Church Talk

Get out of the junk business!
If suicide is the answer, what is the question?

Get out of the junk business!

Fri
17 Feb

Stop collecting bad habits such as liquor, tobacco, drugs, stolen items bad-habits

In the greatest sermon that was ever preached, the greatest man who ever lived gave what was probably the wisest counsel that has ever been given when he said that we should lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven. And that is probably our most profitable idea.

However, the thing that we spend more time doing than anything else in our lives is laying up for ourselves treasures upon the earth. And that is also a great idea, providing we know how to handle it. Many people have contended for treasures in heaven on the grounds that they have much greater value, they are a lot more satisfying; they are a lot more permanent. Someone has complained that one of the disadvantages of treasures of the earth is that you can’t take them with you. Someone else has pointed out that with taxes like they are, you can’t even keep them while you are here.

Somebody said, “Money can’t buy happiness,” but his friend said, “Maybe not, but it does enable one to pick out the particular kind of misery that he enjoys the most.” And someone has pointed out that if there is anyone who can’t buy happiness with money it must be that he just doesn’t know where to shop.

We can build educational institutions, and operate hospitals with money. We can feed and clothe our families with money, and in many ways we can build up the kingdom of God with money. Someone said, “Money ain’t everything,” and his friend said, “Just name me three things that it ain’t.”

But we also should think of some of those things that it is. Money is preserved labor, it is industry made negotiable, it is stored up accomplishment. It is the medium of exchange that we can trade for things that we can take with us and a great many of them we can actually send on ahead. We can take our families with us. We can take our education with us. We can take our great character qualities with us. And money is the medium that we can use to share the treasures of the earth with others who need our help.

William James, the great Harvard psychologist, said, “The greatest discovery of my generation is that you can change your circumstances by changing your attitudes of mind.” And while everybody wants to change his circumstances, one has to be willing to change oneself.

Start by getting out of the junk business! Stop collecting bad habits such as liquor, tobacco, drugs, stolen items, the reading or viewing of negative based literature or movie/television programmes. Adopt a positive attitude approach. Think responsibility; Act responsible; Be responsive to positive things such as – go to school, go to work, join a club, register at USP, attend church regularly, be proactive.

The best way to help yourself is by helping others. Stop worrying so much about your problems and be proactive in the service of others. In turn, you will find that selfless service is more self rewarding than receiver gaining. Set aside one day each week which he called “trouble day” during which you work with others that have some form of trouble or challenge and try to persuade them to get out of the junk business also.

If I were asked to give the best idea of which I am capable, it would be closely related to this: that we should get out of the junk business and then start laying up treasures in heaven by sharing with others that vast fortune which each of us has or can get possession of.

Many of us have in our possession a copy of the Holy Bible. In this is written the word of the Lord. It contains the covenants that he has made and would like to make with every person who has lived or who ever will live upon the earth.

This book gives an account of one occasion some 34 centuries ago when the God of creation came down on to the top of Mt Sinai in a cloud of fire, and to the accompaniment of the lightnings and thunders of that sacred mountain gave us the Ten Commandments, in which he enumerated ten ways that we can get out of the junk business.

Just think what would happen in our world if we all fully observed the Ten Commandments. That would mean that we would stop cheating and lying and stealing and killing and being immoral and violating the Sabbath day. Then this earth would soon be God’s paradise and our material prosperity would go up like a skyrocket. The Lord has also included in the Bible a great credenda of those soul-saving truths that we can share with other people. The Bible is the Lord’s own fortune-to-share book.

However, one of the shortcomings of even the holy scriptures is that they are not automatic. That is, they will not work unless we do. More than anything else the great message of the Lord needs messengers. The Lord has invited us to have as large a share as we like in his important family concern which Jesus referred to as “my Father’s business”. Now that is the business of building integrity and character and righteousness and eternal life into the lives of his children.

The Lord has told us many things about the importance of the family. He has given us this miraculous power of procreation where we can create children in God’s own image and share with them the tremendous blessings of life itself. God has promised us that if we will effectively be his messengers he will share his fortune with both those who give it and those who receive

God is a very wealthy personage. We all would like to inherit from a wealthy parent and what could be more exciting than to inherit from God, to get everything that God has. And so we come back to the place where we began and hear again those great words as they come down to us from the mount in which the Lord of Hosts has said, “ lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. ” (Matthew 6:20.) May we be fully successful in this greatest of all enterprises.

Office of the District President

The Church of Jesus Christ of latter Day Saints

If suicide is the answer, what is the question?

Fri
17 Feb

The word “suicide” comes from the Latin roots, Sui (“of oneself”) and Cidium (“killing” or “slaying”).

A number of ‘suicidologists’ have criticised news coverage of suicides, citing that reading about suicide victims in the news often triggers copycat or “contagion” suicides.

So do we go into denial hoping the problem goes away, or should we examine the contributing elements precipitating suicide and work diligently to stem the tide of this insidious worldwide trend?

Some warning signs in suicidal teens: withdrawal, moodiness, depression, aggression, alcohol and drug abuse, sexual activity, eating disorders, excessive gift giving, personality change, and the hearing of destructive voices which are often demonic by nature.

Here are some interesting facts:

- Alcoholism is a direct factor in about 30 percent of all suicide deaths.

- Over 34,000 die in the US by suicide every year.

- Between 250,000-300,000 die by suicide in China each year.

- Impulsivity appears to be a risk factor for suicide.

- Over 60 percent of people who die by suicide are estimated to suffer from major depression, with NO other psychiatric or physical illness.

- Intense emotions of depression, self-hatred, inner rage, hopelessness and anxiety are all major contributors.

- While there is a common perception that suicide rates are highest among the young, the elderly, in fact, have the highest suicide rates overall.

- Relational break-ups are a strong contributor to suicide.

A CLOSER LOOK

Proverbs 29:18 – ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish’. The one thing in common with all those who have ended their lives prematurely is that they suffer a loss of vision and foresight beyond their personal crisis.

BROKEN DREAMS

Many teenagers expect their romances to last forever, but are not designed to handle the emotional tear within their soul when they are on the receiving end of a broken relationship. When a teen relationship falls apart, often the young person is left devastated. Because youth are idealistic in their thinking they often find it difficult to see beyond crisis, so suicide becomes an option.

For others it is a matter of trying to inflict guilt on those who have ended the relationship. It is easy to underestimate the social pressure teens can be made to feel over a break-up. The stigma and shame some youth feel is often far too much to carry. The feelings of being ostracised and marginalised by school associates, creates social rejection which is high on the list of the contributing factors for suicide.

BROKEN IDEALS

When a young person gives away their virginity outside of the context of marriage, they have lost something precious and may not understand all the dynamics surrounding this. But Proverbs warns, ’Guard your heart because out of your heart flows the issues of life’. Solomon exhorted, not to ‘awaken love before its due time’. When two people engage in intercourse their souls become knit and bound together – this is a spiritual principle. Mark 10:8.

The Bible talks about how when two people are joined together sexually, they become one flesh.

Once this soul tie is established and the relationship experiences a break-up, the emotions they experience is akin to their soul being torn apart or a strong sense of abandonment and rejection.

Sexual activity outside of marriage is a major violation of a spiritual law, and carries emotional, spiritual and physical consequences. When we observe the teenage world we quickly discover in most cases a teenager’s emotions have not matured enough to sustain the emotional highs and lows of an intimate relationship, let alone a sexual one.

Youth have great ideals and expectations. Once these are shattered, the gulf between their expectation and cold reality leads to a sense of failure and worthlessness. Many teens naturally process this inwardly whilst others come out fighting. However, the perceived loss of a relationship is often interpreted as shame and failure.

THE SPIRITUAL REALITY

The moment an individual begins to violate God’s moral law, a door opens in the realm of the spirit so that people are afflicted by the demonic realm. These spiritual powers which are identified in scripture are by nature evil. There are specific demonic powers that are assigned to this nation that seek to influence people into making decisions that are sinful and therefore bring judgement as a consequence.

It is imperative we obey God and walk in His righteousness or we will find ourselves powerless to combat some of the assaults that are assigned to our minds and emotions.

The greatest tragedy in life is not death, necessarily. The greatest tragedy is living a life without Christ. We need to pursue a real relationship with God. Remember it is righteousness that exalts a nation and it is unrighteousness that is its downfall.