Fighting the Inclination to Turn Inward

I've been struggling lately with knowing what to share and what not to share. 

Life isn't easy for me right now, for a variety of reasons. 

Some of those reasons seem silly when I compare my life to those who have it "really" hard. And some of those reasons are simply not shareable because they involve others whose privacy I would never take away. 

But what happens is that I simply stop writing. I stop talking to friends. I turn inward with the hope that I'll eventually get through the hard things, and THEN I will be in a position to be helpful to others. 

But this morning, I learned something that I wish I had known all along:

When we are struggling, that is when we need to turn outward--to help those who are struggling as we are.

This goes against every natural inclination I have.  Because, to be perfectly honest, I would much rather be up in the shower right now or working on a project or busying myself with cleaning up from our Halloween adventures last night. Distracting myself from thinking about the things that weigh me down.

But that's not where I need to be.  I need to tell you more about what I learned.

There's a new book out by a man named David A. Bednar, which is called Act in Doctrine.  

I read the first chapter this morning, and it focuses on the character of Jesus Christ.  One element of His character, as recorded in the Bible, is that when He was struggling, He focused His love and attention on others.

Think about how He comforted His apostles right before He suffered and died for us.

Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. - John 14:27 

Or how He made sure His mother Mary was cared for . . . while He was hanging on the cross.

No one would have faulted Him for turning inward, but He didn't do that because that's not who He is.

I'm still trying to figure out what the best way is for me to "turn outward."  I know that part of that process will be with my family.  They are the ones who need my heart.

And perhaps part of it will be through this blog.  

But whatever it is, I feel something happening inside me.  My heart is beating fast and I feel like I've finally identified why it is I've been feeling so disoriented lately.

It's because God doesn't want us to suffer alone.  He already did that so we wouldn't have to.

I'll write again soon.  


Much love,
April