lesson plan

today i taught in elders quorum for the first time, and in my opinion it was a pretty miserable attempt at it. i had all these awesome things i wanted to say about the Holy Ghost (lesson 21 in the Gospel Principles handbook... go check it out) and i pretty much said none of them.

so much for a good start, right?

well i was so much hating being up there, and i felt like i was floundering, so i got nervous and tried to end like 7 minutes early... the bishop was not having that at all. haha
he added more to what we were discussing, which prompted more people to talk, and we were able to finish on time. phew.

i finished with bearing my testimony about the power of the Holy Ghost, and then scurried to my seat. i felt like a complete failure.
but then the brethren kept coming up to me and telling me i taught a great lesson, and that they really felt the spirit. maybe i was too anxiety ridden to feel the spirit, but i was thankful for their comforting words.
i had a sneaking suspicion that they were just trying to make me feel better, but even if they were i'm still grateful for their support, and kind words.

finally having a calling is such a neat experience. the bishop and i once had a conversation about how sometimes you get a really horrible teacher, and that its up to the people listening and learning to get something out of it. i get it now- he was talking about me. lol but more importantly, i hope that through my fumbled words, jumbled sentences, and lost trains of thought i helped some wisdom enter someone's brain, and i helped the spirit reside with us for that meeting.

i hope that as i continue in my calling i will get better, but i know that even if i don't, i will be doing what the Lord has asked of me. And i hope to gain something from this whole experience, spiritually, and well... spiritually. i hope to gain a better understanding of what the Lord has in store for us, and the gospel principles which we all should be living by.

random ending:
no matter if my fellow quorum members were just comforting me after i did horribly, or if i really did an okay job, i'm totally okay with it, and here's why: its sort of a random connection in my brain, but it totally applies to me, and that's all that matters- i was talking to Phil the other day about skateboarding, and Bay 198 and the Donut Hill project, and somehow phil ended up saying "as long as you're skateboarding, i don't care how good you are, i don't care if you're a pro, or not, i'm going to be pumped for you if you're landing new tricks." and he went on with this example of this guy at Donut Hill doing a simple grind on part of the bowl section that all the other dudes have been killing, and everyone went nuts for him. it was something he had never done before, and they saw him do it, and they knew it was good for him, and they were proud of him. and i feel like that's the way it is at church today too. we're all at different places spiritually. some are further ahead than other, and some are farther behind. some people have one set of skills, and some people have a different set of skills. and no matter where you are in that range of spiritual progression, people will recognize you're effort towards the right, and towards the light, and i think more than anything that's what it was today. after all, we're all heading toward the same goal, right? and that thought, more than anything gives me warm fuzzies. and i'm so grateful for my ward, and the church, and the strength it gives me, and the truth the gospel brings to my life.
and this is exactly what i needed today.

thanks,
robert james taylor

cool work stuff

hey blog! guess what! i have a cool thing to tell you! can you guess what it is? no? you can't? well i'll just tell you then. so i work, right? and people at work know i'm mormon and know my standards, and they totally respect that. cool right? well here's one better, and it's just a little thing, but i totally love it. so they know i don't cuss or use the Lord's name in vein, and here's what makes it cool- they don't use that sort of language about me. totally legit right?

i just think its so cool how little things like knowing someone's standards and what they're about can affect someone. its not like i asked them not to use those words around me, they just started doing it on their own. and that's whats cool.

when you make your values known, people are going to respect them generally. and they hold you accountable for them too. and that's a universal thing too. if you tell them one thing, they're gonna expect that from you. but if you tell them one thing, and do another, that's going to reflect poorly on you. and in this instance it would also reflect poorly on my faith.

i really feel like a representative of Christ, and i didn't even know it. haha that sounds dumb, but i've never really felt that way before. that my actions don't just affect me. man that sounds immature, but i am, so what can i expect, right? haha

anyway, that's it. its awesome. and i'm glad to see good things happening, and i'm glad to be progressing towards where i want to be, and where i know the Lord wants me to be.

the end.

tender mercies

Dear blog,

I woke up late for work today, so i was rushing to get ready and didn't have time to read my scriptures, so i was in a grumpy mood getting into my car and then i thought " i have a wealth of church material here with me on my phone!" So i plugged my droid x into my fm transmitter, and turned on Elder Holland's talk from general conference, and was on my way.

Never has my mood turned around quicker blog. I am forever amazed at how wonderful the gospel is, and how much the Lord will give you, as long as you give to him in return. Even small things like helping you to be in a better mood. That sort of stuff is just fantastic.

Thanks blog,
-robert

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.3

rest

Sometimes i am just tired. Of everything there ever was. And missing out on what i want most.

And dish water is ruining my hands.

Conference blog soon, i swear.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.2

burritos

Dear blog,

There is nothing more humbling than being the worst at a work assignment. Today left me feeling inadequate, frustrated, and completely useless.

Fortunately i will be returning there, 40 hours a week, every week, till who knows when, and i'll have time to master all sorts of skills.

Sincerely,
Robert

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.0

a new direction

oh hi blog. so its kinda late right now and if i were calling someone this late to talk i would apologize for waking them, but i'm not, so i won't.

anyway the title is sorta a twofold meaning thing. meaning one is my life and meaning two is this blog.

as i strive to become a better person, and as i walk this path to where i want to go this blog will follow me. its gonna get all touchy feely and i'm gonna talk about spiritual matters. so if that sort if thing bothers you, feel free to leave. you can't say you haven't been warned. i like to speak my mind. i'm sure there will be good days and bad days, and hopefully this will be reflecting both. i want whoever reads this (if anybody does at all) to learn and grow from my experiences as much as i do.

got it? good.

im starting a journal too, but today i'll just write in here. while reading in 1st Nephi chapter 14, i came across some stuff that really moved me. in verse 14 it says: "and it came to pass that i nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory."

and i distinctly knew as i was reading this that it was talking about our generation, and our people. and that through obedience to the commands of the Lord, and as was discussed in church today, with a willingness to obey and to be humbled before Him, He will pour out blessings upon us. so much so that we won't know what to do with it all, and he will help protect us from the storm that is the world.

we have been given a calling to stand on higher ground, and to live a worthy life. and as i take this journey i hope you will take it with me, or maybe just support me in mine. i have been waiting far too long to do what i should have already done, but i think maybe i'm better prepared for it, and ready to accept it.

so thanks for reading, i hope you stop by again.

-robert

Published with Blogger-droid v1.5.9

we now return to the broadcast already in progress...

hello 6 blog followers. i don't know if i have any RSS subscribers, and i wouldn't even know how to check if i did. so from now on i will only be speaking to you 6, and any others that join you in reading my words of wisdom(nonsense).

that was a good blog entry intro, right? well too bad i thought of it last night, and then i can't think of anything good to follow it up with. i wish this whole entry was that amazing, but i don't think it will be able to happen. sorry.

well what else... hmm... here's a thing: i've been working hard on having a bunch of clothes made and ready for the fall time, but i'm a little nervous to show anyone. i'm fine with my skills on a sewing machine, but my skills and ideas when it comes to graphic design, and junk is what worries me. i hate feeling like i'm being judged, and i have a bunch of ideas that i love, and would be excited to see people wearing, but i don't know how they would be received. does that make sense? it does to me. suckers.

so what else... i have diabetes. no i don't. i probably shouldn't joke about that sort of thing... but they made jokes about Turk having diabetes on Scrubs, so its okay, right? right.

my computer can only stay on for like twenty minutes, so this is being written twenty minutes at a time... i'm easily distracted though, so its really like 7 minutes of typing and then a little fooling around, and then i go watch jimmy fallon. that's whats actually happening right now, because i'm the coolest.

speaking of which- i'm so cool.

i re-arranged my room. and took some posters off.

okay bye.