He is Alwas Here

With everything that is going on in the world (violence due to the forces of nature, and of men,) it
seems the chaos surrounding us is growing steadily and is showing no signs of stopping nor turning back. As humans, we seem to continually react to these changing earthly dynamics in different ways:
*Some sink into sorrow, despair and hopelessness.
*Some see the signs for what they are and turn their hearts to God.
*Some refuse to see the signs for what they are and choose instead to live as if all is well.
*Some choose to sink further into evil, fueled by the darkness, unfeeling and uncaring, following after the lusts of their own hearts.

Regardless, each of those reactions are just more signs of the times - signs that testify of the fast-approaching return of the Savior.
I pray that the faithful can hold fast to the knowledge that until the day comes when He appears in glory, He is still here NOW.

Only the Gospel

Contrary to popular belief (and no amount of positive thinking will change the fact,) all is not well in

Zion. This is something we must face. However, within the scriptures, we will find much comfort in the promises of the Lord to His people.
Over the past week, I have been pondering the Lord's beautiful intercessory prayer found in in John 17. I find comfort in knowing that His prayer was not just for the disciples of old but for His disciples today as well. All who follow Christ and proclaim His gospel are His disciples.
I encourage you to take the time to read the Lord's intercessory prayer this week. I am so grateful for the love that prompted His prayer and how much His words have strengthened me right when I needed it.

Holding Fast to Faith

How I love my Heavenly Father and my Savior! And how grateful I am to know that as long as I
place all my energy into becoming one with Them, there is nothing I cannot get through.
And so it is with all of us.
Happy Sabbath! :-)

What Matters Most to Me

For my birthday, my family gave me a birthday/belated Mother's Day gift and I became teary as soon
as I saw it. It is a charcoal drawn portrait of the Savior and I embracing. I have seen drawings and paintings like that done, but it has always been when I've attended the viewing of a friend or acquaintance. One day I said, "I would love to have a picture like that done, but I want it done while I am alive and can enjoy it instead of after I'm gone. I want to be able to look at it and dream of the day I can be embraced by my Savior." Well, a sweet daughter-in-law was listening and coordinated with everyone else to have it done. And now, I have this priceless gift in my home to help keep my heart and my thoughts focused on eternal things, the things of Heaven.

They are having another portrait done and I'm excited about it as well. I try to surround myself with things of God because I never want to forget from where my blessings come and to Whom I can always look for safety and shelter in the times to come.

No Greater Love

Today in Relief Society, the lesson was a discussion on ways we have been affected or changed by
love in our individual lives. I enjoyed hearing the various experiences shared by the sisters, and there were many thoughts and feelings spoken.
I too have been changed by the power of love throughout my life through countless experiences, but each and every one of those teaching moments - both the bitter and the sweet - were covered by an even greater love than my finite mind could comprehend. And THAT is the love that has changed me more than anything else. It has changed my heart, my mind, my spirit, my entire being. It is a love beyond all love, a bond beyond all other bonds. It is sacred, it is eternal, it is EVERYTHING.
It is only in and through the complete love of God and His Son, and becoming one with Them, that we receive tender mercies and divine guidance to overcome all things and endure to the end in righteousness.

Marching into Life's Battles

Someone else posted this meme a while back and it has become one of my favorites.
Many times in the past, the trials of life have felt like a huge weight that I didn't think I could carry another step. And the constant war that Satan and his minions are waging really took a toll on my spirit from time to time, so much so that it was hard to spiritually prepare myself for the work the Lord has for me. It is this way for most of us.
I don't feel that way anymore.
I don't feel that way because I finally learned that I MUST - I absolutely MUST - shift the weight of those trials over to the Savior, and when I do, not only does He shoulder them, He fights the battles for me, and the Father leaves the Holy Ghost and His angels as backup.
We can't ask for more protection than that.

Answering the Call

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: ~John 10:27

I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare  a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. ~1 Nephi 3:7

My heart's new motto is, "I will go and do," because I have witnessed God's plans in action. And even though there have been times when I've stepped back and thought, "Lord, what in the world are you doing?" He always makes a way for us to accomplish what He commands, and His plans for me and my house are rolling forth in His way and in His time, not ours. All we have done - and will continue to do - is hold on for the ride and try to prepare ourselves for whatever He has in store.

This new chapter in our lives was most unexpected and bittersweet, but we are ready to move forward into the great unknown, be the Lord's hands, and  do whatever He asks of us. These are trying times, but they are also exciting times, and it is a great time to be alive on this earth! The Lord's love is still here in abundance despite the chaos surrounding us, and it is ours for the taking.
May we all stretch forth our hands and accept His mighty offering!
Happy Sabbath!