Do We Trust Our Spiritual Spotter?

Next to my bathroom mirror, I have the Relief Society Declaration. It is a good reminder of basic truths of who I am and who I want to become.  As I went through it again this morning while grooming for church, a part stood out to me:

seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost

Now, I am a very visual person, so as my mind kind of stuck on that idea, the image of my sons working out, lifting weights, came to mind.  My mind is good at brainstorming with different kinds of ideas so immediately it set to work to make a connection between this idea of developing a visual kind of spiritual strength that paralleled what I saw my sons and husband do.

It occurred to me that it is a regular habit to be effective and it is gradual.  You begin with small weights (perhaps even the bar at first) and then gradually work up.  Then your muscles are able to handle more and your "strength" increases.

So how does that work with spiritual strength?  I envisioned praying, seeking inspiration and having a prompting.  Then acting on it.  How does that develop strength?  It occurred to me that as we follow promptings, rather than developing our own physical muscles, we are tapping into God's strength and power and the more we practice by following promptings, the more of God's strength and power we access.  

It is like we don't understand the capacity of God's spiritual strength and need to, bit by bit, develop a deeper faith in His ability to lift those weights.

Yes, we preach all the time about "God's unending strength" but, honestly, when it comes down to things like tragedy, addictions, world problems, dirty kitchens, do we really respond with "God's got it and if I trust in His inspiration to me, His promptings through the Holy Ghost, I'm good!"

No.  At least I don't.  I doubt, I fret. I worry. I get anxious.

I think developing spiritual strength is more about recognizing God's capacity and not depending so much on our own.

Perhaps He is like the ultimate spotter.  He brings over weights that we don't think we can possibly bear.  Bit by bit as we put our hands on the bar, take a deep breath and trust Him, He eases those weights down on us just enough that our own pitiful spiritual muscles begin to work.  We visually see the weights of our burdens, etc., but perhaps the spiritual strength we are seeking to develop is a deeper trust in our Spotter, a trust that He is there holding those weights and lowering them just enough that we can feel, develop and grow and know that He loves us enough that the weights will never drop on us...as long as we invite Him to be our spotter, perhaps.

Just musing.  

I am a go-getter.  A independent self-improvement wacko,  you might say. I am an idealist. I see that gym full of weights, flex my wimpy spiritual muscles and go over and take on weights and put them on my bar. I think God must look on me lovingly and say, "Darlin', let me put the weights on you, just follow the promptings (put on the weights) that I give you, and trust that together, you will become just who you need to be."

Interesting.  Thinking about that imagery of the gym, how often do we think other people should take on different weights, challenges, goals, thinking we know best, not realizing that in God's infinite capacity, He can be individually spotting everyone in that gym of His creation?

Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.  It strikes me that it doesn't say "seek spiritual strength by thinking of every good thing you should do and become and then go for it."  

Thinking, thinking, thinking...