Comforted

Building on last week, going back and reading older church materials has led me to find some of today's frustration in my less-frustrated past. It has brought good things too.

Reading the Ensign from when President Benson died reminded me of how much love I felt from him, and how some of that love was shown. It also reminded me that while some people do hold his staunch opposition to communism against him, that there were also reasons for it, and that it wasn't something he really talked about after it was less of a threat.

There are people helped by the gospel all the time, and their stories being shared in every era can be good.

My primary frustrations have been in all of the mentions of homosexuality, and how judgmental and without understanding they are. You might imagine that when I came to an article in the April 2006 Liahona about one man's devotion to and blessing from the Proclamation on the Family, I was not enthusiastic.

I was still skeptical as he mentioned feeling the need to study and memorize it, but it really did work for him. After memorizing it he could reflect upon it while jogging and then receive promptings for things his family needed.

The interesting thing was that often these promptings were things like fixing dinner for his wife or taking more of the child-rearing duties. As much as the Proclamation could seem to reinforce rigid gender roles, that's not where it was leading him. I don't think that he saw that as an aspect of his inspiration at all, because each prompting could easily be seen as a way to give this family member additional love and caring, but it would be easy to find those results unexpected.

In that way the article became a good testament to the benefits of personal guidance through the Holy Ghost. The Proclamation turned out to be a useful tool for him to know what was needed for his family, and he was told that through inspiration as well when he felt that strong need to study it.

I generally don't know why I am embarking on a course of spiritual study when I start. I might have ideas, but then there is more there, and after I have been following it for a while, then I know better.

We can all do that.

We have been given many tools and opportunities for growth. It is possible to use them incorrectly, and it is possible to learn some good lessons while still missing important things, but there are opportunities there, and so there are possibilities for everyone.

I am glad to remember that.