I love holidays because they mean I am able to spend time with my family, neighbors and friends from home. It is absolutely wonderful to be away for school, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Moving away for school has taught me a lot about self-reliance that I thought I already knew, but really didn't, as well as simply what it's like to live with girls. I think I may have mentioned this in earlier posts, (but maybe not, I haven't reread them recently) but I am the only daughter in my family so living with only girls is sometimes really weird for me. I've learned to make new friends, and hopefully keep in contact with many, as well as had friends leave on missions and get married.
But more than anything, I really have learned how much I love my family. Friends come and go, move in and move out, serve missions and get married, but for better or worse, family is still family. I find over and over how grateful I am for the knowledge that my family loves and supports me. I'm looking forward to the next 3 semesters: for the friends, experiences and memories, but I am SO happy for the Holiday Season--which for me encompasses Thanksgiving, Christmas and NewYear--and the opportunities to see my family!
I love all my friends, both from Logan and Orem, as well--some, I don't see often, but when I do, it's almost like I never left, others I see all the time, and I love every minute I'm able to spend time with friends!--however, I've been thinking about life in general lately, and I can't get over how weird it is that I've been away for school for 3 semesters, and I only have 3 semesters left to go... 1 1/2 yrs... How fast time flies!!! I can't believe it. However, I will admit that I think I'm already getting senioritis. I think that's one of the things that's really stressed my appreciation for family (not to mention the Holiday Season brings about extra expressions of gratitude): I am a Junior in my program, most of the people I know are Seniors; several of my friends from my program just graduated, and another bunch will graduate in May. In 3 semesters I have made friends with those several years older than me and now I get to say goodbye to them. So to those friends who just graduated, or will in May, "Farewell! I wish you well in your life and all your future endeavors. I know that you will succeed in everything you put your mind to. I've enjoyed this opportunity to get to know you and become a friend! I hope we are able to keep in contact, but know that you have touched my life!" For those of you I've just met, or will meet in the future, "Thanks for the impact you've had in my life! You are wonderful and I've loved getting to know you. I'm glad for this opportunity to continue to know you and become friends." To those of you getting married, "I wish you all the joys of life! You are absolutely fantastic, and you and your spouse are PERFECT for each other. I know this is a generic comment, but no one I know ISN'T perfect for each other. You were blessed in your selection of companions. Thank you for your joys, memories and companionships. I hope you find full joy in your life and would love to stay in contact. Haha, I would prefer if you didn't disappear off the face of the earth, but I understand if that's what it appears now that you have each other!" To my family, "I love you. Thank you for always loving me and supporting me throughout all my life!"
To all: I wish a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! In this time of Celebration, let us remember those we love and who love us. But above all, I want to share my love for my Savior. I could never be who I am without Him. As it is CHRISTmas, let us remember Him in this time. Let us be as a story I heard recently: in an elementary choir concert a song called "Christmas Love" was sung with all letters held up by students in the class C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S-L-O-V-E except the "M" was upside down and so a "W." At the end of the song, and almost simultaneously, the audience saw the unintentional message that is so true "C-H-R-I-S-T-W-A-S-L-O-V-E: Christ was love." As we continue throughout our lives, and we individually say farewell to the season for another year, let us remember the love Christ had for each of us, and in some small way reflect that love to others.
These have been my thoughts at this time of personal reflection at Christmas and the New Year: times of new beginnings, and I wish each of us all the support in our goals and struggles.
Thanks for reading. It's been a great year!
Farewell to the old; it's now time to welcome in the new.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Sacrament Talk
I gave a talk in Sacrament meeting today, so here it is:
My topic is “Of Souls, Symbols and Sacraments” a talk given by Elder Holland in 1988 while he was President of BYU. One of the things that stood out to me the most in preparing my talk was timelessness of his words.
Elder Holland said, “Human intimacy is as sacred a topic as any I know, “ and I echo his words in asking “for your faith, prayers and respect while addressing this sacred topic.”
He said then, and it is just as true now, that although “this may seem like a topic addressed too frequently at this time in [our lives, we] may not be hearing it enough. All of the prophets past and present have spoken on it” and will continue to speak on this sacred topic.
Elder Holland tried to do more than list the do’s and don’t’s as WHY? He used this opportunity to explain why human intimacy is such a “significant matter in God’s eyes.”
He began teaching the doctrinal significance by quoting “the first four lines of [Robert] Frost’s “Fire and Ice”
“Some say the world will end in fire,/Some say in ice./From what I’ve tasted of desire/I hold with those who favor fire.”
“Why is [the] matter of sexual relationships so severe that fire is almost always the metaphor, with passion pictured vividly in flames? [Why is] sexual transgression ‘an abomination in the sight of the Lord; yea, most abominable above all sins save it be the shedding of innocent blood or denying the Holy Ghost’"
“Setting aside sins against the Holy Ghost for a moment as a special category unto themselves, it is LDS doctrine that sexual transgression is second only to murder in the Lord's list of life's most serious sins. By assigning such rank to a physical appetite so conspicuously evident in all of us, [God is] commenting about the very plan of life itself. Clearly His greatest concerns regarding mortality are how one gets into this world and how one gets out of it. These two most important issues are the two issues that he as our Creator and Father and Guide wishes most to reserve to himself.”
“As for the taking of life, we are generally quite responsible.” Most people don’t play Russian roulette, and those who do “would be stupid to sigh, ‘oh good, we didn’t go all the way…The seriousness of that does not often have to be spelled out, and not many sermons need to be devoted to it.”
“But in the significance of giving life, some of us are not so responsible.”
“No murder here, well, maybe not, But sexual transgression? ‘He that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.’ Sounds near fatal to me.”
Elder Holland continues “with a desire to prevent such painful moments, [and] to avoid the ‘inexpressible horror’ of standing in the presence of God unworthily” by giving 3 reasons why sexual transgression is such a big deal.
First we must simply understand “one of the ‘plain and precious’ truths restored to this dispensation is that ‘the spirit and body are the soul of man” as taught by D&C 88:15. “A body is the great prize of mortal life.”
Elder Holland explains, “the purchase price for our fullness of joy…is the pure and innocent blood of the Savior of this world. We cannot then say in ignorance or defiance, ‘well, it is my life,’ or worse yet, ‘it is my body,’ IT IS NOT. ‘Ye are not your own,’ Paul said, ‘ye are bought with a price.’ So, partly in answer to the question, ‘why does God care so much about sexual transgression?’ is because the precious gift offered by and through his Only Begotten Son to redeem the souls—spirits and bodies—and restore the very seeds of our eternal lives.”
Second, he said that, “human intimacy is a sacred physical union ordained of God for a married couple… [And] is—or certainly was ordained to be—a symbol of total union: union of their hearts, their hopes, their lives, their love, their family, their future, their everything…such a total, virtually unbreakable union, such an unyielding commitment between a man and a woman, can only come with the proximity and permanence afforded in a marriage covenant, with the union of all that they possess--their very hearts and minds, all their days and all their dreams.”
It is in the act of ultimate physical sacrifice that we most nearly fulfill the commandment of the Lord given to Adam and Eve, living symbols for all married couples, when he invited them to cleave unto one another only, and thus become ‘one flesh’…That commandment cannot be fulfilled, and that symbolism of ‘one flesh’ cannot be preserved, until we are truly one--united, bound, linked, tied, welded, sealed, married.”
We must wait, we must wait until we can give everything, and we cannot give everything until we are at least legally, and, for Latter-day Saint purposes, eternally pronounced as one. Elder Holland said, “to give only part of that which cannot be followed with the gift of your whole heart and your whole life and your whole self is its own form of emotional Russian roulette,”
On that note, he also said, quote, “Don't be deceived and don't be destroyed. Unless such fire is controlled, your clothes and your future will be burned. And your world, short of painful and perfect repentance, will go up in flames. I give that to you on good word--I give it to you on God's word.” End quote.
The 3rd reason Elder Holland gives is that, “Sexual intimacy is not only a symbolic union between a man and a woman…but it is also symbolic of a union between mortals and deity, between otherwise ordinary and fallible humans uniting for a rare and special moment with God himself and all the powers by which he gives life in this wide universe of ours.” It is a sacrament, a very special kind of symbol, and, according to Elder Holland, “a sacrament could be any one of a number of gestures or acts or ordinances that unite us with God and his limitless powers…such moments when we formally take the hand of God and feel his divine power. These are moments when we quite literally unite our will with God's will, our spirit with his spirit, where communion through the veil becomes very real. At such moments we not only acknowledge his divinity, but we quite literally take something of that divinity to ourselves.”
Not only is human intimacy a holy sacrament, but Elder Holland knows, “of virtually no other divine privilege so routinely given to us all--women or men, ordained or unordained, Latter-day Saint or non-Latter-day Saint--than the miraculous and majestic power of transmitting life, the unspeakable, unfathomable, unbroken power of procreation…nothing so earth-shatteringly powerful and yet so universally and unstintingly given to us as the God-given power available in every one of us from our early teen years on to create a human body, that wonder of all wonders, a genetically and spiritually unique being never seen before in the history of the world and never to be duplicated again in all the ages of eternity--a child, your child—with…a future of unspeakable grandeur.”
Starting as a teenager, we each carry “the eternally transmitted seeds of life to grant someone else her second estate, someone else his next level of development in the divine plan of salvation” and we do so virtually every minute of our waking and sleeping lives for decades after. “No power, priesthood or otherwise, is given by God so universally to so many with virtually no control over its use except self-control… and you will never be more like God at any other time in this life than when you are expressing that particular power.
“Of all the titles he has chosen for himself, Father is the one he declares, and Creation is his watchword--especially human creation, creation in his image. His glory isn't a mountain, as stunning as mountains are. It isn't in sea or sky or snow or sunrise, as beautiful as they all are. It isn't in art or technology, be that a concerto or computer. No, his glory--and his grief--is in his children. You and I, we are his prized possessions, and we are the earthly evidence, however inadequate, of what he truly is.”
“God's trust in us to respect this future-forming gift is awesomely staggering…with all our weaknesses and imperfections, we carry this procreative power that makes us very much like God in at least one grand and majestic way.”
Human intimacy is “so right and rewarding and stunningly beautiful when it is within marriage and approved of God (not just "good" but "very good," [as] declared to Adam and Eve), and so blasphemously wrong—like unto murder—when it is outside such a covenant.”
Elder Holland quoted James E. Talmage who said, “It has been declared in the solemn word of revelation, that the spirit and the body constitute the soul of man; and, therefore, we should look upon this body as something that shall endure in the resurrected state, beyond the grave, something to be kept pure and holy. Be not afraid of soiling its hands; be not afraid of scars that may come to it if won in earnest effort, or [won] in honest fight, but beware of scars that disfigure, that have come to you in places where you ought not have gone, that have befallen you in unworthy undertakings [pursued where you ought not have been]; beware of the wounds of battles in which you have been fighting on the wrong side.”
Just as Elder Holland, “I love you for wanting to be on the right side of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and I [as he] express my pride in and appreciation for your faithfulness.”
I would like to add my testimony to his, “If some few of you are feeling the "scars . . . that have come to you in places where you ought not have gone," I wish to extend to you the special peace and promise available through the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. I testify of his love [of each of us] and of the restored gospel principles and ordinances which make that love available to us with all their cleansing and healing power…including complete and redeeming repentance, which are only fully realized in this the true and living church of the true and living God.”
I know the Church is true and I am grateful for this opportunity to speak and learn for myself these truths. I know that everything said by Elder Holland is true, and I recommend reading his complete talk. I know that he is called as an Apostle of God and he has the authority and responsibility to help us come closer to our Father in Heaven and his Son, Jesus Christ. Elder Holland has keys given to him by the laying on of hands, and is under the direction of President Monson, the living prophet today. I know that President Monson is called to lead the Church at this time, and he is also responsible of preparing us for the Second coming of Christ.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Love and Healing
So, I've been struggling lately with feelings of inadequacy, specifically about my ability to please God. I also had been struggling seeing myself worth Nathan (my missionary)'s love. Even after President Uchtdorf's WONDERFUL Relief Society Talk and his General Conference Talk, I was struggling to see my goodness. I'm usually able to see the goodness of those around me, but I didn't have a knowledge and testimony of my personal worth, my ability to please my Father in Heaven, nor my worth of love.
I have had a really hard time with it for a while now, but recently I reached an all time low, so I determined I would make a time to meet with my Bishop for comfort. He shared a number of really good scriptures with me (Alma 36:20, Hebrews 11:5 and D&C 117:13) as well as a talk given by Elder Holland while he was president of BYU: Of Souls, Symbols and Sacraments. It was wonderful to be edified by the spirit, and I know that bishops truly are called to lead their wards. I have been edified time and time again by the various bishops of the wards I've lived.
Elder Holland has a special opportunity to talk about families and love. He's included some aspect of the two in a number of his talks, and my friend, Elizabeth shared a MormonMessage with me that I really needed tonight: How Do I Love Thee? Elder Holland has shared HOW to love. How to truly love. It was wonderful to be reminded how my Savior loves me, and that all encompassing and enduring love is how I should love others.
I'm grateful for the wonderful friends, family members and Church leaders who have supported me so much throughout my life. I cannot say enough how wonderful it is to have the knowledge that the "most powerful Being in the universe is the Father of [my] spirit. He knows [me]. He loves [me] with a perfect love." I have been blessed SO much that it's hard to believe that I was selfish enough to think that God wasn't pleased with me.
I want to thank Bishop Harding for his guidance, and I want to thank anyone and everyone who has had an influence in my life. You each have truly touched me, and I wish I could individually thank each and everyone of you, but seeing as it's late, and I need sleep, I will head to bed.
I have had a really hard time with it for a while now, but recently I reached an all time low, so I determined I would make a time to meet with my Bishop for comfort. He shared a number of really good scriptures with me (Alma 36:20, Hebrews 11:5 and D&C 117:13) as well as a talk given by Elder Holland while he was president of BYU: Of Souls, Symbols and Sacraments. It was wonderful to be edified by the spirit, and I know that bishops truly are called to lead their wards. I have been edified time and time again by the various bishops of the wards I've lived.
Elder Holland has a special opportunity to talk about families and love. He's included some aspect of the two in a number of his talks, and my friend, Elizabeth shared a MormonMessage with me that I really needed tonight: How Do I Love Thee? Elder Holland has shared HOW to love. How to truly love. It was wonderful to be reminded how my Savior loves me, and that all encompassing and enduring love is how I should love others.
I'm grateful for the wonderful friends, family members and Church leaders who have supported me so much throughout my life. I cannot say enough how wonderful it is to have the knowledge that the "most powerful Being in the universe is the Father of [my] spirit. He knows [me]. He loves [me] with a perfect love." I have been blessed SO much that it's hard to believe that I was selfish enough to think that God wasn't pleased with me.
I want to thank Bishop Harding for his guidance, and I want to thank anyone and everyone who has had an influence in my life. You each have truly touched me, and I wish I could individually thank each and everyone of you, but seeing as it's late, and I need sleep, I will head to bed.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Update
Well. since it's been just shy of 5 months, I figured I'd update everyone on my life:
Over the summer I took an intro level Stats class online, and then I worked at a summer camp. I LOVE my experience as a camp counsellor! At this point in time, I would love to have the opportunity to work there again! This year I'm registered for 15 credits, I'm in Honors, I'm a Service Learning Scholar, I'm involved in Institute Choir and I made the USU Beginning Ballroom Team. I also work at the on campus Care and Education Center working with toddlers and infants. I'm having a lot of fun so far, and even though I've been, and will continue to get ridiculously crazy busy, I'm SUPER excited for this semester. I'm still majoring in Environmental Studies, but instead of an outdoor education emphasis, I'm working on designing an emphasis in Youth Programs. I'm also looking into a post-bachlorette education program. I'm still waiting for Elder Nathan Wise, and am unintentionally counting down the days until his scheduled return. (In case you're wondering, he has 2 days shy of 13 months left.) I've had a lot of fun this weekend spending time with my family including some extended family that I haven't seen in just over a year because they live in Vegas right now. I definitely ended up with great roommates and classes, so I'm looking forward to an amazing year!
Over the summer I took an intro level Stats class online, and then I worked at a summer camp. I LOVE my experience as a camp counsellor! At this point in time, I would love to have the opportunity to work there again! This year I'm registered for 15 credits, I'm in Honors, I'm a Service Learning Scholar, I'm involved in Institute Choir and I made the USU Beginning Ballroom Team. I also work at the on campus Care and Education Center working with toddlers and infants. I'm having a lot of fun so far, and even though I've been, and will continue to get ridiculously crazy busy, I'm SUPER excited for this semester. I'm still majoring in Environmental Studies, but instead of an outdoor education emphasis, I'm working on designing an emphasis in Youth Programs. I'm also looking into a post-bachlorette education program. I'm still waiting for Elder Nathan Wise, and am unintentionally counting down the days until his scheduled return. (In case you're wondering, he has 2 days shy of 13 months left.) I've had a lot of fun this weekend spending time with my family including some extended family that I haven't seen in just over a year because they live in Vegas right now. I definitely ended up with great roommates and classes, so I'm looking forward to an amazing year!
Monday, April 11, 2011
True Love
"Today I begin to understand what love must be, if it exists. . . . When we are parted, we each feel the lack of the other half of ourselves. We are incomplete like a book in two volumes of which the first has been lost. That is what I imagine love to be: incompleteness in absence." (Author Unknown).
I stole this quote from one of my best friend (Shay)'s gmail chat post because it reminds me how I feel right now. I mean, I've been thinking about true love a lot lately, and I really hope that this is the case for the guy I end up marrying. I have felt this way for someone before, and it's one of the hardest, but most amazing feelings to feel like your likes and dislikes and just personalities in general fit together like puzzle pieces. But the separation is so difficult. That feeling of being incomplete and lonely is hard to get used to, and sometimes I wonder if I fall for guys super easy just to try to fill that void.
This Hymn means so much to me, and it really is such a wonderful thing to know that He did descend from a royal throne to save a sinner such as myself... Christ, a perfect, all knowing, all loving Being, loves me enough to come down to earth and suffer, and pay the debt that I may return to Him and our Eternal Father in Heaven unspotted at the judgement seat.
Another song I'm grateful for is "I Am a Child of God." The very simple, child-like phrases share the truths that God really does love me, and is my Heavenly Father.
I'm so grateful for these truths in my life, and the knowledge that as I need more guidance, I can receive the personal revelation and direction I need. I'm grateful for my many friends both in Logan and Orem. You have all been such amazing examples for me! Thank you for your friendship and comfort, and thank you for being sources of joy in my life. In one way or another, you have each been an angel on earth in my life. THANK YOU!
But I've realized today, and throughout this week, that I could never settle for anything less than the best. If my true love is the guy I currently hope, I will only know if I date around. If there's no one I gain this connection for, then he is most definitely the guy for me, but I know that if I date around and find someone who makes me feel more like a princess and a daughter of royal birth than my current crush, then I will know that Heavenly Father has a plan for me with this mystery guy.... I just hope I don't have to wait long.
However, no matter what happens, I know without a shadow of a doubt that Heavenly Father loves me and has His hand in every aspect of my life. No matter what happens, as long as I'm living my life in such a way that I am worthy of the Holy Spirit, I know that everything will work out for my good. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer, and that He knows everything I am currently enduring, and He is there, and sends the Comforter to me whenever I ask for that aid. I know that the Book of Mormon is a true book. Every word therein is the truth of the Gospel, and the things a loving Heavenly Father wants each of us to know in these last days. There are living prophets on the earth today who share the truths with us. They are men on watchtowers, warning us for things to come. I'm so grateful for President Thomas Spencer Monson and the loving guidance he brings. I know he is called as the only man who has every key to the kingdom of God on this earth--the same keys that Peter was given in the times of Christ. I know that all of my local leaders are called by God, specifically for a reason. They have helped me so much in my life, and I know I wouldn't be the same person I am today without their guidance. I'm grateful for my parents and the loving way they taught me throughout my life. I truly love them and hope they know how grateful I am for their support in all my crazy endeavors. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the true Church of God on the earth, and I'm proud to be called a Member. I'm proud to take upon me the name of Christ, and always remember Him. I am so grateful for a loving Father who was willing to let His Son come and suffer all my pains, afflictions, sorrows, and to suffer for my sins that I may be worthy to one day return to the presence of God. I feel so insignificant and unworthy of that love, and, especially in those times, the words to one of my favorite Hymns comes to mind:
I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me.
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified,
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died.
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me.
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified,
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died.
[Chorus]
Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me
Enough to die for me!
Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!
Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me
Enough to die for me!
Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!
I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine,
That he should extend his great love unto such as I,
Sufficient to own, to redeem, and to justify.
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine,
That he should extend his great love unto such as I,
Sufficient to own, to redeem, and to justify.
I think of his hands pierced and bleeding to pay the debt!
Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?
No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat,
Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet.
(31243, Hymns, I Stand All Amazed, no. 193 Text and music: Charles H. Gabriel, 1856–1932)Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?
No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat,
Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet.
This Hymn means so much to me, and it really is such a wonderful thing to know that He did descend from a royal throne to save a sinner such as myself... Christ, a perfect, all knowing, all loving Being, loves me enough to come down to earth and suffer, and pay the debt that I may return to Him and our Eternal Father in Heaven unspotted at the judgement seat.
Another song I'm grateful for is "I Am a Child of God." The very simple, child-like phrases share the truths that God really does love me, and is my Heavenly Father.
I'm so grateful for these truths in my life, and the knowledge that as I need more guidance, I can receive the personal revelation and direction I need. I'm grateful for my many friends both in Logan and Orem. You have all been such amazing examples for me! Thank you for your friendship and comfort, and thank you for being sources of joy in my life. In one way or another, you have each been an angel on earth in my life. THANK YOU!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies
This looks like the most AMAZING recipe EVER!!!
MMM!!! I can't wait until I have a chance to make these! They sound (and look) divine! I mean, how can you go wrong when you stuff my favorite store-bought
cookie into my favorite homemade cookie?
I found this recipe through a friend who so wonderfully shared this photo and a link to the recipe on FB. if you want the full recipe, go to this site.
Oh, but if any of you make a batch, you should totally respond to this telling me if they're as good as they look. (And I wouldn't mind if you mailed me some *teasing wink* )
cookie into my favorite homemade cookie?
I found this recipe through a friend who so wonderfully shared this photo and a link to the recipe on FB. if you want the full recipe, go to this site.
Oh, but if any of you make a batch, you should totally respond to this telling me if they're as good as they look. (And I wouldn't mind if you mailed me some *teasing wink* )
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Testimony
yes, it's in my last post, but I decided that I'm going to periodically declare my testimony openly through this blog (and Facebook) so here it is again, openly, and unaltered:
Thank you for always being such diligent friends and for always showing me how much you care for me. I have learned so much from each of you, and I know that my life wouldn't be the same without the opportunity to meet each and every one of you. I truly do know that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He suffered for the pains, afflictions and sins of each and everyone of us. He was nailed to a cross between 2 thieves and left alone to feel everything we have. I know that through faith on Him and His Atonement, I truly can be forgiven of my sins. And one day, I will be worthy to return to be an Heiress to the Kingdom of God. I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that he the Prophet of this Dispensation. Through the simple prayer of young, 14-yr old, Joseph, this Gospel was Restored to the earth. Without his prayer, and faith that it would be answered, I would still be in the dark, searching for the truth that I currently have. I know that through the Power of God, Joseph Smith was able to translate the Book of Mormon, which Book is the only completely true book currently on the earth. I know that President Thomas Spencer Monson is the current prophet of the Church, and that he receives revelation to guide us through this life. I'm grateful for that knowledge and guidance. I know that the First Presidency, 12 Apostles and all other local and General Authorities are each, individually, called of God and set apart to lead us in this day. I'm thankful for my family and friends who love me so much, and I wish you all the best in this life. I know these words which I have spoken are true, and I leave them with you in the name of the Son, even Jesus Christ. Amen.
Thank you for always being such diligent friends and for always showing me how much you care for me. I have learned so much from each of you, and I know that my life wouldn't be the same without the opportunity to meet each and every one of you. I truly do know that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He suffered for the pains, afflictions and sins of each and everyone of us. He was nailed to a cross between 2 thieves and left alone to feel everything we have. I know that through faith on Him and His Atonement, I truly can be forgiven of my sins. And one day, I will be worthy to return to be an Heiress to the Kingdom of God. I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that he the Prophet of this Dispensation. Through the simple prayer of young, 14-yr old, Joseph, this Gospel was Restored to the earth. Without his prayer, and faith that it would be answered, I would still be in the dark, searching for the truth that I currently have. I know that through the Power of God, Joseph Smith was able to translate the Book of Mormon, which Book is the only completely true book currently on the earth. I know that President Thomas Spencer Monson is the current prophet of the Church, and that he receives revelation to guide us through this life. I'm grateful for that knowledge and guidance. I know that the First Presidency, 12 Apostles and all other local and General Authorities are each, individually, called of God and set apart to lead us in this day. I'm thankful for my family and friends who love me so much, and I wish you all the best in this life. I know these words which I have spoken are true, and I leave them with you in the name of the Son, even Jesus Christ. Amen.
I feel old.
K, so this is a little bit of a follow up post to "Ah!! We're all growing up!!" because at that time, I had one friend engaged, and it hadn't really hit me that the people I've known and grown up with were really growing up. I mean, I did, but the things mostly on my mind were friends leaving on missions. I currently have 4 missionaries I'm writing frequently, a list of 5 awaiting letters, and many who have received calls that asked me to write. Yeah, sure it's weird to have a friend engaged, but at that point I was focused on how weird it was (and is) that all my guy friends are on or leaving on missions... Which made me feel really old... But no that I have 2 friends married, and one engaged to be married on April 26, I feel OLD!!!!!!!
Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing to have friends married and engaged, it's just such a weird feeling for me... I mean, I'm one who was told all growing up that I'd be married right out of high school like my mom.
Ok, storytime: my mom graduated high school a semester early. She then moved from CA to UT to attend BYU (any surprise there ;) --Love ya mom! :D ). She attended Spring and Summer semesters, and met my dad during Summer Semester (any guesses where?) in their Ballroom 200ish class. (yup, stereotypical BYU meeting ;) ). They dated (haha, most of their first dates being "homework") most of that semester, and were engaged in August. They were engaged for Fall Semester and married in January (01/02).... My mom was barely 18 when they were engaged... Yeah, I was born a year later (for any who are too brain fried to do the math (like me) that's 19 1/2 when I was born)!!!!! K, after being told all your life that you'd follow that example, wouldn't being 19, unmarried, with married friends make you feel old too?
It's a very weird feeling. Even though I've always said I want to serve a mission (and ps: in case you haven't read some of my other posts, I still do... I"m just failing at the mission schedule), my mom wanted to serve a mission all her life too.... (look how well that worked out for her...) So I think I've always had in the back of my mind that that's just wishful thinking. To really be headed in the direction of actually serving a mission is FANTASTIC!!! But strange.
I absolutely LOVE having missionaries to write and friends making this wonderful step in life, I just feel really old. Haha, I can only imagine how much of an old maid I'm going to feel like at my farewell.
I love the Gospel and know the Church is true. I'm so grateful for this knowledge and the ability to share it with other. I hope that as each of you are contemplating serving missions, you will seriously consider the joy that you will bring to others, and the importance of helping those souls who wouldn't normally have the opportunity. And this goes to girls and guys alike. I think it is just as important for girls to serve missions as it is for guys.
Girls: even if you don't serve a full-time mission, it's important to be a member missionary in any way possible. I know I'm not the greatest example of this, but as I've been writing my missionaries, I've been asking for advice on how to prepare for my mission... yeah, I get the answers we all know and hear: study my scriptures, learn to know and love the Gospel, read and learn Preach My Gospel, pray daily, ect--you know the basic "Seminary/Sunday School" answers (which are great! Don't get me wrong, they really do work.)... but one friend said to me, that the best way to prepare for a mission is to be a missionary now. He went on to explain that learning to love sharing the Gospel BEFORE he hit the MTC was something he really wished he'd done, and something he encouraged me to do too. So even if you don't end up serving a full-time mission, don't be afraid to share the Gospel you know to be true.
Guys: SERVE A MISSION!!!!!!! I don't care what reason you may have to consider not serving. I have heard way too many excuses of why a mission may not be the right thing for individual guys. Well, you know what... All reasons I've heard thus far are SELFISH! You better serve a mission, or so help me.... Anyway that's my SOAP box... But in all seriousness, not only is it a commandment that all worthy Priesthood holders serve a mission, but for some of those people you're called to serve, you may be their only chance at the Gospel until the Millennium. Please don't let even that one person down.
Thank you for always being such diligent friends and for always showing me how much you care for me. I have learned so much from each of you, and I know that my life wouldn't be the same without the opportunity to meet each and every one of you. I truly do know that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He suffered for the pains, afflictions and sins of each and everyone of us. He was nailed to a cross between 2 thieves and left alone to feel everything we have. I know that through faith on Him and His Atonement, I truly can be forgiven of my sins. And one day, I will be worthy to return to be an Heiress to the Kingdom of God. I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that he the Prophet of this Dispensation. Through the simple prayer of young, 14-yr old, Joseph, this Gospel was Restored to the earth. Without his prayer, and faith that it would be answered, I would still be in the dark, searching for the truth that I currently have. I know that through the Power of God, Joseph Smith was able to translate the Book of Mormon, which Book is the only completely true book currently on the earth. I know that President Thomas Spencer Monson is the current prophet of the Church, and that he receives revelation to guide us through this life. I'm grateful for that knowledge and guidance. I know that the First Presidency, 12 Apostles and all other local and General Authorities are each, individually, called of God and set apart to lead us in this day. I'm thankful for my family and friends who love me so much, and I wish you all the best in this life. I know these words which I have spoken are true, and I leave them with you in the name of the Son, even Jesus Christ. Amen.
Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing to have friends married and engaged, it's just such a weird feeling for me... I mean, I'm one who was told all growing up that I'd be married right out of high school like my mom.
Ok, storytime: my mom graduated high school a semester early. She then moved from CA to UT to attend BYU (any surprise there ;) --Love ya mom! :D ). She attended Spring and Summer semesters, and met my dad during Summer Semester (any guesses where?) in their Ballroom 200ish class. (yup, stereotypical BYU meeting ;) ). They dated (haha, most of their first dates being "homework") most of that semester, and were engaged in August. They were engaged for Fall Semester and married in January (01/02).... My mom was barely 18 when they were engaged... Yeah, I was born a year later (for any who are too brain fried to do the math (like me) that's 19 1/2 when I was born)!!!!! K, after being told all your life that you'd follow that example, wouldn't being 19, unmarried, with married friends make you feel old too?
It's a very weird feeling. Even though I've always said I want to serve a mission (and ps: in case you haven't read some of my other posts, I still do... I"m just failing at the mission schedule), my mom wanted to serve a mission all her life too.... (look how well that worked out for her...) So I think I've always had in the back of my mind that that's just wishful thinking. To really be headed in the direction of actually serving a mission is FANTASTIC!!! But strange.
I absolutely LOVE having missionaries to write and friends making this wonderful step in life, I just feel really old. Haha, I can only imagine how much of an old maid I'm going to feel like at my farewell.
I love the Gospel and know the Church is true. I'm so grateful for this knowledge and the ability to share it with other. I hope that as each of you are contemplating serving missions, you will seriously consider the joy that you will bring to others, and the importance of helping those souls who wouldn't normally have the opportunity. And this goes to girls and guys alike. I think it is just as important for girls to serve missions as it is for guys.
Girls: even if you don't serve a full-time mission, it's important to be a member missionary in any way possible. I know I'm not the greatest example of this, but as I've been writing my missionaries, I've been asking for advice on how to prepare for my mission... yeah, I get the answers we all know and hear: study my scriptures, learn to know and love the Gospel, read and learn Preach My Gospel, pray daily, ect--you know the basic "Seminary/Sunday School" answers (which are great! Don't get me wrong, they really do work.)... but one friend said to me, that the best way to prepare for a mission is to be a missionary now. He went on to explain that learning to love sharing the Gospel BEFORE he hit the MTC was something he really wished he'd done, and something he encouraged me to do too. So even if you don't end up serving a full-time mission, don't be afraid to share the Gospel you know to be true.
Guys: SERVE A MISSION!!!!!!! I don't care what reason you may have to consider not serving. I have heard way too many excuses of why a mission may not be the right thing for individual guys. Well, you know what... All reasons I've heard thus far are SELFISH! You better serve a mission, or so help me.... Anyway that's my SOAP box... But in all seriousness, not only is it a commandment that all worthy Priesthood holders serve a mission, but for some of those people you're called to serve, you may be their only chance at the Gospel until the Millennium. Please don't let even that one person down.
Thank you for always being such diligent friends and for always showing me how much you care for me. I have learned so much from each of you, and I know that my life wouldn't be the same without the opportunity to meet each and every one of you. I truly do know that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He suffered for the pains, afflictions and sins of each and everyone of us. He was nailed to a cross between 2 thieves and left alone to feel everything we have. I know that through faith on Him and His Atonement, I truly can be forgiven of my sins. And one day, I will be worthy to return to be an Heiress to the Kingdom of God. I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, and that he the Prophet of this Dispensation. Through the simple prayer of young, 14-yr old, Joseph, this Gospel was Restored to the earth. Without his prayer, and faith that it would be answered, I would still be in the dark, searching for the truth that I currently have. I know that through the Power of God, Joseph Smith was able to translate the Book of Mormon, which Book is the only completely true book currently on the earth. I know that President Thomas Spencer Monson is the current prophet of the Church, and that he receives revelation to guide us through this life. I'm grateful for that knowledge and guidance. I know that the First Presidency, 12 Apostles and all other local and General Authorities are each, individually, called of God and set apart to lead us in this day. I'm thankful for my family and friends who love me so much, and I wish you all the best in this life. I know these words which I have spoken are true, and I leave them with you in the name of the Son, even Jesus Christ. Amen.
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