Weakness, Strength and Grace

Weakness.  Not "Weaknesses" but "Weakness". 

That's what we read in Ether 12:27. "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."

What if each of us were sent here with spiritual gifts that were crucial to our missions and purposes here on earth? And instead of coming to us in full strength, they showed up as weakness at first?
(Kinda like how we were born nearly blind. Our sight developed as we grew.)

Here's an example to get us started.  I am not a world-class gymnast.  I can not add up complex numbers in my head.  And neither of these things bother me in the least. 

 I could not care less that I can't do gymnastics-  and I haven't given it a second thought since 1st grade when I realized I didn't like my feet being over my head OR off the ground. 

 I am not one bit bothered that I need to pull out my calculator to figure out percent-off prices or to calculate which pre-packaged food is the better price per ounce. 

 It's cool. 

Do you know what does bother me about myself?  Being late.  How I hate being late.  Yet I do it over and over again.  

You know what else bothers me?  When I over-commit to things and find myself too busy doing good things and feeling guilty about forgetting them.

I would say those 2 areas of mine are in weakness.  And they bug me.

Isn't it interesting that all things have their opposites?  

Maybe even Strength and Weakness.

What if each quality was on a spectrum?  And we could rate ourselves and even track improvement?

Weak....................Average..................Strong...................Godly

What if I was destined to become a MASTER OF TIME? 

(Don't laugh...it could happen.  And it sounds cooler in my head-trust me. :) 

If it bugs me, it might be ready for change. 

Let's analyze those 2 weakness areas from earlier, shall we?

First off, lets talk about that Over-Committing Thing I mentioned.   I mean, that's not ALL BAD is it? 

Pros:

I love to be involved.

I like to help.

I have lots of interests.

Lots of things appeal to me.  

"How FUN! Let's Do IT!"  a common phrase :)

I like to "Lay hold on every good gift."

Cons:

What if I miss out on something? I Hate to miss out on good stuff.

What if I am NOT Included?

And no one misses me and I'm NEVER invited again?

What if I miss out on relationships and inside jokes and..and...and...?

Oh... wow.  Did you read all of that fear in that analysis?  Yep.  The "Con" side was FULL of Fear.  Hmm.... What do we know about fear?  Who is fear from?  If we are listening to fear, who are we listening to?  This is very interesting... And NOT where I want to be heading.

I decide to take proactive steps.  

Have you ever prayed to be healed from fear?  I decide to do it.

I picture the fear of Missing Out and Not being Included.

I pray to be healed from that fear and to be taken into Strength. 

 I pray until I feel a shift in my heart, a sweetness that my pleadings have been heard and will be answered. 

I write out a few affirmations that remind me of my new perspective.

"I will lay hold on every good gift, in the season thereof."

"I can do all things that are needful for my salvation, through Christ."

I trust that God will take care of me,  and will prompt me to say yes to those things that are Needful Things for My Salvation.  And I practice saying, "I'll get back to you."  And "I need to ponder on that for a bit."

On to the next area of weakness.

Tardiness.

Have you ever been tempted to tell a chronically-late friend to arrive 15 minutes early to things so they'll be there on time?  I was that friend in high school.  

I try to write out Pros for tardiness.  

Nothing comes up.  Why am I chronically participating in something that has no benefits?!?

I am totally breaking up with lateness.

On to the Cons:

Only one comes to mind.

"I'm not ready."

That's what I always say.  I'm always in fear that I'm not ready and am rushing about trying to find that one last item I need to feel calm and prepared for whatever the day may bring.

Like chapstick.  Or the phone I'm talking on.  Or .... 

This is totally and completely FEAR talking.

I realize I fear time.  I fear time like the slave I have been to time.  

I pray to be healed of my fear of time.  I pray that the switch can be flipped and I can become a Master over time. And that I can understand time.

Affirmations:  "Time doth gently sweetly guide...." 

"I have all the time I need to do those things that are needful."

Update::: 2 Weeks later

Guess what?!?

I have had wonderful experiences with TIME.  I let it flow around me.  I'm aware of it and I am understanding what to do to be Ready for whatever comes.  With the FEAR removed, I can think and receive inspiration. (Like the inspiration to use my phone calendar with alerts and drive time included. ) And the inspiration to know which activities to say Yes to... and when to hold off.  I'm mortal, so I still make mistakes as I work on building this new muscle to full-strength.  But I'm patient with myself.  Progress is good. 

I am feeling the flow of Time.  Who knew this would happen?  Or that this could happen?

Want to hear a wonderful and unexpected bonus?  I am not plagued with feelings of stress and guilt about being late, over-committed and of not being ready.  With the absence of stress and guilt, I have more room and time for the Spirit's calming presence. 

He's a pretty big PRO in my life.

Back to Ether 12:27. "And if men come unto me (in prayer? by turning their hearts to desire greater discipleship and greater obedience?) I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; (Listing out weakness, analyzing those areas of weakness, and seeing the FEAR that motivated me was very humbling)  and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; (His Grace is what healed my fear!) for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." (Amen!!  This is amazing!  I'm so grateful!!)

I'm ready to start again.  I start to ponder on which Weakness is ready to be gracefully turned to Strength.   
THOUGHTS? 

Dear Father: A Dialogue between a Daughter and the Father

A fictionalized account of letters from a Daughter,

 seeking the Voice of the Father. 

*******

Dear Father,
I heard today that I could write you a letter like a prayer, close it in the name of Christ, flip the paper over, write Dear Daughter, hold the pen ready to write, and then receive answers from Thee.  Is this true Father?  Could this be?
I am going to experiment on this idea and see.


Dear Daughter,
Experimenting on the Word is good.  The path you are starting on is a good path.  You do well to ask.


*******


Dear Father,
Please forgive me for not listening to Thee today.  I should have obeyed that feeling to reach out to my friend earlier.  Please bless her that my procrastination will not harm her.  Please help her and me to grow in the ways of righteousness.


Dear Daughter,
You are forgiven, as often as you earnestly seek for it.  Listen for promptings and have courage.


*******

Dear Father,
I am grateful for the prompting to listen to a certain conference talk today.  I will do as Thy apostle asks and read every scripture about Christ.  But Father, when will I find time to do this?  How can I do all the good things I desire to do?


Dear Daughter,
You need sleep.  Go to bed each night at 10 pm.  Wake each day at 6 am.  That will give you enough time to study and be with me and enough sleep to care for your body.

*******

Dear Father,
Please bless my family.  My child is struggling and I don't know where to turn.  Please help guide me.  Send those people into our lives that we need.  Help us to help our child.


Dear Daughter,
Your child is my child too.  I love him as I love you.  Trust that he is in the hollow of my hand and that my ways are not your ways.  All will be well with him.  Continue in the ways of righteousness.

*******

Dear Father,
Why am I awake? It's 3:48 am.  I really need to sleep.  I've been laying here for a while now, relaxing, trying to drift off to sleep.  I finally realized it's been a while since I sought Thy council.  Is there a reason I am awake now?


Dear Daughter,
You have learned well.  I need to tell you something.  Here are things for you to do this day and week....
You are awake right now because you have not found time to be still during the daytime in a while.   And you are awake because your spirit has missed spending time with me.


Dear Father,
Please forgive me.  I have not taken time to seek Thy counsel during the day time.  I see that I've been busy doing good things but haven't spent time with Thee in deep prayer.  I have missed Thee. Thank you for loving me.


*******


Dear Father,
As I read the scriptures about Christ that Thou prompted me to read and that a prophet counseled us to read, I read accounts of all of the people who have seen Thy Son while in mortality.  I read of people who are sanctified and purified through the Holy Ghost.  I read of people who saw and walked with Jesus Christ.  I read of incredible faith. I read of visions and great blessings.  A desire is growing in my heart, Father, that I don't dare put into words yet.
I am starting to view the scriptures not as an interesting history of prophets but as instructions for us of blessings we are instructed to seek, to ask for and to receive.  This mindset is hard to explain in words, as all things of the spirit can be.  I find that we don't have words that describe fully the learning we receive by Thy Holy Spirit.


Dear Daughter,
💗💗💗


*******


Dear Father,
 I love Thee.  I'm grateful for the learning and growth I'm having.  I can see how many ways Thou art shaping my life, turning my feet into certain paths, helping me along little by little.

Forgive me for my weakness.  Please make me whole again and let me find rest in Thee.  Forgive me for not going to the temple this week like I felt a desire to do.  I will pick a day next week and put it on my calendar.
What is next?  What does Thou desire of me now?


Dear Daughter,
You do well to repent and turn to me with full purpose of heart.  You haven't asked the questions you mean to ask, because of fear and unbelief.
Trust.  Fear not but believe.  Ask and it shall be given you.


Dear Father,
Forgive me.  I did forget to ask the question I meant to ask.
*What lack I yet?*


Dear Daughter,
That is the right question.
Seek to hear my voice. Often.
Once you hear it, see that you hearken unto it.
Then, you may seek my face.
Then you may ask for further light and knowledge, the thing you desire most.


Dear Father,
I believe. But...will Thou help my unbelief?  And my fear.
We are counseled to fear not.  Please heal all the fear in me.
We are counseled to believe all things. Please heal all the unbelief in me.


Dear Daughter,
Turn to me with all fear.  In the moment that you feel it, ask and I will heal it.
Turn to me with unbelief.  In the moment that you discover it, ask and I will make it into belief for you.
Learn to Hear My Voice.
Seek to Enter into My Presence.
Doubt Not.  Fear Not.  But Believe.
Be Perfected in Christ.

Seek to Enter into the Presence of the Lord and receive the blessings Thou desires.

*******


Further Reading:
Russell M. Nelson's Challenge to Read Every Scripture about Christ is issued here, "Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives."