What do you when a commandment hits you as though it were "the first time"? So often it is a common sense thing that I should've thought of... often I find others completely disregarding the same commandment. Do you get down on yourself? Do you immediately comply? Do you even know how to comply? Do you change your whole life? How do you react?
--Ray
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I'm not slow; I'm special. (Don't take it personally, everyone finds me offensive. Yet somehow I manage to live with myself.)
no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing... the truth of God will go forth till it has penetrated every website, sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done
Ahem. I'm waiting to hear it from the proverbial horse's mouth.
Especially interested in the "others completely disregarding the same commandment" thought. I wonder how he knows this, especially when cheer or optimism seems to be largely an "internal" status, like lust or pride or envy...
Carry on.
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
I'm talking generalities. I'm sorry, Coco, if this never happens to you... but I'm still discovering things commandments of the Lord in my life, sometimes they come through personal study and prayer, other times say while watching conference and a certain aspect becomes more important than it once was...
--Ray
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I'm not slow; I'm special. (Don't take it personally, everyone finds me offensive. Yet somehow I manage to live with myself.)
Yeah, I was thinking you heard the "be cheerful" from Elder Holland's talk and thought, "Ah ha! I knew my stand stand on conspiracies was right and those Others were wrong! And now I have proof!"
Okay, maybe just jokingly.
If you're really just talking in generalities, if something comes to me "suddenly" or in a manner that I could consider "forceful" I comply immediately. Firstly, of course, I thank the Lord right then, in my mind, for the knowledge and tell Him I recognize His trying to tell me something. I then proceed to live it as well as I can. If it means changing my whole life, you betcha' I start to change it and RIGHT NOW. My thought is when you procrastinate even a small measure, you are in essence telling the Lord, "Thanks for the info, but I really have more important things to do." And next time, guess what? Maybe you'll "hear" it and maybe you won't. I don't want to risk that. If others seem to utterly disregard this teaching, which on hindsight might very well be "obvious" now, I try not to give that a second thought as second thoughts tend to lead to third thoughts and pretty soon I may be thinking I'm in some way "more enlightened" than that person. I might be. But the speculations or knowledge of that don't help me accomplish anything. Maybe they are at "D" on a particular teaching and I'm at "W", with Z being perfection. That's just one little fraction of what I "see" of them. I open myself up to a myriad of problems when I compare my status, as it were, to other people's.
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
So have you ever been angry at a new commandment? I've known people that got defensive and angry at counsel they've received, but I've always kinda been the type that was either passive agressive rebellious or the something quite the opposite... like I comply and think bad thoughts about myself. :(
Sometimes I wonder if God's gonna just say, "Sorry, you just aren't good enough." And I'd probably say, "I knew it!" Heck. I'll probably be relieved.
--Ray
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I'm not slow; I'm special. (Don't take it personally, everyone finds me offensive. Yet somehow I manage to live with myself.)
Yes, I've felt mad at some things at first. Now, I'm going to make a distinction here, though. There's a difference for me between when a commandment "hits me" as you called it in your op - like I know God is communicating to me, there is no question. This is personal info coming to me. That's when I 1) acknowledge it by thanking God, and 2) commit to live it. There's also times when I'm hearing counsel but there is not any particular "hitting" going on. This happened through all of Gen. Conf. this time. Nothing hit me in such a way that I know I'd be held accountable for not heeding this new info I received from God. Yes, it was all good counsel. Yes, I could do better in many areas that were discussed. But nothing said to me, "You must live this and it's time for a change NOW," the way I've gotten other directions.
Part of three of the talks were making me a little ... miffed. I'm going to read back through the Ensign and try to understand them more fully. Most of the time the "hit me" stuff comes as I'm reading alone (see learning style- reading) so I think I'll be more prepared to "accept" something personal at that point. Until then, I don't stress about it and try to keep my shoulder to the wheel. Maybe I just have a little growing to do before the directive comes. Or maybe I'll re-read them and not feel the same at all. I don't take all good counsel as something I personally have to internalize post-haste. I work at the basics and get personal guidance as neccessary for my circumstances or as I desire it.
Do you feel like you live the Gospel more defensively or offensively?
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
