Planning Like God

I workout way harder in my Orangetheory class then I ever could on my own. One major reason the Orangetheory workout is so effective is that the whole class is broken up into small, manageable challenges. Run at a moderate pace for a minute. Yes, I can do that. Now push yourself for one minute, and then go back to a moderate pace for another 30 seconds. Okay, that is also doable. Now run as fast as you can for 30 seconds. Oh, that sounds challenging. But I don’t mind being in distress for 30 seconds. The whole workout goes like that and before long the hour has passed, and I’m dripping in sweat.

There are endless books, blogs and, podcasts about how to be more productive. A major idea that teachers of time management discuss is the importance of breaking up large, daunting tasks into small manageable action items. I am just now, at 41, learning to do this. Probably most of you know this by now, but if you don’t, or if you just need a reminder, consider the following:

Breaking up large tasks is so fundamentally important to our progress that it's featured in the opening story of the Bible. One of the first things we learn about God in the creation account is that he systematically broke up the ineffable task of creating the world. On the first day, God divided the light from the darkness. Then he stopped. And on the second day he divided the waters above from the waters below creating the firmament. Then, he stopped again. On the third day he gathered together the water and created the seas and the dry land. And so on until the sixth day.

Why didn’t God create the world from start to finish without stopping? Why does the creation story so explicitly point out the division of time?

One explanation might be that God was setting a pattern for us, showing how we should go about “creating” our lives. We too must complete our tasks by moving forward step by step. Most large undertakings, both spiritual and practical, don’t happen all at once. Line upon line pertains not only to our spiritual growth, but also to all of our important endeavors.

Popular life coach, Brooke Castillo, teaches that if you’ve broken down a task, but it still seems daunting, then you have to break down the steps even more. She gives the example of writing a blog post. If the hour arrives that you’ve schedule to write the blog post, and you absolutely can’t get yourself to do it, then you need to break down the scheduling even further. Schedule taking out your laptop. Schedule turning off notifications. Schedule writing the outline, and so forth.

What multiple time management and productivity gurus have discovered, God’s prophets taught in the creation account: break up large tasks into smaller parts. This is obviously just one lesson gleaned from the creation story. However, the example God sets in creating the world, speaks to its importance in designing our own lives.

The Space between Hope and Knowledge

"Action will remove the doubt that theory cannot solve." 

--Pehyl Hsieh

Over the years, I’ve had my share of doubts about the Mormon church. Some doubts came from discovering things that prophets and leaders have said or done that didn’t seem in line with the Gospel of Jesus Christ as I understood it. Other uncertainties developed after learning historical facts that differed from the ones I’d been taught at church. And then there are the inherent problems that exist for women in a system of benevolent patriarchy. While some of my issues have been resolved through study, prayer, and revelation, some have not. So why am I Mormon? How can I count myself a faithful and worthy member of the church even when there are times when I feel there are precious few statements I can make beginning with the phrase “I know”?

Well, one answer is that humans are complex creatures. People are not all one way or the other. No one’s all good or all bad. All knowing or all doubting. So, while at times I’ve wrestled with ferocious doubts, there are also many instances when my spirit has expanded with peace and joy in, yes, knowing that my Father in Heaven intently listens to and answers my prayers, that Christ truly is the Son of God and the great healer, that the words of the prophets and leaders of the church radiate with truth, and that we are in the Lord’s restored church.

I’ve talked numerous hours with family and friends who’ve left the church about their reasons for leaving. I’ve read countless blog posts and listened to hours of podcasts, produced by both the faithful and the non-believing, about their issues with the church and read many books about church history. Through all of this I’ve come to a few conclusions about why some are consumed by their doubts, why others can live with them and why some can even find peace in them.  

The first conclusion is that in order to believe and be converted one must accept that knowledge gained spiritually is equally as valid as knowledge gained strictly through rational or scientific means. When I am trying to determine the truth of spiritual things solely through rational deduction, the doubting side of me can easily take the forefront. Sure, there are gospel principles we can know are true through rational analysis just as Alma explains in Alma 32. For example, I can say I know honesty is a true principle because when I’m honest people trust me. When people trust me, I can have successful relationships. Successful relationships bring me lasting happiness. Happiness is what I seek. Therefore, honesty is a true principle.  But on the other hand, there are many things that simply cannot be explained satisfactorily through rational analysis, such as why a loving God cares enough to directly answer my prayers about my lost keys, but not the prayers for safety said by a family just prior to being hit by a drunk driver. Am I to distrust my spiritual experience just because I can’t explain this? Because I can’t explain all things? I’ve decided that, no. It’s not acceptable to discount my spiritual experiences just because I can’t explain all things, because, to paraphrase Joseph Smith, I know that it happened, and I know God knows I know it happened. Elder David Evans summed it up well in the last general conference when he said, “Without knowing everything we can [still] know the truth.”

Each spiritual experience we have, each communion with God, each burden lifted by the Savior, each wound healed by Him, and each tender mercy is a pearl of great price. Each should be treasured, saved and preserved. I am convinced that one’s ability to recognize, label and remember these spiritual experiences determines how she will weather the fiery darts of Satan, the mocking and pointing of others, and, of course, the endless ways that doubts can be placed in our minds.

Another tool that helps us to deal with the doubts that might creep up is learning to distill what is actually the gospel of Jesus Christ from the culture of church and family. When we are growing up we don’t yet have the analytic capability to separate what is the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the well intentioned but imperfect behavior of our parents, church teachers and leaders. Many of these well-intentioned people are dealing with their own issues and, of course, aren’t perfect or all knowing. So, for example in some families a culture of fear might have overshadowed the love of Jesus Christ. Or maybe a dogmatic seminary teacher pushed a more threatening interpretation of the gospel. When one has not felt the abounding love and acceptance that is at the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, there is nothing tethering her to the church when the winds of doubt blow. It is vital that before discarding the gospel of Jesus Christ that we take the necessary time in prayer and scripture study so that we can be taught by the spirit the bounteous love that the Savior offers. We each need to discover the love of the Savior for ourselves, in our hearts.

Not everybody will experience crippling doubt, but even if you don’t, someone you know will. That is the reality. It’s important that we don’t refer to periods of doubting as any kind of crisis. It’s not a crisis to have your faith challenged, nor is bad to have doubts. Consider how the Savior blesses the man who admits. “Lord I believe, help thou my unbelief.” Even though this man did not have a perfect knowledge, the Savior accepted his honest expression of incomplete faith and healed his son. Remember it was Satan’s plan that would force us all to believe perfectly. Inquiry and searching for truth are hallmarks of our religion. However, it is imperative that one stays uncompromisingly close to the Lord and holds continuously to the iron rod while on her journey of discovery.

Whether it is you who is struggling or someone you know, the answer is the same: love through the struggle. Love yourself. Love those who believe differently. And love that we have the luxury to choose what we will believe and to act on it. I’ve heard stories of very faithful members, not speaking to or interacting as much with their doubting or unbelieving family and friends. To withhold love and attention as a means of punishment goes against the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To me, that is a tragedy: sad for everyone involved. We know that the Savior sought out and administered to his lost sheep. President Uchtdorf said, “Whatever problems your family is facing, whatever you must do to solve them, the beginning and the end of the solution is charity, the pure love of Christ.”

There is so much more I could say on this topic. But for time’s sake let me leave you with a couple of things that I’ve found helpful.

First, read David Evans talk from October General Conference. In it he advised us not to take on the doubts of others. At times, we may have a few questions and when we go looking for answers we stumble upon people who are not only questioning the same things we are, but have a longer list of problems with many aspects of the church. It is important that we don’t take on their doubts. If we’ve never had a problem with a certain aspect of the church, we don’t need to adopt one just because someone else has a problem with it.

Second, read a book titled Planted by Patrick Q Mason and another book called The Crucible of Doubt by Fiona and Teryl Givens. They are both published by Deseret Book. The authors are faithful scholars who articulately address the doubts people have without discounting or demeaning them. Both books offer refreshing paradigms for approaching our doubts and concerns about the church.

Finally, I’d like to offer my testimony. As I stated before, there is so much I can’t say I know with absolute certainty, but I can unequivocally say I hope. I hope all of it’s true. And with this hope, I can move forward acting in faith and charity, knowing that I’d rather stand here than anywhere else. Each night when I pray, I feel something that is not from me that fills my heart, guides me, and loves me. I call that something God. I feel Him even as I write about this. I’ve consciously chosen to trust in my God who, through his spirit, has guided me to find the peace I’ve sought throughout my life. I’ve chosen to trust in the God who provided a Son to succor me and heal me as I stumble along the way; and to trust in the God who provided prophets and leaders who have vowed to serve Him the best they could. What my life experience has taught me, and what I could never deny, (so, I guess, what I know) is that each time I act in faith, each time I step out on the ledge and follow what I’ve felt God wants me to do, even when it went against reason, I’ve been blessed a hundred-fold for my small act of faith.

 To those who doubt, struggle, find it hard to be at church or whose hearts are hurting, you are not alone. Whatever you decide to do, whatever path you decide to take, you’ll always have a place at my table.