This I Believe

Rough draft #2

#2 This I Believe: Timing is Everything

            I believe that timing is everything.  It’s a cliché we have all heard before, but we all use them because they are well worn, true statements.  There’s a time in our speech when using a cliché is appropriate.  That is one reason that timing is everything. 

            Many people rely on perfect timing in their lives.  Musicians practice repeatedly complicated patterns of notes so that their timing can be perfect.  A baseball player times his swing exactly for the moment to hit the ball and score that home run.  Politicians wait for the polls to swing in their favor before they announce their candidacy.  Software developers must work fast to keep up with every changing technology.  If we are too late, we might miss opportunities.  If we are too early, we waste our time waiting around.

            The most important timing belongs to our Father in Heaven.  He knows each and every one of us, and He gives us the opportunity to learn and grow through trials and experiences.  Those experiences come at the perfect time when we are ready to conquer them.  His trust in our abilities often outweighs our own.  He will never give us a trial that we are unable to bear.  His timing is perfect to help us master our challenges, and to be the people He wants us to be. 

            My timing and my plans for my life have not always been perfect. I dreamed of serving a mission right away or marring early and starting a family.  Neither of these things were what Heavenly Father had planned for me.  Because of my poor financial choices I didn’t serve a mission until I was 23 years old and that was exactly when I needed to.  From that first moment I entered the Missionary Training Center, to every day I walked the streets of Germany, I met people and had experiences that shaped the rest of my life.  When I returned home, I did my best to always be where the Lord wanted me to be, when he wanted me there. 

I attended a young single adult activity when I didn’t really want to wake up early to be there, but felt I needed to attend.  There I met a nice young man, only because I was talking about my mission, and it caught his attention.  He had served in my mission, and his last six months overlapped with my first six.  Although we had never served in similar areas, we knew many of the same people.  I gave him a ride home, and he made me lunch.  Seven months later we were married in the San Antonio Temple.  This was the moment that I first saw that Heavenly Father’s timing was better than mine.  His timing gave me experiences to learn and grow, a spouse who is my best friend and perfect for me in every way, and a beautiful family that I adore.  It is everything I ever wanted, in the time I was ready for it. 

There are those little moments in life, the perfect moment to say a kind word, visiting a friend exactly when they needed company, or avoiding a car accident because you stopped just in time.  There are big moments in life, crossing the stage to receive a diploma, meeting a person looking to learn the gospel, marrying your best friend, and holding a brand new little one for the first time.  All of these things require perfect timing, ours and our Heavenly Father’s. If we are out working on our moments of perfect timing, blessings will come.  Thus I believe, timing is everything.