Last sunday, Brianne wanted to share something with me that she had been reading about in Joseph Smith History. She talked about how Joseph would not be given the plates if he was going to pursue them selfish interests (verse 46).

Then she applied it to her life.

She talked about different things -mentioning guitar specifically- that she was trying  to improve upon, but found herself becoming discouraged. She felt like no matter how much she practiced, she was not getting any better at guitar. 

She read this verse while reading JSH and it hit her; she was not getting any better because she was not using this to glorify God and build His kingdom. She shared this idea with me, and I felt conflicted.

I tried to think about my own life. I thought about my hobbies and talents, and if I was utilizing my skills to glorify God and build the kingdom. But with some things, like drawing, I didn't know how to do that. 

I was troubled because, often, we are given gifts and talents that seem irrelevant to these things that we've been asked to do - "build the kingdom". Things like drawing, soccer, or crafting. They aren't bad things, by any means, but I failed to see the connection.

And then I started to wonder: well, where do we draw the line?

Should we set aside the things that we enjoy doing just because it doesn't glorify God in an obvious way?

I asked Brianne about that, and she didn't have an answer. She only knew how it impacted her life, and she couldn't really give me counsel for these newfound discoveries.

This remained in my mind for the next few days, but I could not for the life of me figure out what the solution might be. I didn't feel like I was pursuing my hobbies to elevate myself above others. There are the things that I honestly enjoy doing, and I didn't want to feel bad about that.

I feel like my answer came on tuesday, when I went to my illustration class.

We discuss gospel topics as far as the subject matter permits, but it doesn't happen all that often.

My professor was giving us a discussion on ethics, and how we are to handle ourselves as businesspeople (if we try our hand as artists after we graduate). He told us about when he was newly graduated, and miserable at his job. It had seemed so appealing at first, but then they asked him to work on projects that he did not feel comfortable with as a Latter-Day Saint.

He was about to quit when he got some advice: "What are you, an idiot? Don't quit your job."

This came from his father-in-law, who proceeded to tell him that as long as this job wasn't harming his testimony, the most important thing here was for him to work to support his family. (He kept his job, but prayed about it, and within two weeks, he had a new job.)

This is getting a little off topic, but the point is that my teacher said that we don't always have to use our talents to address gospel themes explicitly. Every thing I draw doesn't have to be a picture of Christ. Every song I play on the guitar or piano doesn't need to "testify" of Him, in so many words. 

This isn't to say that we disregard the Savior completely when we use our talents. I feel like trying to improve ourselves in the different ways that He has blessed us is a good way to honor him, so long as we are not doing it for selfish gain.

It was such a beautiful moment when my question was inadvertently answered through the words and experiences of my teacher. 

Later on, Brianne and I found this talk by Dallin H. Oaks, and we discussed it.

We hadn't taken into account that there are both spiritual gifts, and normal gifts. They are different for everyone. 

Obviously, drawing is not a spiritual gift for me. I am no Carl Bloch, and I'm ok with that. But as long as I still remain faithful and true to covenants that I've made, then I don't need to feel bad about drawing Disney characters all the time. I don't need to play hymns every time I sit down to play the guitar, but I can use it to encourage bonding and reach out to others, which is another form of "building the kingdom".

Whatever your talents are, you can decide what to do with them. You don't need to feel like a failure because you enjoy doing something that God gave you the skill set for. Just remember that some are meant to be spiritual gifts that uplift others and bring us closer to our Heavenly Father. 

It's up to you.