What do you want?

"The desire of the righteous shall be granted." -Proverbs 10:24

"You want something, go get it.  Period." -The Pursuit of Happyness, 2006

"What desirest thou?" -1 Nephi 11:2

The modern life is the busy life.  It is the multi-tasking life.  It is the technologically enabled and expanded life.  The personalized, bookmarked, set-your-own-theme life.

And all too often, it becomes the unfocused life.  The uncommitted life.  The self-centered life.  The lonely life.  The life that presents so many options that it becomes easy to forget what we really want.  

So what do we want out of life?  What do we want out of the relationships that constitute "life" in any meaningful sense?  And what are we willing to do (i.e. to change) to make desires reality?

The modern miracles of technology inundate our daily lives with so much data that it can be easy to confuse "information" with "action."  This applies to the manner in which we invest in our relationships, be they romantic, parent-child, or friend-friend.  Sometimes we make the mistake of abdicating our own responsibility to live according to our righteous desires by holding back (i.e. withholding our hearts, our commitment, our best selves) until we receive divine revelation on what is "right."  We refuse to move forward in a committed direction until the universe aligns in that perfect cosmic fit (that perfect "social app") that...while it hasn't really ever come before, is sure to be just around the corner...right?

But when we focus so much on figuring out what is "right," we run the risk, along the way, of utterly failing to be a positive influence in the lives of those who are important to us.  And our doubts become self-fulfilling.  Why would we receive divine approbation for something we're not sure we want in the first place?  There is a tremendous difference between approaching the Lord with the wavering question "Is this right?" and the more hopeful "According to the righteous desires with which Thou hast blessed me, I want this.  Thy will permitting, what can I do to win your approval for this blessing?"

In short, there is tremendous power in deciding what we want in righteousness and living accordingly; in choosing a committed life over a busy life.  

So when it comes to nurturing a marriage, attracting a future spouse, raising a headstrong child, or connecting with work colleagues and friends...

What do you truly want?

"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets:

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it." -W.H. Murray, The Scottish Himalayan Expedition, 1951