The Chief will be speaking at Brigham Young University on April 1st. Below are a few of the things he will be sharing.

The Chief Wiggles View of Life from Iraq

I am Chief Warrant Officer Paul Holton a Utah Army National Guardsman, better known to some as Chief Wiggles (a nickname I used while delivering toys to hundreds of Iraqi children). I have just spent the last 12 months living in Iraq, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, with the assignment of interrogating or debriefing hundreds of Iraqi civilians and military officers.

During the past year in Iraq, I had the great opportunity of interrogating 17 Iraqi Brigadier Generals at a prisoner of war camp in southern Iraq, of living through the horrendous heat of the Iraqi summer, of spending 6 months in Saddam's government palace in the center of Baghdad, and of interacting on a personal level with numerous wonderful Iraqi people, who I now consider to be some of my dearest friends.

In retrospect, the past year in Iraq was at times, as you might imagine, difficult, dangerous, uncertain, trying, and unpredictable. But, at the same time much like a mission, it was one of the most magical and wonderful years of my life. So many miraculous testimony building things occurred, that I am still astonished and in awe of. So many good things were accomplished by our group of some 100 LDS returned missionaries in my unit, many who had missionary like experiences in Iraq.

Personally I was enlightened by the experience, my understanding and knowledge increased daily, and my path towards living more deliberately, authentically, and abundantly was prepared before me by the hand of the Lord. The Lord definitely was in charge of a much bigger historical plan to open up the Middle East for the teaching of the gospel to the people in that region of the world. I believe this will be known as the start or opening of the way for that to happen.

I was but a humble servant, a tool to be used as the Lord saw fit, with nothing more than a desire to serve, a willingness to follow the chimes of the savior's voice, caused to sing by the winds of my faith. I knew that our cause was just, our purpose clear, and our way prepared before us by his hand, for we were not alone.

I arrived in Iraq with a firm conviction that the liberty of the Iraqi people was worth my sacrifice away from the life I knew. I was inspired by Moroni's account, depicted in Alma 48:10-11, "and thus he was preparing to support their liberty, their lands, their wives", and " Moroni was a strong and 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". As with Moroni, I felt moved to do by part in bringing liberty, justice, and freedom to the people of Iraq.

 It is the will of God and the inalienable right of all men to be free, to choose for themselves and to not be in bondage to any man, at any time, as President Bush quoted from my journal during his Annual Prayer Breakfast speech, as he applauded Operation Gives efforts in taking toys to the Iraqi children.

It was just a matter of opening my eyes and ears as the miracles of life unfolded before me, to discover what the Lord desired of me. I was constantly asking the questions of "What would you have me do?", "What would you have me learn?", and "How do you desire to use me?" The Lord's answers to those questions continuously amazed me, as a steady stream of miraculous events occurred.

In no way do I imply that I was like unto Moroni or that I had anything to do with bringing about the course of events that occurred, only that I was of the frame of mind, the attitude, and the faith knowing God could make something happen in Iraq. The following scripture comes to mind in D&C 101:16, "Therefore let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion, for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God".

God is able to move mountains standing in the way of his divinely inspired plan, which I witnessed on several occasions, causing me to humbly acknowledge his hand in all things. God's expectations clearly explained in D&C 59:7 & 21, "Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things", "And in nothing doth man offend God, save those who confess not his hand in all things and obey not his commandments".

Perhaps it was easier in a war zone to see the Lord's hand as he continually preserved and safeguarded those around me, as doors were opened up and as people everywhere were touched by his spirit. The light of Christ could be seen in many Iraqi eyes, as they reciprocated the abundant sharing of care and concern exemplified by so many American servicemen.

Over the last year in Iraq, I discovered my passionate desire to help and assist those people, who have been without freedom for decades, under the bondage of a ruthless tyrant. After tasting the sweet joy of sharing toys with one impoverished little girl, I made the decision to "Share Joys with Toys" with many children.  Later a group of great people and I  organized Operation Give, a non-profit organization which has now taken toys and school supplies to thousands of Iraqi children, in an effort to brighten the lives of those children, perhaps giving them hope for a happier future.

You can check out all of this on my web sites, at operationgive.org and chiefwiggles.blog-city.com.

Doing something positive

In the course of my travels I have come to the realization that life is too short to be caught up in the constant energy drain of negativity. Being pessimistic is a liability, continually sucking the life out of each of us. People that chose to be negative and pessimistic are a distraction to others that attempt to focus on the positive aspects of life. There are many takers, as opposed to givers, in this world, who stand in the way of our own individual growth and progression, as they look for ways to suck others into their spiraling black hole.

In this world we live in, with a whirlwind of voices expressing their desires to choose evil over righteousness, there seems to be no middle ground in the battle of forces raging amongst us. If we chose to do nothing, we are actually sliding backwards, aiding the evil forces that would subject us to various forms of bondage. As with many things if we are not moving forward with positive progress then we are moving backwards towards the evil forces of control and captivity. We are admonished in Galatians 5:1, "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage".

We as a people cannot sit idly by, while we watch our world be overrun with the evils of our day, by men that have selfish aspirations to take power, wealth, and control. We must chose to take some form of initiative in stopping these forces, so that the children of the world have hope for a brighter future. We cannot ignore the problems of the day feeling that we can transfer responsibility of solving these problems to our children.

The children of the world are our future. The future lies in the eyes of what they can see, but we must help paint the picture of hope with our own sweat and blood. We must sacrifice today so that our children will live freely in peace tomorrow. Otherwise their smiles will be gone as they become consumed by the hate and anger of their parents and adults around them. Who is going to show them the way to joy and happiness in a world filled with hate, greed, murders, abuse, and bondage? 

I chose to do something, I chose to love them: 

The affects of love were made evident to me time and time again while in Iraq, as I accepted the humanity of those people, through my own unconditional shared acts of kindness. Then and only then did I see them as equals, people in need, with feelings and desires very similar to my own.

As I was able to initiate honest interaction, they were able to exponentially return love to me through their own shared acts of kindness and concern. They opened up their arms and took me in, offering me whatever they had, selflessly and whole heartedly. They brought me into their homes, fed me all of the abundance they could muster up, with a sincere desire to share their time and money with me if needed. They openly expressed their brotherly love for me, as they were able to complete the circle with their own honest acts of kindness.

This love for our mutual humanity spilled over into the hearts of their family members and relatives, who automatically took me in as their own. It is contagious and if the people are open to the spirit it will infect their heart with the love of Christ. It is no wonder that I can say I love these people, for I have seen their inner self, the true desires of their hearts and I have connected with them on a different level, a level of love not hatred. 

"I am able to make you holy and your sins are forgiven you", D&C 60:7

Now some of us as we ride along life's bumpy road, look at life as being difficult and arduous, full of trials and tribulations, which causes us to constantly struggle with our own weaknesses and imperfections. All of which causes us a certain amount of consternation and guilt as we continue to fall short, to stumble and trip along the way. It seems at times we are on a viscous merry-go-round, never seeming to graduate to another more direct ride, one of progression and perfection. 

Others though see it differently, enjoying the freeing feeling of placing our life in the Lord's hands, allowing him to take us where he will in order to bring about this higher state of holiness that is referred to. We may try and struggle on our own to bring about growth, but it is when we put ourselves in his hands, with a willingness to allow him to adjust the direction of the course as he sees fit, which brings us closer to holiness.

It is after all we do, that he is able to make us holy through his atonement. It is then that we are totally free, allowing him to guide our course, placing things in our path along the way, in hopes that we might pay attention long enough to capture the inner purpose of the experience.  The accumulated affect of life's experiences is further growth and purification.

Many soldiers, who were caught up in their own struggle with self pity and unceasing thoughts of going home, missed the whole experience in Iraq. They just never showed up, consequently failing to open themselves to the wonderful experiences that might have happened. Instead they found themselves complaining about having to be there, wasting their time in Iraq, when all they really had to do was open up to the opportunities that would have come their way. If they had just opened their minds, their eyes, to the magical, mysterious and wonderful things that were there but they just failed to see.

The Abundance:

After returning from a year overseas, while dining at a popular restaurant along the LA coast with my son, several things came to mind as I watched intently at the patrons, who were all busy eating and socializing. I know that life goes on for most Americans while soldiers are off in a distant land putting their lives on the line. Most citizens of this great country hardly miss a beat in their daily lives, as they continue to be caught up in a whirlwind of capitalism, materialism, and commercialization of life. 

I saw them with their fancy cars, their name brand clothes, their vain and selfish efforts to look their best, with the latest in hair styles, facials, breast jobs, designer nails, tattoos, body jewelry and piercings. I hesitate to speak for the fear of seeming judgmental but superficially it appears they have little awareness regarding what is really going on in the world and what is really at stake. I am sure it is not totally the case, but it seems for the most part that people go on with their self serving life styles with little more than a limited awareness that another nameless soldier was killed today.

I am struck at the sheer abundance we selfishly enjoy, the excess we possess, and the flaunting of wealth in the face of so much poverty in the world. We as a whole consume way beyond our needs, perhaps to the point that many have forgotten what it is like to go without, to really sacrifice something for someone else, as we continue to focus our attention on our individual selfish pursuits.

The Reality

The media does little to really inform the general populace about the reality of the situation in Iraq, promoting nothing more than a body count of the dead. So what can I expect out of people that have been misinformed and are spoon fed bits and pieces of misconstrued information regarding the real need of the people of Iraq and how much good is really being done by the American soldiers, who continue to perform spontaneous and random acts of kindness way beyond their job descriptions.

When are they going to enlighten and inform us with any in-depth reporting on the majority of the people of Iraq, who are overjoyed with our presence, who are now relishing in the thoughts of their newly acquired freedom, who welcome us with open arms, and daily express nothing but love and appreciation for what we as Americans have done for them. When is that story going to be told?

When are we going to put politics aside to provide accurate reporting on how the majority of Iraqis really feel? The hundreds of people that I encountered who could not say enough regarding the atrocities of Saddam Hussein and the great blessings of freedom they now enjoy without him, as they now with hope look forward to the future, out from under the oppressing heavy hand of the Baghdad Butcher, Saddam, who killed an estimated 1,000 people a day (recently reported by the History Channel).

When is any one going to tell the story of how so many Iraqis took me into their homes to lavish me with gifts and share the abundance of their blessings with feasts of food?

Where is the story of how so many great Americas have donated and contributed their time and money, sharing with the Iraqi people and with our own service men and women in need? So many Americans are consumed by their selfish political agendas, complaining and finding fault with no real solution in mind.  They have forgotten the joy that comes from selfless acts of sharing the abundance we have been blessed with.

May we reconsider the Lord's will in dealing with our fellowmen and make our selves available to him, so that all of us can be used as a tool to further his work and bring about his will, not ours.

We will be blessed abundantly as we share abundantly