Be Still!

Alarms rings at 6:00...the first sound of a busy day. Scarf down breakfast before you drop of the kids and head to work. Backseat drama, somebody breathed on somebody. Bye kids! Remember who you are and what you stand for! Deadline at work—a lot of pressure with your new position—probably staying late. Can't forget to buy the wedding gift for your cousin and gas the car. Dinner: definitely a Hamburger Helper night! Try to get the kids gathered around the table, ipod and DS free. Friend calls, going through a rough time and needs a listener. Jake just threw up. Sorry honey, I guess we'll try to go on our date next week! 12:35am your oldest finally creeps in the door. After a mild scolding you crawl into bed. Can hardly....keep...eyes...open.
Right as you are about to drift you remember....I forgot to pray! After a quick pep talk you lift the covers and crawl down on your knees.
You thank God for your blessings, you tell him about your day, you tell him your worried about Melanie's grades and that you don't see your spouse enough. Now your mind is racing 1,000 mph. Then you sigh, I just can't do it all. Am I doing enough? Am I doing too much? Can you hear me?

"BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD"
He whispers.

You are still. His Spirit enters into your heart. You feel Him near.
We live busy lives and we are pulled in a million different directions, but we NEVER have to do anything ALONE. God is always there, reaching out to us. As we take those moments and be still, He will give us the peace and direction we need to carry on. Just be still. God is there for you!

Worth of a Soul = Priceless

After a hard day of work and school, my dad and I used to plop in front of the TV and turn on Antiques Roadshow. Love it…people come from all over, bringing their treasures. From rare gem heirlooms, handcrafted dressers, and hand painted china, to old combs, pictures, and stamps. They all come for one thing...to put a price on an object they think to be of great worth.

Most objects are well kept and preserved as an item of great value, like a necklace passed down from their great-great grandma. It is kept polished and clean, and proudly displayed. Other objects may be a stumbled on treasure from cleaning a stuffy, cobwebbed attic, like an old wooden chair. It’s old and has been fixed, which may lessen its value. The owners wait in line until finally, their possession, how greatly loved or undervalued, is assessed.

We are all different, coming from various places, backgrounds, personalities, opinions....we may feel loved, or perhaps forgotten like that old chair in someone’s attic. We might be weather worn or need to be fixed. But I know that no matter who you are, YOU are of great worth, in fact, PRICELESS.

“God does not look on the outward appearance. I believe that He doesn’t care one bit if we live in a castle or a cottage, if we are handsome or homely, if we are famous or forgotten. Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly.”
--Dieter F. Uchtdorf
There is no way to evaluate our worth, because God's love for us is without price. That is worth more than all the rare gems and heirlooms combined. I know He sees us as we truly are: divine sons and daughters of God. So the next time you feel old, lost, or of little value, remember the worth of your soul = priceless.

To Be, or Not to Be?

“To be, or not to be, that is the question?" This simple question is asked by Hamlet, the main character in a play written by William Shakespeare. Hamlet is pondering this vital question, one that will alter his life forever. He has the power of agency, the ability to choose whether to be, or not to be.

We make millions of choices on a daily basis! Some are little choices, like which shoes should I wear? or vanilla or chocolate icecream? Some choices are big, like which college should I attend? or Should I buy this car? All in all, our daily decisions can affect us for the rest of our lives.

I know God gave us this agency before we came to earth. We chose to come here. We knew we’d experience joy and pain so we could grow. Now we get to choose where we are going! Lehi, a prophet in the Book of Mormon, tells his sons, “Men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death…”
Our latter-day Prophet, Thomas S. Monson always reminds us "Decisions Do Determine Destiny!" The decisions we make, whether big or small, can create the direction we go. We have the power to choose to smile on a bad day, to love someone who hurt us, or to choose happiness in obeying the commandments. We have that power!

“My sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life…” Like Lehi, I know that as we choose to live like our Savior that we can create the direction of happiness in our lives.

White As Wool

This week a Sister in our church needed some help with her goats. When her goats where out in the field they had digested some worms while eating the grass. This began the process of goat "worming." Our job was to bring each goat out of the stall, wash their coats clean, and give them medication to clear out the worms.
The Goats stood there frozen, just staring at us with big glassy eyes. We had come to take one of them, but they didn’t know why. As we stepped in the stall, chaos occurred! They were running in circles, leaping and dodging from our hands. It was not an easy task! We finally herded them into a corner and quickly grabbed one by the collar. It bleated and cried and kicked and jerked. It was scared for what was going to happen.

As I sat the goat on my lap and scrubbed her coat, a scripture came to mind:
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18

Like the goats, sometimes we get dirty and cover ourselves with the filth of the world, and it hurts us inside and out. But I know there is one who can cleanse us, who can make us white and pure again: Jesus Christ. Because He suffered for our sins, we can be washed clean by coming to Him in repentance. When we repent, we want to change our minds and hearts to become like the Savior. It involves turning away from sin--the things that spot us. The process can be scary and sometimes hurts, but He promises us that we will feel at peace. I know as we turn to Jesus Christ, we can be white as wool.