Heartache

Sometimes, I get so caught up in the chaos that is my life, that I do not look for ways to serve others.  I forget, for a time, that serving others is really also something that makes me feel better about myself.  This week, there were a couple of friends who needed me, and I stopped what I was doing and went and served. 
I have found that service is rarely convenient.  It almost never comes at the right time in my life.  It is usually something I have to drop everything else for and just go and do.  It can be so much easier to just lay in bed and wallow in my exhaustion. 
Funny thing though, when I finally get up the courage to just do it, I find myself with more energy and more love and more compassion than I started out with.  I find myself wanting to help even more. 
One of the things we are doing in Primary this year is teaching the children to "dare to choose the right".  They are each challenged every week to dare another child to do something that is right and kind and good.  Then the next week they get to tell who they dared, what they asked them to do, and whether or not they did it.   They also get to put a gumball in a jar to show all the "good dares" that they have done. 
They seem to get really involved in it and some of the dares are simple, but some have actually been pretty complicated.  So, this week, going with that theme, I am going to dare you to serve someone else.  Help to ease their heartache.  Help them to bear their sorrows.  You can choose what you do.  It can be as simple as a phone call, or a visit.  You can make a dinner or a dessert, or even a loaf of bread.  
Whatever you decide to do, put a little bit of yourself into it.  I promise that as we seek to serve others, our own doubts and fears and even pain becomes a little bit easier to bear.  
Give it a try!  I dare you!   

Gratitude in the Waiting

No great thing is created suddenly, 

any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig.  

If you tell me that you desire a fig, 

I  answer that there 

must be time.  

Let it first blossom, 

then bear fruit, 

then ripen.

Life is full of waiting.  It is also full of wonder and beauty.  Sometimes, we are so impatient for what we want, that we forget to find joy in what is already there.  We live in a world where you can get anything you want if you have the money to pay for it.  We get fruits and vegetables from other countries with different climates.  We get whatever we desire at the touch of a button or the click of a mouse.  We can be rude and angry and mean to each other when we are thwarted in our desires.  

In short, there are too many times that we don't act very Christ-like, and nearly all of those times have to do with patience.  I am not always patient.  I wish I could be.  I love the person who speaks softly and never gets angry.  I am someone who doesn't like contention in any part of my life.  

Not at work, not at home, not at church, not even in the store when I am not involved.  

This year, I am trying my best to lose weight.  It is not easy.  It is not fast.  It is pretty much one of the hardest and infinitely slowest things I have tried to do.  I hate that the weight doesn't come off as fast as it went on!  I hate that my body doesn't look the way I envision it.  But most of all, I hate the lack of self control that got me this way in the first place!  So now, I am working on weight.  

For me, the blossoming would be the desire for change.  Seeing the need in my own life.  Wanting it bad enough to try harder to be better.  

We have a cherry tree that does't bear much fruit.  The mountains are a cruel taskmaster and weatherman.  My area gets warm, the buds and flowers come out, and the tree blooms with a beautiful white bouquet.  However, just a few week later, with all the blossoms in full bloom, the weather changes and the blossoms wither and die.  The tree never gets to bear fruit because the blossoms weren't on it long enough.

So, after the blossoms, it bears fruit (if you are lucky!)  After the beginning of the work, you start to reap the rewards.  Hopefully I will see the difference on the scale and in the mirror.  Hopefully my waist will shrink and I will notice.  

Only after the fruit is on the tree does it ripen.  I have eaten unripe fruit.  It does not taste good.  It is too tart and too hard.  So, part of losing weight is to wait for my body to change.  It is to hold fast to what I am doing and hold on to my patience and wait for the finish.  

Only with patience do we see what can happen.  Only time will tell the ending.  

And so, I wait, with baited breath, for the future.  

Becoming Like Him - Day 13 - Work

For my 31 days of writing, I am linking up over at Heading Home and over at the Nester. There are several of us that are taking the 31 day writing challenge. Kate has suggested that we spend 31 days of Five minute writing. You can use the prompts or write about anything you would like, you just need to write.

I am sharing my journey for 31 days as I strive to become more like Him. My prayer is that you can find hope and peace in my words.

You are what you do;

Not what you say you will do.

START

Our community has a yearly day of service.  All the churches work together, all the people sign up for jobs and we get things done.  I love this day.  It is a day when differences are put aside and people just learn that they are really the same at heart.  

Usually, I am part of the road crew.  Everyone gets a vest, and a garbage bag.  We have a mile area that our group is responsible for.  With so many people working together, the entire area all the way through town gets done.  

This year, I was asked to be in charge of making cards for the military.  My husband was asked to help with the food (how does he do that???).  I have a lot of crafts at home and I bought more for the event.  Everyone had a great time making cards and writing in them for those in our town that are serving, that have served, or family members that are currently serving.  

The young women liked it so much that they want to do it later in the year as a project.  I think that is a great idea.  

After our service projects, we all met at the park for a lunch of hot dogs, chips, drinks and brownies.  I am sure that is most of the communities favorite part.  Nothing costs anyone anything.  It is a day of service to make our town look better and to bring people together.  

They have already asked me to do the cards again next year.  

What a wonderful way to come together and to get to know those of other faiths.  It is an amazing way to strengthen our community and learn what it means to be a neighbor.

STOP

Becoming Like Him - Day 11 - Teach

For my 31 days of writing, I am linking up over at Heading Home and over at the Nester. There are several of us that are taking the 31 day writing challenge. Kate has suggested that we spend 31 days of Five minute writing. You can use the prompts or write about anything you would like, you just need to write.

I am sharing my journey for 31 days as I strive to become more like Him. My prayer is that you can find hope and peace in my words.

START

I have been teaching since I was 14 years old.  I love to teach.  I love to help others to learn the things that matter the most to me.  I haven't always been a good teacher, I had to learn what worked and what did not.  I believe that teaching is one of the most wonderful things that we are called to do.  Not all of us teach school, not all of us are mothers or fathers, not all of us teach in church, but we all come in contact with people.  We all have an opportunity to touch the lives of others.
There is a scripture in Matthew that describes teaching really well.  It says:

"Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven".  Matthew 5:19

Think about it for a minute.  We are accountable for what we teach others to do.  If we set the example of doing wrong, and encourage others to go along with us, that we are not good teachers.  But if we do what is right and teach others to do those things, than we become the teachers that God need us to be.  I think we all have chances in life to teach.  What makes a teacher truly great is that they teach by the Spirit.  They teach with compassion and kindness and love.  They teach with stories and humility.  I think they teach like the Savior.
Some of the very best teachers that I have ever had, were not rich or learned.  They were humble.  They were kind.  They were Christ-like.
It didn't even matter what religion they were, they were the ones who loved everyone, even if you weren't popular or didn't understand.  Even if you asked lots of questions and had lots of comments.  They were kind and caring.  They believed in me and taught me to believe in myself.  They taught me to be more than I thought I could every become.

Teach your children that strength 

doesn't come from what you can do,

but from overcoming the things 

you thought you couldn't.

Stories We Tell

Fears,

Are Stories

We Tell Ourselves.

We all do that, at least,  I think that many of us do.  I have been afraid of so many things in my life.  Afraid of the dark, afraid to try, afraid to succeed, afraid that I would not have any friends, afraid that my friends wouldn't like me.  If you really think about it, there is so very much to fear in our lives.
I am on a vacation with my new Grandson and grand daughter.  I am spending grammy time, without fear.  I am learning to love them and hold them and kiss them and squeeze them and call them both George.  For me, the fears are about being unwanted or unaccepted.  They are about plane crashes and car problems.  They take place fully in the magical realm that is called my imagination.  Part of overcoming the fear, is to beat it, on small step at a time.  It is not easy, but it is so very possible.  In the midst of all my stories of fear, I will try and write, but don't be surprised if we take a little break here.  Babies in my life are amazing things.  They remind me of God's love for each of his children.  They snuggle, they cry, the eat, the wet, all in all, they remember those parts of like that we need to be reminded of every once in a while.
I think babies remind me that they cannot conquer their fears on their own.  It takes a family to calm a child.  It takes a Grammy to hold Alexander and a dad to read Emma Bear her favorite stories.  It takes the mom to get everything ready and to hold hand tickle her precious daughter.
It takes us all to over come the stories of fear that we have told ourselves of why the best cant happen.  Of why we don't deserve this.  Of why it doesn't have the meaning that our hearts know it has.
Fear is what is inside us.  We choose to bury it there in the darkness, or bring it out into the little light and have a little more fun.
Use your imagination for all the good that surrounds us.  Figure out how you can change your own little corner of the world.  How can you share happiness instead of hurt and sorrow.  It is up to each of us to find  the imagination inside that will let us be free.
The dream is ours.  The stories are ours too.  What amazing work of art have you to share?
Make it a masterpiece.  Because when I look at this little man, I know that he is capable of so many more things than I could ever do.  He has not and will never be the fear.  The fear is that I won't know him as much as I want to.
As much as my heart aches to hold him, to whisper stories of his family, to remind him that he will always be loved.  I want fear to have no place in his heart, because his heart is already full of the stories for those who love him best.  Those stories will get him though.  Sometimes love is enough and then some.

Sunday Devotional - Hold On

Many great sacrifices were made by the saints in Kirtland, Ohio to build their temple. Men worked all day and sometimes slept on site with a loaded gun to protect the temple for those who were seeking to destroy it.  The women sewed and cooked for the men at the temple. They donated their family china to be crushed and mixed with the plaster to put on the outside walls.  The china would make the walls sparkle and glisten in the sunshine.  People donated everything they had in order that the temple might be built.  Before the temple was completed, the saints in Independence were driven from their homes.

The cost of building the temple was between $40,000 and $60,000, an enormous amount in the 1830's According to Eliza R. Snow. " At that time, . . .the Saints were few in number, and most of them very poor; and , had it not been for the assurance that God had spoken, and had commanded that a house should be built to his name, of which he not only revealed the form, but also designated the dimensions, an attempt towards building that Temple under the then existing circumstances, would have been, by all concerned, pronounced Preposterous."

Despite all the challenges that the Saints faced, the temple was built. It was dedicated on March 27, 1836. What followed was one of the greatest outpourings of spiritual blessings ever recorded. In the dedicatory prayer (Doctrine and Covenants 109) given by the Prophet Joseph Smith, the saints were promised great blessings for their faithfulness.

"Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven." The saints in Kirtland received blessings that they could not have comprehended only a few years before.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf,  talked about this period of church history in his article in the Jan. 2010 Ensign.  He said,  "One of the great, enduring lessons of the Kirtland period is that our spirits need constant nourishment. As President Harold B. Lee (1899–1973) taught: “Testimony isn’t something that you have today and you keep always. Testimony is either going to grow and grow to the brightness of certainty, or it is going to diminish to nothingness, depending upon what we do about it. I say, the testimony that we recapture day by day is the thing that saves us from the pitfalls of the adversary.”  We need to stay close to the Lord every day if we are to survive the adversity that we all must face.

In some ways our world today is similar to Kirtland of the 1830s. We too live in times of financial distress. There are those who persecute and rail against the Church and its members. Individual and collective trials may sometimes seem overwhelming.

That is when we need, more than ever, to draw near unto the Lord. As we do, we will come to know what it means to have the Lord draw near unto us. As we seek Him ever more diligently, we will surely find Him. We will see clearly that the Lord does not abandon His Church or His faithful Saints. Our eyes will be opened, and we will see Him open the windows of heaven and shower us with more of His light. We will find the spiritual strength to survive even during the darkest night.

If ever you are tempted to become discouraged or to lose faith, remember those faithful Saints who remained true in Kirtland. Hold on a little longer. You can do this! You are part of a special generation. You were prepared and preserved to live at this important time in the existence of our beautiful planet earth. You have a celestial pedigree and therefore have all the necessary talents to make your life an eternal success story.
The Lord has blessed you with a testimony of the truth. You have felt His influence and witnessed His power. And if you continue to seek Him, He will continue to grant you sacred experiences. With these and other spiritual gifts, you will be able not only to change your own life for the better but also to bless your homes, wards or branches, communities, cities, states, and nations with your goodness.

It may be hard to see that at times, but hold on a little longer, for “eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” and wait for Him (1 Corinthians 2:9)."

Holiness to the Lord

This is one of my new favorite stories.  I hope that I can be this kind of a Steward to my Heavenly Father.  I think it is important to not that Brother Moyle wasn't any different from most of us.  He was a simple man who worked with his hands and gave his heart to the work.  He believed in what he was doing and he worked to make sure that he did it well.  That is the thing that is required of each of us.  To be whatever we can be.  To bloom where we are planted.  To give our hearts to our Savior.

"John R. Moyle lived in Alpine, Utah, about 22 miles as the crow flies to the Salt Lake Temple, where he was the chief superintendent of masonry during its construction. To make certain he was always at work by 8 o'clock, Brother Moyle would start walking about 2 a.m. on Monday mornings. He would finish his work week at 5 p.m. on Friday and then start the walk home, arriving there shortly before midnight. Each week he would repeat that schedule for the entire time he served on the construction of the temple.

"Once when he was home on the weekend, one of his cows bolted during milking and kicked Brother Moyle in the leg, shattering the bone just below the knee. With no better medical help than they had in such rural circumstances, his family and friends took a door off the hinges and strapped him onto that makeshift operating table. They then took the bucksaw they had been using to cut branches from a nearby tree and amputated his leg just a few inches below the knee. When against all medical likelihood the leg finally started to heal, Brother Moyle took a piece of wood and carved an artificial leg. First he walked in the house. Then he walked around the yard. Finally he ventured out about his property. When he felt he could stand the pain, he strapped on his leg, walked the 22 miles to the Salt Lake Temple, climbed the scaffolding, and with a chisel in his hand hammered out the declaration 'Holiness to the Lord.' "

Jeffrey R. Holland, "As Doves to Our Windows," Ensign, May 2000, 76–77

These are the panes that were carved on the Salt Lake Temple

When I think of the sacrifice of men and woman like John Moyle, I am amazed.  I think of the love that they had for their Savior.  I know that I want to be like them.