Love with all your Heart: Plain and Simple

Dear Sisters,

We are seeing every day more and more hate among our fellow Americans. At one point, I was worried about terrorists harming us, but they don't have to do anything, because we are destroying each other with violent acts of hate.

I have asked myself so many times, "What can I do to help build the kingdom of God among people that are filled with anger and frustration, so much so that they think the only way to deal with things is to take the lives of others".

Here is the problem, as I see it, righteous women are not doing enough, plain and simple. I hear the voices of those who feel offended, and those who think they are have every right to say, do and take what ever they want. I don't hear Christian women standing up for what they know is right. An example; it is not hateful to fight for our privacy from the other sex in public bathrooms. We have to protect our children and ourselves. What is is more important protecting our children or giving anyone the option of using any bathroom they feel they want to use? There has to be another way, but it's not going to happen unless we stand up for what we know is right. Our side needs to be heard, but we have to do it in a way that is not hateful.

I have no issue with any person in this world, as long as they don't harm others. They can live whatever way they want, but if they ask me or include me in a conversation, I will stand for God's way and tell them their choices are not right in the sight of God and his people. But I will never make them feel like they are less than a child of God.

I have been praying lately to be more loving, of all people. It's not easy because I have lived a life time of certain ideals and beliefs. But I have found my lifetime has made me judgemental, and that is not right.  So, I need to make some changes through devoted prayer, and trying to not look at people with thoughts in my mind about the choices that others make. We can accomplish anything we set our minds to but it won't always be easy.

However, if we show God that we are trying then we will get the help we need to make things right. Now, I am not saying we condone the wrong that is being done, and just sit back while this great nation falls apart. No, we need to be heard and let the world know that we don't want certain things that are harmful to our families.

We have sat back for way too long, and not enough of us are willing to fight for righteousness. If we stand together we can make a mighty change, but we must stand together in love and unity. Don't be afraid that you will be labeled as a prud, or a bigot. Stand firm and strong in all that is good. We will have the angels to stand with us.

I get pretty frustrated with people who don't communicate, like at work, I send emails to people about issues and they don't respond. I don't know if they read my email, or are working on the issue, or even just ignoring me. How hard is it to email me back and say something like, "We are currently working on the issue and will get back to you by the end of the day", or something like that. It's a common courtesy.

I think the same thing is happening in the hate that we are feeling in today's world. We don't listen to each other. People are quick to blame another, and not even know the person they are mad at. More than half the people who die or get hurt by an angry person are innocent. If you have a beef with someone, go to the person, not someone else. How hard is that?

And, you don't have to go with malice in your heart. We all have good and bad days, if someone offends you, take a moment to see the whole picture. Do an act of kindness for that person, to see if they are just having a bad day. We can't walk in someone else's shoes, there are so many factors in a person's life that make them act the way they do. We never know what tragedy they have experienced, or what underlying problems that exist in their lives. 

All we can do is stop taking things personally, stop being selfish and see if we can help make someone's day better, in hopes of saving the lives of others.

Sister, if we are going to protect our families and friends, we need to start showing more love to all those we meet on a daily basis. A simple smile or hello, can make all the difference in the life of someone hurting; just a small moment can do miracles in a hard world.

The scriptures tell us the hearts of many will be cold, and we do see that today, especially in the lives of our young people. What can you do to help them feel love again? Many of them have been given a stinky life, and they know no other way. We are all given the Light of Christ in our heart to know right from wrong but without someone to lead and guide, that light can quickly be burned out. Stop judging and start finding a way to help.

Think about it but remember to never put yourself or anyone else in harms way. Lets talk more, share a Coke and smile, (teeheehee, I work for Coke). Recognize that we are all different and lets take a moment to see what another might be feeling. Find a way to show the love and blessing we have in our lives. Blessing don't have to be monetary, but can be a sincere listening ear.

Jesus showed us how to love all people, we don't have to agree with their life style but we don't have to hate them for it either. That goes for anyone who is living a life style that is not Christian, don't hate us either. We are not here to judge but to help. If you don't want religion or our help then that is your choice but don't take my religion from me. If I want to mention God or pray then let me because that is my safe place, that is how I feel.  If it is offensive to you simple tell me and I will see what I can do to still maintain my freedom of religion and allow you to maintain your freedom to not have to endure it.

It's time to act now before Satan gets into the hearts and steals the lives of our brothers and sisters. He can't ever win, but he can try to take as many lives down with him as he can. We can't let him do that. We are stronger than him, we will win the battle if we stand firm and show love to all people. We just need to communicate and have a loving heart; it's that easy, plain and simple.

All my Love

Service - This Is How We Can Become Like Our Savior

Hello My Dear Righteous Sisters!

Now that my children are grown I have been trying to find out what God would have me do with my time. I have looked at several different things but one thing I keep asking myself is how can I become like my Savior; how can I love as He loved?

I wanted to be able to see people through His eyes so that I could love them as He does. Earlier this month I had my eyes of understanding opened as I realized that to love everyone as He does is to do acts of service for them. When we serve our hearts are open and we begin to feel the love of our Savior in our lives and for the person/people we are serving.

Wow, that was very simple, or is it? Jesus lived a life of service and so can we. He was the perfect example of love and we should be looking to His life as our example. We do this by reading and studying the scriptures about His life. Once we know the scriptures we can act more like Him. We can make better choices and use of our time.

I learned that He wants me to be like Him, who is like the Father. There is no happier way to find peace and joy in our lives than to live like Jesus did. This world needs more people like Him. So, I thought that my blogs for 2016 should focus on how we can become more like Him. By becoming more like Him and doing what He did we will find peace and joy in our lives as we bring peace and joy to others.

However it's not always as easy as it sounds. The key to all of this is to act. We can learn everything about Him and how we should live our lives but if we do not act it will all be for nothing. The pure love of Christ is to act in service for our fellow man. We all have struggles in this world, its necessary for our growth, but we all need each other and those acts of kindness can help strengthen us and those we serve.

To serve one another is to love one another, and to love one another means we are becoming like Him who is the greatest of all.

Merry Christmas!!!

 All my love

More Service Project Ideas

The Young Men in our ward at church has dedicated the month of November by showing gratitude by doing service for others. They made a list of people who they were aware of that could use some acts of charity.

They planned the things that they would be doing and have been doing service on every meeting night so far this month. Doing service helps the heart to feel true joy. Its been proven to be very healthy for your mind and body. I can't think of one time that I have not felt so good after helping someone. Even a smile and good morning salutation to someone has given me a sense of doing good. I knew I was choosing to follow Jesus and do much good in this world.

Even small acts of service can bring happiness to both the giver and receiver. I have provided a link to a website that lists 30 different projects that can be done by you and your family, or friends. Take a look.

30 Service Project Ideas

Feel free to share some of your experiences with us. I know I would love to hear your stories.

Hope, the Next Attribute of Christ

 2 Nephi 31:20

What is hope?

Hope is a trust that something you believe in will be so. For example, you have hope, or trust, that when you die you will go to heaven. You have hope and trust that when you go to bed at night that the sun will arise and you will get up to greet a new day. We hope for this to be true, we expect this happen. Hope and faith go together, which you will see this week in the scriptures I plan to blog about.

When we hope in things of God we are showing faith that we trust in Him to lead and guide our lives in a way that will help us gain eternal life. With hope we can endure trials and hardships. With hope we can endure to the end.

When we go through tough times it is hope that gets us through, hope to see a better day. It helps us endure to the end which is something we must do. I have found at times that I just wanted to give up and climb in bed and forget everything but, I know that I have to stand strong in Christ and endure what I must so I make sure that hope and faith are strong in my life and help others to do the same.

We are living in a time when there is so much evil surrounding us and some people don't even see it. They see it as part of life, but we are surrounded and we have to stand firm in Christ and His plan in order to fight for the good to shine through all of this darkness. And when we do, we have the hope of a promise from out Father in Heaven that we will have peace and joy in this life and the life to come in eternity.

As righteous women, we need to shine the light of Christ for others to see and hang on to their hope of a better life. Our example is so important to sustaining our families and helping others to endure to the end. Jesus needs us to do our part by helping our brothers and sisters in this world find Him and learn to do the same. It's time to become part of God's Army and shine the Light high for all to see.

Veterans Day, Show Them We Care

Many wars and battles have happened throughout the history for mankind. Many wars and battles have been fought over minor things. Many wars and battles have been fought for one of the most important gifts we can have and that is freedom.

What is freedom? Freedom is defined as: the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

It's defined as POWER. We have power when we think of accomplishing goals in our life because we have been given the gift of freedom. We live in the most wonderful place in the world, the United States of America. The history of our country is so powerful when you think of its short span of time as a country. Good people have fought to give us this freedom to pursue true happiness in our lives. Our Declaration of Independence says:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

This gives everyone the opportunity to pursue these things that so many have fought and some have died so that we can have these gifts.

Monday, November 11

Veterans Day 2013

Today is Veterans Day, its not just another holiday on our calendar. It is a day to remember all those who have fought for freedom from tyrants and evil. Today is the day we should thank every current member of the military and all those who have ever served in the military, whether they fought in wars or not. A soldiers life is not an easy one. They are gone from their families a lot. They are put in dangerous situations a lot. They suffer through unmentionable things that we can never understand. 

We must support them and show them gratitude for giving their life to give us the freedom to live our lives. I am so grateful to the many who have the courage to be a part of the military and stand firm in their beliefs in God, Country, and Freedom for all mankind!!! 

Digitalize your Photos Now Before it's too Late!

Last weekend I went to the Central Florida Family History Conference in Orlando, Florida; second year for me, 17th year for them. It was just as good this year as it was last year.

Family Search

We learned a lot about the Family Search website and all the new tools that have been added since last year. I was amazed. Family Search is a free website hosted my The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On Family Search you can create your family tree, do research for your ancestry, they even have free online classes to help you build research skills.

At the conference last week the one thing that really caught my attention was being able to add your photos and stories of your ancestry online. This interested me a lot because I have tons of photos that I don't want to get rid of but are just stored in a container. So I took the class about digitalizing your photos.

The instructor told a story about some photos his father had left him, I hope he doesn't mind me sharing it here with you.

He was gone for the weekend with his wife and while he was gone his house caught on fire due to a bathroom light over the shower being left on. His bishop, who happened to live across the street, called him to tell him that his house was on fire. So he raced home.

On the way, all he could think about was the photos that his father had left him, 5 boxes full. His father had just passed away the year before so he felt like his father was dying all over again. When he got there he found several fire trucks and police cars all along his street. As he approached his house a fire man asked if he was the owner, at that time he saw all five boxes in the street. The fireman had told him he saw that it said dad's photos on the box so he saved them for him. What a hero.

Man, what a story, but it made me think of all the treasures I have in my home with photos. I new this needed to be taken care of as soon as possible. I work a lot so I don't have a lot of time right now to do this but I do have a daughter who has some time. We talked about making this her project. It was suggested in the class to get your kids involved because they seem to love all the new electronics.

He said if you have a smart phone or android that these were perfect for scanning pictures. Wow, I never thought about that. So there doesn't seem to be a need to go out and buy scanners to do this, no excuses. All you have to do is take the picture and lay it on a clean solid color, like white, and take the picture again with your phone then have your phone send it to your email address then save the photo in a file or a thumb drive, stored forever.

I loved it, I have two different kids of scanners at home so we will use that for awhile. One scanner is my printer and the other is a small photo scanner, both work good. I can use the printer for the larger pictures and the small scanner for the small photos. I kinda want to put everything else on hold and make this a family project.

That's my post this week, if you value those family memories you better start to think about how best to save them because you never know what disasters await you and then its too late.

Faith Can Create a Zion People

Many people are surprised to find out that Mormons believe in Jesus Christ. But it should be no surprise when they hear the real name of the Mormon church which is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Faith in Jesus Christ

It is our faith in Jesus Christ that make us a strong people. It is our love for Him that knits us together as one, creating a Zion people. What is a Zion people?

Principles of Becoming a Zion People

Zion people act together as one, meaning our focus is Jesus Christ and doing as He did. We all have one purpose and that is the whole purpose for us being here. Every thing we do should be done with the goal of being obedient to the commandments and showing love to our fellow man.

We are to put God first and foremost in our minds serving Him with all our heart, might, mind, and strength. Then when we do this our hearts will be turn in love to our neighbor, all mankind. Through faith we can accomplish anything, even to become a Zion people.

Even if you are not Mormon, any Christian should have the same goals. When we all focus on God's plan and live it then we all become His children, also known as a  Zion people. Instead of fighting about who is right we should all be working together to fight against the evil that is slowing creeping into the lives of modern day families and our communities.

As righteous women we need to act upon faith and stand to fight against this evil by standing firm in holy places. We can create those holy places in our homes and where ever we are. Find the faith in your life and act upon it today. If we all stand together with one purpose we can do mighty things together and become His people, a Zion people, and help others to do the same.

Can we Understand God's Ways?

Isaiah 55:8-9

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

I have no faith in politics yet they consume my life some days. I don't believe in political parties; they have too many selfish ways. Politicians tend to get so caught up in staying up with the what the party stands for rather than what is good for the people.

Some people have questions religious beliefs because they can't understand why things have to be a certain way. We shouldn't question God's way so much because He is able to see the whole picture and we can not. We have to trust in Him and His wisdom. He has a plan and we nay never be able to understand it all.

One example of this is self reliance. Many politicians think the best way to help people is to give hand outs to the poor. But what does that do for them in the long run? It makes them more needy and not able to do for themselves.

When Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden God did not hand them everything; He expected them to work and learn how to do for themselves. That plan is still in place, God expects us to continue to work and learn how to take care of ourselves and our families.

We may not be able to see His plan in this but we must know that it is for our happiness and growth. He will always know more than us but as we study and ponder the things in our lives we will find wisdom and begin to see His ways better.

Self reliance is good; it helps to create responsible and loving citizens. We all feel good when we know we have done good things. We are happy when we know we have taken care of our own needs. And we feel successful when we know we can help others. 

I remember many times in my life when I received help from people, I felt loved. But the greatest feelings was when it was my turn and I was able to help others. 

Righteous women need to be about God's work, we don't have to understand everything we just have to do something to help ourselves and our families and eventually others. We need to focus on God's plan and then we will see a good world.

Becoming His People

Moses 7:18 
"And the Lord called his people ^aZion, because they were of ^bone heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them."

What does it mean to be "His People"? When Jesus returns to the earth He will rule as our King; we will live in His Kingdom. Jesus has rules for us now, commandments, that we are to follow while He is not here, so when He comes again He will still have rules for His Kingdom that we will continue to follow making us one with Him.

Those rules will be the ones that are found in His Gospel contained in the scriptures. If we all live those rules we will become His people. We all have to be of one heart and one mind. So what makes us of one heart and mind? The story of Enoch in the book of Genesis is a good example. They lived in such a way that there were no poor among them, they all looked out for each other and became known as Zion.

I have thought about today's schools. Everyone has to be and think the same or there is something wrong with them. It seems that if your child is not like the norm then he is labeled as having a problem, or is abnormal. That's not true, what ever happened to creativity and freedom to be who you want to be? 

I remember years ago I went into a parent/teacher conference for my oldest son; this was for kindergarten. The teacher commented that my son was a little different than the rest. She said he liked to talked to himself. When I asked for an example she told me that one day while every one else was coloring quietly he was playing with his pencil and made it look like it was a rocket ship, noises included. I told her that was imagination which I encouraged in my children. She just stared at me.

But using this as an example, being one heart and one mind does not mean we are all doing and thinking the same things, like some schools want us to do. Being righteous means doing good things. If we are all doing good things then we have the same goal of making sure our brother and this world is taken care of. God doesn't tell us what to do, he wants us to have an imagination and do what we can to help our brother, not in our way, but in God's way.

God's way is to help others gain the tools they need to take care of their own self and family, then help others to do the same. No poor among them means we all work together, as one, to do the will of Jesus Christ, and love one another by doing so much good that no one is left behind. 

We can be a Zion people now by opening our minds and hearts to finding ways of helping others along the path of life. If people don't have to worry about everyday living things then they will be  better able to focus on serving God and doing a lot of good. Let's all put God first in our lives and become a Zion people, His people.

Are you Ready?

Alma 34:32-34

"For behold, this ^alife is the time for men to ^bprepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of ^cthis life is the day for men to perform their ^dlabors.
And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many^awitnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not^bprocrastinate the day of your ^crepentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the^dnight of ^edarkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful ^acrisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth ^bpossess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world."

Now that I understand the Grace of Jesus Christ a little better I realize that these versus are actually saying that even though we will go to heaven and be judged, the judging will be based on what we do with our lives. If we want the rewards that are promised to us we have to start doing good today. We can't wait until we are in a better position in life or when we have a few minutes from our busy schedules. We have to do it now because we don't know when our time to leave this life will be. And once we leave this life we will be the same person we are now and can not change who we are, it will be too late.

We have to also make any corrections in our life if we are making choices that are not in alignment with God's. We have to strive to be perfect like our Savior is. It is time to make those changes now. 

This morning one of my children was telling me about an item they wanted to purchase for $60. He had a plan for this and it would work out, however, I asked if there might be a better use of this money instead of using it on a hobby. 

I said this not because I want to discourage him from hobby's but because I want him to think of God first and what he can do to build His kingdom here. If he sees that he is doing good through other things then he could be justified in spending the cash but he should also remember that those things don't go with him to heaven, only the good that he does and the person he becomes.

As righteous women we need to get our lives in order and help others, especially our families, to do the same. The time is nearer than we know and we must be ready to be judged of the things we do with our time, talents and money. Are we doing the good that we are capable of doing? Are we putting God first in our lives? If we were to die today would we be ready to face God on judgement day, would He say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant"?

Need to Stay Awake

I have a young friend at work who sends me an email every day called "Daily Bread". This is a Christian post that sends uplifting messages to those who need to hear the Word of God. I love that she sends these to me because they really do make me think. This past week I reflected upon one that touched my heart some, so I would like to share my thoughts on this one today.

Our Daily Bread

The post was called 'Heart Attitude' and was about having passion to do the Lords work. He said that after a football team is no longer able to win the championship the players just go through the motions but have no heart in the game any more.

This made me think about us as Christians and how we profess to be followers of Christ but are only giving lip service and not acting as He would have us act. I am guilty of this from time to time. Its like I fall asleep and forget what I am supposed to be doing. He needs me to do my part in building his kingdom here on the earth.

There have been times in my life that I realized that I have been functioning daily while being mentally asleep, meaning I live each day but I just go through the motions. Its all routine and I can do this in my sleep. Even at work when my brain wants to sleep I realize that I got through my assigned work but question if I did it correctly because I didn't remember doing it. Because I can do most of it in my sleep but my brain gains nothing. If I don't use my brain and make it work then I will get no where in my career. So I have to stay focused.

When I realize that I am standing still in my spiritual self, feeling lost and distanced from God,  I usually figure out that its my own fault that I have not been growing in knowledge of the Gospel and my relationship with Him. My prayers become weak and my thoughts are not focused on the Gospel and my responsibilities. I have to make a heart attitude adjustment. When I start doing the things that are required of me then I feel alive and awake and I want to shout out to all telling them what I have learned!

We live in the last days and have been warned to be prepared for the Second Coming of our Savior Jesus Christ. We can not fall asleep at this time, we have to constantly stand and watch for His return so that we can be ready to follow Him home to live in peace. Hopefully, as we do this each and every day, our example and our desire for others to know and be ready too, will become stronger so that we can be contributing to the strength that will be needed from each of us to make this Kingdom stand firm and immovable.

I do love my Savior and our Father in Heaven. I want to return home to them and share my life with all those I love and worked hard with to receive the glories that will be given to us through the Grace of our Savior. I love when my testimony grows and some days I do have to share it with others.


Usually when my young friend at work and I go for a morning walk we are able to share our thoughts about the Gospel and I get the opportunity to share what I know with her. This is my way of doing the Lords work and keeping myself awake each day.

Sisters, stay awake and shine the Gospel of Jesus Christ each and every day so we can live in that wonderful place that is being prepared for us in Heaven.

Celebration of Life Day

Hello,

I don't celebrate birthdays any more due to the age that I would be if I did celebrate them. It's nice though, when people acknowledge this day but where did this idea of the celebration begin? I have found some interesting things that I want to share today.

Some say that celebration of birthdays began as a pagan ritual. They felt like evil spirits would visit on this special day so the gathering of family and friends would protect them from those spirits. Even blowing out candles was believed to be related to the pagan celebration.

Some said that only royalty has big celebrated birthdays that is why when you do genealogy research you can see a lot of records for royalty. Also, that is where the idea of birthday crowns came in.

It has been said that the Germans started birthday celebrations for kids in the 1700's. I also read that Christians didn't actually celebrate birthdays because they were a pagan celebration. There aren't too many records in the scriptures mentioning birthday celebrations so I'm not sure when it became a thing for everyone, but it's all pretty interesting.

http://www.coolest-kid-birthday-parties.com/birthday-history.html

Celebrations are good for people. We like to celebrate holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc, face it, people like to party.  We feel good when we celebrate great occasions. We surround ourselves with those we love and that helps us feel the joy of the celebration.

As you probably guessed today is the day I was born. I use to think America celebrated my birthday because there would be a big celebration in DC, I finally figured out that it was for the Presidential Inauguration...bummer.

Oh well, a few years ago I decided to not have any more birthdays so I would lose track of how old I was getting. Unfortunately, everyone else remembered. This past Friday, my colleagues at work celebrated by serving a cake and bringing me my favorite flower, the Tulip. It was all very nice and I appreciated their kindness. I shared with them that I do not celebrate my birthday any longer. One team member said well then its your celebration of life. I liked that!

I started reflecting on that idea. I thought of the Savior and how we love to celebrate His life and all that he did for us. I also thought  that I could learn to love this celebration if  I could look at all the good that we do in this world. Our acts of service and words of kindness throughout that year can be a good reason to celebrate life. So that is what I will be celebrating from now on as I reflect in all the good that I have done and all that I can do the next year.

Celebration of life, I like it...just as long as we don't put a number with it. :)

Worn Out

Sorry everyone, for being late on my post. This past week my daughter and her husband went out of town for a couple of days and I had the privilege of caring for my two grandsons, one being 2 years old and the other 6 months.

I have been blessed with five wonderful children of my own and have handled raising them just fine; but by the end of this weekend, taking care of my grandsons, I found myself totally exhausted. My hair looked wild and out of control, no makeup, and clothes dirty from misc children things (throw up, dirt from the play ground, baby slobber, etc).

I love my grandchildren with all my heart and enjoy spending lots of time with them but I think I have forgotten how hard it was to take care of little ones. God, in his infinite wisdom, knew that having children were for the young because us older women just can't keep up as well.

Personally, I think some of it has to do with the fact that as a mom you are in your children's daily life and you don't realize how much you do because you just do it, every day. But once your children are grown and you don't have little ones to take care of and then you are thrown back into the ring with them, well, its a real wake up call to how much work goes into their daily needs. Who ever said that a stay at home mom wasn't a job was definitely not a mom.

Ladies, we older women need to remember what it was liking taking care of our children and offer some help from time to time to the younger moms who can get quite overwhelmed with the awesome responsibility of raising children. We could offer to babysit a couple of hours, take food for dinner, do some laundry or housekeeping, or maybe even take time to just sit and talk (meaning let them talk, you listen).

I know I am still grateful for those wonderful ladies who helped me out when I was a young mom trying to balance life. Their kindness was so welcome. Who knows maybe someday they can return the favor when you are too old to do some simple things around the house or need  transportation to a doctors appointment.

Doing good for one another is the way our Savior showed us in His wonderful example while here on earth. I want to be more like him and this can be a way for me to reach that goal.

Doing Good Daily

My church ward has a sign that says the "simple six things we should be doing daily". One of those things are to do a good deed daily for someone else. And then in General Conference we heard several talks that revolved around doing good for others. Needless to say I have been thinking a lot about service.

So I gave it a try last week and here is what I did:

Monday - Called my in-laws to see how my father-in-law was doing after surgery
Tuesday - Picked up my daughter from her meeting when she could have taken the taxi home
Wednesday - Helped some people with their genealogy research
Thursday - Took a meal to a sister from church who broke her arm
Friday - Took a 3 hour trip to take an extra vehicle to my daughter
Saturday - Joked with a cashier at the grocery store
Sunday - Listened for 3 hours while an elderly gentleman talked and talked about his life

Service isn't just about the big stuff, it's just...doing something good for someone when they need it.

In the Book of Mormon, Alma 37:6-7 says," . . . behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass...".

I don't know what great things have been brought to pass with my small acts of good deeds this past week but I know how I feel. I find myself opening my eyes a little more by seeking what good I can do for others. I am more aware of the people around me and their needs. I have to admit some days I had to really think about what I did good and was pleased that some things I did, that were not listed, I did just because it felt like the right thing to do.

Our Savior tells us over and over again that we need to take care of one another and when we do we will receive great blessings in our lives. I think one of those great blessings is in our health and the way we feel about life. It feels good to do good.

I have read some research that has been done on this and it says that when people do acts of service it does something good for their health (see the link below). We can all use a little lift in our health, right?

www.webmd.com/balance/features/science-good-deeds

I have been thinking very seriously about adding something new to my blog by asking you to share your acts of service with me and my readers. But I'm not sure how to do this yet. I will let you know in the near future when I get my thoughts together on how to make this work.

But until then I would love to hear about some of your random acts of kindness that you have shared with others or that others have shared with you. I think we really could see miracles happen if everyone started making that commitment to serve others daily.

Insurance for All

I am not a fan of politics because I think "we the people" get the raw end of the deal every time; I'm sure there are things we can do about that but that topic is for another time.

Obamacare seems to be in the middle of the political controversy lately. I really tried to think about the pros and cons of it but I won't bore you with my thoughts on it at this time. However, I will tell you my thoughts about a guaranteed insurance policy that is available to anyone who wants a part of it but it does require many helping hands to avoid a cost to those that need this insurance. There is a big need for insurance providers, so let's talk about how you can become a provider.

This insurance policy has health, short-term, long-term, disability, and life policies available. The following are ways you can help provide for this policy to become successful and desirable.

Health care:  This can be provided by sharing a smile, or a hand when a neighbor needs some help carrying in groceries. It can be provided by picking up garbage in your neighborhood or community. It can be provided by doing things like opening doors for others, taking a moment to listen to someone, and even talking to a shy person. These simply acts and many others can lift the hearts of the low in spirit.

Short-term insurance: This can be done by doing things like a providing a meal one night for a new mom, or someone who had minor surgery. It could be taking care of children one afternoon so a mom can rest for a while, or reading to an elderly or bed bound person. There are so many options to short-term insurance that can be beneficial to the health of others and it only requires anywhere from a few hours to a day or two of service.

Long-term insurance: This can be things like mowing a lawn weekly for an elderly person, or shoveling snow during the winter  months. It can be things like taking people to doctors appointments, or volunteering at a charitable organization. Long-term insurance is one that will last more than a day or two. There is a great need for this kind of insurance because its hard to commit to doing things for an extended length of time, but it just requires of good heart.

Disability insurance: This insurance is for those who are down and depressed, and can use a hand up from their lowest feelings of hopelessness. We can mourn with those that mourn and help them find peace in their hearts.  We can help those who feel lost find their way simply by listening to what they are saying and letting the spirit guide us in finding ways to uplift their souls. They are searching for His love but don't recognize what they are truly looking for. We can provide this form of insurance to those who can do it alone.

Life insurance: This is the best investment of insurance available because it is providing a source of help to others by guiding them to Heavenly Father. We know that the only way to eternal life is through our Savior. This policy can be for all who want it at no cost to them because the price has already been paid by our Gracious and Loving Savior, Jesus Christ. It is important that we offer this insurance to everyone who crosses our path. It is a free policy for all takers.

Anyone can have any or all of these insurances at anytime, even those with pre-existing conditions, especially those with pre-existing conditions. We all can benefit from this kind of care more than we know and we can all help provide the care that is needed, we just have to be willing to open our eyes  and hearts then act to provide for the needs of others. The cost to us is low because it just requires our time to help others. I know we can all find a few minutes in our day to make life a little better for someone else.

If we would act today in simple little ways we will see a mighty change in the health and well being of all mankind. It is available only if we are willing to be the providers of this insurance policy. This plan will uplift others and provide us with the best health care around. Who needs Obamacare when we have Eternal Care waiting for us. Let's not waste it.

Righteous Women do not Condemn Others

Hello My Friends!!!

I just finished watching a short video that made me cry, of course, I cry at everything spiritual. But it was about Jesus' mercy and forgiveness. I have included the video for you to cry, I mean watch. It is very moving.

But it made me think of times that I have condemned others in my life, most of the time just in my thoughts. Why do I do that?

I have judged before I knew anything about the person. I truly believe that it is human nature to prejudge someone but I want something more. I want to be like Jesus and look at a person with unconditional love. How do I do this?

I think the first thing I have to do is to study the life of Jesus. I need to see who He served and how He served. I need to observe His wisdom and apply those principles in how I serve others. Well, I guess the key is to serve others without picking and choosing who I am serving. It's easy to serve children, it's a little less easier to serve the elderly, but it is still easy. It's not so easy to serve those who are dirty or smelly. It's not so easy to serve when I have to go out of my way. These are things I have to work on. I need to learn to put others needs before my own.

As I begin to study His life a little more, I have realized that I need to open my heart and not see with my natural eyes but I need to see with my heart. We are all God's children; this I have to remember first.

One thing I have come to realize is that in order to do this His way there are some important things I need to understand. One thing is to understand is the greatest commandment of all, which is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, might, mind and strength. And then the second greatest commandment to understand is to love all people more than myself. These commandments can be found in many different places within the scriptures, but what do they mean?

One thing it means is that we are to be answers to people's prayers. We need to act, when prompted, in behalf of our Father in Heaven and serve those who need help. We know that Heavenly Father can take care of their problems without our help, but who would that truly benefit? So, in His wisdom if we learn to serve all people, we then develop a love for them. By doing this we are showing Heavenly Father that we do love Him with all our heart, might, mind and strength because we are being obedient. And...we are showing that we can love our neighbor by our willingness to serve them. This helps us to become like Jesus and be able to return home with honor.

Its funny to me, but this week through my studies in the scriptures I have had several..."Oh, I get it" moments; this is another one of those moments. I understand how we become like our Savior through acts of service that not only save the lives of others but our own. I understand that service is the key to all things pertaining to the Saviors example of love for all people.

To become more like Jesus, I need to learn to love all people and be willing to serve them and not be quick to judge them. I may find that walking in their shoes may not be such an easy path. Who am I to judge my brother or sister unrighteously.

 I am so grateful for a Father in Heaven who teaches me principles that help me to become a better human being and daughter of God. I know that I am going to work harder at being more Christlike by opening my heart and finding ways to serve those who are less fortunate in life, or even those who are very fortunate but have missed the mark. It is the way I will become more like the greatest man who ever lived on this earth, my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.