a wonderful holiday with an important message. It also meant that all libraries were closed, hence the reason for the delayed communication.
Anyway, we got our transfer calls this week. In fact, in just a few hours, I will be picking up my new companion, his name is.......... (awkwardly prolonged drumroll)........................................................................(Holy toekinis, this is going on way too long! It's like... Cats the Musical! All exposition with no climax!)............................................................(It's finally building up!).................................................................................................... ELDER (lightning/steven) MACQUEEN! I don't actually know his first name, but I figured I'd get my silly jokes about his name out before he gets here. I'm sure everyone he meets is either going to make a joke about a certain Disney movie involving talking cars, or else ask him if he is related to the famous Steven Mcqueen.
Anyway, I have a little story to relate to you now:
Once upon a time, a man and his wife lived in a little cottage in the woods. The man would watch football all day without regard to the many problems going on in the house, much to the frustration of his dear wife. One day, she decided she'd had enough. She stormed into the room, turned off the television, and said: "Honey! You have got to take some responsibility around here! I am doing my best, but the house is just falling apart. The roof is leaking, there is mold and mildew spreading on every surface (must be in Washington), the fence needs repairing, the door's hinges need lubricating, we need the peach tree trimmed, and the neighbors keep launching rotten tomatoes at our house with that siege catapult prototype they developed last week! Won't you do something?!? I'm at my wits end!"
The husband looked at his wife, suddenly realizing how neglectful he'd been. He was sorry, he truly was. He stood up. "My little cabbage, I am so sorry for my laziness. I promise you that starting tomorrow I will be more diligent."
The next morning, he got up, put on his work clothes and went in to the back yard. He spent all of that day sweating and straining as he... threw slabs of concrete around. Needless to say, his wife was not happy.
"What are you doing?!?" she scolded exasperatedly, with a few extra expletives sprinkled in, "I thought you said you would help out?!?"
"I'm working as hard as I can!" He retorted angrily.
Now, I ask you, dear reader, was this man diligent? Sure, he worked hard, but I will tell you this now: Hard work is not necessarily diligence. Diligence is also working smart, and working on the correct things. It involves prioritizing, planning, and focusing. I don't have enough time to go into the details, but I had a call to repentance this week from the Spirit. Why? Because I was working hard, but I was not working as smart or as effectively as I could have. My efforts were wasted. So anyway, my challenge to you is to evaluate your efforts in that which you know you should be doing. Ask yourself questions like: Am I sincere? Am I following the Lord's established way to do this? Am I spending my time on that which matters most? Is there anything I could do beforehand to make this more productive?
Anyway, I love you all. Have a great week! 2 Nephi 26:30

--
Elder Benge

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