Who is my Neighbor?

January 29, 2024

One Sunday when I taught Sunday School to teenagers, we discussed Luke 10:29-37:

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

We think that if we had come across the injured man, we would have stopped to help.  Of course, we think. No question, we think. Absolutely, we think

But would we have stopped?  Really?

What about those we pass every day who are injured in other ways? The homeless. The oppressed. The broken-hearted.  The down-trodden.

Oh, we think we would.

But what about those who are lonely because they are different?

Poor?
Unpopular?
Mentally ill?
Alcoholic?
Drug-addicted?

Would we spare a moment or two to show kindness?  Or would we figuratively cross over to the other side of the road ignoring someone’s pleading eyes?

Would we pass them by as did the priest and the Levite?

Or would we, like the Samaritan, have compassion on him? Or her?

Will we “go, and do thou likewise”?

There is so much hurt in our very own neighborhood. Often we will donate hundreds of dollars to help those in need across the world while ignoring those nearby who have need for a kind word.

This week think of 2-3 friends, relatives, acquaintances, or a stranger and decide what you can do to serve him/her. We can all do something for someone else.

A smile.
A hug.
An email, a Facebook message, Tweet, a text, a phone call or better yet a visit.

Just listen.

You’ll have many more of your own ideas.

Step outside your own circle, your own clique. Step outside of your comfort zone. There is someone you know, or don't know, who could use a helping hand. And, perhaps, a shoulder. Or two.

Will we, as the Savior admonished, “go, and do thou likewise”?

Howard W. Hunter said: "We need to remember that though we make our friends, God has made our neighbors—everywhere. Love should have no boundary; we should have no narrow loyalties" ("The Lord's Touchstone", Ensign November 1986).

What will you do?

Search, Ponder, Pray

January 22, 2024

During 2010, one of the the monthly messages of the Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was "Strengthening Faith in God the Father and Jesus Christ through Personal Scripture Study".

In a talk given in September 1979, President Spencer W. Kimball wrote this:

• "We want our homes to be blessed with sister scriptorians—whether you are single or married, young or old, widowed or living in a family. . . . Become scholars of the scriptures—not to put others down, but to lift them up!"

Because President Kimball  was hospitalized at the time his talk was to be given, his message was read by his wife, Camilla E. Kimball. [“The Role of Righteous Women” Ensign November 1979]

When there have been trying times in my life, the scriptures have sustained me.

At the time of President Kimball's talk, I was pregnant with our third child and was in danger of miscarriage. Within a month of that September 1979 meeting, my father-in-law died and my doctor would not let me travel to Oklahoma for the funeral.

Although I assured my husband I would be okay, he did not want to leave me alone so he missed his father's funeral. On November 15th, our only son was born ten days early. It was a miracle.

When we read the scriptures, we come to know Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Our faith is strengthened and we come to know that we truly are loved.

Guest Column: RIP Glenn Lewis Frey

January 15, 2024

Glenn Frey’s death on 01/18/2016 brought memories of a column I penned some time ago. At the time I was revisiting younger days, re-memorizing the words of every Eagles song I have ever known.

I turned thirty during the heyday of the The Eagles. While they may not have influenced my life in a substantial way (despite having lived in Venice, CA, I never succumbed to the drug and hippie culture), they certainly influenced my musical listening habits. I’m certain the decline in my hearing began during those long hours lying between my 4’ high Rectilinear speakers with 200 watts of bass being pumped out by the venerable Sansui tube amplifier.

Members of The Eagles band came and went throughout the life of the group, but Glenn Frey and Don Henley, the founding members, remained true to the cause, that cause being singing the music that thrilled their audiences and made them one of most widely recognized groups of the era.

Glenn often said he felt his real talent was not as a singer, nor as a guitarist, but as a composer. An accomplished composer he was, but lacking his contributions as a singer and guitarist The Eagles would not have been “The Eagles”.

So out of respect for his considerable talent and as my contribution to his memory, with my voice echoing the sentiment “You will be missed”, here is:

The Eagles Revisited

By Wren Hawken

Those of you who know a bit about me, know that I'm a workaholic. Sixteen to eighteen hour days are not unusual for me. What you may not know is that many of those hours are spent with my Bluetooth headset piping music directly into my brain. That's right, I've perfected streaming music directly to my brain, bypassing my auditory system. Which is a good thing since I'm basically deaf from abusing said auditory system for 70 years.

As of late I have been revisiting The Eagles. OK, for those of you under 30, think “Hotel California”. It's surprising how often the name "The Eagles" draws a blank stare, but the title "Hotel California" brings smiles of recognition.

It's March 21st, 1977, Capital Centre, Fargo, MD and The Eagles are performing their mega-hit "Hotel California". If YouTube were vinyl I would have worn through this track 100's of times.

Is the performance something out of the ordinary? Probably not, it's typical Eagles. Total commitment to the music. The camera work is very good for the period. Plenty of shots of individual band members without the choppy split second shots so common in today's videos.

Don Felder and Joe Walsh seem to be especially into this performance. The camera is able to capture the choreography of their fingers dancing over the guitar frets.

Also captured are their contrasting styles. Don is almost deadpan in comparison to Joe Walsh. Joe appears to coax every note from his guitar with sometimes grotesque expressions.

Regardless of how the music comes to be, it is hard to argue that this is not a demonstration of superior music skills by two of the lead performers of the era. Their closing duet showcases men who obviously love their jobs.

There is much to criticize about the early lifestyle of The Eagles, and as an individual you may not care for their style of music. But if staying power means anything, The Eagles stand as icons of a unique segment of Americana from the 70's. I personally respect their success as an indication of the enormous talent of the core members of the group, talent that found daylight in spite of the excesses of their lifestyle at the time.

And that talent seems to have survived years of sobriety with a vigor equal to the years of abuse. Joe Walsh has been sober for over 20 years. Older(?), definitely; wiser(?), I think so. But he stills coaxes each note from his guitar with expressions most of us will struggle to duplicate.

Love them or hate them, one cannot ignore their success as musicians.

So on your next trip to California, as the light fades and the air cools, keep an eye open for that distant shimmering light and remember the words of Don Henley, "You can check out any time you want, but you can never leave".

R.I.P. Glenn Frey

Copyright 2014, 2024 Wren Hawken Publishing, All Rights Reserved

Stewardship

January 8, 2024

During the 179th Semiannual General Conference, October 2009 of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Quentin L. Cook, Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, said this:

• "We serve our fellowmen because that is what we believe God wants us to do".
• [Stewardship—a Sacred Trust]

Since Elder Cook gave that talk, I have given it a great deal of thought. In referring to the notes I wrote while Elder Cook was giving his talk, I found these points I had written:

• Perilous times
• War in Heaven
• Accountable for our agency
• Stewardship
• Spencer W. Kimball quote re: stewardship over body, etc
• Stewardship of ourselves and families
• Stewardship of the poor
• Grandparent’s ranch
• Virtue and chastity are not protected
• Morality is not protected
• Well springs of life are to be protected
• I cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance
• Those who rationalize are like little children
• All can repent
• I the Lord remember them no more
• Family Proclamation
• Maxwell quote Anne Morrow Lindbergh
• Isaiah
• Review our stewardships 

Rather expounding on the points I wrote, I encourage you to study Elder Cook's talk to come to your own conclusions.

In August 1971, Russell M. Nelson gave a talk entitled "The Five A’s of Stewardship". 

1. Acknowledge
2. Author
3. Accomplishment
4. Accountability
5. Approbation

President Nelson explained:

"As we acknowledge the Lord as our creator, as the author of the gospel plan, then we know we may accomplish successful stewardships in life. We will be accountable in time and in eternity, but we will receive the approbation of the Lord for our efforts that have been lovingly and willingly performed."

Each day, we can improve our "stewardship" and care-taking of our responsibilities. What will you improve today?

Reflection

January 1, 2024

Happy New Year and welcome to 2024!

".....this is a time for reflection on activities of the past, and for resolution pertaining to the future."  [Russell M. Nelson, speaking at Brigham Young University on 7 January 1990]

The end of one year and the beginning of another seems to motivate many of us to rethink our priorities, our goals, and/or our objectives.

The last several years were full of hard times for many as the economy faltered and careers were ended.  And, of course, the Covid-19 Pandemic which isn't over yet! However, some took the lemons and made lemonade.

New businesses, many online, were formed.  People understood the importance of charity more than ever. 

Social media exploded and we saw first-hand disturbing world events.  Who can forget watching the death of Neda via cellphone video? Did that experience help raise our consciousness of what was happening in the world?  Or did we shrug our shoulders thinking her death didn't concern us? Or did we do something positive that day for someone?  What about the following days?

As social media continues to grow in popularity, are we reaching out to those who are different from us?  In our own country as well as other countries? As we have become more and more involved with strangers via social media, are we becoming more and more understanding of the differences between us?

What about people closer to us?  People we know in our every day lives. Co-workers.  Friends.  Family members.  Can we accept having differences with those close to us?

How can we promote world peace while not accepting a parent, sibling, spouse, or child who doesn't live up to our expectations?

Do we live up to the expectations of others?

Can we look at others with whom we disagree on most matters and find good things in them as well?

Will we become "kinder and gentler" to others in 2024?

Will we be more generous to those who have less?

Will we make our part of the world a little nicer?

Will we reach out to others?  Smile a little more often at strangers?

We can all make a positive difference however small.

Something as simple as volunteering to read to a child can make a big difference.

Not only to the child but to ourselves.  Serving others is uplifting!

Again..............................

Happy New Year!

Now let's go see what we can accomplish before 2025!