1. I'll finish up her training on how to be a missionary
and
2. She'll train me on how to speak Spanish.
Sounds like it's going to be a good companionship.
The other counsel I received that I want to talk about was about dun-dun-dun MARRIAGE.
President Pickett loves, I mean LOVES to talk about marriage.
He looked me square in the eye and said, Sister Hall you shouldn't look for stuffed shirts, it's not all about muscle, you need to marry someone with DEPTH. He repeated this counsel at least three more times during the course of our discussion and needless to say left me with a LOT to think and ponder about. Now my first reaction is well I don't need to worry about marriage right now there is nothing I can do about it except pray and prepare myself. Which is true. However I was sitting doing some personal study and my mind turned back to that counsel and I found myself asking myself: what is depth?
I went to the dictionary and wasn't satisfied with its definition of depth. So I went to the ultimate dictionary, the dictionary for life, the scriptures. I looked up in the topical guide depth. And it lead me to a famous parable in Mark. The parable of the sower. Most of us know how it goes: a sower sows seeds some fell by the wayside, some fell in good soil, and yet another had no DEPTH.
HMM...
Mark 4
Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:
4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
Now we know that Christ spoke in parables so that the meek and humble would understand and the proud and lofty would be confused. The Savior later explained to his questioning apostles that:
16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended
So at first I was proud and lofty hearing this counsel from President Pickett I didn't understand what he meant but as I've been more humble and prayerful and meek I now understand. That having depth means being able to take root in the gospel but also in YOURSELF and stand firm and continue to grow even when scorching sun and trials and temptations come. That is who I need in my life and that is someone I need to be. Someone who can take the heat and won't whither away over time. Someone who has depth. Who is: genuine, sincere, confident in themselves and the Lord, refuses to turn their back on people and on the Lord when questions arise. Someone with depth doesn't get offended. Someone with depth digs deep and stands firm in the faith and stays true to the faith and themselves.
I think this counsel was dual purposed. It's something I need to work on myself I want to have more depth. I don't want any part of me or my personality to be considered "superficial"
I want to be deeply rooted in my testimony and the gospel. I want to be deeply rooted in myself.
Notice how I keep saying "I want..." well that shows desire, Alma says (in the other famous sermon about seeds) that
"...if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words."
So if I continue to let this desire work in me and believe that I can be more rooted and have depth and take the heat then it will begin to grow and as I nourish it I will grow in depth.
I want to share a family history story about someone with DEPTH. Many of you know of the man John Rowe Moyle. Some of you may not so I'll share a summary by President Uchtdorf:
John Rowe Moyle was a convert to the Church who left his home in England and traveled to the Salt Lake Valley as part of a handcart company. He built a home for his family in a small town a valley away from Salt Lake City. John was an accomplished stonecutter and, because of this skill, was asked to work on the Salt Lake Temple.
Every Monday John left home at two o’clock in the morning and walked six hours in order to be at his post on time. On Friday he would leave his work at five o’clock in the evening and walk almost until midnight before arriving home.
One day, while he was doing his chores at home, a cow kicked him in the leg, causing a compound fracture. With limited medical resources, the only option was to amputate the broken leg.
Once John could sit up in bed, he began carving a wooden leg with an ingenious joint that served as an ankle to an artificial foot. Walking on this device was extremely painful, but John did not give up, building up his endurance until he could make the 22-mile (35-km) journey to the Salt Lake Temple each week, where he continued his work.
His hands carved the words “Holiness to the Lord” that stand today as a golden marker to all who visit the Salt Lake Temple.
John did not do this for the praise of man. Neither did he shirk his duty, even though he had every reason to do so. He knew what the Lord expected him to do.
John Rowe Moyle dug deep. I love that last paragraph the most. He did not shirk his duty even though he had every reason to do so. He knew what the Lord expected him to do. He had depth.
Sometimes it's hard, sometimes we do not know how to keep walking when difficulties blindside us, sometimes we have no idea how to move forward but when we continue choosing the right continue seeking the Lord's will we find strength and we find happiness, we find holiness. We have depth.
Finally to wrap up I want to share another story about depth I love. My beloved Anti-Nephi-Lehi's... talk about a people who dug deep! They were so converted so rooted in the gospel that they chose to be further rooted in themselves by burying their swords and their sins DEEP within the earth. They covenanted with God that they would rather die than sin. Many of them did give their lives in keeping that promise. Can you honestly imagine seeing the enemy coming with swords drawn to kill you and you stand there and dig deep and then fall to your knees in prayer reiterating your commitment to serve God and leave your swords buried?!
Well guess what? We can do that, every day! Every day is a fight, everyday the enemy comes with swords and weapons temptations and sin ready to spiritually destroy us. Are we rooted in the gospel and rooted in ourselves that we bury our sins bury our fears, our doubts and frailties and trust the Lord? Fall to our knees in prayer? Put our very lives on the line, our carnal lives? That's digging deep that's having depth.
I hope that we might all dig deep and keep walking even when difficulties arise. It may not be easy, but it will most certainly be worth it.
Because He who was made low and dug the absolute deepest that is humanly and godly possible continues to dig deep and nourish us. He is there, He is real. He will help us. Of this I have no doubt.
Have a great week and dig deep!
Love,
LIFE IS GOOD, GOD IS GOOD
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