God Will Make a Man Out of You

One of my favorite Disney movies is Mulan. Every time I think of that movie, I am reminded of the song sung in the "boot camp", "Be a Man".  There are three lines in the song I would like to point out. They are the lines "Mister, I'll make a man out of you", "Somehow I'll make a man out of you", and "How could I make a man out of you".

In this song Shang's "faith" in making Mulan a strong fighter in order to go to war slowly weakened and dissolved. At first he said he'd do it. As time went on and she just wasn't getting it, his faith weakened. It was no longer an absolute, but rather just a "it's needs to happen...somehow". He was beginning to give up. At the end he was sending her away as he asked the question, "how could I make a man out of you".

In this day and age it isn't much different. We have others who try to shape us and teach us and help us along our way; and it seems we just don't progress. Those teachers we are trying to learn from start to give up hope and "abandon the project". What are we to do? With no teachers and no help how can we progress? How can we become who we need to be to accomplish our goals and the design that God has for us?

A part of the glorious message of the gospel is the fact that we are never alone nor abandoned. It may be that no other human being is standing with us, around us, or anywhere near us. No matter what the situation might be we are not alone when we stand for the right, when we are doing our best, when we are living the commandments of our Father in Heaven, He stands by our side. He becomes our teacher. And though others may give up on us, He never will. You are His child, and He loves you more than you could understand.

Reality: It is better than dreams

Do you ever have those days when your having a good dream and just when you are at the good part, your alarm goes off. I just had one of those recently. It was frustrating because all I wanted to do was go back to sleep and see how it was going to end. However, I knew that if I did I would get caught in a dream loop, the same scene replying over and over just before the good part. Then I would wake up feeling more tired than I was before. Plus, I would have wasted the good part of the morning that I need to prepare myself for the day that I may best serve the Lord.

It sometimes seems easier to stay in our dreams. In dreams we are the perfect person, we can do anything we want with little to no effort. The reality of life is that it is not easy, we are no longer that perfect person, anything we wish to accomplish requires work. The work and effort and challenges of this life can drive us to wish our lives away and end up having many regrets along the way.

To quote President Thomas S. Monson, who was at the time first counselor in the first presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "May we live so that when that final summons is heard, we may have no serious regrets, no unfinished business, but will be able to say with the Apostle Paul, 'I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.'" (Now Is the Time, Thomas S Monson, October 2001 General Conference)

Let us escape the captivating effects of dreams. Let us escape our fantasies. Let us "serve [Our Lord] with all [our] heart, might, mind and strength, that [we] may stand blameless before God at the last day." (D&C 4:2) Let us live our lives and make our dreams a reality.

When Time of Parting Comes

By John M. Freckleton

Does a person newly dead

Indulge in tears

When pausing for a moment

Just beyond the veil,

Beholding loved ones overcome by grief,

Retreat from what was once a bed of pain,

And murmur sad good-byes?

And does the newly dead

Rejoice that mortal agony is over,

Mingling tears of thankfulness

With sorrow for the parting from the loved ones:

Mother for her little children,

Father for beloved wife and family,

Child for loss of earthly home …

Can the spirit thus released

From all the heaviness of earth

Forget at once the happiness

That came from friends

And all the beauty earth life

Sometimes held …

And leave with no regrets

Or backward glance?

Must the leaving differ greatly

From those poignant moments

When we say good-bye

To take our leave at any time

And be without the company of those we love

For many days of longing loneliness

Or for an interlude of years?