Finding Comfort in the Unknown Through Hope and Some Certainty

I am constantly looking for absolute assurance. And, I am constantly not finding it. Though I sometimes know for certain the path I am to take, most of the time I wonder and doubt and hope the path I currently pursue is the right one. As much as I'd like this hope to become certainty, I'm quite certain it won't. However, here is more hope to make my hope stronger.

In his Spring 2011 conference talk, Elder Bednar said this, "We frequently may press forward hoping and praying—but without absolute assurance—that we are acting in accordance with God’s will. But as we honor our covenants and keep the commandments, as we strive ever more consistently to do good and to become better, we can walk with the confidence that God will guide our steps. And we can speak with the assurance that God will inspire our utterances."

The primary answers come to mind: go to church, read the scriptures, say your prayers, visit the temple regularly....this is how we can know with immediate hope and overall or inclusive certainty that our path is a good one. This, as Elder Bednar goes on, is how our confidence can "wax strong in the presence of God."

Don't step away from this without drawing a conclusion, one that immediately affects your life.....Are you striving to do good and become better? Are you keeping your covenants? Then God is guiding your foot steps. It may be like the sun's light on a cloudy day, but God is guiding you. So, let inspiration come "line upon line, precept upon precept." Continue in your hope and occasional certainty, and let "doubt and fear [be] absolutely purged" from you, as did President Joseph F. Smith. For God in your faithful, hopeful path is certainly guiding and inspiring you.

Opportunity and Kids

When Jake Burton was 23 years old, he used his $100,000 inheritance to start making snowboards. In today’s money, that amounts to $358,827.09. That’s a lot of money for a 23 year old. But would Burton Snowboards, or snowboarding (and skiing) as we know it, exist without it?

That's Tim Ostler back in the teenage years, by the way, a friend of mine who became a very powerful influence in my life, and in the lives of many others through snowboarding. Though he wasn't given a large inheritance, like Jake Burton, his parents did have the means to get him a snowboard and a pass, and the sense to prod his interest in the sport. And that opportunity provided has had great effects on Tim, and the people who surround him.

Whether I have a small fortune, or simply good sense with some smaller opportunities in life, my greatest goal and deepest aspiration is to create opportunity for my children, that they may positively affect the lives and opportunities of others.

Philippians 4:13

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Does more government solve the problems we have with government?

Would a ‘Record Czar’ benefit Utah’s open records process?

Let me see if I get this....we have a problem with our government's inability or refusal to provide access to public records. So, let's hire more government? What makes anyone think a job done poorly by the government is going to get done better by simply hiring more government?

Instead, hire a private corporation and give them unrestricted access to "public files," (they are public after all.) Pay them to publish everything on line, create a simple website for people to navigate, and train the government employees we already employ on how to use it and how to teach other people how to use it. Also, create a short-term oversight committee or team appointed by congress, which is accountable by election, to make sure there is no abuse, and pay that committee to make sure this is all done correctly and in a timely manner. Finally, create legislation that requires all public documents to be added correctly to the database within each governmental organization that collects those documents.

I am willing to pay, through my taxes, for a business to set this up, and then for our current government employees to file things in a manner that we can all access online, any time we want.

"I will contend with him that contendeth with thee"

- Isaiah 14:25

My Newest Project Continued....

Contemporary walls, fireplaces, ceilings, and furniture in a Craftsman home?

My Newest Project....The questions is, how to finish the interior. This was built in St. George and maintains a Craftsman style throughout the home. It's beautiful. But I remodeled my current home in Sugarhouse with a Craftsman finish - dark wood floors, white baseboards, window sills and casing, craftsman headers, mantels, and wall treatments such as bead board, board & baton with wall shelves, built-in cabinets, etc. It feels great, but it's tough to keep clean, especially with 2 big dogs. And, I think I'm ready for a new feel...I'm thinking contemporary. Can a Craftsman home be transitioned with a Contemporary interior?