Monday Musings

In September, 2007, Thomas S. Monson made this statement, "Do not pray for tasks equal to your abilities, but pray for abilities equal to your tasks."  How many times do we go about our days trying to complete tasks that we think we should be competent enough to handle only to find that we fall short?  It happens to me just about every day.  There are at least 37 things in my job description that I have been well trained for, but I don't get to pick the order or complexity of my tasks, and some days, the pressure to excel is so great that I want to crawl in a hole and cry uncle.  So what is one to do?

My friend, Natalie, spoke in church on Sunday and mentioned that her dad would be running the Boston Marathon the next day.  He's 72 years old.  She said she had run one marathon herself once, and she doesn't marvel at the fact that her dad will run the marathon.  She said the marathon is the easy part.  It is the training for the marathon that is absolutely grueling, and I think it surprises her that he can still complete the training.  The training was what she remembered about her marathon because it was so difficult that she often wondered if she could complete the training necessary to be in shape for the marathon.  Of course she then likened this to our lives.  The day-to-day endurance in life is often so overwhelming that the feeling of defeat is hanging in the corner of our consciousness.   Enduring to the end is really, really hard work.  

So these two thoughts came together for me this morning, and I am grateful for the reminder.  I will strive to pray for abilities equal to the tasks that are before me as well as those to come.  I am hopeful, that with the Lord's help and strength,  I will be able to move forward without fear, confident that He will bless me with the ability needed to meet my challenges.  It's a simple concept, so why do I continue to falter?  Apparently I need to staple this message to my forehead, or at least tape it to my fridge.