Always On My Toes

   Though I am sad to leave South Carolina, I am excited for the adventures that lay ahead for me here in Orange Park, FL. The only thing that is constant in life is change. Change happens constantly. The Lord seems to know when you start to get complacent and throws you into another challenge to keep you on your toes.
   See, God doesn't want us to get complacent. Because we become idle. An idle mind is the devil's workshop. Ecclesiastes 10:18 says, "By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through." Elder Ian Ardern of the Seventy (I posted his talk last week) said that "the poor use of time is a close cousin to idleness." We musn't get complacent with where we are. We must always look for opportunities to grow and to progress in life. Progression is an eternal principal.
    2 Nephi 31:19-20 states:
     "And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.
    Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."
  
   Once we are baptized and receive the Holy Ghost, all is not done. We can't get complacent. Just like how I cannot get complacent with an area I am serving in. I always have to be on the move, stretching myself. Making myself grow. That's how we become stronger in this life.
   I heard a story once of a man who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail, or PCT. It stretches from the bottom of California all the way to the Canadian border near Washington. It takes 4-6 months to complete this hike. He said that along this trail, there are little shelters with beds for each hiker if they wished to stop and rest a bit. He said that as he traveled, he saw many hikers enter those shelters to rest, and then become slothful and idle and stay there longer than they need to. Because it was comfortable. An easy way out. He then told us many of those hikers ended up quitting before they completed the 2,663 mile hike. They became complacent and comfortable with where they were. They wanted to be comfy and take the easy way. How many of us do that in life? We must always stretch ourselves and look for opportunties to grow. Don't be satisfied. Your muscles don't get stronger unless you stretch them out and push them to the limit. There's a saying that the Marines use to keep their troops on their toes....Complaceny Kills.