spiritual sunday- We are as the army of Heleman

(Via my journal on September 12)

           "What I want to talk about a little is the 2,000 stripling warriors. I was just imagining what it would be like to be one of the Nephites who fought along side them, what it would be like to see the miracles of not one of them being killed and the incredible strength of their faith. I think I would have believed that I could be delivered as they were delivered because they did not doubt. I think I would have tried to follow their example and not doubt but be saved. Thinking these things made me think of the war that I fight every day. The war against Satan, against sin and temptation. I can follow the example of the stripling warriors even though I do not fight along side them. I like how Heleman calls them his sons and then tells his actual sons to be like them in Heleman 5:12 'And now my sons, remember, remember, that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundations; that when the devil shall send forth His mighty winds yea, His shafts in the whirlwind, yea when all His hail and His mighty storms shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if me build they cannot fail.' Truly the 2,000 stripling warriors lived this principle and they never fell and so must we in our personal war against sin."

Hopefully you found something worth while in this post. I know that hard times will come and we must be faithful in order to have the protection we need to be delivered. Amen.

Ramble away the day

Ramblings of late:

I have this awkward habit of ripping out my eyebrows. I don't know what it means, hopefully I don't create awful bald spots in the near future.

Usually, at the start of a new season I like to post about what I'm excited about and what I'm dreading but I'm afraid I can't do that this season. The reason is, there simply are no cons to fall. Thats all. I can't think of anything wrong with it at all. 

I have a stalker. It's fine. Actually a few stalkers who are really obvious but think I don't know. Word to the wise, if you plan on stalking someone, don't do it in packs. Just saying. 

My math teacher seems to believe that PG kids are a little on the slow side. Well at least he did until all the best scores on his most recent test were PG kids. That's right KP, chew on that.

I was recently asked if I would rather swallow a fly or a caterpillar. I chose a caterpillar because I read somewhere that if you swallow a fly you have to go on to swallow a spider to catch the fly and that spider wriggles and jiggles and wriggles inside you. Plus then you have to go on to swallow a bird and a cat and a dog and it just seems like a lot of work. Perhaps I'd die!

In case you're some reader who actually cares when I don't post things I usually post, I promise I had a spiritual sunday planed, it just got delayed. Very very delayed so I'll have it for you tomorrow deal?

Anyways, happy fall kids, watch out for flies...

Birthday Girl

Happy Birthday to my awesome friend Emily

Seriously one of my favorite people out there. 

Thank you for putting up with me even when I'm grumpy 

And helping me to see the good in everything. 

My life would suck without you.

Holler it's highschool.

Everyday is sort of hard.

But I have been blessed by an array of tender mercies.

-Khanacademy.org the only thing keeping me sane in chemistry.

-Gilligan's island. Only the best thing to happen to TV since color. Actually, it happened before color.

-Dance Academy. Not to be confused with kahn academy. I hate the main character, yet can't stop watching it. 

-Drop Dead Gorgeous. By April Smith. Basically the funniest song I've ever heard.

-Seminary. The best part of my B days and the best part of each week.

-Keeley Doyle. Who reminds me constantly that life isn't that hard when you are around people who lift you up.

Spiritual Sunday: Giving away our burdens.

 Spiritual Sunday today is about being comforted. During summer seminary I had a lesson about Ammon, King Lamoni, and King Lamoni's father. The thing I love about this story is the subtle change in what King Lamoni's father finds important. In Alma 20:23, the king offers up to half of his kingdom to Ammon in exchange for his life. Then as he feels the spirit and desires to learn the gospel he offers to Aaron, Ammon's brother, all of his kingdom to receive the joy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. What does any of this have to do with being comforted? Hold on. 

         My favorite part of this whole idea of what the king will come up comes in Alma 22:18

"If thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee," Sometimes this is the hardest thing for us to give away. The great thing about King Lamoni's father was all he was willing to give away, so what are we willing to give away to know the Lord?

         May I make a suggestion? Maybe one of the most important things to give away are our burdens, our afflictions and our trials. "Come cast thy burden on the Lord and bear a song away." I get it, life is hard. Life is really really hard. There is so much that gets in our way, so much that tears us down. There is insecurity and doubt and pain. So may we, more often, turn to the Lord with our burdens and give them to Him. 

     "Let your hearts be comforted... Be still and know that I am God."

You're just my best friend.

Highschool's a hard time.

When I feel as though I am the second choice of so many. 

And the last choice of some too. 

When I feel as though friendships are dropping like flies. 

I am so grateful for my brother.

Who is my best friend.

Who tells me that he would punch anyone who looked at me wrong.

And asks me for advice on what shoes he should wear.

Who lets me pick whatever I want to listen to on the radio.
And is my best friend.

Feliz cumpleaños

I know I've been sharing a lot of birthdays on this little blog, but I just want to put it out there that I love and value these people so highly. Happy Birthday to my beautiful sister, she is the best example to me and to all who meet her. 

Mi Mama

Happy Birthday to the best mama in the world. 

I don't have the words to describe how grateful I am for you. 

Spiritual Sunday-the Future is as Bright as Your Faith

I Nephi 4:6

"And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do."

This spiritual sunday post is going to be about faith. But not just any faith, faith for the future.

Hymns 153 reads "In the innocence of youth, we would all thy laws fulfill. Lead us in the way of truth, give us strength to do thy will."

There seems to be so much uncertainty around me. People wondering about their future, planning their future, changing their plans. It's very hard for me to think of what I want to be when I grow up. All I know is I want to make a difference of some kind to a world that seems so lost, I want to be a light. 

Today while reading the New Era I came across that scripture 1 Nephi 4:6. I realized then that I did not need to know my future, I just needed to follow the Spirit. "Heavenly Father has great trust and confidence in you and has and important mission for you to fulfill. He will help you as you turn to Him in prayer, listen for the promptings of the Spirit, obey the commandments, and keep the covenants that you have made." -Fulfilling Your Duty to God.

I know that His grace is sufficient to make more out of my life than I can ever dream to make out of it. All i can do is try and prepare for the future, by following His commandments and trying to better love and serve others. If I have faith in Him, I know that my future will be bright. 

"All our follies, Lord forgive. Keep us from temptations free. Help us ever more to live lives of holiness to thee." (Hymns 153)

Amen.