I don't think I could ever laugh that hard at a stranger's doorstep again in my life! As we went about our day, I found that my mind kept going back over to seeing that mat. I just kept thinking and thinking about it until I had to inquire about why I kept thinking about it. I found that this mat represented the gospel in a light that I never could have seen before my mission.
You may ask, "How does a crude display of impoliteness represent the Gospel of Jesus Christ?" That's a good question. Let me try to take a whack at what I have been thinking over the past few days.
When we are asked to leave someones doorstep, as a missionary, I don't get angry or upset at the person, even if their demeanor matched that of this doormat. I feel a great swell of concern, because they weren't willing to listen. It's not my choice if someone wants to let us in, it's up to them if they wish to heed our message. Everyone of us is given the gift of agency to make the decisions that could eventually bring the best outcome into our lives. This gift is a gift from God.
We need to choose what is going to bring our life the happiness and the joy that we want. To do this, we need to put the word "leave" into our vocabulary.
When I choose to go on a two year, full-time mission for the LDS Church, I found this word to be an annoyance rather than see the help it could have provided me. I exercised my agency to make the choice to leave my family, friends, and all of the things that used to bring me happiness like my motorcycle, video games, and movies. I made that choice because I knew that it was something that would bring me a new kind of happiness, an everlasting joy that will never be quenched with time or material things that my life used to be filled with. So when I made the choice to leave, I wasn't just leaving behind Family and friends, I also chose to leave behind the world.
We are in our homes everyday, safe from the world. Unfortunately, we sometimes cant keep the world out of our homes as we watch T.V. and use the Internet to see what the world is offering us. If you haven't noticed already, the world isn't offering anything that will bring us this everlasting joy that I can feel right now on my mission. It brings into our homes things like pornography, violence, drug use, and all sorts of things that never give us joy that we can savor forever. In fact, it can only bring misery, shame, and disaster.
When I talk about the word, leave, I want you to do just that. I invite you to leave behind the awful things that the world has to offer. Shun it and protect your homes from it. Put out a spiritual doormat that will drive it away and think of itself as an unwelcome guest.
There are things however that we should let into our homes. Let in your friends because they are one of the best sources of help and comfort that you can bring into your home. Let in the Scriptures and read from them daily to protect yourself and literally put a shield around your home. Let in the spirit of prayer so that you can feel the love and comfort that the spirit can bring into your home to create the loving atmosphere you wish for. Heck, even if your up for it, invite the missionaries into your home to teach you more about Christ and our purpose in this life. I promise that with these things in your home, The bad things that are in the world will never be able to get in.
Be careful however. We can never get rid of the Internet or T.V. and I'm not inviting you to do so either. I invite you to use them for learning, growth, and fun. A movie night is something that has always brought my family closer together. A homework assignment would have never been finished without the help of Wikipedia. And a little laugh that comes from watching "Everybody Loves Raymond" is just what I needed to get through the day.
Leave the world at your doorstep, and don't feel bad about it. But don't leave your friends and the good things on the doorstep either. Invite them in and embrace them so that you can feel the good emanate from them. I promise that as you apply the principle of the word "leave", an everlasting joy, a heavenly joy will fill your soul.
Have a great week. And don't forget to check back later for more goodness.
Bye!
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