17 min
Lessons Learned from my Heroes - Ep. 44 Latter-day Saint Commentary from the Pacific Northwest - Rocky Mountain Sunshine Podcast
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- Christianity
Welcome, everybody! I am recording from the lovely town of Port Angeles, Washington.
This past week we went to the funeral of my mother-in-law’s sister. My inlaws are in their 80’s and it was not an easy trip for them. We left Friday and it took a lot longer to get to Wenatchee, Washington than the GPS said it would. Haha But I have come to appreciate funerals. You learn a lot about the people and if it’s family, you get a glimpse into the family’s life. Their family farmed in Quincy, WA. They weren’t rich but they always had food. That’s more than a lot of people can say.
Well, today I have a good show for you about some lessons that I learned from some people I look up to. So let’s get to it.
Do you have people who you look up to or someone you admire? Do you have a mentor or a hero?
A couple of weeks ago in your young men church lesson, the question was asked if we had anyone who we looked up to. If we want to be like someone, we try to do the things that they do. In my life I’ve had many people whom I have looked up to and admired.
I remember before my mission, as I was considering whether to go on a mission, I wanted to be like our bishop. He seemed very happy. They had a great family. I remember thinking the same thing about our home teacher, and a couple of other men in our ward.
In a previous episode, I spoke about Brother Brandt, my seminary teacher. He was someone who you couldn’t help loving. I wanted to know the scriptures like he did and have a love for them as he did. He genuinely enjoyed the scriptures and loved to share things from them.
As I served my mission, I looked up to my mission presidents, President Neil L. Andersen (now an apostle) and President Richard Oveson. I learned different things from them. President Andersen was my mission president for the first 12 months or so. President Andersen, now Elder Andersen, knew that the Book of Mormon was vitally important to us missionaries. He had a schedule for us to keep where we read the entire Book of Mormon every two months. I have the tally marks in the front of my missionary Book of Mormon where I read it once, twice, 5 times, 10 times. Then it moved over to the French Book of Mormon with a tally mark for each time that I had read it in French.
I remember being on fire and wanting to learn everything I could. I had a thirst for learning. I told President Andersen that I had started in the old testament and was going to read the Bible cover to cover. He suggested that I start with the New Testament. He told me of his love for the words of the Savior in the new testament and that it would be helpful for me to read it cover to cover first. I was glad that I followed his instructions. Not long after finishing it I had someone challenge me saying that I probably had never even read the new testament. I was able to say that I had read it from cover to cover.
When he would interview us, he would have a shoe shine kit there. As we would talk, he would take our shoes and polish them. It was an incredible act of service. Now as I look back at it, and now that he is an apostle, I can see more symbolism in this, as it reminds me of the Savior washing his apostles’ feet. John 13:5 it says, 5 After that he poureth water into a basin, and began to awash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.
Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? 7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. 8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. I understand a little of what Peter was saying there. He felt like he should not be the one having his feet washed, but should be washing the feet of Jesus Christ.
Tune in for more!
---
Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rocky-mountain-sunshine/me
Welcome, everybody! I am recording from the lovely town of Port Angeles, Washington.
This past week we went to the funeral of my mother-in-law’s sister. My inlaws are in their 80’s and it was not an easy trip for them. We left Friday and it took a lot longer to get to Wenatchee, Washington than the GPS said it would. Haha But I have come to appreciate funerals. You learn a lot about the people and if it’s family, you get a glimpse into the family’s life. Their family farmed in Quincy, WA. They weren’t rich but they always had food. That’s more than a lot of people can say.
Well, today I have a good show for you about some lessons that I learned from some people I look up to. So let’s get to it.
Do you have people who you look up to or someone you admire? Do you have a mentor or a hero?
A couple of weeks ago in your young men church lesson, the question was asked if we had anyone who we looked up to. If we want to be like someone, we try to do the things that they do. In my life I’ve had many people whom I have looked up to and admired.
I remember before my mission, as I was considering whether to go on a mission, I wanted to be like our bishop. He seemed very happy. They had a great family. I remember thinking the same thing about our home teacher, and a couple of other men in our ward.
In a previous episode, I spoke about Brother Brandt, my seminary teacher. He was someone who you couldn’t help loving. I wanted to know the scriptures like he did and have a love for them as he did. He genuinely enjoyed the scriptures and loved to share things from them.
As I served my mission, I looked up to my mission presidents, President Neil L. Andersen (now an apostle) and President Richard Oveson. I learned different things from them. President Andersen was my mission president for the first 12 months or so. President Andersen, now Elder Andersen, knew that the Book of Mormon was vitally important to us missionaries. He had a schedule for us to keep where we read the entire Book of Mormon every two months. I have the tally marks in the front of my missionary Book of Mormon where I read it once, twice, 5 times, 10 times. Then it moved over to the French Book of Mormon with a tally mark for each time that I had read it in French.
I remember being on fire and wanting to learn everything I could. I had a thirst for learning. I told President Andersen that I had started in the old testament and was going to read the Bible cover to cover. He suggested that I start with the New Testament. He told me of his love for the words of the Savior in the new testament and that it would be helpful for me to read it cover to cover first. I was glad that I followed his instructions. Not long after finishing it I had someone challenge me saying that I probably had never even read the new testament. I was able to say that I had read it from cover to cover.
When he would interview us, he would have a shoe shine kit there. As we would talk, he would take our shoes and polish them. It was an incredible act of service. Now as I look back at it, and now that he is an apostle, I can see more symbolism in this, as it reminds me of the Savior washing his apostles’ feet. John 13:5 it says, 5 After that he poureth water into a basin, and began to awash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.
Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? 7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. 8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. I understand a little of what Peter was saying there. He felt like he should not be the one having his feet washed, but should be washing the feet of Jesus Christ.
Tune in for more!
---
Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rocky-mountain-sunshine/me
17 min