Hello everybody! Today’s post is about how sometimes we hit a wall. We may be doing something we really want to do, or really don't want to do. So the message is about having the faith to push through even when we don’t want to. On the other side of that wall, even though we can’t see it, are lessons that are going to be useful for the rest of our lives. Yes, I know that sounds a little cliché, but hear me out, or rather, read on.
As I referred to in my last post, the year 2020 was difficult for everybody. More difficult for some than others, but everyone was affected by it in one way or another. Of course, I don't need to tell you that, it has been all over the news and around us.
So why tell you something as redundant as that? The reason is because I want you to think about the days ahead and the possibilities that they hold despite the challenges that you personally have faced. Think about the lessons you have learned that can turn to positive uses, even given the difficult situation that individuals, the nation, and the world has gone through and is going through.
Think about the old saying, "When you hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up.'' I know the saying may sound cheeky, maybe you feel like you haven't hit rock bottom yet, but we can always try to go up, even in the most difficult times of our lives. Heck, even in the most positive times we can always try to go up.
Now is that always easy to remember? No, it is not. I am not a perfect person, I have had many days, times and thoughts of giving up. But I cannot tell you how many times my parents have told me to just try again. They have told me to try again even over my protesting time and time again, when it would have been easier for them to say, "Ok you win; we will do it your way." That—I'm sure they can attest to—would have been far easier at the time. But they loved me enough to go through the struggle with me, and tell me, "We understand this is hard for you but it is exactly why you need to do it."
For me, one of these many instances was a time when I was struggling after high school. All of my friends were leaving to serve full-time proselytizing missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, while I had decided to put in the paperwork for what is called a "service mission." Service missions in my church are typically a period of several months, served locally, engaged in helping out with various service projects, activities, and programs. But I felt it was a second-rate mission. Not because of anything I had been taught or told by my family or my church, but because I did not have the confidence that it could be something important. And since I wasn’t serving the same kind of mission as my friends, I felt like I was inadequate, or like I couldn't measure up, when in reality, that was a lie. Anyone who tells you that you don’t measure up, even if it's yourself saying it, is lying. The truth is, I was adequate with God's help.
Long story short, whether you are religious or not you can still make something of your life; it's your choice. To this day, serving a service mission was one of the best decisions I have made in my life. Serving a service mission helped me to grow and understand my value and worth, not only to God, but to my community and my country and, yes, even in some small way if I dare say it, to the world. I do not say these things to draw attention to myself, it wasn't me, I give credit to God, family, and friends, who all basically told the same thing: "Get off your rear, and stop having a pity party. Just get to work, and it will all work out".
So, what does that have to do with COVID or the year 2020 or even what we are facing right now? It's simple. It may not be easy, you, like me, may wonder what the purpose is. My answer... Just get to work! I can't tell you what that work is for you, or how hard it will be for you. But God knows, and like the very title of this blog, just reach anyway, even when you feel that you are inadequate. You might fall, but that's life. I mean, hey, I literally fall everyday :). So, that is my message.
Until next time! Keep that dream, hope, belief, whatever it is, and just reach anyway.
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