So lets see if I can actually keep up two blogs - LOL...I've struggled doing even one but I had a little boost when a couple of people told me within the last week that they read my blog. It is amazing the difference it makes in knowing someone actually reads your blog. It is great incentive! So after almost a year hiatus from this blog I'm going to try and write fairly regularly along with my dream blog. If you haven't checked out my dream blog you should - Land of Dreams.
So today's topic is brought to you by an overactive mind - sometimes a blessing but also a curse! Hence the topic choice :P
The first is that we can only understand strengths and weaknesses because of each other - meaning opposition in all things. To me this means that there must be opposition even with those things we considered strengths. In my experience, this has led me to believe that this opposition doesn't come when something happens that allows us to illustrate that strength because if it is a strength in that way then how can it really be tested?
Thus, strengths are weaknesses and weaknesses strengths. I promise I'm not just trying to sound like I really do have a minor in philosophy but simply that a characteristic or attribute that is a strength to us is often the contributing factor to something we consider a weakness. To make this hopefully a little clearer, let me give an example. Something that I consider a strength and have been told many times is a benefit to me is how much I analyze things. This comes very naturally to me and I feel like especially in my school work and study of the gospel it has been a HUGE blessing. It is something that has increased my knowledge and helped me to be more dedicated to the gospel. But in other areas it is a weakness - a very frustrating weakness - though I suppose all weaknesses can be frustrating. Sometimes though I cannot seem to shut off my mind - it is constantly going. This can become tiring at times when I WANT to have a little bit of quiet time. When it comes to relationships of any kind, my analytic mind is not an asset :P Analyzing relationships in extreme detail is rarely if ever helpful. Thus, something I consider a strength is also a weakness.
Something else I've found interesting and am still pondering is a couple of scriptures from the Book of Mormon. Ether 12:28 reads: "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their aweakness. I bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my cgrace is sufficient for all men that dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make eweak things become strong unto them." I've noticed this is one of the most misread scriptures in all of scripturedom - except for hard to pronounce names like Achaemenid or something. Too often the scripture is read "...I will show unto them their weaknessES." However, that is not how the text reads - it is weakness. This seems to imply that the Lord didn't give each of us a list of weaknesses to overcome - we are to overcome one thing, which the scriptures collaborate - the natural man. That is our weakness. These mortal bodies no matter how wonderful, were created in a fallen state. Now the natural man of course exhibits a variety of weaknesses that differ from person to person, but the over concept is that we have ONE weakness - the natural man or our fallen state.
Perhaps this isn't helpful to anyone else, but it makes a difference to me when I can recognize that my strengths are also my weaknesses because of the natural man. One of the main reasons were came to this earth was to learn but why couldn't we have just learned what we needed to in heaven? Because a mortal body allows us to experience things not possible with just our spirit. We experience life and relationships differently because our physical bodies allows us to feel things physically and mentally in a way our spirit cannot. We also can feel physical pain or suffering which is obviously not something we can experience as a spiritual body. Because of this we are tested in more ways - something we may have gained as an attribute or characteristic in the pre-mortal life and was a strength suddenly has additional sides or avenues that will be tested. These then are weaknesses because how could we have gained experience dealing with it before our mortal bodies?
Ultimately, this pondering has led me to one thought - patience. I sometimes get frustrated with myself when something that is a strength is also a weakness when I have to remember:
A: That is the purpose of this life
B: How can I expect to be good at something that I have not experienced or practiced previously
C: I appreciate my strengths more because they encompass a weakness or weaknesses.
D: This ultimately should lead me to rely more on the Savior - for He is the promised way of how to overcome my weakness - through Christ I can overcome the natural man, which means I can overcome ALL my weaknesses. And that is a pretty cool thought.
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