God

God is so aware. My best friend got baptized yesterday. Before that I had been doing a lot of reminiscing and thinking back on my life and how it's changed, particularly in the last year. And then today, during relief society, miss Lindsay taught a splendid lesson from elder holland's talk.

So as part of the lesson, Lindsay did what a lot of teachers do and handed out quotes from the talk for girls to read. And here's where my life changed. Quote read by my dear coach Auna about halfway through the lesson:

"I testify from the bottom of my heart, with the intensity of my soul, to all who can hear my voice that those apostolic keys have been restored to the earth, and they are found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To those who have not yet joined with us in this great final cause of Christ, we say, 'please come.' To those who were once with us but have retreated, preferring to pick and choose a few cultural hors d'oeuvres from the smorgasbord of the Restoration and leave the rest of the feast, I say that I fear you face a lot of long nights and empty nets. The call is to come back, to stay true, to love God, and to lend a hand. I include in that call to fixed faithfulness every returned missionary who ever stood in a baptismal font and with arm to the square said, 'Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ.' That commission was to have changed your convert forever, but it was surely supposed to have changed you forever as well. To the youth of the church rising up to missions and temples and marriage, we say: 'love God and remain clean from the blood and sins of this generation. You have a monumental work to do, underscored by that marvelous announcement President Thomas S. Monson made yesterday morning. Your Father in Heaven expects your loyalty and your love at every stage of your life.'"

Amen.

I like to try and see the best in people.  It's something that does not come easy, and that I have worked on continually in my life.  I don't like watching people make bad/hard decisions in their life.  To bring it back to my last post on Holy Envy, I had an Elder on my mission who I had Holy Envy for, in the way that he viewed people.  He taught me a valuable lesson in the MTC and I have tried to be more like him since that moment. My companion and I had been joking about what one of the other sisters was wearing and we were something something along the lines that we didn't think it was appropriate for her to wear being a missionary.  

And then here comes the reality check.  This Elder heard us, and said something along the lines of "well maybe she has to wear it because of.....or maybe she needs it because of....or maybe she grew up in a place where....etc."  My companion and I then made the goal to be more like that.  And we worked at it.  And I've continued working at it.  

Really it doesn't matter what another person chooses to do.  I dunno.  It's a balance I guess.  Cause obviously you want to help other people and one of the ways we do that is through teaching and serving and helping, but one thing that I've tried to wrap my mind around is that idea.  Finding that balance.  Between doing what you know is right, and letting other people make their own decisions.  But still trying to help them make the right decision?  I don't even know if that makes sense outside my head.  But tis my ponderings of recent days.  

Life is grand.  Family is great.  Thankfully MA and VA weren't hit hard by the storm.  Super grateful for friends and family members who care.  Super grateful for the gratitude holiday coming up.  Super grateful for an adoptive family who is taking me in for thanksgiving.  Super grateful for a God who knows me inside and out.  Super grateful for best friends.  Super grateful for great roommates.  Super grateful for the scriptures.  Super grateful for my calling and the opportunity to love and serve.  Super grateful for my job.  Super grateful for my students and my coworkers and the crazy things we do.  Super grateful for the beautiful california weather.  Super grateful for the temple :)

Source: mrmn.org via Annie on Pinterest