My Mormon Third Eye: I See... Hero Worship

Sunday, February 7, 2016

I See... Hero Worship

As Latter-day Saints we are warned against hero worship. No matter how marvelous and mighty our accomplishments may be, or how many lives we may save in the operating room, on the battlefield, or in the bishop's office, the most noble course of action is to rightly assign the glory to God. The scriptures are replete with stories of joy and tragedy when prophets and leaders chose to either identify the Savior as their source of strength or highlight their own superior skills.

However, what do you do with the letter cut and pasted below? A close friend of mine showed me the text of this email he received from his young adult daughter away from home at college:

“Dear Dad,

I wanted to let you know just how much I look up to you. How much your faith and example means in my life. To put it simply you are my hero. You where there in my darkest hours. Telling me to have hope in a future I could not see. Your strength gave me strength and without your kind words of encouragement I would not be where I am. Thank you for seeing the bigger picture. I know that I can and will be happy because of you. To hear the stories of how you prayed for me when I was hurting and far away gives me comfort even though you are not here. You have scared off the monsters in my closest and helped me to fight the ones in my mind and heart. You're my big teddy bear and my dad. You are always there when I need you. I know how busy you can be and I often don't express how much you mean to me but I'm glad you're my dad. Again you are my hero and I want nothing more than to find someone like you to spend my life with. Mom is lucky to have you and I am privileged to have you for a dad.”

You do what prophets and apostles and parents have done since the beginning of time- thank God.

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The Mormon Third Eye Quote of the Week

"As men of the priesthood, we have an essential role to play in society, at home, and in the Church. But we must be men that women can trust, that children can trust, and that God can trust. In the Church and kingdom of God in these latter days, we cannot afford to have boys and men who are drifting. We cannot afford young men who lack self-discipline and live only to be entertained. We cannot afford young adult men who are going nowhere in life, who are not serious about forming families and making a real contribution in this world. We cannot afford husbands and fathers who fail to provide spiritual leadership in the home."

Elder D. Todd Christofferson
Priesthood Session Conference, October 2012

Why My Mormon Third Eye?

When I politely excused myself in the middle of dinner to make a bathroom stop, how did Mom know that I had uneaten peas in my pocket to flush down the toilet? When I came home late from a youth dance and slid quietly into bed to avoid waking parental units, how did Dad know, without looking at the car, that I smashed in the front bumper? When I watch my daughter play a video game, how do I know that she's not ready for her Geometry final?

Its the Third Eye. The notorious eye in the back of the head, the extra view of life that God blesses parents striving to do the right thing so they can see more of life than the children they chase after.

Our third eye also permits us to see things and feel emotions that are too refined, too far on the edge of our standard two-eyed peripheral vision to enjoy in its fullness. I've learned that I have a Mormon Third Eye; that is, as a life-long, fully-dedicated member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have unique perspective on how the doctrines of the gospel and the demands of my faith in them intersect every other part of my mortal existence to create the entertaining, self-deprecating kaleidoscope of my life.

So... for those of you bold and bored enough to read this far, every so often I'll be sharing here what my Mormon third eye sees. Third eyes are relatively huge; they see the humorous, the entertaining, the embarrassing, the beautiful, the inspirational, and even the moral and political; however, they tend to ignore the evil, depressing and destructive: there is enough of that in world already!

The Four Secrets to Successful Living

Always Go Where There is Free Food - This includes ward and work parties, wedding receptions and missionary open houses; the money you spend to buy the ingredients for the world-famous triple chocolate cake you bring doesn’t count.
Never Pay Full Price for Anything – See my posts on Black Friday escapades for more information on this.
Never, Ever Press the Red Button - Usually, if you are faced with a red button somewhere, don’t press it – it usually means trouble. For example, the red button launches the missiles. Do yourself a favor and don’t press it.
Any Problem You Face Can Be Solved With Bungee Cords and Duct Tape - Bungee cord and duct tape technology has saved many marriages and ward parties. I’m not just talking about problems with plumbing or keeping groceries from bouncing around the trunk; I know of relationship and family issues that have been solved with creative applications of these two substances.