(October 20, 2025 — Guideline #8 from Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s “21 Guidelines for Righteous Living”)
Excerpt
In moments of pressure, there’s no time for debate. What we practice daily determines what we choose instinctively.
Intro
Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s Guideline #8 teaches that discipleship is not just knowing what’s right but becoming the kind of person who does what’s right automatically. Just as an athlete relies on muscle memory, disciples rely on spiritual reflexes—responses trained by repeated obedience.
In my world of IT, when systems crash, there’s no time to analyze from scratch. I act on instinct built from years of disciplined practice. Spiritual life requires the same readiness—decisions born not of panic but of principle.
Perspective
The Quarterback Analogy
Elder Maxwell used the example of a great quarterback to explain righteous reflexes.
| Element | Description | Spiritual Parallel |
|---|---|---|
| The Quarterback | A great quarterback doesn’t pause mid-play to analyze how to hold the football. | The individual in life’s fast-moving moments. |
| The Action | Proper technique is internalized—it’s all reflex. | Righteousness must be practiced until it becomes instinct. |
| The Reason | Life offers too many temptations and sudden tests to always stop and reason through them. | We need habits of holiness, not hesitation. |
| The Goal | The quarterback throws correctly without thinking. | The disciple chooses correctly without delay—spiritual safety through reflex. |
Elder Maxwell reminded us that we cannot afford slow moral decisions: “Do the right thing out of reflex and not agonize over a temptation to which you then might succumb.”
Practice (today, not someday)
Righteous reflexes aren’t built overnight—they’re shaped through disciplined repetition. My daily rhythm keeps both body and spirit tuned to respond to life’s pressures with steadiness and faith.
Every night, I review tomorrow’s priorities, focusing on what’s urgent and important. I close my day with scripture study, prayer, and meditation. At 4 a.m., I start again—prayer first, then stretching, followed by 120 straight push-ups to keep my body strong and my mind awake.
Breakfast is clean and balanced before I shower and prepare for work. If I’m early, I swing by either the Oquirrh or Taylorsville Temple to photograph the morning light—my quiet offering before the day begins. By 6:30 a.m., I’m at my desk, handling the priorities of the day.
Saturday is for temple worship. Sunday is for renewing my covenants. Then Monday begins again. These patterns are not habits of routine—they are habits of devotion. They’ve become my spiritual reflexes: instinctive, practiced, and constant.
Closer Reflection
Elder Maxwell’s “righteous reflexes” remind me of Bruce Lee’s legendary speed—so fast that 1970s cameras could barely record it. Lee trained until motion became instinct; every move came from memory, not hesitation.
Spiritual reflexes are the same. They come from daily, disciplined practice until obedience is automatic. Bruce Lee said, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.”
In IT, the same principle applies. After years of handling systems under pressure, I’ve learned to respond instinctively—knowing where to look, how to act, and when to stay calm. It’s muscle memory built through faith and repetition.
Whether in martial arts, spirituality, or technology, true mastery comes when preparation and reflex move as one—when right choices and right actions flow as easily as recognizing the palm of your own hand.
Pocket I’m Keeping
When pressure comes, I don’t have to think twice. I’ve already decided to do what’s right.
What I Hear Now
“Keep practicing righteousness until it becomes your reflex.”
Link to the Talk
“21 Guidelines for Righteous Living” — Elder Neal A. Maxwell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4bVYkkNeWE&t=300s
Behind the Shot (BTS)
Captured outside the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple under a moonlit sky—a quiet reminder that repetition builds readiness. Every photo, every prayer, every early start is practice for spiritual precision.
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