Obedience

After a wonderful day of hearing the words spoken by the prophet and apostles, I couldn't help but notice a recurring theme: Obedience.  I recalled an analogy about obedience and was able to find it on the internet.  Here it is:  

"I had the chance to fly a kite with my kids. As we let the string out, the kite went higher and higher and this was a real thrill for my kids to watch. At one point my son said, “Let’s let go of the string and watch the kite go even higher.”  Now while that sounds good in theory, letting the string go will not make the kite go higher. Instead, it will cause the kite to come crashing to the ground. Here’s why…Without the tension of the string, the kite won’t stay up in the air. The string is what makes the kite fly.

In telling this to my son I couldn’t help but think of the analogy that compares flying a kite to keeping the commandments. You’ve probably heard this but please allow me to repeat it.

Many times people think that keeping God’s commandments limits their potential. They assume that the commandments are God’s way of keeping them bound, or a means to restricting their freedom. However, nothing could be further from the truth. You see, much like the string that allows a kite to fly, keeping the commandments allows you to “fly” as well. That’s because in God’s wisdom, He knew that you would have a happier, more prosperous life if you followed a set of rules. His commandments are the guidelines that allow you to achieve your full potential and to enjoy more freedom.

By the same token, by not following God’s commandments, you can find yourself suffering the same fate as a kite without a string. Falling down." (this is where I found this quote: http://jarrodbentley.com/flying-a-kite-and-achieving-more-success/)

May all those that I love; parents, siblings, children, friends, nieces, nephews, co-workers; may all of us keep the tension in our kite strings, so that God can lift us higher.  Be Obedient and keep the commandments. In this, there is safety, in this there is peace.  Happy Sunday.

I remember when we were living in Berkeley, Ca. We liked to head out to the pier to fly kites.  We had simple kites that were relatively easy to fly, but some people had these crazy awesome kites that take actual skill to keep a loft.  Good memories.