Trust in the Lord

I know this is basically what I wrote about last week and that I have been writing a lot about trusting in God the past few whatevers. But, this came to mind to write as the blog post today and I feel like sharing it.

Alrighty. In July we had a Zone Conference and the main topic was "align your will"

What does it mean to trust?

Well, here are some necessary elements for trust....

• Risk/possibility of harm
• Expectation of safety
• Give up control

Risk- Often we are asked to do something and questions like these come to mind...What if I look like a fool? What will happen if I do that? No one will like me... I won't like the change. I don't know what to say! How are they going to react? 

Many times with risk, we have a fear of the unknown. We have feelings of uncertainty. We have to take a risk. Our missionaries said that risk is anything you put on the alter of sacrifice. You are going to sacrifice your comfort, the known, to trust in the Lord.

Expectation of Safety- There are angels about you, the spirit will guide, God won't let you down.

There are promises all over the scriptures to those who trust in the Lord and do His will. Sometimes we are afraid to keep a commandment (remember risk?) but we just have to trust that the promises will be fulfilled that the Lord has made with us.

Give up Control- This is when you give Him your all. You submit to His will and fully rely on Him to keep His promises. You hold nothing back. 

I think about the trust fall...If you haven't heard of a trust fall, go look them up. Basically one person falls backwards into the arms of someone standing behind them.

Remember, that even if the promises don't seem to come, trust that they will come in due time and give the Lord your all. 

Some things that were mentioned in the conference to help us learn to trust God more were these: Put more on the alter, believe more, and rely on Him more. 

There is a skit online by Onetimeblind where Christ asks the girl to trust Him in a trust fall. She refuses to trust Him at the end because she can't see anyone behind her. I think this says a lot about when God asks us to do things and we can't see the end result. That's what is hard. That takes faith, that takes trust. And it is always well worth it.

Meekness and Humility

I was flipping through one of my mission journals today and I came across an experience or two that made me think of humility and meekness.

The first one was last March when I was struggling with something. I humbled myself and asked for a priesthood blessing. After the blessing I felt so happy.

I then read the rest of my journal entry for that day, and as I read I reflected on how humble those two Elders were and are. I don't know what it is like to be asked to give a priesthood blessing, but I can imagine that it is a humbling experience. You are asked to be the mouthpiece of God to one of His children. It isn't just a prayer in front of a congregation, but the Lord speaking directly to an individual. Wow. One must really be in tune with the spirit in that situation and must be submissive enough to say the things the Lord wants said instead of what they want to say. It blows me away every time.

Another journal entry in July was reflecting on the talk "Meekly Drenched in Destiny" by Elder Neal A Maxwell. I wrote down this sentence: Being meek doesn't mean you are a doormat. Often we realize that those that are meek and humble are submissive. We don't always realize though that they are submissive to God's will and His gospel, and not always others. Someone who is meek and humble can also be steadfast and immovable. They remember that it is better to save one soul than it is to save one's face.

In Preach My Gospel chapter 6, this is what it says about Humility

"Humility is willingness to submit to the will of the Lord and to give the Lord the honor for what is accomplished. It includes gratitude for His blessings and acknowledgment of your constant need for His divine help. Humility is not a sign of weakness; it is a sign of spiritual strength. When you humbly trust Him and acknowledge His power and mercy, you can have the assurance that His commandments are for your good. You are confident that you can do whatever the Lord requires of you if you rely on Him. You are also willing to trust His chosen servants and follow their counsel. Humility will help you as you strive to be obedient, to work hard, and serve selflessly..." (emphasis added)

 This quote is awesome. Just saying. Read it over and over again. It's great. When I read this quote, I ask myself these questions: Do I submit to the will of the Lord? Do I give Him the honor? Do I know that I need His help? Do I know that whatever He asks me to do is for my good? Do I follow Him willingly, knowing that whatever He has asked me to do, I can accomplish?

I know this is short, and I know I didn't go into great depth on this subject, but I hope that what I have written can spark some thoughts in your minds and hearts. I know that submitting to the will of the Lord, trusting in Him, is amazing and that as we truly humble ourselves before Him, there is nothing that we can't accomplish.

"Lose Yourself and Go to Work"

Many know that this is the phrase that Gordon B. Hinckley's father wrote him while he was serving a mission.

This is a lesson that took me quite a while to learn while I was on my mission, and even near the end, I wasn't perfect at it.

As I pulled out the letters back and forth to Pres. Wirthlin today, I realized how nervous I was about doing everything right. I wanted to make sure I didn't mess up. I wanted to make sure that no one thought ill of me. I was so worried about being perfect, that I got caught up in myself.

As President Benson says in his talk "Beware of Pride" : "Fear of men's judgment manifests itself in competition for men's approval. The proud love 'the praise of men more than the praise of God.' (John 12:42-43.) Our motives for the things we do are where the sin is manifest. Jesus said He did 'always those things' that pleased God. (John 8:29.) Would we not do well to have the pleasing of God as our motive rather than to try to elevate ourselves above our brother and outdo another?"

I was guilty of pride. And that's ok. I look back and think "how many times were we encouraged to read that talk?" So many times! And all of us were! Because all of us deal with pride. It is such a common sin. And all of us are guilty.

As I lost myself in God's work and didn't worry about what others thought, I was able to be so much happier. When all I cared about was what God thought of me, I performed so much better. And perhaps on the outside to others I didn't perform better, but on the inside, I did. My motives were pure. My desires were aligned with God, and even if I messed up, my desires had been in the right place.

As I continued through the letters I wrote President, I noticed that they became less focused on myself and more focused on the people and my testimony of the gospel. My emails were much more light and happy, filled with joy and the spirit. I know that when I aligned my will and my motives with God's, every day became brighter.

This relates to the self-love post I put on beexceedinglyglad last week. When I didn't care anymore about what others thought of me, I loved myself more, and found peace.

I am grateful that God has taught me so much and has helped me to become the person He needs me to be. I am grateful as well that I am not perfect, life would be boring if that was the case. I learn so much every day because of the Lord. I know He lives. I know He loves us perfectly.

Planning and Sacrifice

Most people understand that missionaries are supposed to learn how to plan. They hear about the missionary daily planner, daily planning, weekly planning, lesson planning, etc.

God is a planner. There's something called....The Plan of Salvation. Whoa. And His is a house of order, He's got to be pretty organized right?

Well, fortunately for me, I started my mission off already having been a crazy organized planner person. I still learned more about planning as I tore apart chapter 8 of Preach My Gospel. As I continued my mission though, I found that no matter how much prayer and faith you included in your planning process, things still changed.

Everyone knows that things don't always go as planned. And for me, that was super hard to accept. I like to be in control of everything. I want things to go my way. If something throws a wrench in my plans, well, then they deal with a grumpy person that has a thundercloud over their head. Or at least that's what I sometimes see...

As my mission progressed, I got a little bit better at accepting that things weren't always going to be in my control. Try as I might, others have different opinions than mean. Also, the Master Planner's plans can over-ride mine all the time. So since He knows best, shouldn't I just give up my will and follow what He has in store? Yes.

That's a bit harder, no, a lot harder than it is to say.

I had a companion that once said something like this... "before we go into a lesson, we say a prayer. It's kinda like burning the offering. We've planned, we've prepared, but we pray so that we have the spirit with us and also so that if God wants to teach something else, we will be willing to be His mouthpiece. We will surrender our will to His. He knows His children much better than we do."

Burning the offering. Sacrifice right? What are we putting on God's alter? Our will, our control, our trust. We decide to trust in Him and have faith that He will take care of each situation.

Joshua 1:9
"Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest."
D&C 123:17
"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for His arm to be revealed."

There you go. Remember, He is with you. Therefore, do all you can and then... Don't Worry About It, Buddy! (the DWAIB concept). :)

I love you, I love the gospel. I love my Heavenly Father. I am so grateful that no matter what, He is kind and compassionate. He loves all of us so much. Even though we get frustrated with His plans sometimes, or we take our trust in Him away, He still loves us unconditionally. What a great Father. :)