The Crossing--How to Know the World

"He told the boy that although he was huérfano still he must cease his wanderings and make for himself some place in the world because to wander in this way would become for him a passion and by this passion he would become estranged from men and so ultimately from himself. He said that the world could only be known as it existed in men's hearts. For while it seemed a place which contained men it was in reality a place contained within them and therefore to know it one must look there and come to know those hearts and to to do this one must live with men and not simply pass among them. He said that while the huérfano might feel that he no longer belonged among men he must set this feeling aside for he contained within him a largeness of spirit which men could see and that men would wish to know him and that the world would need him even as he needed the world for they were one."
--from Cormac McCarthy's The Crossing

This is by far one of the most beautiful passages of literature I have ever read.

The beauty is possessed in the writer's understanding of how the world really works. His words completely changed the way I looked at the world. There are three basic gospel truths to be found in this passage.

First, it is so easy to view the world as a giant sphere, or space, or crowd, and each of us merely one tiny individual--one speck among countless others. What significance could the life of one tiny little speck possibly have? And in viewing the world in this manner, it is easy to become discouraged, to feel worthless, to feel that we don't matter, that we don't make a difference. These feelings may lead us eventually to become reclusive, to separate ourselves from the world, to "feel that [we] no longer [belong] among men".

But we must "set this feeling aside" because the world is not a place that contains men. The world is "a place contained within them". Within their hearts.

You see, the world for me is a vastly different place than it is for you. Though we may have grown up in the same city, attended the same schools, shared similar experiences, still your world varies from mine.

Second, this passage teaches how we can come to know the world, and thus gain part of God's knowledge. That is done simply by coming to know the hearts of those around us. The only one who can truly know the hearts of all men, and therefore the world in its entirety, is the Savior Jesus Christ. But we can seek to know the world around us by coming to know the hearts of those around us. To do this we "must live with men, and not simply pass among them." In other words, we cannot be content to simply go through the motions of everyday life, we must extend our reach to those around us, and know them. We must know their joys, their pains, their successes, their failures. In so doing, we not only come to know the world around us, we become more like the Savior, we know what He knows, and thus we come to know Him.

The third beautiful truth taught in this passage is our divine heritage. The old man tells the boy that he "[contains] within him a largeness of spirit which men could see". Each of us has this same largeness of spirit. We are spirit children of God, and as such we possess the potential to become like him. We are more than just specks on a little globe wandering around trying not to get crushed by life. We are beings of immense possibilities and capabilities. Our largeness of spirit is evidenced in our lives everyday, we just need to look for it.

As we grow closer to our Heavenly Father, and our largeness of spirit increases, men will "wish to know" us, and the world will come to need us, and we will need the world, for we will be one. Christ is one with the world, he knows every individual's heart. We become more at one with Christ as we gain a knowledge of the "personal world" contained within the hearts of the people around us.

Gratitude

During General Conference Elder David A. Bednar challenged us to pray with gratitude:

Let me recommend that periodically you and I offer a prayer in which we only give thanks and express gratitude. Ask for nothing; simply let our souls rejoice and strive to communicate appreciation with all the energy of our hearts.

I prayed this way on Sunday night, and I found my prayer lasted longer than normal. I had to take time to think about not asking for anything. Once I got started, more blessings kept popping up. I didn't want to leave anything out. I felt more prepared to face my challenges I knew would come this week.

Try it. You'll be glad you did. You'll want to do it again, trust me.

Sweet Hour

It seems to me that many of the messages given in General Conference this weekend focused on how we must turn to the Lord in our trials. Specifically, our need to pray to our Heavenly Father and seek counsel, guidance and comfort from him.

I've never been good at opening up to anyone, including God. In the past few months, I have made a much more concerted effort to do so in my prayers. One hindrance, I think is that I know God knows my mind and my heart, and he can hear all of my heartfelt thoughts and desires. So, why do I need to vocalize them?

Prayer is a sacred and personal experience, and I sometimes get nervous--or bashful, rather--when praying aloud in the presence of others. I learned recently not to allow that to happen anymore. Here's what happened:

It was a Friday evening, and my friend and I were at her house, putting ice on her injured leg. I was not having a pleasant evening, but I was calm because I was with my best friend. By my own fault, we had just been in an accident in which her leg was badly bruised, and after stopping at the gas station for ice, I returned to her home to discover I had lost my wallet. As you can imagine, I was feeling pretty discouraged.

We knelt in prayer. I felt prompted by the Spirit of the Lord as to what I should say in that prayer, and some of those promptings--to my eternal regret--I ignored. As we knelt there together, and I spoke the words of the prayer, I was overcome with gratitude for my blessings. I expressed my thanks to the Lord for our safety, and that she had not been injured badly, and asked His blessing that she might recover quickly. I then felt impressed to express my gratitude and love for her. I only did that halfway...muttering some generic phrase about our thankfulness for our friendship. What I felt prompted to say, but didn't, follows:

"Lord, I thank thee for [my best friend]. I thank thee for her safety. I wish it could have been my leg that was hurt in the accident, and not hers. Father she is the most precious thing I have in my life, and I value her safety, her well-being and her happiness above all else. Please bless her to know how deeply I feel for her--how much she means to me, how happy I am to have her love and friendship, and bless her to be patient with my shortcomings as I strive to live worthy of her."

Yeah...you might see why I left that part out. But, I shouldn't have. I should have prayed what was in my heart. I didn't care about my wallet, or about my bike. I only cared about her.

So, I have a new resolve to always pray what's in my heart, regardless of who else is around.

The Mouthpiece of the Lord

It's October, which means it's time for General Conference. I've spent the day listening to modern-day prophets and apostles speak to the world. They have shared with their world-wide audience the words of the Lord unto His children.

For some of you reading this, it may come as news to you that God speaks through prophets today. Well, it's true. He has always revealed his will through his servants, the prophets, and He will continue to do so, as long as we need His guidance and love.

God's prophets have shared His words with the world this weekend. Check out what they've said here.

Hard As Life Is

I attended an institute of religion course on Tuesday night. I arrived early, and while the instructor was setting up the class I penned a few poems, and chatted with him. Surprisingly, I found myself confiding in him about some of the personal struggles I've had to face the past few months. It was a cathartic evening--the poems and the chance to confide in someone gave me just the emotional outlet I had been needing after a particularly difficult weekend.

As the students began to file in, the class president introduced himself to me by complimenting my shoes. I know where he's going with this, I thought. I smiled unsurprised when he asked me to share a scriptural message.

My first thought was how comfortable I feel sharing a scripture at a moment's notice. I reflected on most of the people I know who are connected with some other religion or sect, and how most of them would shudder at the thought of having to get up in front of a group of people and talk about their religion.

My second thought was, What scripture should I share? And it came to me almost instantly.

A few weeks ago Elder Jeffrey R. Holland spoke at a CES Fireside. He chose to speak about the trials that Joseph Smith faced while imprisoned in Liberty Jail. It was a wonderful address, and in his closing remarks, he shared a scripture from the Doctrine & Covenants about facing trials with a smile on your face.

Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed. (D&C 123:17)

I shared the scripture, and then the instructor, standing before the whole class, told me he had almost shared the same passage when we were chatting before class. He said he was glad we were on the same page--we just do all we can, and let things work themselves out.

Later, during the lesson, we were discussing the trials of Joseph Smith, and people in general. Trials are something all of us must face. Life is hard. The trick is to appreciate those hard times. The instructor said rather than getting depressed and asking, Why me?, we should enjoy the ride.

I have often done that in times of hardship. I have looked at my life, and seen how difficult my trials are that I was facing, and wondered, What a crazy ride! How will this ride end up? Where is it going to take me? (Of course, I have also been guilty at times of pleading with the Lord to take the trial away from me, and asking Why me?)

Looking with wonder at my trials has made them easier to face. But what makes them most bearable is the knowledge that God has my best interest at the heart of all He allows happen to me.

I felt inspired today to start this new blog to document my spiritual experiences.