Daily Bread May 23

Life Gets Complicated
Eileen Turner of Newberg, OR, USA


Be patient with one another, for creating sacred community is arduous and even painful.  But it is to loving community such as this that each is called.  Be courageous and visionary, believing in the power of just a few vibrant witnesses to transform the world.  Be assured that love with overcome the voices of fear, division, and deceit. -Doctrine and Covenants 161:3c

When the hybrid battery pack in my 10-year-old vehicle was showing signs of demise, I had to make a decision. Do I put major expense into an aging vehicle or lease/buy a new model with all those safety features (back-up camera, lane departure warning system, automatic braking, adaptive cruise control, etc.)? As I age in place, I decided I needed all the safety items of the newer vehicle.

For the first few months I washed that beautiful car myself, but as the weather changed, I decided it needed to go through the automatic car wash. But then I had questions that weren’t answered in the hundreds of pages of the three owner’s manuals. Do I drive into the car wash and worry about all these warning systems, flashing lights, and noisy beeps when my tires hit the gutter guard? The only piece of information about car washes in those manuals was to ask the worker to tape my rear windshield wiper to avoid damage. So I worried and continued to postpone my trip to the car wash.

When I went to my yoga class, the instructor had us write out four or five intentions we had for the new year. I knew then I needed to be more courageous. So I prayed that I would make improvements in each of my intentions. Putting off the car wash was no longer an option. I discovered two little buttons on the control panel above my head that would turn off two warning systems. Prayers were answered, courage restored. My beautiful new car was shiny and white again.

Why is it we fail to expect our prayers to be answered? Do we feel unworthy? I now know that I simply need to ask and courage will be restored. But I also know that I have to put in the extra effort to find those answers.

Prayer Phrase

I am about to do a new thing, now it springs forth… (Isaiah 43:19).

Spiritual Practice

A New Thing

Breathe deeply and listen within. Where is the Spirit doing a new thing in you? How do you feel about the new thing that might be emerging? Are you excited, resistant, fearful, hopeful? Take whatever you are experiencing to prayer. Breathe deeply and listen around you. Where is the Spirit doing a new thing in your community? Pay attention to how it feels to discern the Spirit’s activity and presence within and around you.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

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