Inspired by Church Leaders

A couple of things:

1. Last week, my bishop was talking about how there were thousands of church members in the Louisiana area who were asked not to have Sunday services, but instead, continue their volunteer efforts in Louisiana. He said, "Yes, there are times when it is appropriate not to go to church." Sometimes, we lose sight of what's really important. Sunday services can be put off to another day; especially when there are thousands in need of our help now.

Along the same lines:

2. Earlier today, at General Conference, Elder Uchtdorf said that with all of the activities and programs the Church has in place, we must be careful not to forget the core principles of the gospel. This reminded me of something I've become more aware of within the past 5 years: people who join organizations without proper intent.

Take Phi Delta Epsilon for example. It's a pre-med fraternity. Do you know why a chapter was started at UCI? Because some guy wanted to be able to include this in his medical school application: "President of the founding class of Phi Delta Epsilon." Did he even care about helping other pre-meds get ready for medical school? Heck no. He could care less. All he cared about was his own qualifications.

How about Circle K? There are plenty of Circle K'ers out there who join just for the social life or to have something to put on their resume/application. Where are the ones who sincerely care about the community?

Now, how about something closer to what Elder Uchtdorf was saying: religion. I think most churches out there have activities and programs; some more than others. Sometimes, church activities can fill up most of a person's free time. They're fun, and they're wholesome. There's nothing wrong with them; but I think it's healthy to ask yourself on a regular basis, "Why did I join this church?" I've become acquainted with numerous individuals during my stay in the Philippines who got so caught up with the social aspect of church, that it became the only reason why they stayed. Thus, if that social web was ever marred or weakened (and I've seen it happen many times), that person had nothing to anchor himself to that church, and so he would fall away.

So, if you take away all of your friends from church, would you still go to church every week? How enthusiastic would you be in a church with no one else but your family?

I'm not saying that we should be antisocial when we go to church. My point is that we should all take some time to evaluate ourselves, and root our faith to what's really important. The core principles of your religion should be your anchor.