Jet Mariano

Tag: spiritual growth

  • MARKED IN TIME — “DO YOUR PART” (MIT8)

    Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf — October 2025 General Conference

    Where effort meets grace, discipleship blooms

    Excerpt

    “Trust the Savior and engage, patiently and diligently, in doing your part with all your heart.”

    Intro

    Life moves fast — technology, deadlines, expectations, and noise. Elder Uchtdorf’s message reminded me to slow down, trust the Savior, and stay consistent in the small habits that shape who I am. It’s not about speed. It’s about direction. And the quiet discipline behind every disciple’s journey.

    Notes from Elder Uchtdorf

    Trust the Savior completely and give Him your steady daily effort.
    Discipleship requires practice.
    Skills fade without continued effort.
    Greatness grows from repetition, humility, and patience.
    The Lord magnifies even small efforts when offered with heart.

    Perspective (direct quotes)

    “Getting good at anything… takes consistent self-discipline and practice.”
    Whether flying, rowing, sowing, learning, or becoming — practice never stops.

    “Trust the Savior and engage… in doing your part with all your heart.”
    He doesn’t ask perfection — just faith in motion.

    Practice — Today, Not Someday

    My Discipline in IT
    Technology evolves every day. You don’t master it once — you study daily. I use Microsoft Learn, Udemy, and YouTube Premium, and I blog because writing helps me lock in what I learn. This is my stewardship: my part in staying sharp.

    My Discipline in Photography
    Photography isn’t just technical settings. It’s learning to read the light, study it, and anticipate it. Capturing it is an act of patience and discipline — just like discipleship.

    My Discipline in Health
    My body is my engine. If I don’t stay fit, how can I keep up with the never-ending pace of IT? Health keeps my mind focused. My discipline keeps me grounded.

    My RFC Trio
    Just like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC work as a trio — strengthening trust and protecting identity — my three disciplines work together:

    Mind (IT)
    Creativity (Photography)
    Body (Health)

    One supports the other. One anchors the next. And that’s how discipleship grows: line upon line, habit upon habit.

    Final Reflection

    Discipline is not punishment. It’s devotion — devotion to the future you, and trust in a God who sees more in you than you see in yourself. “Doing your part” isn’t dramatic or loud. It’s small steady steps that build spiritual muscle.

    Pocket I’m Keeping

    “Trust the Savior… and engage diligently in doing your part.”
    Not perfectly.
    Not instantly.
    Just faithfully.

    What I Hear Now (direct quotes)

    Consistency is strength.
    “Keep practicing.”
    “I will make your small offering enough.”
    “Do your part — I will do Mine.”

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  • MIT8 – Divine Love – President Russell M. Nelson

    Where the sun breaks through, grace follows. Even in heavy days, God still sends light

    Excerpt

    Divine love is perfect and infinite—but never detached from law, covenant, or personal responsibility. President Nelson teaches that God’s love lifts us, but it also leads us.

    Intro

    There are many ideas in the world about love—“unconditional love,” “love accepts everything,” “love is all that matters.” But President Russell M. Nelson gently corrects this. Divine love is deeper, higher, and holier than the world’s definition. It is love that lifts, but also directs. Love that embraces, but also invites repentance, covenant keeping, and discipleship.

    Notes From the Speaker

    President Nelson teaches:

    • Divine love is perfect—complete and free of selfishness.
    • Divine love is infinite—extending to all who ever lived or will live.
    • Divine love is enduring—God keeps covenant and mercy “to a thousand generations.”
    • Divine love is universal—He sends rain on the just and unjust, and invites all to come unto Him.

    But he also clarifies something rarely discussed:

    “While divine love can be called perfect, infinite, enduring, and universal, it cannot correctly be characterized as unconditional.”

    Not unconditional—in the worldly sense.

    Divine love includes law.
    Divine love invites us to rise.
    Divine love calls us home through covenant.

    Perspective (Direct Quotes)

    “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.”

    “The Lord keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments.”

    “He denieth none that come unto him.”

    Divine love is not passive.
    It moves.
    It sacrifices.
    It teaches.
    It commands.

    And it changes us.

    Practice (Today, Not Someday)

    • Love God by keeping commandments.
    • Love others in ways that lift them toward Christ, not just toward comfort.
    • Pray with real intent, trusting that His love is shaping you—not indulging you.
    • Stand firm when the world pushes to redefine love into permission.
    • Anchor your identity in God’s love, not the world’s applause.

    Final Reflection

    Divine love is not a soft pillow—it is a guiding compass.
    It doesn’t remove the need for obedience; it empowers it.
    It doesn’t eliminate consequences; it helps us grow through them.
    It does not excuse sin; it rescues us from sin.

    President Nelson’s message reminds me that God’s love is best understood not when everything feels easy, but when we recognize that His love shapes us into something greater than we could ever create alone.

    Pocket I’m Keeping

    God’s love is infinite, but His blessings are predicated on my willingness to keep commandments and walk the covenant path. His love always points me toward the next step.

    What I Hear Now (Direct Quotes)

    “Divine love cannot be correctly characterized as unconditional.”

    “He inviteth all to come unto him.”

    “The Father and the Son are one—in purpose and love.”

    Link to the Talk

    Divine Love — Russell M. Nelson (2003)

  • MIT8 – If It’s to Be, It’s Up to Me — and God’s Timing

    Milky Way rising behind Delicate Arch in Moab, Utah, photographed by Jet Mariano. A visual reminder of faith, effort, and timing.

    Excerpt
    If it’s to be, it’s up to me — but only when my feet move in faith and God’s timing directs the path. Today, through hymns, impressions, and a memory of Delicate Arch under the Milky Way, I was reminded that blessings unfold when effort meets revelation.

    Intro: The Path Is Action + Timing
    This morning I woke up peacefully with a single impression:
    “If it’s to be, it’s up to me.”

    That sentence framed my entire Sabbath. Each hymn, each thought, each scripture, even the Sunday School lesson seemed orchestrated around one doctrine I’ve lived for decades:

    Faith is a principle of action — but blessings come in God’s timing.

    I’ve worked since I was 12 years old and didn’t enter the IT world until age 37. Nothing was wasted. Every phase prepared me for the next. Today reminded me again: God’s plan is not passive, but it’s not instant either. It is effort + grace. Movement + revelation. Timing + trust.

    Notes From Elder Dale G. Renlund
    Elder Renlund teaches in Abound with Blessings:

    “Most blessings that God desires to give us require action on our part—action based on our faith in Jesus Christ. Faith in the Savior is a principle of action and of power.”

    He adds:

    “Faith in Christ requires ongoing action for the blaze to continue. Small actions fuel our ability to walk along the covenant path… But oxygen flows only if we figuratively keep moving our feet.”

    His examples are profound:

    • Make the bow before the revelation comes
    • Build the tools before the instructions arrive
    • Bake the cake before the miracle of flour appears

    Faith requires movement.
    But miracles require God’s timing.

    Perspective — Elder Christofferson’s Vending Machine Warning
    Elder D. Todd Christofferson adds the perfect balance:

    “We ought not to think of God’s plan as a cosmic vending machine where we (1) select a desired blessing, (2) insert the required sum of good works, and (3) the order is promptly delivered.”

    It does not work that way.

    Blessings are not:

    • purchased,
    • demanded,
    • or dispensed on schedule.

    As I wrote in last night’s Predicated blog:

    “Blessings from heaven are neither earned by frenetically accruing ‘good deed coupons’ nor by helplessly waiting to see if we win the blessing lottery. No.”

    True faith is not transactional — it is transformational.

    Practice (Today, Not Someday): The Delicate Arch Lesson
    My photograph of the Milky Way rising behind Delicate Arch is a visual sermon about faith and action.

    The hike is 3 miles round trip, with over 600 feet of elevation climb. During summer, the Milky Way rises behind the arch for only a brief window. If I waited for perfect conditions or perfect timing, I would miss it.

    So I climbed early.
    Walked in the dark.
    Prepared my gear.
    Positioned myself.
    And waited for heaven to align.

    Only then did the Milky Way rise — after I moved my feet.

    Some blessings don’t appear until we climb.
    Some revelation doesn’t rise until we prepare.
    Some miracles don’t unfold until we act in faith.

    That hike is my life:
    from working at 12,
    to breakthroughs at 37,
    to every step since.
    Effort + timing.
    Action + grace.
    Faith + patience.

    Final Reflection
    “If it’s to be, it’s up to me” is not self-reliance without God.
    It’s my action combined with His timing.
    My discipline combined with His direction.
    My relentless faith combined with His perfect plan.

    Today reminded me that the Lord isn’t a vending machine dispensing blessings on demand. He’s a Father who blesses according to eternal purpose. Sometimes He asks me to climb in the dark. Sometimes He asks me to wait. But He always keeps His promises.

    Pocket I’m Keeping
    Move my feet — and trust His timing.
    Climb faithfully — and let Him reveal the Milky Way.

    What I Hear Now (Direct Quotes)
    “Faith in the Savior is a principle of action and of power.” — Elder Renlund
    “Blessings require movement — oxygen flows only if you keep your feet moving.”
    “God is not a cosmic vending machine.” — Elder Christofferson
    “Make the bow before the revelation comes.”

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  • MIT8 – The Morning Whisper at Oquirrh

    (Guideline #21: Time Isn’t Your Natural Dimension)

    The Oquirrh Mountain Temple — where silence felt eternal, and the dawn waited its turn.

    Excerpt:
    In the quiet hours before dawn, the cold air at Oquirrh Mountain Temple carried a whisper — not of time passing, but of eternity reminding me where I truly belong.

    Intro

    It was early morning in the 30s, the kind of cold that clears the mind but steadies the heart.
    The temple stood bright against the darkness, its light spilling upward toward the heavens.
    I wasn’t seeking answers — only understanding. And somewhere between the wind and silence, understanding came.

    Notes from Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    Elder Maxwell taught that time isn’t our natural dimension.

    “There are days when you wish that time would pass quickly, and it won’t.
    There are days when you wish you could hold back the dawn, and you can’t.
    You and I are not at home in this dimension we call time… we belong to eternity.”

    He compared our souls to fish who thrive in water — but for us, time isn’t our home.
    We move through it like visitors, wearing watches only to measure what eternity already knows.

    Perspective (Direct Quotes)

    “There are days when you wish that time would pass quickly, and it won’t.
    There are days when you wish you could hold back the dawn, and you can’t.”

    Those lines carried me this morning as I stood still beneath the steeple.
    I realized that my soul has never felt at home in time. I’ve always felt that sense of being from somewhere else.

    Practice (Today, Not Someday)

    Today I practiced stillness.
    Not to rush, not to resist — only to be.

    The chill pressed against my coat, but my heart felt warmth rise from within.
    I prayed, not for time to change, but for me to be at peace within it.

    While I sat in quiet prayer, a gentle assurance came — one of peace and reconciliation.
    It reminded me that understanding often arrives before words are ever spoken.

    Final Reflection

    Elder Maxwell said, “We are struck out of eternity and this is not our natural home.”

    I thought about how often I’ve wanted to fast-forward pain or freeze moments of peace.
    Yet both are teachers. Time doesn’t imprison us — it refines us, reminding us that eternity is our real address.

    The Pocket I’m Keeping

    When moments press hard against me, I’ll remember: I’m not built for time, I’m built for eternity.
    Every second that stretches me brings me closer to Him who shaped both time and soul.

    What I Hear Now (Direct Quote)

    “Sometimes experiences we want to end are the very ones we need in order to grow.”
    — Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    Link to the Talk

    🎧 Elder Neal A. Maxwell — “Guidelines for Righteous Living” (BYU Devotional, 1979)

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    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

  • MIT8 – “Trust the Lord, for He sees your possibilities even when you do not.”

    Trust the Lord, for He sees your possibilities even when you do not. Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s counsel reminds us that, like Enoch, we can turn doubt into divine potential.

    Las Vegas Temple with a full moon and the Las Vegas skyline at sunset — photographed from an elevated ridge using distance compression to unite the sacred and the city.

    Excerpt:
    Even when we feel inadequate, the Lord sees the builder of Zion within us—just as He did with Enoch.

    Intro:
    This morning at Juniper Crest Ward, I sat in the chapel and felt a deep sense of peace. Life continues to offer its share of challenges—both at home and at work—but I’ve come to see them as part of the Lord’s refining process. As I pondered Elder Maxwell’s words, the phrase “He sees your possibilities” filled me with quiet assurance that every experience, even the difficult ones, is part of His design to help me grow.

    Notes from Elder Maxwell:
    Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s twelfth Guideline for Righteous Living reminds us:

    “Trust the Lord, for He sees your possibilities even when you do not.”

    He taught that the Lord’s call to Enoch reveals how heaven measures potential differently than men do. When the Lord called Enoch, the young prophet protested:

    “I am but a lad, and all the people hate me; for I am slow of speech.”

    Yet the Lord saw something more. He saw in Enoch a builder of Zion—the only city in human history where righteousness never had a relapse. Enoch’s faith allowed the Lord to transform his weakness into strength and his fear into greatness.

    Perspective:
    I see a reflection of that same principle in my own journey. There are moments when I’ve questioned my worth or felt small in the work I do. But the Lord continues to remind me through scripture, prayer, and personal experience that He knows my capacity far better than I do. Like Enoch, my task is not to measure my ability—but to trust His vision.

    Practice (today, not someday):
    Instead of asking “Can I do this?”, I’m learning to ask “What can the Lord make of this?” I’ve seen His hand in small mercies at work, in strength during solitude, and in clarity during uncertainty. Each trial is not punishment—it’s preparation for the next assignment the Lord already sees.

    Final Reflection:
    The Lord doesn’t always reveal our full potential at once. Sometimes, He lets us walk by faith until we recognize what He already knew we could become. Like Enoch, if we trust Him, He will turn our limitations into instruments of Zion.

    Pocket I’m Keeping:
    “Possibility is heaven’s word for faith that kept going.”

    What I Hear Now (direct quotes):

    “Trust the Lord, for He sees your possibilities even when you do not.” – Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    Link to the Talk:
    21 Guidelines for Righteous Living – Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    Photo caption (BTS):
    Las Vegas Nevada Temple beneath the setting sun and a rising full moon. I climbed to a nearby ridge with a 500mm lens to capture distance compression—bringing the temple and the Las Vegas Strip closer together in one frame. In that balance of sacred stillness and the world’s brilliance, I saw a quiet symbol of what it means to trust the Lord’s vision beyond our own.

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    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

  • The Stretched Soul—Making Music Only When Stretched

    The Manti Temple: A testament to souls stretched by faith. Elder Maxwell taught that the soul is like a violin string—it only makes music when it’s under tension. Our greatest works, like this one, emerge from our deepest stretches.

    Intro

    The journey of discipleship is rarely comfortable; it is, by divine design, a process of tension. Before we can accept that tension, we must first recognize our divine capacity. Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s Guideline #16 addresses this necessity, giving us the perfect, two-part charge: “Believe in yourself not only for what you now are but for what you have the power to become… and let the Lord stretch your soul.”

    The Manti Temple stands as a physical testament to enduring effort and spiritual pressure. Like that magnificent structure built by saints who were stretched, we are only capable of fulfilling our highest purpose when we embrace our potential and accept the load of our trials. The core truth is: The soul is like a violin string. It makes music only when it is stretched.

    Excerpt

    “Someone has said that the soul is like a violin string. It makes music only when it is stretched. And because he loves you, the Lord will stretch your soul.”

    — Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    Perspective

    The System Stress Test Analogy

    As an Infrastructure Engineer, I know that hardware is pushed to its limits before deployment to guarantee reliability. Our spiritual development follows the same principle of Stress Testing. The stretching is not a punishment for a failed system, but a loving process to ensure maximum spiritual resilience and capability.

    ElementThe Process (Mortal Life)Spiritual Capacity (The Soul)
    The BlueprintSelf-Belief: Believing in the “great possibilities” the Lord sees in you.Acknowledge your divine identity and potential for greatness.
    The MechanismTension: Applying controlled, intense load to force reliance on a greater power.The Lord’s tutoring (trials, grief, and opposition) designed to force us to choose Him.
    The OutcomeMusic: A refined, resilient character, fitted for greater service and happiness.The ability to endure well and fulfill the promises you made long ago.

    Elder Maxwell makes it clear that God “will tutor us by trying us because He loves us, not because of indifference!” We must trust that the Father, being perfect, is fitting us for further service and eternal joy.

    Practice (Today, Not Someday)

    To utilize the power of this guideline, we must actively participate in the stretching process:

    1. Reframing the Crisis: I consciously reframe moments of deep difficulty—the moments when I feel stretched thin—not as random misfortune, but as the precise tutoring designed to fulfill my potential. I remember the violin string: if I feel this tension, I am close to making music.
    2. Give Your Only True Possession: I strive to recognize that the only possession truly mine to give is my will. When faced with a trial, I work to let my will be “swallowed up in God’s will” rather than demanding that my will be done. This submission is the only way the stretching can be successful.
    3. Endure for the Witness: I understand that some experiences are not explainable in the moment. I must endure the trial of my faith, trusting that the witness and the understanding of the lesson will come after I have held fast through the stretch.

    Link to the Talk

    This principle is delivered in:

    Guidelines for Righteous Living – Elder Neal A. Maxwell

    What I Hear Now

    “The only way to play a celestial symphony is to accept the necessary tension of mortality.”

    Final Reflection

    We cannot ask for immunity from tribulation when the only perfect man who ever walked the earth did not have it. The courage to face life’s challenges comes from knowing that the Lord has placed us here now, precisely because of the skills and talents that are packaged within each of us. By accepting the stretching, we allow our souls to be made resilient and ready to sound forth a lasting, beautiful melody.

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  • Marked In Time: “The Tugs and Pulls of the Word” – Neal A. Maxwell

    When the sky sings, even the moon waits its turn. Saratoga Springs Temple at dusk.

    Excerpt
    Many aren’t in transgression—they’re in diversion. The world tugs; disciples choose differently. My notes and how I’ll apply them this week.

    Intro
    Elder Neal A. Maxwell warns that diversion wastes “the days of [our] probation.” God’s plan isn’t pleasure—it’s happiness. The difference is discipleship.

    Straight line (what he’s saying)
    • The lures are old; the amplification is new—tech, media, hype.
    • Diversion builds “personalized prisons”: “of whom a man is overcome…”
    • Mortal honors are transient—“they have their reward.”
    • Remedies: Holy Ghost, family, worship/prayer/scripture, wise friends, Joseph-in-Egypt reflex (flee).
    • “Far country” is measured by fidelity, not miles—return is possible; resilience is covenant DNA.
    • God prizes who we become more than rank—our real résumé is ourselves.
    • See things as they really are/will be; give glory to God.

    Final reflection
    My risk isn’t rebellion; it’s drift—scrolls, refreshes, small hungers for applause. Diversion is bondage with nicer branding.

    Pocket I’m keeping
    • Access the Spirit first (scripture, prayer, sacrament), then apps.
    • Family first—real talk over parallel scrolling.
    • Choose friends/inputs that aim at Zion.
    • Flee fast; repent resiliently.
    • Measure worth by being (meek, patient, submissive), not spotlight.

    What I hear now
    Say “stand aside” to the world. Post the image, close the tab, sit with gratitude. The moon keeps rising; I don’t need every notification to matter. Souls > stars > stats.

    Link to the talk
    “The Tugs and Pulls of the World” — Neal A. Maxwell.

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    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

  • Marked in Time — “Consecrate Thy Performance” (Neal A. Maxwell)

    “Heart, soul, and mind.” When we offer all, He consecrates our performanc. Saratoga Springs Temple · waxing gibbous moon

    Excerpt
    Consecration isn’t giving things as much as yielding self. When heart, soul, and mind align with God, He consecrates our efforts for lasting good.

    Intro
    Elder Neal A. Maxwell teaches that ultimate consecration is our will swallowed up in the Father’s. Step by step, His grace is sufficient, and our performances are consecrated “for the lasting welfare of [our] souls.”

    Straight line (what he’s saying)
    • Consecration = yielding will to the Father—one stepping-stone at a time.
    • We often “keep back part” (skills, status, habits); partial surrender still diverts.
    • Worth is fixed; assignments change—He must increase, we decrease.
    • Good things can crowd out the first commandment; beware lesser gods.
    • Acknowledge His hand; avoid the “my power, my hand” trap.
    • Discipleship polishes us (rough stone rolling): contact, friction, meekness.
    • Surrendering the mind is victory; God teaches higher ways.
    • Jesus is the pattern—never lost focus; Gethsemane above all other miracles.

    Final reflection
    My hardest “part” isn’t money—it’s control. God wants a consecrated person more than a perfect portfolio. Yielded work beats impressive work.

    Pocket I’m keeping
    • Ask daily: “Lord, is it this?”—take the next small stone.
    • Worship before work; name His hand first.
    • Hold assignments lightly; hold Jesus tightly.
    • Trade applause for alignment.
    • Measure by love, patience, meekness.

    What I hear now
    I’ll hand Him today’s schedule, camera, and keyboard—and let Him aim them. Consecration is hourly trust; even detours can be consecrated.

    Link to the talk
    “Consecrate Thy Performance” — Neal A. Maxwell.

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  • Marked in Time — “If Thou Endure Well” (Neal A. Maxwell)

    Saratoga Springs Utah Temple with a rising waxing gibbous moon.

    Excerpt
    None of us is immune from trial. Elder Neal A. Maxwell teaches that if we endure well, today’s struggles are shaped into tomorrow’s blessings. Here’s my mark-in-time takeaway and how I’m applying it.

    Intro
    I listened again to Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s devotional “If Thou Endure Well.” The sentence that stayed with me: None of us can or will be immune from the trials of life. However, if we learn to endure our struggles well, they will be turned into blessings in eternity. That’s both bracing and kind—God doesn’t waste pain when we place it in His hands.

    Straight line (what he’s saying)
    • Mortality guarantees opposition; surprise is optional.
    • Enduring well ≠ grim hanging-on; it’s faithful submission, patience, and continuing to choose light.
    • Timing is part of God’s tutoring—deliverance sometimes tarries so discipleship can deepen.
    • Gratitude and meekness change how trials shape us. They don’t shorten the storm, but they change the sailor.
    • The Lord consecrates affliction to our gain when we refuse cynicism and keep covenant routines (scripture, prayer, sacrament, service).

    Final reflection
    Enduring well is a decision repeated—quietly—over and over. It’s choosing not to narrate my trial as abandonment, but as apprenticeship. It’s trusting that God is doing more with my life than I can see from the shoreline.

    Pocket I’m keeping
    • Expect opposition; practice patience on purpose.
    • Pair prayers with small, durable acts (keep the next covenant, serve the next person, take the next right step).
    • Measure “progress” by faithfulness, not by ease.

    What I hear now
    Tonight’s images—reflections, a quiet bench, a waxing gibbous over the spire—feel like a lesson in waiting. I can’t rush the moon to its mark, but I can keep framing, steady my hands, and choose light again. If I endure well, God will finish the alignment.

    Link to the talk
    Full devotional: “If Thou Endure Well” — Neal A. Maxwell (BYU Speeches).

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  • Line Upon Line

    The Taylorsville Utah Temple at dusk, framed by golden wheat and roses. A reminder that spiritual harvests come “line upon line, precept upon precept” — in His time, His way, His will.

    There are weeks that pass quietly, and there are weeks that rearrange your spirit. In the span of just seven days, I’ve walked into the Taylorsville Temple three times. Each visit has been different, but together they’ve built something remarkable — a deepened layer of understanding, given to me line upon line, precept on precept.

    I think of my journey from 1981 up to today as “college-level” preparation in spiritual learning. Now, here in Utah, the Lord has been giving me what feels more like a “doctorate-level” education: His time, His way, His will.

    It’s like watching the stars appear at night.
    First one little light shines over there
    in the western sky, and then another,
    and then another — until finally, look for yourself…

    A whole wonderful endless universe
    began with one little star.

    Line upon line, precept on precept.
    That is how He lifts us, that is how He teaches His children.
    Line upon line, precept on precept.
    Like a summer shower giving us each hour His wisdom.
    If we are patient we shall see
    How the pieces fit together in harmony.
    We’ll know who we are in this big universe
    And then we’ll live with Him forever.

    But until it happens…

    Line upon line, precept on precept.
    That is how He lifts us, that is how He teaches His children.
    Line upon line, precept on precept.
    Like a summer shower giving us each hour His wisdom.

    (From Saturday’s Warrior, 1973 — Words by Doug Stewart, Music by Lex de Azevedo)

    Final Reflection

    Tonight in the Celestial Room, I prayed not to impose my will but to listen. What I felt wasn’t a grand vision but a gentle whisper — a reminder that revelation unfolds step by step, not all at once.

    Life keeps unfolding in ways I don’t always anticipate. Some lines remain unanswered, others open unexpectedly, but together they form a pattern that teaches me to trust the timing.

    Line upon line, I see how the Lord has been shaping my path. What once felt scattered now begins to come together in harmony — not all finished, but moving toward His perfect design.

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  • I Feel The Answer

    Draper Utah Temple — A rainbow of promise through the branches.

    Intro
    Some moments arrive quietly but carry the weight of eternity. This season has taken me away from the work I love, yet placed me in a space where the Lord can speak more directly. It feels like a “calling” — not just an assignment, but an invitation to walk a path I did not expect, at a time I did not plan.

    A calling can refine you, but it can also break you — I know this firsthand. When I lost my father and my younger brother, the grief was so heavy it lingered for over a year, leaving me with a frozen shoulder and a frozen spirit. But in that stillness, I learned something I now carry with me: when you are not preoccupied, when your heart is still enough, Heaven can speak — and you will hear.

    In 1987, during my Seminary days, there was a song in our Free to Choose program called I Feel the Answer. Its words spoke to the questions of a heart unsure yet willing, and today those words still echo in me.

    I Feel The Answer

    How I wish this hadn’t come right now,
    With so much on my mind.
    I just don’t think I’m ready for a calling of this kind —
    Where do I turn to, searching for me?

    Does He know me even better than I know myself?
    When I am sure that I can’t do it, can I turn to Him for help?
    And will He answer? Will He give me peace?

    More than air to breathe, I need to know
    If what I feel is right — Father, hear my pleading.
    Let me see the light. I’ll do whatever You ask me to do.

    And yes… I feel the answer.
    He calls my name and whispers to my soul.
    And oh, His gentle answer heals my aching heart — and I am whole.
    Heals my aching heart — and I am whole.

    Sometimes, a calling feels like a classroom. Sometimes, a setback is a sacred appointment. And sometimes, the answer doesn’t come as a trumpet blast, but as a whisper — so quiet you only hear it when you pause. In those still moments, He calls your name, and you know — you are exactly where He needs you to be.

    In this quiet stretch of life, I’ve learned that solitude isn’t the absence of connection — it’s the space where Heaven’s voice becomes unmistakably clear. Away from the noise and demands, I’ve come to see that even the pauses in our path are part of His perfect timing.

    Recently, the Spirit carried me back to a sacred temple moment, where familiar faces seemed etched with eternity — not just in their features, but in the quiet witness of the soul. At times, the Lord grants us glimpses of recognition that reach beyond mortal memory, as if to remind us that His hand has been guiding our paths long before we knew it.

    It was a quiet confirmation that the same Spirit who whispered then is still speaking now — through remembrance, through reflection, and through the gentle truth that our journeys, though carved by different streams, are being guided toward the same horizon. And in those moments, just as the song I Feel the Answer says, “He calls my name and whispers to my soul” — and I feel the answer.

    © 2012–2025 Jet Mariano. All rights reserved.
    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

  • Today or Tomorrow, Now or Then, Endure to the End

    I become what I will — not by gift, not by chance,
    but like this still house on the prairie, rooted by water, framed by sky —
    I endure. I reflect. Today or tomorrow, now or then.

    Intro Paragraph (Why this poem?)

    There are things I rarely speak, not because they don’t matter — but because they do. Some stories are too sacred to explain plainly. I’ve carried burdens for decades — for family, for faith, and sometimes for people who never knew. This poem is not a confession. It’s a quiet map of where I’ve been and what it cost me to endure. If you’ve ever sacrificed in silence, this is for you.

    Today or Tomorrow, Now or Then, Endure to the End

    by Jet Mariano

    I become what I will—
    not by gift,
    not by chance.

    They said it was for the dream.
    But I never dreamed of this.

    Not the hauling at midnight,
    the cold linoleum behind the receiving dock

    but never my name.

    I didn’t come with love in hand—
    I came with a debt to pay.
    To rescue a soul,
    and carry a family
    across a sea of impossibilities.

    A job at USC
    became a cure for my father,
    a lifeline for my family,
    a bridge for my siblings
    to find homes I would never live in.

    And still, I smiled.

    Though phone jobs stripped my voice,
    while I studied with red eyes and calloused faith,
    and slept beside hopelessness

    They think I’m quiet now.
    They don’t know I’ve just spoken enough pain
    for a hundred lifetimes.

    I write it in playlists
    that no one plays but me.
    I express it in photographs I create—
    where silence can finally breathe.

    I date it in the margins of scripture
    where no one else will read.

    Let them think I’ve always been composed.
    Let them think the IT job made me.
    I know what made me:

    A God who watched me
    hauling furniture in Burbank
    and still whispered,
    “You are mine.”

    Today or tomorrow,
    now or then,
    endure to the end.

    © 2012–2025 Jet Mariano. All rights reserved.
    For usage terms, please see the Legal Disclaimer.

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