Interlude - what a crazy week!

I am wrapping up a truly bizarre week that held a lot of very difficult internal challenges for me and, as I have looked harder for answers this week than for some time, I felt that it would be appropriate to make some short comments on my experience. I won't go into any details on my challenges, nor will I try to over-refine this post. I want you to get a feel for me going through a real experience, as imperfect as that will be.

Here are some thoughts.

Pain

Sometimes its okay to just tell God you are in pain, because He is the single person that actually understands. In fact, He probably understands more deeply than even you because He knows your present condition and all your past struggles (some of which you have forgotten) and future consequences (most of which you don't know) and how it all fits together.

Temple

Usually, challenge helps me focus better in the temple. It makes my experience there more real and everything more relate-able. I had a really beautiful moment this week in the temple. Once you understand how God feels about holy places, it can be a restful reprieve for the weary and an empowering experience for when you came out. As I headed for the doors, I could hear Arthur C. Brooks' admonition in mind: You are now entering mission territory.

Change

I feel like the seeds of major change happened this week, and it may be gut-wrenchingly hard. There are some great things in my life that I no longer or may not have in the same form. This hurts a lot, but I don't believe it is a bad thing. It is like metal-mind. If I am comfortable with the blessings I have today, I won't be ready to receive or to give greater things in the future. So these changes are hard to adjust to, but I am using this period of upheaval to listen and pay attention to everything; this is a signal of greater things if I can manage the transition.

Some change is a signal that you are going down the wrong path and I have had some of that too. This is where some of those steps in blog post 2, how to get revelation, come in really handy. The scriptures are stories of people in the past who were reaching for something higher through adversity and we can learn what they did. Also, if we are in the habit of praying, listening, and being honest with ourselves, we can see the signal and find a different path for our course. It is a lot of listening, writing, acting, and listening. There were a lot of signs this week that I get to do this with.

Others

Even when we are not in a good place, there are always others we can help. That will help us in return. It also helps us get out of our own problems and see the bigger picture.

Light of Truth

There is a great line in Tolkien's The Return of the King, where the two heroes, Frodo and Sam, are surrounded by darkness in the evil land of Mordor. They are alone, betrayed, exhausted, and without hope of return from their mission. Sam looks up and sees a small open spot in the clouds and a star coming down. He points this out to Frodo and says something like 'Look Frodo! Stars! There is a light up there that no darkness can touch.'

One reason I continually seek the path of faith is because it seems to be more sure than anything else I know. It leads to something higher and brighter than any darkness can touch.


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