I like this blog a little better because it's easier for me to write. I can basically write a step above stream-of-consciousness, which is great. My other blog, I at least try to write somewhat coherently {though to be honest, lately I've been much lazier about that one too}
Ok. The first thing from today is that I need to let go of pride earlier. See, each block of church today started out with me thinking that the lesson/testimonies were all basic and repetitive, and most of all not really "what I need to hear today." Luckily, the Spirit didn't give up on me so quickly, and halfway through each block, I had a little change of heart and I learned from the Spirit again, even though they were "basic" and "unoriginal" which sounds harsh, but keep in mind, this was the proud side of me thinking...I changed. :)
Sacrament meeting, since it was Fast/Testimony meeting, naturally was a little more varied, but the main message I felt was about faith, that it is knowing that God will fulfill His promises. It is a principle of action. His grace is available to us always, that most things from personal revelation seem impossible. Yet that is just a reflection of us not trusting in God, showing where we need to have more faith. I've personally been through this a lot. When we look at what we have received through revelation, with the understanding that God is who He says He is, a God of miracles, and a God of truth, one who keeps His promises. Also, a person mentioned that their family has been through some really hard times together, and I really liked that. Family is people who are with you, and you with them, through the hard times. They are people who love you, who have been with you through happiness and joy, and help strengthen you through the hard times. I am in the middle of writing another post for my 'remember' blog, and it talks about reciprocity of this idea, so I'll leave it for now. Study your personal revelations and scriptures. They have so much strength in them, truth, and light, review and treasure these words.
Temple/Mission prep: Plan of Salvation. No offense, but this lesson was not creative. It was still really good, but it did not appeal to my pride...which shouldn't matter, and didn't by the end but that's what I felt at the beginning. But, then this thought struck me, which enabled me to refocus and listen again: Satan attempts to deceive us, like he did to Adam and Eve, and he is good at his job. However, we can rest assured that that helps push the plan forward, helping us as we choose to follow Christ, to become more like him. After Adam and Eve left the garden, they had the choice to keep following God, or to turn from Him in anger and live after the manner of wickedness. Worth: is the amount someone is willing to pay. Christ suffered infinitely for us, giving us infinite worth. Not collectively, but individually. This means that I have worth, which is a discovery I seem to make a lot, because I forget it a lot. Humility requires the recognition of truth, which includes truth of our worth, and truth of our dependence on God, and His Atonement. Hell is where we meet the person we might have been, where we see how short we are of our true potential. That would be true hell for me. Hopefully, we all live our lives in such a way that we turn to Christ, correcting our trajectory early. Yes, this requires chastisement at times, correction, and pain, but it will be for the best. Also, in other news, even for those who do not choose to live the Celestial Law, hope is not lost for their happiness. God is as merciful as we will allow Him to be, even if we deny part of His gift. I think, most people, when they learn of the gospel, will choose to live all of it, but sometimes little things get in the way, that they desire more... this is turning into a longer post than I intended.
RS/Priesthood: we talked about temple worthiness. I actually started this in a bad mood. My roommate didn't save me a seat so I had to sit in the back by myself, until a friend saw me and felt bad and came and sat by me, but I sadly took offense to that minor action. Luckily, I still had the Spirit with me to a degree, and I felt the words "well, you can keep holding on to this, you know how it will end, you will be upset and hurt for quite some time, or you can give it to me, understand that you don't know the reasoning, and listen to this inspired lesson." So, I humbly prayed "I don't know how to let go of this, but would Thou help take it away" and I felt the pain lift from my heart. It attempted to come back a couple more times, but again, the Father did not abandon me as I have been trying to be more forgiving, and He took it away again and again, so much that I did not hurt for long. Keep asking for help. Ask for miracles that you have been promised. I have been promised a miracle lately, and today I decided to ask for it to start happening in my life. I basically felt after I asked this, that this miracle, is being started, but, it will be by a lot of small and simple things, that I need to keep the faith, and to continue living the gospel. It was a nice discovery. I love personal revelation. We truly need Him in our lives, and we are so blessed because He is there, reaching out to us, to save our souls. We do need to live righteously, take it one day at a time, use and love the infinite power of the Atonement, to help us in all our trials, as we grow to become like God.
Now, because this is so long, I won't give a lot of my notes from the fireside. It was a great one, I imagine that you could find a copy of it if you want it, so I won't include too much. I really liked how the speaker, Elder Jensen, used trees as his foundation. It helped me picture it all a little better. See the hand of God in your daily life. This is something I've been trying to incorporate into my daily journal. I also liked that he mentioned about service. It also struck me that as I have covenanted to bear others burdens, they too have covenanted to help bear mine, to help comfort me when I stand in need of comfort, etc. etc. I include this because I always hate asking for help, I hate complaining {ok naturally complaining isn't good, but so is pretending nothing is wrong...it's a balance and how you discuss/perceive it}. Elder Jensen discussed four elements about growing trees, that illuminated eternal truths on faith, light, truth itself, the relationships with others, and learning/growth. Have the faith to see the eternal scheme of things. Have faith, have hope, live like His Son, help others on their way.
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