Quest 1: Trials (Blogging Anniversary)

Tara said...
I have watched your family closely since you guys moved here and I have always been so impressed with your faith, hope and endurance in the midst of trials. What is the trick to staying so positive during the rough times? I think we could all learn a lot from you!

Well, Tara, I appreciate your kind words. I don't know if I deserve them, but I will try to tell you what I tend to think when I'm faced with trials. There are two particular truths that I hold dear to my heart:

One, I know that all of my experiences are for my own good (as with everyone else's). I try to look for the lesson that I can learn from them. I sincerely pray during my hardships, with great intensity, that I will gain wisdom from the challenges I face. I believe having this attitude helps me to bear the burden of the moment, because I know that I am in a refiner's fire being purified. I know that I am gaining critical knowledge and skills, that I otherwise would not be able to gain, if I were not to walk that thorny path. I feel it a priviledge to have the trust of my Heavenly Father to put me through such difficulties. Therefore, I try my best to uphold that trust by reflecting an attitude and behavior that would make Him proud. For it's by his hand that I'm able to bear them anyway, and in the end they become a tremendous blessing to me for having gone through them.

Secondly, I know that my trials and blessings are in direct relationship to one another. Like a pendulum that swings, where the force of one object in one direction equals the exact same force of that object in the opposite direction, trials and blessings equal each other in polar sides of the spectrum. Meaning: the heavier the trial, the bigger the blessing; The gentler the adversity, the smaller the profit. Consequently, I, personally, want the most out of this life. I like my progression to be abundantly swift. I know that it is accomplished through accumulated tribulations. I feel the bigger the better, sometimes. It catapults me at a faster rate. It projects me forward toward more lofty things, especially eternal rewards. I enjoy being happy and finding fulfillment in unexpected moments. Those feelings usually come as a by-product of a trial, whether directly or indirectly. The degree to which I feel joy, correlates to the amount of suffering I have went through in previous situations. I remember, it is vital to have opposition in all things to know of a surety between them. My trials are a stepping stone to what I aspire to. I know they're necessary in attaining all my worthwhile goals, so I try to embrace them.

I hold fast to these doctrines. It gives me a foundation to steady myself when the storms of life come. Do I always walk with a perfect attitude? No. Do I always have a smile on my face? Absolutely not. However, I try, and do the best I can, as we all do. I strive to be optimistic when things are rough, because I know that's one thing I can control. Besides, I don't like being around negative attitudes. I find them to be quite suffocating, so I try intensely to not send off that aura myself. I want others to feel good in my presence, despite what I may be going through at any given moment. That's important to me.

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Thanks, Tara, for the question. I hope I answered it clearly. I will be posting my answers to the others soon. If anyone else has a question for me, let me know. I'm devoting time to them this week. Remember, the question can be about ANYTHING, if you have one!