I’m not sure how this will work, but it’s an idea I’ve had popping around in my skull for a while, and so I figured I’d toss it out and see what happens (plus, all that bouncing was causing my brain to hurt).
This thread is about all those little blessings we get that we either barely notice, or (because they are so small or seemingly trivial) would feel a little odd about mentioning in a testimony.
An example might help: I’m thankful I can whistle. But there’s more to it than that – I believe I received a specific blessing from God that allows me to whistle. Let me explain:
I could never whistle. Well, that’s not exactly true: From when I was a child all the way to age 19, I could only whistle one thin, tinny note. My peers mercilessly mocked me. I tried to get friends to teach me how. Whenever it came up, people looked at me oddly, as though not being able to whistle meant I was really an alien. “Come on. It’s easy – you just whistle. Everybody can do it!” Everyone except me, I guess.
I tried. I occasionally spent hours trying to whistle. Nothing happened.
Then, one day, after about a month in the MTC (Missionary Training Center), I was walking to class and an odd thought occurred to me: Whistle a hymn. At first I thought “I can’t whistle.” But the thought came back: Whistle a hymn. So I did. And guess what: I really did it. Suddenly I was whistling hymns. It may not have been perfect, but it was no longer on thin, tinny note. There was a range and a fullness I’d never, ever whistled before. It was quite exhilarating.
Now, I still have a few unresolved issues with my mission, but in that one case, I honestly feel the Lord blessed me with the ability to whistle. I will never be a professional whistler, but I CAN WHISTLE! IT actually meant a lot to me, despite how silly it may sound.
Of course, it’s such a small, trivial thing, It seems odd to bear testimony about it, or use it in a talk about blessings one can get from serving the Lord. Also, I’m sure some neuroscientist would make a claim about dendrites and brain development and toss God out of the equation.
But then there’s this scripture (emphasis mine):
D&C 59:21 And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments.
My sudden, unexpected ability to whistle falls under “all things.” It may not be the 5000 dollar check in the mail to the faithful tithe payer, or the miraculous healing of a child, but it’s still important and God expects me to confess his hand in it.
So – anyone else have small, seemingly trivial things they want to confess God’s hand in?