Difficult days

Difficult days can be a Godsend. You never know what you'll get out of it until it's over or nearly over. Striving to do your best in the midst of difficulty is always a sure bet however. Taking time out to collect your thoughts and emotions, to read and meditate, to pray and reflect, is invaluable. These activities soothe the soul and calm the mind. They bring clarity, focus and joy where there was confusion, frustration and resentment. This evening I read from Baha'u'llah's Tablet of Wisdom (Lawh-i-Hikmat) and it was fabulous. Before closing with a few favorite passages I came across, may I simply point out that reading Sacred Writings as if they were addressed to you personally (which they are if you think about it) is an entirely different experience to that of reading them as addressed to someone else, or even to humanity as a whole. It's too easy to depersonalize it and to abstract oneself from the implications and challenges of the text. That said, I think any text can be (and perhaps should be) read this way: as a direct conversation between you and the author. And I do mean conversation because in my mind there are always thoughts and reactions to what I'm reading. Ok, now here are the passages. Enjoy.

Strive to be shining examples unto all mankind, and true reminders of the virtues of God amidst men. He that riseth to serve My Cause should manifest My wisdom, and bend every effort to banish ignorance from the earth. Be united in counsel, be one in thought. Let each morn be better than its eve and each morrow richer than its yesterday.

Be thou as a throbbing artery, pulsating in the body of the entire creation, that through the heat generated by this motion there may appear that which will quicken the hearts of those who hesitate.

Say: Human utterance is an essence which aspireth to exert its influence and needeth moderation. As to its influence, this is conditional upon refinement which in turn is dependent upon hearts which are detached and pure. As to its moderation, this hath to be combined with tact and wisdom as prescribed in the Holy Scriptures and Tablets.