Wow, time got away from me; it’s been a while since my last post, but here I am at post number 700.
I thought about doing something amazing for my 700th post so I waited a bit for some inspiration to come but I can’t force it. I don’t want to clutter up my blog with posts that are made just for the sake of making them.
I would like for whatever I post to have meaning and value.
I’ve been thinking about how, at any given time, you can always find something in this world to be angry about. We are all being conditioned by the media to participate in recreational outrage.
Recently, the words of Jesus touched me and I felt their impact again concerning contention and the stirring up the hearts of people to anger.
And there shall be no disputations among you, as there have hitherto been; neither shall there be disputations among you concerning the points of my doctrine, as there have hitherto been.
3 Nephi 11:28-30
There is so much contention perpetuated by the media for the express purpose of generating attention to sell advertising.
For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away.
3 Nephi 11:28-30
But I have thought recently how much I have shared negativity with friends and family in the spirit of “Can you believe this person did or said this?”
I’ve been thinking of the anger, sorrow, or disturbance that my own behavior brings into the lives of others. While I feel like I’m exposing evil and informing others, I may actually be contributing to the media’s goal of stirring up the hearts of others to anger.
I’ve tried to avoid bringing unnecessary negativity into this blog by only focusing on light and truth that leads onward and upward.
While I feel like I try to do the same off-blog, I’ve noticed myself getting sucked into the negativity out there. It’s tricky to figure out how to stay informed and inform others while not distracting people from what is really important.
God always has a better way.
I would like to focus less on the negativity and more on the good that is out there, or even better, do some good.
I also want to reconsider the information I am sharing with others and resist fueling the media’s outrage machine.
Gawking at cesspools isn’t worth missing out on the grand views up the mountain.
2 Comments
For such an occasion, some numeric symbolism could have been apropos–organically sourced, not synthetically forced, of course. Maybe next time.
Assuredly, manipulations and fear-mongering a la the media (ultimately the adversary) ought not be repeated nor transformed into gossip. Let’s definitely not oil that machine but instead find axes for the gears thereof–or the plug.
As for staying informed and informing, remaining level-headed, positive, and optimistic amongst undesirable realities can indeed be challenging. It definitely doesn’t help when one informs others in a way for which they are not prepared. Framing is pivotal. What might it take to pique interest, or for new information to resonate or click?
Accentuating the positive and eliminating the negative are worthy ideals. But are there not times when the ideal should be balanced with some real? The extreme of sanitizing seems to backfire eventually, while the other extreme of laying it all out may backfire instantly. What portion can an individual handle, and how might it best be couched?
Lest any forget, mortality continues an ideological war that commenced in premortality. Section 123 concerns learning about and exposing our oppressors and their oppressions. This process and the results thereof neither appeal to everyone nor are for the faint of heart nor the unmalleable of mind. However, those who are and/or choose to remain uninformed of reality, preferring blinders to magnifying glasses and telescopes, tend to fall victim to the enemy’s tactics. How best for these neighbors to be warned by those who have been warned?
Finding that balance has been tricky for me. Perhaps thinking of the end goal of what we are sharing, why we are sharing it, and what we hope to accomplish by sharing are good things to consider.
Evil must be exposed and light must be allowed to shine. I think that I find myself often getting sucked into a cycle of too much exposing and not enough focus on active solutions, actually doing things to counteract darkness.
I’ve recently been called as the stake communications director and I think God has been working on my mind. I think there are things that I need to get figured out. We’ll see where that road leads and if anything transpires that I think may be useful to others, I’ll share it here.