Do You Have 20 Minutes?

Do You Have 20 Minutes?

As many of you probably have heard, Dr. Stephen R. Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and world renowned leadership expert passed away July 16, age 79.

Photo courtesy of www.StephenCovey.com

Dr. Covey has meant a lot to me. As a young missionary, my mission president fed us a steady diet of Dr. Covey's teachings. When I returned home one of the first things I did was purchase "The Seven Habits" and read it. It has profoundly changed my life. Not only have I grown as a person, husband, father, friend by applying its principles, but it started me on a journey of self improvement that continues today. My insatiable appetite for growing and improving as a person is a result of Dr. Covey.

As I read Dr. Covey's obituary I was in awe of the man portrayed. Certainly he was a household name, and had trained hundreds of thousands of people, some very well known, but he was a man that was content to be a father, husband, friend and Christian. These areas are where, I believe, he gauged his success or failure as a person.

I want to share a quote from Dr. Covey that his children say he would often repeat to them:

"If you will spend twenty minutes each day with the Savior of the world in private worship, you will spend eternity in his presence." Stephen R. Covey

The obituary said his daily routine was to get up early, find a quiet spot and spend time in reflection, prayer and scripture study.

Think about that quote.

Think about the type and character of the man who said it.

Then answer this:

Question: Do You Have 20 minutes a day? How do/will you spend those 20 minutes?

I know that Christ lives and is the Savior of the World! I know that it is only through His sacrifice that we have hope of redemption.

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Twitter: @Skropp2

The Path to the Future Goes Through the Present...

Be Present

Last week I was out of town for work and bored out of my mind in the hotel room. I decided to take a walk at at like 9pm. As I walked, I started having a conversation with Heavenly Father (admittedly I did most of the talking…at least that I actually heard.).

Photo via flickr.com 

Courtesy of ToastedWoobie, Some Rights Reserved

  I began asking questions such as,

What is expected of me?
                                               What am I suppose to be learning? 
                                                                                                       Where am I going in my life? 
                  What am I suppose to be doing? 
                                                                                What do I have to do to be successful?

Who Better To Ask

Those are pretty strong questions, and I have been searching for the answers to those questions for quite some time.  And who better to ask than my Father in Heaven?

As I was having this conversation I received an answer.  No, I didn’t see an angel, hear a sound, or receive a scroll.  I did however have a still, small voice speak to my mind and my heart (1 Kings 19:11-12).  I had a scripture from the Book of Mormon come to mind, as well as two words.  Here’s the scripture:

“O that I were an angel and could have the wish of mine heart…But behold, I am a man, and do sin in my wish; for I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.” Alma 29:1,3

The two words were “Be Present”

The Answer

And there was the answer to all my questions.  I needed to, first, be content with where I was and what I have been given and blessed with in my life.  And second, I needed to be present.

What do I mean?

What do I mean by “Be present”? 

I mean that I needed to avoid being so discontent with my life, my job, my pay, etc that I couldn’t recognize and enjoy the vast blessings that are in front of me daily.  I couldn’t get obsessed with thoughts like

“If only I was older…”
                                               “If only I wasn’t so busy…”
                                                                                         “If only I had this or that job…”
                        "If only I made this much money…”

What I'm NOT Saying

Now at this point, let me be clear as to what I am NOT saying.  I am NOT saying that we shouldn’t plan and set goals.  And I am NOT saying that we shouldn't try to better ourselves and our position in life. 

However, by being too focused on our discontentment, we experience several unintended consequences.

Consequences

When we are focused on our discontent we can experience four consequences:

1.      We can miss out on valuable lessons that we could learn and that would greatly benefit our growth, progression, and success in our personal and professional lives.

2.      We will often overlook opportunities to serve and bless those around us…including our families and close friends because we are only worried about what we don’t have.

3.      If we are too preoccupied with where we are not at in life, discouragement and frustration will overtake our thoughts, causing stress, anger, depression and all sorts of not fun feelings!

4.      Focusing on our discontent can lead to envy and covetousness.  We will look at everyone more successful than us with disdain and jealousy.  This will not help us become more success, rather it will hinder our success.

How can we “Be Present” in our lives?

1.      Be grateful for what you have.  Count your “haves” not your “have nots”

2.      Remember that there is a season and a time to everything (Eccl. 3:1)

3.      Recognize that valuable lessons  can be learned and service given here and now

4.      Be patient

5.      Have faith, in God, in yourself, in your abilities.

There is a balance we must find a balance between pushing towards our future, and not missing our present. 

I know that Heavenly Father was telling me that I need to focus more on what I have rather than what I don’t have. 

He wants us to succeed, He wants us to be happy, but His thoughts and ways are certainly higher than mine (Isa. 55:8-9) and it is not my job to argue with His plans and His timetable. 

We must always be striving to grow, progress and succeed, but the path to the future goes straight through the present, so BE PRESENT!!!

Q: How can you make sure that you don’t overlook the present in your daily life?

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Twitter: @Skropp2

"The phone's for you, it's the Bishop..." Part II

"The phone's for you, it's the Bishop..."
 

Ok, quick, you hear those words, how many excuses can you come up with in 10 seconds?? "Gee Bishop, My family is going to be in town this week, and Brooklynn's coming down with a cough and there's a huge solar storm that's suppose to hit the earth late Saturday night or early Sunday morn..."

So what does that call usually lead to?

Last week we talked about 8 Tips to Preparing a Conference-Caliber Talk. This week, let's go over 7 Ways to keep Grandpa awake and Jr. Quiet.

Ok, that's a tall order, but these tips will make the presentation of your talk 77.36% better, or your money back!*

Visualize the entire congregation in their bunny slippers
ok, that probably do very little, but feel free to try it out! Ok, take two...ACTION!!

Pray
Before going up to speak, pray to have the Spirit with you...then LISTEN to it when you speak.

Don't tell about what you thought when the Bishop called you
We all know the feeling, it's not necessary to explain how much you didn't want to talk.

If you tell a joke, make sure it's pertinent to your topic
Natural humor is funny, canned jokes get old fast!

Remember you have a unique perspective
At this moment, you are the conduit for the Father to teach His children, take comfort in that and seek to say what He would have you say.

15 minutes means 15 minutes
My Mission President taught me this one. The bishopric plans out the meetings, that's why they give us a time frame. If they say 15 minutes, don't speak for 16, and don't speak for 13. This keeps the meeting on track.

Smile
Take joy in the Gospel. Let the Prophet Joseph's view in D&C 128:22-23 permeate through your talk.

Testify
Bear testimony frequently THROUGHOUT your talk, not just at the end. It invites the Spirit to confirm your words to those who hear it.


By employing 7, or at least some of these suggestions, you will have a better chance of keeping Grandpa awake and Jr. quiet, not a 100% chance, but better.  And the great part is, that those listening should learn something, and you will invite the Spirit, and we all know that the Spirit is the most important part of any talk! 

Question: What suggestions do you have for giving a great Sacrament Meeting talk?





*Offer not valid in Alaska, Hawaii, the continental United States, or any of the 7 major continents. Most restrictions apply! :)



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