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Fight to the Finish

"THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE WORTH FINISHING." - Jeffrey R. Holland

The title of this weeks study was: OVERCOMING CHALLENGES. I found it very interesting this week that so much our study material was spiritually based. It made me wonder if it is because we are so blessed in the church to learn how to persevere continue in faith. 

In reading the Hero's Journey selection for this week we learned several key things. 
1.) To choose wisely the companions that we want with us on our journey. We learn that whom we choose can make or break us. Loyalty, positive honest support, positivity, and cooperation are key characteristic traits in our journey partners. Something that has stuck with me throughout this week was this question "Do your friends complement you, or merely compliment you? In other words, are you willing to surround yourself with people who possess strengths that you yourself lack, or do you just surround yourself with people whose words or weaknesses flatter you?"  2.) How to work through Challenges you face on your journey. This emphasized embracing your challenges and working hard to overcome and continue on after and through them. 3.) How to overcome the despair that comes with the challenges. Most of this encourages you to turn to God for strength and not sit in the muck of things. To look past your present state, find things that lift you up so that you can rise up and find solutions among the rubble.  4.) Be prepared to fight hard battles. Determine early how to get through them with your eye on the end point. Seek to determine what your limitations are and where they exist in these life or death battles. 

We read through two talks as well: 
"However Long and Hard the Road" by Jeffrey and Patricia Holland from a January 1983 BYU Devotional.  Many examples of persisting and enduring through trials from history, Gospel, and written works were cited. After telling about the building of the Salt Lake Temple, Holland quoted the following: "Later that year the prestigious Scientific American (1892), referred to this majestic new edifice as a “monument to Mormon perseverance.” And so it was. Blood, toil, tears, and sweat. The best things are always worth finishing. “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). Most assuredly you are. As long and laborious as the effort may seem, please keep shaping and setting the stones that will make your accomplishment “a grand and imposing spectacle.” Take advantage of every opportunity to learn and grow. Dream dreams and see visions. Work toward their realization. Wait patiently when you have no other choice. Lean on your sword and rest a while, but get up and fight again. Perhaps you will not see the full meaning of your effort in your own lifetime. But your children will, or your children’s children will, until finally you, with all of them, can give the Hosanna shout."

"Looking Back & Moving Forward" by Thomas S. Monson
My favorite quote was: 
"Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. In order to be tested, we must sometimes face challenges and difficulties. At times there appears to be no light at the tunnel’s end—no dawn to break the night’s darkness. We feel surrounded by the pain of broken hearts, the disappointment of shattered dreams, and the despair of vanished hopes. We join in uttering the biblical plea “Is there no balm in Gilead?”6 We are inclined to view our own personal misfortunes through the distorted prism of pessimism. We feel abandoned, heartbroken, alone. If you find yourself in such a situation, I plead with you to turn to our Heavenly Father in faith. He will lift you and guide you. He will not always take your afflictions from you, but He will comfort and lead you with love through whatever storm you face."

I needed this lesson this week. I was riding the struggle bus. A lot. There were other tidbits from the lesson, but the overall theme of the study this week was in reference to endurance. I am grateful for the strengthening I received from this coursework at mid semester. 

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