mkshelton

Are you an optimist?

Are you an optimist or a pessimist? A few weeks ago at church we were studying in Numbers 14 in the Bible in which Moses sends out 12 spies to look at the land that the Lord wants them to inhabit. Ten of the men come back and tell how wonderful the land is, butContinue reading “Are you an optimist?”

There are no dead ends

The other day while hiking I came to the end of a path and it just stopped. The all-trails map I had on my phone said it continued on; connecting with another path in just a short distance. I turned a different way down another dirt forest road thinking I might have made a mistake,Continue reading “There are no dead ends”

Yoke Ourselves with Jesus Christ

What is a yoke and why do we want to be yoked to Christ? From Matthew 11:28-30 we read: Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laded, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and yeContinue reading “Yoke Ourselves with Jesus Christ”

Through the Fog

The last few weeks I have gone hiking twice where it became foggy around me. As I did so I was reminded of an experience I had years ago while living in Southern California. At the time, I was only living a few miles from where I worked in a small business complex. As IContinue reading “Through the Fog”

Renewal

A year ago we had some horrendous fires east of us here in Oregon. It burned over 1 million acres, including a lot of my favorite hiking places as it destroyed small towns, upheaved peoples lives, and devastated such a large area. This last week I participated in a service project at church to helpContinue reading “Renewal”

Clutter

Look around you–is your life full of clutter? When my children were younger and we would go on family vacations I loved being in a hotel room. It was clutter-free; no toys laying around or anything shoved into the corners. When I would get home, our house looked so crowded. There were so many thingsContinue reading “Clutter”

Spiritual Power

There are many types of power in the world. Political Power, physical power, and natural power are a few. Many years ago I worked for McDonnell Douglas, an Airplane manufacturer in Long Beach California. At the time they were building a new airplane; the MD-11. This plane sat 280-400 people, weighed six hundred thousand pounds, and hadContinue reading “Spiritual Power”

Take a Step

Nature has a way of helping me to strive to be better. On my hikes I always marvel at the majestic beauty around me. The tall and straight trees, amazing mountains, and inspiring waterfalls always instill in me the desire to do better. A few weeks ago we stopped by Smith Rock (East of SistersContinue reading “Take a Step”

Zeal

In the Book of Mormon one of my favorite words is Zeal! This is a word that denotes a strong feeling. It means ardent, excitement, ferver, and enthusiasm. We see it first in Mosiah 27:35 where the sons of Mosiah after being converted to the gospel go about “zealously striving to repair all the injuries”Continue reading “Zeal”

Be of Good Cheer

How do we find courage to carry on during difficult moments of life? The following story was told by S. Gifford Neilson, “In 1978, I stood on a football field in a stadium packed with 65,000 fans. In front of me were several very large opponents who looked like they wanted to take my headContinue reading “Be of Good Cheer”