2.28.15

Man has two creators, his God and himself. The first creator furnishes him the raw materials of his life—the laws and conformity with which he can make that life what he will. The second creator, himself, has powers he rarely realizes. It is what a man makes of himself that counts.
Marvin J. Ashton, Be A Quality Person, Feb 1993

This is our one shot at life. As long as we are still breathing, there is hope to create the quality of life that God wants us to live.

2.23.15

From: Me D&C 10: 5 Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work. I'm working on being the conqueror. I'm trying to pray always and often, that I'll have the Spirit with me always. It's taking some work but I'm trying. 2015/02/24 01:20:03AM

2.22.15

From: Me There is a safety net in place to save us when we fall. It goes by several names. Its called the plan of salvation, because it's there to redeem us when we sell ourselves short. Its called the plan of redemption, because it's there to remind us who we really are and what we're worth in the eyes of the Almighty. Its called the plan of mercy and the plan of happiness, because of their to wipe away our misery and our despair. The Scriptures leave no doubt as to why there is a plan in place: to give our best shot at eternal life, the quality of life that God the Father and Jesus Christ live. They want us to have every blessing They have. They want to save us, especially from our own doubts and insecurities and the sins that break our backs and break our hearts. -Defined by Christ, by Toni Sorenson 2015/02/23 01:07:24AM

2.21.15

From: Me "On the Edge" President Faust, New Era, Feb '97 Your strength and identity will come from obeying the commandments, developing your talents, and serving the Lord. Each of you will have to work very hard to qualify for your eternal potential. It will not be easy. Finding your true identity will tax your ability far beyond climbing a dangerous cliff or speeding in a car or on a motorcycle. It will require all of your strength, stamina, intelligence, and courage. For my new calling, I make the program for Sacrament meeting. I pick the inspirational quote for the cover, put in all the announcements and what not. I find the most amazing quotes in my searches. Tomorrow's : Don't give up. Don't you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead. Some blessings come soon, some come late, some don't come until heaven. But for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come. -Elder Holland, "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" Oct '99 2015/02/22 09:56:57AM

2.20.15

From: Me From "The Role of Righteous Women" Spencer W. Kimball, Oct 1979 All of you need to drink in deeply the gospel truths about the eternal nature of your individual identity and the uniqueness of your personality. You need, more and more, to feel the perfect love which our Father in Heaven has for you and to sense the value he places upon you as an individual. Ponder upon these great truths, especially in those moments when (in the stillness of such anxiety as you may experience as an individual) you might otherwise wonder and be perplexed. This is another amazing talk. This one focuses on the women of the church and our wonderful role. It's beautiful. 2015/02/20 11:57:15PM

2.19.15

From: Me Once the plan became operational (and it was with our enthusiastic consent, by the way), it could not be altered just because you and I (in the midst of an otherwise good life) might have a difficult day or a soul-stretching season in our lives. Such were clearly foreseen by Him, and long ago we were deemed, if obedient, adequate to meet all such challenges. Yes, we will often feel inadequate, but fortunately He knows us far better than we know ourselves. Indeed, if our souls had rings, as do trees, to measure the years of greatest personal growth, the wide rings would likely reflect the years of greatest moisture- but from tears, not rainfall. How many times have frustrating, even gruelling, experiences from which we have sought relief turned out, later on, to have been part of a necessary preparation which led to much more happiness? From "Thanks be to God" by Neal A. Maxwell, July 1982 2015/02/20 12:19:17AM

2.18.15

From: Me I stumbled across an old school talk by Elder Maxwell, from Oct. 1976. "Notwithstanding my weakness" And at a time where I personally am struggling with feeling inadequate and overwhelming weakness, this talk struck deep to my soul. I want you to read it, share it, apply it. It is meant for all, and it will touch the hearts of all. Here are some of my favorite parts. "What can we do to manage these vexing feelings of inadequacy? Here are but a few suggestions: -We can contemplate how far we have already come in the climb along the pathway to perfection; it is usually much farther than we acknowledge. -we can allow for the agency of others (including our children) before we assess our adequacy. Often our deliberate best is less effectual because of someone else's worst. -We can make quiet but more honest inventories of our strengths. He who was thrust down in the first estate delights to have us put ourselves down. -We can learn that at the center of our agency is our freedom to form a healthy attitude toward whatever circumstances we are placed in!" 2015/02/18 11:23:15PM

2.17.15

From: Me 2 Nephi 2: 18 But, behold, the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever. Who have endured the crosses of the world : the trials and struggles and hardships. Those who are struggling but continue to have faith in Christ will inherit the Kingdom. The blessings will come. Have faith and stay strong. He will strengthen thee. 2015/02/18 12:47:39AM

2.16.15

From: Me 2 Nephi 9:2 ... when they shall be gathered home to the lands of their inheritance, and shall be established in all their lands of promise. We each have our own promised land. Lands that are specific to us and our little families. 2015/02/17 12:57:25AM

2.14.15

From: Me Some days, when we are really struggling with things, the adversary wants us to think we are alone. That no one knows what we're going thru, that no one can help us, that we are the only one suffering. That is NOT true. We need only to ask for help, from our family, from our Savior, and they will come running to aid us. Never has He left us alone, never have we left His thoughts, never has He not stretched out to us. He has never left our sides, He has never left us to walk alone. He is always near us. We need only to ask. Our family is the same way. They have never left our side and would drop everything to come to our aid. Both our family and The Savior desire to hear from us often, to know of what goes on on our lives. We need to keep these connections open, so we never lose touch. We need them as much as they need us. 2015/02/15 12:37:47AM

2.12.15

From: Me Alma 32:28... the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me. In all my reading, I find myself wanting to devour the words of Christ and the prophets of God. I search words, that are meaningful that day, in the Scriptures app and I stumble across conference talks and Ensign articles that pierce my soul. I feel inspired by them, like they were meant for me to read, at that moment, right when I needed it. Those words are for me. If we keep seeking, keep reading His words, we will hunger for them, we will NEED them daily. 2015/02/13 12:03:30AM

2.11.15

From: Me 2 Nephi 4: 28 Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul. 29 Do not anger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions. 30 Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation. I've felt a need to count my blessings lately. Not out loud to anyone, just to myself, to remind myself how blessed I am. I feel terrible that I forget to see my blessings so often. I feel guilty that I complain and throw fits and am unhappy with the way things are going. Counting the blessings and seeing His hand in my life each day, is truly awesome... Name them one by one... 2015/02/12 12:12:37AM

2.10.15

From: Me Some days are just bad days, no matter how much MoTab you listen to, how often you pray, or how many hours you spend reading the scriptures. Some days are just horrible terrible no good very bad days. And that's ok. Sometimes it's not about failing, but about deciding to make tomorrow a good day. It's about enduring to the end, counting g your blessings, and starting again tomorrow. Don't look behind you, you're not going that way. 2015/02/10 11:59:58PM

2.9.15

From: Me Today I had some more tests done for my heart and stuff. I went down way early and had time to walk around the Temple grounds. I was just thinking and praying about the possible outcomes, the what-ifs and I was just in my normal pre-doctor nervousness. I sat at the reflection pond and looked at the Temple. I noticed something I'd never noticed before. There were splotches on the granite and imperfections in the stone, and many spots of weathering. This building that I see as perfect really wasn't so aesthetically perfect on the outside. But on the inside, every nook and cranny had been dedicated to Him, had been perfected in Him, the Spirit that dwells there is His. The same is with us. Our physical bodies are not perfectly flawless. But the Spirit He has given us is. Perfect is not flawless. Perfect is everything it needs to be. Perfect is what it is supposed to be. I am perfect just the way I am because I am who He made me to be. There is no 'why did this happen to me?' Because He has created me. He put my heart together perfectly FOR ME. 2015/02/09 10:02:57PM

2.8.15

From: Me 2 Nephi 2:24 But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things. 25 Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy. 24 brings me comfort because I know that thru EVERYTHING, our God knows all things. He is aware of all things, and everything that is happening RIGHT NOW, is happening because it is HIS will, and it is done in HIS wisdom and plan. 25 brings me comfort because there has always been at least one moment where we wonder WHY. Why I am here, what am I doing? And this is the answer : To have joy. Not just be happy, I've seen lots of happy people doing stupid things. But to have joy. I believe joy comes from Christ, and knowing about His plan of Happiness (Joy!). We are to have joy in our family, and joy in our lives. We are not created to have misery, but to look to Him and live. 2015/02/08 11:38:37PM

2.7.15

From: Me Just pondering about 2 Nephi 2: 11 For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad... And thinking of how Korbin sees everything. Right now, it's all good. He sees the sun shining and wants to go play. He sees his cereal and gets some breakfast. He sees his friends at church and is overjoyed. I hope to keep that joy in him alive and protected for a very long time. The world will show it's ugly awful face soon enough. But I also want to show him and teach him to be positive, and even tho bad things happen here, that Heavenly Father loves us and is watching us. Trials are hard because of the amount of blessings waiting to be poured upon us. 2015/02/08 12:06:40AM