Focus and Priorities ~ Part Two

 Good Morning or Good Afternoon or Good Evening, 
this post should take approximately five minutes to read from start to finish.

This post focuses on a April 2001 General Conference talk called, "Focus and Priorities" by Elder Dallin H. Oaks. This post is part two. I would like to share with you some highlights while I was reading the talk.

Elder Oaks has mentioned; "Nephi taught, “Feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do." That is focus. Nephi also said that as he taught from the scriptures, “I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning”

.. Overarching all of this is the importance of what the Spirit whispered to us last night or this morning about our own specific needs. Each of us should be careful that the current flood of information does not occupy our time so completely that we cannot focus on and hear and heed the still, small voice that is available to guide each of us with our own challenges today.

.. Brigham Young, who declared: “Every discovery in science and art, that is really true and useful to mankind, has been given by direct revelation from God. ... We should take advantage of all these great discoveries … and give to our children the benefit of every branch of useful knowledge, to prepare them to step forward and efficiently do their part in the great work” We also need priorities. 

Our priorities determine what we seek in life. .. I hope we will heed these teachings. Jesus taught about priorities when He said, “Seek not the things of this world but seek ye first to build up the kingdom of God, and to establish his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” “Seek … first to build up the kingdom of God” means to assign first priority to God and to His work. 

"Focus on the solution, not on the problem."
- Jim Rohn.

The work of God is to bring to pass the eternal life of His children, and all that this entails in the birth, nurturing, teaching, and sealing of our Heavenly Father’s children. Everything else is lower in priority. 

Think about that reality as we consider some teachings and some examples on priorities. .. Our priorities are most visible in how we use our time. Someone has said, “Three things never come back the spent arrow, the spoken word, and the lost opportunity.”

We cannot recycle or save the time allotted to us each day. With time, we have only one opportunity for choice, and then it is gone forever. Good choices are especially important in our family life. 

For example, how do family members spend their free time together? Time together is necessary but not sufficient. Priorities should govern us in the precious time we give to our family relationships. 

Compare the impact of time spent merely in the same room as spectators for television viewing with the significance of time spent communicating with one another individually and as a family. In terms of priorities for each major decision (such as education, occupation, place of residence, marriage, or childbearing), we should ask ourselves, what will be the eternal impact of this decision? 

Some decisions that seem desirable for mortality have unacceptable risks for eternity. In all such choices we need to have inspired priorities and apply them in ways that will bring eternal blessings to us and to our family members.

The ultimate Latter-day Saint priorities are twofold: 

First, we seek to understand our relationship to God the Eternal Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, and to secure that relationship by obtaining their saving ordinances and by keeping our personal covenants. 

Second, we seek to understand our relationship to our family members and to secure those relationships by the ordinances of the temple and by keeping the covenants we make in that holy place. 

These relationships, secured in the way I have explained, provide eternal blessings available in no other way. No combination of science, success, property, pride, prominence, or power can provide these eternal blessings!"

If you would like to read the whole talk in your own time, here is the link below.
www.lds.org/general-conference/2001/04/focus-and-priorities

Stay Tuned until next time.