On a bad-mood day, I discovered the need to just show up.
I had just finished day two of presenting at a major conference on a college campus. The beautiful spring day didn’t match my mood. I had done a lot of processing and prepping for presentations focused on heavy topics. I was starting to fear that perhaps I would just show up and not be able to inspire my audiences in ways I desired.
The flowers were blooming. Women and men filled walkways and seats in assembly halls. People were all around me. But even as I received great feedback on my talks and saw people I knew and loved, I felt sad and alone.
But I wasn’t alone
As soon as I finished speaking, I called my spouse and said I was heading home. But then I had a prompting to first check on a friend who I knew was still on campus. I made my way down a hallway and could see my friend, and I knew she was upset about something.
I hugged her. We talked through what she was dealing with. I felt a moment of connection with her, but that deep feeling of loneliness was still rumbling. Jen was so kind and invited me to stay, have some food, and finish the closing session of the conference as her guest.
As I said yes, I knew I was also giving myself permission not to stay for the rest of the day.
I decided to stay just one more hour. And over the next hour, I kept having some small and simple conversations. I ran into people I needed to see. I received hugs and impressions.
I kept staying. And with each click of the clock, I could feel Heaven’s hand in melting the block of loneliness-ice with small and powerful moments. I was glad I was led to just show up, even when I didn’t want to.
To just show up requires us to follow President Nelson’s simple yet profound instruction: “The Lord loves effort. The Lord loves consistency. The Lord loves steadfastness.”
Sometimes it is difficult to just show up. It can feel like dragging around 100 lb. weights. Our mind can play tricks, telling us that when we just show up at church or in a conversation we’re not doing anything important. But all offerings can be consecrated for our good. Like the widow offering her mite, God can use what we bring and will bless us for bringing it.
“The Savior stands ready to accept our humble offerings and perfect them through His grace. With Christ, there is no imperfect harvest.
At times we will see that our fish and loaves are expanded to much more. But more often, just showing up is significant because it keeps you moving. Regardless of the outcome, movement matters.
That end of my spring day on campus, when I decided to show up in places I hadn’t intended to be, resulted in miraculous moments of spirit, softening, and social connection. This doesn’t always happen when you drag yourself to church, add on another scripture verse, or extend service to a neighbor. But if we don’t show up, we are 100% guaranteed nothing will change.
Make the offering as you just show up in your faith journey and in all your relationships. God will meet you there. I witness to this truth.