To Hear My Soul's Complaint

One popular LDS hymn is I Know that My Redeemer Lives. I'm not particularly a fan of that hymn because I find the music to be dull and a bit repetitive, and it kind of plods along. (Give me something upbeat and brassy like Praise to the Lord, the Almighty.) But I was thinking about it as I was driving home from work yesterday, and something stuck out to me.

In verse 2, there's the line "He lives to hear my soul's complaint." When I was a teenager, this struck me as odd, since the scriptures seemed to have a pretty negative view of complaining (calling it "murmuring" and asserting that it was unrighteous and faithless). I had an epiphany yesterday.

In legal terms, a complaint is the first document filed in a lawsuit. It's a list of the plaintiff's grievances, along with factual allegations to support those grievances. After listing the grievances, there's a section entitled "prayer for relief", which is a request for the court to do something about the problem.

I like that imagery of God. God, being sovereign and omnipotent, has subject matter jurisdiction over our problems and personal jurisdiction over our adversaries. And He wants to hear our troubles. In fact, we have been instructed to cast our burdens on the Lord. (See Psalm 55:2, Matthew 11:28-30.) We can tell Him our concerns and pray for relief, and He has the power to grant the requested relief. And if it's a proper request, He will grant it.

Writer's Block

I have so many things that I want to say, but I can't seem to get them into writing. I think part of it is that it's easier to dash off a quick comment in a Facebook group than it is to sit down and write out a thoughtful blog post.

The bar exam (which I took in February yet again, though in a different state this time) kind of wore me out. Plus, I can feel myself getting sick again. I did some more lab testing last week, and I'll find out soon whether my thyroid has gotten worse, or whether I've had an adrenal relapse. (Or whether my body has decided to break in new and interesting ways...) I'm just so tired all the time.

I'm going to a mid-singles' conference this weekend, and there's a pretty good speaker lineup. Elder Holland is the keynote, so I'm sure I'll have something to report. Instant blogging material!

In no particular order, here are the topics I'm considering blogging about once I can focus long enough to do so:

• Life is a kobiyashi maru
• Thoughts on theodicy
• Gifts of the spirit
• When personal revelation doesn't work out the way we expect
• Finishing up my ten commandments series
• A series on the articles of faith
• Gender-neutral hymns