Spiritually fed.

Today (yesterday, really) wasn't any kind of special day...I woke up with a rotten headache and tired from being up so late with a child that didn't want to sleep in her big-girl bed. We hadn't been to church in 2 weeks because of travelling, so I was actually looking forward to being there and feeling the Spirit. Our stake high-councilman spoke to us in Sacrament meeting about Repentance, and it hit home. I'm obviously not perfect, with my share of things to repent about. He spoke about 3 things we can do to make our repentance more meaningful:

1~Sacrifice. Sacrifice the worldly things to make room for the spiritual. (examples: sacrificing time to go visiting teaching, sacrificing 2 meals a month in fasting to help the needy, etc.)
2~Study the Book of Mormon. It's never too late to challenge yourself to read. The Atonement is mentioned numerous times throughout the pages, thru it we can truly understand the Infinite Atonement that was made. (2Ne 9:7)
3~Live each day with remembrance of what the Savior paid for the things we've done and will do. Accept that great debt and lovingly acknowledge what we owe to the Lord. Cleave to the pure. Testify of the Atonement to others.

Some real noteworthy stuff.

In Primary, our theme for this week is: My family and I will be resurrected.
The scripture: Alma 11:43, which reads:
"The spirit and the body shall be reunited again it its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt."
I read this scripture 3 times today during primary, once in our presidency meeting. Once during Sis. Smith's talk, talking about the resurrection brought her to tears and she couldn't get thru the scripture, so I stepped in to read it for her (her husband is in the ICU, unresponsive for over 2 weeks after a stroke). The the 3rd time with a child who was giving the closing scripture and prayer.
Reading 3 times the words, "and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt" with conflicting feelings. A feeling of joy...thinking of standing there, with God, in my perfect form. But also a feeling of sadness, not wanting to have that bright recollection of guilt.

So, for me, Sacrament meeting and Primary merged completely and perfectly together. And I have this feeling in my soul of happiness for these truths that I know and have learned. Repentance is key, just as living a worthy life is key to salvation....emphasis on LIVING, the ACTION.

Called to Serve....

Yesterday afternoon, I received a call (well, the answering machine RECEIVED the call, and I called back...like usual...but thats neither here nor there) from the Executive Secretary asking if I would meet with the Bishop before church today. Now, those who are members of the church may know that feeling that courses thru you when you get that call. The "holy crap, what did I do?" feeling....or maybe thats just me Ü. Of course, there is no reason to feel terrified, the Bishop is not there to chastize, since true repentance can only come thru our own free will (now, ain't that a whole other subject in itself). Maybe that feeling stems from being a troublemaker-child and having a father as a Bishop and a Bishop as a father....yeah, that might do it. Anyways...of course, I call the guy back and say, yes I would love to meet with the Bishop.
Then I'm going over and over in my head, WHAT COULD IT BE?! Seriously...you just never know. The calling I had previously was Sharing Time Coordinator (aka, The Fake Calling) and I truly LOVED it. So...as I am mulling over what the Bishop could POSSIBLY want...I think they have FINALLY figured out my beloved calling isn't needed and are going to call me to Nursery (GAH)!
Then this morning, with knots in my stomach, I sang the hymn "So trusting my all to thy tender care, And knowing thou lovest me, I’ll do thy will with a heart sincere: I’ll be what you want me to be..." in my head. And thought...I'll go where there is need! No matter what I WILL be happy! (even Nursery...gotta luv singing Where is Thumbkin!)

The Bishop asks me:
"Would you accept the calling as the 1st Counselor in the Primary Presidency?"
I was a little speechless.
I love the Primary with all my heart and am so grateful for the opportunity to serve and do my best to magnify my calling!

Thought of the day.

Parents can teach best by example.

President Brigham Young instructed parents by saying:
" 'If each and every one of us who are parents will reflect upon the responsibilities devolving upon us, we shall come to the conclusion that we should never permit ourselves to do anything that we are not willing to see our children do. We should set them an example that we wish them to imitate.' (Journal of Discourses, 14:192)
"If we are to instill faith in our children, they must see us demonstrate our faith in their young lives. They must see us on our knees daily, asking the Lord for His blessings and expressing our gratitude unto Him. They need to see us using our priesthood to administer to those in need, and to bless our children. They need to see us reverently worshiping in our sacrament meetings. They need to see us cheerfully and willingly giving of our time and talents to the building of the Lord's kingdom here on earth. They need to see us proving our faith by the payment of our tithes and offerings to Him. They need to see us diligently studying and discussing the scriptures to increase our faith and understanding."
(L. Tom Perry, "Train Up a Child," Ensign, May 1983, 78)

Tragic.

The weekend we were gone to Arizona, we get a call from a neighbor telling us some news. Our neighbors right next to us died in a tragic car accident. And I'm not using the word "tragic" lightly...it was seriously horrible to hear how they died.
It's been almost 2 weeks since this happened and I am just now posting about it now b/c I have been searching and searching the internet to find out what really happened to them. The neighbor that called us said a semi crossed the median and ran into them, ejecting them from the car. But if you click on that above link, you can see that wasn't true....though I'm pretty sure the ejecting still occured due to the closed casket funeral and the police report comment of "they were not wearing seatbelts." I also hadn't posted b/c truthfully...I didn't know their names! We have been in this house for over a year now and I had NO idea of their names, I just thought them as "the old, sweet couple".
Turns out they were Elmer and Mary, may they rest in peace.
They left behind a good sized family, with 2 daughters and several grand-children and great grand-children. My heart still aches for them when I see them pull up to the vacant house next to us and hug each other, give each other reassuring pats on the back. To have your loved ones just leave for the weekend and then to be gone forever....what a horrible thing! I think about how far away I live from my parents, my siblings....and the thought of never seeing them again, not being able to give them another hug, breaks my heart! Life can be so short....we never know what is going to happen. We just never know.

Of course, with all this said....I don't dwell for too long on that matter, mainly b/c I'm not going to spend my life behind locked doors b/c the world can be a hateful, ugly place. But also, I know in my heart that if ANY of my family was to leave this earth early, I would see them again. I am so proud of my parents, my sisters, my brother....for living a life where we could all be sealed together, where they can be sealed to their families.....and we can get our "happily ever after" in the life to come.

Thought of the day.

Life Is Everlasting---------------------------------------
"Through tears and trials, through fears and sorrows, through the heartache and loneliness of losing loved ones, there is assurance that life is everlasting. Our Lord and Savior is the living witness that such is so."

Thomas S. Monson, "I Know That My Redeemer Lives!" Ensign, May 2007

Just Because....

"Prayer is a supernal gift of our Father in Heaven to every soul. Think of it: the absolute Supreme Being, the most all-knowing, all-seeing, all-powerful personage, encourages you and me, asinsignificant as we are, to converse with Him as ourFather."
Richard G. Scott

Thought of the day.

"For most of us . . . what is required is not to die for the Church but to live for it. For many, living a Christ-like life every day may be even more difficult than laying down one's life. . . .
"Many think that the price of discipleship is too costly and too burdensome. For some, it involves giving up too much. But the cross is not as heavy as itappears to be. Through obedience we acquire much greater strength to carry it."
(James E. Faust, "Discipleship," Ensign, Nov. 2006, 22)

General Conference -Saturday Morning session

The LDS church has a General Conference twice a year, where our Prophet, Apostles and other authorities speak to us from Salt Lake City.
This General Conference was very special b/c we were asked to stand and sustain our new Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson. What a special feeling, the love for a new prophet!
We taped all 4 sessions, which is good b/c you never hear it all! So...at work tonite, I watched the first Saturday session, and a couple of things the speakers talked about jumped out at me:

Russell M. Nelson:
(I love this)
When a child needs correction, you might ask yourself:
What can I say or do to persuade him to choose a better way?
When giving necessary correction, do it quietly, lovingly, and not publicly.
If rebuke is required, show an increase in love promptly, so that seeds of resentment my not remain. To be persuasive, your love must be sincere and your teaching based on divine doctrine and principles.
Try not to control your children, instead listen to them, help them to learn the Gospel, inspire them and lead them toward eternal life. You are God's agent in the care of His children He has entrusted to you. Let His divine influence remain in your hearts as you teach and persuade.

Also from Russell M Nelson:
Salvation is an individual matter; Exaltation is a family matter.

Sister from the General Primary Presidency:
Will their hearts and minds be full of traditions that make it easy for them to follow the Lord?

Kenneth Johnson:
For those who have strayed b/c of doctrinal concerns, we cannot apologize for the truth, we cannot deny doctrine given us by the Lord, on this principle we cannot compromise. I understand that some people disagree with the words of doctrine, they even go so far as to call it foolish. But I echo the words of the apostle Paul, who said that sometimes spiritual things can appear as foolishness to men, nevertheless the foolishness of God is stronger than man.
"The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
1 Corinthians 2:14

A Dream of the Savior

As a young missionary, Elder Orson F. Whitney (1855–1931), who later served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, had a dream so powerful that it changed his life forever. He later wrote:
“One night I dreamed … that I was in the Garden of Gethsemane, a witness of the Savior’s agony. … I stood behind a tree in the foreground. … Jesus, with Peter, James, and John, came through a little wicket gate at my right. Leaving the three Apostles there, after telling them to kneel and pray, He passed over to the other side, where He also knelt and prayed … : ‘Oh my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless not as I will but as Thou wilt.’
“As He prayed the tears streamed down His face, which was [turned] toward me. I was so moved at the sight that I wept also, out of pure sympathy with His great sorrow. My whole heart went out to Him. I loved Him with all my soul and longed to be with Him as I longed for nothing else.
“Presently He arose and walked to where those Apostles were kneeling—fast asleep! He shook them gently, awoke them, and in a tone of tender reproach, untinctured by the least show of anger or scolding, asked them if they could not watch with Him one hour. …
“Returning to His place, He prayed again and then went back and found them again sleeping. Again He awoke them, admonished them, and returned and prayed as before. Three times this happened, until I was perfectly familiar with His appearance—face, form, and movements. He was of noble stature and of majestic mien … the very God that He was and is, yet as meek and lowly as a little child.
“All at once the circumstance seemed to change. … Instead of before, it was after the Crucifixion, and the Savior, with those three Apostles, now stood together in a group at my left. They were about to depart and ascend into heaven. I could endure it no longer. I ran from behind the tree, fell at His feet, clasped Him around the knees, and begged Him to take me with Him.
“I shall never forget the kind and gentle manner in which He stooped and raised me up and embraced me. It was so vivid, so real that I felt the very warmth of His bosom against which I rested. Then He said: ‘No, my son; these have finished their work, and they may go with me; but you must stay and finish yours.’ Still I clung to Him. Gazing up into His face—for He was taller than I—I besought Him most earnestly: ‘Well, promise me that I will come to You at the last.’ He smiled sweetly and tenderly and replied: ‘That will depend entirely upon yourself.’ I awoke with a sob in my throat, and it was morning.”

In the Easter Spirit.

Don't forget who we are to stand in amazement of today, He who suffered for us, who this day is for. Oh, it is wonderful....

I have been trying to get this video to post all day, and it won't work! It's such a beautiful song.
I truly do Stand All Amazed....