Christmas Talk

Okay so when your husband is in the bishopric you kind of assume that you will get asked to speak a little more than usual. He has been threatening to ask me for the past six months and I could not escape this Sunday. Actually I am glad that I accepted the call and searched the words of Isaiah.

My Christmas Talk, December 2009

In the days of Isaiah, Ahaz was king of Judah. The kings of Syria and Israel tried to persuade Ahaz to ally with them against Assyria, their neighboring superpower. The prophet Isaiah pleaded with Ahaz to trust the Lord for deliverance from the invading armies. The Lord extended a sign to Ahaz to demonstrate that the events surrounding the plot of Syria and Israel would occur precisely as Isaiah had prophesied. The sign, was to give Ahaz courage and faith to trust the prophets words that God's power was far greater than man's armies. The scripture says,
"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign;
"Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14

The name Immanuel means "God is with us" and indicates that God''s love, power, knowledge, grace and presence are with the righteous. The name also indicates that God himself came down from heaven and took upon himself mortality.
Ahaz rejected Isaiah's spiritual counsel and won the support from the king of Assyria. Because Ahaz rejected Isaiah's plan (God's plan), the armies of Syria and Israel invaded Judah slaying thousands of warriors and carried away two hundred thousand woman and children. Judah was slaughtered, in part because of the great sins of her king and her people.
This prophecy has direction application for us. Assyria is a type and symbol of the warring nations that exist in the latter days shortly before the second coming. If we accept the Lord's sign of Immanuel, if we accept Jesus Christ and his atonement we will be protected during the wars in the last days. The central message for us is to trust the Lord's words that comes through his prophets, rather than rely on the arm of the flesh.
Indeed we have every reason to trust in our Lord, in Isaiah 9:6 we read
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."
Which of us could be without a Wonderful Counsellor, an advisor or mediator and advocate with the Father?
Which of us could be without a Mighty God, a Jehovah that overcomes the nations and all forms of oppression?
Which of us could be without an Everlasting Father, the father of our eternal life?
Which of us could be without the Prince of Peace, a God of love and peace who eliminates war and contention and reigns over a peaceful kingdom?
The scripture goes onto say....
"Of the increase of his government and peace there is no end."
From the first presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles declaration, entitled "The Living Christ" we read
"As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth."
I testify to you Jesus Christ was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament. He was the babe born to a virgin, a pure and chosen vessel. He was the child born unto us...He was the Son given unto us. . . and of his peace there is no end.

Notes: Understanding Isaiah by Donald W. Parry, Jay A Parry & Tina M Peterson was my source of study and where I found many understandable concepts and phrase.. They really put this in everyday language.

Gardens

I heard an amazing talk last night at enrichment about Gardens. I wanted to hurry and post the talks here. I will write more later.

G. Michael Alder, “Earth—A Gift of Gladness,” Ensign, Jul 1991, 27

God has made us responsible for the earth and all living things. How well are we doing?

As I was reading the scriptures recently, my mind flashed back to a Sunday morning thirty-five years ago. I was ten years old at the time, walking home from church. The sun was breaking through the trees with those wondrous, slanted rays, backlighting leaves and turning their edges to gold. The fields beyond the trees were covered with color—lavender and pink. The delicate hue was suddenly everywhere. I was surrounded and stunned by the beauty. There was no one to share the experience with, but the Spirit whispered, and for the first time I sensed Heavenly Father’s love for me, expressed through his creations.

The verse that brought that memory to mind is in Doctrine and Covenants 59. There the Lord tells the Prophet Joseph that “all 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, … to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul.” The Lord goes on to tell us that he is pleased to give all these things for our benefit and use, but that they are to be used “with judgment, not to excess.” (D&C 59:18, 20; italics added.)

A recent awareness of man’s activities on earth came to me in the form of a report from a Boy Scout. He wrote this paragraph for his Environmental Science merit badge: “Although nature doesn’t have much of a chance against us humans, the mountains are still a place of beauty. There are laws that protect parks. Most people don’t care anyway. If we would ask ourselves if what we are doing would harm this mountain or that forest, maybe nature would have a better chance.”

The relevance of this simple message comes with repetitive impact these days as we read about the environmental damage caused by such man-made problems as acid rain, excessive carbon dioxide and other chemicals in the atmosphere, deforestation, and the pollution of our oceans, lakes, and streams.

Scientific American has noted that at the beginning of this century mankind did not have the power to radically alter the global environment. Today we have that power, and as a result, serious, mostly unintended changes are taking place in the air, water, and land around us. These changes outstrip our present ability to cope with them, largely because the world’s financial, social, and political systems are out of step with natural processes. (See Gro Harlem Brundtland, “How to Secure Our Common Future,” Scientific American, Sept. 1989, p. 190.)

At one time, there may have been reason to be skeptical about the idea that we are damaging the earth on a global scale. But no longer. The evidence is mounting that we are doing ourselves and our mortal home serious damage. An observatory on Mauna Loa in Hawaii far away from large industry has recorded a rate of 1.5 to 2 parts per million increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide since 1958. Similar observations were made at the South Pole. A continued increase in carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere, produced by our vast consumption of oil, coal, and other fossil fuels, appears to be responsible for a general increase in temperature worldwide. (See Sylvan H. Wittwer, “The Greenhouse Effect,” Carolina Biology 163:8.) That increase threatens possible major changes in climate around the world, potentially causing drought in some areas and greater rainfall in others.

Evidence for this global warming also comes from studies made by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which analyzed records going back to 1860. The studies showed that the greatest global temperature increase has taken place in the last decade. Carbon dioxide and trace gases produced by our industrial societies were considered to be the cause. (See R. A. Haughton and G. M. Woodwell, “Global Climatic Change,” Scientific American, April 1989, p. 37.)

Another consequence of our burning large amounts of fossil fuels has been a condition called acid rain. Forests, streams, and lakes have all been seriously damaged in regions where pollutants in the atmosphere are converted into mild acids that are brought back to earth through rain and snow. As the acid accumulates, it kills both plant and animal life.

At the same time, we are combining that indirect and largely unintended attack with a more direct attack: deforestation. As forests are cut in many parts of the earth, the effect they have on slowing global warming decreases, and the loss of animal and plant habitat increases.

In Doctrine and Covenants 104:17, the Lord said, “For the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things, and have given unto the children of men to be agents unto themselves.” [D&C 104:17] My impression on reading those words is that the Lord is an ample provider—but he did not plan that we waste the gifts he has given us. The scriptures make it clear that we have dominion over the earth, but they also make it clear what that dominion means: We are to care for our planetary home and use its resources wisely. It was never intended that we abuse it.

Unfortunately, it is the nature of most people that when they are given authority, they begin to exercise “unrighteous dominion.” (See D&C 121:39.) I confess that when I was a young man, my respect for God’s creations was not a high priority. My attitude was not much different from that of my friends. Together we used and abused nature as we felt inclined. Scouting introduced me to the concept of conservation, but somehow I was slow to abandon my “consumer mentality.”

Now, as a trained biologist and a member of a bishopric, I find my past behavior totally out of line with being a son of God. A disregard for the gifts of nature is an attitude contrary to the instructions given by our Father in Heaven. We all enjoy scenic vistas, wilderness experiences, or opportunities to commune with nature. Too often, however, wise dominion conflicts with convenience, and usually it is convenience that prevails.

However, restoration is possible, though in the case of the damage we are doing to our global environment, including the destruction of living species, restitution is very difficult if not impossible. After all, how do you restore a species once it is gone? Some measures must be truly global in scope, involving governments worldwide. But there are also steps we can take as individuals.

Every spring our stake high priests group spends a Saturday morning cleaning the roadsides in our neighborhood. It is hard to imagine the good that participating in that project has done for us all. The amount of trash collected always astounds us, and we come away from the experience sobered by the realization that even acts like littering can add up to big problems.

It is also sobering to recognize that in the support of our living here on earth, some life must be sacrificed. We all need to ponder that humbling fact. Whenever the United States Army Corps of Engineers draft plans that will disturb a habitat, they must also draft plans on how they will mitigate the effects of their activities. This means they have to reclaim, restore, or develop new habitats that are equal to those being destroyed. If we have to destroy life or the habitat of a species for any reason, we could try to adopt the same policy. Why not have a personal plan to mitigate our own destructiveness by building, adding back, or supporting life whenever we can?

Every year we hear about worthwhile projects that improve our environment. Why not make it a point to be less passive in the future and to participate more? As we do so, our understanding will grow, we will effect positive changes, and we will be humbled to see what it takes to successfully reclaim, restore, or beautify natural areas. Heavenly Father has already provided these processes naturally; we need but learn how to copy and use them.

I used to wonder why President Spencer W. Kimball admonished us so often to raise gardens. But as my gardening skills grew, I came to appreciate the wisdom of his counsel. Not only do we center that activity at or near our homes where the focus of our attention should be, but we learn much about the processes of nature. When we work with the soil and learn ways of producing food from the earth, we begin to understand the delicate balances in nature. This harmony is difficult to see if the only way we get our food is by visiting the supermarket.

Gardening also teaches us that life is fragile. It teaches us that all living things require food, water, space to grow, clean air to breathe, and protection from natural and man-made enemies in ways that God has established. This is true of both plants and animals. Pollution, erosion, waste, destruction of unique environments, careless use of resources, and uncontrolled “sport” killing destroy those creatures and the places in which they live.

Can Heavenly Father be any less pleased with this willful destruction of nature than when we break the Word of Wisdom? Certainly, if we are to become like him, we must begin to master the skills necessary to preserve and encourage the processes of life. It seems to me that part of our responsibility as caretakers for the earth is to learn about those processes and take advantage of opportunities to protect our world’s resources. Ecology and the natural sciences should be areas of interest for us all. (See D&C 88:79.)

These matters are vital. Apart from the fact that our personal safety is being increasingly endangered by the deterioration of our environment, we need to recognize that someday we will be asked to account for how we have managed our resources. What will our answer be when the Lord asks how we treated the earth—this gift he gave us gladly and which he asks us to use with gladness?

How You Can Help

Here are a few ideas you might consider in trying to take better care of the earth:

• Find ways to reduce unnecessary personal consumption of energy, water, wood products, and other products that come from scarce resources.

• Stop using products that damage the environment.

• Recycle metal, glass, plastic, and paper products.

• Be conscientious in disposing of chemical wastes properly.

• Learn more about natural processes and earth science.

• Cultivate a garden where possible; learn the art and science of composting.

• Adopt a conservation rather than a consumption attitude.

• Be grateful.

Dennis Rasmussen, “Three Gardens,” New Era, Apr 1972, 14

“… I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

“And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.” (John 11:25–26.)

We celebrate this month the anniversary of what one writer has called the strangest story in the world. No matter how familiar we are with this story, it still remains infinitely above our understanding. It is more wonderful than any dream. It is unlike any other account. And yet it is true.

Because the story is true, the children of Adam shall live forever. Grasping this truth, man can hope for limitless, joyful tomorrows.

“He is not here, for he is risen.” (Matt. 28:6.) These words announced the most significant victory ever to be won in the history of man: a victory of God and man over death and sin. It was a victory for God because his power won it. It was a victory for man because Jesus, subject to all the temptations of mankind, proved that man can live above sin. Our Savior, being both Son of God and son of man, at great personal cost and personal valor, finally secured the field so that mankind could be redeemed. Our Redeemer, in awful loneliness, transformed longing into reality and plan into achievement as he walked the road toward a battle that he alone could fight.

Along that road there were three gardens—gardens that symbolize the great events in the plan. In the beginning God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and he placed there the parents of the human family. We are told that God walked in that garden in the cool of the evening, blessing the earth with his presence. Then, through his free choice, man left this garden, never to return, and entered a world of suffering, sin, and death. God withdrew his personal presence and man was left to walk by faith and the Spirit in a hostile world, in a world that was now enemy-occupied territory, for everywhere was found the influence of the adversary, the prince of this world.

Thus man began his long journey through mortality, made bearable by simple moments of hope, companionship, beauty, love, family closeness, and earth-oriented goal achievements. As he ventured further and further from the garden, the awareness of his true condition settled over him like a dark cloud. This was a world of time where everything would soon pass away. Youth, physical beauty, even life—all would one day be gone. Man, a little lower than the angels, knew that at the end of all his most cherished dreams and associations was a grave and a few spadefuls of earth.

His ideals never seemed quite within his grasp. Always there was a dark and sinister force trying to pull him down, tempting him with strange, unholy thoughts and deeds.

“I have seen,” says the writer of Ecclesiastes, “all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

“That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.” (Eccl. 1:14–15.)

Yet beside this cry of despair there was another voice, the voice of a small, politically insignificant people claiming that beyond all hope and from beyond the world, help would come. “For I know that my redeemer liveth,” cried Job, “and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.” (Job 19:25.) Could such a thing be believed?

In a small province of the Imperial Roman Empire, an aged man, Simeon, first believed, and then knew beyond doubt: “And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.

“And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

“And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,

“Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

“Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:

“For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,

“Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people.” (Luke 2:25–31.)

At some time in our Savior’s own earthly youth, he knew what he would do when grown. He came to know that he was the person prepared from before the foundation of the world to be offered as a lamb in sacrifice. His life, by its very nature, was to carry him toward a grim rendezvous with the prince of darkness. And long before that crisis came, his face was set toward Jerusalem and toward a garden called Gethsemane. There he would meet his adversary. There all things would hang in balance, awaiting the outcome.

As the duel began that night, his seconds fell asleep. In terrible loneliness he stepped off the brink of earthly support and plummeted downward in his spirits, grappling with his foe and his duty of love until, in a way unknown to us, he had plumbed to infinity the wages of human sin and suffering. And then he rose. He had carried with him the whole of the world’s weakness into a garden and a night; now he must bear it up a hill toward day.

As he hung on the cross, he experienced that which was essential to his victory and yet almost too much to bear. His feeling was beyond words as he pleaded, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” [Matt. 27:46] The sustaining power of heaven had been withdrawn. The face of his Father had turned away and he was left unto himself that the awful battle could be his alone—to win—or lose. From the purity and love and power of his own soul he drew his measure of strength, and (as it appears) breaking his heart, fulfilled his quest. “It is finished,” said the Savior, and then he died.

The power of sin passed away in that moment. The victory of love had been won. The Son of God had ransomed his Father’s children paying a price of suffering none of us really understand.

Then, on the third day, friends of the Christ, coming at daybreak to the place of his burial.,found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. To Mary, lingering in confusion and grief before the abandoned tomb, it was given to behold the risen Christ—walking again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but the dawn.

Alma 5:1-15

I am studying Alma 5 and looking at what the YW new value virtue suggests, and that is to study this chapter and ask yourself the questions that Alma asks.

He starts out in verse 6 saying, " have you sufficiently retained in ^aremembrance the captivity of your fathers? Yea, and have you sufficiently retained in remembrance his mercy and long-suffering towards them? And moreover, have ye sufficiently retained in remembrance that he has ^bdelivered their souls from hell?"

To me this means do I appreciate and value enough what others have done so that I can and do have the blessings in my life that I so enjoy. Do I really value and appreciate the sacrifice of the saints so that I can have the gospel in my life. Do I really value and appreciate the sacrifice of my parents to teach me, to put me in many extra curricular activities, to send me to college and to pay for me to go to college, and the value that they put on education so that I would study hard and have a desire, which they planted within me, to go to college and get my degree? And then do I remember all that the Lord has done for so many. The scriptures are there to teach me what He has done. Do I study them enough, do I value them enough?

Verses 14 and 15 are so insightful, " have ye ^aspiritually been ^bborn of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this mighty ^cchange in your hearts?

15 Do ye exercise faith in the redemption of him who ^acreated you? Do you look forward with an eye of faith, and view this mortal body raised in immortality, and this corruption ^braised in incorruption, to stand before God to be ^cjudged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body?"

I love the question of do you exercise faith in the redemption of the Savior. I think about that a lot. I think faith is more than believing and having a testimony. Faith is also a belief that the Lord will help you daily. My good friend pointed out to me today that we are helped when we are trying to do good things. I think it is so true. He knows what we need and oft times helps us without our asking.

I want to read more in Alma 5. I will have to do so another day.

Virtue

I studied several different talks today. I started with a BYU devotional address the President Hunter gave many years ago, called "An Anchor to the Souls of Men." It was a great talk that really focused on the importance of not being fearful despite the world around us. Interesting that this talk was given in 1992 or 1993, and now here we are 16 years later, and I think the world has gone farther away from the truths that we know. His council is so applicable. As members of the church we need not fear. We should go forward and prepare for tomorrow, because there is much good in the church.
I then went on to read the Young Women session of conference. It ws such an inspiring session. I loved the following quote about 3 things that the YW general presidency would like the young women to set as daily goals;

"First, pray to your Father in Heaven, morning and night, every day.

Second, read the Book of Mormon for at least five minutes every day.

And third, smile! Why? We have the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, which brings us true happiness."

I love the last part. We should smile and be happy because we do have the gospel, we do know the truths and we do know that everything will work out and work out for our good. What a great reminder to smile everyday!

Here is another quote I really enjoyed:

"We must know and realize that, just as Winston Churchill said in a critical hour during World War II, “to every man [and young woman] there comes . . . that special moment when [they are] figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a special thing unique to [them]. . . . What a tragedy if that moment finds [them] unprepared or unqualified for [that] which [could have been their] finest hour” (see Jeffrey R. Holland, “Sanctify Yourselves,” Liahona, Jan. 2001, 49; Ensign, Nov. 2000, 40). This is a critical time. You are being tapped on the shoulder. You are preparing now for that work which will be your finest hour. You are preparing for eternity."

I have another quote on my refridgerator that says, "We must work at our responsibility as parents as if everything in life counted on it, because in fact everything in life does count on it. “If we fail in our homes, we fail in our lives." This is a great reminder to me of the great importance of the role that I have as a mother.

President Monson gave three great ways that the Young Women should have courage toady. They are;

• First, the courage to refrain from judging others;
• Second, the courage to be chaste and virtuous; and
• Third, the courage to stand firm for truth and righteousness.

These are all great. He then shared one of my favorite quotes by Mother Teresa, one of my personal heroes. She said, “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” How true that is. I know the truthfulness of this and the importance of truly loving others. I am striving to have as a goal to not speak ill of others no matter what. He also says, "True love can alter human lives and change human nature." One person can make a difference in so many lives. I have seen so many women who make all that are around them better. I want to be like that. I want to be the best servant of the Lord that I can be.

Finally, there was one more quote from this session. It was Sister Dibb who said the following, "Thinking back to when I was a young woman, I recognize that I did not understand the magnitude of what was happening in my life. I did not realize that my participation in each and every Church activity was helping me develop a lifelong pattern and commitment to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. I didn’t understand that I was being prepared for my future life as an individual, a wife, a mother, and a leader. I didn’t understand that as I tried to choose the right, I was honoring my baptismal covenants, exercising faith, increasing my virtue, and preparing to go to the temple. I couldn’t see all of this then, but in very small, increental steps, I was becoming a believer—and “an example of the believers.”

I love this quote. It truly is the daily small and simple things that make us who we are. I want to refocus to becoming more like my Savior and doing the simple things like smiling to live my life the way that He would have me too.

The ministry of Angels

I have been listening to Elder Holland's talk from last conference on the ministry of angels. I am struck by so many of his thoughts. No matter how many times, I listen to a talk, I pick up something different every time. I can remember the following thoughts. I love this first quote,

"I ask everyone within the sound of my voice to take heart, be filled with faith, and remember the Lord has said He “would fight [our] battles, [our] children’s battles, and [the battles of our] children’s children.”¹⁰ And what do we do to merit such a defense? We are to “search diligently, pray always, and be believing[. Then] all things shall work together for [our] good, if [we] walk uprightly and remember the covenant wherewith [we] have covenanted.”¹¹ The latter days are not a time to fear and tremble. They are a time to be believing and remember our covenants."

This whole talk is amazing, but I just love those words. We only have to search diligently, pray always, and be believing. Then, he will cause that all things will work together for our good. He will send angels to minister and help us.

I was reading earlier this week and found some scriptures that I hadn't thought in that way before. In Alma 34:31, it reads, "of ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you." I was struck by the word immediately. How often so we hear that word in the scriptures? How often does the Lord make such a promise. In a world where everyone is so instantaneous and the gospel is about the long term and working towards a goal, the word immediately caught my attention. Verses 33 and 34 of this chapter go on to talk about how we have to improve our station in this life, that there is no time to procrastinate. I have always loved the thoughts in 34 that say that we are the same person in the next life as we are now. We will not wake up and be a different person.

In Saturday's Young Women's conference, a good friend of mine quoted the following:

Sister Dalton quoted Winston Churchill as saying the following:

"To every Young Woman there comes a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered a choice to do a very special thing unique to them. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour." Sister Dalton added: This is a critical time. You are being tapped on the shoulder. You are preparing now for that work which will be your finest hour. You are preparing for eternity."

What a great reminder that we must do our best everyday. We cannot wait for the end to be good. We must try hard and rely on the Savior to do our best today. I see the great blessings in our lives at times when I know that Drew and I were trying to do our best. I would hate to have passed those great blessings by. I hope that I can always strive to be on the right path, so that I can return to my Father in Heaven.

Alma 5

So what does Mickey Mouse have to do with studying the scriptures? Mickey Mouse is looking in the mirror to paint his creator. How many of us can look in the mirror and paint our creator?
Alma 5:14,16,19,26 reads "And now behold, I ask of you my brethern of the church, have ye spiritually been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenace? Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts? " "..can you imagine to yourselves that ye hear the voice of the Lord, saying unto you, in that day: Come unto me ye blessed for behold, your works have been the works of righteousness upon the face of the earth?" "can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?" "if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?"

I have always loved these scriptures. I have always looked foreward to the second coming. I loved the song "His Image in your countenance" as a youth.

I really enjoyed ELder Bednar's talk on Clean Hands and a Pure Heart in Oct 2007. He talked about how we can attain these two things and said that we can have clean hands and not a pure heart.

He said, "Let me suggest that hands are made clean through the process of putting off the natural man and by overcoming sin and the evil influences in our lives through the Savior’s Atonement. Hearts are purified as we receive His strengthening power to do good and become better. All of our worthy desires and good works, as necessary as they are, can never produce clean hands and a pure heart. It is the Atonement of Jesus Christ that provides both a cleansing and redeeming power that helps us to overcome sin and a sanctifying and strengthening power that helps us to become better than we ever could by relying only upon our own strength. The infinite Atonement is for both the sinner and for the saint in each of us. "

As we were going to the temple last Friday, I was talking with my good friend about so many things in the gospel and she recounted to me something she remembered from a talk. I wish I could remember who gave it. The important factor was that the most important thing was that we were on the right path. It isn't as important how far we are on the path, but that we are in the right direction. That being said, we recieve different blessings when we strive harder to stay on the path and move farther to being closer to our Father in Heaven.

The older I get, the more I realize how dependant I am upon the Lord. I can do all things through Him. I have to let things go and strive to have my will aligned more with His. When I do that, I am happier, more fulfilled and I get so much more done. It isn't always easy, but it is so worth it.