As long as it's your best...

Life is like one's favorite board game; you do your best with what you've got and hope it doesn't end too soon.

I don't anticipate complications with the gallbladder surgery being done at 7:30 am today, but every time I discount it as a minor surgery and nothing to worry about people pipe up with, "There are risks with any procedure blah blah blah blah blah".

I was fine tuning that out until I went to sign pre-op paperwork yesterday. After 3 pages of "initialing here" to indicate that I understand each and every risk that may happen but probably won't, I'm feeling some little level of uneasiness.

I thought I'd keep this briefer than my normal posts because it's superiorly too late at night and I have to be at the hospital by 5:30 am tomorrow... but we all know that's impossible.

To reiterate a point made earlier, my life of 25+ years thus far has been like my favorite board game. I've been doing my best and I really would rather it not end too soon.

In the event that it were to, I'd go with very few regrets if any at all. I'd hope my family and friends would always remember how much I love them and have faith in the belief that I know someday after all is said and done, friendships will continue and families can be forever united.

There is a God. I like to refer to Him as Heavenly Father for He is the father of our spirits. Once we all lived with Him, together as a literal family of spiritual beings. We were doing very well and were living good lives. We were missing something though, a test of faith. Heavenly Father had a plan to create a world for His children to dwell on and be tried and tested to see if we would draw our strength from Him, endure to the end in righteousness and return to His presence.

A mortal life lacking memory of our spiritual pre-mortal experience would be hard, grueling and we would make mistakes. Heavenly Father sought for a child of His who was willing to be perfect in His doings, selfless beyond comprehension, an extender of mercy and to himself be sacrificed in order to fulfill the law of justice so all of Heavenly Father's children would have a chance to make amends while striving for better but living less than perfect lives. Our elder brother Jesus Christ took on the role saying, "Father, send me" and fulfilled the law of justice in all our steads by taking on our every sin and burden, suffering for them and dying at the hands of men whom he blessed for they knew not that they were killing their Savior.

I know Christ lives, that He walked and talked and blessed people after having been resurrected, breaking the bands of physical death. We are all promised that opportunity, to be saved from physical death through resurrection. It's like we're all given a "get of jail free" card without having to roll the dice or move our game piece to get it. Avoiding spiritual death or suffering is a whole different story though. We will be judged on our faith, our works, our hearts, our minds... so many things within our control yet so often neglected and abused.

I urge you to go forth and exercise faith, do good, soften your heart, cultivate your mind and find a straight and narrow path leading somewhere worth your while and follow it. Do your very best climbing the proverbial mountain of trials and tribulation. As long as it's your best fight, your best climb, your best effort.... one day Christ will reach down, grasp your hand and pull you up the rest of the way from whatever point you were able to get to, making up the difference. This folks, is my favorite illustration of mercy.

God be with you all till we meet again. I'm sure it will be in the next week at work or church or wherever. But... on that far-fetched chance that it's not, I promise not to be far away and I will surely see you later.

Love,

Joanna