Will i pour out my spirit...will you be a vessel?

goals:

"the ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT skill that can be acquired in this life."

what's blocking us:

"there has NEVER been a GREATER need for increased faith and personal righteousness"

"there is MUST distraction and not enough peace and joy"

i really appreciate how she highlights some examples of charity and love and patience. sometimes i can feel myself getting down or frustrated and i am not sure why. but i think its excellent that she brings up a few things that we can be aware of and know how to combat:

--"being in the right places allows us to receive guidance"

--"it requires a CONSCIOUS effort to diminish distraction"

--"persist in faith through difficult days and essential routine tasks"

--"refine and cultivate ourselves in EVERYTHING that is good and ennobling"

whose standards do i rise/lower myself to? who is my personal judge? who am i trying to become?

sometimes, to be honest, i can't answer these the way i should. i think we all have to fight for the right ones sometimes. i felt really humbled as i thought of this quote:

"we want to be ladies[saints] in very deed, not according to the term of the word as the world judges, but fit companions of the Gods and Holy Ones"

i am sure that some of you get discouraged or misjudge yourselves at times. and maybe wonder how you are doing, if you are even moving forward in the way the lord wants, if efforts actually matter. and they do. we can know for certain. that's what i hope for you all and myself, that through our efforts we can feel hope.

"Peace, joy and hope are available to those who measure success properly."