Food for Thought

"The only way that we may overcome the world is by coming unto Christ. And coming unto Christ means walking away from the world."

--Sheri L. Dew, "We Are Women of God", Ensign, Nov. 1999, 97

Feeling the Love of the Lord

This morning as I prayed over my breakfast, I prayed for some specific things in mind. As I logged in my email to check it over eating breakfast I found that my MIL had just sent this to me not even a minute ago. Reading these words was like listening to a response to my prayer. So...thanks McMom for sending this to me. :-)
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Daily Gems: Ability to Feel the Lord's Love Depends on our Actions
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"As faithful [members] of The Church of Jesus Christ ofLatter-day Saints, we have been blessed with the Holy Ghost. As weinvite the Savior into our lives, the Holy Ghost will bear witness to usofthe love which the Father and His Son, our Savior, have for each of us.Butfeeling Their love is dependent not only on our desire but upon ouractions as well. And the actions we need to take are known to us: genuine prayerthat is specific and humble, followed by quiet listening for the Lord'sanswers; regular scripture study and time to ponder what we read; and,finally, a willingness to be introspective about ourselves and to trustinthe Lord's promise that He will 'make weak things become strongunto [us]' (Ether 12:27)."Topics: Holy Ghost, love,worthiness, prayer
(Kathleen H. Hughes, "Remembering the Lord's Love," Ensign, Nov. 2006,112)

A Letter from my Relief Society Presidency

Dear Sisters,
I love easy, don't you? I like easy jobs, easy dinner preparation, easy relationships, and so on....so a recent Ensign passage on "easy prayer" really appealed to me. The words came from a child..."Before you start to talk to Heavenly Father, think about the things you want to tell Him....once you've thought of it, tell it to Him! When you finish, wait and see if He has something to tell you." I have put these easy concepts of "think, tell, and wait" into practice for the last few days and the results have amazed me....especially the part about waiting to see what He might want to tell me! I have felt so inspired to be kinder to my family members and have felt the love that the Lord feels for me as His child. It has been profound and life-changing. I thank God for my membership in this great Church and for the never ending flow of instruction we receive from good leaders. Take care.
Love,
Sister L, First Counselor
Alexandria Stake Relief Society

Strenthen Home and Family

Sister Mary N. Cook:
*"The Lord is depending on you to bring the blessings of the gospel to your family."
*"As you personally study the scriptures, you will come to know the Savior and His teachings. From His example you will know how to love, serve, and forgive members of your family."
*"As you live worthily and renew this covenant weekly [baptism through taking of the Sacrament bread/water], you will qualify for the guidance of the Spirit. The Holy Ghost will guide you and will teach you what you should do to bless your family.
*4-point program to assure my happiness and bless my family, too.
1. Pray
2. Study scriptures
3. Pay your tithing
4. Attend your meetings
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I especially liked how she turned it around and asked...how could my prayer or my studying the scriptures, etc help any of my family members? So much food for thought!

Spiritual Earthquakes

"We don’t know when or how earthquakes will hit us. They likely won’t be literal shakings of the earth, as happened in Peru, but rather quakes of temptations, sin, or trials, such as unemployment or serious sickness. Today is the time to prepare for when that type of quake comes. Today is the time to prepare—not during the crisis. What are we doing today to engraven in our souls the gospel principles that will uphold us in times of adversity?"
--Elder Walter F. González, "Today is the Time", October 2007 General Priesthood Meeting

Enduring Together

Bishop Edgley: Enduring Together
What happens to one happens to all. Our church ward should be our family ward.
*Mosiah 18: 8-9 --> As ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light;...Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort."
*"Adversity can bring us closer to God with a renewed and enlightened appreciation for prayer and the Atonement which covers pain and suffering in all their manifestations."

It seems at times that we need a little nudge in the right direction. I can see when my life gets stuck in that pride cycle (humble, turn to the Lord, blessed with abundance, prideful, fall to humility, etc). I ask myself why I feel so distant from the Lord and then I see I stopped reading my scriptures, stopped doing Family Home Evening, or lost that motivation to do what I know I need to do. I had become complacent in the Gospel. I ask how I got to this point? What matters next is how am I going to get back to where I need to be. How? By studying, pondering, and finding out what the Lord is saying to me/us today in the General Conference talks, what is being written in the Ensign magazine, studying the Sunday School Lesson, making sure I have FHE with my family. After all, family is what is most important to me.

Integrity of Heart

"We should not be discouraged or depressed by our shortcomings. No one is without weakness. As part of the divine plan, we are tested to see whether we master weakness or let weakness master us. Proper diagnosis is essential to proper treatment. The Lord gave us this remarkable assurance: “Because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong” (Ether 12:37). But wishing for strength won’t make us strong. It takes faith and work to shore up a weakened cord of integrity."

--Russell M. Nelson, "Integrity of Heart", Ensign, Aug. 1995, 19

*Hijacked from http://ablackmormongirl.blogspot.com/. Thanks Shabang!