I wouldn’t have known, except….

When I worked for DC Public Schools, people would come up to me after community meetings often and say “I wouldn’t have known about this meeting if you hadn’t...” fill in the blank: "...put this flyer up at my son’s school" or “sent a robo call home” or “put it on your website.”

Often these comments were said as accusations, angrily implying we should have done more to let them know. I started asking people, “How would you have wanted us to let you know," and just listening to their answers, looking for ways to communicate out this information more effectively in the future.

This morning I was snoozing my alarm and saw a notification that a baseball game was cancelled / postponed due to the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright in Minnesota.

I started crying. I thought about a music video I’ve gone back to a number of times since discovering it last year.

One of my first thoughts was to text a friend of mine who is in that music video. Checking the date I felt bad that I didn’t know about this shooting before now, it happened two days ago.

Should I still reach out to my friend? What would/could/should I say?

Then I thought about those people in DC who would come up to me and tell me “I wouldn’t know, except…” this applies to more things than I realized.

What hit me this morning is it doesn’t have to just be negative.

Maybe I don’t know what to say. And maybe it would have been better if I had reached out sooner. But, my friend will never know I’m thinking about him or that his music video has made an impression on my life if I don’t tell him.

One truth I circle back to regularly is this - we don't reach out in love enough.

When you think of someone, reach out.

When you have a chance to let someone know they made a difference in your life, take it.

A text, a note in the mail, an email – they can be what causes someone to say “I would never have known, except” in a way that means “Thank you for letting me know I matter and made a difference for someone.”

I know I referenced this song in a recent post, but it is also applicable here - one person having an idea and acting on it can make a difference (listen to the song Genealogy of Revolution, or read my other post if you want to know more). 

I am just once person. That is a fact. But all the choices I make, including the things I choose not to do, they have an impact on others.

And if enough people do something, we can change the world.

We need people standing up and saying, "Enough, this has to stop. Things have to change."

I want to be one of those voices.

Black Lives Matter.

We have to change power dynamics in this country.

We have to change systems that enable senseless death and violence.

People won't know....unless we tell them.

Say it both ways:

Say "We won't stand for this" to people in power.

Say "I'm standing with you" to those people and communities facing loss.

People won't know....unless we tell them.

Line Upon Line: Easter Edition

Yesterday I had a new experience with the principle of learning line upon line.

[For more on that concept, see 2 Nephi 28:30, where Book of Mormon prophet Nephi talks about this concept he learned from the Lord God, that was also taught by his favorite biblical prophet Isaiah (see Isaiah 28:10)]

I was reading the Come Follow Me chapter about Easter. I had read a little the day before, and listened to 1 Corinthians 15, but felt like I “wasn’t very far” in my study.

While eating some banana bread, I pulled up the app. Mentally I was chastising myself for starting the day later than I wanted to, especially since it meant I was now multi-tasking – eating breakfast while studying my scriptures (not always a very productive or ideal situation for me personally).

But I bowed my head and prayed to my Heavenly Father. I thanked Him for the food I had to eat and told Him I wanted to learn from the scriptures and feel a greater connection to the Savior, especially in this Holy Week leading up to Easter.

This question was presented in the manual: What do you learn about the Living Christ from His words in Doctrine and Covenants 29:5, 38:7; 62:1?

I clicked the link in my app to the first reference and read

Doctrine and Covenants 29:5

5 Lift up your hearts and be glad, for I am in your midst, and am your advocate with the Father; and it is his good will to give you the kingdom.

After reading the whole verse, this is what I thought:

They, God and Christ, are generous and present

I read it again, and this is what came to mind:

Not only is Christ present, He is advocating for us

I read it once more: 

He wants us to be happy, and acknowledges that will take effort on our part - "lift up your hearts and be glad"

At this point I thought, it doesn’t really matter how fast I read, what matters is that I seek to know my Savior better as I read and ponder His words.

With that thought, I read the verse a final time. Instead of a one line thought, this is what I gleaned:

Reading Doc & Cov 29:5 several times continued to bring new insight (recorded above). This most recent time, I was hit by the last phrase, that it is God's good will to give us the kingdom. Sometimes the word, or role, of advocate implies to me that there is an uphill battle to be fought. That the advocate has to change the mind of the person they are presenting the case to. But that final phrase in the verse says God wants to give us the kingdom, not that He'll only bestow it grudgingly on a few. God is inclusive, not elite. He is doing all He can to help us succeed.

Part of the point of learning line upon line is that we can learn a little here and a little there. And sometimes, as we continue to seek knowledge, we are given deeper or greater insight.

What line are you hoping to add to?

I encourage you to take it to God in prayer. He is eager to teach and to bless us with increased knowledge.

I am grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ. I am grateful to know that He is here – He rose from the grave after His crucifixion. He is on my side, and by my side. I can trust in Him and lean on Him. I can allow Him to lead me to God the Father.