What Really Matters

I recently thought of something that affected me for years- how I never got my personal progress medallion. How I thought it is along the lines of being like the essential, divine prestige of achievement, to simply put it. How it was a struggling desired project for me for years. Yet, how it made me feel this anguish at not finishing it as I should have. How I felt underachieved or in some way incomplete because I didn't complete it like the supposed typical devoted young woman did. Therefore, I felt 'off', regardless of me still being a devoted believer. However, over the years, I had come to overcome it more. I came to learn not just me at least knowing that there was at least one other still devoted female member who also didn't get it either, but what really matters after all are the basic requirements.

I saw doing personal progress as a cachet chore regardless of me technically subconsciously knowing all along that it of course as not really a requirement for salvation (like someone else has mentioned, it is like getting an eagle scout). But knowing that and thinking about it has made me realize that I should only be concerned with what's really required for my salvation and that I in foresight should have supposedly discussed with my young women's leaders about whether or how it mattered in completing personal progress. Yet I understood at the time that I thought it was a vital thing for me to do. How being a good, observant Christian is all that really mattered, with personal progress as an optional yet beneficial sidequest to take in (yet should also be fine if it didn't help me out at times like it ideally should have). How, in the end, how you can only be yourself is all that matters. So there, I shouldn't be wary about anything that's actually a side option regardless of my ambitious nature. For that matter, I fret at not going on a mission but know that it was actually optional and now think it's best, especially at this point in my life, and rightful for me to be just a member missionary (or a regular latter-day saint who promotes the church through example instead of full-time preaching). (Not to forget to mention that personal progress is now fortunately debunked. I think it is assumedly good that the Young Women's program is focusing on the true basics especially as told from the new young women's theme, though I do miss the insightful Young Women values.)    

That life lesson can also apply to life as all that matters are the simple basics including what's really is generally required. How we, therefore, shouldn't overly fret what doesn't actually matter. As far as the saying goes, how the simple things that really matter. Also, it is about observing the spirit of the law not the letter of the law.

I also see this life lesson as part of the beneficial thing of learning from your mistakes from acting upon your agency or free will. How I beneficially heard that one of life's purposes is to learn from your mistakes. So, I accept that as we have free agency (or free will) then it be normal to not have all the good latter-day saint young women, like I formerly was, to complete personal progress yet still live lives devoted to the gospel (that likewise goes with serving a mission for that matter). How we should embrace and rejoice more in the realistic, essential, and good concept that everyone is different. How I am grateful for our free will and diversity, including seeing the benefit of mistakes as vital life lessons to learn from.

Also, when I today studied for this week's Come Follow Me (a latter-day saint home-centered Sunday school program) in Genesis 4, it made me think of how we should make a true and hallowed sacrifice. How Cain made an invalid sacrifice that made him express anguish (Gen. 4: 3-7). This reminded me of another old testament scripture, 1 Sam.15:22- "And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." In its general context, King Saul just initiated an unauthorized sacrifice that eventually led to his downfall. This all made me think, including as relating to the dissatisfaction of not completing personal progress, of how I should make a true figurative sacrifice based on what's actually vital. Particularly, a broken heart and a contrite spirit with sincerity are what consists of the essential sacrifice today, not slaughtering a lamb upon an altar (3 Nephi 9:19-20).