My thoughts today are centering around CHOICES. The quality of my life is directly proportionate to the quality of the choices that I make -- every day! A totally simple concept, yet oh so difficult for some to fully comprehend.
I had a conversation with my daughter awhile back. She was dealing with some difficult friend challenges. Without compromising trust, I'll just say that she is at the age where friends start making different types of choices, which in turn creates the choice for her between friends and goals. She has some pretty solid goals that require a lot of time commitment and mental energy, and even though those goals are quite solid in her life vision, it's hard to know what to do when you realize you may lose the constant companionship of some of the people who have been a hugely important part of your life for a really long time! (15 years is an eternity to a teenager)
I explained to her (or rather reminded her) that she needs to look at what she wants today and what she really wants her life to be like in the future and decide what she wants more. She is a strong girl and really wise beyond her years, so she immediately replied with the ever popular teen phrase "I know, Mom..."--and I know that she really does know (which isn't the case for all teens who use that response), but what I said next seemed to really get to her:
(Of course I don't remember exactly what I said, so I'll paraphrase)
If you look at the life you have now, the life that Dad and I have given you, it's pretty great, isn't it? We have basically everything we want, and even more importantly, we are happy! We have an amazing, strong family. We are healthy; we get along; Dad and I love and respect each other; we have talents that we get to develop... We have a GREAT LIFE! Do you think that all of this is an accident? I will tell you right now that NO, it is in no way an accident.
When I was your age, I made choices. I knew what I wanted in life, so I chose very carefully how I was going to spend my time and who I was going to spend my time with. I had a lot of friends--because I chose to be kind to everyone and look for the good in them, even those who weren't always easy to like--but I didn't "hang out" with very many people. I wanted to go to college, and I knew that the only way I could go was if I worked really hard to get good grades and get a scholarship. I also had a job, starting at age 12, that limited how much time I had to "waste." Even more than that, I knew that I wanted an eternal family. I wanted to be married in the temple to someone who was worthy, which meant that I had to make sure that I was worthy. And because I made these goals my priority, it created a natural separation between me and others who did not have those same goals. Or maybe they did have those goals--in more of a mystical wish form--but they let day to day pleasure get in the way. I can't judge, and for many I have no idea how their lives are now, but I do know some who don't have the life that I have now.
Dad made choices. He sacrificed 2 of his "prime" years to serve a mission, when many of his friends and even siblings were making opposite choices. When he got home, he had the opportunity to play baseball on a semi-pro team and maybe even eventually on a pro team, but he knew that what he wanted most was an eternal family. When he felt prompted to leave his team in California and move to Utah to play baseball (what pro teams are in Utah...??), he immediately did! He went to the temple every week to get inspiration on which direction his life should go, and it was only a matter of months before he met me and we were married. He has always been faithful to his decision to be a husband and father, and he has worked HARD from day one to provide a good life for us. He sacrificed his free time and many things that he enjoyed to make sure I could stay at home and be Mom. After 15 years of being a mechanic, he sacrificed his comfort zone of being a mechanic to pursue Isagenix because he knew that spending a small amount of time in discomfort could in turn create the life he has always wanted to live. And we are living it!! It is not by accident! Everything we enjoy in our life--not just money, but EVERYTHING--is ON PURPOSE!
I'm not sure if you realize that, even though we do have a great earthly life, it is Eternal Life that is our true goal. That is what keeps us going. That is what allows us to enjoy personal revelation about which path to take, which decisions to make. We seek to know and understand the laws that Heavenly Father has given to us, and then we do our best to live those laws. That is why we have the life that we do. We are happy because we love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and we allow them to bless us by being choosing to be obedient.
It seems really simple, but choices are sacrifices, and the choices we make really make all the difference.
1 comment:
Oh, awesome!!! So well-said!
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