Shh... Whisper!

One time when I was in high school my friend Teddi and I went to her house for lunch. Well we looked out her window and her horses had gotten out. Now I grew up in the country on a farm of sorts but we had sold our horse when I was maybe four so I really don't know how to handle horses. Teddi really didn't know what to do either because she didn't grow up with them. So here we are two teenage girls trying to get two horses into a corral. Luckily one behaved and trotted right back in. The other one was a tad more stubborn. Everytime we would get even a tiny bit close the horse would run off in the other direction. Finally a random thought came into my mind. Put some oats in a bucket and have the horse that is in the corral eat it and the other horse will come then you can lead him around to the gate. Nothing else was working so it was worth a try. Well it worked and we were kind of shocked but extremely grateful.

Later that evening I told my mom that story. Afterwards she made a interesting comment. First she asked me where my idea for the horse came from since I really didn't know anything about horses. Pretty sure my answer back was, "I don't know, it just popped into my head." In response she told me that it was from the Holy Spirit. What? The Spirit? Then she explained that the Holy Spirit will tell us things pertain to every part of our life if we are listening not just religious things. Also the Spirit talks to us in a still small voice so softly that sometimes we don't recognize it from our own thoughts. This really was something different for me because I had assumed that the Spirit would speak loud enough to me that I would automatically recognize it or that it would yell at me.

As life has gone on I have realized how true my mother was. I have never had the Spirit yell at me. I have never seen an angel. I have never had a life altering experience like you see of the people in the scriptures. But I have had the Holy Spirit talk to me. I have had ideas pop into my mind that most definitely didn't come from me. I have had warm feelings of peace. I have had feelings of joy, or rightness, or love... etc. (Galations 5:22-23) I am also sure that most people will have experiences with the Spirit talking to them the same way that I did.

Remember that the Holy Spirit doesn't yell at us, it talks softly. To make sure that we are listening we have to stay in tuned by reading the scriptures, praying, going to church, and keeping the commandents. At first it may be hard to recognize the Spirit but the neat thing is that the more you listen the more you will hear.

Songs of Christmas

With Christmas season here what is your favorite Christmas song?

Oh I have a couple:

• Oh Holy Night 

• With Wondering Awe 

• Christmas Bells

 Last year I acquired a new favorite Christmas song: Christ the Lord is Risen Today

You may be wondering why one of my favorite Christmas songs is a traditional Easter song. Well I will tell you why. Last year I was watching the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional (check it out here). Anyways the idea was presented that it is important to celebrate Jesus' birth but if it wasn't for His Atonement, suffering for our sins, dying on the cross, and resurrection, there would be no need to celebrate His birth. So in my own way I show that Christmas is much more than celebrating a birth it is celebrating a life.

How do you know?

The other day a man asked me a very interesting question.

"How do you know that Jesus is your Savior?"

I thought a lot about that and then applied that questions to other things. Like how do I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church on the earth again. How do I know that the Book of Mormon is true? How do I know that there is a prophet on the earth again? How do I know?

Well let me answer by first asking another question. How do you know that the floor is there in the morning when you are lying in bed? I mean I always trust that the floor is there every morning but I still have to try it out and put my feet down. I have to act and do my part. If I lay in bed and just say that the floor is there doesn't really help to know if the floor is there.

Nephi also teaches us how we can know certain things of God. Here is a converstaion that he had with his brothers.
"And I said unto them: Have ye inquired of the Lord?

And they said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us.

Behold, I said unto them: How is it that ye do not keep the commandments of the Lord? How is it that ye will perish, because of the hardness of your hearts?

Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?—If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you."

So to answer the question of how do I know. I know because I have acted. I know that Jesus is my Savior because I have accepted Him and then I have followed Him. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church on the earth, that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, and that we have a prophet on the earth today because I have prayed and asked God and then I followed my answer that I have received.

One last thing, I know that you can come to know these truths for yourself. All you have to do is ask God with a open heart and then be willing to act. Be willing to take that step on the floor. I know it will change your life and make it better than better.

Run Run Run

Once upon a time in High School I took a PE class. For the most part it wasn't too bad. We did fun things like badmitton, and volleyball, and swimming. Then we had to take these tests like how many sit-ups we could do and how long we could jump with a jump rope. Most of them weren't that bad but the worst one was the mile. To get a decent grade for the mile you had to run it in 8 minutes. Now I think the fastest I have ever run a mile was in maybe 9 minutes and that was when I was in really good shape. So here I am having to run the mile knowing that the best grade I could get on it was a D. Knowing this I could have just given up and walked the mile. I mean if I was going to get a bad grade I better not kill myself. But instead I decided that I would run the whole thing. It wasn't easy but I felt that I had tried my best and even though I didn't get a great grade I still knew that I had given it my all.

You know that really is all that Jesus expects us to do. He knows that life is hard and that there are certain things that we don't want to do. But if we really try and give our all then He will make up the rest. He will take our D and turn it into a A+. He wants us to succeed but we have to do our part as well.  "For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." (2 Nephi 25:23) So go ahead and run that mile, go and keep the commandments, go and follow God. It won't be easy but it is possible and Jesus will help us.

Confusão

Oh hey! Você não vai entender isso, porque você não fala em portugues. Lembre-se que Deus te ama e se preocupa com você.

Uh... what? Have you ever had a time that you had someone speak to you in another language, or even sometimes in your native language, and you just have no idea what they are saying? I sure have. May last few companions have been waiting for their visa to go down to Brazil. Sometimes they will speak portugues out loud and then look at me like I should understand. I just give them a blank stare back because I don't speak Portuguese.

Have you ever felt that perhaps God speaks to us in a different language? That perhaps He is speaking to us in Portuguese? That maybe He isn't even speaking at all? Well I can testify that He does speak to us. He is there. He is reaching out to us and all we have to do is listen.

Listening to God though is different than listening to someone next to us talking. To listen to God we don't just listen with our ears but we listen with our hearts and with our minds."Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart." Doctrin and Covenants 8:2  We have to really be focused. One of the main ways we can hear God by praying and actually talking with Him not just to Him. When we really seek out to have a conversation with our Heavenly Father and really let Him know how we are doing He will answer us.

So the next time you feel that maybe God is speaking in Portuguese have a conversation with Him and you will find out that you can understand Him perfectly.

Hope

"Hope . . . is like the beam of sunlight rising up and above the horizon of our present circumstances. It pierces the darkness with a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father, who has prepared a way for those who seek for eternal truth in a world of relativism, confusion, and of fear." President Dieter F Uchtdorf

One thing that really does make me smile is hope. Knowing that there is always something better out there for us is wonderful. All we have to do is to put our trust in God. When we put our trust in God then there really is always something better to look forward to. It is that hope that we will one day live with God again that keeps me moving.

For more ways that hope can help you check out this website all about HOPE

Holes

When I was about 9 years old we went down to St. George Utah to visit my Grandmother and Grandpa Phil. They always liked to have activities for us kids so that we weren't bored to death and we enjoyed going down there. This one visit when we got to their home they told us that Grandpa Phil had dug a hole and we were to guess the dimensions for this hole. Once we had all guessed and it was a little coolier in the day they drove us out to this hole. I don't remember who was closest, pretty sure it wasn't me. I remember though that it was a very long hole and me feeling bad that Grandpa Phil dug that hole it the ridiculous heat of Southern Utah. I have no idea of how long it took him to dig that hole but I imagine that it took him quite a while.

Sometimes we too end up digging holes for no apparent reason. We dig and we dig and we dig. It can be quite exhausting. Our holes can be of saying wrong things, spending too much time from home and family, bad habits, technology,

As we get deeper and deeper in our holes it becomes our norm and we are often afraid to leave and face the real world. Even if we do want to leave we often feel we are to deep to get out by ourselves. Luckily the Savior understands that we put ourselves in these holes and He is constantly walking to the edge of each of our holes and asking us if we want help out. If we are afraid to leave we may yell at Him and curse at Him. The interesting thing is He just says, "Ok, I'll be back in 5 minutes in case you change you mind," and He always comes back. He will keep visiting our hole until we are ready to accept His help to get out. Then He lowers a ladder a helps us out. We just got to climb up the ladder.

Best Gift Ever

 When you think of gifts what do you think of? Do you think of gifts that you have been given or gifts that you have given? Honestly, I think of what I have been given. Though after a tiny bit I start to think of the gifts that I have given which in the long run make me so much happier than the ones I have received.
I remember this one time I wanted to get my mom an amazing gift. Well I saw that a nativity set that she had been wanting was on sale. I pulled all my money together and I had enough. So I bought it feeling extremely giddy. The only problem was that Christmas was the previous week and my mom's birthday wasn't for another couple of months. Just waiting to give her the gift was almost too much for me and I almost gave it to her earlier. Finally her birthday arrived. As she opened the present I was filled with so much happiness. Just seeing her face of shock made up for having to wait all those months to give it to her. It was then that I truly understood that when you give to others you get more than you give.

Now these last couple of months I have been able to share an even greater gift to those I love. It is the gift of the knowledge of our Savior Jesus Christ and His Restored Gospel. I was given this gift myself and it truly fills all my soul with so much happiness that I want to share it with others. Knowing my purpose of being here on earth and what I can do to be even happier really is the best gift I could ever receive or give. I want to bear testimony that I know that it is only through Jesus Christ that we can return to live with our Heavenly Father; that through His love He willingly came down here to earth for each one of us to save us, to redeem us. This is the best gift we have or will ever have.

If you have received this gift, go share it with others. It will make you so happy and help you feel fulfilled. If you haven't received this gift or don't understand how Jesus Christ can make you have greater happiness I strongly encourage you to go to mormon.org, explore, and then request missionaries that can and will share this gift with you.

With the Christmas season coming up let us all try to remember always what the best gift ever was: Jesus Christ.

Friends



"Choose your friends carefully. They will greatly influence how you think and act, and even help determine the person you will become. Choose friends who share your values so you can strengthen and encourage each other in living high standards. A true friend will encourage you to be your best self." For the Strength of the Youth

We have so many people that pass through our lives and they all influence us. We need to make sure that we are surrounded by people that really do help us to become better. Never forget the one person who will be by you through thick and thin. Who will be that best friend that you could ever ask for. Jesus Christ

I'm Rich!

The other day Sister Ricks and I went gold panning with a person that we are teaching. While panning I found a piece of gold about the size of one of the two shone above. I automatically exclaimed, "I'm rich!" We then weighed the gold to see how much it was worth. I was pretty excited. Never had I earned that much money over doing something so basic as washing dirt out of a gold pan. Then I was asked where my true riches lie. They aren't worldly wealth or what man say are important. So what are our true riches?

Faith



Family



Friends









Paris, Texas or Paris, France?

One time when I was younger I was watching this tv show and one of the characters had gone on vacation. Well after a while another one of the characters wanted to join him but could only remember that they had gone to Paris. So they booked there ticket and flew over to Paris only to find out that their friend was on vacation in Paris, Texas.

We can equally get confused in our lives when we don't hear something quite right or we think something is one way when really it is another.  This is what Satan strives to do. He wants us to think that we can gain happiness by doing one thing that seems close but not quite. He truly is out to confuse us. "Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" 2 Nephi 15:20 But if we know that this is his plot then we can stay on guard to not let this happen. We can remain holding on the the iron rod. Meaning reading our scriptures, going to church, saying our prayers, helping those in need. When we do these things then we won't be deceved by Satan because when he says,"Let's go to Paris," you can say, "Well I think Texas is just to hot right now. I think I will stay where I am at."



Clean That Window

The last semester of college that I took before I came on the mission I took up an early morning custodial job. The hours were from 4-7 in the morning and I woke up at 3:30 5 days a week to get there in time. It wasn't a horrible job once you got used to the not so great hours. Really it was pretty easy. I did the same thing every single day. I vacuumed the entry ways and washed all the glass doors. I really didn't mind the vacuuming part it was my favorite. The doors on the other hand were a little annoying. No matter how clean you washed them the day before there were always new, fresh hand prints for me to clean. Just because I cleaned the day before did not guarantee that they would stay perfectly clean for the next day. If one day was missed, for example we didn't clean on Sunday, then the doors were just filthy and it took a little bit longer to clean them. Even though it seemed like a small task, maybe 5 minutes for each door, it was something that needed to be done each and every single day.

In our own lives there are things that we need to do each day to make sure that our souls stay clean. They seem so easy that we might forget them or we might not think that they are important; reading our scriptures, saying our prayers, repenting daily, being kind to those around us, remember Jesus Christ. It only took me 5 minutes for each door but if I made sure that I cleaned them each day then the next day it was just as easy. If we get in the habit of reading our scriptures and saying our prayers then next day it is just as easy to do them. But if we forget then it does seem hard to get back on the path even if we didn't do it one day. So lets all take the time and do the simple each day. Everytime we do we really do draw closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ which is our purpose of being here on earth.

Love the Rainstorms

Look at this picture. Remember the days when playing in the rain was fun? Well maybe for some of us those days are still now. But one thing that really stood out to me is how happy she looks. She isn't concerned that she is getting all wet or that the people are rushing to and fro around her. She is taking the time to be happy even during a time that might for some be a trial.

President Monson said, "This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and nonexistent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now." Amen!

So let us all take the time to find the joy even in the rainstorm. If you think about it we all need water.

Uphill Downhill

This past summer I have tried to ride bikes alot instead of driving the truck. I have different reasons why. One, the weather is nice. Two, it is quicker than walking. Three, it saves on miles (As missionaries you are only allowed a certain amount of miles that you can drive for a month). For the most part biking has been fine. I liked doing it in Conrad and in Fairfield. It was really nice in Townsend and we had really nice bikes. Well when I found out that I was going to be in a car share here in Helena and only have the truck half the week I thought no problem. I have been riding bikes this whole summer I am a pro. Oh how I was wrong.

The difference between riding bikes in Conrad, Fairfield, Townsend and now Helena is that those first areas were flat and Helena has so many hills.  Going down is a breeze but making it back up those hills is a real challenge.

I really think that life is like this. Sometimes in our life everything seems to be pretty easy going, pretty flat. We like it. It really doesn't require that much effort. Then something happens where you now feel like you are going up hill all the time. It is hard. Sometimes you just want to stop and take a rest. But the wonderful thing is that even though you have all those tough hills to go up going down them is so much better then staying flat.

We have to have some hard things in our lives to truly appreciate the blessings that God has given us. Lehi states this clearly in 2 Nephi 2:11. He says," For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things."

Now I still don't really like going up hill but I do enjoy flying down hill alot better then just riding on a flat road all the time.

Love Without End

Have you ever had one of those days where it just seems like the world is getting you down? I sure know that I have. It is on those days where I just want to crawl into my bed, wrap up in my favorite blanket, and lose myself either in a good book or a movie. Sometimes if I am feeling real bad I will actually go to someone to hug or to cry on their shoulder. This doesn't really happen a lot because I am not really that touchy feely person. Now the other day I read an amazing scripture Jeremiah 31:3,"The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee."

Christ will always love us and is just dying to let us know that He loves us. I really like that it says that we have His everlasting love. I don't know that I have anything else that is everlasting in my life. On those hard days He really does want to give us a giant bear hug. I think that He is one of the people that I am ok with doing that.

So when you are having a hard day and you are just dying to be hugged or to feel comfort turn to Christ because He is always there for you and just waiting to give you that hug you rightly deserve.

Prophet = GPS of Life

So lately I have been getting lost a lot. For most of my mission here in Montana I have been serving in small towns with the population no more than 3,000. I like it that way. I grew up in a small town and only having so many streets to have to worry about. If you did get lost you could probably walk the whole town in about 30 minutes or less and find out where you need to be.

Ok so I am used to small. So lately trying to figure out the crazy streets of Helena has left be confused. I have a map and we get a long fairly well but we sure do get lost a lot as well. People have asked me why don't I just us a GPS. Well for one I didn't have a GPS and two I am stubborn and wanted to see if I could learn the area better by using a map. But finally I caved in after getting lost one too many times even while using a map and borrowed a GPS. What a difference. Now I don't get lost. Miracle.

Wouldn't be nice if we could have a GPS for our lives. Sure we can get around fine just doing our own thing but if we something or someone to help lead us to where we want to go, heaven, it would sure make it alot easier. Luckily we do. We have a modern day prophet to help lead, guide, and direct us here on earth so that we can live with God again. Elder Neil L Anderson said, "In the confusion and commotion of our day and of the days ahead, we and our children need the power of revelation from the Lord’s prophets. The Lord has always revealed his will through his servants the prophets (see Amos 3:7), but as the world’s course diverges even more dramatically from the path of righteousness, our trust in the voice of the Lord through his servants (see D&C 1:38) will be even more critical to our knowing right from wrong."

So by following the prophet we have our very own GPS, guidence positioning system, for life. We can make follow the path that will lead us directly to God and back to Heaven. We have a prophet on the earth today, Thomas S Monson, and I suggest that you each take the time to see what he has been saying and apply it into your life so you can have a modern day GPS.

Families, Love Them Don't Hate Them

I love my family! I mean I really love them. Just look at them. How could you not love them? Each one brings a special spirit to our home. The greatest thing is that I know that they will always be there for me. Now my family isn't perfect but it sure is great. They are the ones that I can fully be myself with. My favorite times of the year always have to do on whether I am around my family or not. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday simply because that is usually when we all get together.

The greatest thing is that no matter what our family situation is like the Gospel of Jesus Christ can strengthen our relationships. "Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities." The Family: A Proclamation to the World 

How very true this is. If we just take the time to be with each other, to build each other up, to share the Gospel with each other, and to love each other then our families will start to be on the path of where we would like them to be.  We can start now. We can mend bridges or we can keep our ties strong as we follow the example of our Savior and love our families.

I am super excited to help my family grow closer together and to be with them for eternity. If you would like your family life to be a little better read the rest of The Family: A Proclamation to the World and try out the different things it suggest. I know it will bless you. 

God Loves You

Hey guess what? God loves you!

I think that this is the most important thing that any of us could understand. All other knowledge doesn't really mean a whole ton until you come to understand that God loves you.

But first before you can know that God loves you you have to know who God is to you. Is God someone who is close to you? Do you think that He is just some being up in the heavens that isn't really mindful of you? I can tell you that God is close to you and that you can have a very personal relationship with Him. In fact He is the father of our spirits. He created us. He knows everything there is to know about us. He even knows us better than we know ourselves. The scriptures strongly testify of who God is and how much He knows and cares for us. In Alma 18:32 it says,"...and he knows all the thoughts and intents of the heart; fory by his hands were they all created from the beginning."

So God does know and love each and every single one of us. Knowing that He does opens all sorts of doors. For me the main thing that it helps me with is the understanding that He will and does answer my prayers. I just imagine how much my dad loves me and how he will answer my questions. God loves us even more than we can understand and if our dads will answer us then of course so will our Heavenly Father. "What man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matthew 7: 9-11)

But you don't have to take my word for it. Look around and see God's love. Pray to Him and feel God's love. Everytime you read the scriptures I know you will be able to understand that God does love you.

Hidden Blessings

Once upon a Fourth of July my siblings and I decided to light of some fireworks. Now these weren't big ones but the small black cat variety. We were just having a jolly ol' time watching the fireworks explode, you know just doing kid things. Well when we were done we went inside and went into the family room just talking with the family about the summer and different things. In the middle of our chit-chattings a nice man decided to knock and then open our door and tell us our house is on fire. Now the rest is typical 911 called, fire trucks come and try to hose down the house, and in the end the house is gone. But you know as sad as it was it was a blessing in disguise. How could it be a blessing in disguise? Well our house was a 1950s, or earlier, farm house. It was ok but definitely needed work and some up keep but because we had the house all the way paid off and it was fully insured the house insurance company covered the cost of a brand new house. So because of the fire we got a brand new house for free. Blessing in disguise.

Ok so there once were these people that we having a little jaunt into the desert totally to about 40 years. Well in the middle somewhere they got real thirsty. I can understand I mean a desert is really hot and there really isn't a lot of water around. So they were thirsty and started to complain. Well Moses, the prophet, got sick of them complaining and asked God for help. God told Moses to strike a rock with his staff. Now this is a true story. He struck the rock with his staff and water flowed out of the rock. There was enough water to quench the thirst of thousands and thousands of Israelites and their animals, all from a split rock. Blessing in disguise.

So now we have two examples of blessings that came in a way that we didn't expect them, blessings in disguise. I bet if you take the time you can come up with a huge list of blessings in disguise that you have received. All you have to do is take the time to pick them out. Remember that God is constantly giving us good gifts. In Matthew 7 it takes about how much God knows how to give us good gifts, "  Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?  Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"  So God he wants to give us gifts, blessings, treasures, blessings in disguise, and all we have to do is ask. 

We Can Find Happiness

We can all find happiness. We just got to look for it and God will show us where it is. God wants us all to be happy and to live with Him in a "state of never-ending happiness."

2+2=350

Just this past week a member from one of our wards passed away. He was a very liked person and well known throughout the community. I had only met him once before he died but anytime anyone talked about him I could feel the goodness of his character. I don't think that there was one person that he didn't touch personally while he was alive. So, needless to say that at his funeral there wasn't a spare room. The chapel, the overflow, the gym, and the stage were all full and many people were standing. Those that had prepared the food for the meal were a little anxious. They were told only to prepare food enough for about 180 people. Well they started to express their doubts after the funeral service and were told that most people won't go to the grave side and most won't stay for the meal.

Break for a second. Remember in the Bible the story of Christ feeding the multitudes? A multitude had joined together to listen to Jesus Christ preach. The time had gotten away from everyone and the Apostles saw that the time was growing late and started to feel a little anxious for the people because they didn't have food for them. But Jesus, in His love, sends the Apostles out to find food and a miracle occurs. In Mark chapter 6 we follow the rest of the story.

"He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes. And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass. And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all. And they did all eat, and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men."

This is where the miracle occured just like it had with Jesus Christ. More than the 180 people that they had prepared came to the meal. They said a prayer over the food that it would multiply just like it had when Christ blessed the loaves and the fishes. People were pilling food upon their plates thinking there would be enough. The women that were serving were constantly saying a prayer that there would be enough food and there was. Over 350 people were fed on the food that should have fed only 180. What a modern day miracle! The wonderful thing to notice is that all they had to do was to ask and then have faith that the food would multiply.

This is true in our lives as well. Miracles can and will happen we just have to have the faith  and believe and they will happen.  "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him." (1 Nephi 7:12)

Blink into the light

Imagine that you are in a room that is completely dark, pitch black.
Can you see anything? Not really.
Can you still get your way around? Sure, but it isn't that easy. At first it will be kind of difficult but the more you get used to it the easier it is to get around. Now while you are used to getting around in the dark how much easier would it be if someone turned the light on.

Ok so the light is on and you can see so much better. You can see that the walls are painted a soft ivory, that the molding is made from walnut. The carpet has a leaf pattern in it. The furniture is forest green and big and comfy. This room is much more wonderful now that you can actually see it in full detail. Before you only knew the main gist of it but for all the full details all you could do is guess. Isn't it interesting what light can do?

Now that we have the light on, would you go back to a life of pitch darkness? Hopefully not. There is so much more you can experience when there is light in your life. You can see better, you can move around better. Life it just way easier. So, we don't want to be in the dark. We like the light on. Interestingly though, no matter how much we love our new life in the light there are times that we are in the darkness again, even for a split second. We blink. We shut our eyes and surround ourselves momentarily in darkness.

How do we stop? Well really we can't. We are human. Because we are imperfect there are times of darkness in our lives even though we want to be in the light.

Now remember what life was like before you really knew about Jesus Christ or His Gospel? It was like living in that dark room. Sure, you got around and life was fine but remember how much greater you life became when you learned about Jesus Christ, the light? Things just seemed so much better. You learn about His grace and love and how you can express your love back to Him by following Him. You strive each day to do better, to be better, to always stay in the light. Now we aren't perfect we make mistakes, we blink. But we don't have to focus just on the times that we blink and then think that we are never going to be able to live with God again. Sure we make mistakes but that is where repentance comes in. That is where our Savior comes in. If we are striving to have our lives as bright as possible and trying our best each day, Jesus will make up the difference and bring in the light that we lack.

We blink, that is life but we can surround ourselves with so much light that we focus more on the light then on the darkness.

Christmas in July

"Merry Christmas!"
"Uhh, I think you are confused, it is July not December."
"I know it is July."
"Ok well Christmas is in December not July."
"Haven't you heard of Christmas in July?"

One tradition that my family has that I love is celebrating Christmas in July. It all started with my Grandmother who saw a tree on the side of the road that looked like a Christmas tree and she wanted to decorate it even though it was July. I can imagine her thinking why limit yourself to celebrating Christ's birth only once a year. So started Christmas in July.

In the last Christmas Devotional President Dieter F Uchtdorf said, "Christmas is a time for remembering the Son of God and renewing our determination to take upon us His name. It is a time to reassess our lives and examine our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Let this be a time of remembrance, of gratitude, and a time of forgiveness. Let it be a time to ponder the Atonement of Jesus Christ and its meaning for each of us personally. Let it especially be a time of renewal and recommitment to live by the word of God and to obey His commandments. By doing this, we honor Him far more than we ever could with lights, gifts, or parties."

When we celebrate Christ, when we remember Him, when we take the time to try to give back to Him we are celebrating Christmas. So why not celebrate Christmas in July and take the time to celebrate that our Savior Jesus Christ lives. That He came down here to Earth for us and fulfilled the Atonement. Let us celebrate Him all year round, even in July.

Pathways

The other day I was listening to a song from the musical "My Turn on Earth". It was about looking for the future outcomes from the decisions that we make today. One line is, "If you choose the very first step on the road you also choose the last. So if you don't like the end of the road you better back up, you know you better back up fast." How very true and the blessing is that we can back up we can repent and start over fresh. We can have the joy and blessing to know that every single day we can make sure we are on the right path.
One thing we need to remember though is our steps not only affect us but also those that we love. I hope we will all have the courage to make the right decisions so that not only we can stay on the right path but those we love as well.

"I betcha..."

When I was still down in Billings I decided that one day I was going to eat a one pound hamburger. Why I decided this? Because people told me that I couldn't. Well finally I made a bet with another missionary that I would do it, I would eat this one pound hamburger. Naturally if you looked at me you would probably think that I couldn't do it either. I mean I am a small person so where would all this food go? Well we went to the resturant and I ordered my hamburger and fries and a drink. Really I was a little hesitant when I saw my food. That was a lot of food and I was starting to second think my decision. But I had to do it. I had ordered my food and everyone was expecting me to attempt this challenge. Strangly enough I did it. I, Sister Jensen, ate a one pound hamburger and fries and a drink. Those that were there were shocked that I could do it. Those that I tell this story to are shocked that I could do it. The more I think about it the more I am shocked that I could do it.

I have had a lot of experiences where people have doubted whether I could do something because of my size, or my age, or, sadly enough, because I am a woman. They like to make bets with me that they think I will lose. Often times I prove them wrong but sometimes I don't. Whether I do or I don't it is never a pleasant feeling when someone thinks you can't do something.

Really that is the way Satan wants you to think too, that you can't do something or anything. It is that negative thinking that starts to work at us and prevents us from really accomplishing any tasks. Luckily God is not this way. He is that person sitting next to you at that table when you have a couple more bites left saying, "Come on I know you can do it. Just a few more bites left." He is the one to tell you that He knows you can do it even before you pull up to the resturant. He is our number one supporter. Sometimes things may seem hard and we don't know if we can accomplish them but with God's help we can do anything.

Now I don't know if I can eat a one pound hamburger again but I do know that I can do hard things. I can do them because I have God on my side to help me and to support me.