Building a Family of Faith

 President David O. McKay: “A true Mormon (or Christian) home is one in which if Christ should chance to enter, he would be pleased to linger and to rest.” ¹²

I want my home to be this way! A place of refuge and love, tranquility and shelter. I want my husband and little ones feel they will always have a safe haven in our home. I want our home to be filled with the spirit. I want our home to be filled with faith!

Faith in our family begins with trusting our Heavenly Father and His promises. We press forward despite challenges, never giving up on ourselves or our children.We teach our family to have faith in Christ by living what we know to be true. Our children learn their most powerful lessons from our faithfulness.
-LDS.ORG


I love this quote. If I want my family to be a family of faith it starts first with me. I must first live the way I know to be true. I want to be more devoted and dedicated to Christ. I have been promised that as I put Christ first, I will be blessed.

"Are the life and teachings of Jesus Christ embedded in the minds and souls of our children? Do they think about the Savior’s life when they wonder what to do in their own lives? This will be more and more important in the years ahead." -Elder Neil L. Andersen?

How can I help my children think this way? How can I better remember to think this way?

*Ask myself "What would Jesus do?" Ask my kids as well.
*Develop a stronger relationship with God and my Savior, encourage children to do so by talking about how they love them
*Point out when they are doing things that are following Jesus. Encourage them.
*Help them see that Christ suffered all things and draw correlations from their lives to His. Help them see He understands and loves them no matter what.
*Teach your children the stories of Jesus
*Testify to them and to others around you while they are watching

GOAL: Tell children the stories of Jesus and help them apply it to their life!

"What Lack I yet": Weakness and Grace

Yesterday we had our ward conference. Our sweet stake Relief Society President (president of our women's organization in our area)  gave a thought provoking talk on the story in the New Testament of the rich young man (Matt 19:16-20). In the story, the young man tells Jesus he has followed all the commandments and done all he could to do the right thing. Then he asks Jesus "What lack I yet?" Christ answers him, telling him to sell his possessions and follow Him. The young man goes away sorrowing, because he was very wealthy and no doubt that would be a difficult request. Our Relief Society president challenged us to go home and pray and ask God, "What lack I yet?"

When she gave us that invitation I laughed to myself. What lack I? EVERYTHING. I feel like I am no where near the person I should be or want to be. I could list several things that I lack. I want so much to be already perfected! There are so many ways in which I lack. "The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matt. 26:41).

Weak. That sums me up pretty well these days. Weak and tired. I want to be patient, loving, serving, balanced, yet all I end up feeling at the end of the day is weakness.

In pondering my weakness I read Jacob 4:7

  "Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our ^aweakness that we may know that it is by his ^bgrace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things."

Grace. Grace is what I need. Grace is what will help me overcome what I lack. Grace will help me get up after a night of fragmented naps a little earlier than everyone else so I can have time with Him. So I can better know Him, better give Him my heart and let it be changed by Him (Alma 5:7 Note that in this verse we see it is God who changes our hearts, not ourselves. We have to let Him.)

Another verse I came across that I loved is in Doctrine and Covenants 62:1

 "Behold, and hearken, O ye elders of my church, saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, your ^aadvocate, who knoweth the weakness of man and how to ^bsuccor them who are ^ctempted."

Christ, my advocate, knows my many struggles and what I lack yet. And he knows how to succor them. I so often forget that grace is available every step of the way. In every weakness His grace is what can make me stronger. I need to stop leaning on the arm of my own weak flesh and lean on Him and trust His Grace.

Every verse I read about weakness I am reminded, I am weak so that His grace can make me strong. I am weak so I can learn to depend on Him. I am weak so that I can let go of trying to do everything myself and trust Him.

Weakness, leads me to Christ.

I'm so grateful for my weakness, that humbles me and makes me look up. And I'm forever grateful for His Grace, His Grace that is there for me every single step of the way.

"Your Grace Finds Me"

Matt Redman

It's there in the newborn cry 

It's there in the light of every sunrise 

It's there in the shadows of this light 

Your great grace 

It's there on the mountaintop 

It's there in the everyday and the mundane 

There in the sorrow and the dancing 

Your great grace 

Oh, such grace 

From the creation to the cross 

Then from the cross into eternity 

Your grace finds me 

Yes, Your grace finds me 

It's there on a wedding day 

There in the weeping by the graveside 

There in the very breath we breathe 

Your great grace 

Same for the rich and poor 

Same for the saint and for the sinner 

Enough for this whole wide world 

Your great grace 

Oh, such grace 

From the creation to the cross 

Then from the cross into eternity 

Your grace finds me 

Yes, Your grace finds me 

There in the darkest night of the soul 

There in the sweetest songs of victory 

Your grace finds me 

Yes, Your grace finds me 

Your great grace 

Oh, such grace 

Your great grace 

Oh, such grace 

So I'm breathing in Your grace 

And I'm breathing out Your praise 

I'm breathing in Your grace 

Forever I'll be 

Breathing in Your grace 

And I'm breathing out Your praise 

I'm breathing in Your grace 

Forever I'll be 

Breathing in Your grace 

And I'm breathing out Your praise 

Breathing in Your grace 

For our God, for our God 

Yes, Your grace finds me 

Yes, Your grace finds me

Consecration

"It is the unexpected visitor (when he looked forward to a quiet evening), or the friend’s talkative wife (turning up when he looked forward to a tete-а-tete with the friend), that throw him out of gear. Now he is not yet so uncharitable or slothful that these small demands on his courtesy are in themselves too much for it. They anger him because he regards his time as his own and feels that it is being stolen. You must therefore zealously guard in his mind the curious assumption “My time is my own.”-Screwtape from C.S. Lewis' "The Screwtape Letters"

This was quoted today in our church meeting and it really touched my heart. So often I think of my time as my own, and find myself wasting it doing not bad things but not the best things (for me my addictions are facebook, and pinterest, and really the internet in general.) Sometimes I hate to admit but like this quote I get frustrated when I get interrupted from whatever I'm doing, feeling my time is being "stolen."

In reality, it's not my time. Each and every second is a gift from my Creator. And while I honestly think He wants me to be happy and enjoy my time, I also feel that there is so much more I could do with my time to show my gratitude for each day, and to show my gratitude for His sacrifice and His life that He has given so I can be saved. When I remember His sufferings, His devoted life, I wonder to myself how I could possibly use my time in any other way but to show love and devotion to Him.

In the scriptures we see Our Savior's consecration over and over again, as He says "Not my will, but thine (Luke 22:42)." He did "nothing save it be for the benefit of the world (2 Nephi 26:24). He consecrated His life to His Heavenly Father and to us. Because of His sacrifice, I can be clean and whole. Because of His sacrifice, I can have a peaceful heart, despite the troubles I may face. Because of His sacrifice, I can have the hope that I can be with Him and my wonderful family again for eternity. How I love Him. And how I want to give back to Him!

As I've pondered consecration today in my studied and thought about the talk that was given on giving our time to the Lord, I've come up with some ways that I personally want to show more devotion and love to Him and His children on earth. Here are my goals:

1. Live a life a service. Pray daily and seek opportunities to help anyone and everyone in my circle of influence. I have been given so much! I want to give back all  that I can.

2. Go to the temple more often. I am blessed to feel good and healthy and have a temple so close. I want to take more time to go and serve my Savior there more often.

3. Share the gospel. One of my past neighbors came up to me last night at an activity and was glowing. He told me he had been taking the missionary lessons and is getting baptized this week. He said it had been a rough thirty years of his life but now he finally felt peace. Melted my heart. And it made me realize, the gospel is another huge blessing in my life that can bless so many others. How can I not share it? 

4. Help others serve. I feel so blessed when I serve and even more blessed when I help others serve. This past Christmas I had my "warm blanket making night" and I realized that I love doing things with people, but I love serving with other people even more. I want to find and facilitate more opportunities to serve with people around me. 

5. Make time to study His Word. I know in doing so I know I can be better directed to know His will and how he wants me to spend my time. 

This are my goals to live a more consecrated life. What are yours?

The Precious Gift of Time

Today randomly I was cruising through Facebook and some how I came across a story of a woman who had been through incredible, difficult trials. Her parents got divorced while she was young, then she suffered long term sexual abuse from another family member, was raped as a teenager by a stranger, battled cervical cancer before she was out of her teens, grew more and more over weight with each of her pregnancies, got married and then divorced, and lost a daughter. My heart broke for her. Now she is doing amazing things working to empower other women. And all I could think of is, "What am I doing here, wasting my time on Facebook, when there is so much hurt in the world and so much healing needed. How can I waste any precious minute of my easy life, not helping others?"

Too often I look back on my day and wonder what in the world did I do all day? How did I just let 24 whole hours disappear? These thought of how I use my time make me reflect on the Savior and His use of time. The scripture that came to mind was this one:

2 Nephi 26:24
     "He (the Savior) doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation."

How I love that verse! How clearly it shows to me that Christ lived a poured out life, 100%. Everything he did (and does) was for the "benefit of the world." Because he loves us that much. If I am to follow in His footsteps as my heart truly desires, I must look at my use of time and ask myself "Is what I'm doing for the benefit of His children?"

This doesn't mean I will no longer exercise or take time to get dressed in the morning. Christ too took his alone time and time to rejuvenate and be close to His Father. (Mark 6:47, Luke 9:18, Matt 4:1). Taking time to be with God and to take care of myself can help me better serve others as Christ did.

I love this invitation that was given in conference by my former mission president, Elder Ian S. Ardern:
    "I invite us to identify the time-wasting distractions in our lives that may need to be figuratively ground into dust. We will need to be wise in our judgment to ensure that the scales of time are correctly balanced to include the Lord, family, work, and wholesome recreational activities. As many have already discovered, there is an increase of happiness in life as we use our time to seek after those things which are “virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy” (Articles of Faith 1:13)."
LInk to talk HERE.

 There are so many out there who need help. I have been given so many incredible blessings in my life, I must put aside my selfish, self-centered waste of time and focus on using my time as the Savior did: for the benefit of the world. I want to "grind into dust" those distractions that take me away from what matters most and from thinking and loving and serving others. I want to be a more careful steward of the precious gift of time I've been given.

Questions to think about:

• What are some specific ways the Savior spent His time that we can emulate?
• What are some of our own personal time-wasting distractions we can "grind into dust?" 

Modesty: A Christ-like Attribute

Modesty: A Christ-like Attribute

All the interesting thoughts, videos, and articles I’ve read and watched over the last few days on modesty have led me to think more deeply about the subject than I ever have. I chose to study modesty today as part of my study on Christ. Why? Because Christ is the utmost, perfect example of modesty.

Too often we limit the word “modesty” to mean something about how much skin we are or are not covering. The true meaning of modesty is summed up nicely in this definition:

“Modesty is an attitude of propriety and decency in dress, grooming, language, and behavior. If we are modest, we do not draw undue attention to ourselves. Instead, we seek to “glorify God in [our] body, and in [our] spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:20; see also 1 Corinthians 6:19).” (LDS.ORG)

To me, modesty means taking the focus off of ourselves and pointing to our Father in Heaven. Christ was the supreme of example of modesty, as we can see in the following scriptures:

·         Isaiah 53:2 He was nothing special outwardly, “no beauty that man would desire him”

·         Matt 11:29 Meek and lowly of heart

·         John 7:16,18 He seeks the glory of God, not His own glory

·         John 8:28-29, 50 He does nothing of Himself, He seeks not His own Glory

·         John 12:49-50 He speaks only what the Father speaks

·         Often says to those He heals “Thy Faith has made thee whole” taking the focus from Him to the faith of the one he healed

·         Mark 1:44 Told one man he healed to tell no one

·         John 6:15 Refused to be king

·         Born of humble, modest, circumstances

As part of all my ponderings on modesty, one of my questions I asked myself is: “Is modesty an eternal principle or something just for this life?” My conclusion is that the doctrine of modesty (giving glory to God or others rather than self) IS an eternal unchanging doctrine, which Christ modeled perfectly. However the APPLICATION of how we are modest changes throughout time. For example, in the New Testament there are some interesting scriptures on how braiding hair or wearing gold or pearls are not modest behaviors (1 Peter 3:3, 1 Cor 11:15, 1 Tim 2:9). Now, these things are perfectly acceptable and are not considered immodest at all.  This shows that the application of modesty has changed throughout time, though the doctrine of not drawing undue attention to yourself has stayed the same.

Our culture is always shifting and changing through time. That is why I am so grateful for the spirit and modern day prophets and apostles who help us navigate how to live doctrines in the applicable settings of our time and in our individual lives. Because society changes, application of doctrine may change, and the leaders and the spirit can help us know how we can best live the pure doctrines of Christ in our day and age.

My last question I asked myself was “How will I teach my children about modesty?” Here are my conclusions:

1.       First, I will teach them that they are 100% responsible for their own thoughts and actions. The can blame NO ONE for the mistakes they make.

2.       I will teach them, and strive myself, to have a love and devotion to the Savior. I will teach them of His love for us, and His desire for us to follow him in all things, including being modest. I will strive myself and strive to help them come to love and follow the Savior and His humble example.

3.       I will teach them to understand that every person is on a different path in life and some may struggle more with certain temptations than others, and we are not to judge who struggles and who doesn’t. I will teach them that salvation is a joint effort and love for all people is necessary to follow the Savior. Therefore, I will teach them that dressing modestly as an act of love for those who may struggle does not mean that they are in anyway responsible for the actions or thoughts of others, but that it is indeed an act of love.

4.       I will teach them to love and see people as PEOPLE and not define them, objectify them, or fear them because of what they wear. I will teach them that “Perfect love casteth out all fear” (1 John 4:18).

 

For me it all comes down to love. Love and devotion to the Savior, and love for others. When I worry what and how to teach my children, I remember “charity never faileth” (Moroni 7:46) and that if I have the Lord on my side and the spirit in my heart, I know He will guide me.

Swallowed up in the Will of the Father

My study of Christ's life has led me to remembering how Christ's will was "swallowed up in the will of the Father" (Mosiah 15:7).

Here are some of the scriptures I came across relating the devotion of Christ to His Father's will:

• Mosiah 15:7 The Savior's will was swallowed up by His Father's will. 
• Luke 22:42 No matter how difficult and painful the Father's will was, Christ submitted. 
• John 6: 38 He knew his purpose was to do the Father's will and not His own
• D&C 19:2 Finished the will of the Father "whose I am." He is Heavenly Father's

Submission is often seen as something wrong these days. When we think of the word submission, we think of weakness. However, when we think of it in the light of the Savior's submission to God, we realize it instead took great strength, especially to suffer and die as He did. Submission to the Lord takes strength. 

On the same lines, I think sometimes we are afraid to submit because we don't want to loose our identity. Elder Maxwell says this of that concern:

"So many of us are kept from eventual consecration because we mistakenly think that, somehow, by letting our will be swallowed up in the will of God, we lose our individuality (see Mosiah 15:7). What we are really worried about, of course, is not giving up self, but selfish things—like our roles, our time, our preeminence, and our possessions. No wonder we are instructed by the Savior to lose ourselves (see Luke 9:24). He is only asking us to lose the old self in order to find the new self. It is not a question of one’s losing identity but of finding his true identity!"

If we are to seek the Christlike character of the Savior, we must submit our will. We must be consecrated. Once again this helps me see that out of all the good and wonderful things in my life I want to accomplish, I must first seek, as the Savior did, to do the will of the Father with all my heart. And my heart is the only thing I can truly give to the Lord, as explained by this quote:

"The submission of one’s will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God’s altar. The many other things we “give,” brothers and sisters, are actually the things He has already given or loaned to us. However, when you and I finally submit ourselves, by letting our individual wills be swallowed up in God’s will, then we are really giving something to Him! It is the only possession which is truly ours to give!"

May all of our wills be swallowed up in His.

Questions to consider:

• How can I better submit myself to the will of the Lord? How can I know His will?

The quotes are taken from one of my favorite talks found here:

"Swallowed up in the Will of the Father"

Neal A. Maxwell

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1995/10/swallowed-up-in-the-will-of-the-father?lang=eng

The Character of Christ

In my study today I came across this thought provoking quote:

"Man's chief concern in life should not be the acquiring of gold or fame, or of material possessions. It should not be the development of physical prowess, nor of intellectual strength, but his aim, the highest in life, should be the development of a Christ-like character." - David O. McKay

As I've mentioned in previous posts, I have a lot of dreams and goals for my life. This quote sums up for me what should be my number one thing I seek in life: gaining a Christ-like character.

Where do I start? Well I think it goes back to better coming to know Christ and His character, and centering my life around him. A recent message from Pres. Uctdorf talked about how people actually will walk in circles when they have no point of reference to focus on. It is the same figuratively in our lives; if we have no focus point we will live life walking in circles. I want my focus point to be the Savior, to be constantly moving towards Him.

My studies will be focused on the Savior's character in the next few days. At first when I started this study today I had trouble finding anything directly related to the "character of Christ." However, when I opened up the New Testament, I realized that it seems almost every page is packed with attributes of our loving Savior. I am excited to dig into these in the next few days and strive to come to better know my Savior.

Scriptures:

• John 8:11 This is where Christ tells the adulterer "Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more." I love this story. It is dear to my heart. While I have never committed adultery, I have made countless, painful, hurtful mistakes. It is easy for me to feel unworthy and unloved by such a perfect being as the Savior. Yet, he handled this situation with such kindness and mercy. I know that when I come to Him with my red stains, He in His mercy can make me clean and pure.

          His merciful heart also makes me realize the need for me to be merciful to others always. It is easy to    want to "cast stones" so to speak as we see the mistakes and problems of others, especially when those mistakes hurt us. I believe the Savior is hurt by sin, yet, he did not let His hurt dictate whether or not He was merciful. I can strive to be like Him by being merciful to others in their personal striving to overcome.

• John 8:28 and 50 (and many other verses I am sure to uncover) Christ is the picture of humility. I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I love attention, I love being the center of attention, I love "wowing" people. Christ, who was loved and adored by many, was constantly pointing everything back to His Father in Heaven. Nothing was about Him. He didn't seek to make people think "Wow, what a guy" and if anyone ever did he would talk about His Father and how He was doing what He wanted Him to do. To God be the Glory. I want to be like that. I want to be like John the Baptist who said of Christ "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). I want to get rid of my selfish, self glorifying ways and always, constantly live a life that points to my Savior.

Questions to ponder:

• How can your life be one that points to the Savior?
• What are some of the characteristics of Christ that you personally have witnessed in your life?