Competitive

I am a very competitive person. So much so that I despise losing. To me it it the ultimate failure. In fact, it is so bad that I even hate losing to my kids. Ok, I know - it is a sickness.

But there is one other place that I hate losing even more - work. Recently I have been feeling like I have been beaten up at work. I guess it because I am feeling so overwhelmed by all that I have to do. Or perhaps a small part of me is not happy with my current job. Regardless of the reasons I feel like I am losing.

Recently my boss came to me and said we needed to come up with a plan to complete the Annual Workload requests. These requests are from the Area Presidency in each area with their request for DVDs in their language. Certainly an honorable request, and one that should be filled. The issue is that these requests have been coming in for the past 7-8 years, and little to no work has been completed on them. My job literally depends on me cleaning up the mess.

So how do I answer to call to a system and project that seems to be broken? Look at it as a competition! All I have to say is "Game on!"

Life is Good

Life is good. It really is. And I don't think I am trying to convince myself that it is. Maybe it is because my favorite 2 weeks every other year is the Olympics. Maybe it is because Rachael and Andrew are at EFY. Or perhaps it is just because I realize that even with all the junk that life is throwing us right now that we are surviving. Not just spiritually, but temporally as well. Let's face it, our finances are....well let's just say interesting. Our house is messy. The kids are wishing we could have done more fun activity this summer. But life is good.

It seems like it is easy to point out the negative things in our own lives. So I am going to focus on the positive. Rachael will have surgery in a few weeks. This is a good thing. In fact, we did not think we were going to afford it, but a great blessing came our way recently. Sometimes, in religion, people feel that their own religion has the corner market on inspiration. That is just not true. Heavenly Father loves all of his children, regardless of which religion. And because He loves his children, He wants to bless them. Our blessing came in the form of a very concerned step-mom. She was so in tune with the spirit that she knew she needed to call and find out what is going on in our lives. Being the typical stubborn prideful me, I was quick to assure her that all we well in our home. But Judy has a way of asking just the right questions. You know the ones - "Mark I know you are in need, tell me what is happening." My first reaction was to once again calm her concerns with a subtle "All is well." But I knew inside that she would not let up until I told her what was happening.

After our conversation, Judy sent me an email. Below is some of what she said:

The Lord already told me that you needed our help. It does not matter that we have pride, because I already knew something was going on and the first chance that I had to call, I did. Forget my frustration, I love you and your family so much that I am going to be there for you no matter if you tell me or not. Remember that God is in control, not us. He allows things to happen so that we learn to depend on HIM not ourselves, so no matter what, He will have HIS WAY ANYWAY so don't feel bad. Forget that. I already knew that there was an issue, I just did not know exactly what it was.

I love that the Lord is mindful of our needs. He truly loves us and wants to bless us. Often our blessings come through the actions of others.

So I can honestly say that "life is good." We all have our ups and downs; but if we persist, rely on the Lord, and give our humble thanks for the Lords blessings, he will continue to bless us.