The Parable of the Journey

I have recently discovered that I have a lot I still need to learn about life and receiving answers from the Lord versus trying to decide something on my own. Its interesting to see how the Lord is testing me and giving me the wonderful opportunity to learn from myself and how I personally receive inspiration from the Lord. So many people can tell you how to get answers from the Lord and how it works for them, but in the end none of that matters. The only thing that matters is how it works for you. And that's the hard part. How do you figure out how it works for you if you've never truly experienced it before? Or maybe you have and you just didn't recognize it for what it was. Either way, the process of finding what it is you are looking for in life isn't an easy road. The road is long and hard at times and sometimes even impossible to see where it actually goes. That's where the Lord comes in. He's walked that path and he knows all the secret hidden turns and how to get to where you want to go.

Several months ago I had a truly life changing experience that brought me to a better understanding of how this principle works in my life. I call it the parable of the journey. As a little child we start out crawling in our attempts to move forward. Before long we find that its possible to stand with the assistance of things around us. Our parents notice that we are trying to progress to the next step so they hold our hands as we experiment with this new found thing called walking. Once in awhile we might venture from the security of the hand trying to do it on our own but most times we end up falling. Sometimes those falls hurt, other times they are a minor bump in the road, but every time we get back up and try again. Before too long we are able to move forward maybe only holding onto a finger. Eventually we have the ability to walk on our own. Sometimes, however, as we are walking on our own we realize that we might start walking down a path that is full of ruts and we aren't quite sure how to navigate them and make it through safely. That's when we go back to holding hands and moving forward with the guidance of those that have traveled those roads.

So it is in our lives with the Lord. As we start out on this journey we call life, we find that we don't understand or see how everything is supposed to work. We've never done this before and life requires that helping hand in order to be able to do it right. Eventually though we start to figure it out. We start walking on our own, we let go of the hand and take our own steps, sometimes into the dark but right behind us whenever we need him to take our hand is the Savior. He's there to help us get through those struggles and ruts in life called trials.

I have often wondered about the times in my life when I realize that I'm not as close to the Lord as I am when I'm struggling. I thought that I must be doing something wrong and that i was becoming complacent and not making the effort I should. It was then that i thought of this parable and realized it wasn't that I was neglecting the Lord, because I wasn't, it was that the Lord was letting me walk on my own. He wasn't holding my hand and pulling me forward because I didn't need him to, but he was still there walking beside me and if I needed him to step in and help me he would.

I also realized that he lets us choose our own path. The other day I visited my aunt who adopted a little girl about a year and half ago. Amina wasn't feeling good but really really wanted to go outside so I took her for a walk. She held onto my finger and led me all over the front yard looking at the flowers and the grass and enjoying the beauty of nature. Then she started to lead me across the street. At first I was hesitant but I realized that because I was with her holding her hand she would be safe so we did. I let her lead me where she thought we should go. We ended up across the street in a neighbors yard. Then she started to want to go around the back. I attempted to redirect her but her determination to be in the sunlight despite not being the best place to be led us around the side of the house. It was then that I decided it was time to intervene. At that point I told her it was time to go home so we could give mom the flowers we had picked. So we started on our little journey back home.

Just like I let Amina choose the path she wanted to follow in our little walk, so too does the Lord with us. But he's always right there with us, he's always ready to help us get back on the right path if we ever stray and he knows how to get there safely.

I guess that's what I've discovered recently in my attempts at making the biggest decisions of my life. I seem to be coming to a lot of forks in the road where I could go several different ways. In the past I've either just gone with the first option I came to or I would go with what I wanted. Neither of those options have really led me to what I was hoping to find. I've realized that its not about the end result. Its not about how fast you get there. The thing that really matters is how you get there and whether or not you decide to use the guide that knows the way there. The Lord has the map of your life laying out right in front of him. Once in awhile he shows you a part of it and gives you a push in the right direction without you having to ask, but more often he waits for you to ask for directions. He knows that the only way for you to grow and learn is by making mistakes. He knows that in order for you to be all that you can be, you have to fall down and get hurt. If he always picked you right back up or never let you fall in the first place you wouldn't grow.

I've realized how many times I've tried to walk straight up the mountain rather than following the trail that is marked out for me. I might still get where I want to go, but I end up with a lot of cuts and bruises along the way, whereas if I had asked the Lord in the first place and followed the path he had marked out for me I could have saved myself a lot of tears and pain. That's not to say that if I did take the path marked out to get to the top that it would be easy. The path is still steep and uphill and there are still stumbling blocks along the way. But the most amazing thing about this whole experience is that even if I do decide to hike straight up that mountain and make my life difficult, the Lord is right there the entire way and he's still willing and ready to help me get there. Life was never meant to be easy and that's what makes it so amazing!

Penny for Thought...

The Lord is our guide. He is there to help when we ask, but no matter what he always gives us the ultimate choice in where we want to go. What are you choosing? Are you struggling up the mountain and missing the path completely and trying to do it on your own? Or are you asking the Lord for guidance and help? Are you humble enough to admit that you aren't on the path anymore and you need help getting back to it? Or are you one of those people marching up that path with the Lord at your side and telling him about all your experiences as you go? He's there, are you inviting him into your life?

Sunny Sunday Afternoons!

So despite the persistent elusiveness of a new job, I have found joy this, well now somewhat cloudy, Sunday afternoon. The BYU ward stereotype of consistently speaking of dating and marriage led my good friend Priscilla and I into a 2 hour rendezvous of creative date planning. By the end of those two laugh filled hours, we had come up with 22 rather impressive date ideas! Why do I bring this up, some may ask? Well, several men that I have spoken with have expressed the concern that coming up with something to do for a date isn't always easy. Priscilla and I now have proof that such a thing is not as hard as one might think. The only reason we quit was we realized that even if we asked a guy on date every Friday and Saturday for the rest of the summer, we still probably wouldn't get through all of them. So for you men out there that struggle with coming up with something to do on your Friday night out with the opposite sex, here is just a taste of what we came up with...

GLOW IN THE DARK LASER TAG

Sounds just like regular laser tag? Well not if you go to DI, pick out random clothes for each other, and then paint each other with glow in the dark paint! Not only do you get the awesomeness of laser tag, you get the epicness of a paint war!

Like I said, this is just a taste, one of the more "normal" date ideas that we came up with. (of course I saved the best ones for our own personal use, maybe after they have been successfully accomplished they will be put up here). So the next time that you come up cold turkey and have no idea what to do on your date, just remember, it is possible to come up with all sorts of random things, you just gotta get creative and think outside the box!

Penny for Thought...

Since it is Mother's Day, I just wanted to say thank you to my mother for all she has done for me. She has truly been an example in my life and given me more than I could have ever hoped for! She is an inspiration in my life and I couldn't ask for anyone better to be there for me through everything that comes with living life in this crazy world! I hope that all of us can remember our mothers, not just today, but every day of the year and thank them for all that they do, even when they make mistakes. When was the last time you sincerely told your mother that you love her and not just at the end of a phone conversation? Maybe today is the day that it needs to be expressed...