—Brett Brimhall, Ridgeview 2nd Ward
Many years ago when we lived in New York we were fixing up our house and doing some remodeling. We’d gotten to the point where we were ready to paint and had a tough time trying to figure out what colors to use. We had gone to several paint stores to evaluate colors. We got some samples mixed up, brought them home, and painted portions of various walls in a number of different rooms.
We first tried the colors that we thought we’d like the most. Then we tried some of the other shades on the same wall to see how we’d like them too. After trying the samples that we had mixed up we didn’t feel that we had yet found the right combination. We went back to the paint store and had a few more samples mixed up. We came home and tried those too. By the end of the day we had quite a busy, complicated collage of colors all over the house.
Some of the colors were interesting. Some of the colors were bold. Other colors were intriguing. There were some we definitely did not like and some that we were warm to. We decided to give it a rest and take a look in the morning in different light to see if we felt any different. This proved to validate some of what we felt and we were able to narrow down our choices. We thought we had picked our main color and planned to move forward. After a few days, however, we still just did not feel settled regarding our choice.
I decided to go back to the paint store one more time and ask if it was possible to mix a color that we had used in a previous house in California many years prior. We really liked what we had done in our house at the time. We liked it so well that we even remembered the name of the color. Amazingly, they did have this color in their database and were able to mix the sample. After coming home and trying this color there was no question that this was the one we should go with. This color was familiar. It was lighter and happier. It went better with the tile and carpet and the furniture we had. I ended up painting our entire house with this color.
Through this process it dawned on me how similar this is to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Sometimes we feel the need to experiment with and try different things. We want to accent our lives and provide interest. We thought we were being clever and wise. But sometimes we load our lives so much that they become overly busy and complicated. What we end up with is not balanced and lacks harmony.
In the Book of Mormonwe learn that “by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.” -Alam 37:6
I’m thankful for Father in Heaven who used a few pints of paint to teach me that peace isn’t found in the complicated, but in the small and simple truths He has already given me.