Some of My Testimony

I was reading the scriptures tonight and pondering some things and I just feel the desire to share part of my testimony. Doing so is kind of scary, but I love sharing what I know to be true (thus, why I have this blog).

I know God is real. Lately He's been reminding me that He is the one in control. I foolishly forget that at times. He has a plan for each one of us. And He will be there to help us and strengthen us throughout our lives. We are not alone.

I am the first to admit I am not the smartest person. I am not a scriptorian by any means. I know I still have a lot to learn in the scriptures. But I know the amazing feeling I feel when I sincerely and humbly read them. I know that the scriptures are the word of God.

I know Jesus Christ is our Savior. He took upon Him our sins, pains, sicknesses, etc. I know I don't even comprehend the smallest part of what He went through. But, I am so thankful He was willing to do that. Lately I've been thinking about when He was in the Garden of Gethsemane and said, "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42.) What an amazing, humble man. He set a perfect example. I think of this as in my life I am trying to get to the point where I can fully, truly say, "nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." That is hard. It is so hard when Heavenly Father's will is not to remove the cup from us. But our Savior was able to do that.

I know we have a Father in Heaven. God is real. I don't understand how anyone can not believe in God. Our very lives - our being on this earth - is evidence there is a God.

This is part of my testimony for now. I hope that by sharing what I know to be true I may help others feel the Spirit in their lives and reflect on their own knowledge and testimony.

If you want to know more of what I believe, don't hesitate to ask me. I love sharing my beliefs! :)

Satan's Lies

Satan is a good liar. Probably the best one there is. Lately I've realized he works so hard on us. I think one of his greatest lies is to tell us we're not enough. Not smart enough, not pretty enough, not wealthy enough, the list goes on and on. 

I'm thankful for Heavenly Father's reminder to look in the mirror and remember who I truly am. I am enough. I am a daughter of God. I am not perfect. I am flawed. I fall short in many ways. I may not be the smartest or most beautiful or wealthiest, but I am His. He sees my divine potential. He knows my heart. 

And He loves me for who I am.

Quiet Time

I love my quiet alone time. And I'm so lucky to have a lot of it. I've realized I should cherish every moment of it. One day I will probably have a house full of noisy little kiddos begging for my attention and I'm sure my quiet time will be a lot less. So, there's a huge blessing of being single- my alone time. :)

But anyway, I love my quiet time because it gives me the opportunity to ponder and reflect. I think a lot. (Probably too much, but that's a different story.) And I've come to a conclusion- pondering brings gratitude. I've seen how I've recognized the Lord's hand in my life more as I've pondered. Which isn't surprising. Obviously we're not going to be attentive to Him if we are preoccupied.

I've been so grateful as I've thought about how He has blessed me and guided my life and allowed me to have certain experiences and meet certain people. 

Pondering has brought me peace, gratitude and happiness. And definitely closer to The Lord. 

God's Glory

This is truth. Pretty sure this is why I love traveling and photography. 

A Bright Future

Tonight I just really felt the truthfulness of this in my heart. There are wonderful things ahead. I just have to have faith. 

(Quote by Thomas S. Monson)

It Could Be Worse

"No matter how bad you think your life is, there is always someone who has it worse." My mom has said this and it has stuck with me. It's true. 

Just thinking of this tonight as I read some blogs of people who are dealing with challenges that seem much, much greater than the things I deal with.

My life is really so good.

The Pearl Necklace (story)

The following story was told in church on Sunday. I really love it. I can relate so much. It can be so hard to sacrifice what we want so much for what God wants for us. But, when we do, He gives us something far far greater than what we had before.

The Pearl Necklace (Author Unknown)

The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them: a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box. "Oh please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please?"

Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face. "A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday's only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma."

As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs. McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.

Jenny loved her pearls.  They made her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere - Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night when he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?"

"Oh yes, Daddy. You know that I love you." "Then give me your pearls." "Oh, Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess - the white horse from my collection. The one with the pink tail. Remember, Daddy? The one you gave me. She's my favorite."

"That's okay, Honey. Daddy loves you. Good night." And he brushed her cheek with a kiss."

About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again,"Do you love me?"

"Daddy, you know I love you." "Then give me your pearls."

"Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is so beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that  matches her sleeper."

"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you" And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian-style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.

"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?" 

Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, "Here, Daddy.  It's for you." With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's kind daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny. He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.

So it is with our Heavenly Father. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so that he can give us beautiful treasure.  Isn't God good? Are you holding onto things which God wants you to let go of.  Are you holding on to harmful or unnecessary partners, relationships, habits and activities which you have come so attached to that it seems impossible to let go? Sometimes it is so hard to see what is in the other hand but do
believe this one thing - God will never take away something without giving you something better in its place.