Finding Joy in Times of Trial and Suffering

This is a talk I gave in my church a week and a half ago. I have had many who heard it approach and thank me for my words and the honesty that I was willing to share with them. When giving a talk I look at it from the point of view that if I can help or touch one person who needs it, then the talk was worth giving.

Here it is:

I was asked to speak today on the topic of Finding Joy in Times of Trial and Suffering. I already had plenty of trials to fall back on but in less than one week after agreeing to speak on this topic, I was given more trials to endure, most likely to test my resolve and my faith. Once I got over the shock and came to grips with my new, unfavorable situation, I kneeled down to pray and asked Heavenly Father, “Please don’t give me any more trials, I think I have enough examples for the talk I am going to give.” In the whirlwind that followed over the next week and a half, to the point when I wrote this talk last night, I had lot of thoughts. Eventually I came to the conclusion that I, myself, am the living proof that you can still hold onto joy and not succumb to despair, while your whole world is collapsing around you. In a devotional to BYU-Idaho in 2007, Brother Larry Richman had a great thought on this subject. He said “I’ve learned that the way I respond to trials can have a great effect on whether they become roadblocks in my life or expressways to learning and growth. When I anguish over difficulties, the experiences only serve to weigh me down. But remembering that these trials are part of the great plan of happiness helps me to see them as opportunities to grow and learn.” 

Is this not the absolute truth? When something comes along and tests your resolve to function in life, you have two choices. The first choice is to lay down and let the world overwhelm you, withdrawing while pretending that there is nothing you can do about it. The second choice is turn to heavenly father by getting down on your knees and praying for his guidance, his love, and his help to overcome the calamity that has befallen you. Before you know it, your heart will be filled with his love and you can push forward through life again, and begin to work through the problem. In the October 2017 Conference, Elder Uchtdorf told us “When the darkness of night falls, we do not despair and worry that the sun is extinguished. We do not postulate that the sun is not there or is dead. We understand that we are in a shadow, that the earth will continue to rotate, and that eventually the rays of the sun will reach us once again. ; If you open your mind and heart to receive the Light of Christ and humbly follow the Savior, you will receive more light. Line upon line, here a little and there a little, you will gather more light and truth into your souls until darkness has been banished from your life.”

We lean on Heavenly Father to give us the strength to find our joy in times of darkness. When we have extended periods without joy, our faith begins waver and could fracture, or even be destroyed. It is easier to fix something that is just cracked, than it is to rebuild it from scratch. I speak to this from my own experience. After I returned from war in Iraq and also, after my divorce, my faith had nearly shattered beyond repair. I was unhappy and sad for so long that I no longer turned to my savior in my times of need. I made choices that affected me for a long time and led me away from Jesus and his love. The more decisions I made causing me to stray from the path that Christ had laid out for me, the more unhappy and difficult my life became. I found myself relying on worldly things to try and bring me joy, but they only ended up making the emptiness I felt inside widen to a cavern of nearly limitless proportions. This led to self-loathing and discouragement about being able to forgive myself, let alone return to church without bursting into flames the moment I set foot inside. An article in the March 2013 Ensign described it perfectly “I had become an ‘empty chair.’ I felt as though Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ could never forgive me for what I’d done. Every time I would even consider trying to clean up my life during the moments when I could think clearly, self-loathing and discouragement took over. I would then give up on myself again.”  This predicament makes it incredibly difficult for any progress in your spiritual life to be made and you begin to look at it, like a mountain peak that can never be climbed. At some point you are ready to give up and turn your back on your faith, for all time. I definitely approached this point and was in danger of grinding my faith into dust, but then I met people who had the savior’s light shining so brightly within them, that it re-lit the fire in my own heart, which returned me to Christ and to the Church. Finding your joy can be as simple as partaking of the sacrament, reconnecting with someone you haven’t talked to in a long time, or just watching children interact with the world around them. Even writing a talk, in the darkest of hours, can bring a little joy into your heart. 

A great of example of this has been happening within the church during this holiday season. I have found that many of my friends have been posting on social media about their Light the World moments. This program is amazing at bringing joy to those in the church and all those with whom church members have been interacting. Seeing these moments of joy happening to people that I know in real world is amazing to see for me, even if it was through Instagram and Facebook. This has continued to light the joy in my heart and keep me from even thinking about my own problems. This is especially heartening considering that I can turn into a curmudgeon during the holidays, just ask my family. Without even realizing it, my friends have made me more joyful in this time of trial. 

Brothers and Sisters, we have so many choices to make in our lives, why not choose the path that not only brings joy to ourselves, but to everyone around us as well. In October of 2008, President Monson told us “We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us. ; Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved.” 

We must show our joy to others as examples of the love Christ has for us and you will never know how that joy will affect someone who is struggling.

I'm pathetic

I made it a week without a crush. Totally pathetic on my part. What is wrong with me? I don't want to want anybody. Granted it's just a light crush, but I still melt whenever I see her.

KMN. (Kill Me Now)

Frame of Mind

Just read the headline of an article "You should right a love note to your crush."
It made me think, for the time ever, I don't have a crush, a secret love, or someone who "tickles my fancy."
For 20+ years I was either pining or actively pursuing someone. Today I am not. Even 4 months ago I was still in that frame of mind.
It's oddly peaceful when you don't have to worry about that stuff. Don't get me wrong I still have dating apps on my phone and if I thought someone was interesting enough, I would go out with them, but it could be weeks before I touch those apps and everyone I come across in real life just doesn't seem to rev my engine.
It is a weird thing to reflect on. I still have friends who are actively looking for their soulmates, but I am at a moment where it does not even factor into my priorities.
Sorry ladies, this guy has better things to do.

The New Plan

So an update after my minor, my life-altering panic from Tuesday, I have made a few decisions and have a basic plan. After lots of thought, praying, and time to talk it out, I have decided I am giving myself until Memorial Weekend 2018 to find happiness in my life here. If I am unsatisfied and feeling alone still, then I will move on. Most likely it will be to Colorado or California, where I still have support systems in place, but I cannot stay here if I have nothing to look forward to.

I have tried, believe me, but I feel myself slipping in a direction that I just cannot let myself go. So a tentative plan, but a plan nonetheless.

Baptisms by Fire

There are many baptisms in life. Religious ones. Life ones. Love ones. Some are good. Some are bad.
I can't even count how many at this point. These are events that have a profound effect on one's life.

The past drives, the future draws, but the present confuses.  Most of our culture tells us not to dwell on the past and always be preparing for the future. Some of our culture has started to participate in the "Only Now Matters" mentality. I myself spend a lot of time reflecting on the past and dreaming (planning) about the future. When I was younger I was very good about the moment, sometimes too good. But now I miss that youth and am trying to bring myself back to planning hard for the future. I know what made me live so much in the moment though. Baptism by Fire.

Nothing affected the course of my life more than my deployment. It shaped me, changed who I was (I'm sure some of that had to do with 3 concussions from head smacking and numerous other concussive blasts) and I was more forward with what I wanted. I definitely refused to waste time after I arrived home from Iraq. That year in the sand and various other months I spent at Army installations. I miss the spitfire I was, although I do have a lot more perspective to follow back on these days.

I had another Baptism by Fire last year, when I was divorced. They say the worst thing a person can experience is the death of a spouse. The second worst experience is Divorce. I was given another perspective though. Divorce may be the worst because there is no finality to it. Death is the end, divorce leaves a loose end. Now I'm not saying tying up that loose end is an option, but psychologically it is very damaging. It was definitely a rough experience because no matter how many divorces you witness, nothing prepares you for the experience of actually going through one. It took a long time but I finally got over everything and realized how much of a mistake my marriage was. (The other day I was really pissed about a habit I had created to circumvent her moods and I couldn't even put a name to her. I had actually forgotten her name for a minute.) I guess I have begun getting my closure.

I have to return to the moment and hope that there isn't another Baptism by Fire approaching. I would like to be at peace for once.

Moving On to the Inevitable (Dating... Blech!)

A long year, a lot of thoughts, but the biggest one is that I no longer think I am ready to move on, I KNOW I am ready. I've been reading a ton of stuff and it finally gave me the personal closure that I have been seeking. That and a trip to Colorado where I was not burdened with being abandoned like I had been the previous year. I have a great family and amazing friends who have stuck with me through this interesting ordeal.

I spent half my life seeking love and still fell short. I ended up looking in the wrong location because of a previous wound that I was trying to hide from, and ended up wounding myself far worse than I would have been if I had just stayed a lonely, crazy man. But now I get another chance to rewrite my life and be someone so much better than I was becoming. Exciting times.

So now that I am moving on, an interesting thought has crossed into my head, there will be dating again. So with that disturbing thought, came the question of what I find attractive in women. After reading some articles I guess most people look at the smile first. Although I appreciate a good smile, the eyes are what I look at first. I started thinking, most of the women I have dated in my life had green eyes. Some had blue, but I have actually never dated a woman with brown eyes. My ex had hazel and that is the closest I have ever gotten to dating someone with brown eyes. I have been set up a couple of times, but I don't recall any of them having brown eyes, and if they did, the date must have been so bad that I'm blocking all memories of them out, but I digress. So my favorite eyes definitely have been green, but I do like blue eyes as well. We are visual creatures, so looks do matter, but honestly with the eyes it is more about the light behind the eyes.

If someone does not have very much light behind their eyes, then they tend to be dead inside. But I love finding that great light behind the eyes, because that means they have a wonderful heart to back up those eyes. Then if there is smiling (especially when it comes to me) that just completes that initial connection.

Hair color is an interesting one. Before Iraq I dated a mix, but post Iraq I have a tendency to prefer blondes. The only brunette I dated is the one I married and we all know how that turned out. Just kidding, but I don't know where I stand on hair color anymore.

All other features of a woman depend on the woman, personality and initial attraction, which actually carries a lot of weight in my book. But even before that, my instincts kick in on who I like and who I don't like. If I have to talk myself into liking someone, that truly is a disaster in the making.

Ugh, the idea of dating fills me with dread. I hated it the first time around and I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to like it any more this second time around. But if I refuse to do something out of fear, then I am just limiting my life and harming myself further than I have already been in these last ten years.

There is always hope.

New Year, New (Yeah Right)

It's over. I have officially blocked her and her new beau on both Facebook and Instagram so there is no temptation to look at their stuff and no way for them to look at mine.
My life will move in, a helluva lot faster than it did last year. Last year was ugly for me. Heartbreak, disappointment, frustration.
I can't wait to see what today has in store for me.

Wrapping Up the Last Chapter

This year I started out as a broken man. My wife of 5 years had left and I was heartbroken. Little did I know, I was more scared of the change coming and did not really know how to stand on my own anymore. Little things kept jabbing me and prevented me from reigning in and using my full potential. I am still not quite there but I definitely feel myself finishing up adjusting and becoming unsatisfied with my situation. Before I could live with it, but I am tired of being stagnant. Once upon a time I was always moving forward, because backwards sucked. Well, I think I am to that point again. Who wants to look backwards? Nothing to see but wasteland. The memories and experience comes with, but Past is truly Prologue.

I love when I start to spiral a bit, Christy will shoot me a message pretty much saying "Pull your head out, Stand Tall, and be the Fiery Sonofabitch I know you are." It always makes me smile because she has this uncanny ability to jab me exactly where I need to be jabbed. Sign of a true friend, telling you what you need to hear, even when you don't want to hear it. My spirals are definitely getting farther apart. I wish there was a way to purge some things from your mind (minus the head injury angle) so you could have a clearer head. But alas, there is not and you must push on. Find a way to use your crosses, baggage, and triggers (lol) to push you into the direction you need to be pushed.

The biggest thing this year is that I lied to myself so much that it actually sunk in and became reality. The lie I was telling myself is that I did not want to date anybody and needed time. In reality I was sizing up every pretty face that I have met, and wondering. Now I don't even fish for attachment information. I stopped caring. The idea of dating makes me nauseous. I am finally comfortable being single and I still have my dog, Tootsie. She is not in the best of health, so I am enjoying as much time as I can with her before the day I have to give her up. But back to the point, I no longer feel like I need a woman to fill the void of my heart. I now know there as so many other things. In fact people have begun to suggest that they may know somebody that I could go out with, and I make it very clear, I am not interested in the least. I don't feel the need to fill my social calendar again any time soon, especially with somebody that I could become obligated to on a personal level. The downside to this is, from personal experience, as soon as you stop looking, it is the exact time you get smacked over the head by a pretty face. Here's hoping that I can break the trend.

I have a lot of personal growth to go through, but I am confident that I will be in a great place soon enough. Life is great and wonderful and full of opportunities. With certain aspects of life now settled, the opportunities that will come knocking seem endless. I am ready to push forward and close this chapter of my life, let the ghosts settle in their graves so I am no longer haunted.

Hoping against hope.