faith

Today I want to write about Faith. Specifically, my faith. By "Faith" I mean my religion, but I also mean my personal belief in God.

The last few years have been both faith-strengthening and faith-questioning. I had never before known what it meant to "mourn with those that mourn and comfort those that stand in need of comfort" (source) until I watched family and friends grieve in so many different ways over the last 36 months. I have come to understand that scripture a little better now. I have had experiences when I know that the hand of God has been guiding me and others. I have also had experiences when I have asked difficult questions, some of which don't have good answers.

I was reading through some of my "notes" on my phone a few weeks ago and I came across one that I wrote late at night a few months ago. I was reminded of it again the other night as I read the talk "Receiving a Testimony of Light and Truth" from this last General Conference. I want to share my note here.

Thoughts on faith (August 3, 2014)
I have no idea how computers work. I know how to use them, and I know general concepts like electricity and things but I have no idea how binary code is translated to my being able to send data hundreds of miles in merely seconds. Some people do understand that. They have studied and worked and know all of the processes that go into that machine. Not only that, but the technology used to improve computers is growing exponentially. But of course, it had to start somewhere. The first computers would be useless today. Does that make the principles they were built on any less true and valid? Of course not. They were the building blocks.

My faith is a lot like that. There are so many things that I do not understand. But I have seen time and time again what happens when I rely on faith and tap into heavenly power. There are things even in my own religion's history that are perplexing and I wonder "why did they do it that way?" But truth isn't learned in one glorious moment. It is learned as we test and try principles. It grows little by little by little as we study and try and sometimes even make mistakes-as individuals and collectively. And I believe there is a tipping point where the truth becomes evident faster and faster and we become better versions of ourselves. Not because what we know now is more true than what we knew then, but because we are building on the truth we have already learned.

It would be silly to say, "until I understand it completely, I will not use a computer." So why would I wait until I understood God completely to utilize His Power and Goodness? The more I turn to Him, (and study His Word) the more I understand Him.

Though I express it differently than I did before and even sometimes look at it from a different perspective, I feel my faith in God is stronger now than ever. I am a witness of the Power of God, in my life and in the lives of others.