To be honest I'm unsure of what I even want to say anymore. I started this blog to get my thoughts out of my head and somewhere else. It shocks me when people actually tell me they read my blog, I never expect people to read it. And it's been a minute since I've taken the time to blog, but if I was honest with myself it has been more than that. There just hasn't been that much going on in my life, at least nothing worth telling this blog about.
I do have a question though...when did it become the norm for LDS people to become so judgy? Well that's not fair I guess...to be fair not all LDS people are like that, but it seems like those members that are my peers or a little bit older seem to take things a little too far. I refuse to believe that anyone is truly malicious at heart so I'm sure they are living the Gospel to the best of their abilities; but it seems they overlook the whole love thy neighbor concept. Last time I checked there wasn't an asterisk by that commandment or that verse in the Bible that says "But only if they are LDS" or even worse "If they are LDS like you".
I don't know, the way I was raised I was always taught the best way to be was to live your standards and realize and respect that not everyone will believe the way that you do and that's ok. I've never been hesitant to be friends with people who held different beliefs than I did and my motivation was never to convert them. I was and am friends with them because they are good people, because they are interesting and I feel that I can learn something to better myself from them.
I believe that the church is true and I would love to share what I feel and believe, but I know better than to just bring it up. The church always talks about every member a missionary and to always search for moments to share the gospel with others but to me that doesn't mean shove it down someone's throat every second of every day or to judge them harshly because they don't want to hear about it. My mom always taught me that if someone wanted to know more about what I believe then the perfect time to talk about it was when they asked. On their timeline, when truly they would be more receptive to it. Besides isn't there a scripture that basically says don't throw your pearls before swine because they won't appreciate their value?
Even more shocking I was out with a friend of mine that has a beautiful tattoo that covers his left bicep and up to his shoulder and just barely crawling over to his chest. To him it has meaning. To him it is more than just ink. To him it's his life story that he has detailed upon himself. And while the church expressly discourages tattoos (which is 3/4 of the reason I won't ever get one, the other 1/4 is needles scare me...like a lot) that's never stopped me from being friends with people who don't hold that same belief. However I had another friend who is a very devout Mormon and I respect her dedication, but she mentioned believing that he wasn't a very good guy and that I shouldn't waste my time being friends with him. Take into account that she didn't know him, or really anything about him other than the fact that he was not LDS and he was inked. I truly was shocked, and it was one of those moments that made me grateful for the way that I was raised.
It made me think about how we treat people in general and what we judge them off of. This friend of mine was so stuck in her bubble that she couldn't seem to grasp the idea that someone who wasn't LDS and who obviously wasn't living LDS standards could be a good person and while at first that made me angry I have gotten to the point that it just made me sad for her. She has blocked herself off to so many great people all because she has this ridiculous hang up that a person who doesn't share her faith isn't worth her time.
And here's one more thought before I end this post, do we as Mormons judge those within our own faith more harshly than we should? President Uchtdorf said to not judge someone else because they sin differently than you do. I hope to keep that mind.....
Much love.
-L
