Jorgensens: a missionary life

Matt 8:26

2011-08-10T08:10:00.000-07:00

"...Why are ye fearful o ye of little faith? Then he arose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm."

We can all recognize this passage. Take a moment to process it.

First, "faith and fear cannot live simultaneously" (I know this is quoted from someone).

Second, storms especially in the ocean come in waves, how are they manifested in our lives?What storms in our life keep us from sleep (REST)? Are they really of great importance that even if death were imminent it would really be that bad?

It would if you didn't understand God's plan.

I never knew why the Savior would react in such a fashion. I'm sure he wasn't yelling at them when he made this statement or said it in a way that was condescending, but his words expressed such great disappointment that I'm sure it pierced even the strongest of the saints, his followers. I see it as the "the look" that mothers give that help us understand we're not following orders. The look that pierces the soul and helps steer us back to the sure path and gives us perspective. To another disciple the Lord said "Follow me; and let let the dead bury the dead" after the man had said "Suffer me first to go and bury my father".

Seems a little harsh no? But we know what he meant, his intentions. He knew God, he was God, and he could see the least of us and the greatest of us. All he did in his ministry was to invite us to put the world aside and serve with full intent. So, that we could live again. Salvation is for the living not the spiritually dead.

It's amazing that his words could be so straight forward and unquestionably thoughtful that you could not argue them or even get upset by them, if you knew that His intention was to serve God first. Sometimes all this work can seem cumbersome and overwhelming, but we have to remember that our eyes only see the present and that there is a veil not far distant, where all of our work from this life is made manifest by those that have already passed. Doctrine and Covenants teaches that "there is a time appointed of every man, according as his works shall be" (121:25) Which I understand that it means that as long as we are fulfilling not our will but that plan which the father laid out for us, then we will be allotted the time necessary to achieve our greatest potential. Regardless of the storms which beset us we should only set sights on the rest which will be given to us after we have passed from the test of our mortal existence. To Joseph Smith the Lord taught (D&C 122) And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if the fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge the way; and above all, id the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall five thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he? Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain abound with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore fear not what man (the world) can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever" (122:7-9). He promised that priesthood would remain with him, just as the apostles had in that same boat, when the Savior calmed the storm. It is important to recognize the council that we must set the world aside and rely on the Savior to protect and guide us in our mission as our days are known, as long as we are here fulfilling our purpose. The prophet Joseph Smith did as much as he could in the similitude of the Savior and as promised he received his glory and fulfilled more than any mortal man could have accomplished. I know this is true, in his name, Jesus Christ.

Doctrine and Covenants 59: The "good things of the Earth"

2011-08-08T06:27:00.000-07:00

Please read.

This revelation was given to Joseph Smith two years prior to section 89. It is every bit as inspiring as 89. I feel that because of the cunning of man, God had to be a little more specific about the uses of specific (foods and herbs) things. In 59:17 He states that he gives us the "good things" for our use. In 89 he uses the word "prudence". I seem to think that it comes down to what we learn of the nature of man from 121: 39. It is sad but true. It's for our protection and his love for us that God gives us bit and pieces of insight and with diligence and patience we can master ourselves to overcome our natural impulse and do our Father's will.

I have realized in my studies that we are each so uniquely different and are strengthened and weakened by different things (What is your Kryptonite?). So, when it comes to nutrition it's all about what feels good, not tastes good, but really FEELS right. "Yea, all these things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart; Yea for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and enliven the soul. And it pleaseth God that the hath given all these things unto man; for unto this end were the made to be used, with judgment, not to excess, neither by extortion. And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments." (D&C 59:18-21). I think we need to look at this and say, that these commandments were given to us to that we act on but are not acted upon (2 NE 2:26). Think about it?

Side note:
So, If food is our weakness? And we allow for it to take hold of us and allow ourselves to indulge in it because we are in a weakened state, which later makes us feel worse, it is sin, no? So why then do we justify putting things into our body that are definitely not healthful and preach moderation, when it clearly debilitates our bodies to function appropriately? ugh...

I think Elder Widtsoe stated that it's easier to eliminate a food completely that is unhealthful than to eat it in moderation.

God wants to bless his children, but he cannot do so unless our offerings are in righteousness (D&C 128:24). And that we can confess our sins with humble hearts ( D&C 64: 7) and submit ourselves to His will. The blessings are never ending. D&C 89: "And all saints who remember to keep and so these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint." That's enough for me. We are here to strengthen ourselves, to overcome the forces of the destroyer, to find wisdom and joy. "Adam fell that men may be and men are that they might find joy." (2 NE 2: 25). I hope I can be an example of this kind of righteousness, because to whom much is given much is required (D&C 82:3). With a little faith I am sure I can achieve this. In his name, Jesus Christ.

Today I feel ANGRY

2011-08-08T05:33:00.000-07:00

Grrrr....I hate being angry. The feeling is like a stab that cuts you deeply into you heart and leaves such incredible pain and for some reason we hang on to it. I know it's a choice, but sometimes there is a grieving period that is necessary to overcome that incessant need to lash out and destroy something.
I can "shake it off",
I know it.
I just wish it never happened in the first place. It's so debilitating. I can't imagine how the Savior overcame such emotions, but I have been able to overcome it in other aspects of my life, so I know I can grow tolerance for those that are intolerant of EVERYTHING. I can't help but have a defense mechanism that is primeval and uncontrollable.
It's my weakness...
I can't stand people that have no consideration for others. That have no real grasp on life and are not merciful or empathetic on those that are working hard at making life easier on them. I wish I could be more like Ghandi, the Savior, and all others who have overcome the trivialities of human psyche and emotion. I have never felt such remorse for these feelings. I feel like an addict trying to overcome these feelings.

To clean or not to clean, that is the question.

2011-04-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

3 NEPHI 27:19 "And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom ; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness into the end. "

Since I've had children, I realize that I spend a lot of time organizing my house not necessarily cleaning but moving stuff up and down and all around. With every season, my needs change and there is a change of mind where something should go or how it should function; I guess that's natural. Change is good every now and again, it's renewing to our minds and opens doors to creativity; however, I do believe if I took the time to plan out the changes by making small adjustments as opposed to major overhauls, I would find that I could be more efficient with the time and energy spent maintaining my house. I have found that a house with less has more to give! How wonderful is our maker in his wisdom. Now I can be more precise when I clean and I can put away my laundry quicker, it's such an incredible blessing.

Less is definitely more.

Well, how can this principle work in our lives? Let me make it simple. Less time fussing over temporal things, means that you have more time with the Savior, your family, and friends. Therefore, order in your home requires 1. Purging the excess 2. Planning your day 3. Delegating chores 4. Being consistent and then when the time comes to do a deep clean in your home, it won't be complicated, painful, or very time consuming. The more we allow the world to pile up on us, the more time we have to spend digging ourselves out of that mess. See where this is going?

I felt the spirit indicate to me that this was definitely the next post. I wanted to call it "my house" but it no longer seemed fitting, since it is the "The Lord's house" He created it and then gave us the stewardship and the agency to do as we please with it. We cannot imagine the magnitude of responsibility that was placed on us before coming to this life. We recognize that we acquire knowledge in the trials that we pass, but there is wisdom in process to overcome tribulation (Doctrine and Covenants 127:2). Acquiring wisdom from trials is like deep cleaning a house. In order to attain it, you have to take the junk out, get organized and then put your gloves on. That's why it's important to simplify. Simplification is the basics. I was talking to my husband and I said, "You know, life is one big circle: For example, here we are and the Lord gave us herbs to cure all manner of illness (Alma 46:40), we then create a title for someone that can cure us called a Doctor, who then realizes that the body is complex and requires all sort of study and experimentation, fast forward, we get pharmaceuticals, surgery,etc...forward a little more, now we realize that too much medicine has side effects, medicine is only to be taken short term, even Tylenol causes cancer, and we end up back to simplifying our ways, chicken soup it is!" You gotta laugh about that. We are not smart, we're just curious and the Lord entertains us.

So, what does my house look like? I look around and I see projects that have yet to be completed. I think we can all attest to that. I sit and I plan and I desire to do something about it, but I busy myself with other things and then it starts all over. I finally realized that I needed to spend some time thinking about what I do all day that impedes me from creating a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of learning. I learned that I could have that, if I spent a little less time organizing and a little more time cleaning. "Just do it!" It's not that hard to start it even if you don't know exactly how it all plays out. In the end, you will feel a greater sense of accomplishment from doing something, that sitting there planning and waiting for the process to be made perfectly clear in your mind. I'm not saying that having a plan is bad, but the most important is the end goal, the process will be made clear in your mind as you strive to have the Spirit with you (Doctrine and Covenants 124:97).

Fanatical

2011-03-01T20:30:00.000-08:00

I have come to terms with the fact that I'm a bit fanatical about health, all aspects of it. I find that discovering the inner workings of our mind and body are always completely interconnected and our knowledge of that empowers us to use our temples to its maximum capacity. It's like buying a computer and only using it for the "office components" such as word, excel, etc, when in reality it can serve you in so many other capacities. Basically, it comes down to reading the manual.

Nevertheless, I am glad that I was never a trained physician because it breaks down our well being down to the cellular level, which takes away the greater purpose of the human body, and trust me, the body as a whole functions very differently than its separate components. I don't think the medical community knows much about overall health, but don't get me wrong, I do believe they know how to fix a broken person. Nevertheless, when it comes to our day to day well being, that's entirely up to us to know how to manage. Health is a practice. We must study it and live it in order to appreciate it.

As I pondered that concept, I was thinking, hey, so is Faith. Although the medical community's focus is not on preventive care; the church helps us achieve great faith by teaching us the principles that strengthen the building blocks of faith, which is achieved by the simple act of obedience.

There are perfectly practical and good ways of restoring and building faith, which require time and effort. This effort comes from our heart-felt desire to do the will of the Father. If there is no work involved in faith, then what would you value?

I was doing a Pilates video a few days ago and before the whole hour long session began, the teacher focused on teaching us about perfect breathing and posture, and then she made sure that you focused on how it felt as opposed to how it looked, which is necessary because we are all different, right? I was thoroughly convinced that I was having a spiritual revival, I finally got it. I finally understood and valued where I was in my practice (spiritual). We are all at different levels spiritually; however, the level is determined by your understanding, application and commitment to that principle. As we apply any one principle into our lives, we can learn how it functions in the "big picture" and then we acquire a testimony. Our testimony is a manifestation of this practice and as we become more committed to our application of "the gospel" we awaken our spiritual potential.

She also talked about your weak spots and how you have to embrace them and appreciate where you are in that particular pose. I was taken away in the moment. I realized that it all worked together. Adversity is essential in unlocking the power of faith. If not, we would take it for granted and just assume that it's there for us. If there is no work, there is no faith. The work that we do is not necessarily graded but it shows our commitment to the work that we are asked to do in this life, any effort on our part builds faith. So, when someone presents me with the argument that the atonement is for everyone and we believe in works, which is not the ways of the Lord; I could respond by saying, " well yes, because faith without works is dead". You cannot grow without strengthening the muscles of faith and thus you won't be prepared to receive the glory which is our Father's in the life to come.

I know my Savior came and died for us, so that we could grow our testimony of Him that gives us all, even our Father in Heaven. We must embrace the challenges that are given us as opportunities to strengthen character and spirit, which demonstrates our commitment to the Saviour's work. That is the glory of our Father, which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. Of this I bear witness, In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Glory...Scriptural definition of...God's Glory...Grace...which is which?

2011-02-22T14:08:00.000-08:00

A question was pressed upon my mind yesterday and my 20 minute scripture study turned into an hour long search for the meaning of Grace, which led me to the meaning of Glory. In Doctrine and Covenants 93 John the baptist testifies of the Savior saying that "he received not of the fulness at the first, but received grace for grace...and thus he was called the Son of God, because he received not the fulness at the First."

As Heavenly Father's firstborn, the Savior had to prove himself in mortality as well as in the pre-mortal life. He was begotten of the father, the Savior had to endure temptations as we did, and it was necessary for him to be begotten of the Father so that he could overcome the trials and temptations of this life and receive the fulness of his glory. At this stage in the game, none of us are able to receive that glory, we know from the scriptures of prophet's personal encounters with God, that we would perish because of our flesh but the Savior was his son in the flesh and therefore he did receive it.

"And I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one- The Father because he gave me of his fulness , and the Son because I was in the world and made flesh my tabernacle, and dwelt among the sons of men." (D&C 93:4)

This scripture shows us how perfectly planned our Earthly existence was that our Father knew that the Savior had to be His literal offspring, so that we could have hope. This puts into perspective how difficult our trials are in this life that the Savior had to be of royal "spiritual" decent to overcome the world. Grace for grace is exactly this: our ability to overcome temptations by putting our Father's needs before our own, which is why charity is such an important characteristic in the process of sanctification. We must literally "clothe ourselves with the bond of charity, as with a mantle, which is the bond of perfectness and peace." (D&C 88:125) Wow, we must become charity, we must become our Savior...As we do so, we are "quickened in Him" (D&C 88:50), "preserved by His law" (D&C 88:34) "that you might come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of his fulness" (D&C93:19).

"For behold, this is my work and my glory -to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39)

I couldn't have described glory in a better way. We are here to bring God's glory into the world. We are preparing the way for the Savior to reign in this world. His death was the greatest act of charity that anyone could have given humankind. By this point in His ministry, he had received the fulness of his Father's glory, or he "saw the big picture" and submitted himself to the plan as the leading role of pure martyrdom. As he looked upward with faith he was able to realize that no matter how difficult the challenges of this life were, death was just a part of the bigger plan and he was willing to sacrifice it all, so that he could bring to pass" the immortality and eternal life of man". So, I ask myself, where do I fit into this great plan? And am I a willing servant and diligent in pursuing my potential?

I've seen this scripture used many times in the church and for the most part the manner in which it is used remains the same, which is to show God's love for his children. It shows us that His joy comes purely from watching His children progress and develop a lasting bond with Him through covenant-making and perseverance. The bond that is forged in this life is the bond of charity and our willingness to live according to His laws and covenants. His glory, as stated above, is to have us return to His presence and live forever in joy. In order to accomplish this, we must do His will through good works(grace) in this life. He manifests His power through our grace (benevolence) for His Children.

Glory is our renewal and our reward and grace is the enabling power which he gives us to fulfill His work. The Savior retells of his mortality, "I was in the world and received of my Father, and the works of him were plainly manifest" (D&C 93:5). The third article of faith states "We believe that through the atonement of Christ all man kind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel". Saving ordinances are the bond that keep us affixed to the glory of God. Once we have done the work for ourselves, Heavenly Father provided a way for us to bring that joy to those who have passed from their Earthly existence and into the next life without knowledge or means to receive salvation in the flesh through living ordinances. We achieve this when we maintain our eye single to the glory of the Father and our " whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you. and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things"(D&C 97: 8). "Verily I (Savior) say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice-yea, every sacrifice which I the Lord, shall command-they are accepted of me".

Amen.

God's law

2011-02-03T14:32:00.000-08:00

Adjectives to describe this law:

Infinite, perfect, even Jesus Christ.

Could you say that Christ is the law? He is that which quickens all things. He is the word, he is knowledge, light, truth; he is the law that set order to things (intelligence), which is the simplest spiritual unit. So, again it boils down to believing Christ. We discover that no one in this world is exempt from this law. We have to follow his word and his example, and covenant to be what he needs us to be and give the glory back to our Father in Heaven. As we give that glory back to the Father, we then receive that same glory in return after our mortal existence and "your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened" (D&C 88:28).

WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GLORY? Light, knowledge, family, happiness?

I would venture to say that it is respect, honour and trust to have that light, knowledge and family, which all lead to joy. God needs to see that we trust Him first and then he gives us, with that same measure of faith, trust in return. We are entrusted with the responsibilities that were once ours, when the councils of Heaven planned our path of return. We are able to take back that which is rightfully ours, as we give up the things of this world and see beyond the scope of this life and look to the windows of Heaven to fill the measure of our creation.

What is to give up Glory?
Giving up glory just means having humility and gratitude. These gifts are not inherent in all of us, but they are incredible traits that we can develop as we recognize our deficiencies and work toward strengthening the talents that we do possess to the benefit of God and mankind. Once we recognize these problems we can work around or through them and strengthen those gifts that we do have. For example, if you're missing a thumb, don't you think that you can strengthen other muscles and fingers to do what your thumb would have done? In a spiritual sense, we do this by recognizing the Saviour as God's son, recognizing the cleansing power of His sacrifice and accepting Him into our hearts; pledging our entire beings to His service, which is the redemption of all mankind.

This leads to the idea of being quickened...
To be quickened, in my mind, means to have purpose, to fill a void, to be energized by something greater than ourselves. When we serve God first, we are quickened by the fire and joy that burns in our bosoms that we are doing something for the greater good. I am so grateful for the knowledge that has been given to me by the Spirit of truth that has been sent forth by a merciful Father who loves His children and wants to give freely to all. I pray that all who come to this knowledge can sing praises to Him who gave us all, that we may find joy in this life, this day. I leave this in our Saviour's name, even Jesus Christ. Amen.

That we may achieve our fullness

2011-02-01T07:13:00.000-08:00

I wish to look into this incredible passage in our Doctrine and Covenants, which is so alarmingly true about most of us at different stages in our spirituality. It really pertains to each of us in a kaleidoscope of ways. "For what doth it profit a man that a gift is bestowed upon him and receiveth not the gift?" Doctrine and Covenants 88:33. Wow! The Word is Christ.What kind of gifts are we talking about here? Well, if you look at it in different spiritual stages, it could be as simple as accepting the truth (the light of Christ) into your life;or, you could say that it is the most basic gift given us after accepting the gospel, the Holy Ghost. I would say that it is any promise that is given to us as we make sacred covenants: baptismal covenants or temple covenants, regardless of where we stand with God in our understanding of things, it is truth. So, what is light and truth? well, Christ himself.Can we say that the gift is therefore Christ? Believing Christ is the fundamental truth of our existence and therefore the greatest gift that mankind has received, which is life eternal, agency/freedom and family.

It is evident that our Father in Heaven has so much for us and we choose to ignore it and walk away, so that we don't have to exert any additional effort or go through the trials that help us master that particular gift. I know sometimes out of fear, I kind of push aside certain spiritual responsibilities until the nagging is unbearable or I feel that I can muster up the strength to bear the burden. The funny thing about it is that, in the end, there was no such burden to bear, but a feeling of accomplishment and added confidence that I had never had before. I pray that I can be the first to stand up and accept the gifts and the challenges that are born from acquiring these gifts, when the Savior beckons me throughout my mortal experience. It is difficult but I know that the gift of daily peace and happiness awaits us, when we are willing servants and show unwavering faith in our Savior. This I leave in His Holy name, our redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Teaching the valiants

2011-01-30T15:15:00.000-08:00

My first attempt at teaching my older primary kids, on my first Sunday back since December...now what to do? I know...let's start from the beginning: The Restoration, Joseph Smith, The Epistle of James, What is true? What is knowledge? How do we acquire it? Who do we ask?

I figured that for kids that are baptismal age or past that, these are important things to know. So I asked, what do you know? What is wisdom?... Complete silence. That's what I thought. So, we took verses 5 and 6 and started talking about what the Lord expects from us, when we ask for things.

I went in thinking that I didn't have much, but maybe I did or the Spirit had something very different in store for them? Let's look at the Epistle of James, chapter1 verse 5. I didn't exactly know where it was going, but I knew prayer was an essential component of the discussion and so was hangman (that was the ticket). These kids were a blast!

Here's what came from all of it:

What is wisdom? Knowledge

Who do we ask? God

How do we ask?Faithfully

The means by which we ask? Prayer

So what does it mean to know? It means that we have an understanding of how it works in our life and that it's real? Well then, my ten year olds, what is real? How do you KNOW? I don't. Have you asked? No. What can we ask about? ANYTHING. Do we know that there is a God? yes. How? Silence. See? These are the foundations of faith. Let's go backwards. What is unwavering faith? Or better yet, What is Faith?
Here's what my kids came up with as synonyms to faith:
Belief and knowledge (very important words)

I love philosophical discussions, they lend themselves to a broadened perspective of things.

My kids and I then created a diagram. They asked questions like, can God answer all of our prayers simultaneously? I said yes! Because His glory is like the sun, it can reach all parts of the world that are facing it at the same time. As long you are facing the sun, you are all seeing the exact same sun and are receiving all the same rays, but where we are in the world determines how much sun we're actually exposed to because of location and atmospheric differences: like trees and clouds and mountains can shade the rays from us. The diagram ended up like this:
We have a question, which leads us to prayer; we pray to Heavenly Father, in the name of his Son, which is the medium by which we communicate with Him, because we can do nothing with God unless it's through the Saviour first; If we pray to God, we show Faith in Him and it is through that measure of faith that our prayers are answered. So, I asked them to go home and pray to KNOW about something and we'll report back next week. It was such a simple yet deep concept that I know the kids fully grasped. It helped me learn so much as well. We also talked about the opposite of faith: doubt. Then I said, well if God is light and, in the scriptures, light is knowledge, then what is doubt? darkness. Can there be dark in light? OF COURSE NOT! I am impressed by these kid's critical thinking skills. Therefore, why are we not asking more often and the answer was clear, there is not enough faith and that is true because we don't know God enough and therefore our doubt in Him makes us like the waves, sometimes weak and sometimes strong. He knows us but we don't know Him and that is the most important relationship to have. The end.

Love always, Fix it.

In the Abyss

2011-01-23T10:28:00.000-08:00

21 days of travel can wear anyone out. I think what is most taxing is being out of your element and not sticking to your rituals, in particular your spiritual rituals. I realized two things: First, life gets monotonous when there is little focus on the spiritual; second, you become physically weak in the process of contentment. That word,contentment, is used to describe a person who is satisfied just living the day-to-day and having no spiritual connection whatsoever. I feel very blessed to be a part of a church that teaches us to be consistent with our spiritual duties, and look to these responsibilities as the formula to a happy life. Therefore I strive to live the gospel on a daily basis; even though sometimes, I slack I feel that my perspective as a whole stays affixed to the Savior. No worries, this week, I am back full swing. I have almost completed my task here, and therefore, need to dedicate my time to the Savior and my children.

I can't say that I've had time to process much in the last few weeks, but I have seen incredible transformations taking place in the lives of my family members. Within those changes, I have also seen the atonement working furiously throughout their lives. Looking back at these past three weeks, I did have one insight and that was the fact that coming unto the Savior is something that requires much effort on behalf of the person accepting Him as well as those around them, whom are responsible for evoking change in that person.

To accept the Savior means that you believe in Him, in His miracles, in the work that He brought forth among man. You accept that He is the living God, who sits at the right hand of the Father, you accept that all His instructions, during His mortal ministry, came directly from our Father in Heaven. You accept that His blood was shed for the salvation of mankind. You accept the commandments and adhere strictly to them.

Living according to these standards is where most of us struggle, which is why ordinances are so important because they are a contractual agreement to live life as the Savior did. It is the method by which we are held accountable for the work that we did in this life.

We can be saviors for others as we strive to live by the Gospel standards and put on the Armor of God. As we defend the Lord's cause in this life and stand firm to obey Him in all things, we will receive that Power that our Father hath for us. The greatest commandment of all is to love one another. This simple act requires faith that he will give us the compassion and charity to care for one another, the knowledge to strengthen each other's spirits and the patience or desire to persevere. Life was not intended to be easy, otherwise we would become content and not strengthen our spirits to become like that of the Savior's. He was and is the Lord of the world, who came and died that we may know of no other sacrifice greater than His for our Salvation; so we look to Him and serve Him with all purpose of heart. I love and sustain Him as the head of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and of this I bear witness, in His Holy name, my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Foreordination, Pre-Mortal Existence

2010-12-24T13:11:00.000-08:00

Eric's thoughts

While reading in Alma 13 about the Priesthood and Foreordination I found myself reflecting and wanting to know more about the pre-mortal existence. What was life like there? In the New Testament Institute Manual, Elder McConkie teaches that we were able to work on our talents, and gifts and abilities that we would bring with us in this life, but how? Was their recess, P.E., music class, Math, Science and theology and we were able to choose whether we wanted to stay in from recess and continue working on our Math and Science homework? If we all only spoke one language there, the Adahmic language, what need did we have to focus on the gift of tongues?

Also, as I look around me and see so many people of all different levels of spirituality and I began to wonder on what would the temptations have been like there or what would have there been that would have distracted us enough to where we would have become totally lost and fallen behind in our spiritual progress? In that same quote, Elder McConkie taught that our spiritual ability was the greatest gift we could have focused on during our very long tenure in that pre-mortal realm. So if we were all created from the organizing of intelligences by a loving and kind Father in Heaven, and were raised in his presence, although he may not have been present at all times, how did so many of His children, including Lucifer himself, become so distracted as to completely rebel against Heavenly Father?

More than just Lucifer and the 1/3 that were cast out, what did the 2/3 that chose Heavenly Father’s plan experience as a way of testing so that Heavenly Father could come to know us perfectly. Alma 13 states that we all started out equals, but that through the hardness of their hearts, and blindness of their minds, many individuals lost the opportunity that would have been theirs to receive the Priesthood and serve in various capacities. Note, it is not where we are foreordained to serve in this life, but that we were foreordained, and therefore must always strive to remain worthy of that election.

In the Melchizedek Priesthood manual from 1974-75, Elder McConkie states that during the pre-mortal existence we were schooled, tested, and given laws that would allow us to progress. In April conference of 1974, Elder McConkie taught the following:

We know we had friends and associates there. We know we were schooled and trained and taught in the most perfect educational system ever devised, and that by obedience to his eternal laws we developed infinite varieties and degrees of talents. . . .

“. . . When we come into mortality, we bring the talents, capacities, and abilities acquired by obedience to law in our prior existence.”

What were these laws? How were we schooled? How did we develop infinite varieties of talents? I feel like the answer is just around the corner, and that if I think hard enough about it it will all of a sudden come rushing back to my memory. But until then I must look at my current state, the types of learning and education we are offered here in this mortal state, the opportunities to develop talents and abilities, and to grow in infinite varieties and degrees, and how so many of us painfully miss out. As many of our latter-day prophets have described, we are all too often caught up in the “thick of thin things”, unable to effectively judge between “Good, Better, and Best”

Perhaps, I ask myself, the pre-mortal life wasn’t too different from what we are seeing all around us now? Whatever life was like back then, I am eternally grateful that I chose to hold on tight to the iron rod and develop gifts and abilities that have helped me along my sojourn in this mortal state. I don’t know why others weren’t as attentive in the pre-mortal realm. I am saddened everyday at the thought that all these good people around me, my eternal brothers and sisters, are having a completely different Mortal experience than I am. That although we are all living in the same Mortal realm, the pace, joy, and happiness I feel on a daily basis and so often take for granted, is something many of them will never find.

To be faithful Stewards

2010-12-24T06:35:00.000-08:00

In a previous post, I had mentioned the word stewardship. What in the world does that have to do with the Gospel?

Everything.

Read Doctrine and Covenants 70, very carefully.

We think of this word tangibly and not spiritually. I have come to realize that this "stewardship" is relating to the "light and knowledge" we are given as we are obedient and faithful to the Father's will. As we serve diligently and faithfully, we are given greater power (from on high) (D&C 71) and an added measure of the Spirit to fulfil ONLY the Will of the Father (D&C 68:4). Anyone that magnifies their callings in life is given greater stewardship/responsibility to manage His (the Lord Omnipotent) (D&C 70) affairs on this Earth. The key is that we don't use that power to magnify ourselves but give all glory to the Father, who gave us everything.

The authority of the Priesthood is to act in the name of the Father..."Power given to us from on High" See where this is going?

Good stewards are those that are grateful in all things (D&C 78:22).

That's the main point here. To recognize that everything, especially the testimonies that we acquire, is a gift that must be developed/strengthened and not idled away in our hearts and minds, but to share it and apply it to our everyday lives means that we are humble servants (D&C 67:10). Our willingness to submit to the will of the Father means exactly what was previously stated: that we must take the truth and apply it in our own lives that we may become purified/edified. In the process, we serve others by giving them the gift of knowledge, so that they can also have the desire to serve the Lord (68:9-11).

As we do so, the Lord blesses us with the temporal, so to please us with the little things and be happy throughout our existence. He recognizes how hard it is to stand firm in this world.

So, I am grateful for that humble servant, our Prophet, even Thomas S. Monson and his willingness to submit and do that which the Father has for him that blesses the lives of others, but really I am grateful for all His children that serve diligently and give the power to others that we may bring His fold back to His presence.

Chastity

2010-12-23T14:03:00.000-08:00

I was taken away in thought, while I was showering the other day...About being morally clean in particular, Sex before marriage. I was thinking about the excuses that people use to justify sexual sins.
I am particularly interested in the precept that experimentation leads to more knowledge and better sex. NOT! Let's think about that for a minute. God made us individuals and therefore, different in all aspects, right? Therefore, no matter how many times you get to experiment, you still have a clean palate to work on every time. I think time with one companion is truly the variable that makes the difference. Here's why:

1. You never have anyone to compare them to.

2. There are no reservations regarding performance nor expectations because you don't know what to expect.

3. You want to serve them because you are bound eternally, and that's a long time to not get to "know" your spouse.

4. Love is patient, love is pure and kind.

5. Your mind will be opened to that which is most important as you connect intimately with one person, but that blessing comes as you adhere to the commandments of God.

6. You learn to value the person not the act.

I don't know if this is necessarily the forum to share this on, but it did come to mind and I felt that it was a good little insight to share, not that I think anyone that reads my blogs would have this particular problem, but hey, it's the world, wide web...my blog is private LOL :-). May the Lord bless you for living according to His will. That is my wish for all of us. To obey His commandments.

FAILED ATTEMPT

2010-12-23T13:47:00.000-08:00

Skipped yet another day, two, three, four... of blogging...patience, patience, there's nothing much to do other than try to catch up. The holidays have taken over...AHHHH I wish I could be Mary right now. Alas, the Saviour also loved Martha. I just got too caught up. I want sparkles and cheer in my house, for the price of what? I need to find some time to reflect, needless to say it did bring temporary joy, as does every worldly activity. Nevertheless, the guilt sets in as I contemplate the time put into decorating and not spiritually preparing for the ONLY holiday that reflects on the most significant gift our Father in Heaven has given, the birth of the Holy One of Israel, Emmanuel, the Christ.

This is the scripture that popped out to me as I was reading in Doctrine and Covenants: 78: 5-7

"That you may be equal in the bonds of Heavenly things, yea and earthly things also, for the obtaining of Heavenly things. For if ye are not equal in earthly things, ye cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly things; For if you will that I give into you a place in the celestial world, you must prepare yourselves by doing the things which I have commanded you and required of you."

Who says the scriptures don't make sense...what a call to repentance. I need to get down on my knees and look at my priorities yet again. I thought I was doing okay, maybe about a week ago, and now it's back to retraining myself.

My scripture study takes the back-burner, never! Not me! Just Kidding. I have had some thoughts come to my mind as I think about my Father in Heaven, who always knows best. I owe my every being to Him.

I can't believe we're at years end, already! Few...What a whirlwind of a year, but I am still grateful for that Love that sustains us and keeps us whole. That love comes from a patient, nurturing, loving parent that watches all His children from the Heavens; a viewpoint no one could fathom. As He sits from afar and watches us; I wonder, even though he knows all, if he still hopes that we choose one way over the other, or that we would focus more on Him other than the world. A world of greed, selfishness, ungratefulness, idolatry and idle worshipping. A place where the hearts of men are centred on frivolities of this life, like I said earlier, temporary pleasures as opposed to the joy of salvation.

To conclude this chapter the Saviour promises 22: "And he that is a faithful and wise steward shall inherit all things. Amen." Now how can I deny the power of these words? We are stewards over the knowledge that he gives us and if we idle that knowledge away we are breaking our covenant to Him. I pray to have more strength and energy to be an instrument in the Lord's hands, to use all that he has given me in serving His children however He needs.

Already failed

2010-12-17T07:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I made a promise to blog for 21 days straight and that already proved to be a lofty promise for me to make. It's okay, I'll pick up where I left off, which is reflections of Christ. I posted in my other blog of Jesus the Christ, some of my thoughts on the Saviour. I am reading in Doctrine and Covenants 71-75 and have realized that with every instruction the Lord gave he always proceeded with a promise. He would openly chastise His children but gave them the charge or the opportunity to repent and be forgiven.

I want to focus on the idea of perfect obedience, something we struggle with in mortality because of our "fallen" ( I will use this interchangeably with mortal)states. We were given agency upon arrival to Earth, so that we would be able to choose right from wrong and be able to take the correct path that would lead us to eternal life. Why wouldn't we want to obey someone who has perfect love for us? Sometimes it feels like blind obedience, of course I'm using this term loosely, but honestly, we do=we get. Once we start to think about these things, then we are humbled by that which we have, but we start focusing on the temporal gifts that are given us, such as health and home, etc. The spiritual things we do take for granted such as a perfect understanding of who we are, where we came from, where we're going. This knowledge gives us one of the strongholds that made Christ in His obedience perfect, the POWER of God.

Okay, with that said, why did the Saviour have perfect obedience?

Here's a little tidbit: The Saviour was literal offspring of deity. So, what do we need to do to keep the perspective: Be patient with ourselves and those around us. I think I'm starting to see the bigger picture now. Love is the greatest commandment because we need to strive to have patience and long-suffering for our brothers and sisters, but we also have stewardship over that which the Saviour worked so hard to achieve, which was an understanding of who our Father in Heaven was, who is full of grace and love for His children. When I talk about that word stewardship: I mean a responsibility over the care of something (in this case it's the gospel of repentance/plan of salvation). We are responsible over that which the Saviour left with us, which was his example and His work, which is to bring to pass eternal life of man! I love it when the scriptures come to life. We are here keeping Him ALIVE in the hearts of men. He left a legacy and still manages over these affairs, while in the Heavens. He sends His Spirit to be with us that we can "take care" of his vineyard. "Prune" his vineyard is the term that he uses when he talks about man managing His affairs. So, he takes our commitment to Him very seriously as he manages everything from afar. He's always after "the one", so we must await Him patiently as we try to keep the rest corralled and uplifted.

Another question: Why would the Saviour want to be like His father?
Because who wouldn't want to be like someone they adore and respect. I think I'm getting the bigger picture... They say love your children, love them so much that they would know no other source to go to in perilous times, and thus we see why it is we need to know our Saviour and His matchless love for us, so that we turn to no one or nothing other than Him. That is how we make our yoke easy: We trust him, we love Him, we serve Him, and then he blesses us. Not in the temporal things (which could be "side-effects" from our obedience, or the world likes to call it KARMA) but with His POWER and an added measure of the Spirit that we may overcome the world.

Our Spirits are literal offspring of deity but our flesh is not and thus we see a great battle stirring within us. However, as we train ourselves and teach ourselves (physical bodies: Muscle memory) cause and effect (you serve, you pray, therefore you receive) and strive to purify ourselves of the unholy and unclean things, we see a great harmony arise in our souls (it is the merger of our spirit and our body) and that duet performance that we used to have is no longer there.

I love my Saviour, I am grateful for that Power that we receive as we strive to live the commandments, I pray that I can be instrumental in His work; that I may harmonize all the way back to His presence.

I finally understand

2010-12-14T06:59:00.000-08:00

I can't imagine why the Savior would have such patience with us. For whatever reason, being that we are his children, I am grateful that he does. LOL. Anyway, I was pondering on the Pure love of Christ, which is relevant to the season, I guess. It is December 14, 2010, already, unbelievable, which is why Father in Heaven doesn't like putting things off and expects us to do like wise. I'm on a venture to set a "habit" before the new year. It takes 21 days they say. So, I'm going to do 21 days of blogging my spiritual journey this month. Hopefully, that will help me get on track in sharing my humble opinions on the scriptures and the world around me, which is our stewardship as the scriptures indicate to "call upon the inhabitants of the Earth" and bring everyone, including ourselves to repentance.

I have been carrying a heavy burden for the past few weeks and it has been affecting me. I didn't realize until this morning. I did have a huge "reawakening" that I didn't have to bear it alone. Although the issue has nothing to do with me, I still bore it heavily in my heart, and I, finally, cried unto the Lord and gave it to him to handle. I understood his anguish, his Gethsemane. He did bear our burdens and our pains, he did understand our anguish our desire to be better, his pain was real. His love was perfect. I cannot fathom that which he saw in His heart as he lived in mortality. He could see all that we could not and all he would say is to have faith in his words and live according to the commandments, which were brought forth because of Him.

I never realized how hard it was to carry someone else's anguish, but I did and now I see. I can't imagine what carrying all of mankind's pain and suffering would be like, I guess we do. He bled from every pore, and so we see the manifestation of that severe burden. I am so grateful for the perfect love of a perfect being, who gave so much for us that we could "see" the Glory of God.

My cup overfloweth

2010-04-26T22:49:00.000-07:00

I can honestly say that I'm in such a state of peace that it feels euphoric. I feel such gratitude to my Father in Heaven for entrusting me with the responsibility of a family with two beautiful, little girls; but, especially with the call of being the wife of a branch President. I hope that means that I must be doing something right at home for my husband to be in such a calling that demands so much of him and my family. This will keep him away from us most nights of the week and on Sundays, nevertheless, this too shall pass.

... well, maybe not yet.

I do see a lot of light at the end of the tunnel, which makes it all easier for me to swallow. I am more joyful because of the response that he's gotten from the members of the branch, which so far has been positive, also makes me think that maybe this time his service won't be in vain. I do see a bright future for the members of this branch and I always thought that "Mr. Go-to" would be a huge asset to any organization in this branch; thus, I know we're here to serve.

I can't find the time to sit and type out all of my thoughts. I can barely get a decent scripture study in, but that's mostly my own fault. I keep myself too busy and MUST make more time for the most important part of my life, which is my personal study of the scriptures. Overwhelming, yes! Sometimes I get pretty exhausted, but I feel like progression has always been a priority for me, but it could be better and MUCH more consistent.

In two days I will be on an airplane to Denver to visit my family and watch Mya's first lead role as Annie in the muscial "Annie". I do admit that she's going to be great. Her voice is pure, gentle and magical. I can't wait! I can wait for the two and a half hour flight that awaits me with two, especially energetic children. All this shall be for thine own experience, I know, Patience is a virtue...so, I need to get some.

My cup overfloweth is my favorite saying in the scriptures in reference to the love that one feels from God our Eternal Father. I too have felt this and know with a surety that this is where I am supposed to be at this time in my life. I am grateful for my confidence in our Savior and my understanding of His role for our salvation. I do testify in his name, Jesus Christ. ~Fix it.

Our Stomachs...sifting out the good from the bad.

2010-04-15T22:57:00.000-07:00

It's never surprising to me when my Gadget gets sick. It's always because of changes in sleep schedule, food, environment, you know; all the physical stress that it puts on little ones. My oldest is especially susceptible to the horror of the stomach bug. Without fail, she has gotten it every time we have had a vacation, where we will be commuting by air but this time I think it came from a friend that had just returned from a trip (where she was on a plane). Nevertheless, it pains me that there's no way to prevent it other than by sticking to that rhythm that human beings call "routine". It's true that we need to enforce our kid's bed times and food, but in all sincerity, it's a challenge, when you have externalities that find greater priority in your life.

I am tired. Tonight, Gizmo isn't happy and isn't falling back to sleep. I hope she does soon...goof night!

Last night, Gadget woke up every thirty minutes for a two hours stretch in pain or fearful that she would, yet again, feel that dreaded nausea creeping up. I remember that feeling precisely. In order for me to have these little ones, I have had to endure the horrors of all day sickness; it makes you feel all these convoluted emotions because you can't decide if you are really sick or just out-of-sorts. It's quite tasking an endeavor to have to endure, but I've done it twice now. I think I may have found the solution to the problem, but we won't be finding out whether or not it does work for a while...

Don't get me wrong, I love kids and if I did have great pregnancies, which I do have great deliveries; I have to admit that, I would probably have them every 24 months. Consequently, I have had to completely desist from my role as a mother and focus on myself entirely during the nine month period , which was a daunting task for me. Enough self-pity, the end result as you can see is wonderful. I am grateful to have the ability to get pregnant and never to have to endure infertility. I've often pondered what life would be like if you didn't have the option of having children? Would you want them more? That's what I've noted the trend to be amongst couples that have none. I don't pass judgement, I am mostly an observer and I've noted that it's in all aspects of our life that we tend to schedule things as if we had that much control over our lives. We want things to be puzzled perfectly into our lives at the time we think we're read. However, we seem to forget how limited we are in our understanding, which is why we have to put faith in God to give us His guidance and in Christ who gives us the strength to accept the will of the Father and endure whatever trial may beset us. In order for us to understand the order of things and the timeliness of things we would have to be able to look back where we once were and look forward to what's to come. Which is why we hearken unto the council of God to help us understand things as the are and to rely solely on Him as our guide because our minds only see the present, limited to our current state of emotion. Naturally, we are self-centered and competitive and these natures lead to impatience.

Impatience is a superficial emotion that stems from our lack of consideration and in-gratitude to Him whom gives us all.

We all become impatient when things don't fall under our own timetable, but as the Savior has taught us "not my will but Thine". We have to find resolve in the fact that we aren't here realizing our desires, we are here to serve Him that gave us this life. Him who granted us eternal salvation and progression the father of immortality, whom under the direction of the Father created all that we have. The father so willingly gave us a plan to return to him, not to sit here and become perturbed over insignificant trials that beset us and keep us from achieving our greatest potential. If we don't have it here we will have it later. It's not on our time, it's on His.

I am confident that as I acquire greater knowledge of who the Savior really was in the "great plan of happiness" that I will serve Him who gave me hope. He is our source of strength, the living water, the bread of life, the light unto this world that was needed to complete the insurmountable task of achieving immortality, which none could have achieved other than the Christ. If I need to be indebted to someone for eternity, I am glad it's for someone that loves me perfectly. ~Fix it.

The key to happiness...

2010-04-15T10:57:00.000-07:00

is Resiliency. This trait is imperative if we plan to "survive" or endure this life. Depression is the lack of or inability to "bounce back". It's exactly as it states, which is a state where we are depressed or overshadowed by feelings of inadequacy or guilt. Think about it, when you are resilient, you are able to find ways around things without emotionally becoming frustrated by it and you are able to remove "your self" from that situation, which helps you find outcomes that are good for the whole. Brilliant, I know this from the things I've read in the scriptures, while many were suppressed by human beings and evil kings, those that were resilient still found comfort in God and were able to see his hand in all things, which made them able to respond in an optimistic manner. They endured because of their faith which made them resilient to the oppression that they were feeling externally. No one can suppress our hearts, we are the rulers of our hearts and our minds; I plan on working on this one. This is incredible mastery, one that I've seen in many members of the church, particularly in its leaders. Spiritual self-mastery leads to great knowledge that purifies our being; thus, our countenances become more like Him whom we follow. Just my little tid-bit for today. By the way, Gadget ate pop-rocks that Grandma sent her, she was delighted and Gizmo found it pretty amusing. ~Preparing for the worst and hoping for the best! ~Fix it.

A lesson learned

2010-04-14T15:29:00.000-07:00

I have to say that it's been a tough few days. I have to apologize to Eric for the brute force I used toward him. I figured that I'm not perfect, but I do intend on becoming better and not repeating the same offence twice, which is how we know if someone is truly repentant of their actions. I never considered myself to be an angry person, but this time I was. I was so angry that I wanted to cry. The reason for all of this happening is beside the point; however, I do feel that there are certain trials in life we cannot or are not ready to handle. For me, this was one of those and I cannot say that I'm ready for it to happen again because I don't know if my response will be polished :-). I have been meditating on the situation and I find that I hit a road block anytime I talk about it or think about it. I still feel that I'm right and they're not; therefore, I know I haven't truly found that place of restitution or repentance. I've recognized that the only thing that makes a trial impassable is our reaction to it, and thus, we find ourselves in a predicament because it's our choice how we respond to certain things and whether or not we become consumed by the emotions that our body sets forth is the defining moment of that trial. I did not pass. I failed. It's okay, we won't always come out triumphant; never the less, we are here for that purpose, that we may have experiences that makes us want to overcome the natural man and not give into our natural impulses.

What a journey we have chosen! I just hope that I can be better for my family because it's in these moments of weakness that we can show our true and wicked natures. I don't want to be remembered by these. So, it's my objective to try to contain the anger that is stirring within me and overcome my weakness by using words to relay my present condition; that through this I may be more consumed with love as opposed to frustration and anger. I know I need this, so that I can raise children that are empathetic to those around them and that they too can figure themselves out and express themselves through language as opposed to physical brutality. Anyway, it was a lesson, and I did learn a lot about myself and my needs, so that I can in a future date know how to handle myself in a similar situation.

The busyness

2010-04-12T06:32:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how quickly the weekend flies or should I say an entire week went past and I'm still trying to capture what happened these past few days. I got to see my high school friend Sarah. She travels for the State Department as an interpreter. She spent 22 days with the same group of people that were learning about programs to help marginalized groups such as gangs. It all sounds very interesting. I feel as though the answer to everything lies within the bounds God has set for us. Otherwise, we are here making our own truths, understanding and interpreting life's idiosyncrasy according to our own perspective and needs, which is why we sink into deep depression because in the end there is no purpose other than the fact that we answer to a higher being, someone who is all knowing and omnipotent. Until we are humbled to that degree, we cannot find happiness.

Submitting to the will of the father is the lesson that I've come to understand. Once we do this, we lose ourselves for him and become greater, more efficient, more loving individuals. We come to love others in this life because of the bounds that God has set for us. We can beckon his call by accepting His son as our redeemer and our debts to God will be paid. The plan is simple, but our Pride tends to stand between us and the relationship that we have with our Father in Heaven. It's all too clear for me. I am grateful for the plan of redemption that was set for us prior to our mortal experience and that Christ came forth and gave his word to do the will of the Father.

Nevertheless, my week was spectacular, we accomplished lots and spent some time with Sarah. Kamilah was, in fact, enamored by her. She's got a good heart and children can sense that about her.

Sugar is the root of all evil!

2010-04-05T11:29:00.000-07:00

I am not going crazy, but it's essentially true. You will also note that due to sugar consumption, there was slavery. Not just a servants but the first slaves were created to work in sugar fields. It's such an unnecessary evil in our lives. Thus, I have decided to reduce it considerably in the use of my foods and stick to a pretty intense whole foods diet, where fruits and purees will be used as sweeteners in order to replace refined garbage. It all starts with sugar. I have found that anything that is driven from that source is also unhealthy and essentially unnecessary in our diet. I look forward to freeing my body from the need to have refined and artificial sweeteners. Most of my problems have been resolved (such as allergies, asthma, fatigue, menstrual cramping, arthritis) by eliminating sugar from my diet. I don't expect everyone to come to this understanding, but I dare anyone to look at the labels of all the things that they're eating and look for the sugars that are within it. This includes things like corn products (dextrose, maltodextrose, etc). It's virtually impossible to eliminate these things from our lives, but I do have control over that which I purchase and I will no longer be feeding into the sugar-driven society and market that the food industry has tapped into. If you don't believe me, look at the number of diabetics in this country and world wide and the detrimental effects of prepared foods in our diet mostly because it's laced with sugar. It's unthinkable to see the number of people suffering from simple things that can be resolved through dietary changes are going to live on pills for the rest of their lives. I felt a blissful sense of freedom since coming to this great understaning. I would encourage all who are interested in exploring this in depth to begin by reading "Sugar Busters" and "Sugar Blues". Nothing has really changed since then, in fact I can honestly say that our society is supporting their findings. Wishing your freedom!- Magui

Sugar is the root of all evil!

2010-04-05T11:09:00.000-07:00

So, I find that I'm not going crazy especially in regards to sugar and my findings. We need to steer clear of that stuff. We need to get it from strictly natural sources. If we add sweetner to things we are seriously

2010-04-04T21:02:00.000-07:00

Our little family at the Short's house. We had a great time with them. I love the fact that we have some outgoing and funloving neighbors, now if only I could get them to go to church with us because they're just that fabulous.

2010-04-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

These two are just a handful together, but they are going to be the best of friends. I know that I can nourish their relationship and mold it to be everything I wanted to have with my sisters, which I do have now, but I wished I could have cherished from a young age. They will probably conspire against me someday :-)

2010-04-04T20:57:00.000-07:00

This is my little gizmo. She makes life really easy because she's so adaptable. She loves her older sister Gadget and is a sucker for her daddy. I love her because she's such a joy to be around even from a young age. I can't wait for her to be around Moma and Jorge in Denver.

2010-04-04T20:53:00.000-07:00

This is our little neighbor, we'll call him hambone. He's adorable and quite excitable. He's a little younger than my gadget. We have fun with him at the park, he's one of our weekly dates, we love our neighbors!

Preparing for Easter

2010-04-04T06:17:00.000-07:00

If you know me, you know I'm not a sucker for holidays. I feel that they're tedious and require you to spend money on things that are unnecessary, but I have the "desire" to be more interested in them. I have, over the past five years, become more excited about Christmas and Fourth of July, but everything else seems trivial and of no consequence. My neighbors are truly amazing. They decorate every month for something new. New Years, Valentines, Saint Patty's and now Easter...what's next month? I hope nothing. Every time I see the decorations it makes me feel like a slacker, but I don't have room to store all that stuff. I'm a minimalist at heart. I have all the necessary items for my family, but decorations? Seriously, I can't handle it. I am making a baked chicken dish to take to the neighbors that we so love, they invited us over for Easter lunch, it should be fun, I'll try to take some pictures for the family to see. I need to get to my scripture study before the babes arise. I'm grateful for sabbath mornings and another day of life. Ciao!

April 3rd, 2010

2010-04-03T15:54:00.000-07:00

We happened to watch general conference today. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to watch general conference from home now that the church posts it via the internet! It was wonderful, as always. I always feel quite edified by the Saturday messages. I noticed quite a heavy theme throughout this conference, and that was that the responsibility of teaching the main precepts and principles of the gospel are best conferred in the home. It's true! The closeness that we feel and the way that we can cater to each individual person of our family is unlike any other place, whether that would be school or church. I esp. wouldn't want to rely on society to teach my children the correct principles and standards of the world. I guess I pondered on what kind of person I would want to raise and the qualities that I possess that would shape this person's life. That would be a person who's responsible, mindful, moderate and passionate. I can see these qualities in those who are Christlike and who's countenances show peace, humility and love for one another. I am so grateful for this gospel and what it gives each of us in this life and I hope that I can be a source of strength for this family.

Maybe I'll start blogging

2010-04-03T12:28:00.000-07:00

I started this blog about three years ago. I can't believe it. It's hard to imagine why I wouldn't even use such a tool, but I guess I was just too busy to have yet another distraction take hold of my life. I do owe it to my family to have some sort of history of our time together. The challenges and the happiness, the moments of learning and those of frustration. I'm okay with the fact that we're here together and we're enduring until further notice. If it weren't for family, I don't think we'd have the desire or the passion to make improvements in ourselves and our community. So, I dedicate this site to my family, for their willingness to endure with me and the choices that we've made that have brought us closer.

A family can be together forever

2007-11-13T20:09:00.000-08:00

Mr. Go-to and I met under unusual circumstances, while working at Dillard's Southwest Plaza, in Denver, Co. He had just graduated from BYU and had been offered a position as a sales manager in training. I, on the other hand, wanted to scale the ladder into cosmetics. Prior to his arrival, I began investigating the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints through my friends the Richards, with whom I had attended high school. Nevertheless, we were not interested in each other in the least and in fact he used to bring the girls he dated to the counter to meet one of my associates Christine. She had seen so much in him and wished that her daughter would have been old enough, she would have married her off :-).

Mr. Go-to was a return missionary from Guatemala and spoke fluent Spanish. I had just ended and nice, long relationship and was not looking for another one. In one occasion I did tell one of my associates that it would be nice to marry an "all-american" guy that could speak my language. Little did I know that our prayers can be answered. However, I cannot be any more poignant that at this time I did not have an immediate attraction to him. We quickly became friends and I learned a lot about the direction that he wanted to go in life and how he had acquired that experience and soon found myself enamored with him. He was exactly what I wanted and needed.

Nevertheless, I was the only one that "Knew" that he was mine for the taking :-), he had no idea what was waiting for him. He was a charmer, cute and petite and quite the flirt. I fell in love with his love for life, his dedication to the most important part of his life, which was his spirituality. I "just knew" that he was going places and I was going with him. The kicker was that I was the one that said, " When are you going to realize that you were made for me!". I couldn't wait to be married, so we eloped. How exciting, no? Not really, but our family is just like that out of the ordinary. Now we live in Oregon, by far the most beautiful place on earth, we have our baby girl Kamilah (My Arabic heritage led me to this spelling). We are happy and healthy and prepared for all the challenges and the blessings that this world has to offer. (this was started two years ago)

Since that time I have fallen more deeply for this man. This committed, loving and highly spiritual human. I now have two little angels that I can thank him for and for his patience with all the women in his life. Women are interesting especially once you start getting outnumbered by them. I have found that we can be a bit forceful and not very complacent when we want things our way. I guess all of us have that ability, but I have chosen to change that and make my home a heaven for everyone. It's hard to share daddy all the time, but it's only for a short period of time, if you think about it. I can't imagine the days without him walking through that door and Gadget yelling "Daddy!" and his response being "Gadget!". I look forward to the days when we can look back and be merry about the things we were able to accomplish as a family.

We now live in San Pedro, CA after a very brief stop in Seattle, WA. We have these two little spirits to take care of and raise up in the ways of our Savior and teach them the duties and responsibilities of being children of God. The task seems daunting at times, but surely I can find a way. So many have given their time and talents to the building up of this great Kingdom, God's Kingdom that is. I continue to learn a lot and have made slow steps of progress, but I can look back now and know that I too can he happy forever with my family.