Finding Joy in Where We Are Now
and what that could look like for you and me
I’ve come to the remembrance repeatedly that I will fail a lot. I will mess up a lot. Every day, there are parts of me that meet a beautiful gloomy day (my favorite weather) and I stumble and faceplant for a while.
Humility is a choice.
And it can be a very difficult choice,
belonging in the home of others, of many,
many, difficult things.
Accompanying with a prayer of asking the Lord what He would have me learn, I started listening to Elder Utchdorf’s talk1 as I was studying this week’s Come Follow Me2 guidebook.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of listening to something possibly inspiring, one that calls someone to action, to change—and think, unconsciously, with a heart at war, “Oh, I know Mister Incredible needs to hear this.” That’s happened inside me a lot. More than I can count. And as the Lord lovingly gives me wisdom on humility, I’m learning that He wants me to pay attention to a part of my heart that still holds tightly to prideful battles I haven’t surrendered.
Wars I haven’t surrendered to His trust.
Wounds from those wars I haven’t stopped— that could have been healing had I surrendered my trust to Him.
If you are serious about helping to gather Israel and about building relationships that will last throughout the eternities, now is the time to lay aside bitterness. Now is the time to cease insisting that it is your way or no way. Now is the time to stop doing things that make others walk on eggshells for fear of upsetting you. Now is the time to bury your weapons of war. If your verbal arsenal is filled with insults and accusations, now is the time to put them away. You will arise as a spiritually strong man or woman of Christ.
One Sunday, a good friend gave a heartfelt, well-prepared talk at church on pride. She began explaining how pride stems from unresolved insecurities—and if we are teachable, the Lord can enlighten us where, how, or why these insecurities introduce themselves—in heavy or even seemingly light situations that almost feel like it is being demanded out of us.
Insecurities we project,
that could potentially hurt others.
Insecurities that cry out for help,
out of desperation for needs to be met.
I’ve been doing therapy work for a couple of years now and just a couple of weeks ago I really wondered if I actually knew God. I knew what He was, His identity. But there was this one moment where I just sat on my desk, looking at the picture of Jesus, and whispered to myself, “Do I really know Him? Do I understand the Gospel He gifted to me?” Because to be frank, it’s hard to ponder something we don’t understand. It’s hard to find joy in what He believes I can do—what I can change—what I can become.
Insecurities are false stories we battle with and keep fighting with, only because we believe in them. As we give faith in our countless insecurities, it gives them power. If we let the falseness take over, we can bring our fears to life.
Faith feeds power.
What more when we feed our faith in Jesus Christ? In the truthful stories that He tells us about who we really are? If we let Truth take over—if we let God take over, we can “…can gain (our) fondest dream(s).”3
A fondest dream could be
a happier marriage,
a more intentional use of individual autonomy,
a nice walk outside your house (or your comfort zone).
So, if you were to discover joy where you are now,
what does it look like?
Jae, you absolutely should be HERE. Your words lift. They encourage. They strengthen. Dis---courage ment just robs people of the life your words have. So shoot those arrows of faith!
It's been a while ago where I felt pretty unoffendable-- humble me! I'm on my way back with a slow trudge, looking for that place again. Man, have I learned nothing? Still, God wants us to get there. Good words Jae.