I would like to share some of our Lesson today that we gave in our combined Aaronic Priesthood class. We gave a lesson based on a talk by Elder Christofferson. Here is some of his opening story:
Years ago, when my brothers and I were boys, our mother had radical cancer surgery. She came very close to death. Much of the tissue in her neck and shoulder had to be removed, and for a long time it was very painful for her to use her right arm.
One morning about a year after the surgery, my father took Mother to an appliance store and asked the manager to show her how to use a machine he had for ironing clothes. The machine was called an Ironrite. It was operated from a chair by pressing pedals with one’s knees to lower a padded roller against a heated metal surface and turn the roller, feeding in shirts, pants, dresses, and other articles. You can see that this would make ironing (of which there was a great deal in our family of five boys) much easier, especially for a woman with limited use of her arm. Mother was shocked when Dad told the manager they would buy the machine and then paid cash for it. Despite my father’s good income as a veterinarian, Mother’s surgery and medications had left them in a difficult financial situation.
On the way home, my mother was upset: “How can we afford it? Where did the money come from? How will we get along now?” Finally Dad told her that he had gone without lunches for nearly a year to save enough money. “Now when you iron,” he said, “you won’t have to stop and go into the bedroom and cry until the pain in your arm stops.” She didn’t know he knew about that. I was not aware of my father’s sacrifice and act of love for my mother at the time, but now that I know, I say to myself, “There is a man.”
Years ago, when my brothers and I were boys, our mother had radical cancer surgery. She came very close to death. Much of the tissue in her neck and shoulder had to be removed, and for a long time it was very painful for her to use her right arm.
One morning about a year after the surgery, my father took Mother to an appliance store and asked the manager to show her how to use a machine he had for ironing clothes. The machine was called an Ironrite. It was operated from a chair by pressing pedals with one’s knees to lower a padded roller against a heated metal surface and turn the roller, feeding in shirts, pants, dresses, and other articles. You can see that this would make ironing (of which there was a great deal in our family of five boys) much easier, especially for a woman with limited use of her arm. Mother was shocked when Dad told the manager they would buy the machine and then paid cash for it. Despite my father’s good income as a veterinarian, Mother’s surgery and medications had left them in a difficult financial situation.
On the way home, my mother was upset: “How can we afford it? Where did the money come from? How will we get along now?” Finally Dad told her that he had gone without lunches for nearly a year to save enough money. “Now when you iron,” he said, “you won’t have to stop and go into the bedroom and cry until the pain in your arm stops.” She didn’t know he knew about that. I was not aware of my father’s sacrifice and act of love for my mother at the time, but now that I know, I say to myself, “There is a man.”
I thought that is a great example also of what a man should be like. A lot of what we see in the world today teaches that real happiness comes from self indulgence and only doing things that are in your best interest. I have long thought that being a parent or a spouse is all about everyone except yourself. I believe that we are successful in those roles as we forget ourselves. When we consider decisions we should think " What is best for my wife and family?
Elder Christofferson again: " Though he will make some sacrifices and deny himself some pleasures in the course of honoring his commitments, the true man leads a rewarding life. He gives much, but he receives more, and he lives content in the approval of his Heavenly Father. The life of true manhood is the good life."
I can testify to the truthfulness of that. I know that times when I have succeeded at being unselfish in serving my family I have felt the contentment that comes from feeling my Heavenly father has approved of my choices.
Now, I need to share another important line from his talk, and it addresses those times when as men we are trying to do it right, but don't quite make the high mark that we are shooting for: "Sometimes men try but fail. Not all worthy objectives are realized despite one’s honest and best efforts. True manhood is not always measured by the fruits of one’s labors but by the labors themselves—by one’s striving."
Isn't that a great truth? Sometimes we try and try and try to do something, only to not reach it. It is easy to feel we have failed, but if it was a worthy objective, even though we didn't obtain the fruits that we were working for, it was not in vain. We will be better as a result of our striving.
The greatest quest we can have is to strive to be like Jesus. And the really cool thing is that He is the one that enables us, through the atonement, to keep striving, to repent and to try again and again and again to be more like him.
That gives me hope.
Now, I need to share another important line from his talk, and it addresses those times when as men we are trying to do it right, but don't quite make the high mark that we are shooting for: "Sometimes men try but fail. Not all worthy objectives are realized despite one’s honest and best efforts. True manhood is not always measured by the fruits of one’s labors but by the labors themselves—by one’s striving."
Isn't that a great truth? Sometimes we try and try and try to do something, only to not reach it. It is easy to feel we have failed, but if it was a worthy objective, even though we didn't obtain the fruits that we were working for, it was not in vain. We will be better as a result of our striving.
The greatest quest we can have is to strive to be like Jesus. And the really cool thing is that He is the one that enables us, through the atonement, to keep striving, to repent and to try again and again and again to be more like him.
That gives me hope.
Thanks for sharing that thought and your feelings Dad. It was a great little pick me up :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the good stories. This was a great message not only to maybe a father or husband, but also to me as a wife and mother. I espcially like this line. True manhood is not always measured by the fruits of one’s labors but by the labors themselves—by one’s striving. Thanks Doug.
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