The Why

Why?

Just a minute ago while doing some online work down here in St George, a man was trying to get his kid to do something- to move for the moment or leave the place they were with the notion "Come On" aka MOVE! The little boy responded "Why?" several times. The man kept on with the "Come On" followed by the boys "Why?" all the way out the door, with no accomplishment on the little boys side as the man had to literally PUSH the boy out the door. The mans feeling of "Freakin kid, you don't need to know WHY, just do it!" While the boy on the other hand Genuinely just wanted to know Why. Now you are probably wondering "Why" would Colton share such a random story at the moment? Hmmmm.... Let me express one of my most loved subjects with which I have a lot of Passion for.

THE WHY BEHIND EVERYTHING

Life would be much easier if we all understood "The WHY" behind things. We'd probably move a lot quicker, and much more would get done. The man who didn't share with his son the why only made the little boys feet sink in deeper and deeper. Did it really matter if he knew why he needed to go? No.. Probably not. Do we always need to know the Why behind things before we do them? No.. But it makes life a lot easier and when we understand things we change our attitude toward it, as would have probably happened with the little boy and a subtle "Oh.." response followed by MOVEMENT. The Why then is the secret to success. Everyone in the world is Tuned partially to the Radio Station that all Relate too: WII.FM! AKA "What's In It For Me?" When we UNDERSTAND what is in it for us, we probably will make movement and give our PERSONAL "why" we are to do something or not. Regardless if we decide to do something or not, we ourselves develop a WHY to everything. Neat right? Think about it... How many decisions you made today because you understood why? -half of the decisions you did without understanding the why behind them were probably school driven WHY's.

"True Doctrine Understood Changes Attitude and Behavior." -President Boyd K. Packer

In the Book of Mormon a prophet named Alma wanted to go preach to a group of people known as The Apostate Zoramites- these people were a bit lost at the time, and Alma said that ALL they needed was more understanding and they would change.

"And Now, as the preaching of the word had had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just- yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them- Therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the Virtue of the Word of God."

(Alma 31:5) My entire life if someone or anyone has told me NOT to do something, it's made me want to do it a lot more! Tell me you don't feel that same way... You're lying if you say you've never felt that way. Sure there are times that I just don't question the reasoning behind things, and you don't always need to know it. Yet, when you understand the why behind things it Changes EVERYTHING! Absolutely everything. My personal life, I love sports and Have always had a coach telling me what to do, yet rarely have I ever asked "Why coach?" - Usually because if you question your coach- You're probably gonna get a good whoopin or Run like crazy after it! (I'll explain the being offended later) But it would have made things so much easier if I was taught the why behind things. While I was a quarterback, a pitcher, a basketball player, or a wrestler - if I was only told WHY I did certain things instead of just What to do in the first place- it would have made a permanent change to why I did things and what I would do. Could have been a real Athlete... As I've learned how to do extreme sports, you almost need to know why you do things a certain way or it can injure you a good one, and even cost your life at times. Yes, most things are learned by experience I do believe that, but you can change your experience by knowing the why from the get go! So learn the WHY. A lot of people take the question "WHY?" as a challenge and sometimes come off offended or bugged by it. Don't be bugged, WHY? because They probably just need clarification, or they want your help or want to help you. It's a novel concept that stems from a cool word called COMMUNICATION. It's the root connector from GOOD communication to GREAT communication. SHARE THE WHY Whether it's for sports, school, work, spirituality or politics. UNDERSTAND THE WHY. Do yourself a favor and ASK the WHY. On top of that, the next time someone asks you WHY, tell them. It's OK to ask Questions. It's not a challenge, it's an honest desire inside all of us anyway. We all have a desire to know EVERYTHING, we wish we knew it, and love when we do know it. If you're a Guy, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Cars, Housing, Sales, Bikes, Electronics, Politics, Spirituality, and random facts- we love to know it and be "Mr Know it All" literally ALL. In ending, We all start off alike the little boy I saw today, with a deep hunger for the Why behind all things. Don't give up on knowing the why, or understanding anything that hinders you. Get the Why, Get the Understanding. It will change you for forever, and you'll be grateful you know it. I'm amazingly blessed that I was born into a family that explained the Why. My Dad was a huge fan of delegating things to his kids, and we asked the why... I'm grateful he told me Why. I'm grateful my mom gave me plenty of why's to cleaning my room. Most of them being: The Wooden Spoon, being able to hang with my friends, And being able to sit down... But she committed to the why.. ;) I'm excited to find my "Warrior Wife" who understands the Why, and teaches our children someday the why or Understanding behind all things. They'll be able to govern themselves, and make their own choice of what they do or don't want to do in their lives. I'm excited for someone that isn't afraid of TRUE COMMUNICATION. As President Packer said "True Doctrine understood changes attitude and behavior. The Study of the Doctrines of the Gospel will change behavior, quicker than a study of behavior changes behavior." Elder Bednar has gone on to saying "What Doctrine, if understood will change this attitude and behavior?" Find the Why. Understanding is your choice. I Hope You Choose to Communicate the Why, and Understand it as well. It just may be another Key to Happiness. Just might be...