Connection Problems!

Recently, among other things, we have been having problems with our internet, which ordinarily would not be that big of a problem, but it has become our lifeline in communicating with a lot of great people, so on Friday morning when I received the all too familiar error code, “DIAGNOSE CONNECTION PROBLEM”, I got on the line with our provider and scheduled for a repair man to come and intervene.


Saturday afternoon, the repair man rolled in and went about trying to figure out the connection problem. He looked at the box on the outside of our house, to no resolve and determined that the problem was on the inside, so he and Justin set about skillfully dismantling a couple of our rooms upstairs and determined that a lot of our problem came down to a missing filter! Once the filter was put into place, the problem was resolved and a strong connection was reestablished.

I think all of us at one time or another experience CONNECTION PROBLEMS in our lives. For some it takes the form of trouble in a marriage or other cherished relationships, trouble at work or school for others, and inevitably we have all experienced times in our lives when we have had CONNECTION PROBLEMS with our Heavenly Father.

It is important to note that just like my internet CONNECTION, the connectivity problems that arise with Heaven stem from the inside and the filters that are missing (and in some cases the filters that are in place!). The missing filter in our home caused a great deal of interference with the line so that a CONNECTION was weak and sporadic, or could not be formed at all. I have reflected on the filters that have been in my own life. What has caused interference with my CONNECTION to my Heavenly Father? The answer came in the form of a long conversation with a dear friend! Among the filters that have caused distance for me are old fashioned guilt and fear.

When Christ states, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if ANY man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20), He does not exclude. He does not extend the invitation to only those who are without guilt and fear of not measuring up; in fact, His message is quite the opposite. He offered an ultimate and eternal sacrifice for us because he knew that perfection was not possible for us in this life (Matt. 8:12-13), He paid the price for us through the Atonement and we must actively take part in what He has to offer, to remove the pain from our lives. He is the repair man!

When we allow Him to ‘come in’, weak things will become strong (Ether 12:27), and as President Ezra Taft Benson stated, “When you turn your life over to God, He can make a lot more out of it than you can.” So, at the end of the day when DIAGNOSING THE CONNECTION PROBLEM, I realize that I need Christ to be the filter because I do not want to be bogged down in Satan’s web of unproductive guilt and fear and lose part of my CONNECTION with Heaven. I will turn it over to Him and move forward. I want my life to be more than I dreamed it could be, so like Paul, I recognize MY ‘thorn in the flesh’ and know that Christ’s grace is sufficient for me, because He paid the price and His strength is made perfect in my weakness (2 Cor. 12:7, 9-11).

I am grateful for all of your comments, well-wishes, and especially your prayers. I have been scheduled for another MRI on the 1st of April (I have already giggled about the irony of it landing on April Fool’s Day!), and instead of fearing the outcome, I will trust that the outcome will be His will. I will keep you posted.

Love to You,

Becky

'Mom's Heart' moment: Justin and I shared a little story about a shark named Kemo that swims around eating up cancer cells, trying to help the boys understand what the Chemotherapy was doing in positive and negative ways.  We decided to give them a shark of their own as a symbol.  We thought we had done a terrific job until their Kemo sharks started to attack each other.  I guess we will have to go back to the drawing board!