Hey guys, it's been a minute. Apparently, my game didn't last very long. I'm not good at sticking to my ideas. (Maybe a little undiagnosed inattentive ADHD? Could explain a lot of things, but I'm pretty sure you aren't supposed to diagnose yourself. And I'm not a psychiatrist. But it would even explain this random tangent.) It was fun while it lasted. I don't really know what to share, but I thought I should share something. I've had a lot of thoughts about growth and change recently. I have thoughts about growth all the time actually and am constantly trying to figure out what my next move is for becoming a better person and how I can change.
So maybe I'll share a little about one of my favorite books. We've all heard about The Book of Mormon. Well, within that book there is another book called The Book of Jacob. I love The Book of Jacob. There are a few chapters that I love throughout the whole Book of Mormon and read all the time; however, all the chapters in The Book of Jacob are some of my go-to chapters. Jacob teaches the allegory of the olive tree, and it is fantastic. I love it. Maybe it hits me more or makes a lot of sense to me because my favorite chores growing up were always the outdoor chores in the garden or helping take care of the various fruit trees. (RIP the beloved peach tree that took so much work. It had the best peaches on this planet.)
Pruning the rose bushes has taught me that different branches of your life will bud and blossom at different times. We sometimes have to work on one thing for a while and then work on something else. Just because it isn't important for us to work on something now does not mean it won't be pertinent later. For example, I felt it important to work on developing a business. At this moment, that's something that just isn't plausible and has been put to the side for a bit. In the future, I may come back to that and let it bloom and grow.
Pruning for me and my life often comes in the form of long talks with God and what I call chastenings. I go on bike rides when I have some serious talks with God to do (especially since the temples are closed because of COVID). I talk to God about the things that I need to change and ask Him about what I need to know right now. I made the realization a few months ago that my chastenings have gotten much better, and that I enjoy my talks with God and receiving direction. Even when it's direction that I don't necessarily think I want.
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| Yeah, I know I look cool with the pigtails. |
As your relationship gets better with God, so do your prunings, your chastenings. And probably most people won't call them chastenings like I do. I just have an interesting relationship with God. I encourage you to talk to God and ask Him what He needs you to know right now. I can tell you that He loves you and wants you to know. More often than not, when I ask Him, "What do You need me to know right now?", He has answered that I need to know that He loves me. Nothing in this world even matters unless you know that God loves you. Ask Him. Talk to Him. It's hard sometimes, and it's worth it. You may cry. An emotionally guarded person like me cries when God tells me He loves me and when He tells me what I need. Being pruned and growing leads to good fruit when it's led by God and fed by a relationship with Him. Go with God.
For another resource about pruning that I love, here is one of my favorite inspirational videos. I quote it (to myself) often because I love it so much and because I feel like it has pertained to so much in my life. You can also find other similar inspirational messages here.
