are we not all mothers?

first i want to apologize i haven't gotten on here in quite a while. i will be better at it.

ok, so it was mothers day this last Sunday. part of this post is very personal and i don't talk about it much but today i am going to in hopes that it may help someone else realize that they are not alone.

 my whole life all I've ever wanted is to be a mother, but obviously my plan has not worked out as i planned, i can only hope that my Heavenly Father has something spectacular in store for me. i always joked about the fact that Alvin Smith is waiting for me on the other side of the Vail. the older i get the truer that statement feels. although i would not mind marrying Alvin Smith, I'm not sure i can wait that long. it is hard for me to see my best friends getting married and having children. i don't think some people realize how hard it really is. i don't let them see how hard it is for me. i pretend that it doesn't bother me too much, but really it does. not being a wife and a mother is one of the hardest things, actually its probably the hardest thing I've had to deal with in my life. in November i want to time out for women with my mom and sisters and my aunt Cheryl. it was amazing! it was something that i really needed. Sheri Dew was there and gave the most amazing talk. it hit me hard and helped me a lot. she talked about how she has fasted and prayed every month for a husband for 50 years. and how there was one conference when she was in the General Relief Society that she had to write a talk and was inspired to talk on mothers, she thought i am not a mother how am i supposed to write a talk on mothers. and then she wrote one of the most amazing talks called "are we not all mothers" here it is:

if someone as amazing as Sheri Dew can live her life with out marriage. i can get through it to. it is just something that some of have to go through. all we need to do is turn our burden over to the Lord, so that he can help us carry the load that is to heavy to bear.

now on a happier not, my mother is one of the most amazing people i know and the mother that was sculpted and molded especially for me and my siblings. there is no doubt in my mind that she was meant to be my mother and i was meant to be her daughter. i hope that all of my siblings feel the same way. we (all 9 of us) have put her through the ringer, some days i am surprised that she has survived. and some days that we survived. he he i mad this slide show for her on mothers day and put it to this song. i heard this song and thought it was very fitting for her. every bit of it describes her. i hope she knows how amazing she is and how much i love and appreciate her and hope to one day be the kind of mother that she is. i love you mom!

#becausehelives

this weekend is not only conference but it is also easter. there is not a better way to celebrate the resurrection of Christ then listen to his special witnesses bear witness of him. i dont have much to say today because everything that i would say is summed up in one talk. Elder Hollands talk was amazing as usual! i absolutely love the story that he shared about the 2 brother rock climbing. and thought it was amazing how he spoke of Adam and Eve. and of the fact that it is so completely centered on our Savior Jesus Christ and his Atonement. so here it is just in case you missed it and if you didnt then watch it still because you cant listen to it enough. also i wanted to post the video that the church made to celebrate easter this year.
May we remember our Savior Jesus Christ and the sacrifice that he made for us in the Garden of
Gethsemane, and that he Rose from the dead so
that we may rise for the dead and live in our
mansion above. Happy Easter everyone!
#becausehelives i can face tomorrow!

follow the prophet

today i went out to Logandale and wen to to church at my sisters ward. my niece just so happened to be speaking in primary:) she did so good! she spoke on following the prophet. and with conference coming up i thought it would be a good topic for tonight's post.

why should we follow the prophet?
here are just a few reasons.
1. because he communications directly with God on what the church needs
the prophets full time job is to be in constant communication with God, he talks to him all day every day. he doesn't get any time off from being the prophet. being a prophet is full time job and it is not easy.
2. Christs church is built on the foundation of prophets and apostles. if we did not have a prophet on the earth today. i can tell you it would not be organized, we would not be able to do the things that do now without any direction. for example, you have seen the difference between children that grow up with parents that lead and guide them, and those that don't have those parents. sometime they find their way but it takes them much longer and it is much harder. God is very organized and always has been.
3. the Prophet is not allowed to lead us astray. if the prophet were to tell us to do something that was against Gods will. he would not allow him to be the prophet anymore.
Preach my Gospel states: those who listen to and follow the counsel of living prophets and apostles will not go astray. the teaching s of the living prophets provide and anchor of eternal truth in a world of shifting values and help us avoid misery and sorry. the confusion and strife of the world will not overwhelm us, and we an enjoy the assurance of being in harmony with God's will.
so, as we watch the prophets and apostles speak this coming weekend may we keep those and many more reasons to follow the prophet in mind. i know that we have a prophet on the each to day that will NEVER lead us astray, i know that he will only lead us to God, and to do right.
please watch conference this weekend and keep an open heart to everything that he says. i know i will:)
Happy Sunday and have a great week!

"A sinner cannot the sinner punish"

first off, I apologize for not posting last week. I totally thought I did because I had it all planned in my head, but I guess I never out my thoughts to paper per say. oops!
anyways,
today I spoke in church and I wanted to post my talk here for all who were not there to read. I mean it wont be the same because I added thoughts with the spirit but this is what I wrote. I hope you like it:)

"a sinner cannot the sinner punish"

When our hearts are filled with the love of God, we become "kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving"

We have all been in situations where we have been negatively affected by something someone said or did. where we have been hurt by a friend, or family member, or even stranger.

Are we to forgive someone that hurts us? absolutely!

Have you ever been affected by the destructive spirit of contention? of resentment? of revenge? I would imagine we all have at one time or another in our lives. whether it be within ourselves or someone we have come into contact with.

When we are feeling that way it is all too easy to judge others, often telling ourselves that their motives were something other than good so that we can justify our own feelings of resentment.

Is it wrong to do this? YES!

We all depend on our savior Jesus Christ and his atonement to make it through this life. we all sin, we have all offended someone in our lives whether it be on purpose or not. we need to forgive others of their trespasses.

Elder Uchdorpf stated "this topic of judging others could actually be taught in a two-word sermon. When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following : STOP IT!"

It really is that simple, we need to stop judging others and replaces those judgemental thoughts with Love. we are all brothers and sisters we must be as these 3 examples. we must be especially like JESUS CHRIST. we must fill our hearts with love, because when we fill our hearts with love there is no room for contention, resentment, revenge. there is no room for judging, because we will be too busy loving.
  
There are several examples of forgiveness in the scriptures.

I would like to talk about 3 examples from the scriptures of forgiveness and mercy unto others.

1. Nephi- Nephi was a perfect example of forgiving others as Christ forgives us. for example, his brothers tried to hurt him and even kill him on several occasions. in Nephi Chapter 7 he exhorts his brothers to have faith. and they just were not having it, they bound him in the wilderness to leave him to be eaten by wild beasts. yet he was freed according to his faith, and they're hearts were softened and they asked for forgiveness.

In verses20-21 we read
 
 20 And it came to pass that they were sorrowful, because of their wickedness, insomuch that they did bow down before me, and did plead with me that I would forgive them of the thing that they had done against me.


21 And it came to pass that I did frankly forgive them all that they had done, and I did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for forgiveness. And it came to pass that they did so.
It seems like it must have been difficult for Nephi to forgive his brothers for the sin that they had committed unto him. but I don't think it was, I think his heart was filled with the pure love of Christ therefore he was able to forgive his brothers time and time again, as the continued to try to hurt him and leave him for dead.

2. the woman that was taken in adultery- in John chapter 8 we read of this woman that was brought before Christ and when the pharisees and the scribes brought her before him they said "Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?"

And Christ replied with the simples words "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."
All of those men that brought her before the lord walked away, one by one. knowing that none of them were without sin. and they walked away because they knew that they were not without sin. they were touched by the words that came out of Christ's mouth. and when they were gone Christ asked the woman, "where are thine accusers? hath no man accused thee?" and she said "no, ma lord" Christ then said "neither do i condemn thee, Go, and sin no more"

Our 3rd and greatest example of forgiveness and mercy is JESUS CHRIST himself. he was mocked, scourged, beaten, and Eventually killed. He was never filled with resentment, or contention, or revenge, toward those his accusers. in fact, he bled from every pore for them, he atones for the very sins that they were committing against him. and some of the last words out of his mouth before he died were "father forgive them for they know not what they do" how great of an example do we have in our savior JESUS CHRIST. he is the great exemplar of pure Love for all and mercy toward all men, not just those. he is merciful to all men, because he loves us, all of us. Jesus said it is easy to love those who love us, even the wicked can do that, but he taught a higher law one that we all must obey. he said " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you." just as Christ forgave those that hated, cursed and despitefully used and persecuted him, so must we. for he said "I the Lord will forgive who I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men"
Elder Uchdorpf gave us a self-test with a few questions:

Do you harbor a grudge against someone else?

Do you gossip, even when what you say may be true?

Do you exclude, push away, or punish others because of something they have done?

Do you secretly envy another?

Do you wish to cause harm to someone?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, he said you may want to apply that two-word sermon "stop it!"

　

My grandfather wrote a poem called Rsentment it reads:

If you wish to measure men's ascent
To God, examine the things they resent.
Resentment is a good barometer
Of how well measure in gods micrometer.

Each day on life's highway resnters scorn
Tolerance. announcing with a horn
Their deficiency in spiritual progress.
Unaware that with each blast they regress.

Many call themselves Christians whose pursuit
Of resentment is carried to law suit.
Some will self righteously holler and shout
At every offense while others will just pout.

At what expense do we collect a debt?
If god forgets ours we too best forget.
Remember the rule and quickly repent,
"God will not forgive us while debts we resent."

Perhaps we resent another man's wealth,
His job, his talent, his luck, or his health.
It matters not what form or shape it takes,
Resentment applies our spiritual brakes.

The air is much purer above rancor.
Those who cast loose this demeaning anchor
Don't squander a future with god to be spent
By justifying the things men resent.

 However valid or just your claim,
If you allow others to defame and shame
You placing your pride on the alter
As a sacrifice then with a halter
Of love subdue any vengeful wish,
Saying, "a sinner cannot a sinner punish."
God will accept your life's testament,
If you will forego the mind to resent.

In a world of accusations and judgement, before we start casting stones, let us remember those words Christ spake to the pharisees and scribes "he that is without sin, let him first cast a stone"

I know that as we put down the stones and remember to fill our hearts with love one to another, we will forgive others of their trespasses towards us, and we wont judge others for we are all sinners. we are all imperfect. we are all working towards the same goal. i hope that we can all remember that "a sinner cannot a sinner punish" may we all love others as he loves us.

 

I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. amen.

 

 

 

 

　

　
 　

#embark

so, as you all know, i am now the second counselor in the young womens presidency. i have decided that along with my girls i am going to be doing personal progress, and work toward getting my medalion again. the program has changed twice since i was in young womens, so i'm really excited to do it too. i also think it will help get them motivated to do theirs, and it will motivate me too. its been a long time, since young womens for me. i was getting my medallion when my beehives were being born. it makes me feel old, haha. but it shows how much things have changed in the past 18 years. they have added a value (virtue) and also added the part that says "strengthen home and family" to the end.
the new theme reads:

this years theme for the youth is D&C 4:2

so we are focusing on service. i know that as we serve others we are serving God and as we serve with all our heart, might, mind, and strength, we will stand blameless before him at the last day. i do not want to be standing before my savior at the last day and have to tell him that i didnt do all that i could to serve his people and follow him. whether it be physical service, or missionary service etc...

my mother is an amazing example of serving others. she is constantly serving others. for example this past week my grandmother (her mother) who is in her 80s fell in the shower and broke her hip and my mom has been by her side through everything, she has been at the hospital for countless hours taking care of her and making sure she and my grandpa are alright. my gandma hd to have surgery and my mom was ther before she went in and she was there when she woke up. she took several days off work to be by her side, and this will go on for up to another month while she is in rehab. she takes care of both of them all the time anyways but even more right now. they live in assisted living and need rides to dr appts, company, etc. and she is always there.
another example is when i broke my foot a few years ago, i was 27 years old and my mother never left my side, she didnt just give me a ride to the dr and leave me there, she was at every drs appt. she was the last one i saw before the surgery and the first one i saw when i woke up. while i had pins in my foot i lived for a month at my parents house in their guest bedroom. and she took care of me, she took me to and from work, drs appts etc. and she always made sure that i was ok and was doing what the dr told me to do. she is one of the most aring human beings that have everlived on this earth, although it goes unappreciated a lot. i hope she knows that i appreciate all that she does and has ever done for me and for my family.
i hope that i can be the kind of person and mother that she is one day when i have children and a family (hpefully) I Love you MOM!!!!!! i hope you know that!

until next week!

what is the Atonement?

so, I've been seriously slacking on updating this thing! but i am doing it today. just to update you on some things in my life these last couple weeks.
last week was my first Sunday in the family ward. i am in the haven ward here in Las Vegas.
i got a calling before my records were even in the ward, which is great:) and its my favorite calling so far. i am the 2nd counselor in the young women's presidency, i absolutely love it! i cant say that enough. i am over the beehives (girls ages 12-13) they are adorable.
i was thinking the other day about the switch to the new ward, and i  thought to myself, "if you would've asked me 2 years ago if i would like going to the family ward, i would say HECK NO! but i have since changed my mind," people ask me why don't you go to the mid singles ward? and my answer is simply this, that i know that this is exactly where i need to be! and i where i want to be. i am over the whole feel of the singles ward. i will go to activities and such of course but i know that the haven ward is where i need to be.

anyways, today was my second Sunday in the ward and i already taught young women's. i taught on the atonement. it actually went really well. i think the girls enjoyed it and were able to get something out of it also. what is the atonement? well the bible dictionary says this...

Atonement

The word describes the setting “at one” of those who have been estranged and denotes the reconciliation of man to God. Sin is the cause of the estrangement, and therefore the purpose of atonement is to correct or overcome the consequences of sin. From the time of Adam to the death of Jesus Christ, true believers were instructed to offer animal sacrifices to the Lord. These sacrifices were symbolic of the forthcoming death of Jesus Christ and were done by faith in Him (Moses 5:5–8).

thought the atonement we have a way to return to our heavenly father, the atonement is the only way to get where we would like to be. it is a gift given to us with love to use to gain eternal life. through Christs atonement we will always have someone that knows  how we feel, we always have someone in our lives to turn to in our times of need.
in Alma chapter 7 verses 11-13 it talks about the reasons for the atonement, it reads:

11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

 12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.

 13 Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.

it gives me comfort knowing that my Savior loves me so much that he would bleed great drops of blood from every pore so that i would not need to suffer, so that he could succor ME, so that he would know how to help ME, so that I can return to my heavenly father. and because he loves ME! he loves ME so much that he would die for me! its hard to fathom that someone would love not only me but everyone that ever has or ever will live upon this earth. i feel like i would be sinning if i were to not use it. i feel like i would be disappointing my Heavenly Father and my Savior if i were to not use this incredible gift that has been given to all of us to use. 

as we come upon this Easter season may we remember our Savior and the love that he has for us, the love that he had for us when he walked into the garden to bleed great drops of blood for US! may we take upon us his name and stand as witnesses of him at ALL time and in ALL thing and in ALL places that we may stand blameless before God at the last day! 

i absolutely love the videos that the church puts out. here are the 2 that i used in my lesson today. one is a bible video that depicts the act of the atonement and the second is the testimony of Elder Holland about the atonement. they are both amazing and i hope that you enjoy them and feel the spirit and become more grateful for our Savior as you read this blog and watch these beautiful videos. 

apostles

hello everyone! i apologize for not posting last week. i was just handing out with some friends talking til late and didgt get a chance to post before bed. but tonight is going to be a good one. today was my last sunday in the singles ward. i start going to the family ward from now on. i have officiallt flunked out of the singles ward. haha im ready though. i think itll be good, it is time to close this chapter of my life and open a new one. who knows maybe the family ward is where i will meet my husband, you know all those people wanna set people up with other single people. it is a small world, especially in the church. anyways, on to the gospel part of this post. today was also my last lesson in gospel doctrine. it was a great one to teach too. i taught on luke 4, 5, and 6 and matthew 10. which is when Jesus confesses that he is the messiah, and then calls himself disciples and from those disciples he calls apostles. we talked about the responibilities of the apostles and how they are the same today as the ywere then. we also talked about the difference between disciples and apostles. a disciple is a "follower of Christ" and an apostle is someone who is called to be a "special witness of Christ" nothing has hcanged from the church that christ set up when he was on the earth to today with the latter-day church. the only thing that has changed is the people that are called to those positions. becasue lets face it people arent mortal forever!

here are some of the responsibilities of apostles according to Matthew chapter 10

1. a. 
   They have power to heal the spiritually and physically sick (verse 1).
2. b. 
   They are sent to the lost sheep of Israel to preach that the kingdom of heaven is at hand (verses 6–7).
3. c. 
   They are to use their priesthood power to bless and heal people (verse 8).
4. d. 
   They are to seek out those who are prepared to hear the gospel (verses 11–14).
5. e. 
   They are to teach as guided by the Spirit (verses 19–20).
6. f. 
   They are to give their lives entirely to the Savior’s work (verse 39).
7. where would we be without apostles? i mean they lead us and guide us more than we could ever imagine. you wanna know the role of an apostle watch this video by one of our own apostles David A Bednar 

until next week!

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