Does this happen to you?

I go to do a quick check of my email,

I plan to be there for just a second but then I pass by the news on yahoo and something catches my eye leading me to more news that is usually just plain depressing or totally useless.

Then I forget checking my email and end up going to blogger and check out what's on my dashboard which can lead me from one blog to another in an endless sea of blogs.

After viewing so many other blogs I begin to think of fun or different things I can add to mine or what my new post will be about.

So I'll work on my blog only to remember I never got around to checking my email.

I stop by at my email and find my inbox full of messages, some forwards, some stopping by to say "hi", some long, some short so I take a bit of time to respond to them.

I had only "planned" to be on the computer for just a couple of minutes and before I know it, those couple of minutes have turned into a couple of hours!!

I turn around from the stupid computer and see I have 10 min. or less to get my kids ready for school, their hair is a mess, the house is a mess, I am a mess, they aren't dressed, I'm not dressed, they aren't fed and I'm not fed and the baby is screaming. This is where I usually end up in a full scale panic, usually blaming my kids for playing all morning, instead of getting ready (duh. hello! who is the real one to blame?)

Now this doesn't happen to me every day... but it has happened to me and it's an awful feeling. Maybe I'm the only one who has experienced this... Either way.. I have decided to exercise more self control, to exercise a little more self restraint.

Yes the Internet can be used as a really great tool for education, for learning, keeping in touch with family and friends, for downloading yummy recipes (wonderful tool for this)... and my personal favorite thing the Internet can be used for is sharing the Gospel.

A web can be used for two things to capture or to be captured. So the internet must be used wisely.

So I think it's a matter of making the decision of what is most important at the moment and taking care of those things first. There are many things on the Internet that can wait and will still be there moments or even months later. But some things won't be there at the next moment or months later... and it is usually those things that are most important.

There was a really great talk given not long ago that helps to emphasize and clarify where I'm coming from called... Good, Better, Best

I am going to limit my total screen time, (television, Internet or whatever) to absolutely no more than one hour a day. Occasionally there will be those weekends where I might put in a movie. But during the week I am putting my goal to have absolutely no more than 1 hour of SCREEN time per day.... Because I've just got "Better" things to do.

Reason #1 to limit my screen time: So I have more of this little miracle...

Reason #2 to limit my screen time: So I have more of this little miracle...

Reason #3 to limit my screen time: So I have more of this little miracle...

Reason #4 to limit my screen time: So I have more of this little miracle...

Reason #5 to limit my screen time: So I have more of this...

Temptation

I found these cool posters. I especially like the one with the "running shoes." I know the Savior cleanses us and forgives us of our sins but that still does not make it safe to mess around with temptation. Through His grace we can lose desire for all sin and have our hearts changed that we hunger and thirst after righteousness.

"You're never big enough and you're never strong enough to toy with sin" (D&C 88:86)

"Don't be fooled, No matter how it's disguised, sin is still sin. Stay away from it." (See D&C 50:3, Moses 4:4)

"Just once will hurt, toying with sin is flirting with disaster. Get the point?" (See D&C 1:31-32)

"In case of temptation: Break glass. Playing with temtation is like playing with fire. Run from it or you'll get burned." (See Genesis 39:12)

Making a Case for Morality

I've mentioned in a previous post that I'm re-reading a book I read about 9yrs. ago. It's entitled, "Standing for Something." It was written by the late President Gordon B. Hinckley (Prophet from 1995-2008).

These are quotes I'd like to share from the 3rd Chapter, "Making a Case for Morality."

"A great moral reformation will occur only as reformation takes place in the hearts, minds, and lives of each of us"

"Paul counseled Timothy, 'Keep thyself pure' (1 Tim 5:22) Those are simple words. But they are ever so important. Paul is saying, in effect: Stay away from those things that undermine and eventually destroy the soul."

"The challenge to recognize evil and oppose it is one that every moral, virtuous person must accept... It all begins with our own personal virtue. Reformation of the world begins with reformation of self. We cannot hope to influence others in the direction of moral virtue unless we live lives of virtue."

"It is naive to believe that a steady diet of blatant immorality, played out nightly in our living rooms, has no effect on people...Apparently, a host of advertisers felt confident that in thirty seconds' time they could influence their viewers to buy the products or services they were peddling. Are we really to believe that hours, leading to years of television viewing will not affect attitudes about everything from family life to appropriate sexual relations?"

"In too many homes and lives, [pornography] is now regarded as a legitimate slice of entertainment. Pornography robs its victims of self-respect and of an appreciation of the beauties of life. It tears down those who indulge and pulls them into a slough of evil thoughts and possibly evil deeds. It seduces, destroys, and distorts the truth about love and intimacy. It is more deadly than a foul disease. Pornography is as addictive and self-destructive as illicit drugs, and it literally destroys the personal relationships of those who become its slaves.
Not one of us can afford to partake of this rubbish. We cannot risk the damage it does to the most precious of relationships- marriage- and to other interactions within the family. We cannot risk the effect it will have on our spirit and soul. Salacious videotapes, 900 telephone numbers, the filth found on the Internet, sensual magazines and movies- all are traps to be avoided like the deadliest of plagues."

"Both experience and divine wisdom dictate that moral virtue and cleanliness pave the way that leads to strength of character, peace of mind and heart, and happiness in life."

"The violation of moral virtues in this age, as in any other age, brings only regret, sorrow, loss of self-respect, and, in many cases, tragedy."

"Self-discipline is not necessarily easy. It requires effort and strength. It requires thought and prayer. In the long run, however, self-discipline is a far easier path than is blatant indulgence, which leads to a corrosion of heart and spirit."

"Any self-justification is only self-deception and a miserable fraud. It was said of old that 'he that governeth himself is greater than he that taketh a city.' Can there really be peace in the heart or freedom in the life of any man who has left only misery as the bitter fruit of his indulgence? Can anything be more false or dishonest than gratification of passion without acceptance of responsibility?"

"Legal restraints against immoral behavior are eroding under legislative enactments and court opinions. This is done in the name of freedom- freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of choice in so-called personal matters. But the abuse of these freedoms has yielded enslavement to degrading habits, and behavior that leads only to destruction."

Pornography

“I plead with you … to keep yourselves free from the stains of the world. You must not indulge in sleazy talk at school. You must not tell sultry jokes. You must not fool around with the Internet to find pornographic material. You must not dial a long-distance telephone number to listen to filth. You must not rent videos with pornography of any kind. This salacious stuff simply is not for you. Stay away from pornography as you would avoid a serious disease. It is as destructive. It can become habitual, and those who indulge in it get so they cannot leave it alone. It is addictive.

“It is a five-billion-dollar business for those who produce it. They make it as … attractive as they know how. It seduces and destroys its victims. It is everywhere. It is all about us. I plead with you young men not to get involved in its use. You simply cannot afford to.

“The girl you marry is worthy of a husband whose life has not been tainted by this ugly and corrosive material” (Ensign, May 1998, 49).President Gordon B. Hinckley

Here are some other ways you can stay far from the lethal spiritual crevice called pornography:

1. Know it when you see it. A simple definition is this: Pornography is any entertainment that uses immodest or indecent images to stimulate sexual feelings. So even a mainstream television program or advertisement can be pornographic. If images trigger sexual feelings in you, you should avoid them.

2. Break the emotional connection. There is a connection between any addictive behavior and emotions such as stress, anxiety, and depression. If you are feeling stressed or anxious, try to deal with those feelings directly—rather than using pornography or any other destructive means to cover them up. Prayer, scripture study, exercise, positive friends, and regular Church attendance can all help. A parent, a Church leader, or another trusted adult can be a lifeline if problems seem too big to resolve alone.

3. Surf smart. If you have the Internet at home, ask your parents to install an Internet filtering service. But don’t rely on the filter alone; it may fail you. The only real control is self-control. Do keep your computer out of your bedroom; keep it where others will be around.

4. Be a modern-day Joseph. Remember what Joseph did when Potiphar’s wife tried to trap him in an immoral situation? Joseph “fled, and got him out” (Gen. 39:12). In other words, he ran. When you are exposed to pornography, leave immediately—whether by a mouse click, a channel change, or a quick exit from a friend’s house.

5. Get the most powerful help of all. Don’t let your spirit grow weak from lack of spiritual food. A steady diet of righteous influences—such as prayer, scripture study, Mutual, seminary, and a careful study of For the Strength of Youth—can give you the strength you need to navigate through a world that has spiritual crevices at every turn.

Where does the time go?

I am so grateful for this gift of life I've been given. I think it's meant to be spent wisely and purposefully. Of course we can have fun and do leisurely things. But it seems to me that those things that matter most are often at the mercy of that which matters least.

I think it's good to put a limit on the amount of time we all spend watching television.

I think it's good to put a limit on the amount of time we spend on the computer or web.

I think it's good to put a limit on the amount of times we go to the theaters.

We can choose to watch good movies, good television, and view good things on the web. We can choose to only entertain those things that have strong moral values and messages.

But there is always something better to do than any of these things and you will not miss the media so much if these better things become habit, become first and foremost in your life.

It's better to spend time with your kids, to talk with them and get to know them... to show your love by being interested in them.

It is better to help a neighbor or a friend in need, by a phone call or a visit or a simple act of service.

It is better to mend relationships that have been destroyed by bitterness or unforgiving.

And how much time do we spend reading the Bible or compared to how much time we spend with T.V., movies, video games, Internet? Better yet, how much time do we spend living the Bible?

Is there an imbalance?

I know we would be a happier people if we put the most important things first.... and suddenly the least important fall out of place because we won't have time for them so much anymore. This is just my opinion.