It has been currently 6 months since trying this experiment.
During these past six months I:
- Did not pay tithing
- Did not attend Church
- Did not read my scriptures
- Did not go to the temple
- Did not participate in any service project
- Did not avoid pornography or masturbation
- Did not magnify my church callings
- Did not work on expounding my talents
- Was not the best example to others
What are the results? Honestly, stagnation. I have learned that the failure to do the things that God requires of me to do, has stopped me from attaining my true potential. I have noticed that I have not grown as a person, nor have I seen any real blessings from the Lord.
That's not to say that people who do not go to Church or do the things listed above are horrible people. They are good people trying to do what they believe is right, and I applaud them. However, for me, I have not seen any progression toward anything. These past six months, I have, honestly, just....coasted along.
Looking through my past journal entries and blog posts...I haven't come to any conclusions or any life altering decisions. I can honestly feel and see that nothing has changed for the better. I want to be better. I want to do good. I want to feel like I belong to something...and...for the past 6 months, I have felt more alone than I have ever felt in my entire life.
So, without further ado, here is my plan for the next 6 months:
- Pay my tithing
- Attend all Church meetings
- Read and study my scriptures
- Go to the temple weekly
- Participate in any service project
- Avoid pornography and masturbation
- Magnify my church callings
- Expound and practice my talents
- Be an example to all which includes dropping all walls and "coming out" on Facebook
There you have it. The Beginning of the New 6 Month Experiment.
Come November 6th 2011, we shall see what changes have occurred or haven't occurred.
Wish me luck!
Good luck my friend. I hope you find what you are looking for. One comment really: During the past six months, you talked about what you did not do. I'm wondering, though, what you affirmatively did to try to improve your life during that time. We all tend to stagnate when we aren't striving for something.
ReplyDeleteSo, if the LDS life is your chosen path, get out there and strive for it!
Good luck! I'm excited to hear how this goes for you. I think the combination of all those things with being more open about your sexuality is powerful. I wish I could do that. I'm sure I will at some point... maybe your example will help me get there.
ReplyDeleteI dont want to be negative but what happens if you see stagnation from this coming 6 months? Don't get me wrong I think you will see a clarity coming from doing good things, but as I am learning, you have to do them not because God asks us too, but because we want to.
ReplyDelete@Trev– Wicked name ;)
I am confused. Were you doing this when you posted this:
ReplyDeletehttp://keeptreadingwater.blogspot.com/2011/04/getting-more-conflicted.html
@Tim--I was praying, but I wasn't attending the temple, nor paying my tithing, nor attending church, nor doing basically anything right.
ReplyDeleteWhat I think happened during that post was just myself trying to analyze some good feelings. Or, it could have been God trying to remind me that I need to do those things.
However, if--during this next 6 month experience--God tells me to get a boyfriend, or a girlfriend, or whatever, I will follow it. But, that is not the point of the experiment. The point is to see if my life gets better or stays the same.
Hope that helps answer the question!
Consider that you may be creating artificial and potentially misleading "either/or" categories. You can't grow and develop if you spend all your time NOT doing things. How do you know your latest list is everything God wants you to do, or that it doesn't include things He might want omitted?
ReplyDeleteInteresting. What's your plan for avoiding masturbation? Let us know how that one goes. I do wish you luck though and hope that things will go well for you.
ReplyDeleteHi, somewhat awkward question here, but I think I saw you around today... Did you happen to do make-up today for a promotional video?
ReplyDeleteI was working on the crew and overheard one of the people doing makeup talking and I thought--wait, I've heard that story before. I think it was you, but I'm not sure.
Anonymous--Yes. Yes, I was there. Ummm...you should email me so I can figure out who you are! Unless you don't want to. But I'll never die happy without knowing who you are. aforee 245 at gmail dot com
ReplyDelete