What Does Charity Mean to Jesus?

1 Corinthians 13

I always thought of charity as showing love to people by giving to organizations that helped people, then I started reading the scriptures and found charity to show love for people by helping them in many ways and praying for them. But then when I began to really study the scriptures I found that charity is really something a lot more than showing love and helping where I could.

I love Paul and the things he taught. Reading this scripture has taught me what charity really means.

He says that charity is everything. He says that if you do everything you are supposed to do but you don't have charity then you are nothing. I thought about that for a moment, how do you do all the right things but not have charity?

I know that there were times when I would do things because I knew I was supposed to but I didn't really want to do it; like when I was learning about tithing. I wanted to take the money and use it on something else but I knew I was supposed to pay 10% of my increase. I had to learn that the blessings don't come if you do it with the wrong attitude. I knew if I paid an honest tithe and did it with a loving attitude that I was showing my love for my Father in this commandment. So this part of the scripture did make more sense to me; give it with my heart.

But charity means more than just loving through obedience; some of these were real eye openers to me.

Charity is long suffering: That means we are to be patient with others and with God, as long as it takes. We should forgive time and time again, for as long as it takes. We should continue to help people for as long as it takes. These things are not always easy but if we do this we will know charity in our hearts.

Charity envieth not: This means we are to be happy with what we have and not want what others have. There were times in my life that I wished I was blessed with certain things in my life, mostly material things, but then I realized that even though some people had materials things I had spiritual blessings which others did not, and spiritual blessings last longer than material ones. I found that I was happy with my blessings. It seemed that the more material things they had the more they wanted, they were never happy or satisfied.

Charity never vaunteth itself, was not puffed up: This means we don't go around bragging and feeling mightier than the people we serve. When we serve we have to do it with God in mind, that we are doing these things to help but not make anyone feel less of themselves for receiving. Christians are often accused of being mightier than, if we have charity in our hearts we will disprove that theory by helping people to realize that we act upon these things because we want to be more like our Savior, we want to do it because we love them. Jesus was not prideful in service to others.

Seeketh not her own: We are not to pick and choose who we give service and love to, we should be doing this every day as we go through our lives. If we see a need we help, we don't say well today I am going to do one act of service to help someone. We should be saying I will do what the Holy Spirit prompts me to do and serve where I am needed today.

Charity bearth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, and endueth all things: We should testify that we are followers of Jesus Christ and try to do as He did, we should testify of the truth we hold in our hearts, we should help others to hope for good things to happen, and we should help others to hold on and continue fighting the battle against evil. When we do these things, and help
others to to these things, we are showing true charity in our hearts. We are showing that we have the true love of Christ.

As righteous women we should seek for good things in our lives and find love in  our hearts for all people for they are our brothers and sisters, children of God. They are not more or less than we are. They are strong in some areas of life that we are not and we are strong in some areas of life that they are not, we can serve each other with the strengths we are blessed with: this is charity.

Paul concludes that charity never faileth, and that we should have faith, hope and charity, but the most important of all is charity.

With my Whole Soul

2 Nephi 25:29
"And now behold, I say unto you that the right way is to believe in Christ, and deny him not; and Christ is the Holy One of Israel; wherefore ye must bow down before him, and ^aworship him with all your ^bmight, mind, and strength, and your whole soul; and if ye do this ye shall in nowise be cast out."

One day, not too long ago, I realized that I had been sleeping my way through life, with everything I did. I went to work, everything was routine. I would joke that I could do my job with my eyes closed and I could. There wasn't a lot of thought put into it, just do the same old job again and again.

Even in school, I just went in, learn what I needed to then passed the test and moved on. No more thought about what I learned and I was an A-B student. It amazes me now when I look back and see that I was asleep. I wasn't using my brain and intellect to make a better me. As far as my religious life went I was obedient as far as not doing the wrong things but I wasn't doing all the right things either.

One day, I realized that it was time to wake up and make a conscious effort in my life. I knew I needed to make changes in my life now before I looked back and saw that I had wasted it not doing anything worth while. I am starting to see changes in my life now that are for good. But I have to make myself do these things.

When it comes to religion, I find that I am really studying the scriptures now and pondering the things I learn. When I worship my Lord I am doing it with all my might, mind and strength. I am doing it with my whole soul. In order to do that I have to make a conscious effort, and not sleep my way through things. It's not always easy and at times I fall back into that old habit of doing what was required but not getting anything out of it. 

But now I can see the difference and I want to know God better and do what He wants me to. I want to be the best me I can be. I can only do that if I am worshiping Him with ALL my MIGHT, MIND, and STRENGTH, with MY WHOLE SOUL.  If I can do it, so can you.

As righteous women we need to stand up against the things that are destroying us and our families. We have to make a conscious effort to understand things and make change for the good of all, in God's ways. When we do this we will be worshiping Him as we should, with our whole souls doing our part in building His kingdom here.

Showing our Love for our Savior Jesus Christ

John  14:15

"If ye ^alove me, ^bkeep my ^ccommandments."

Simple words that make a whole lot of sense. I just read an article in the September Ensign that is called "His Grace is Sufficient" by Brad Wilcox. Wow, now that was a good article. He helped me to have a better understanding of the Atonement and my role in it. I have provided the link to that article. 

His Grace is Sufficient


This is my understanding; Jesus paid the price for our sins in Gethsemane so that we could all return back to the presents of our Heavenly Father to be judged for our choices in life here on the earth. So the price has been paid for all of our sins. 

Does that mean we don't have to be good any more, NO, it doesn't. It means that we still have to avoid sin but if we fall short then the price has been paid for us. We still have to repent or answer for those sins. So in turn, Jesus now has the control of what we should be doing with our lives and what happens after we die.

He has given us a plan on how to live our lives so we can know true happiness. That plan included being obedient to commandments. If we keep His commandments then we are showing our obedience to Him and that we love Him. So the scripture of the day says that if we love Him we show Him by doing what He has asked of us. Those things are things that will make us know happiness. How simple is that? How good is that? I think  it's a great deal.

Those commandments aren't that hard either. The two greatest commandments are to love the Lord our God and put Him first in our lives, then to love the rest of the people in the world. Some days it may not be easy to love our brother but this is a challenge for all of us. We have to find ways to overcome the weakness and learn to love, if we can do that, we can do anything the Lord asks us to do.

Righteous women must be the example to all the world on how to love everyone. By doing this we are pleasing the person who paid the ultimate price through His love of all people. We are becoming like Him as He wanted us to do. His example is perfect and so we should show our love and keep His commandments.

Endure to the End

Doctrine and Covenants 14:7

"And, if you ^akeep my commandments and ^bendure to the end you shall have ^ceternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God."

My youngest daughter has gone through so many medical challenges in her young 20 year life. She had lazy eye surgery when she was 4 years old. She had her spleen removed when she was 15 years old. And now she is getting ready to have a kidney transplant. Her spleen and kidney failure is due to a genetic disease called Nephronophthisis, which affects some internal organs and her eye sight.

She understands that we have challenges in our lives for many good reasons. And the amazing thing is she understands that we all have trials in some why or another; that its not just her. Everyone goes through things that can strengthen who we are and who we are to become. The most important part of these challenges is how we handle them.

If we feel sorry for ourselves then that is our reward, but if we look at our challenges as a learning tool we can gain so much more from them. We will be able to endure these things until the end; and our reward will be good.

God's way is not to be sad all the time over the things we go through. I do agree that we have our moments of grief, and I believe we should, but we have to pick ourselves up and get back to work; endure to the end.

If we keep the commandments we will find happiness and joy. If we keep the commandments we will forget ourselves and serve others. If we keep the commandments and endure to the end, we will have eternal life, which is God's whole purpose for us.

We, as righteous women need to set the example for others through our challenges and trials. If we present a positive image we can strengthen and uplift others who may not be in the same place spiritually as we are. It is our responsibility to be that example. No one, in this world, has suffered more than our Savior Jesus Christ so we should be like Him and do our best to get through our challenges and trials so we can help others and receive our eternal reward, which is to return home to God and live forever in peace and joy.

Sunday Points of Conference

Well, another great spiritual feeding. I love how everything relates to my life, it's like they are talking to just me. But as always I receive messages that really hit home. Here are a few;

Elder Dallin H. Oaks spoke about our life goals being in alignment with God plan of happiness for us. If we don't have that we may end up serving other God's. It's so easy justify our choices in life when they are in correlation with the world but when we need to make those changes to be in alignment with God's we find it a hard thing to do. I like how he said we need to have courage to stand for truth and that we should not be moral cowards.

Elder Richard G. Scott talked about recognizing the Atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives. He used the example of the stripling warriors. I loved the way he told their story. It touched my heart and made me want to work harder to be sure my children could be more like them.

I think there were 3 times I heard the usage of "voice of warning" which one was from the talk by Quentin L. Cook. He spoke a lot about the bondage's we may be a part of today, things that take away our moral agency like addictions, excessive social media, political beliefs, etc.

Elder Neil L. Andersen really hit home, since I am a single mom. I am grateful to know that I know my place and the power I have as a mother in the home. And by living my covenants I will have the priesthood power to do what I need to within my home for my family. I am grateful for wonderful home teachers and leadership in my ward who help to give my family the priesthood that we need. And I am grateful for 2 sons and a son-in-law who hold both the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthoods by honoring it and blessing our lives with it.

There are so many more good ones that reached my heart like Elder Russell M. Nelsons talk about our the miracle of our bodies and how we will have to answer for how we use them. He spoke about self mastery which just happens to be something that I have been praying for lately. How do they know?!

I also love the inspiring words of our Prophet Thomas S. Monson, what a wonderful example he is to all of us. How can anyone not love this man? My youngest son made a comment about how he needs to become more like him. He said he wanted to be able to look back at his life periodically and know that he is doing a lot of good.

I'm sad its over but I have a lot to ponder and perfect in my life. These are things that I believe will make me a more righteous daughter of God. I hope you were able to find things to help your spiritual growth. If you think you might have missed something don't forget that the Ensign will be out next month, that will be a good time to review and start making those changes in your life for good.

Man, I can't until next Spring. :)

Lessons I Learned from the Saturday Sessions of General Conference

I REALLY LOVE GENERAL CONFERENCE (exclamation point)!!!

Every talk had something for me in it, that is amazing. How do they know what I need to hear?!

I would like to focus on a couple of points that hit home to me;

Elder Robert D Hales spoke about how we need General Conference, this I know, because we can receive inspired messages that will help us over the next 6 months until the next conference. He promised that if we listened to the words spoken at this conference that we would receive answers to our prayers and concerns. I had thought of 3 questions before conference began and I am surprised and pleased to say that I have already received answers to all 3 questions, amazing!

Elder Boyd K. Packer spoke about the scriptures being the place where we find peace and protection from the perils of the world. I found this a great help due to all the evil that is surrounding our families daily. A simply thing like reading as a family can help us to be protected from the worldly influence our poor children have to face daily. One of my thoughts was about being prepared for what is to come, he said the answers were in the scriptures. I know this, but I always need to be reminded to look there.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson spoke about women and how awesome we are, :), well something like that. He actually spoke about the beauty of womanhood and how we have to protect it from the influences of confused people who try to make us equal to men on a man's level, when we should be equal to men on a woman's level. I loved that he spoke about these things. Some women don't realize that we have a great influence for good by using the tools the Lord gave us. But it is our relationship with God that really keeps us on track to standing as righteous women daily.

And, the last one I want to talk about is from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. He spoke about the reality of mental illness. He spoke about things that I have always thought about depression. I think most depression is something we have control over, it may not be easy but we can fight against it; I understand some can not. He did say that it was a real thing. He spoke about a time he felt it, and it reminded me of a time I felt it. I was in my late 30's and just started to feel low over my life and the darkness just started to drag me down, I didn't want to do anything but curl up on the couch and sleep. I'm a thinker and all I could do was dwell on the problems I was experiencing at the time. I was a single mom with 3 kids still at home ranging from 3-13. I knew they needed me because we had no family near us. So I prayed for strength to get out of that depression and made myself get back into life. It took a good 2 weeks before I was myself again but it was real. I knew I never wanted to feel it again, any time I recognized that feeling creeping in I would focus on the Savior and my family; it worked.

There were so many more wonderful talks, I wish I had time to talk about all of them but these are the ones that really hit home. I hope you have enjoyed conference so far and will continue to gain spiritual instruction  through the rest of the weekend. Don't forget to ponder the things you have learned, that's how we keep them in our hearts.

For I am not Ashamed

Romans 1: 16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."

Years ago, I discovered that whenever I was in a public place I would always speak of God or things of spiritual nature in a low voice. I justified it as speaking in a humble manner of spiritual things but truly it was because I didn't want any confrontation from those who might believe differently.

After reading this scripture I realized that it seemed I was ashamed of my faith. I wasn't really but I wasn't acting as if I wasn't certain of who I was and what I stood for. I didn't proclaim the righteous values that I tried to live daily; I knew that had to change.

Now, whenever I speak of Jesus Christ or anything spiritual I don't lower my voice. I want people to know that I am a true believer of my Savior and His gospel. I know that Jesus is the Christ and He paid the ultimate sacrifice so we could return home and live forever in the most wonderful place ever, home with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

To be a righteous woman it requires us to make stands and proclaim our beliefs, not in a way that turn people off but through our example and not having fear to speak up for things of truth and light. The day will come when troubled people of the world will look to those of faith for guidance. We are the Lord's ambassadors, we need not be ashamed of what we believe.

Spirit of Contention

3 Nephi 11:29 - "For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another."

I can be pretty stubborn when I want to be but that is the key, I have to want to be, or...I find that when I dwell on an issue for a while I can get a little upset real easy. But I have been working on that weakness for a little while now, however, I think I still need to work on this.

Recently, we got a new Bishop, who I like a lot. He is a very good man and comes from an awesome family. But recently I found we had a difference of opinion in something concerning my son. Over the past two years I have been a volunteer at the Family History Library on the same nights my son has his youth meeting. Our routine has been that he would wait for me to pick him up when I was done but our new Bishop didn't like that he would be staying alone at the church so he took him home that night.

At first it bothered me then I let it fester until I was angry. I allowed myself to get caught up in the spirit of contention. It began to bother me so much that I couldn't sleep well that night. I had to pray for help to shake the feelings of anger. I didn't like the way I felt, nevertheless I wanted to be right about this.

The next morning I had calmed down and could see the error of my ways. I realized that he knew I was a single mom trying to serve the Lord through family history so he was probably doing something nice for me by taking my son home. I appreciate his kindness and had to ask for forgiveness for my thoughts and actions.

We can ruin relationships with people when  we allow things to fester inside of us. When we feel anger towards another person we are allowing Satan to influence our emotions even more. Righteous women have to work hard to avoid anger because we cannot be an example of our Savior Jesus Christ if we cause others to feel anger towards us. Self control of our angers and frustrations is a good tool to avoid Satan's promptings.

I have prayed for self control for certain things in my life, this certainly needs to be one of those things. The spirit of contention has ruined many people's lives. But we have a good example in Jesus Christ and we, as righteous women, should all be striving to follow in His footsteps. We can't love our brother if we feel the spirit of contention in our lives.

Ye are the Light of the World!!!

Matthew 5:14 "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid."

Last Saturday, early morning, I made a short 1 hour trip to Orlando to attend the temple. On my trip to and from I spent time talking to my Heavenly Father about my trials and goals. I enjoyed my session, and cried through most of it; I was spiritual moved by my time there. I took a little extra time in the Celestial Room to clear my mind from all the difficult issues that have entered into my life recently. All in all it was a good start to my day and I was ready to meet my challenges when I left.

Later that day the sister missionaries called and asked me to meet them at the home of an investigator who was interested in family history. I did and I walked away feeling real good about the opportunity I had to share my testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

That evening my youngest son and I needed to run to the store to pick up a couple of items that was needed for the Sabbath Day. As we were walking into the store a very nice gentleman greeted us with this comment;
"The Holy Ghost just told me that you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ."

I smiled and exclaimed, "Yes, I am." He kept walking and then yelled over his shoulder saying, "And that nice young man with you is, too."

I agreed that my son was, too. I felt great that someone recognized my love of the Savior Jesus Christ through my countenance.

When we do the thing the Lord expects of us, through obedience, we can shine the Light of Christ in our lives. We won't be able to hide that light that radiates from our souls. We can be that beacon that others will look to for guidance in troubling times.

We do live in a very troubled world, and we as righteous women need to be that beacon. So fill your day with good things and watch how others react to you. Smile when you pass someone, say hello to someone who looks sad, and help when someone can use a hand. It's up to us to be an ambassador for Jesus Christ, so shine the light and hold it high for all to see.

I'm a Mormon and I love Jesus Christ

Well, last night I watched the World Wide Training for Mission Presidents and Missionaries. Everyone was invited to attend and since I have a missionary in training at home, possibly 2 in training, we decided we should attend.

Hastening the Work of Salvation

After it was over I thought for a few minutes about what was said and realized that this is an open door to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the whole world. I started to get excited and my mind began to race with ideas about how I can do my part and be a better missionary.

One way is through this blog. I have tried many directions to make it successful but now I know what I really want to do with it. I am going to share my testimony by sharing my life events with those who read it,even if I have only one reader who can benefits from it. But hopefully, that will include people who don't know Jesus personally but have been thinking about it.

I will pray that it reaches those who need to hear the Word but don't know how to go about finding it. I promise, even though my life is in an upheaval at this time, that I will publish once a week. I will share the things that I discover through my studies in the scriptures because I have been blessed with finding countless treasures in them.

This is an exciting time in this world. We can either look for good and do much good or we can look for bad and do much bad. There is no in between any longer. The time is fast coming for our Lord and Savior to return to this earth. We have to decide long before that which side we are on.

So I shout from my housetop, I am a true follower of Jesus Christ. I trust Him and love Him with all my heart. I will commit to do everything I can to become like Him and serve my fellow beings. It doesn't mean I won't make mistakes or make errors in my life but it does mean I will quickly repent and make things right and get back on track again.

We can all do this if we just make that commitment to put our Heavenly Father first in our lives. So catch the vision and yell from your housetops, that you are committed to and love the Savior of this world.

I am a Mormon!!! I know it, I live it and I love it because Mormons are followers of Jesus Christ, always have been and always will be.

Being Overwhelmed

I have been given so much information from family and online information regarding my family history. I remember being so overwhelmed and not knowing how best to organize this information so that my children would understand what all this is. So I found a way that has worked for me in organizing my records so it made sense.

My desire is to create books for my posterity to know their past family. The thing I had to remember was that I needed to concentrate on my direct blood line first, the rest would come later. I needed to start with a pedigree chart and write the names of each person who is my direct line to as far back as I could go. Actually, I am going back to the first person who entered the U.S. as an immigrant then move on to the next line. After I completed that I could focus on where we originated from overseas. This works for me.

I have found lots of interesting stuff. Once I have done this I go back and research the info and I have to verify if it is correct then move on to the next until I have finished my U.S. relatives. To me this is the best way to begin.

I love coming across pictures of my ancestors. I love to see what they looked like and they just become so real to me as I view their faces. I try to see if I can find family resemblances; it's fun. I plan to take all this information, photos, documents and stories and create books for everyone else to get to know and learn to love their ancestors, too.

I love research and the satisfaction of finding the answer to your questions, as an accountant I do this all the time. It is no wonder that I love family history research because as I dig deeper, I find those treasures that can bring true joy to my soul. you can have that too, so get digging by starting with what you know and recording it on your pedigree chart then get all the documentation you can find as back up to your research and find how you can best store that information for your posterity. Good luck, don't wait any longer, get started now.

Spending Time with Extended Family

Hello,

I took a few days off of work this past week to go to Georgia for family history research, what I call "Dead People Hunting". My kids love it when I call it that, it helps them get a little more excited about going with me. They do their thing while I do mine when we go, the idea is we just love spending time together. In between the searches, while we are driving to places, we spend time telling stories or just talking about life.

I have an aunt who lives in Tallahassee who loves to go with me to Georgia too. So needless to say she came with me this time. The only thing about my aunt going with me is she is a talker (good thing I'm a listener). She talks from the moment you see her until the moment you leave her. I hardly ever get to say anything. I love her so much but man, by the time we part my ears are hurting, we spent two days together this time around.

But I do love hearing some of the stuff she has experienced because she has experienced a life time of trials. The problem with listening to her is she is so detailed. She tells things that have nothing to do with her point but I guess she wants you to see the whole picture, and that is what gets so tiresome.

Anyway, I listened to her stories and learned some real good stuff about my family. She is the only family I have left on my dad's side. Her other brother past away years ago and my dad past away in 2006. My grandmother is gone too so in my aunts generation, she is the last. So I want to treasure the time I have with her, but it takes a lot of patience.

Family reunions are a good time to gather more treasures of family. There, you get to meet many people who can share stories of your ancestry. Hearing those stories coming from so many different people helps you develop a love of the past and for them, or it can make you hate it because its just not important to know about the past or whatever reason. However, the point is spending time getting to know the extended family is also very valuable.

God gave us families because we can draw strength from them, we can share life with them, we can learn to love with them. Families are so valuable, it amazes me when people don't want to spend what little time we have together on this earth getting to know those who are apart of us. I am so glad I do see this value and want to treasure it all. All it takes is a little effort and a little love to start finding the true treasures that our Heavenly Father has given us.

This treasure is a gift that goes with us to heaven. The things we learn from the family are things that can go with us to heaven. We know we can't take the material things with us but our knowledge and the things we learn here are the things we can take with us. I believe that the time I spend with my immediate and extended family will be the things I find pure love and joy in while here in this world and the one to come. Thank you Father for giving me the gift of family, ...and patience.

Teaching my Daughter to Cook

So, I tried to teach my daughter to cook a long time ago and she is able to make some things but now that she has decided to go on a mission next year I think its time to make sure she knows how to really cook for herself.

Now, you think there is no problem with that, she is 19 years old, however she has a vision issue. She has an eye disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa. That means she is slowly losing her sight.

She has always had night vision issues, that's how we knew she needed glasses in the first place. But we didn't know how bad it was or how bad it was going to get. What happens is, she loses her night vision,then she starts to have tunnel vision which narrows the path of what she can see. If she looks down she runs into things but if she looks up then she trips over stuff. It has been trying for her.

She will then lose her color vision and eventually her sight, totally, that's how the disease progresses. But we always have hope that some cure can be found to help her later. But for now we are preparing for the worst. She is a little scared sometimes but she has lived this way all her life and really doesn't know any other way and because it's gradual it should be too hard to deal with.

I remember when she was 2 years old getting her first pair of glasses. She tried on a pair for sizing and immediately took them off ,I just knew we were going to have issues with glasses. But when she put them on again with the correct lenses she just looked around at everything in total amazement, I cried. It was the first time my little girl was seeing the world more clearly. She was around 12 years old when she was diagnosed with RP. At least now we know what we are dealing with.

She just started going to the Light House for the Blind and they have been very helpful with her. She now has a white cane so she can look ahead and not trip over stuff, like the dog who lies in the middle of the kitchen floor. She has been learning a lot about transportation and electronics. She has also been learning about self defense, that makes me happy. She is learning that life goes on no matter what, you just have to find your way.

So teaching her to cook is interesting but she does amazing well. She has taught me a lot about living with a disability, its only a disability if you let it be. We can still live our lives but work a little harder to get over the things that challenge us.  We all have challenges and this is one of her's, one of mine is not let her disability make me sad.

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.

I love Lemonade

This is my favorite saying. When I first saw this saying I knew it was meant for me. There have been times in my life that I would be so frantic over my situations and trials that I thought I would fall apart. But this saying has helped me to become more rational and calmer when I have to deal with life's challenges.

I remember once when I was so overwhelmed with just trying to survive and care for the needs of my children. My finances were so tight and my ex-husband had lost his job so he couldn't send any money. I was so afraid of what was going to happen to us. We lived all the way across the country from our family so we had to do things on our own most of the time.

I was so tired one day after working from 3AM - 6AM throwing newspapers then going into town 30 miles away to pick up part of the newspapers for the Sundays papers and deliver them to all the carriers from 7AM to 2PM. I was so exhausted and near tears, then I found out that there would be no child support for awhile, I was ready to crack.

I got in the shower and broke down so my children wouldn't see me fall apart. I cried for awhile and then I heard someone say "Why are you crying, you know it always works out?" Then I stopped crying and realized that it was true. It is how I handle my trials that make all the difference. It was time to make some lemonade. If I kept crying then I would not be showing my faith in Jesus Christ's promise to always be with me.

I knew it would all be ok, and it was. Its hard going through the trials but if we can just take a moment to stand back and see the whole picture then it gets easier to work through. At least that was my experience. I trusted in my Savior to help me and He always did, and still does. I love him so much and I am grateful for his constant companionship.

It is just up to me to dance in the rain and know it will all be ok in the end, just keeping enduring it every day. We are never alone.

Standing on the Lords Side of the Line

Today, I taught a lesson to the women at church about standing on the Lord's side of the line. We can see how close we are getting to the return of our Savior, (that probably won't be in December 21st this year), but we need to be deciding who's side we are on; no more straddling the fence.

https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-george-albert-smith/chapter-18?lang=eng

What does that mean? It means we have to have a firm testimony of our Savior. We have to be willing to put Him first and trust that the commandments he has given us are for our good. He doesn't give us commandments because he wants to control us but he gives us commandments to bless our lives and help us find true happiness in a messed up world. His commandments are actually words of love and counsel to us. If we could view it that way it may help us to understand the need for these commandments in our daily lives.

It also means that we can't go to church on Sunday and then do worldly things after that saying, "at least I went to church today." That mentality will not get you very far in heaven. We have to make the Gospel of Jesus Christ our lives. Our choices need to reflect the good that the gospel brings in our lives. If we make righteous choices daily we will have made the decision to be on the Lord's side. Every time we keep and honor a commandment we are choosing to be on the Lord's side.

We aren't perfect but we can try to live the gospel the best we can. We don't give in to Satan's tricks. You know how he works, little by little. He convinces us to think that if we just do a few things wrong it won't hurt us but that is wrong thinking. One thing leads to another thing and then another thing, it doesn't stop unless we realize that we are heading the wrong way, then try to fix it, which can be very hard to do.

So we need to say now that we choose the Lord's side and give our best to Him by living the commandments that have been given to us out of his love for us. After all, His purpose is to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). If that is the case then the commandments are for blessings and not punishments. Yes, there are consequences to our choices but we know all this before we make our choices. He makes it plain and clear in the scriptures that if we don't do it His way then this will happen, but if we do it His way then this will happen, it's our choice but we pay the price regardless.

I choose the Lord's side. Like Joshua I say, " Choose you this day whom ye will serve,... but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord" (Joshua 24:15) I love these words because there is no question about who's side you are on. Please make you decision today and stand firm and strong on the Lord's side.

Tips on Tuesday: Never Forget

God, please bless their families!

Restoring Love Project

Hello Sisters,

OK, here is an issue we can make a stand on. I'm sure most of you have heard about the Chick-fil-a leaderships stand for the marriage between a man and a woman. It's sad that people don't understand that it's not about the human being, we should love all people as our Savior has told us to do, but it's about the issue of what God defines as a marriage. Its about standing for what God has established as a family base. Now someone has said that we Christians aren't as supportive when  it comes to serving the poor.

I was listening to Glenn Beck today and heard about his Restoring Love project. Its worth the read even if you don't like Glenn Beck. Thousands of people came on the last weekend in July to provide service in many different ways. Please read the attached link and see what else you can do to prove the unbelievers wrong. Christian women need to make a stand for the sanctity of marriage and Christian service.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/viral-chick-fil-a-picture-claims-christians-dont-feed-the-poor-but-we-have-proof-to-the-contrary/