Always in the Middle

With my situation as a college student, there is a lot of turnover between semesters. Many friends are leaving town whereas I will stay for school and work over the summer. In such bittersweet times of transition, I appreciate the enlightening perspective given by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, a general leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: 

Beginnings are times for making resolutions, for creating plans, for bursts of energy. Endings are times for winding down and may involve feelings of completion or loss. But with the proper outlook, considering ourselves as in the middle of things can help us not only to understand life a little better but also to live it a little more meaningfully.

In school, in work, in family life, in anything, this principle applies. Those who just started the journey (read: job, class/degree program, marriage/family, etc.) generally feel inexperienced, and such thoughts can lead to a lack of confidence, which affects their effectiveness. Those who are near the end may have a tendency to get a case of "senioritis," that lack of motivation that can accompany such a situation.

As it is with space, so it is with time. We may feel we are at the beginning or end of our lives, but when we look at where we are against the backdrop of eternity—when we realize that our spirit has existed for time beyond our capacity to measure and, because of the perfect sacrifice and Atonement of Jesus Christ, that our soul will exist for an eternity to come—we can recognize that we are truly in the middle. 

We are always in the middle of eternity. This earth experience is a tiny point on the timeline. No matter where or when we are, we can have the confidence and the motivation, the faith and hope and love, to be a force for good and for progression. 

Yes, there will be moments of beginnings and moments of endings throughout our lives, but these are only markers along the way of the great middle of our eternal lives. Whether we are at the beginning or the end, whether we are young or old, the Lord can use us for His purposes if we simply set aside whatever thoughts limit our ability to serve and allow His will to shape our lives.

Being always in the middle means that the game is never over, hope is never lost, defeat is never final. For no matter where we are or what our circumstances, an eternity of beginnings and an eternity of endings stretch out before us.

We are always in the middle.

(Full article here) 

I am grateful for beginnings, and endings, knowing that they are really multiple steps in eternity. :)