Perspective is everything

Last night I attended a wonderful Stake leadership training meeting for our church.  (A Stake=several congregations)

Many times I have been to these meetings where they split us up.  Presidents meet.  1st counselors meet.  2nd counselors meet.  And secretaries meet.  They then each gain new ideas that they can take home and use in their service in the church.  This time, though, we all stayed together and had a fantastic discussion.  The discussion was based on an article called "The Fourth Missionary" by Lawrence E. Corbridge.

This article talks about missionary work and what kind of missionary we want to be.  The Stake Relief Society presidency applied it to each of us and how we fulfill our church callings. (A "calling" is a job in the church that the Bishop or Stake President asks us to do.)

They were speaking and asking questions and I was madly scribbling down notes.  It was all about self improvement.  We all can be better people.  None of us is perfect.  We each have room to grow, learn, stretch and improve.  And I LOVED how these awesome sisters presented it. (Sisters:this is how we refer to women in the church...we are all sisters in the gospel.)

One sister  in the audience commented (I'm paraphrasing here.  I can't remember her exact words.) that when we are simply checking off our to-do list or our check list our hearts are really not in it.  We are just going through the motions.  Our check lists are huge.  We never can seem to get them done.  She said, "my checklist runneth over". Haha! I LOVED that!  It's so true! When we throw out the check list and begin to really give away our "will" to the Father and allow His will to take over we will be so very blessed.  And we get more accomplished.  And our perspective changes.

A counselor in the Stake RS Presidency asked, "Who are you going to be"? When we are standing in front of the Savior and all of the day-to-day things are no longer "defining" us....who will we be? We are not what we do: laundry, dishes, diaper changer, mom, wife,chauffeur, cook, baker, etc, etc, etc.  Who are we really?  What are our qualities?  How are we becoming more like the Savior?

I love that this really made me think about the person I am becoming.

I loved this quote that was shared:
"The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature." By Ezra Taft Benson

There was a time a couple of years ago that I used this phrase a lot: "It's all about perspective!" I love that this lesson changed my perspective and helped me to see some of the things that I need to change in my life so that I can become more like the Savior.  Perspective is everything!

Image by Greg Olsen

Monday's Marvelous Memo

Perspective and Words

As you can plainly see...I skipped writing on Sunday.  That will be my routine with this blog.  I will write Monday through Saturday...barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Over the weekend I was pondering frequently on the topic of "perspective".  One of my favorite things to say, as of late, is, "It's all about perspective".  It's very very true.  Life IS all about our perspective.  We respond according to how we see the situation.  Sometimes the way we see a certain situation can be a little bit skewed or off or not very realistic.  When we try to see things in a new light or from a different angle, we may be shocked at the difference in how we feel about an event or conversation.  Especially when dealing with another person, we can never really know what they are thinking or what their perspective is unless they tell us.

This is something that I can apply to my daily interactions with my family.  If I can try to see things through their eyes, I might be a lot more understanding of their choices or actions.

While watching a movie last night, something one of the main characters said really hit home for me. I was watching The Letter Writer. It's not the best acting but the messages that are taught are awesome.  (Here's a trailer for you... The Letter Writer trailer)

The character, Sam, was talking about the words we use and how they can effect another person. Words are extremely powerful.  I love words.  I've always loved how they can paint a picture in your mind. They can be used in a variety of ways. They can be kind, beautiful or lyrical.  They can be harsh, cruel or mean.  They can be used to lift another person up and "fill their bucket" or they can be used to tear another person down and "dip from their bucket".

Our perspective on a situation can effect how we use words toward another person.  We need to be careful how we use our words so that we can have a positive effect on others.  When we change our perspective to a more positive view we may also choose different words to say too.

This last summer I was able to participate in a parent training with Tough Point Autism Services.  My case manager taught me a great deal about Autism.  She helped me see a new perspective.  A huge lesson I am continuing to learn is that when working with a child with Autism you must be very careful with your wording and phrasing.  You must be direct and clear.  There can be no insinuations.  Nothing can be vague, with unspoken meanings. Sarcasm is lost on them. Talking to them is like relearning how to speak.  It's a daily struggle to reword everything you are in the habit of saying.  But when I realized that these individuals don't have the capacity to understand the words we are saying, my perspective changed and I have a great desire to change the way I communicate with my son.

My son does not deal very well with his dad traveling.  He gets angry and lashes out.  He has been doing better with his dad's traveling, but recently when his dad left on a business trip he got very upset.  He was pushing, hitting, growling and yelling at his siblings and me.  When those types of things are happening in the middle of church service, it's quite embarrassing.  I'm so thankful for the inspiration that changed my perspective immediately.  I was able to choose my words more carefully and address the true reason for the outburst.  I was able to be very direct and kind. The remainder of church went well.  The outbursts continued at home, but once I was aware of his perspective, I was able to handle the situations better.  

Next time you encounter a situation that is stressful or hard, try to see things from a new, more positive perspective.  Adjust your responses so that your words are more kind and uplifting.  Watch and see how a change in your perspective and your words can make a huge difference in your life.