Hoisting of A Reminder

My youngest daughter, Jordan, plays soccer for the Hawks in Temecula, CA.  We drive her all over the state and pay way too much money for her to play soccer.  I keep waiting for her to get tired of soccer.............nope.  Hasn't happened yet.  There are times when I drive her to tournaments where there are dozens of teams to sift through in order to find her team.   If we're not familiar with the fields, we have to drive around and scour for a familiar face/uniform.  Just a few weekends ago as we were trying to find where we belonged, I saw the Hawks flag go up.  The team manager was at the field they would be playing at and she hoisted the flag on a pole.  She did that to draw the players to the field.  She also did that to make a statement that the Hawks were taking that side of the field as their own.  Now we could see where Jordan belonged.  When we saw the flag, I told her to go to it and she would find her friends there.  Once she saw the flag, she felt comfortable and reassured.  I knew that once she got to the flag, her coach, her friends, and other parents on the team would be there to welcome her.  The Hawks flag symbolizes a commitment she made to this team.  I'm reassured when I see it because I know there are people at that flag who have made a similar commitment as Jordan. 

What young woman doesn't want to marry a "Captain Moroni"?   This man never sleeps (hard-working & diligent), he never gives up, he stands for what he believes in, and he's confident in his faith in Christ. 
"And Moroni was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;  Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.  Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood." (Alma 48:11-13)

Captain Moroni, in seeing how easily the Nephites forget the Lord, creates a "flag" to unify them through a covenant.  He rents his coat and writes "In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children" (Alma 46:12) on it and fastens it upon the end of a pole.   All those who were true believers of Christ, Christians, entered into a covenant that they would never forsake God (keep his commandments, not fall into transgression, or be ashamed to take upon them the name of Christ).  They swore this with their lives.  Captain Moroni hoists this Title of Liberty up for all to see on every tower.  It draws the Nephites to it.  Where this flag waves, there they would find people who have made the same covenant/commitment.

Symbols can spur personal righteousness.  I wear my CTR (choose the right) ring quite a bit.   President Uchtdorf taught us that CTR could also stand for "current temple recommend".  Since that talk, I wear my ring every day.  It's a reminder of a commitment, a promise, a covenant.  We need these constant reminders because it's in our nature to forget.  This is why we take the sacrament weekly.  This is why we meet for seminary every day.  The covenants we make are always remembered by the Lord.  We're the ones who need to be reminded daily so that it keeps us humble and focused.

I had to include just one more picture of Captain Moroni. (The artwork I've found on him is spectacular!)  He wins my vote for being the coolest Nephite dude in a uniform.