The What Ifs in Life turn Faith Based?

So, this whole constant state of temporary ("CSOT")has gotten a bit more traction since I last posted, and because of it, have had a few very good discussions about it. Recently, I was having a discussion with my brother, whose name shall not be disclosed out of reasons of anonymity (although I did ask him if I could post this...and I do have enough brothers that without disclosing a name there is true anonymity) and he gave me some rather interesting twists on the whole CSOT. Now mind you, there are some portions of CSOT that I haven't figured out, and don't really make sense just yet...but perhaps I will dream up some cock-a-mame way for it all to make sense.

The first thought I would like to elaborate on is that CSOT can have many different causes. However, it is the end result that usually determines whether an individual is in a CSOT or suffers from its gripping power. So, the What ifs in Life are determined to be based on fears of the unknown and uncontrollable. We can't predict the future, nor the actions of others, nor how the unrelated, and the related, will play a role in our lives. And that unknown, that what if, prevents us from acting in one way or another. I believe in my last posting I embelished on this just enough to almost get me in trouble.

Similarly, in a religious scenario, (I am mormon, and thereby this will have a lot of mormon theological influence, but I think on the whole it could apply to most religiously minded individuals.), the fear of mistake can lead us into a state of inaction or CSOT. To exemplify/flesh out this concept, a few scenarios may be necessary.

In the mormon life, it is very common to seek out god's will, desire, or influence in the decisions and tasks that we make in life. And thereby, hope to be directed in most of what we do. Most mormons would probably indicate that they feel the spirit directs them in the majority of life, yet there are times, decisions, instances, and related where the spirit does not dictate, direct, hint, or otherwise guide. And yet we wonder why these things happen, and moreover, when that happens, it often puts people on hold, out of fear of doing it wrong, making the wrong or bad decision, or simply screwing up. And with that, if they do make the wrong decision, they have a feeling that a wrong decision is sin. Now, I don't want to get into really what is sin and what is not sin, and perhaps on some base level eveyr and any wrong decision is a sin. However, that is all for another day.

Today we are talking about CSOT. This fear of making the wrong decision often places us in a CSOT. It prevents us from action, and somewhere inside we feel we must wait for that direction, but I would proffer that it is not of us to wait, but to decide, and hope to decide the right way in the manner of learning from the previous wrong decisions.

Any of the previous "What ifs" scenarious can be taken from a faith based scenario as well. In the previous scenarious, if one had the "feeling" that they should not or should do any of the previously mentioned actions, then it is no longer a "What If" or a CSOT, but a decision, and that decision is the answer for doing or not doing whatever it is. I do not mean to have CSOT be an explanation for all decisions that are not in the affirmative, rather simply to address the fear of making decisions. We should not avoid an action or decision because of what we do not know, but should make a decision to the best of our capabilities based on what we do know or what we can find out to enable us to make a better decision.

I'll refrain from quoting religious texts or musing on the nature of man, but CSOT proposes a variety of links and difficulties to many beliefs which I have.

For instance, I tend to be a bit of a political philosophical geek. And I have somehwere over time, started to really enjoy Locke and Hobbes, and their different approaches to the State of Nature. Along those lines, I have rather crystalized views of life, its purpose, and its duration. For instance, although there is the term I have indicated in presenting the problem previously described as a "Constant State of Temporary", I actualy believe that life at its essence and its whole is a state of temporary, and therefore, at least everything for the life of an individual is temporary. Nothing is more temporary than our age, and along with that, our mindsets may be just as temporary.

CSOT was coined in my brain to help me embrace that temporariness, to prevent inaction due to any circumstance other than choice, and to avoid the lack of choice. In regards to Locke and Hobbes, I tend to adobt many of their thoughts as my own, and the role government should play in our lives. The idea that many is born into a state of nature, and it is simply government's role to prevent us from doing any action which might inhibit the ability of another to employ or utilize that same freedom. Along with that, theis freedom or ability to act and enjoy or employ our passions or appetites in a manner which we enjoy, which brings us happiness, which we believe to be for our own good and/or desire. These theories thereby influence the idea of how we should also govern ourselves, and not just how we should require a body or regime to govern us.

I do not mean for these posts/this thought process to encourage an inordinate amount of risk taking or risky behaviour, but simply that fear should not dictate action.

I think I need more sleep and I am not sure this post makes that much sense...but feel free to get whimsical and wax philosophical in your comments.