Do I Have Room in MY Inn?

Because I have a pretty sizable Desire, it’s taking me a long time to obtain.  Meaningful incremental Results are being obtained but sometimes it seems like I will never reach my final destination. It’s during these times of discouragement when I am most tempted to fill myself with alternative, smaller, less sustainable Desires that are easier to get a hold of right now.  I grab what I can and what I know will dull the pain or sorrow of my discouragement.  Thus I leave no room in my inn.  There is no vacancy.

The greater the Desire, the greater the sacrifice to obtain it.  And for me, much of the difficulty of that sacrifice has been Time.

So it works like this:  I’m going along on my journey.  My destination is far ahead but I have mile markers and Joy in the journey that usually keep me motivated.  But sometimes I come to the edge of a cliff, below which extends a deep ravine for miles to the right and to the left.  There is  seemingly no way across.   

Watch clip from Percy Jackson Movie

This is when I begin to look around at the scenery.  There is a village nearby.   I stop for a while.  There are some good restaurants and activities that are okay fun for me.  Or maybe I’ll take a nap.  Sleeping sounds really good right now. The village doesn't always serve as a "Lotus Casino" for me.  Usually it is filled with very worthy places to eat and things to do.  It's all about good, better and best choices.  The pathway I've been on represents my best choice.

Staying too long in the villages of my life causes me to forget about my journey for a while.  It was really stressful when I last thought about it because there seemed no way to continue.  In fact it seemed impossible.  I might as well hang out in the village while I’m waiting.  Maybe in a few days, weeks, months, or years something will change so I can cross that ravine.  So I partake of the goodies.  I keep myself nice and busy in all kinds of nothingness until I am utterly sick of it all. 

The problem with staying here and filling myself with this alternative reality is that it is not enough for me.  It doesn’t fill me like the real journey does.  When I’m on track, moving at a clipping pace, there is nothing like that kind of Joy.  It’s just these doggone ravines that keep getting in my way!  Eventually, because I have tasted that far superior Joy, I have to get back on the trail.  I have to figure out a way over that ravine.

When I come to the ravines of my life it is important for me not to turn to Conflicting Causes who offer a level of Joy that cannot sustain me.  This is the time to make sure I’m not filling the space inside me with less important things.  It’s crucial to save a room in my inn for that all important guest.   

Joan of Arc

And if I’m not careful I just may miss him because he’s not going to come dressed up in royal robes with trumpets broadcasting his glory loud and clear.  That comes later…in the end.  Right now I’m being tested to see if I can identify him even though he might be dressed in less than regal attire.  Instead of trumpets blasting, I hear a sweet, tender, quiet melody that reaches the very depths of my heart.
 

Waiting for him isn’t about idleness.  It’s about two things:

• Not consuming for my physical and spiritual nourishment less important things that are too low in their sustainable Peace
• Not engaging in physical and spiritual activities that merely keep me busy but fail to return a higher degree of sustainable Energy, motivation, excitement

Sinéad O'Connor:  "Nothing Compares 2 U"

When the going gets tough I have found that the sacrifice it takes for me to stay allegiant to my journey, to my desired destination, and to my Cause is extremely difficult but powerful.  And with this kind of power, I make a statement etched in stone of who I am and what I’ll be.  This time of waiting is a time of mourning.  It is a time of fasting.  It conveys the depth of sorrow I feel because of the distance that still separates me from my desired destination.

Be Still = Waiting = Balanced Processing = Moving along

 Listen:  "Move Along" by the All American Rejects 

It is during times like these that I have come to understand the next step to obtaining my Desire.  A step I wasn’t previously aware of.  This new perspective on how to cross the ravine is given to me only after I’m seemingly tested for a period of Time to see if I will give up and be filled with the available distractions or persevere to find a way across.  It is through these probationary Processes that my Cause determines the level of sustainable Joy I need to reside in continuously.  If I’m continuously content with the distractions, then that will most likely be the end of my journey.  That village becomes my desired destination.

Listen:  "Slow Down" by Jenny Jordan Frogley

Thus, I recognize I have to make a space in my life.  I can’t fill my Inn with alternative guests.  I must fast from certain things I could consume as well as certain activities that might fit in the keyhole but don’t have the power to actually unlock the door.  There is such a thing as short term pleasure and meaningless business that lifts my spirits in the moment.  But it always comes to an end, leaving me in a state that can never satisfy.

Because my journey is long, I have realized that I need to do three things:

D&C 130:7; D&C 93:21

• Always have my next mile marker in sight (Future) 
• Pay attention to the Joy I feel right now (Present)
• Regularly look back at what I have already achieved (Past)

This keeps me motivated.  It gives me a more powerful shield to use against tempting villages.  And it creates an ability inside of me that is SUSTAINABLE.

Read:   Focus and Priorities by Dallin H. Oaks