Are You Willing to Wrestle?

We all have questions when it comes to faith, that’s the nature of the beast. My faith is very solid, but I’m not naive to the fact that it’s still growing and needs to be nurtured daily. And every single day I ask myself the same question:

Rachelle, are you willing to wrestle?

Wrestle for goodness. Wrestle to better understand those who are of my faith AND those who are not. Wrestle for my freedom to practice religion. Wrestle in the face of intolerance. Wrestle for truth, for light, and for love.

“Why do we need such resilient faith? Because difficult days are ahead. Rarely in the future will it be easy or popular to be a faithful Latter-day Saint. Each of us will be tested. The Apostle Paul warned that in the latter days, those who diligently follow the Lord “shall suffer persecution. That very persecution can either crush you into silent weakness or motivate you to be more exemplary and courageous in your daily lives.”

-Russell M. Nelson

I choose to engage in the battle because it is important and because people are hurting. As long as people are hurting, I will open my mouth and speak. I have found something that brings true healing and it would be ludicrous to keep it to myself.

Let’s talk about this idea of wrestling with doubt. Do you ever feel like there are one or two principles that totally trip you up in your quest for faith? You can’t get your head around something so you stay away altogether. Maybe it’s one specific belief under the larger umbrella of religion. I’ve felt that before and I’ve learned that doubt, if unchecked, can be a slippery slope to nowhere good. Let me be clear, questions are always good, but only if you really care and are looking for a genuine discussion. If you don’t care, don’t bother. I never understand why people engage in conversations that they care nothing about. Offering half-hearted solutions to a conversation that you care nothing about is not helpful for anyone.

It’s hard right? Everyone has an opinion about e v e r y t h i n g and the world is so loud. We are being pushed & pulled in a million different directions. The thing is, none of these people really know you and your potential. Only you and God can have deep and meaningful conversations when it comes to these matters of the heart. Sometimes the noise around us is so loud that we forget to listen to that still, small voice, the voice that prompts us to help others, to love our neighbors, and to be the best version of ourselves. You know, the stuff that really makes us feel good? It’s not random that those things make us feel good. We are all innately good, but it’s my belief that as we get older it can be harder to channel that part of ourselves. Most of the time we don’t even know that we are drifting away from it because it happens over a long period of time, inch by inch. We get sucked up in all the commotion around us that we lose sight of what really matters.

There have always been and will always be very charismatic men and women who can launch what sound like examined arguments against the Father and the Son. But most doubters will never give you the full story because they don’t know the full story, and have no desire to know. If you want answers and additional knowledge, trust that our creator will reveal those things to you if you earnestly seek the answers. I can testify of this truth in my own life, and there are millions out there that can as well. After you’ve lived long enough without the gospel, you are able to recognize and FEEL the difference between coincidence and spiritual encounters and promptings. We all have a spirit that is unique to us, and if we don’t feed it we will not be able to get acquainted with it. We will not be able to identify when our spirit is revealing truth and guiding us. That mother’s intuition that you get when something isn’t quite right is your spirit telling you what’s up. The awful pit in your stomach you get when you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, that is your spirit telling you to MOVE it.

There are so many sensitive topics that require time and diligent study. But it takes plain old hard work, because even God can’t make us grow.

“None of us are entitled to revelation without effort on our part. Answers from God don’t just magically appear. If we want to grow spiritually, the Lord expects us to ask questions and seek answers. “If thou shalt ask,” He promised, “thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge….” How much clearer can it be? The Lord loves inspired questions asked in faith because they lead to knowledge, to revelation, and to greater faith.”-Sheri Dew

Go ahead and wave that flag of doubt, I won’t stop you, nor will I tell you that you are wrong. I’m not in the business of telling anyone how to live. But if you truly want to heal your soul, don’t be afraid to join the wrestle.