The Best Plan

Emotions run high on the ice.

There's a sport that I think is really cool.  Not a lot of people like it.  But I think it's a real good sport.  It's called curling and it's real good.  It involves two teams and it's similar to shuffleboard but it's on ice(to see more information see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curling).  At first glance, you might think that the athletes competing are simply sliding rocks toward a circle indiscriminately.  But as you watch the game continue, you realize the skill and strategy involved in this wonderful sport.  Each time the skip slides the large granite rock down the ice, he or she knows exactly where it should end up and how it should get there.  They've determined the path for the stone long before they release it onto the ice.  They take several factors into account while planning the release.  These factors include, but are not limited to, speed, angle, spin, and curvature.  These plans are there to get the rock where they want it and avoid the obstacles the other team put into place with their rocks.  There's even a few people with brooms sweeping the ice to get it to go where they want it.  These brooms can help, but without a solid release and a good plan, you'll end up in the vast multitude of failed curling prodigies.

I believe the same can be said about our journey here on earth.  We know what we all want after this life: exaltation and Eternal life with our Father in Heaven.  But that seems like a pretty big goal at times.  And if you don't have a plan with how to get there, you'll never make it.  It'll just be good intentions that never materialized.  The reason we need s solid plan is the same as the reason to have a plan in curling, our enemy has placed rocks and other obstacle in our way.  These obstacles can take the forms of temptations and difficulties.  If inspected and avoided accordingly we can not only avoid the problems associated but learn the best ways to keep us on the strait and narrow.

The good thing about all of this is we have a plan prepared for us already.  This plan was prepared before the foundation of the world and it is guaranteed to work.  God made this plan and Jesus Christ is at the center of it.  Through the atonement, Christ prepared a way for us to avoid all of the pesky obstacles that come up in our lives.  He knows exactly what we need to achieve our goals.  If we trust in Him, and live His Gospel, we're going to succeed.  Just like the United States Women's Curling team, nothing will be able to stop us!!

"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

 And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen" (2 Nephi 31:20-21).