I first encountered this in college, after an amazing intellectual discussion with some fellows. I proposed that we could continue the discussion the next day at my apartment.
But I made a mistake. Instead of ordering pizza and snacks, I made dinner. And I set a proper table. These men, who the day before had been full of incredible existential insights, became vapid social beings, sharing trivia and light anecdotes. It was a pleasant night, but I was disappointed.
I’m not sure I like the lack of discussion that has accompanied my prior Lenten Personal Progress posts, so while I will be continuing my pilgrimage, I will put up a weekly post, rather than a daily post. I’ll do this on Saturdays.
To jump to a particular day, click on one of the links below:
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
Long Term Projects
In order to get through all the value experiences in such a short time, I’m having you start a number of long-term efforts, which you will be doing simultaneously. As you see this list grow, you will realize why it would have been really great to simply work on one value experience a month over the period of four years. But you can do this, if you’re determined. A lot of these “habits” are habits you would need to have as a missionary or mature adult. I’ll bet you know women and men who already live lives of devotion like this, who are constantly striving to become more like the precious individual they know God sees in them. The long-term efforts you will be working on by the end of this week are:
- Review and keep your standards (Started Day 1)
- Pray morning and evening (Started Day 2)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (Started Day 3)
- Begin a habit of regular scripture study and prayer (Starts Day 4)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (Starts Day 5)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (Starts Day 6)
- Read your patriarchal blessing or set an appointment to get a recommend for one (Assigned Day 7)
- Help plan meals, obtain/prepare food, and gather the family for mealtimes. (Starts Day 8)
- Increase your understanding of the atonement and plan to share your testimony. (Starts Day 10)
If you are on schedule, you will be finishing the Virtue Value experiences today. Congratulations!
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 4 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 3 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 2 of 21)
- Begin a habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 1 of 21)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
I mention Martha today because whenever she’d stop writing in her journal, she’d always start again on a Sunday. It seems Sunday was the day she repented of failing to keep a journal. Martha only had one child survive infancy, but she is now the ancestor of thousands. Because of her journal, she is now more famous than her husband.
Though your life seems simple and modest, you can also have a large impact on the future.
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 5 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 4 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 3 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 2 of 21)
- Choose three standards you will improve upon (day 1 of 21)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
Integrity is an interesting word. I can imagine a person who thinks that integrity means they should be mean and nasty, if that’s how they honestly feel. That may be genuine to the natural man, but it is not integrity.
The definition of integrity is “innocence, blamelessness; chastity, purity,” from the Latin integritas, “soundness, wholeness, blamelessness.”
Choose to be blameless, innocent, and pure.
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 6 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 5 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 4 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 3 of 21)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (day 2 of 21)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (day 1 of 14)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
You are a precious daughter of God, and before this life you chose to believe Christ’s promise in the pre-mortal realm that He would redeem you. Only those who had this pre-mortal faith in Christ are born into this world.
We can choose to be true to our hopes and dreams from that forgotten time. All were good before this life. That may be the knowledge which inspired Nephi to write: “I pray the Father in the name of Christ that many of us, if not all, may be saved in his kingdom at that great and last day.”[ref]2 Ne. 33:12[/ref]
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 7 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 6 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 5 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 4 of 21)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (day 3 of 21)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (day 2 of 14)
- Don’t have a patriarchal blessing? Schedule an appointment with your bishop for a recommend to get one (1st reminder of 21)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
It helps to remember that the Greek word Christ was using meant “complete” and that he had just finished a sermon talking about loving everyone.
You might not be the “prefect” weight or have “perfect” grades, but if you love everyone, you are the kind of perfect that Christ commanded us to be.
If you are on schedule, you will have started all the Integrity experiences by the end of today. Congratulations!
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 8 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 7 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 6 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 5 of 21)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (day 4 of 21)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (day 3 of 14)
- Read your patriarchal blessing or set an appointment to get a recommend for one (2 of 21)
- Help plan meals, obtain/prepare food, and gather the family for mealtimes. (1 of 14)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
We are free to choose our actions, but we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.
God grants us free agency, and this is why He allows us to make choices, even when those choices cause terrible harm to others.
Christ can save us from the sins we have committed if we repent. Christ will also save us from the eternal consequences of the actions of others if we desire and can lift these burdens from us even in this life.
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 9 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 8 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 7 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 6 of 21)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (day 5 of 21)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (day 4 of 14)
- Read your patriarchal blessing or set an appointment to get a recommend for one (3 of 21)
- Help plan meals, obtain/prepare food, and gather the family for mealtimes. (2 of 14)
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top
The Book of Mormon gives us the wonderful stories of Alma the father and Alma the son. As a young person, each of them was involved in teaching wrong things.
Alma the father made a choice to heed the preaching of Abinadi, and blessed unknown numbers of people.
Alma the son made the choice to repent even though he had earlier rejected God and preached against the Church. I suspect Alma would tell you the wrongs he had done were far worse than anything you might have done. If he could repent, so can you.
Remember to:
- Review and keep your standards (day 9 of 31)
- Pray morning and evening (day 8 of 21)
- Continue your new habit related to personal integrity (day 7 of 21)
- Continue your habit of regular scripture study and prayer (day 6 of 21)
- Work on the three standards you decided to improve upon (day 5 of 21)
- Record the quiet acts of service others perform (day 4 of 14)
- Read your patriarchal blessing or set an appointment to get a recommend for one (3 of 21)
- Help plan meals, obtain/prepare food, and gather the family for mealtimes. (2 of 14)
- Increase your understanding of the atonement and plan to share your testimony.
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Go to Top