Disclaimer

Disclaimer:  The thoughts and opinions expressed in this blog post are mine and do not represent and are not sponsored by and church or other organization.  

Also, I am well aware that this might be the post in which I cross the line and get myself into trouble.  

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints recently made changes to the Church Handbook of Instructions, specifically with regards to internet use and social media. You can see some of the changes here.  In that article they also link to the Handbook itself where you can read more.  I followed that link and read this in the section about the personal use of the internet by the members.

Members are encouraged to share messages from official Church websites and social accounts, as well as their own words, images, and media. As members express their own thoughts and feelings, they should not give the impression that they represent or are sponsored by the Church.

It concerns me because we are repeatedly asked to be representatives of the church, to share the gospel with everyone we come in contact with.  In that context, I think this has the potential to back fire.

"I'm a Mormon! Ask me about the LDS church! But you should know that nothing I say actually counts. It's just my opinion, not church doctrine."

Even when I was a child we were asked to write our testimonies in the front cover of Books of Mormon and give them to people. Now it seems like if we want people to follow this rule regarding things that the church might not want reflecting poorly on them, we also need to add a disclaimer to every testimony shared.

"I know the church is true. I know Joseph Smith was a prophet. But those are just my own thoughts and feelings and do not represent and are not sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints."

It's messy.  We are the church (the body of Christ, diverse individuals with one purpose) but we are not the Church (First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve, PR department).

On one level, this instruction is great because it acknowledges that we are one church but we don't necessarily all think and feel and believe the same things.  But it also gives the impression that anything that doesn't come stamped with the Church's famous trademarked logo doesn't count for anything, when in reality, it is the testimonies, thoughts, and feelings of the members that are at the core of what many believe the church to be.

It's good to stop and think about what you are sharing.  Using phrases like, "In my opinion," or "In my experience," or even, "I believe," would make some church meetings far more bearable.  There are a lot of things that aren't exactly doctrinal that get shared in Sunday School and other meetings.

The hard part is determining what is actually doctrine and what is not.  In the Mormon world lines get blurry between doctrine, policy, and culture.  And don't think you can look to past and present General Authorities to sort things out.  For a wide-range of ideas, I can find conflicting statements from different prophets, seers, and revelators.  Part of that comes from the fact that we believe in continuing revelation.  Generally what we are taught is that the doctrine that counts is what we have heard most recently from our leaders.  Brigham Young and Bruce R. McConkie (and a lot of others) were wrong about black people.

The other thing that bothers me is that the Church (capital C) makes statements on my behalf that I don't necessarily agree with (especially regarding same-sex marriage).  Because I am a member, people judge me by the actions and statements of the entire Church.  But…I am only a member, and the Church (whoever The Church is) doesn't want my thoughts and actions reflecting poorly on them.  I get it, but I don't like it.

Therefore, I am publishing this blog post as a disclaimer for all things I say or write anywhere regarding any topic at any time in the future.  I do not represent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, nor am I sponsored by them in any way.  

I will continue to speak and write about the Church, both the good and the bad.  I've lived my life trying not to make other people or organizations look bad.  It's not a bad ideal, but it means that I've silenced myself too much.  I have to talk and share and discuss and debate if I am to grow.  I can no longer just sit and listen and keep my thoughts to myself if I don't agree.

There is a Season

I'm a planner.  I like to set goals and map out how I can get there.  I can make any plan look good on paper.  My 2010 New Year's Resolutions are awesome.  And they are still posted on my refrigerator because although they were great goals, I haven't accomplished many of them.

Life is really about making plans and being flexible enough to adjust as other things come your way.  That is what this summer has been.

My summer plans:

• Read a lot and do reviews for my book blog.  
• Add boot camp to the two times a week I was already at the gym so I'd get a good cardio and strength training workout at least 3 times a week.  
• Gradually build up my endurance so that by the end of the summer I could walk to the gym, do my circuit training or boot camp and walk home.  
• Daily tai chi and qigong to help prepare for the classes I will be a teaching assistant for in the fall.  
• Revise lesson plans, studio documents, and website for my voice studio.  
• Update my song catalog.
• Explore new musical theatre repertoire.
• Do most of the work for my NCTM.  (National music teacher certification program offered through MTNA.)
• Deep clean my house and keep up with regular cleaning. 
• Cut out dairy, chocolate, and sugar (all of which I know cause more pain, depression, inflammation, etc.) 
• Blog a lot on all 3 blogs.  

What I've really done towards those goals:

• Almost completed reading one book about teaching.  Read a few other books, but haven't really done any book reviews yet.  
• Cut back at the gym because I couldn't pay for boot camp or personal training. 
• Dealt with Fibromyalgia flare ups.  If I'm in pain at half a mile, it doesn't really matter if I have the physical endurance to go longer.  This kind of pain is not good to push through.  I definitely won't be achieving my walk to the gym goal.  
• I'm not even close to the daily tai chi practice that was my goal, but I did do 4 tai chi depth classes, teacher certification for seated tai chi and fall prevention, and a 1 day Shibashi workshop.
• I'm actually doing well with the goal to revise lesson plans, studio documents, and website for my voice studio.  It's not all done, but I am on target to be there by the time school starts.  
• Song catalog updates are slower than I planned.  This got bumped to the bottom of the priority list.  
• I have explored a little more musical theatre rep.  Again, not as much as I wanted, but not a total fail.  
• I had to drop the NCTM classes because I couldn't pay for them or the application.  I thought I would do more on my own, but other things got in the way.  
• Total fail on the cleaning stuff.  Again, other things got in the way or if I did actually have time, I didn't have energy.  
• Grief asked for chocolate ice cream (among other things.)  I could only cope with so much at once.  I'm doing better.  Today is day 3 sugar free.  I'm not cutting out all the dairy yet.  
• I've done some blogging, but it's been a hard summer for writing.  

What I wasn't planning on but spent more time and energy on instead:

• Grieving.  
• Stressing over money.  
• Exploring options to bring in more money.  I have some great plans for the future.  We'll see what actually gets done.  
• Digging, exploring, examining, and reflecting on what I believe and why.
• Planning for a big part I have in an upcoming fundraiser.
• I got involved in a new scripture study group in a new (to me) FB group.  
• Salad everyday (or almost every day.)  I can't get enough.  

I just have to keep reminding myself that I can't do everything right now. And as much as I plan, I have to also be flexible enough to deal with what life throws at me.  "To everything there is a season."  Unfortunately, I don't always get a lot of say in which season I'm in.  

Summer isn't over yet.  I'm interested to see what actually happens in these next few weeks.  

Armor Up: Final Post

Last post.  Someone needs to remind me that I should never tackle subjects that will take this many posts to cover.  We went a lot places I didn't expect to go.  And this final post is not about the energy aspect of armoring up at all.  No.  It actually kind of is.  Prayer, peace, love, grace, and maybe even faith are really just different words for energy and different ways of using it.

Prayer

You can't finish a discussion of this chapter without saying something about prayer.  So here are my deep thoughts.  Whatever it means to you, do it.  Prayer doesn't have to follow a formula to count.  It just needs to be a way of opening yourself to guidance from whoever or whatever you believe in.  Read Anne Lamott's Help, Thanks, Wow: Three Essential Prayers.

Peace

I mentioned early on in these posts that this whole armor of God thing never really resonated with me because I am such a pacifist.  This morning I realized that this chapter really is all about peace, but Paul needed to use something the people understood, which unfortunately was war.  Right before he starts into the description of the armor, Paul says this:

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

He's not saying, "Go to battle for God."
He's saying you can be protected and strong through God, through truth, righteousness, the preparation of the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the word of God.

Even today, the rhetoric is colored with war.  We talk about a battle against sin and evil, because that is the only way that some people can conceptualize it.  But the real truth (or at least what I believe and feel as truth) is that peace will never come through war.  Peace will only come when we choose peace and love above all else.

Post by Jeannine Robinett.

Paul ends this letter to the Ephesians with these words. 

23 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
24 Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.

We quote the verses about armor and battle a lot.  Maybe it's time to start quoting the ones about peace, love, faith, and grace a little bit more.

Armor Up: The Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit

Paul threw these two together into the same verse (OK, technically that was probably scribes and translators), so I feel just fine about doing one quick, short post to cover both.

The Helmet

The helmet protects the skull which in turn protects the brain.  If you have any doubts about how important brain health is, spend some time exploring this site.  Brain damage doesn't just affect the physical things you do.  It affects your personality, how you think, and how you interact with others.  Paul might not have know all the details of how the brain works, but they certainly knew back then how important it was to protect the head.  

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, two very important energy points are found on the head.  (These correspond roughly with the 6th and 7th Chakras).  Located at the forehead between the eyebrows, the upper dan tien is often associated with spirit.  The Bai Hui point at the crown of the head is sometimes called the Hundred Meetings or Hundred Convergences point because of all the meridians that start or end there.  From an energetic standpoint, both of these points make the head something well worth protecting.  

Although the people of Paul's time probably had some different ways of thinking about the head, we tend to associate it with the mind, with awareness, with consciousness, and with understanding.  

Salvation

Salvation is literally to save.  Most people believe it to mean deliverance from our sins and the consequences of those sins through the atonement of Jesus Christ.  

The helmet of salvation might just simply be our understanding of the atonement.  

And that means that I need to share my definition of atonement.  Again, I have many words that I get, but I don't get.  It was actually the study of tai chi and some Buddhist principles that helped me come up with this definition that makes sense to me.  (And it's fine if it doesn't make sense to you this way.)

Atonement is empathy across time and space (Jesus taking on all the pains and sins of the world while in the Garden of Gethsemane) creating a oneness, a wholeness, and a unity which enables us to transform any sin, weakness, pain, or sorrow into something better and stronger. The Atonement is empathy and transformation.

The Sword of the Spirit

There's all sorts of symbolism we could explore about swords.  For my purposes right now, the sword is simply an instrument or tool.  As weapons, swords are used both offensively, and defensively.  You won't last long in a sword fight unless you know how to block your opponents attack.  The parry may be even more important than the strike.  

Here's your interesting little tidbit from tai chi about weapons.  In the weapons forms of tai chi, the weapon (sword, saber, fan, staff, etc.) is seen as an extension of the qi of the user.  My qi flows through my fan.  

The Word of God

Revelation, whether delivered directly to an individual or through an individual to a group, is often what we think of when we talk about the word of God.  Scriptures are one source of the word of God.  

The word of God is not a weapon of offense.  It is part of the defense.  It is a tool that we can use to strengthens ourselves.  

Perhaps Paul (or scribes and translators) put the helmet and the sword together because they saw that the word of God helps us to understand the atonement.  As I embrace compassion, empathy, unity and transformation (which I've learned more about in tai chi and qigong than in church), I am carrying the sword of the spirit and wearing the helmet of salvation.  

Armor Up: The Shield of Faith

This little project turned in to something much bigger for me.  I anticipate one or two posts, not a post per part of the armor.  But I was thinking a lot and writing a lot and it was a good focus for me. I had some nice insights, but now it's time to wrap it all up.  Hopefully, I'll be done this weekend.  We just have shields, helmets, and swords left to talk about and then we'll finish with a little insight I had this morning.  

The Shield 

When you think about shields as part of traditional armor, they're actually pretty amazing.  They're movable.  Assuming you're well trained and fast enough, a shield can provide an extra layer of protection over any vulnerable point of the body.  One source explained it this way:

The shield moves with the attack, no matter the direction.  

The usefulness of this type of shield is limited by its size and shape and the fact that most people just carry one so the other arm can hold a weapon.  (I'm much more interested in the sci-fi energy shield that basically just put you in a bubble that nothing can penetrate.  But, since Paul didn't know about those and since "nothing can penetrate" goes back to the draw-backs of armoring up that Brene Brown talks about, we won't go there today.)

Faith

Faith is one of my problem words, the words I can define, and give you scripture references for, and maybe even inspire you to have more, but I don't really get it.  (See this post for more information on concepts I struggle with and why.)  I think one of the reasons I struggle with faith is that I equate it with trust and at various points in my life, I have had major trust issues.  

In Alma Chapter 32, we read about experimenting on the word by planting a seed. If it's good and true, that seed begins to grow and we can recognize the truth of that thing by what it does.

It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.

At this point in my life, I'm choosing those three criteria for how to proceed with faith.  Does it enlarge my soul or does it crush my spirit?  Do I feel enlightened (love that word!) or burdened and confused?  Is it delicious to me in a way that makes me want more, or does if feel like I have to choke it down whether I want to or not?

I find it very interesting that the answers to those same three questions are why I continue to study, practice, and teach tai chi and qigong.

The Shield of Faith

When used as a shield, faith creates a buffer zone between us and the enemy's attacks.  It covers those places that the basic pieces of armor don't.  It moves with you.  You can put it wherever it is needed the most.  Faith fills in the gaps.  (And there are oh so many gaps in our understanding.)

But this faith, like a shield, is still limited.  It's not perfect knowledge.  And you can't do the shield thing with both hands (all your time, energy, etc.) You still have to live your life and all that that entails with your other hand.  

Maybe the shield of faith is about learning to work with both real life AND faith at the same time, both interacting and protecting.  

All the other armor is something that I put on (or that someone puts on me), and I hope it works.  But the shield is something that I either pick up, or accept when someone hands it to me.  It's operation is not automatic.  I must do something to benefit from this piece of equipment.  The breastplate itself will lesson the effect of a blow to the chest just by being there.  But I am in charge of where my shield of faith is and which blows I attempt to block with it.  

The Shield of Faith as Energy

When I think about how energy ties into this shield of faith thing (and actually all the armor of God), I think about zipping up.  There is not a way to explain this quickly and easily that doesn't sound a little crazy, but this link has a fairly simple version.  Energetically, zipping up is about protecting you from the negative energy around you, deflecting the blows and arrows that the world throws at you (intentional or unintentionally).  "Quenching the fiery darts" seems like another great description.  In theory, you can block the negative energy and prevent people from drawing away your energy, and still be open to receiving love and feeling compassion and empathy for those around you.

Faith is belief with some trust mixed in.

In qigong we sometimes talk about "Yi dao, qi dao," which means where your intention (or attention or awareness) goes, qi (energy) follows.

Perhaps faith is intention.

I'm an Explorer

I've been having a wonderful conversation with a friend through FB messenger and thought that these sections were good enough to share for blog post.  

I believe in God. I believe that he cares for us deeply and wants for us those things that will help us to grow and become more like him. I believe that his influence can be seen and felt in many ways in this world. I'm not planning to convert to Catholicism, but I do see God working through Pope Francis. And I see God when I look at the Dalai Lama or Desmond Tutu. I think they are among the most Christ-like people alive today.

 

…

You asked, "What parts of other religions appeal to you?" The simplest answer is that many religions talk about similar concepts but talk about them in different ways, using a different vocabulary. As you're probably well aware, I'm a word nerd. Each word carries a slightly different connotation than it's synonyms. By exploring different religions, I open up my perspective. 

As a voice teacher, I know that every student learns differently and will need to find their own best way to approach vocal technique. Although I taught the same principles to you and other students, the actual exercises and ways of talking about the technique that I used with you might be very different from another student that I was teaching at the same time. To take this comparison even further, when you went to college, you were ready for new ways to approach vocal technique. The goals of your college teacher and my goals are probably pretty similar, but how you learn, what you are ready to learn, and the insights and experiences of your teachers all effect what you learn. That's where I feel like I am religion. 

I mentioned before that Mormons believe that we existed before we began this life and we will continue to exist after it. We also believe that the choices we make in this life affect where we will spend the afterlife. Although I'm not sure I totally believe in reincarnation, studying it in the context of religions that do helps me to gain insight about this idea of eternal progression. I'm not content to think that when I die, I have done everything that I can to learn and grow and will be assigned to stay at that level for the rest of eternity. I think I will continue to have learning experiences. 

I'm very interested in Catholic saints. Although I don't really agree with the process of how that church declares them saints, I am fascinated by their lives and find a lot of insights as I read about them, or read their words. As a musician, you'd probably be interested in Saint Hildegard of Bingen. Fascinating woman with a great story. 

I'm also very interested in religions that talk about the Divine Feminine or goddesses. Although it is not talked about a lot, Mormons do believe that we have a Heavenly Mother in addition to our Heavenly Father (God the Father). It fits well into the Mormon belief that our God has a physical body like ours, only perfected. Because there isn't much known about her and we don't really worship her exactly, I like to explore religions with goddesses, looking for major concepts or ideas about Her that maybe we have lost. Catholics don't really consider Mary a goddess, but they do revere her, certainly more than Mormons do, and look to her for guidance. (Just read the Ave Maria text.) 

The thing about exploring religions is that it really is an extremely broad topic. I've explored some of Islam, a little Buddhism, a very little Hinduism, and a lot of other branches of Christianity. I also have some pagan friends who have shared things with me. And although you don't really call atheism a religion, my atheist friends have taught me a lot about being a good and moral person without needing the incentives of punishment or reward from God. I've also done a little exploring into more New Age approaches to spirituality reading authors like Eckhart Tolle and Neale David Walsch. In fact, I love Walsch's take on the 10 commandments. He says that God explained to him that they're not really "do this to be good" statements. They are "you will notice this happening when you are on the right path" signposts. 

The world of Christianity alone is so huge and diverse that you could study just that for an entire lifetime and still not understand everything about every sect. Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, had some fascinating ideas. As I read her work, their were many things that I just said, "Nope, doesn't work for me." But there were other ideas that I really like. I remember reading her explanation of the atonement and it clicked with me more than any other thing I had learned up to that point. 

This link takes you to a religion tree. It's not 100% accurate, but it does give you a wonderful idea about just how diverse the world of spirituality is. (If I remember correctly, it lists Mormonism as growing out of Methodism. Joseph Smith did have exposure to Methodism, which is probably why the chart maker put it there, but Mormons believe that the LDS church is not a branch, but actually the restoration of the true gospel of Jesus Christ that he taught and organized when he was on earth. Also, you'll see branches on the Eastern religions sides that take you to tai chi and yoga. Neither one is a religion in and of itself, but they grew out of and are influenced by their parent religions. Many practitioners do use tai chi and yoga as part of a spiritual practice. 

I'd love to hear more about what you believe and why. No rush or time limit, just get back to me when you can. 

The invitation I gave her is open to you to.  What do you believe?  Why? What difference does it make in your life and the way you live? 

Armor Up Part IV, Shoes

Other posts in this series can be read here, here, here and here.  

So far I've written about thinking of the armor of God as energy, the belt or girdle as connection to the lower dan tian, the fact that armor is just one letter away from amor or love, and the breastplate covering the heart, lungs and middle dan tian.

Now it's all about the shoes!

Shoes

                                              This picture appeared with this article.  

I have some friends (both males and females) whose closets resemble those of Imelda Marcos.  Shoes are fashion.  Shoes are personality.  Shoes are attitude.  Shoes make the ensemble.  Or so I'm told.  

Here's my take on shoes:  

Shoes that fit well and are comfortable (I have weird feet) are hard to find. Shoes that fit well and are comfortable are extremely expensive.  Shoes that fit well and are comfortable protect my feet.  Shoes that fit well and are comfortable actually affect the alignment (and therefore reduce the pain level) for my entire body.  

So basically, shoes are really important, and the kinds of shoes you wear matters.  

These are the shoes I currently own:

1.  Dansko slip-ons that I paid mega bucks for but have also worn almost every day for 3 years.  (Yes, they show it, but I haven't had the funds to buy new ones.)

2.  New Balance gym shoes.  Again, they cost an arm and a leg, but so worth it.  I wear them to workout or when I go on long walks.  

3.  Cheap black flats for tai chi.  I prefer a shoe for tai chi that feels like I'm not wearing a shoe. These took a long time to stretch out so they fit right.   

4.  Another pair of shoes (cheap) that I don't really like for either tai chi or working out, but I often keep them in the car as back-up.  They are better than working out in my socks.  

5.  Flip-flops (cheap) that are several years old that I only wear at the beach or lake.  I just can't do flip-flops.  I actually have trouble walking in them.  

6.   Organ shoes that were quite expensive when I bought them over 25 years ago.  There isn't a cheap substitute since organ shoes need a certain kind of heel and sole.  

7.  Extremely cute and extremely uncomfortable pumps that sit in my closet because I might wear them sometime (but I can't remember the last time I actually did.)

8.  A few pair of old shoes that I keep in case of emergencies.  

Shoes (or boots) provide protection/coverage for the feet, and ideally should be well-constructed, comfortable, and appropriate to the activity of the wearer.  And sometimes a good shoe will cost us.  

Feet

Cool stuff about the feet:

The alignment of your entire body is affected by how you balance your weight on your foot.  

In reflexology, it is believed that all points in the body are represented in the feet and therefore can be treated by working on the feet.  Similarly, in Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is believed that many meridians (pathways through which energy flows) either start or end in the feet.  It is through the Bubbling Well (a point on the bottom of the foot) that we draw earth energy up into the body and return negative energy or energy we don't need back to the earth to be recycled.

To walk is to move along a path.  Feet are how we move, how we progress.

Preparation

I actually love this word.  I love to prepare.  I love to organize.  I love the journey.  I love the process.  I love details.  

When I'm preparing for work, it involves creating lesson plans, handouts, charts, lists, schedules, etc.  It's about creating a body of information that I will then put to use when I work with my students.  In this case, preparation is doing.  

I used to think that preparing meant I had to set up everything so that there was no chance of anything going wrong.  I'm letting go of that.  I still want a back up plan for the back up plan, but I'm also learning that preparing means being flexible, having a plan, but also knowing how to deviate from it.  There is not just one path to the goal.  

When preparing to do tai chi, it is important to warm-up the body.  In the Tai Chi for Health programs there is a specific set of warm-ups that gets the body ready for the kind of movement that we will be doing.  But it doesn't have to be just a physical warm-up.  These exercises also prepare us for tai chi by helping us thinking about the tai chi principles.  I read a blog that referred to the warm-ups as principle practice.  Warm-ups also give us a chance to quiet the monkey mind, and get the mind and body functioning as one.  

Meditation (moving or still) is also preparation.  Here, preparation is comes through non-doing.  Through a simple repetitive pattern or stillness, we let go of the need to think and analyze and work. We learn to be.  

The preparation that comes through doing protects us because preparation provides pathways.  It gives us options.  It opens doors.  

The preparation that comes from stillness and meditation opens other doors like insight, awareness, and confidence.

Gospel

Gospel literally means "good news".  When we refer to the gospels of the Bible and apocrypha, we mean those books that tell the story of the life and mission of Christ.  I believe the mission of Christ to be primarily one of empathy and compassion.  At the heart of the atonement is the message of love.

Peace

The Merriam-Webster online dictionary included these definitions of peace:

: a state in which there is no war or fighting
: a state of tranquillity or quiet
: freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions
: harmony in personal relations

I love the paragraph that begins the wikipedia entry on peace.  

Peace is an occurrence of harmony characterized by lack of violence, conflict behaviors and the freedom from fear of violence. Commonly understood as the absence of hostility and retribution, peace also suggests sincere attempts at reconciliation, the existence of healthy or newly healed interpersonal or international relationships, prosperity in matters of social or economic welfare, the establishment of equality, and a working political order that serves the true interests of all.

Peace is about how we relate to others, but it is also that calm awareness that who we are as individuals and what we think and feel matters.  Peace comes when our actions are aligned with our beliefs.  Peace is healing, healing our own lives, healing others, healing that comes through Christ. I believe that at it's core, peace is just love.

"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;"

In the middle of the war analogy sits the most precious truth, which is peace.  We are ready to share the good news of the ultimate harmony and healing.  Like a Wei Qi, field it is both our personal protection and how we interact with others.  

I was just reviewing the key words I discussed in this post and realized that this is far from the only time that "feet" and "gospel of peace" are linked in the scriptures. And yes, I remembered these scriptures because these phrases have been set to music.

How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
Romans 10:15

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
Isaiah 52:7

Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace!
Nahum 1:15

15 And O how beautiful upon the mountains were their feet!
16 And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that are still publishing peace!
17 And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who shall hereafter publish peace, yea, from this time henceforth and forever!
18 And behold, I say unto you, this is not all. For O how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that is the founder of peace, yea, even the Lord, who has redeemed his people; yea, him who has granted salvation unto his people;
Mosiah 15:16-18

And then shall they say: How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings unto them, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings unto them of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion: Thy God reigneth!
3 Ne 20:40

Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that bring glad tidings of good things, and that say unto Zion: Behold, thy God reigneth! As the dews of Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them!
D&C 128:19

"How Beautiful Upon the Mountains"

"How Beautiful are the Feet" 

Peace itself can be both action and stillness, but the spreading of it requires our feet.  It requires moving forward, speaking, and doing.  

And again, my big take away from studying this piece of armor is this:

In the middle of the war analogy sits the most precious truth, which is peace.