Struggle for Understanding

Disclaimer: Every age is decisive. This is just a more specific perspective from a mid- to late- twenty year old.

I just had an interesting conversation with a friend about the pangs of being at such a decisive age – mid- to late- twenties. We have many decisions to make that will highly impact the remainder of our lives. We must choose a career, we must choose a spouse, if the opportunity exists, and we must further define who we are and what we want. This truly is the fundamental, foundational “make or break it time.”

My friend mentioned how he is struggling with what he knows to be true in his heart as opposed to what he is beginning to doubt in his mind. He mentioned that he is doing all that he knows to be true but is not seeing the results as he feels he has been promised. This paradox for him is causing major internal strife and raising doubts.

After hearing him express, I began to realize, that we are all the same. In other words, we all are experiencing struggles some how in some way. It is true what Henry B. Eyring said; when you meet people and you assume that they need help, you will be right 95% of the time. We all are struggling in some way and if we cannot admit that fact, then we are being very ignorant. Our struggles do not have to be drastic, dramatic or unbearable, it can be anything – of course we should not forget the power that be for us, is SO MUCH greater than the power that be against us.

When we look at people we need to be incessantly striving to see them as a perfect person sees them so that we can see things as they really are not as they appear to be. Think of how much more compassionate you would become when you realize that behind that cockiness, that pomp, that confidence, is a very natural man who needs help just as much as you do – the sooner you realize that he or she needs help, the better off we all will be. Look around you. You will see people that will cry and have cried, will laugh and have laughed and pray and have prayed without a clear answer to their prayers (then how important is a testimony and a sharing of experiences etc.?!).

Imagine if you could hear everyone’s supplications to heaven . . . I think we would all realize that we are really not that different from one another . . . after all; are we not all from the same Father?

Life is amazing and life is rich. Life is real and life is hopeful. Life is what you make it.