CTR ring

Openings:
-Show ctr ring
-Have them spell CTR with their hands
-The story of how I was dating Trevor Ramboz and he would point to my finger and say, "Choose Trevor Ramboz." My husband when I was dating him didn't want to be outdone so when I told him that, he said to instead, Choose the Rabe. Luckily for him, I did choose the Rabe...and now we infect Rabies wherever we go.
-John Bytheway: Choose the Sprite when a Coke is placed before you.

Today I'd like to take a little inventory. If you have ever recieved one of those silver twistable, breakable, but still efficient, green CTR rings, will you raise your hand. If you are wearing one now?

Now if you were born in the church at the age of 8, you might have reeived one from Primary or your family. I received this ring also from my Uncle Ben, but...and this is the important part...it was a real, fake silver ring with a pink CTR shield inside. That's right, I was a think pink kind of girl. Now I wore that ring everywhere. I never took it off. One time we did service for someone and it turned my hand green.

Now I wore this pink ring for a couple of reasons. First and most obviously, it matched alot of the outfits I wore.. No ok...that would be my 2nd reason. I wore it because it represented who I was in places where there weren't alot of people like me. I grew up in the church, baptized in my pool like everyone else, and was faithful throughout my teenage years. I want to tell you that the reason that I made it and am standing here about to preach CTR to you is because I wore that pink ring.

Now the third reason I wore my pick CTR ring is because everyone was NOT doing it. I wore it off like a newly engaged girl. You know how they bend their arms all crazy just so it sparkles out every bit of eyesight you have going for you that day. I did that same thing with my ring. I showed it off to anyone who asked and alot more who didn't. I'd ask friends where they bought their rings, bracelets, necklaces, and such. And do you know...9 times out of ten, they would ask me about this her pink CTR ring.

And do you know...I never lost a friend over sharing that little gospel nugget with them, but I sure got some missionary discussions in with them. In fact, some of them, I even purchased one of those green twistable rings for. And do you know....they'd wear it to. They knew the difference between right and wrong. More about that later.

Sometimes I am not proud to report that I was in situations where I was about to make a decision, and I looked down at my CTR ring, and I still made the wrong choice, either out of selfishness or proud. You know what's funny...our spirits are so righteous. We know we made good decisions before this life because, well look at us. We are here. We made the decision to follow the Savior. And do you know...the spirit that we had in the pre-mortal life is the same one we have now. And do you know...it still yearns to be righteous. It rejoices when you fight sin and mourns when you yield to sin. If you can just remember that small little detail, I will feel like I have said what the Lord wants me to convey to you today. Let the spirit win.

Natural enemy scripture

And thinking back to those friends who wore that twist-able green CTR rings, they knew what the ring meant because I taught it to them. They knew the difference between a good choice and a bad one. But here is something deeper for you to remember. Their spirits made the correct decision in the beginning also because they made it here too. Some have not been blessed with the same situations and blessings in the gospel that you have, but that's why they are assigned to be your friend. Go help them remember who they are. Be bold, but no overbearing. On my mission I committed people to baptism early and often, but not before I had primed the pump by helping them remember who they are. Luckily we are on a winning team. Isn't that nice to know? We know what the end result will be. SO be bold. Keep the Spirit, use the power of the Holy Ghost as well as letting your righteous, knowledgeable spirit lead the discussion.

Obviously those times I looked at my CTR ring and I chose the wrong path...you may think...What what purpose did your ring serve you then? But now remember this: The fact that I remember that story how many years later and I still regret I didn't choose the better way. That failure to follow the spirit is burned in my memory as a time I dont ever want to to follow that path again, but especially, that I never forgot that my faithful, pink CTR ring always shows the better way.

When I'm in a rough situation, it reminds me that everything in this life is temporary and by doing this or that....I might be giving up something eternal.

I want to tell you something up front about me from the beginning. I was never the most popular kid. But I can tell you this, everyone in my graduating class, and alot more, knew my name and knew I was a decent person. A little talkative and loud, but decent. I tried not to have cliques or enemies. I tried to be friends with everyone. I had a few close buds and alot of boys I flirted with, but I tried to stay on everyone's friendly side.

Now knowing this, in high school and college, I never went to a party where there drugs and drinking. And being from, where the missionaries lovingly called the "armpit of the mission," you better belive this is part of Georgia these parties were going on in. I tried to have those close friends I was the closest with have the same standards as I did. Now that's pretty darn tootin hard when there were only two Mormons in your graduating class. Now I dont want you to think I convinced everyone to stop that kind of partying because you must have figured out by now that I had friends that partied occasionally, but here is how I remedied the situation to be the best for me.

If I was ever asked to a party like that, I refused like so: I've heard about your crazy fun parties, but I party a little crazy different. In fact, next week I'm having a few friends come over. Come over and see what mine are like. I'd have 10-20 friends over at a time. And you know...those people would stop asking me over to their parties because they were over at my house so much.

I remember something that my mom said in her testimony one week. She said, "I am so proud of Jenny. I know where she is because she brings her friends over to the house constantly. She is so proud to be at home. Half of the friend pictures we have in our home were taking in the front room. Now just to tell you what the front room was like. It was a big double family room. Over the firplace mantle was where we took most of our pictures. There is a picture of Jesus Christ over the mantle. It's a little higher than our heads and it ends up in all of the shots.

Junior and senior prom after parties were at my house, numberless bumper pool games, missionary discussions with friends, random blizzard play days, writing down roller coaster road with fun friends in a large rusty truck. we had a swimming pool, a big open kitchen, 2 big family rooms and a lot of property to run around on, but the atmosphere was all we needed.

Dad waiting up on the couch, me telling him every brutal blunt detail from the date I went on that night. he listened without judging me and i never felt like i did anything i couldn't tell him. Hmm, maybe that's why i went all the way to BYU Idaho to school. just kidding, i'm not that old, I used a cell phone instead. the only bad thing was the 2 hour time difference, but he never complained.

Now in my mind, a good talk always has some relfection tme in it, so in a minute you are going to ahve a minute of reflection. I would implore you to think were this mighty concet of a ctr ring coudl help you during your daily schedule. Where in your job do you need it, where in your relationships do you need it..... in your home, with your roomates, in your schooling, in your ward?

Now here is what I am not saying, although naturally some of this might happen. the lds bookstore will not be able to meet the demands of 500 pink ctr rings int he next 24 hours. Be realistic, there are other colors....blue, orange, purple, green even. But in all seriousness, a ring will not bring into your life, the power to make correct decisions, that lies within yourself. It can remind, be a great missionary tool, but its purpose is only fulfilled when your body of worldly flesh yields to your spirit fill of knowlege rightousness and power.