2005 was a big year for Carolenna and I. Not only had we purchased our first home, but Carolenna also gave birth to our first child, Brigham. With all of the changes in our lives, I distinctly remember the feeling of youth slipping away from me. Granted, I was still quite young, but I was doing 'big boy' things and there were times when it was a bit disconcerting. I gaped headlong into the world of the grown ups knowing that I was on a one-way trip destined for the place where childhood goes to die. I don't mind admitting there were times when I looked back at the life I was leaving behind and wrestled with someway in which I could hang on just a little longer. Please don't misunderstand me, I adore my wife and I was elated with the arrival of our son, but it was in this mindset that I made a decision that has come back to haunt me for the last eight years.
The release of an epic video game called Guitar Hero topped the charts as one of the most amazing events of 2005 (at least to some). With this game, the player held a small plastic guitar in their hands and by pressing colored buttons they could play along with many of the most popular rock songs from the previous thirty years. Before long this game became the 'must have' item for the physically and mentally young across the globe. As I gazed upon the beauty of this magnificent creation, I too - still clinging to my youth - knew that I must get my hands on that game. My opportunity to acquire the game came to me in late November of the same year. Although the opportunity was not as direct as I would have liked, I (the master manipulator) utilized the situation at hand to secure the item that I most desired.
I was shopping at Sam's Club with my father, mother, Carolenna, and our new son when we came across the strategically placed Guitar Hero display in the middle of the isle. Seizing my opportunity, I began explaining the game to both my father and mother (by this time my overly patient wife had already resisted my attempts to lure her into my dreams of becoming a guitar hero). As always, my parents listened carefully and feigned interest in a game that they had no interest in whatsoever. having expressed my desire to procure the game for Christmas, my father replied, "but son, I had planned on buying you a ladder."
My father must have been proud of everything I had accomplished up to that point. Between a successful LDS mission, a temple marriage to an amazing woman, a good job, a new home and a legitimate child, I had already far exceeded the expectations of nearly everyone who knew me in my younger years (except for my mother, she always had faith in me despite the horrible odds). The offering of a ladder from my father was his way of buying a man's gift for the man I had become; Guitar Hero just didn't fit in with who I was becoming.
I persisted that I needed some way to continue to have fun, plus, I could always buy myself a ladder at a later time. Even though I was an adult, I still really really needed the game because, I argued, I needed a way to unwind and Christmas should be about getting fun things, not boring household items. Of course, being the loving and always accommodating parents that they are, mom and dad relented and under the tree on Christmas morning rested my very own copy of Guitar Hero. Over the next six months I became a self certified Guitar Hero, and it was a blast. I would sometimes stay up late into the night in order to master my favorite tunes. However, as time marched on I began playing the game less and less, until finally, it sat untouched. Eventually the game, along with the entire gaming system was sold and life moved on.
Even though I felt I really needed that game all those years ago, I have come to realize that what I really needed, and still need to this day, is a ladder. I did not need a game anymore than I needed to eat the whole 'family box' from Taco Bell all by myself (true story). The reality was, I just really wanted the game, but what I needed was to wake up...AND A LADDER! I'm not really sure why I haven't gone out and purchased a ladder. Maybe it is one of those hard things to buy, knowing you need one and will use one, but always playing the odds of whether you can just borrow your neighbor's. Still, the fact remains that I have needed a ladder at least once a month for the past eight years.
Obviously, I am not condemning the playing of video games or adults who enjoy doing so. I am highlighting what was the complete incapacity I had in separating my wants from my needs. Confusing 'needs' with 'wants' is all to common among people of all ages and walks of life, so it is no surprise that I fell victim to it as well. Interestingly enough, our needs and wants can sometimes become so blurred that it is very difficult to see the proper road ahead. Often, both our needs and wants are good and wholesome pursuits, but choosing the thing that is most needful is still required.
You may recall a story from Luke chapter 10 where Martha learns the valuable lesson of needs vs wants. Jesus, who had been traveling and healing, sought refuge and a place to rest; Martha was willing to open up her home to him. Upon arrival, Martha reacted like many of us might with the appearance of an unexpected guest, no less the Savior of the world! She frantically went about preparing her home and serving the Lord, what I can only assume would have been the best she had to offer. Upon entering the room where the Savior was resting she saw Mary, her sister, sitting at the feet of Jesus. When one reads the account, you can almost feel the frustration under the breath of Martha's question, "dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?" Then Christ, who never confuses the wants of life with the needs, calmly yet rebukingly replied, "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part."[1]
During this season, many wants arise and can so often be mixed up with the real needs that exist. The greatest of all needs we have is to be reconciled with our Father in Heaven. This can only be done through Jesus Christ, who is our advocate with the Father. I testify that if we focus on that one great need, the invitation to come unto Christ, all other needs and wants will fit into their proper place. God bless you all in this season of giving and thankfulness. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
[1] Luke 10: 38-42
The release of an epic video game called Guitar Hero topped the charts as one of the most amazing events of 2005 (at least to some). With this game, the player held a small plastic guitar in their hands and by pressing colored buttons they could play along with many of the most popular rock songs from the previous thirty years. Before long this game became the 'must have' item for the physically and mentally young across the globe. As I gazed upon the beauty of this magnificent creation, I too - still clinging to my youth - knew that I must get my hands on that game. My opportunity to acquire the game came to me in late November of the same year. Although the opportunity was not as direct as I would have liked, I (the master manipulator) utilized the situation at hand to secure the item that I most desired. I was shopping at Sam's Club with my father, mother, Carolenna, and our new son when we came across the strategically placed Guitar Hero display in the middle of the isle. Seizing my opportunity, I began explaining the game to both my father and mother (by this time my overly patient wife had already resisted my attempts to lure her into my dreams of becoming a guitar hero). As always, my parents listened carefully and feigned interest in a game that they had no interest in whatsoever. having expressed my desire to procure the game for Christmas, my father replied, "but son, I had planned on buying you a ladder."
My father must have been proud of everything I had accomplished up to that point. Between a successful LDS mission, a temple marriage to an amazing woman, a good job, a new home and a legitimate child, I had already far exceeded the expectations of nearly everyone who knew me in my younger years (except for my mother, she always had faith in me despite the horrible odds). The offering of a ladder from my father was his way of buying a man's gift for the man I had become; Guitar Hero just didn't fit in with who I was becoming.
I persisted that I needed some way to continue to have fun, plus, I could always buy myself a ladder at a later time. Even though I was an adult, I still really really needed the game because, I argued, I needed a way to unwind and Christmas should be about getting fun things, not boring household items. Of course, being the loving and always accommodating parents that they are, mom and dad relented and under the tree on Christmas morning rested my very own copy of Guitar Hero. Over the next six months I became a self certified Guitar Hero, and it was a blast. I would sometimes stay up late into the night in order to master my favorite tunes. However, as time marched on I began playing the game less and less, until finally, it sat untouched. Eventually the game, along with the entire gaming system was sold and life moved on.
Even though I felt I really needed that game all those years ago, I have come to realize that what I really needed, and still need to this day, is a ladder. I did not need a game anymore than I needed to eat the whole 'family box' from Taco Bell all by myself (true story). The reality was, I just really wanted the game, but what I needed was to wake up...AND A LADDER! I'm not really sure why I haven't gone out and purchased a ladder. Maybe it is one of those hard things to buy, knowing you need one and will use one, but always playing the odds of whether you can just borrow your neighbor's. Still, the fact remains that I have needed a ladder at least once a month for the past eight years.
Obviously, I am not condemning the playing of video games or adults who enjoy doing so. I am highlighting what was the complete incapacity I had in separating my wants from my needs. Confusing 'needs' with 'wants' is all to common among people of all ages and walks of life, so it is no surprise that I fell victim to it as well. Interestingly enough, our needs and wants can sometimes become so blurred that it is very difficult to see the proper road ahead. Often, both our needs and wants are good and wholesome pursuits, but choosing the thing that is most needful is still required.
You may recall a story from Luke chapter 10 where Martha learns the valuable lesson of needs vs wants. Jesus, who had been traveling and healing, sought refuge and a place to rest; Martha was willing to open up her home to him. Upon arrival, Martha reacted like many of us might with the appearance of an unexpected guest, no less the Savior of the world! She frantically went about preparing her home and serving the Lord, what I can only assume would have been the best she had to offer. Upon entering the room where the Savior was resting she saw Mary, her sister, sitting at the feet of Jesus. When one reads the account, you can almost feel the frustration under the breath of Martha's question, "dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?" Then Christ, who never confuses the wants of life with the needs, calmly yet rebukingly replied, "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part."[1]
During this season, many wants arise and can so often be mixed up with the real needs that exist. The greatest of all needs we have is to be reconciled with our Father in Heaven. This can only be done through Jesus Christ, who is our advocate with the Father. I testify that if we focus on that one great need, the invitation to come unto Christ, all other needs and wants will fit into their proper place. God bless you all in this season of giving and thankfulness. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
