Turn Around

Hi Again!
I just wanted to say thanks for all of the love, comments, and support I've on my blog!
It means so much because it helps me know that I am making a difference in someone's day. We can be the difference to so many people. It also helps me know that I am doing what I am suppose to be doing in reaching out and sharing the gospel. Which is something I love and am so grateful for the opportunity I have to do it each and everyday as a missionary.
So I wanted to share a little bit today about repentance, I don't know why. It is just what came to me today.
So imagine that you are a child again. Like 5 or 6 years old. And you have your Dad's favourite whatever... lets say fishing pole. And you break it.
How are you going to feel? Terrified right? So fast forward.
You don't tell your Dad. Why? Because you are scared. You don't want to get in trouble, and after all it was an accident. You were just playing, having fun. But in the next few days, you start to feel guilty because you haven't told him. You are just waiting for him to find it. But also hoping that he won't find it because then you would get in trouble. So you try your very hardest to do everything he asks. To follow everything exactly and in good time. so that he will hopefully be less mad when he does find out. You walk on eggshells around him.
That is not a fun feeling, eh?
You want to tell him. but are scared of the consequences. There is truly one way to make this better.
You have to go to him and ask for his forgiveness. Ask that he will understand that it was a mistake.
The only difference in this verses your Father in Heaven is that He already knows what happened. He already knows everything that you did. And thankfully, has patience enough to wait until you come to Him seeking forgiveness, love, and healing.

I know that our Father in Heaven has a great desire for us to turn to Him and ask Him for the things we need. If He did not then He wouldn't have sent His Son, Jesus Christ for us. And Christ would not have endured the sacrifice that He did for us. God provided a way from us from the beginning. Now the ball is in our court to do what we will, whether we choose to turn to Him or not.
Repenting can be scary, it can be hard; but it is so worth it! We don't have to hold onto the feelings of guilt, shame, sorrow, or fear. We can find true and lasting healing through Christ. I know that this is true because I have felt it. It is the most incredible feeling in the world.

Prayers of Faith

Hi-ya!
I'm so terribly sorry that it has been so long since I have posted! Crazy things have been happening with a wonderful baptism and getting transferred out of Saskatoon. Which are both happy and sad! :) Life is general is great!
Today I wanted to share one of the things that helps keep me going each and everyday! And that is PRAYER!! :)

Prayer is such a wonderful thing. Why? Because we can do it at anytime and in any place that we are in. Which is kind of amazing!!
I love that God, our Father in Heaven has this wonderful way for us to be able to talk to Him.

How amazing is it that we have the ability to talk to the most powerful being in the universe and have the assurance that He not only hears us, but Answers us as well! :)

I know that prayers of faith have truly brought miracles into my life. So many more miracles that I can even count. God really does hear and answer our prayers.
He wants to talk with us! He wants to help us. And He does as we turn to Him in humble, heartfelt prayer! :)
I know that prayer works and that it can and will bring us peace, which is something I know I need in my life daily.
God loves you so much! If you doubt it, just ask Him! :)

I Am a Child of God

Hello!
 Can I just say once more how much I love posting on this blog? Its my favourite!
So I've been thinking a lot about our divine nature; and with that the love that we have from our Father in Heaven.
What does it mean to be a child of God?
For me this is best said in Romans 8:16 which says, "16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:" I love this because it is through the Spirit that we are able to learn about the truths of God. And one of those truths is that we are His children.
As I have learned about the divine nature that I have I have come to know and feel of the great love that God has for me. And in turn the great love that He has for each of us.
GOD. LOVES. YOU!
He knows you personally and loves you through everything that you go through. Never doubt for a single moment that you matter to Him, because you do. If you did not matter to Him, He would not have sent His only Begotten Son to suffer and die for your sins, temptations, pains, and afflictions (see John 3:16).
Many people ask, "If God loves all of His children, why does He let bad things happen?"
This is truly a hard question. The answer to which is again found in the scriptures. In Alma 34:32 (found in the Book of Mormon) we read, " 32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." We are here on Earth to prepare to return to live with our Father in Heaven. We are able to prepare through the experiences, trials, good times, and bad times. They all work together to help us learn and grow.
I know that understanding that I am a Child of God has been a great blessing in my life in helping me know that He is truly there for me Every. Step. Of. The. Way. God loves you and He loves me. And He loves all of us, and this love stems from Him being your Father and Mine.

Which way?

Hi-ya!
So I've been thinking a lot about choices again. So sorry that this second post on choices is coming so soon after the first. But I think it is a topic worth discussing over and over, so I hope you enjoy it. :)

So there are so many choices we face in life right? Like Every. Single. Day.
It gets kind of crazy sometimes, but this special ability we have to choose is something I have had to learn to cherish. We all have been given a gift from God called Agency, which is simply the ability to choose. This is something that the prophets, both ancient and modern have talked a lot about.
In 2 Nephi 2:27 it reads:

 "27 Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself."

Also recently President Thomas S. Monson said:

"When we left our premortal existence and entered mortality, we brought with us the gift of agency. Our goal is to obtain celestial glory, and the choices we make will, in large part, determine whether or not we reach our goal."

I love both this scripture and this quote so much! It really is so vital that we understand where it is that our choices lead us.

WHAT IS YOUR END GOAL?!

As we determine what our end goal is, we will have an easier time making the decisions necessary to get us there. Like the verse in 2 Nephi teaches, we can either choose liberty and eternal life, or we can choose misery, captivity, and death.

Sounds like a pretty easy choice right? :)

However it isn't so easy. Like I said in my other post that you can see Here it takes courage to make the choices we need to in following Jesus Christ.

I know that I have not always made the best choices in my life. But I also know that choosing to repent and turn back to follow Christ has been the BEST choice in my life. I am so grateful for the knowledge that I have of God's love, and how because of Jesus Christ's Atonement (sacrifice) I can be forgiven, I can start today and choose to do better and be better. And you can too! :) 

Saturday is a Special Day

Hi there!!! :)
I've been thinking a lot lately about the Sabbath Day. Especially with the wonderful lesson we had this week at church by our Bishop about how our faith in Christ and His Atonement can increase as we make our Sabbath Day observance more meaningful.
One point he made was about how our preparation for the Sabbath is so incredibly important. I remember when I was 6 or 7 receiving a wonderful Christmas present. I still cherish it to this day. It was a set of Little House on  the Prairie    books. I recall in there a lesson that Laura learned the hard way.
The lesson of how to act on the Sabbath. Her father shared a story about how when he was younger the Sabbath started Saturday night, when the sun went down, and it ended Sunday night when the sun went down. He was very clear as to the things that she and her sisters could and could not do on the Sabbath.
While the Sabbath does not generally start Saturday night, our preparation for it should. There are many things we can do to prepare for the Sabbath.
When I was little my mom would always sing to us (and make us sing) the song Saturday is a Special Day  the lyrics say:

Saturday is a special day.

It's the day we get ready for Sunday:

We clean the house, and we shop at the store,

So we won't have to work until Monday.

We brush our clothes, and we shine our shoes,

And we call it our get-the-work-done day.

Then we trim our nails, and we shampoo our hair,

So we can be ready for Sunday!

To this day I find myself humming this song as I think about getting prepared for Sunday. I know that as I have worked on making my Sabbath Day more of a delight, by preparing for it, I have received so many blessings. The least of which being a greater sense of the Spirit. God is looking for ways to bless us and as we keep the Sabbath Day holy we will be able to recognize and receive those blessings. 

Courage in Choices

Hi there!
I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to post today! I don't know why, but I'm just super grateful for it. I hope that something in this post helps someone today! :)
I have heard it said that courage is what it takes to stand up for what you believe in; and also to sit down and listen.
I think that we are all more courageous than we think we are. We have to be courageous in everything that we do. In the choices we make in life, we really only have one choice:

To have the courage to choose Christ,

Or

To take the easier way of the world.

 

 

 

 

I love this quote by Elder Soares. It is so difficult to choose the right. I remember a favourite primary song of mine called Choose the Right Way, the first verse says:

" There's a right way to live and be happy;

It is choosing the right ev'ry day.

                                                        I am learning the teachings of Jesus;

                                                         They will help me and show me the way."

 

I know how difficult it is to choose the right, but the blessings that are in store for us when we do are innumerable. As we show the needed courage to say NO to Satan and YES to Christ our lives will  be filled with a greater light and joy. I know that I have been able to feel of it. Through the difficult times of my life, I have always been able to turn and rely on my Saviour. As I have continually chosen Him, I have been blessed so much by having the Holy Ghost to be with me.

I would like to invite you to start today to take the needed courage to choose Christ and begin to see the blessings He is waiting to extend to you. 

Impossible.

Hi-ya!!
Sorry its been a while since I've been on the blog! Some super fun things have happened... not! Being sick is not fun! But it brings with it a lot of time to think and study, which is fun! :)


I've been thinking quite a bit about miracles and being able to do the impossible. The word impossible always leads me to think of the song from Roger and Hammerstein's Cinderella. Which is a favourite of mine.
But there is a line in the song that I absolutely love, the Fairy Godmother says, "Impossible things are happening everyday."
I LOVE IT!!!
I love it so much because it is so true! Impossible things really do happen everyday. Miracles happen everyday, because of our faith and obedience to the commandments of God.
God wants to give us miracles and blessings and He will as we follow Him. I think President Gordon B. Hinckley said it best when he said,

"I too believe that God will always make a way where there is no way. I believe that if we will walk in obedience to the commandments of God, if we will follow the counsel of the priesthood, He will open a way even where there appears to be no way."

We can learn to trust God perfectly. And we will begin to see Him opening the way for us. We will begin to the impossible things happening everyday. And our faith will increase in unprecedented ways.

The way back to Him is clear. It may seem impossible at times; however, by keeping His commandments we will be led back to our heavenly home. This is all God wants for us. And He will do the impossible things to help us.

I know beyond a doubt, that God has led me to be where I am today, and it is by following His commandments that I have been able to see the impossible things happen.