Action This Day

During the Second World War, Sir Wintson Churchill, the prime minster of Great Britain, would label memos and other papers with the words "Action this day," to indicate the urgency of certain actions and when they should be performed.  The phrase can be a reminder to us to not put off to tomorrow those things that should be done today.  Some actions may need to be performed daily until a goal or dream is achieved.

In mid-December 1988, near the end of my first year in the mission field, I hit a rather rough patch.  As December began, there were clear signals that the work was going to drop off because of the upcoming holiday season.  I went ten days without writing in my journal, and when I finally did, the only thing I noted about the work was that the previous week we had had ten appointments set, and that all ten had fallen through.

As the work fell off, I became discouraged, and succumbed to temptation.  I have always liked the way Nephi put it, "Tempations which so easily beset me."  It doesn't really matter what the tempation is, and what it is is nobody's business but the individual who is struggling with it.

In any case, after succumbing to this temptation which so easily beset me, I found myself yelling at the image in the mirror.  I mean, I really laid into myself.  The good Elder Cox was fed up with the bad Elder Cox.

I remembered all that I had learned on my mission and realized that I had not done a very good job of applying those lessons.  I said that I was tired of the things I was doing to myself.  I said that I was tired of my weak and inferior attitude.

All in all, I came to the realization that it was time to get control of my life.  I needed to do some evaluating and set some serious goals and exercise some serious faith.  The next morning I started reading Drawing on the Powers of Heaven by Grant Von Harrison, for the second time.  The mind can overcome the physical and the time had come to turn my life around.  I had every intention of doing that.

The following day I fasted, and it gave me a lot of strength.  That evening I wrote in my journal that:

I have come up with some goals that I think are good:

1. Coming closer to and developing a personal relationship with my Heavenly Father and with Jesus Christ. This has been a goal I have had for most of my mission and now I reaffirm it. Plan of Action: Prayer, scripture study, monthly fasting, hard work, obedience to the mission rules and the commandments, and kindness and love to others.
2. Overcoming shortcomings in communication and conversation. Another long time goal. Plan of Action: Take advantage of opportunities to communicate.
3. Keeping and improving the knowledge and attitude that I am loved and needed and that I am not unique because of my challenges. Plan of Action: Reminding myself of evidences of my family’s and friend’s love and need for me. Remembering the stake missionary in Seaside and his postive attitude in the face of his challenges.
4. Improving my words and actions so that they may portray the love and need I have for those who are close and also to investigators and contacts. Plan of Action: Practicing and doing acts of kindness and charity. Putting myself last on the list. Remembering and looking for others’ needs and challenges.
5. Overcoming my tendency to get angry during rough times. Plan of Action: To strive always to be humble before the Lord. When the trial comes, to look to Him with a prayerful heart rather than raising my voice in anger towards Him. To learn and exercise patience at all times. Reminding myself daily of his love for me and of the evidences thereof.
6. Continue to put the bad things in my past behind me as well as to overcome attitudes of inferiority. Plan of Action: Always concentrate on good things in past, present and future. Remind myself of the good that has been spoken of me (without letting it go to my head, of course). Remind myself of friends who do indeed care. Remind myself that “all things are possible to them that believe.” Remind myself that everyone has challenges.
7. Restore to myself the need to get out and go to work that I had in my first area. Plan of Action: Hard work, obedience, prayer and fasting, and scripture study.
8. The all encompassing goal of becoming the best Elder Douglas Paul Cox ever to serve in the California San Jose mission. Becoming the best missionary that I can be and making happy memories. Plan of Action: Work on goals 1-7, obedience, hard work, love and meekness, prayer and fasting, scripture study, practice and learn and use missionary skills.

These are my present goals with their plans of action. I know that if I exercise faith and pray and fast as I work on these goals, they will be accomplished.

What struck me as I read all these years later the goals as recorded in my journal, is how much I have changed.  I don't say this to brag.  Rather, I can say that as I followed through on the plans of action to reach these goals, not just on my mission, but in the years since, that I was able to find some success.  Setting goals can work; the Atonement really can change lives; and the grace of Christ really is sufficient to make weak things become strong.