Still going strong - Made my bed, knelt for prayer, unloaded the dishwasher while listening to scriptures, Pull-ups, Body Rows, Back Flyes, and Biceps Curls in rest-pause sets all done this morning.

Lately I've really been finding value in the rest-pause set method with my workouts for the time efficiency. This has me taking a set to failure (as many repetitions as I can complete before giving out) and then resting just brief periods of 15-30 seconds before going again for a few more repetitions - essentially extending out the set into one long set with rests or pauses within it. I've been thinking about how spiritual growth comes after resistance as well. It does seem like to get the growth we need to become Christlike we need to push up against challenges to the point of exhaustion where we can only complete the trial by relying on God. Sometimes, these trials may surpass our ability to push through at first requiring some rest-pause action where we find some distraction or solace somewhere else for a while before facing the challenge again, thus extending our abilities to keep going.

Hi strength-seekers. Today I was able to finally get a new article put together going into some greater detail on things I've wanted to discuss for a while. I did so having also done my part to physically put on my strength with a short and effective workout. I hope that the article can help you to refine your journey to becoming even as (the Lord) is (3 Nephi 27:27)

Still doing pretty well at rebuilding myself into a stronger servant of the Lord. I'm half way through my leg workout for the day, resting a little before hitting the other leg. Morning prayers were a success kneeling at my bedside. I deviated a touch from personal scripture study last night to read material on teaching more effectively as the Savior taught/teaches. I still read a chapter with my family and listened to scripture and felt this was a reasonable adjustment for the night.

In Words of Mormon 1:14 we learn that, "in the strength of the Lord they did contend against their enemies, until they had slain... (and) driven them out of all the lands of their inheritance."

This morning I was listening in the book of Omni and there was some discussion about finding the people of Zarahemla and how their language had become corrupted and they were taught in the language of the Nephites. There was also some discussion about the Jaredites who interestingly avoided having there language lost while those around them did. I usually have just thought about this in terms of not having records to help preserve language among the people of Zarahemla, but wondered if there might be something more to think on about the importance of retaining uncorrupted language.

This morning I had push-ups, triceps work and shoulders to attend to and left myself feeling it to a point that putting dishes away in the cupboard after was challenging to raise my arms high enough. I've received a new calling, I can't talk about what it is yet, but it's caused me to fast and pray for guidance. I find in doing so, I snack more at night after breaking the fast. I'll need to work on curbing this to stop the pattern from further taking hold on me.

Often we hear of this life being a process of refinement as if through a refiners fire, or the Holy Ghost acting as a refining fire as one undergoes the baptism of fire. I was caught up in some other life burdens last night and realized this morning that I neglected my evening scripture reading. I could say I failed to read my scriptures, which may be true enough, but did I allow the miss to knock me down and despair over missing, or to refine me and teach me to do better? I choose the latter. I simply need to refocus on ensuring it's a top priority as part of my day. While various stressors were at play and my wife needed me to be there to comfort her, I could have still remembered to get my scripture study in for the night.

For today's update and thoughts, let me start off by saying that my small commitments are still going strong. While listening to scripture this morning in Jacob 4, I heard instruction to, "seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand" which had me thinking about how I pray. How often do I approach the Lord with the outcome I want and petition for it, as opposed to asking the Lord to help me navigate a given situation even with outcomes other than those I prefer. I'm worried it may be sign of laziness and lack of faith on my part. It's so much easier to ask for what I want than to ask for answers, when answers don't always seem to come clearly. I'm afraid I may be more like Laman and Lemuel who when asked by Nephi if they have inquired of the Lord responded to the effect of why bother, He maketh no such things known to us.

I am keeping up with small and simple steps of daily scripture study, kneeling prayer, and workouts. Today's workout had pull-ups at the base with biceps curls and backflyes for added targeting to those sections of the back and arms. I am likely ready to raise my standards in what is considered a valid effort, or adding to the things I do.

Yesterday I had an annoying ankle issue that flares up from time to time show up. Sometimes when I'm lucky I can just walk it off, but other times it sets in for a more protracted period and then moves down the side of my foot and starts aggravating the bottom of my foot making each step excruciating. Still, I managed to get over 17000 steps yesterday, but today it's definitely grumpy so walking it off didn't work yesterday. Even though my workout this morning was an upper body workout having the pain shoot up from my foot and ankle made things more challenging and setting up for exercises took longer than they would have otherwise. This had me thinking about how spiritual injuries set back our progress toward becoming like the Savior. The same ambition and drive that can help us be go getters to do the Lord's work can also be the same attributes that drive us after money or chasing lusts and so on. Sometimes "walking" it off by refocusing on the attributes that can lead us to Christ will carry us through to a better place, and sometimes the attribute may take us in the wrong direction and we need to reevaluate. I'd encourage all of us to evaluate where we are at and what spiritual injuries we are working with, some chronic and recurring I'd expect - what course corrections do you need to allow healing to take place? If continuing the same course has been creating reinjury, a different path likely needs to be explored.