I've again found myself in spheres where people are asking me about my faith. I encourage that. I enjoy talking to others about my faith. I enjoy learning and sharing how much we have in common. I have also again felt the need to write in order to solidify my personal thoughts, and so I made the decision to return to this blog. Maybe only for today, maybe for a long while, I don't yet know.
My faith has been at the front of my mind recently. Like everyone else, my faith is constantly tested. That is by design. We are tested, we struggle, we grow stronger, we prevail, we are tested again. As long as we continue to grow and hold our determination to prevail, the cycle will repeat and we will fulfill our purpose- growing stronger in faith until we are ready to return to our Lord.
Often as I pray, answers come to me in the form of parables. This isn't surprising, as Jesus often spoke in parables, and they seem to be a form of communication that is particularly well suited for me.
Recently as I was praying, pondering, considering, the vision of a large building came into my mind. It was a lovely building, new and well built.
Soon a carpenter walked into the building with his family. He showed them the walls, arches, and columns he had constructed. He pointed out his fine finish work. He walked them through the rooms, proud of what he had accomplished.
Next, a foreman came into the building with his family. He showed them the placement of the walls, arches, and columns as had directed. He pointed out the fine finish work. He walked them through the rooms, proud of what he had accomplished.
Next, an architect came into the building with his family. He showed them the walls, arches, and columns he had designed. He pointed out the fine finish work he had ordered. He walked them through the rooms, proud of what he had accomplished.
Last, the owner of the building came in with his family. He showed them the walls, arches, and columns as he had envisioned them. He pointed out the fine finishes he had chosen. He walked them through the rooms, proud of what he had accomplished.
Each individual, rightly so, was proud of what they had accomplished. Each of them had an important role in the building of the structure, however, none could have accomplished what they did without the others
The architect takes direction from the owner, but he uses his experience, education, and talent to design the building. The foreman takes direction from the the architect, but he uses his experience, education, and skills to insure the building is sound, and all the details come together properly. The carpenter takes direction from the foreman. He uses his experience, skills, and tools to create quality pieces of the building, along with other carpenters. Those pieces will come together, at the direction of the foreman, architect, and owner, to create a beautiful building that will stand the test of time.
We are all carpenters in the building of the Kingdom of God. We have been given tools, talents, and experiences that will help us create quality lives. If we are willing to take direction from the foreman (the prophet and other servants of God,) the architect (Jesus Christ,) and the owner (God the Father) we contribute to the building of something beautiful, strong, and lasting.
However, if our desire to stand alone, to take the glory for our own, and to disregard the direction of those whose job it is to envision the entire structure, we may build beautiful pieces - but those pieces will not fit together with any other pieces, and will be of little use.
Lincoln and I once planned, designed, and built a rather large chicken coop. About 1/3 of the way through the building of the coop a strong wind picked it up and threw it off a 15 foot cliff in our back yard. We did not have the experience to know that this could happen and to take measures to avoid it. It destroyed the structure and we had to start over.
Once the coop was finished we were quite proud of it, however, there were some problems. It was not vented properly and the legs did not have the proper bottoms to prevent them from rotting. We had been painstakingly careful in our planning, and yet we had made mistakes that could have been avoided if we had consulted with someone with experience.
Lastly, we built a chicken coop. Not a home, not a school, not a building that was of any use to a human. It was a home for chickens. It was a good coop, but the very best we could accomplish on our own, was not something great, beautiful, and long lasting. It was a chicken coop.
Alternately, Lincoln worked for a summer on the building of the The LDS Conference Center. It is a stunning and magnificent building. It took three commercial companies and thousands of men and women to build it. Rightly so, Lincoln is proud to have been a part of building that center. The first time he took me there he showed me the seats, how they were all laid out in a perfect pattern. He did that. He was on the team that laid out those chair so precisely, using tools that I had never heard of, and mathematical skill that are far beyond my education. He did so at the direction of the surveyor who oversaw the team, who was managed by the superintendent, who was directed by a project manager, and so on.
I will let you guess which project he is more proud of, which he will take his children and his grandchildren to see, which will stand for hundreds of years and serve millions of people.
I am aiming to create a meaningful life that will be part of a grand building. Yes, I can build a chicken coop, but I would rather be part of something bigger. I will try to sacrifice my prideful desire for glory and recognition to contribute to the building of something more. I will learn to take direction from those who have been called to direct the building, whose knowledge, experience, and faith are greater than my own. I will do my best to carefully hammer my few nails so that my children, your children, and millions of people will benefit from the quality parts that all of us contribute in building something eternal.
