My Testimony and My Plea

I'm not perfect, nor do I pretend to be. I'm not eloquent with words or a great writer (though I have a million stories I'd like to write one day) and I often misspeak and or say things that come across as slightly different than I intended.

I'm human.
I'm fallible.
I admit it!

But make so mistake that when I say I am a daughter of God who loves me, and I love Him. That I will stand as a witness to God in all times, and in all things and in all places that I do not say it lightly or with a blind eye.

I am a child of God.
I know it.
I love it.
I live it!

I was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at the tender age of 8, as were a number of my friends. My mother taught me what was right and what was wrong. She also made it clear, though I was very young,  that baptism and membership in this church was a very large burden and a blessing. It was also my own choice.
I wanted to be baptized and I felt it was right to do. But my mother insisted I think on it first. She read with me from the scriptures daily, helped me pray, encouraged me to read, pray and think on my own as well as ask questions to my Heavenly Father so I could know for sure and for myself that this was the true church. That I knew for myself and not because of what she believed and what my dad believed. They were both devout LDS members and held callings in our ward faithfully and diligently. But it was important to them that I understand that they neither expected nor wanted me to lean on their faith and their testimonies past the age of accountability. (It was revealed to Joseph Smith that age 8 should be the age at which to be baptized, and no sooner, see Doctrine & Covenants 68:25-27) They would be there always to help me understand and lean on their faith when needed but it was time for me to start gaining my own testimony and knowledge for myself.

I thank her everyday for that!

Since then, I have questioned at times my faith and testimony, as I'm sure we all do no matter what religion we belong to. But Throughout the years, the more I pray and ask questions earnestly and with purpose the more I come back to myself and realize that I've already received truth and it will remain true always.

I don't understand everything there is know about the Gospel, and I am far from being able to explain perfectly even half of what I do understand well, because I'm still earning and will continue to learn far after I leave this Earth and depart my mortal body.

But one thing is certain, with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints being brought so closely under scrutiny for many different things from gay marriage, women and the priesthood, and many other things I don't want to really weigh in on now, it is time we all stand for what we know to be true!

We are being watched. We are being scrutinized and just like in old times in the Book of Mormon, and the Bible, lawyers and hypocrites are questioning faithful members and watching them to try to catch them in something contrary to what they say they believe so as to attempt to smear the church and try to destroy it.

These are the last day whether we want to admit it or not and it is now that we must stand for what we believe! Ask questions if you have them and learn by the spirit. be willing to accept the answers that come and hold tight to the light that you have received! Keep striving to learn more, keep praying and reading your scriptures so you can gain higher ground and stand fast and tall in your place that you will not be able to be torn down.

Alma 12: 10-11
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.

 11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell.

Bear your testimonies often so they are shared and can grow. Speak up for what you believe for the adversary is too. Only if wee keep our mouths shut will the adversary win. 

We need to be bold and kind in our words. We need to love one another the way they are but don't need accept the wrong things they do as truth. We can still be kind and loving in our conversations and in sharing our testimonies of the truth. We can still be giving and friendly towards all!

I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the only church on the face of the Earth that has all the truths, keys and ordinances necessary for our eternal salvation.I know beyond any doubt that it is only through baptism for a remission of our sins and then a constant return to repentance through the atonement of Christ that we can be saved. Only with faith on His name and allowing ourselves to be saved FROM our sins will we find eternal glory with God in the life to come. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is led today by a Prophet of God, even Thomas S Monson that he truly is a Prophet, even as the prophets of old that we read of in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and that he receives divine revelation directly from God for our benefit. I know that Thomas S Monson is just a man, imperfect and with his flaws as we all are, but I also know with a surety that God will NEVER allow him to lead us astray. I know that if we follow the prophet, not blindly, but asking and seeking for answers for ourselves we cannot fail. We will not fall! And we will in the end meet our maker and our Savior Jesus Christ and he will say to us, 'Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

"The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear; till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done." From The Wentworth Letter, found in the Ensign, July 2002

Keep your eye on the eternal goal. That is my testimony and this is my plea; stand ye in holy places!

Asked & Answered - Accepting Guidance

I’m so very grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ here on Earth today, and grateful for the truths we have with the fullness of the gospel as well as the things we know we can receive, including revelation from God.

The Dark Ages were called such because the world was literally a darker place when Christ’s full gospel and light was taken from the earth. We believe that the dark ages officially came to an end and light was restored to the Earth again when Joseph Smith was called as prophets of old were, to restore the fullness of the gospel to world again. Bringing back the exact same church that Christ had established while he walked the earth in ancient times.

In ancient times people received revelation (as we read in the bible) and during the dark ages, that revelation was largely taken away. Since the restoration we have had that part restored fully to us. Our Church leaders receive revelation directly from God and then they pass that information to us and let us know what God would have us learn. Parents can receive revelation for their families, and individuals have the ability to get personal revelation on matters that will help us with our own direction and growth in life.

Our personal revelation can be received through thoughtful scripture study, prayer, fasting and priesthood blessings. We are free, and even encouraged to, ask our heavenly Father for revelation pertaining to our current circumstances. In our quest for insight and direction from our Father in Heaven, however, we must always be willing and ready to accept whatever council that might be, even if it is the farthest thing we thought we would hear.

God is out Father and as such he loves us deeply and knows what we need to do that will do us the most good and help us grow to become our best possible selves.

My son hates to read. He’s not bad at it, but reading is a lot harder for him naturally than numbers and math are. Numbers click in his head and he is seriously kind of scaring me as to how far advanced he will be in High School and I know I will be in no position to help him with his math assignments. But for now, reading is his challenge and when we sit to practice reading and read books, he wants me to just read the book to him. I read to him all the time, but when it is his time to read to gain that skill, I may as well be pulling his teeth while pinning him down and ripping out his hair for all the effort it takes and the frustration he shows to skill he is learning.

So, I believe, it is with us and God. He gives us guidance and direction when we ask for it. Sometimes it might be something easy and natural that we just get and it clicks with us and while we grow from it and are better for it, it is not a challenge at all. Other times, he asks us to do something that is so completely opposite of what we would choose for ourselves and so far from what we thought ourselves capable of we might be hesitant to obey.

But obey we must if we wish to reach our full potential.

There’s a story about a man who went fishing in a small boat, and he rowed far from the coast. After he was quite far off from the shore his boat sprang a leak. The boat sank and the man was left alone. He could swim so fear wasn’t pressing yet. After a long time of swimming he realized that he needed help and no one was around to offer it. Being a man of great faith, he knew that if he prayed to God for help, God would help him. So he prayed. After his plea for help was sent up to heaven, only a few minutes past before the coast guard came along and offered assistance to the man. The man refused saying, “Thank you! But my God will save me.” An hour or so passed and a deep sea fishing vessel pulled close to the man. The captain yelled, “Man overboard!” and the crew promptly rushed to save the man who was drifting farther and farther to sea. But the man again refused saying, “Thank you! But my God will save me.” A long time after that, the man was quite far out at sea and the water was getting rougher and waves were starting to overcome him. A rescue helicopter was overhead and a latter was lowered with a man hanging from the bottom to help drowning fellow. But once again, the man refused saying, “Thank you! But my God will save me.” After nearly fighting the man to pull him aboard the helicopter the man drowned and was lost forever in the sea. The man opened his eyes in heaven, bewildered and frustrated. HE found God and said, “I prayed to you! I had faith in you! Why did you not save me?” God looked at His son and replied with tears in His eyes, “My dear son, such faith you had, and I wanted to save you. Three times I tried to help you, but you refused the help.”

When we ask for guidance, revelation and help from Heavenly Father we need to be in tune enough with His spirit that we can recognize the answer when it comes, because oftentimes it will come from somewhere we don’t expect it. When we get the answer, even if it’s not the answer we want, we must be willing to try to be humble enough to listen to that. Even if the answer comes from a source other than what we think it should have.

If God has something to tell you, He will tell you! He will try to tell you directly using the Holy Ghost to touch our hearts and our minds with a still small voice, but as humans, we tend to let that voice be buried and remain unheeded. If we ignore that voice, most times, the moment is lost and we don’t get a second chance. But once in a while, God will continue to try to reach you. The message he has for you is so important that it must be heeded and obeyed. So he will try those next to you. When that happens, the message will be blunt. There may be a chastisement, but it will be out of love. At that point it is our solemn duty to obey and follow what God has told us. No matter the voice used to relay the message, no matter the message itself.

Blessing are promised to those who obey the commandments of God. And as we strive to follow His will and keep His commandments and abide by his council we will be blessed continually.

Let us not doubt His love for us. Let us follow His guidance and continually seek for further light and knowledge. We are blessed with the ability and gift of revelation. Let us ask for it! But be willing to follow that guidance and council and even chastisements if it is what we need. No matter how hard reading is for us, our Father knows it is a skill that will bring us great joy, happiness and blessings in the future!

Miracle Happen/Quality Time

Yesterday I spoke of an incident with my computer and how Word crashed as I tried to save my post I intended to do. Well, I turned on my computer this morning and when I opened word… There it was! My post! I didn’t have to retype anything! Don’t know what happened but there’s no doubt in my mind it was a small miracle from my Heavenly Father telling me, “You’re not alone. I’m aware of you and your needs, wants and desires and I am here. I watch out for you even when you forget that I am.”

I wonder why I didn’t think to pray when it happened yesterday. That’s one of those things I would have prayed for when I was on my mission or when I was a kid, and I guess I’ve forgotten how to pray for everything and how to have that full faith I once did. I’m working on it, and I know my faith is deepening again, but I still have a very long way to go.

We are NOT alone, and if God knows, watches and love the sparrow, how much more does he know, watch and love you?

I really need to remember this.

All that said, here is my initially intended post from yesterday. Though the stuff above is probably just as (if not more) important in the long run. So much for all of you today! God bless, and enjoy!

Quality time with the kids and hubby can be hard to come by at times, even though I’m a stay at home mom. Just because I’m home all day doesn’t mean I have a lot of time. The house needs to be cleaned, dishes need to be done, laundry must be washed and meals don’t cook themselves. While yes, things can be left undone and prayer and scriptures are a must, (see my post: Just One Of Those Days) the fact is things do need to be done eventually. And my personality does not do well unless I can at least most of the time keep up with things as they need doing.

This morning was a particularly trying morning as far as whining, arguing, fighting kids goes. But thankfully, I remembered to do family prayer and scriptures first thing. While it hasn’t helped my children in any magnificent way, it has at least helped me be more patient and remember that my littles have sensitive needs and to be more gentle and calm with them. That has made the difference.

Typically, we wake up bright and early my kids wake up at the butt crack of dawn and I drag myself out of bed and we go downstairs to watch some Disney Jr. Yes, this TV time is sadly essential for my children’s wellbeing as I am simply not the morning person I used to be. I know my limits and starting the day with a get-up-and-go attitude is nowhere in the cards, at least for another for another 6 years… minimum. So we watch some clean TV in the mornings while Mom’s eyes adjust to being open.

Our days start off with good intentions but always (sadly, within the first 30 minutes of being up) take a turn for the worse when one of the kiddos hits, punches, screams, fights or pushes one of their siblings. (HOLY COW kids! Can’t we all just get along?! Seriously!!!) And then I clean while they play and the day always just slips away a little at a time til Daddy is home, then we need to eat, bathe and prep for bed. Bedtime always take an eternity with a little child and when I have four kids under the age of 7 it takes two eternities. So quality time with kiddos seems a far cry from the norm.

Then I turn on Pinterest while my kids are down for quiet time, and I see all these ideas for quality time with the kids and I think… Wow, I’m horrible! I should be doing all these things with my kids! But time simply does not exist all the time to do it all!

Ask yourself this though: How many things have you pinned, re-pinned or liked on Pinterest that you have actually done? I rest my case. So I stopped beating myself up over it. They are there for good ideas and a quiet mommy moment to look and be inspired by. The end.

So my takeaway from all of this?

Do what you can! Take a moment to think before you shoe your child from the kitchen while doing the dishes. Grab the spray nozzle from the sink and have an impromptu water fight! The floor need to be mopped anyway. (I think I’ll do that this week.) Grab the duct tape and put some on your carpet for a fun game! (We did that this morning for a bit and it was so much fun! Picture and our rules found in this post from yesterday.) Take the moment running between rooms to change the laundry and tackle your little boy with a mini wrestle/tickle session closed with millions of kisses and the wonderful phrase, “Mom! STOP KISSING ME!”

I’ve come to the conclusion that quality and quantity do not EVER mean the same thing. Quality time is simply undivided attention for however short that moment might be. We don’t have to plan it out. It doesn’t have to be a long drawn out event. Just do it throughout the day in the moments between the chaos.

Touching Hearts For Good

In October 2013, Pres. Thomas S. Monson addressed the Women of the LDS Church and related a story about a woman, Tiffany, who was afflicted with depression. In short, her appetite had waned and she suffered severe weight loss and her health deteriorated greatly. A friend finally said, “There must be something that sounds good to you.” The, Tiffany replied, “The only thing I can think of that sounds good is homemade bread.” There was none to be had at the moment. The next morning her doorbell rang and a woman she didn’t know, handed a loaf of homemade bread to Tiffany’s husband. As the story unfolds we learn that it was through the enticing and promptings of the Holy Ghost, direct impressions form our Heavenly Father, that this woman had come to bring that bread to Tiffany’s door.

Since then, I’ve heard the story recounted many times in many different places and circumstances, and almost always, it is retold with the note that, We Never Walk Alone. And we don’t! We are reminded through this story that God is aware of our needs and our circumstances. That if we can have faith, we can know that he answers our prayers and helps us when we need Him.

But, something always sticks out to me… The woman that didn’t even really know Tiffany very well at all. Why was she chosen to bring the bread to Tiffany? Why not someone else?

I want to preface by emphasizing that I’m not saying those close to Tiffany were not worthy or were ignoring promptings at all. I just want to make clear that I am not passing judgment at all here.

When I read this story, or hear it retold, I often think of other stories I’ve heard similar to this, where someone was prompted to do something and in following those promptings they were able to touch another person deeply for good.

A woman called LeeAnne had a miscarriage and she and her husband grieved deeply for the loss of their unborn child. A few days after they had experienced the loss, a knock came to the door and woman who they had never recalled meeting, stood with a loaf of banana bread. She informed them that she was friends with the husband’s parents and she had talked with them recently and learned of the young couple’s loss. She had felt deeply moved to get their address and bring them a loaf of bread accompanied with a hand of friendship and an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on should either of them need it. The woman then left and while the couple never reached out to her after that, the fact that they knew they were watched over meant more to them than anything the woman could have said. It left them both stronger and ready to face the rest of world after such a deep heartache.

I don’t know why, but I always relate to the giver rather than the receiver in these stories. And I often find myself thinking, I wish I could be a part of a story like. I wish I could feel the spirit so strongly to know when I was needed somewhere. While these yearnings are, in truth, mostly selfish wanting to be able to be the one that gets to help someone else and be the one that gets to see the surprised look on someone's face when their prayers have been answered through me, there is also the more Christ like desire and aspiration to be close enough to God and His will to be able to receive those kinds of promptings when they are needed.

A runner will lose his speed if he doesn’t practice often, and while I’m far from even in shape, I know many who run and feel a significant difference if they even miss one day of running.

Weight lifters must push their limits continually in order to even hope to be able to lift more than they did to begin with. Its hard work and there are often times when they return from their workout routine more than simply sore.

Chefs study, practice, go through trial and error processes that no one is even aware of until they can find the exact and precise quantities, methods and ingredients to make the perfect dish. Like other professions, if they are out of practice, their perfect recipes can turn into catastrophes if not made frequently enough.

Parents need to hone their skills daily to be able to exercise the patience and disciplines necessary to raise their children. If a parent must leave their children for work, for military duties or anything else, they may find themselves at square one upon their return and it takes practice and much effort to regain the skills they once had.

I’m the oldest of nine children, and when I was younger, I found that my parents far more than 50% of the time would ask me for help doing one task or another. After a while of observing this fact and watching from the sidelines, I tested out my theory. As soon as my baby brother had a messy diaper that needed changed, I would run to the other room and hide and listen. My sister, not 2 years younger than me and every bit as able bodied would be sitting with our mother. Never fail, my mother would call to me from the other room, “Rebecca, will you please come and bring me a diaper for your brother?” I’d laugh and bring it. My father would do similar things as well. Most of the time, they wouldn’t even attempt to ask my younger three siblings for help with things.

It started to bother me after a while, and I approached my parents to confront them about the issue. I asked why they repeatedly asked me to do things around the house even if I was far away in the basement and my brother or sister was standing there next to them. I didn’t expect it at the time, but their answer came as a life lesson to me. They paused and thought about it and answered, “Because you listen.” They explained that it was much easier for them to ask me for help because they knew I would obey the first time in most instances and even if they had to ask two or three times, it was never because if my stubbornness. And that I would do as they asked with the least amount of effort on their part. After we talked, they said they would try to be more aware and give the other kids more opportunities to help so the bulk didn’t fall on me.  They help to their end of the conversation and as my siblings had more opportunities to help, they eventually became more willing and obedient to my parents’ requests.

This is so close to my heart now, and it applies so much to our relationship with God. He is very literally our Father. And as such, he probably feels a lot like my parents did when I was young. He gives us all promptings and inspirations. At first they will be small. Something that isn’t so crucial, something that is really just practice for us to get used to listening to his voice and obeying. Like my mother did when first asking my siblings for more help. It was to get a diaper and bring it to her, or to fetch a spoon so she could make dinner. We will start out getting small thoughts of simple things, maybe it is simply wake up ten minutes early tomorrow and read an extra portion of the scriptures. My mom didn’t ask my sister to watch the baby while she ran upstairs to the bathroom at first until she was sure that she would obey the simpler tasks she had given her. Eventually, my sister became more obedient and she was asked to watch the baby from time to time as well. Likewise, when another of our brothers or sisters on this Earth need their prayers answered through one of us, like a loaf of bread, God will not ask us if he knows we will not obey. Even if he did, we may not be able to recognize his promptings, his voice, because we have not been exercising out ability to hear or recognize it.

If we want to be part of a story like that we must do everything we can to align our will with His and daily exercise our faith in Him. We need to ask Him in earnest prayer to give us opportunities to obey. Ask for his spirit to be with us throughout the day and ask for help recognizing those promptings if we need it. If we do not ask for opportunities, we may not get them.

Let us ask for opportunities to practice listening. Ask for chances to obey. Ask forgiveness when we don’t and chances to try again.

I leave this with you along with the knowledge that I know God is our Father and He loves us individually and without end. God bless and be with you till we meet again.