Essential Takeaway: Fair Dinkum without Chocolate
The talk I choose for this week is titled “True Disciples of the Savior” by Elder Terrence M Vinson. He begins by talking about the book of Haggai and quotes the Lord saying “consider your ways”. Elder Vinson goes on to talk about the Australian phrase “fair dinkum”. He says “people are fair dinkum when they are what they say they are.” I love that concept! This talk is filled with so many good things, but I want to focus on two main quotes. First he says: “We can feel enduring joy when our Savior and His gospel become the framework around which we build our lives. However, it’s so easy for that framework to become, instead, the things of the world, where the gospel sits as an optional extra or as simply attending church for two hours on Sundays”. When I ponder on this, I wonder how committed am I? How do I spend my time outside of church meetings? Am I reading my scriptures? Do I act as a true disciple of the Savior?
I love this quote: “Giving our all doesn’t mean that we will be continually enveloped in blessings or always have success. But it does mean that we will have joy. Joy is not fleeting pleasure or even temporary happiness. Joy is enduring and is founded on our efforts being accepted by the Lord…. it’s not our successes but rather our sacrifice and efforts that matter to the Lord.” What do I consider success? It seems the world sees success in very outward and easy to gauge ways. #’s of likes. How much money do I make or how nice of a house do I have? The Lord measures success in very inward ways and in things that can not be specifically measured. What is my relationship with Christ? Do my children (and myself) really apply the atonement in our lives and really believe it is real? At this point, success is gracefully accepting the fact I can no longer have chocolate.
There were no obvious “should’s” in this talk. However, the Savior said in a pretty commanding way “Consider your ways.” That is something we might want to ponder on. Elder Vinson gives us an invitation: “Please, please don’t put your total commitment off until you get around to it at some nonexistent, future time. Get fair dinkum now and feel the joy!”
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