Duty to God

One week into this new use of the blog, I'm ready to deviate slightly from the explicit stated purpose of exploring my daily scripture study. This is partially a reaction to the practical issue: I'm not posting every day, so claiming to share my daily insights is inherently inaccurate. But reflecting on spiritual thoughts is a more natural approach, and this is what today's entry is meant to do.

During General Conference this past April, several speakers alluded to and discussed the Church's new Duty to God program for young men, and, as the father of three boys, I have been eagerly awaiting the new materials. I've spent some time speculating about how this new program might fit with the Church's Scouting program (I'm convinced that within my lifetime the Church will have to or choose to abandon Scouting, and the revised DtG program will serve as a basis for a post-BSA era), but more than that, I've been interested to see how these materials might correlate with the young women's new Personal Progress materials.

Last Wednesday our ward's shipment arrived, and I've spent this past week looking over the booklet each boy will have, and I am very impressed. First, I find the booklet to be simple, clear, well-organized, and attractive. Having the materials for Deacons, Teachers, and Priests all in one booklet is a marked improvement over the old program, and the basic structure for each age group (spiritual strength, administering ordinances, a project based on a principle from For the Strength of Youth, etc.) is excellent.

But the thing that interests me the most about the new materials, and that I find the most intriguing, is the basic model it presents for each endeavor. The approach is to first learn basic principles, then to act on that new understanding, and then to share the results of a project with family members and peers. There's nothing earth-shattering in this model, but I find in its simplicity some powerful truths.

As I reflect on this model, I realize that this is precisely what happens in any effective teaching setting, be it formal or ad hoc. When my students are learning well, it's because they are learning an idea, using that idea, and sharing their work with each other and with me. The same is true with my children; when they understand something and then act on it, they learn it, and when they teach each other something—whether it's math or the new game one of them has invented—they find joy and fulfillment.

And I think this ought to be the way we approach anything we do—learn it, do it, and share it with others. The social networks we use are actually very conducive to this—I read an article or book or blog, I do something with that by reading or trying something out, and I post the link or blog about it. In fact, in a sort of meta-way, that's what this is, as I read and studies the new DtG materials, mulled it over and wrote, and then posted my musings here for you to read. Now get off the computer and do something. Then, tell me about it.