Two thoughts to absorb...

(We loved watching this talk.  It would be fantastic for a FHE.  So many ways to present it!) 

So if the basses in your family choir are too loud and overbearing, or if the string section in your family orchestra is a little too shrill or a little bit sharp, or if those impetuous piccolos are out of tune or out of control, be patient. If you’re not hearing the music of the gospel in your home, please remember these two words: keep practicing. With God’s help, the day will come when the music of the gospel will fill your home with unspeakable joy.

(teeny little video of him speaking)

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I like this..

Illumination

Hebrews 10:32:
But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great ^afight of afflictions;...

I remember the first time I read this scripture and felt it was a pattern for things that happened in my life.  I would feel really positive about something that was going to unfold and become a reality, and then things would gunnysack.  

Eventually the positive event/situation/happening/project would occur, just as I had originally felt that it would, BUT it was after a lot of struggling aka afflictions.  That positive feeling of the eventual outcome, earlier seen/felt, would indeed happen but not on an immediate time table...not at the moment of that awareness but it would eventually happen.  

I have learned that there is an illumination  followed by struggles, followed by the reality of the first brightness of hope in that earlier illumination, and that gives me faith and hope to carry on and endure to the end.

That has happened to me in lots of situations/incidents in my life.  I find it familiar and comfortable because I know if I just hang on, endure to the end of a siege of struggles/afflictions, that things will end up okay.  The earlier illumination will become my own reality.  I will recognize that brightness and the Spiritual power source.  A full circle.


also from Hebrews 10:35 &36

35 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.

 36 For ye have need of ^apatience, that, after ye have done the ^bwill of God, ye might receive the ^cpromise.

and also....Doctrine and Covenants 58:4 & 5

4 For after much ^atribulation come the ^bblessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be ^ccrowned with much ^dglory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.

 5 Remember this, which I tell you before, that you may^alay it to heart, and receive that which is to follow.

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(so many talks about marriage being between a man and a woman!  My friend Mariah, and her wife, had a tough time listening to General Conference.)

Joyful!

I went to the Temple Thursday and  since I got home, I've felt such peace and such joy! It is remarkable!!!  The Lord is so good, isn't He?  We can have challenges and at times feel overwhelmed but in His goodness we can be blessed with such deep wonderful feelings.  I feel so happy.  So joyful. Personal experience has taught me to breathe deeply and savor all of these marvelous feelings of such splendid emotions.  A bit of heaven for sure!  I look around and not one thing is any different.  I look in the mirror and I look exactly the same as always.  Joy is that inward invisible spiritual feeling that permeates my body.  I think it is oozing out my pores!  How thankful I am for persistent prayer that eventually is answered. Sigh.

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Highlight: Therefore They Hushed Their Fears

Highlight: Elder David A. Bednar’s address at the April 2015 General Conference. (0:53)
53 second video

life goes on...

Hello!  Back here again and thinking of each of you.  I really enjoy sharing what I'm thinking about and how the Gospel fits in so PuzzlePiecePerfect with any of life's challenges.  You know we are regrouping and dealing with health issues and trying to age in a graceful manner.  Is that even possible?  I think so.  Sort of like finding a road closed that used to be open and was as familiar to you as the back of your hand and then you are putzy-ing along and suddenly a roadblock.  Like a rock slide that will require a new road being built.  We are into roadwork!  Same destination goal but taking a new untraveled route.  Building the road as we go!  Tedious and overwhelming at times but still well worth the effort and pleasant journeying as paving becomes a reality.

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So...do you keep a journal?  Just a simple journal with the happenings of the day.  nothing poetic and heart wrenching.  just a simple thing of what was done that day.  I know I've mentioned it before and have wished I kept a running list of callings I've had in the Church.  maybe a sentence about it.  when called.  when released.  dates.  who I worked with.  I shared I can no longer recite from memory every wonderful opportunity I've had.  Would also enjoy bits of daily life experiences.

My sister recently was diagnosed with asthma.  I was startled when she said...I've had it since childhood.  I used to have to come in from outdoors and stop playing.   I said...What?!  you never came in from outdoors!  we made pioneer cabins using those sawhorses and putting lumber and sod on top..we played on those cable spools that Daddy brought home and played until Mother called us in to eat and I went on and on.  She said ...I played but I always came in early.  I said..No.  You didn't.  You stayed outside.

I'll spare you the word battle details.  We lived the same life with two 100% entirely different scenarios with this last telling.  Of course you know that I'm going to say...she's totally wrong and I'm totally right.

I thought how nice if we had a journal with the happenings by my Mother.  She could be the arbitrator/mediator!  And I of course!, would be found the sister with the true version of our shared childhood!  Maybe Mother would have written...The girls played outdoors all day as they usually do!!

Then I thought of you and decided to bare such unpleasantness with our sister standoff!  Sharing/baring in hopes that you will keep a journal of your ground hog days as some day you will be glad.  (If I do remember callings.  I can't remember dates/years...of calling and releasing)

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We continue to enjoy the recent conference talks.  We listened to Elder Packers talk and his health is so declined and his speech so mumbly and slurred at times--our hearts just went out to him.  Terry said...Let's read it outloud 'cause I think we missed a lot.  He was right!  I felt like we would never see him at another General Conference but when I read his words they had the power of a super strong powerful person.

Elder Packer gave one of the most beautiful statements about the Atonement ever.  I copied it for you.  3 paragraphs.  You will see it when you scroll down.  Do you ever have trouble really forgiving yourself or even others and what they have done to you????  You will want to copy and print this and hang it on your fridge and you can thank me later! 

Some of the talks are below and if a quote is there?...I just knew you'd want it!

"Subjects for general conference talks are assigned—not by mortal authority but by the impressions of the Spirit. Many subjects would address the mortal concerns we all share. But just as Jesus did not teach how to overcome the mortal challenges or political oppression of His day, He usually inspires His modern servants to speak about what we must do to reform our personal lives to prepare us to return to our heavenly home."

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"As I have prepared for this opportunity today, the Spirit has taught me, and I have committed to speak words of kindness more often to my cherished companion and about him, to lift the men in my family and express gratitude for the ways they fulfill their divine and complementary roles. And I have committed to follow the proverb 'Thee lift me and I’ll lift thee, and we’ll ascend together.'"

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The Plan of Happiness by Elder Packer...here

The Atonement, which can reclaim each one of us, bears no scars. That means that no matter what we have done or where we have been or how something happened, if we truly repent, He has promised that He would atone. And when He atoned, that settled that. There are so many of us who are thrashing around, as it were, with feelings of guilt, not knowing quite how to escape. You escape by accepting the Atonement of Christ, and all that was heartache can turn to beauty and love and eternity.

I am so grateful for the blessings of the Lord Jesus Christ, for the power of procreation, for the power of redemption, for the Atonement—the Atonement which can wash clean every stain no matter how difficult or how long or how many times repeated. The Atonement can put you free again to move forward, cleanly and worthily, to pursue that path that you have chosen in life.

I bear witness that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that the Atonement is not a general thing that is for the whole Church. The Atonement is individual, and if you have something that is bothering you—sometimes so long ago you can hardly remember it—put the Atonement to work. It will clean it up, and you, as does He, will remember your sins no more. 

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The only legitimate, authorized expression of the powers of procreation is between husband and wife, a man and a woman, who have been legally and lawfully married. Anything other than this violates the commandments of God. Do not yield to the awful temptations of the adversary, for every debt of transgression must be paid “till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing” (Matthew 5:26).

Heads Up...

I will be back here on April 20th.  Didn't want to leave you hangin'!!

Morning time....

We made that decision to listen daily to a General Conference talk and jumped around and finally decided to just start over with 1971 and plow ahead.  Then the recent General Conference rolled around in all it's splendor and we talked- by the time we got to listening to these new talks, our life might have ended already, as we are 44 years behind! So we regrouped.  Again.

Now we are listening daily to the brand new talks.  It is a miracle that we can see and hear something so recently given!  We started with the General Women's Conference (now the official First session of General Conference).  Terry enjoyed them as did I!  It's exciting to hear them again!  and right there, on the screen, is the printed word and footnotes etc.  Talks vary in length from 10 to 20 minutes it seems.

In 1971 Conference was held, 2 sessions a day, on  Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday plus Priesthood session and some of their talks were longer.

Hope you are enjoying going over the talks also!  We also enjoy visiting about the subject!  It's a brief Gospel connection for us as a couple but we really treasure it. 

The above quote is from the Woman's Conference.  The quote below is from 1st meeting Saturday of General Conference.  Elder Eyring quoted President Kimball and we really liked it so I'm 

going to share it with you.  here you go....

”The commandment to fast for the poor has many blessings attached to it. President Spencer W. Kimball called failing to follow that law a sin of omission with a heavy cost. He wrote: “Rich promises are made by the Lord to those who fast and assist the needy. … Inspiration and spiritual guidance will come with righteousness and closeness to our Heavenly Father. To omit to do this righteous act of fasting would deprive us of these blessings."³

My favorite quote!

 

Overwhelmed???

Today I looked out the window and saw the lilacs in bloom.  I also saw a bouquet size bunch of dandelions in their yellow glory.  Weeds?-those pesty wild morning glories!  All over the place!  oh, yes!

My silent thought...I'm not ready for this.  Spring in bloom?

How many times in life do we acknowledge our un-readiness?  The powerful thing about life, be it age or stage or season, of ourselves or our surroundings...life happens.  Ready or not, there are some things that just roll along in spite of our protest of wanting to put things on hold.

I remember as a girl playing hide and go seek and hearing it count to the agreed upon number of 100 and at the end shouting out...ready or not...here I come!  I remember the sing-songy two syllable ring on the last words...naugh-ott.... kuh-um

I also remembered the play we did years ago, My Turn on Earth.  The scene where the Heavenly voice says...time to come home.  The summoned character says...I'm not ready! and the Voice replies...ready or not. Time to come home!  that same sing-songy way...hoe-ohm  red-dee  naugh-ott.

The play was powerful at that point with the soloist singing the plaintive- I'm not Ready!

Ready or not!  Mortality is happening!  My mortality!  life is rolling on and I better get on board.  now.
  
Those lilacs with all their beauty and scent, that is worth mannerless gulping air, remind me that life will go on whether I feel ready or not.  So the lilacs in bloom remind me to take time to smell the roses!

Needs: To inhale, regroup, and roll with the reality of life and most particularly my own.  To put the chairs on the porch and start to breathe and enjoy the weather that actually caresses my skin, invigorates my mind, creates thankfulness for the life I have.

 The freshly picked lilacs perfume the over-warm room and I feel relatively whole.

Now IF you are having an overwhelming time.  The sort of-- how can I do it all...no matter what I never measure up... this is to much and all that sort of overloaded feeling and ready to blow a fuse and crash and burn....IF that is how you feel then do this--- Get whatever you like to drink or nibble on and go sit out on your porch chair and read this talk by Sister Patricia Holland.  Elder Jeffery Hollands wife.  I remember when she went through this tough time and I felt she was to be applauded with her super honest feelings of being overwhelmed.  It was at a time when we Church ladies didn't really speak out frankly about feeling overwhelmed with our lives.

Anyhow...read and enjoy!

 “One Thing Needful”: Becoming Women of Greater Faith in Christ

One little tidbit to entice you...

"But one of the most unfortunate side effects we have faced in this matter of agency is that, because of the increasing diversity of life-styles for women of today, we seem even more uncertain and less secure with each other. We are not getting closer, but further away from that sense of community and sisterhood that has sustained us and given us strength for generations. There seems to be an increase in our competitiveness and a decrease in our generosity with one another."  read entire talk here