A Prayer of Faith

The world stands out on either side
No wider than the heart is wide;
Above the world is stretched the sky, –
No higher than the soul is high.
The heart can push the sea and land
Farther away
On either hand;
The soul can split the sky in two,
And let the face of God shine through.
But East and West will pinch the heart
That can not keep them pushed apart;
And he whose soul is flat – the sky
Will cave in on him by and by.

(Edna St. Vincent Millay “Renascence” [1912] last lines)

So begins Virginia H. Pearce’s new book, A Heart Like His. I love practical, help-me-make-changes-in-my-life books. This is one of those. Unlike most books of this type, though, there is no system, no set of tasks to be accomplished. In fact, more ’stuff to do’ is quite against the rules. It is a book that explores how we might stretch our hearts wider to let God’s love shine – in our own lives and in the lives of those around us.

This book, interestingly enough, is an outgrowth of a stake Relief Society committee assignment. The committee (of which Sister Pearce was a member) was given the charge to “help women in [their] stake feel the love of the Lord in their lives more deeply and on a more frequent basis” (p. 6). (Who doesn’t need that?) The women on this committee decided they wanted to “experiment personally with the principles [they] hoped to teach” (p. 7, emphasis hers) at their stake Relief Society conference.

They called it the “Awareness Experiment,” summarized as follows:

1. To be more aware of the condition of our hearts and with that awareness to keep them more open toward others.
2. To do this in the normal course of our lives, in other words, not put any extra activities into our day – no extra visits, no preparing of casseroles, etc. Above all, people were not to become “projects,” and our lives were not to be filled with more things to do!
3. Notice the Spirit, and be willing to come together and honestly report what happened or hadn’t happened (p.9, emphasis hers).

I was intrigued by a couple of things about this experiment. First of all, it’s something that can be done in the normal course of life – no checklist items required! Awareness is really all that is necessary. It’s also an experiment in becoming, not doing. (Obviously, with Elder Oaks’ quote on the wall, that concept really got my attention!) It’s also an experiment designed to help me try to be more like Jesus (think of the Primary song) – to try to love more as He did.

Another thing that struck me was Sister Pearce’s description of how she can physically tell what the spiritual state of her heart is. She says,

At the risk of sounding a little odd….I can actually feel my heart change its physical texture, size, and position, in relation to my spiritual condition. It gets hard and tiny and moves back behind my chest wall when I am angry and withdrawn and self-absorbed. On the other hand, when I am filled with love and reaching out to others, it softens and warms and moves forward – it is enlarged and full. Perhaps my mind is a trifle overactive, but the imagery works very well for me….
These physical descriptors are critical for me to keep in mind because they are the signals I have come to rely on to help me know when I need to make a change in my outlook and behavior (p. 17-18).

That was enough for me to raise awareness in myself!

Sister Pearce shares numerous simple yet inspirational examples of how she and other women on this committee learned to recognize when their hearts were closed (as well as what triggered such closed-heartedness, such as pride, insecurity, shyness, or busyness). She shares the blessings that came as awareness led to changes (often tweaks) in behavior that caused hearts to open. God’s love was felt. Relationships with others became deeper, more meaningful, and more love-filled. And hearts changed. Hearts became more like the Savior’s!

This book is short, simple, and sweet. If you are interested in some practical yet Spirit-filled ideas for a more open, softened heart, I would recommend curling up with A Heart Like His. And find a friend or two to do the experiment with you. It will make it that much more meaningful. You’re welcome to join us here on A Prayer of Faith, as we embark on this beautifully exciting experiment together tomorrow.

A Heart Like His, by Virginia H. Pearce. Published by Deseret Book.

Cover image © Deseret Book. Used with permission.

This entry was posted on Monday, June 19th, 2006 at 5:00 am and is filed under All Good Books. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.