Family Home Evening - Not Ashamed of the Gospel of Christ

Here's what we had for our Family Home Evening Treat . . . a pumpkin chocolate chip cake with a sweet, powdered sugar reminder of tonight's lesson! (Mainly because I can't stand frosting cakes and it was easier for me to Exacto-knife out the lettering from paper anyway!)

We took our Family Home Evening lesson from HERE.

And we taught the lesson backwards: to LOVE the gospel, we must LIVE the gospel.

But in order to LIVE the gospel, one must first KNOW the gospel.

The difference is easily seen in the attitudes and actions of Nephi and Laman and Lemuel.

Then each of us had the opportunity to take a sticky note and write ONE thing we weren't  LOVING about the gospel at the present. . .

Like, um, going to bed early and or attending family scriptures or fasting for the full 24 hours/2 meals or giving up on contention.

And we were to take that sticky note and place it in our scriptures so we would be reminded to STUDY THE DOCTRINE.

Because once we learn the doctrine, we can KNOW the doctrine.

And when we KNOW the doctrine it is easier to LIVE the doctrine.

And once we LIVE the doctrine, it won't be too long until we LOVE the doctrine.

"All truth and knowledge is important, but amidst the constant distractions of our daily lives, we must especially pay attention to increasing our gospel knowledge so we can understand how to apply gospel principles to our lives. As our gospel knowledge increases, we will begin to feel confident in our testimonies and be able to state, 'I know it.'"

 

As an added reminder, our 10 year old had us make bracelets with Duct tape with the phrase, "Know it. Live it. Love it."  We are to wear it ALL week as a reminder not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ.

Visiting Teaching is NOT about me!

Last week my companion set up a visiting teaching appointment for this morning at 11:30 with a sister I have never met.  My companion has been her visiting teacher for a while.

The appointment was on my fridge calendar so I wouldn't forget.

And I remembered all week about visiting teaching - and even into yesterday.

But my early morning schedule changed and I completely forgot about visiting teaching because, you know, I got caught up in other stuff that was also pressing and also important.

So at exactly 11:18, as I was strategically planning my afternoon, the Spirit intervened and gently, yet emphatically reminded me that I had a visting teaching appointment.

Phew! I thought to myself. Now I won't look so bad on my first visit.

Well, just for the record, that is NOT what I should have been thinking nanoseconds after the Spirit had reminded me so tenderly of my covenant duty!

And because of my abundance of pride, I was immediately chastized!

For I learned the reason the Spirit reminded me of my visiting teaching appointment - It was NOT because God wanted me to look good . . .

It was because He wanted the sister to whom I have been assigned to know how much He loves her.

X-Large IS the new Medium

I never win anything.

If I were the only one to enter in a contest, I would lose!  So imagine my surprise when I entered a free raffle at a local sporting goods store and walked away with a women's sweatshirt.

Medium was the noted size, but honestly, it was barely large enough to fit my seven year old daughter!!!

Seriously.

So I asked the store if I could exchange it for a larger size.

And the larger size ended up being an EXTRA LARGE!!!

Either my body is playing tricks on me or someone in China is putting the wrong letters on women's clothing!!

Our Future is . . .

I didn't cry out loud, but my heart is so very broken.

And while I've shed no tears, to say I'm devasted about the presidential outcome would be a complete understatement.

To see the title of liberty figuratively lifted and feeling of its power only to have it trodden under the feet of men, has given me time to ponder and consider why these days are considered the last.

And why I need to stand still and know that He is God.

No wonder the Savior reminds us time and time again to "Be of good cheer."

And why President Monson's confidence in Him and in us resonates when he says, "Your future is as bright as your faith."

And why the youth are admonished to "Arise and Shine Forth."

Last night, these inspiring words from Elder Russell M. Nelson gave me hope and courage:

Why do we need such resilient faith? Because difficult days are ahead. Rarely in the future will it be easy or popular to be a faithful Latter-day Saint. Each of us will be tested. The Apostle Paul warned that in the latter days, those who diligently follow the Lord “shall suffer persecution.” That very persecution can either crush you into silent weakness or motivate you to be more exemplary and courageous in your daily lives.
 

In the eternal war we are fighting, there is NO time to be crushed into silent weakness.

Be of good cheer.

Arise and Shine Forth!

Our future is as bright as our faith!

Tidbit Tuesday - GET OUT AND VOTE

"Who knoweth whether thou art come to [vote] for such a  time as this?"

- Esther 4:14

What I Wrote in My Highschool Journal and How It's Coming Back to Haunt Me

I'm at the point in my life where I am dealing with a full-fledged teenager!!

The problem is that now I am on the mother-end of this relationship.  And it isn't as just cut and dry as I thought it should be for parents as I did when I was 15.

So I am learning, learning, learning those lessons that only come with experience.

One of those profound lessons was written ever so discreetly in my high school journal which, I happened to pull out this week  . . . and actually dared to look inside as I opened to a completely random page.

On the one side was my personal experience of meeting a prophet of God with real teenage descriptive words such as "cool" and "awesome."

On the other side of the page was high school drama and emotion that made my eyes grow big enough that it squeezed my brain into realizing that, YIKES I was 15 once!!

Gulp!

Back then I really didn't know much of anything!!

And as I quickly shut that journal, I marveled that somehow between being me then and being me now, is that I still I really don't know much of anything!  But the little that I do know is, Father in Heaven is good and kind and patient.

And, if He can be good and kind and patient to a 15 year old girl who was me, He will be good and kind and patience to a 15 year old boy who is mine for now. . .