There are so many exciting things going on in life right now! Family stuff, work, research is moving along, graduation gets closer every single day, employment ideas, recruiter phone calls and job interviews, and some game development that is going very well right now. This blog is for spiritual matters. When I talk about non-spiritual matters I for sure want to talk about how it relates to seeking the guidance of the Lord and receiving answers to prayers.
Well, today is the first Sunday of the month and that means we had fast and testimony meeting today. I share my testimony often at church. Part of it is to overcome fear, but I try to feel when the Spirit tells me to bear my witness of the Savior. When I feel it most strongly, it is a feeling that starts the day or night before. I just know ahead of time that I'm going to do it so I am usually the first one up. That helps my nerves too, to be the first one up. I don't like being nervous so I'd rather act quickly and enjoy the rest of the meeting while I listen to other people's testimonies.
Another reason for sharing my testimony so often started many years ago when I learned that my sins can be forgiven by bearing testimony to others. That's in Doctrine and Covenants 62:3.
There are days that I really feel the Spirit (or lack of it) telling me not to bear my testimony that day. Those fast and testimony meetings tend to have lots of other people bearing testimony. Maybe I'm just being told ahead of time to not worry about it. I don't know. But what I do know is that when I feel like I should do something, it's always better to follow the promptings of the Spirit than to follow my own way.
I shared my testimony today about how much I love the beginning books in the Book of Mormon. I'm not sure if it's just Nephi's (and Jacob's) writing style. I think it's because they are bearing their own witness of Jesus Christ and that touches my soul. Most of what is in the 1st and 2nd books of Nephi is pure doctrine. A lot of what comes in later books includes mundane topics like history and war, speckled with doctrine. The last few chapters of the Book of Mormon really focus on the Spirit again and I really like those parts. Then, when I start reading the Book of Mormon over again, I bask in the testimony of one of my favorite prophets ever. I just feel so happy reading the testimony that others have of my Savior. It's a huge strength and blessing to me. One day I'll meet Nephi and tell him thanks (if that's how it works in heaven).
I enjoyed hearing everyone else's testimony today. The one I'll mention is a friend of ours who bore her testimony about a scripture that I have been telling Angie about a lot lately. When this friend quoted it, Angie and I looked at each other. It was awesome.
The scripture that she quoted can be found in Psalms 46:10 and D&C 101:16. "Be still and know that I am God." I have had a lot of things on my mind that are important (or that I make more important than they should be, like looking for work and my game development hobbies). "[Being] still" has saved my sanity lots of days over the past several months, ever since I began preparing for my interview with Google.
Our friend said, "This scripture has meant different things to me during my life," and that is true for me too. But the recurring theme for me is that I bring too much upon myself and try to handle it all. I love working on ideas and accomplishing big things (or what I think are big). In reality, I just need to calm myself down and understand the Lord's plan for me and "...know that [He] is God."
I'm holding back on exploring new job opportunities right now. The main reason is because I've been told way too many times by recruiters and employers that I need to call back when I'm about to graduate and can move on short notice. This is a good problem to have, but it hasn't stopped me from applying for more jobs that sound too awesome to pass up. Looking back, I just started looking for jobs too soon. The other reason that I'm not looking for jobs right now is that I found something at a recent astronomy conference that might work out and they will wait for me until the summer. Even without that, I wouldn't be looking for work right now like I have been. It takes a lot of time and there are many software development job openings right now.
My testimony is that the Lord knows all. His ways are higher than my ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). When He tells me something and I feel and recognize His voice, I know that obeying will be the best thing for my life. Hands down. No complaining. Just do it.
One more thing that I want to say is that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are among the nicest and most charitable people I know. A friend of mine that I play a lot of board games with fell off a ladder a couple days ago. Long story short, he landed on his heels and broke them in a big way. He'll be off his feet for months. Several willing people at church volunteered to go build a wheelchair ramp at their home. It's an emergency situation for this family. I love seeing people reach out and serve.
I love being a member of this church.
That was a wonderful meeting, and I loved that friend's testimony too. Thanks for reminding me about it. And thanks for sharing yours on your blog each week, it is really great to read and be reminded of things that I, too, know.
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