Monday, November 26, 2012

Happiness is Anyone and Anything At All

  Happiness is gratitude. Needless to say, this weekend was fantastic! Besides Easter and then Christmas, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite Holidays. What better day than the one where you are surrounded by people you love and eat tons of amazing food and being reminded of how many blessings you have in life?! The answer is there is none. On Thanksgiving everyone got on me cause I banned saying thankful for family and the gospel. But here is the thing: Those are the two most outstanding things that I am thankful for and I know everyone there was thankful for as well. I like hearing the little things people are thankful for. Family and the gospel are the two most consistent things in my life and my rock and foundation. They are the things I am most thankful for everyday. I see Thanksgiving as a day to not only recognize those things, but what the past year has brought and the blessings I have been given.
   So here goes what else I am thankful for this past year-well at least a little bit of the things:
1. The opportunity to further my education
2. My major: Anthropology.
3. My desire to learn
4. The trials I have gone through this year
5. The testimony I have gained and strengthened
6. Tithing
7. Fasting
8. My Health
9. Doctors
10. My wonderful job and that family!
11. Living on Campus
12. My amazing roommates!
13. Netflix
14. Blogging
15. The people who have influenced my life this year and been there to help me grow and push me to be the best version of myself
16. A new, reliable car
17. The relationships I am gaining with my family
18. The ever growing relationship I have with my Father in Heaven
19. The influence and comfort the scriptures have and my patriarchal blessing
20. The talents I have
21. Friends getting the opportunity to serve missions
22. General Conference and General Authorities
23. Instagram
24. I got to see my baby nephew boys this summer...and my sister and brother!
25. I saw my best friend for the first time since she moved!
26. Halloween decorations in my dorm
27. Dermatologist
28. Really good music:)
29. Quotes
30. Odwalla Drinks

So like I said, those are just a few of the other things besides my family and the gospel I am thankful for this year, granted some aspects of family and gospel were in there!

I also had the opportunity to sing for my friends mission farewell yesterday. Most of the time, I can get through a song without crying. But sometimes I really listen to the words I am singing. So if you need a good boost to get you through the day and remind you how much you are loved, check out this beautiful hymn - "I Know That My Redeemer Lives".

So this weekend for Thanksgiving my family and I and two of my friends went to a cabin in Maggie Valley just past Asheville. It was gorgeous!! We drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway, went shooting, ate tons of food, sat in the hot tub, played card games, and visited funky little stores! Here are just a few of my favorite pictures from the weekend!
Hope everyone had a fantastic Holiday! And Good Luck with Finals!

View from the Porch!

Me and Soph Soph

Photobomb turned one of favorite pictures

Blue Ridge Parkway!


Sunday, November 4, 2012

What A Wonderful Weekend!

     This title has too many W's.
     First off, I want to apologize to anyone I offended with my last blog post. I have very strong beliefs and realize that other people have their own as well and may not coincide with mine. I respect everyone's opinion and love to learn about their beliefs, so please share yours with me and why you believe that! Part of being an anthropology major is not only just learning what people believe and do and how they act, but why . So throw it at me!!
     Second, I have so much to say right now. Literally so many thoughts have come through my head this weekend and I have been amazed at what the gospel teaches us and how I have seen it in my life. It started off at the Raleigh Stake YSA conference where the theme was "Come As You Are" (not only the Nirvana song that was stuck in my head all weekend, guys). Right off the bat I thought of Christ's plea to "Come unto Me". He goes on to say everyone come to Him. Everyone. Those who think they are having a great time in life so far and those who are not. Everyone is invited to partake of His blessings that he WANTS to give! This is going to be a jump ahead, but I talked to someone tonight who went to the temple today and she said "The more I looked at the temple yesterday, the more I was struck with how unworthy we all are to go inside and do what we do and make covenants with Him, yet He wants us to go so bad so He can give us those blessings." I'd like to add even though He knows we are imperfect. So that was the "Come" part. The "As You Are" part was what else I focused on this weekend. Who am I right now? Who do I want to be? Who do I want to become? And HOW do I get there? First off, one speaker made me realize that I need to stop being my own worst enemy. I need to stop bringing myself down and realize how much the Lord see's in me. I can do whatever I put my mind to as long as I keep the Lord in front and beside me every step of the way. I wish I could post all the notes from this weekend!!
     Another one of my favorite things was the last presentation on Saturday. The couple presenting had us think of a moment or a day that meant something to us and why and how it shaped us. We then got into groups and discussed and shared. I was so struck after reflecting on my own and listening to the others in my group on just how strong we all are. We are all made for our trials. We are designed to overcome anything we are put to. As I sat back and looked at everyone, I wondered just what they have all been through. All around my same age, but so very different and unique and as unique as we all are, the Lord loves each and every one of us and has such a divine purpose and mission for each. We all have very important missions in life. Tonight there was a CES broadcast for the YSA as well and guess what the topic was? Basically just the same thing we talked about this weekend and more of the how to all of it. This weekend was one that I needed more so so that I can focus on how I can serve others and see the beauty in them and how Christ see's them. He didn't see them as weird or freaky or odd, but saw them as beautiful and perfect. I just hope I can become better at seeing people through God's eyes and be better at serving all of His children!
      Now that the spiritual side has been talked about-OH! I'm reading "The Miracle of Forgiveness" by Spencer W. Kimball right now-SO GOOD. And I just want to sit and read it all day:) I recommend it and I'm not even done.
     Anyways I made tons of good friends this weekend and had a blast BecUAE I WAS NHHAYLEY-from Hayley. But that's pretty much been life in a nutshell! Those thoughts and school. Which will be over in four weeks and then one more semester and I'm halfway through college and then soon I will be all the way done with college and have to do something with my life and I'm about to have a midlife crisis bye!

Thursday, November 1, 2012

It Just Makes Sense

    I should be studying for my Archaeology test right now, but I decided to start studying off by reading a talk from this Octobers General Conference. I stated it before in a previous post, but for those of you reading for the first time or just need a refresher, LDS (Mormon) believe in modern day revelation and prophets on the earth like back in the times of the Bible. We have a prophet on the earth today named Thomas Monson and he leads the church through revelation from God. Twice a year we have General Conference, where he speaks to us as well as some other members of the church who are ordained as apostles and other authorities over the church (Read what they said in October here!).
     That being said, I was reading a talk by Elder Russel M. Nelson, one of the Twelve Apostles today, titled "Ask the Missionaries! They Can Help You!" (which you can read here). I have always known this church is the true church of God and has the full gospel, but reading this talk just made so much sense to me of the mission of the church and what we believe. It's not a new idea to me, as I have grown up in this church and experienced it's truths and felt the power of it in my own life before, but the way he says it is so clear and simple. He said:

"The true name of the Church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the reestablished original Church of Jesus Christ. When He walked upon the earth, He organized His Church. He called Apostles, Seventies, and other leaders to whom He gave priesthood authority to act in His name.3 After Christ and His Apostles passed away, men changed the ordinances and doctrine. The original Church and the priesthood were lost. After the Dark Ages, and under the direction of Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ brought back His Church. Now it lives again, restored and functioning under His divine direction."


      Wouldn't it make sense for the true church of God today to be just like the church He created back when Christ was on the church? With a prophet, apostles, the same doctrine? I think so. I believe that to be considered the only true church of God, you must have prophets and apostles called of God. And guess what? The LDS church does! I was so blessed and so lucky to be born into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I didn't have to search. I didn't have to be conflicted between what different messages church's of the same faith say about the Bible. Because the Lord's true church has all the answers and it is the same throughout every country it is on. He has made it so clear to us, not only through the prophets, but through the Book of Mormon. Please don't trash talk that wonderful book if you have not even read it. It's like saying you don't like a food when you haven't tried it. How do you know if you won't try? How do you know what Mormon's believe if you don't ask? If you don't look to the proper people for guidance in what they truly believe. We won't all try to convert you-that's something you do of your own will and desire. But we want you to know what we believe so it's not so misconstrued out in this crazy world. Go to www.lds.org or www.mormon.org if you want the true knowledge and answers about our church. Find your local LDS missionaries if you really want to know what we believe. Better yet, actually visit one of our churches (you can find the location and times of the one nearest you through lds.org)! Talk to the people there. Actually get to know us. Don't assume. Keep and Open Mind and Heart.
     Have you ever wondered why other church's don't have a prophet or apostles like back in Christ's time? And they don't have the priesthood? Yet they claim to follow all of His teachings? I believe that Christ intended for us to have prophets and apostles because times do change, but one thing is for certain is that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So shouldn't His teachings and His church be the same yesterday, today, and forever?

"For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith." -2 Nephi 27:23 (Book of Mormon)

      I have such a strong testimony that this is the true church of God. That His son, Jesus Christ, came to the earth to show us the way to live our lives, to establish a church with everything we need, and to suffer for all of our sins-physically, emotionally, and mentally-so that we can live with Him and our families once again in the highest degree of glory. I know that we have a living prophet today that is here to help us remember the things Christ taught us, so we can all strive to be perfect like He is. I know that after Christ died for our sins, He showed Himself to the people on the other Continents, the "others who are not of this fold" ( John 10:16), and they saw his pierced hands and feet and sides. They established His church as well. They were blessed by Him and taught by Him. It was all recorded in what is now the Book of Mormon. I cannot think of a better way to surround my life than with His love and His guidance. So please, take a moment and actually look at what the Mormon's believe. We are Christians. Life is an ongoing process and we can all learn to be a little kinder, show more compassion and love, and learn to be better people. That's really what God's church teaches.