I was reading the Ensign this morning (another new thing...I've tried to get up every morning at 6:30 to get in some spiritual food before I have to give it all to the little ducks pecking at me all day). So I was reading Christofferson's Talk about Recognizing God's hand in our Daily Lives. I was already trying to do this because I'm also ready Emily Freeman's 21 Days Closer to Christ. (Mom had already bought it for a Christmas gift when I asked for it). Anyway, Emily has a gift to put herself in the situations that she reads about in the accounts of Christ. Talent. So each little chapter has a challenge to reflect upon and ponder till you are ready to move on. I am on the one to recognize all that God does for me each day. And then I read Christofferson's Talk. Hmmm, there's a tender mercy -- I know my Heavenly Father is so mindful of me.
It is comforting to be reading an article/story and be able to relate to the write 100%. That's what happened with me and Christofferson.
Here is a portion of his talk and it is exactly how I feel and have felt for the past year and a half.
"Trusting in the Lord
Some time before I was called as a General Authority, I faced a personal economic challenge that persisted for several years. (my personal challenge was/is answering the call to homeschool) It ebbed and flowed in seriousness and urgency, but it never went away. At times this challenge threatened the welfare of my family, and I thought we might be facing financial ruin. (Yes, I too have felt the same) I prayed for some miraculous intervention to deliver us. Although I offered that prayer many times with great sincerity and earnest desire, the answer in the end was no. Finally, I learned to pray as the Savior did: “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). I sought the Lord’s help with each tiny step along the way to a final resolution. (Me, too!...okay, you get the point, I'll stop :)
There were times when I had exhausted all my resources, (yip) when I had nowhere and no one to turn to for help to meet the exigency before me. With no other recourse, more than once I fell down before my Heavenly Father, begging in tears for His help. (been there) And He did help. Sometimes it was nothing more than a sense of peace, a feeling of assurance that things would work out. (I felt it) I might not see how or what the path would be, but He gave me to know that, directly or indirectly, He would open a way. Circumstances might change, a new and helpful idea might come to mind, some unanticipated income or other resource might appear at just the right time. Somehow there was a resolution.
Though I suffered then, I am grateful now that there was not a quick solution to my problem. (haven't felt that yet) The fact that I was forced to turn to God for help almost daily over an extended period of years taught me how to truly pray and get answers to prayer and taught me in a practical way to have faith in God. (that's what i'm learning, it's incredible and incredible hard) I came to know my Savior and my Heavenly Father in a way and to a degree that might not have happened otherwise or that might have taken me much longer. I learned that daily bread is a precious commodity. I learned that manna today could be as real as the physical manna of biblical history. I learned to trust in the Lord with all my heart. I learned to walk with Him day by day.
Working through Problems
Asking God for our daily bread rather than our weekly, monthly, or yearly bread is also a way for us to focus on the smaller, more manageable bits of a problem. To deal with something big, we may need to work at it in small, daily bites. Sometimes all we can handle is one day—or even just part of one day—at a time." AMEN! I totally agree!
It is comforting to be reading an article/story and be able to relate to the write 100%. That's what happened with me and Christofferson.
Here is a portion of his talk and it is exactly how I feel and have felt for the past year and a half.
"Trusting in the Lord
Some time before I was called as a General Authority, I faced a personal economic challenge that persisted for several years. (my personal challenge was/is answering the call to homeschool) It ebbed and flowed in seriousness and urgency, but it never went away. At times this challenge threatened the welfare of my family, and I thought we might be facing financial ruin. (Yes, I too have felt the same) I prayed for some miraculous intervention to deliver us. Although I offered that prayer many times with great sincerity and earnest desire, the answer in the end was no. Finally, I learned to pray as the Savior did: “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). I sought the Lord’s help with each tiny step along the way to a final resolution. (Me, too!...okay, you get the point, I'll stop :)
There were times when I had exhausted all my resources, (yip) when I had nowhere and no one to turn to for help to meet the exigency before me. With no other recourse, more than once I fell down before my Heavenly Father, begging in tears for His help. (been there) And He did help. Sometimes it was nothing more than a sense of peace, a feeling of assurance that things would work out. (I felt it) I might not see how or what the path would be, but He gave me to know that, directly or indirectly, He would open a way. Circumstances might change, a new and helpful idea might come to mind, some unanticipated income or other resource might appear at just the right time. Somehow there was a resolution.
Though I suffered then, I am grateful now that there was not a quick solution to my problem. (haven't felt that yet) The fact that I was forced to turn to God for help almost daily over an extended period of years taught me how to truly pray and get answers to prayer and taught me in a practical way to have faith in God. (that's what i'm learning, it's incredible and incredible hard) I came to know my Savior and my Heavenly Father in a way and to a degree that might not have happened otherwise or that might have taken me much longer. I learned that daily bread is a precious commodity. I learned that manna today could be as real as the physical manna of biblical history. I learned to trust in the Lord with all my heart. I learned to walk with Him day by day.
Working through Problems
Asking God for our daily bread rather than our weekly, monthly, or yearly bread is also a way for us to focus on the smaller, more manageable bits of a problem. To deal with something big, we may need to work at it in small, daily bites. Sometimes all we can handle is one day—or even just part of one day—at a time." AMEN! I totally agree!
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