Standing and then moving

I love standing in holy places. But the difficult part is…

Not being moved.

Elder Holland so eloquently taught:

“It is inevitable that after heavenly moments in our lives, we, of necessity, return to earth, so to speak, where sometimes less-than-ideal circumstances again face us.”

Holy moments are precious.

Sometimes they are big and notable.

But more and more often lately, they’ve been really small and mighty.

A quick prayer offered in a time of need met with immediate assistance.

Glancing at my kids’ faces during a particularly difficult moment and seeing their divine potential.

Pondering that leads to life-changing realizations.

Writing my gratitudes down and seeing how obvious the Hand of God is in my life.

I do all that I can to stand in holy places throughout the day. To create holy moments.

And then… a kid starts crying.

And I get a headache.

And someone asks me if I’ve finished that project yet.

And the dishes need to be done for the millionth time.

And I have an awkward moment with someone I meet.

And all of a sudden, I’m down, off the mount.

Back to real life and all the weird, lame, uncomfortable, frustrating moments.

To stay in a holy place all the time seems impossible.

But I at least have the desire to experience holy moments all of the time.

And… God actually tells us that He will bless us for our desires, as we strive to do so.

So even when the world is in chaos around me after I come down off the mount of my holy moment, my desire to keep holiness with me can be strong enough to carry that feeling in my heart.

Because even though I am moving from the holy place…

My desires are not moving.

My intentions are not moving.

My Savior is not moving.

That is what can stay constant. My desire to be good. Even if I’m on a roller coaster of what my actions look like, my desires of my heart keep me tethered to Christ.

I can stand in holy places as often as I can, and my thoughts and righteous desires can never be moved.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black