"I was offended"

As a missionary I come across many different people from many different backgrounds and concerns.  One that has been coming up a lot is the challenge of being offended.  In this case, these members were offended by members.  I have thought on this topic a lot and would like to share a couple of things I have learned. 

To start off I am going to quote an apostle of Jesus Christ -Elder Bednar.  "When we believe or say we have been offended, we usually mean we feel insulted, mistreated, snubbed, or disrespected. And certainly clumsy, embarrassing, unprincipled, and mean-spirited things do occur in our interactions with other people that would allow us to take offense. However, it ultimately is impossible for another person to offend you or to offend me. Indeed, believing that another person offended us is fundamentally false. To be offended is a choice we make; it is not a condition inflicted or imposed upon us by someone or something else."

Offense is a personal choice.  If we allow ourselves to be offended then it is often blown up out of proportion and context.  We quickly start to assume it was malicious and intended.  Before we know, the spirit of contention has taken over us and the spirit has withdrawn and we are left to ourselves.

So how can we decide not to be offended?  Elder Bednar gives us the answer in reference to Psalm 199:165 he says, "Through the strengthening power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ , you and I can be blessed to avoid and triumph over offense."

That is where the power and courage come from.  I have discovered that when one chooses to be offended they run away from Christ when they know Christ is where peace and comfort will come.  Let us run to Christ.  Christ himself pleaded for us to come to him when he said, "I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."  He also said, "I am the way, the truth , and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." So will you walk towards Christ always?

We must decide to take God's challenge to Enoch.  That of, "Choose ye this day, to serve the Lord God who made you" even if someone misjudges or insults us.  I believe and have seen evident in my life that when I choose to serve the Lord with all of my "heart, might, mind, and strength" then those opportunities to distance my self from Christ are easy decisions to stay close to the one whom I was currently serving.

Cliff Young

"Impossible" to Reality

One of my heroes is a man named Cliff Young.  He was considered a nobody until 1983. 

Australia hosts a grueling 543.7 mile long ultra-marathon which goes from Sydney to Melbourne.  Only world class athletes who specifically train for this race compete.  They are usually backed up by large companies and are in the prime of their lives. 

In 1983 the usual world class athletes lined up to start the race, but there was one person who stood out from the rest of the competitors.  His name was Cliff Young.  He was 61 and wore overalls and work boots.  The press, athletes, and spectators questioned Cliff and his ability to run the race.  In response to their criticism Cliff said, "Yes I can. See, I grew up on a farm where we couldn't afford horses or tractors, and the whole time I was growing up, whenever the storms would roll in, I'd have to go out and round up the sheep. We had 2,000 sheep on 2,000 acres. Sometimes I would have to run those sheep for two or three days. It took a long time, but I'd always catch them. I believe I can run this race."  They allowed Cliff to run the race and thought he would quickly drop out.

The gun went off and the "world class athletes" left Cliff in the dust.  To add hurt to insult Cliff did not even run normal.  Instead of running he shuffled.  Many spectators were worried for this man’s health and safety. 

The rest of the athletes minus Cliff knew the race would take 5 days.  Each day would be spent running for 18 hours and sleeping for 6 hours.  This is what they did except for Cliff. He ran through the night.  At the beginning of day two he was asked about his race plan.  He told them he was going to run through the night until he finished the race.  That is what he did.  During the last night he passed the last "world class runner" and finished the race with a new course record. 

A consequence of winning was Cliff received $10,000.  Cliff gave his earnings to other runners in the race.  He kept none for himself. 

Cliff's heroism did not stop here.  He entered the race the next year placing 7th even with a displaced hip.  A couple of years later when he was 76 he started to run around Australia’s boarders.  He accomplished 6,520 of the 16,000 kilometers before he had to stop because his only crew member became ill.  Cliff died when he was 81.  He changed how this ultra-marathon was run.  Many competitors have mirrored his shuffle technique.  It now is called the Young-Shuffle.  Scientists have studied it and have found it to be more energy efficient.  3 winners since have used the Young-Shuffle.  Also the runners now do not stop running until they have completed the race.

I love this story because of Cliff's determination.  He did what others defined as "impossible" because he did not confine himself to those limits.  We do the same thing with ourselves.  We to often limit ourselves.  President Hinckley said something prophetic on this topic.  I will change the audience to fit all of us.  He said, "You are [children] of the Almighty. Limitless is your potential. Magnificent is your future, if you will take control of it."  "If" we "take control of it."  We can either be birds that go along with the wind and puts little effort into it or be a bird that fights and goes against the wind and go places that others only dreamed of but never worked towards because they defined it as "impossible".

We can do all that God has commanded.  Nothing is impossible with the Lord.