Not much to report today for me, but a friend of mine I chatted with a bit today had one of those spiritual days, the kind where you’re just so filled with the Spirit and with joy, and so full of gratitude to God that the tears flow, and the verbal expression of feeling just… can’t adequately describe the experience.
I’m grateful for that experience, excited for my friend. And on a day when I personally just feel… heavy and worn out, it was nice to feel the joy for my friend’s beautiful day.
🥰
It was a hot day today, and the heat of the sun woke me up as it cooked the van even at the early hours of the morning. 🙃
I did get more sleep last night. 🙏 And I’m still exhausted for whatever reason. 🙃
Probably just not enough food and sleep for a prolonged period of time.
It’s been more than that, though, I think. Like a heaviness just trying to get me down.
Had the impression that if I went to bed really early, I’d wake up in the middle of the night, and I’d be primed for sliding into things I don’t want to slide into.
So I’ve kept myself awake, waiting for the night to come. 🙃
Been texting with people all day about good and uplifting things, and guess what?!?! My records got transferred to my new ward. 🙏
And guess what else?!?! I connected with a member of the bishopric about getting a virtual temple recommend interview. 🎉 It’s not a sure thing yet, but he sounded pretty optimistic we could make it happen, and then hopefully I can send them money to mail my recommend to me.
It’s taken a lot of constant spiritual nourishment in my ears all day long to stay above the heaviness–my friend’s experience being the brightest and best part of the day.
It’s only 8:47. 🙃
Oh! One interesting thought I had today was with regard to the concept of Jesus as our advocate with the Father. As I heard that, I understood it differently than I ever have before: I understood it as our advocate along with the Father. For some reason, I hadn’t realized that understanding was also completely possible, and it fits much more than with the all-loving, incredible Father I feel I know.
Anyway, gonna be eating dinner soon, and then I’m gonna do what I mentioned last night. I’m not going to go to bed until I feel gratitude and peace and happiness, even if I have to spend hours writing out what I’m grateful for and chatting with The Big Guy.
Oh! I was grateful to see this report of my efforts from JustAnswer:
“You have demonstrated exceptional skills in engaging with customers and addressing their concerns effectively. Your ability to clarify issues is commendable, as you consistently ask relevant questions that help uncover important details. This approach not only aids in problem-solving but also fosters a sense of collaboration with the customer. You excel at providing comprehensive troubleshooting steps, yet there’s an opportunity to enhance the experience by breaking down complex information into smaller, manageable parts. This will make it easier for customers to follow along without feeling overwhelmed. Your follow-up interactions show a genuine commitment to ensuring customer understanding, as you often check back to see if they have any questions. This open dialogue reinforces your supportive nature and encourages customers to express their thoughts. Additionally, your warm and inviting closing remarks create a welcoming atmosphere for future interactions. To further strengthen your communication, consider summarizing key points discussed before concluding, as this can reinforce the information shared and boost customer confidence. Overall, your versatility in handling a broad range of scenarios, from brand-specific inquiries to general topics, showcases your expertise and adaptability. Keep up the great work in maintaining an encouraging tone and confirming customer understanding, as these strengths significantly enhance the quality of the customer experience.”
It’s nice to have something more than just the raw data that… clearly doesn’t mean much at all because it isn’t accurate and doesn’t have any real impact on seemingly… anything.
…
Just after 10:15 now. I made it! And not only did I make it, I’m actually happy now. The heaviness is gone. I feel much much lighter and I’m filled with a measure of peace and happiness.
My sister Heather made us a tasty dinner, we chatted for a bit, and now I’m out in my van, once again hoping that today is the day that I get myself back on track and write every night instead of going in spurts.
That said, my stats tell me that I’ve lost most, if not all of the people who once read my blog, so the number of people who would be disappointed seems to be fairly low. 🙃
Gratitude:
- Firstly, I’m grateful that after a very long day of feeling heavy and worn out, I get to go to bed much much lighter.
- I’m grateful for the library app, specifically the music section and the efforts that have been made to produce recordings of the hymns in much emotionally evocative ways, as opposed to the sort of stiff hears the tune and how to play it type of recordings that used to be on here. It’s so much nicer to be able to listen and just enjoy the hymns, especially the new ones. 🥰
- I’m grateful that the last few days I’ve seen a little bit of a reprieve to the worst of the spine symptoms. I’ll be grateful for the reprieves, and I’ll be grateful for the exacerbations. 🙏
- I’m grateful for the opportunity to have felt heavy today, to keep fresh in my mind the reminder of how things can feel for myself and others.
- I’m grateful for the great goodness of God in lifting and inspiring and encouraging. I’m grateful for the boundless love, for the gentleness and tenderness. I’m grateful for the guidance and the strength.
- I’m grateful that my friend was able to experience that pure joy and love and gratitude to god. Those are some of my favorite experiences of my entire life. Glory to God on high. 🥰
Success:
- Despite the heaviness, I kept battling today. It was a prolonged and suffocating heaviness, but I kept pushing and kept pushing. I kept filling my mind and ears with positive, uplifting music and speeches and scriptures and conversations, and by the end of the day, here I am, in a much better place. I’m grateful to have been given the strength to battle. I’m grateful for the little whisper that said to not go to bed early because I would wake up in the wee hours of the morning with nothing to do but lie there, which is a dangerous circumstance for someone with the neural pathways that I have. In the past, when I ignore that little whisper, I end up sliding. In the past, I think I’ve told myself things like, well, let’s just see if that’s true. And then I do slip.
Improvement:
- I’m not sure what to write here. I hope it doesn’t sound arrogant for me to not be able to think of readily available things to improve upon, but today was a really hard day, and I feel really good about my efforts.
My love to you all. 🥰
Lift the world.
Bring it on.
~ stephen
Lift the World 