Gratitude

The other day I couldn't help but remember blessings that have been streaming into my life so I thought I would list a few:

- Family that is close in proximity and relationship
- Health
- Health of family
- Air conditioned car and home (this was especially true this summer)
- Car that runs and won't leave me stranded in the ghetto
- Job that doesn't require me to travel to the ghetto anymore
- Job where I can help people
- The Gospel (this encompasses a lot and what I am feeling most grateful for)
- Friends who understand my point of view
- Live in America, land of freedom
- Being a woman at this time with all the rights that accompany this time in the world
- Being a woman period.
- The freedom to have a blog and voice my opinions
- Pets. I love small creatures and appreciate having them around.
- My education. My time at BYU helped me solidify my testimony and opened doors. Earning my master's degree in psychology helped me develop emotionally and put me in a position where I can help others.
- The ability to involved politically in my community.
- Technology

What Matters Most

I fell in love with this video. I was checking my facebook one last time before going to bed on 9/11/11. I had spent the day feeling a mixture of feelings ranging from sad to agitated to peaceful. I was all over the place emotionally that day. And a relative posted this video. As I watched it, my frustrations melted away and I was reminded that it's okay to laugh, smile, and be grateful to be alive. It's important to remember what matters most.

Peace

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." - John 14:27

The Reality of Faith

I stumbled across Elder Richard G. Scott's talk, "The Sustaining Powers of Faith in Times in Uncertainty and Testing." And if ever there was a time that we were in times of uncertainty, now was it. I find that when I take these principles into action, my faith is increased and I am filled with joy. When I don't, confusion surrounds me.

"...never doubt the reality of faith. You will gather the fruits of faith as you follow the principles God has established for its use.

Some of those principles are:

• Trust in God and in His willingness to provide help when needed, no matter how challenging the circumstance.

• Obey His commandments and live to demonstrate that He can trust you.

• Be sensitive to the quiet prompting of the Spirit.

• Act courageously on that prompting.

• Be patient and understanding when God lets you struggle to grow and answers come a piece at a time over an extended period."

Reminder of Faith

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” - Hebrews 11:1

"Only when our faith is aligned with the will of our Heavenly Father will we be empowered to receive the blessings we seek." - Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin October 2002 Conference

“Faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.” - Ether 12:6

9/11

September 11, 2001 - I was at home in Provo, Utah and my older sister (and roommate) received a call stating that a plane flew into a building in NYC. She and I couldn't get it on tv so we rushed up to BYU campus. I had to work so I ran from building to building, watching the televisions in various buildings with what seemed like all of campus. I arrived at work and stood with dozens of students crammed into a lobby of the business building of campus and watched in horror what occurred. My younger sister was working in the same building and ran to my work with horror on her face as she said the pentagon was hit - we had an uncle that worked in the pentagon. We ran back to the lobby and watched and prayed and waited. Later, BYU held a prayer meeting and the building was packed. We cried and prayed. I felt like my heart broke that day. My uncle lived but so many didn't.

What I choose to think of today are the brave men and women who fought back on the flight in Pennsylvania. I think of the firefighters, police, paramedics, civilians, preachers, and so on that ran in to save those who were trapped.

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." - John 14:27

Love Is

What a great video! Love is good. Binding. Eternal.

Good Things To Come

I am pretty sure I have posted this video before but I had to post it again. It's one of my favorites. I sure love Elder Holland and his reminder that good things are to come. Stay with it. Have faith and be believing.

"Don't you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead. Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don't come till heaven. But for those who embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they come. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come."

Girl America To The Rescue!

Life is interesting. One moment, you're blissful and content, the next you're in the throws of sadness and confusion. It's not that I am bipolar or anything, it's just that every so often, my buttons get pushed. Lately that button has been the "why am I not married with kids" button. And it's come at a weird time. I have been so grateful for my life - good job, close friends and family, church, callings, hobbies...everything is good. And then out of nowhere it seemed, my button got pushed.

I called my friend Girl America and poured out my heart and soul. (As an aside, one of the things I love about my friendship with Girl America is that I can call and say "my world is falling apart" or "my heart is broken" and we start the conversation there. We don't have to spend 30 minutes working our way into a conversation.) Anyway, one of the things I love about Girl America is her constant connection with the Gospel. She immediately recognized that Satan, or as she calls him, Uncle Lui (Loui, Lewey...not sure how she spells it) was whispering in my ear and hopping up and down all over my insecurities. She was 100% correct and after a few tears, I had regained my perspective. I have a good life. I have been blessed. My Heavenly Father loves and blesses me. And I will be faithful no matter what, even if things don't happen in my own time.

The blessings of the Gospel are true. You can ignore them or run from them but the truth of the matter is if you are faithful and endure to the end, Heavenly Father will bless you. Heartache in this life due to sin and missteps can be avoided. Eternal joy is possible. Sometimes I just have to be reminded. :)

Pioneer Woman

I have fallen in love with a new blog, The Pioneer Woman. Ree is amazing. I love reading about how her entire life was flipped upside down by the love of her love and she went from city gal to country woman. It's a great blog...check it out!