I’ve had this [...]]]> Warm days in March can feel unbearably hot. Even though the temperature is only 70 or 80 degrees, shifting up to it from a 20 or 30 degree day in February can be a shock to our system. It can feel more hot than a roasting day in June or July.

I’ve had this concept rattling around in my head for a while now. I have seen a pattern of a spectrum of emotion that exists in many aspects of our lives. The easiest way to describe it is comfort. This spectrum is a feeling of confidence, and a measurable gift of the Spirit. It may exist as we discuss the gospel with others, or in the media we consume.

I have two friends with whom my relationship is on opposite ends of the spectrum.

I became friends with one while teaching at the MTC, and I became friends with the other while playing for the BYU lacrosse team. I have a great friendship with both of them, but they are very different. Spiritual conversation with one is comfortable while sports or business is not. Sports or business conversation with the other is comfortable while spiritual conversation is not. I bet you can guess which way the spectrum slides.

Because I taught at the MTC with one friend we often had conversations about the scriptures, our relationship with God and frequently heard one another bear testimony. Today, if I ever have a spiritual realization, I know I can call that friend to talk about it, because it feels comfortable. However, we never really brought up the spiritual on the lacrosse field. My lacrosse buddy and I only ever talk sports. I am sure that he has a testimony, and that he wouldn’t mind the conversation to turn spiritual, it just isn’t quite as comfortable as I’d like.

The music we listen to, the movies we watch, and the games we play can be on both sides of the spectrum in effect in our lives.

I have an automatic playlist generated in iTunes that takes the top rated and most played music for a given time period. Some of the top songs I listen to are by bands like Cartel, OneRepublic, or Yellowcard. Other songs come from EFY music, Seminary Soundtracks or Motab. Now, I love both; but have you ever had a Motab song come on right after Yellowcard?  Something feels wrong. I don’t think Motab should ever be “wrong”. I believe it’s that feeling of March being hotter than April.

The reverse tends to be true as well. Because I feel weird with both songs in the same playlist, I tend to go through an annual month long media fast. I don’t watch movies, listen to music, or play games that aren’t intentionally spiritually uplifting. At the end of that period, it always feels weird to hear the music they are playing on the radio stations I listen to. These are songs that I would have felt completely fine listening to a month earlier. That should be a red flag, October is colder than November.

We feel it in so many aspects of life. Conversation, movies, music and games are just a few. I want to feel comfortable whenever something spiritually uplifting enters my life. I want to be able to bear my testimony to anyone at any moment. I want to be able to listen to church music, or watch a church video, any day of the week. I want to think to play a seminary game (like The The Scripture Game, Voices or Millionaire) when I ride the train home.

This is a gift of the Spirit that I would like.

It works the other way too.  We can be in [...]]]> Buying is a habit.  It really is.  Have you ever tried to stop buying things?  Every once in a while I’ll attempt to go an entire two weeks without spending any money.  I haven’t successfully done it once.  I have a pretty strong buying habit.

It works the other way too.  We can be in the habit of not-buying something.  For example, Ash and I live in the in-law’s basement, and always get mozzarella cheese from them.  We only use mozzarella cheese every once in a while, so it doesn’t make sense to buy a big bag.  One time we bought a big bag of mozzarella cheese; it got moldy and wasted.  So we don’t buy it anymore.

This is absolutely true of iTunes.  You may find yourself on either side of the fence.  Unfortunately for my mother, my little brothers are in the habit of buying.  I went a very long time without spending any money on iTunes.  I didn’t buy music, and I never bought apps.  Then I became a developer.  Now that I make a living off of apps, a $.99 app seems trivial to me.  We spent $200-600 to get our iPhone, pay a $100-200 phone bill, and we scoff at a $.99 app that will give us something we really want.  Most of us spend a buck on things far less valuable than an iPhone app.  But because we may be in the habit of not-buying software, we don’t want to even spend a dollar.

Over time, my attitude towards buying apps has changed significantly.  As I’ve bought high quality apps that were worth much more than I paid for them, I realized that the iOS App Store is a steal of a deal.

Now that I’m in the habit of buying apps, I have to set a budget for myself each month for how much I can spend on iTunes.  There are a lot of great apps out there.  I’ll tell you now: they aren’t the free ones.  In fact, most of the apps that are free are a waste of time to even download.  But if you never pay for an app, you won’t find the good ones.  The apps I paid the most cash for, are the ones I love the most:

I wouldn’t want an iPhone or iPad without Instapaper.
OmniFocus is amazing, it’s surprisingly worth every penny.
GVMobile+ kicks the pants off every other Google Voice app.
iTeleport is the best VNC client there is. Hands down.
GolfShot GPS is the best caddie a golfer could ask for.
Ego is the best way to track website traffic.
Delivery Status is the best way to track packages.

…and there are at least 20 more that I paid for that are better than the free apps available.  Try and overcome the habit not to buy software, it will make your life easier and better.  I know it has mine.

Have you supported a developer this week?