"And now, my beloved brethern, seeing that our merciful God has given us so great things, let us remember Him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down our heads, for we are not cast off" (2 Nephi 10:20)

As I have been adjusting to a "new normal" with some changes that have taken place, I have often wondered if this is a good thing. It has been very difficult to accept the changes and not get discouraged about what I have to give up, change, deal with, and live with. The thought that keeps me going at times is this: "O the greatness of the mercy of our God, the Holy One of Israel" (2 Nephi 9:19)! He is a merciful and loving God. I don't know the outcome of these changes, and I have mourned and sometimes continue to mourn what I am no longer able to do. And then I read this passage in the scriptures:

And now, my beloved brethern, seeing that our merciful God has given us so great things, let us remember Him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down our heads, for we are not cast off: nevertheless, we have been driven out of the land of our inheritance; but we have been led to a better land, for the Lord has made the sea our path, and we are upon the isle of the sea" (2 Nephi 10:20).

The Lord has not forsaken me in or during my trials. Just as Nephi and his family had to leave all their comforts, money, friends, and life they knew in Jerusalem and were led to a "better land", we too are led to "better lands" when we have a sea of challenges and trials as our path. We are led and will enter safely a "better land". Nephi was able to have his family and the records of the prophets to teach his family of covenants and eternal promises. We too, as we put our trust in our merciful God, will have blessings that draw us closer to our families and to God. It isn't easy to give up patiently what we want for what God knows is something better, especially when we can't see what lies ahead in the middle of an ocean of challenges. 

I don't know what is better sometimes, but "in God I have put my trust" (Psalms 56:4) and therefore I know that things will work out. Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley said: "Things will work out. If you keep trying and praying and working, things will work out. They always do. If you want to die at an early age, dwell on the negative. Accentuate the positive, and you'll be around for a while" (Presidents of the Church Teacher Manual Religion 345). I don't want to "hang down" my head, but rather I want to go forward in faith believing that "things will work out" because, truthfully, they always do. We are truly blessed with a merciful God who will always lead us to a "better land"...sometimes that journey is a bit rough, but God will always get us there, "for we are not cast off" (2 Nephi 10:20).

"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked..." (Mosiah 4:14)

A couple of weeks ago I was asked what I did all day. As I listed off my tasks it was a very simple list of things I did, this list is pretty similar everyday. I said I exercised, studied my scriptures, made breakfast for our children, did lots of laundry, did the dishes and cleaned up the kitchen, drove our children to school and picked them up from school. I made dinner for our family, and if I recall correctly, did more dishes. One friend got it and said, "Oh, you were the mom today". I am the mom every day and I have sometimes wondered if it is enough. I definitely don't get any accolades for doing what I do, and I don't earn any money for it. I seem to get little thanks, just more laundry and more dishes.

But there is one scripture that frequently goes through my mind when I am asked "what do you do all day"? It reads as follows:

"And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, who is the evil spirit which hath been spoken of by our fathers, he being an enemy to all righteousness.

But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another" (Mosiah 4:14-15). 

I love these scriptures. My time spent cooking and doing laundry is important to God. I feed His children, who are under my care, daily. I also make sure they have clean clothes and are not "naked". I get lots of opportunities to teach them to love one another and to not fight and quarrel with each other. Great conversations take place daily about loving, serving, lifting, creating, working hard, chastity and many other gospel topics while we spend time in the car driving to and from school and other activities. These have become beautiful moments to teach by example and share my testimony of gospel truths. 

I am so grateful for the blessing of being able to "feed His sheep" (see D&C 112:14; John 21:16-17), to "lead, guide, and walk beside" His children on a daily basis (I Am a Child of God). I am helping God with His work, which is: "...to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). I don't need to worry about comparing myself with other women or if I am doing enough. I am doing His work, and that is enough. 

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said this about parenting: "The very fact that you have been given such a responsibility is everlasting evidence of the trust your Father in Heaven has in you. He knows that your giving birth to a child does not immediately propel you into the circle of the omniscient. If you and your husband will strive to love God and live the gospel yourselves; if you will plead for that guidance and comfort of the Holy Spirit promised to the faithful; if you will go to the temple to both make and claim the promises of the most sacred covenants a woman or man can make in this world; if you will show others, including your children, the same caring, compassionate, forgiving heart you want heaven to show you; if you try your best to be the best parent you can be, you will have done all that a human being can do and all that God expects you to do" (Because She is a Mother).

God lives. He loves all of His children and wants all of us to learn to "love one another and serve one another" (Mosiah 4:15). As mother's we are blessed with a special responsibility and opportunity to teach and serve, which includes "feeding the hungry" and "clothing the naked" (see Mosiah 4:26; Isaiah 58:9-11; Jacob 2:19; Alma 4:13); and thus, we grow and are doing enough.

Enjoy the video about being a mother...which is enough.

"Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours" (D&C 109:44)

At the end of last summer I had completed three century rides. Each century ride consists of riding approximately 100 miles on a bike in one day as fast as one can; two of which I did two weeks apart. I was probably in the best shape of my life. There is a feeling of power, exhilaration, and freedom, that comes when I ride; and my communication with God would be for hours. I lived, for those rides. I loved training and preparing for them. Riding for me was so much fun, was such a blessing, and gave me something to strive and set goals for. I wish I could explain how much I love riding. I think about it every day. But, sometimes things change and the things we love are taken away or not even granted for whatever reason, and it gets really difficult and perhaps a bit confusing...

I have been dealing with a soft tissue injury for about 5 months. It makes it very difficult to sit for extended periods of time, and riding a bike is out of the question. Pain is pretty constant. I share this with you only because this is how my love for riding has been removed from my life and many other aspects of my life have been changed as well. I don't want sympathy because it is a very poor substitute for all the changes in my life; what I really want is to ride, but that isn't possible right now. I have good days and bad days as I adjust to what may be a new way of living. What really gets my through not only the physical changes but also the mental and emotional changes is my scripture study because constant pain really messes with my brain and spirit.

Frequently in the church we say that if you will be obedient you will get all the blessings you want. But that is false. God never says, Do all I say and you will be blessed with all that you desire. What we are here to learn and is even more difficult to apply, it is to say and live: "Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours" (D&C 109:44). But we often think if we are obedient He will bless us with our will, even if it is a righteous desire. We frequently hear of people sharing their stories of how they were obedient and prayed and exercised faith then their desires were granted. But this doesn't always happen. Riding isn't an unrighteous desire, let alone being free from pain. But what about those who can't have children or are unmarried, and remain so? What about those who are unhealed or have a child that is disabled and don't get what they desire?

Elder Robert D. Hales said this: "As we ask these questions, we realize that the purpose of our life on earth is to grow, develop, and be strengthened through our own experiences. How do we do this? The scriptures give us an answer in one simple phrase: we "wait upon the Lord" (Psalms 37:9; Psalms 123:2; Isaiah 8:17; Isaiah 40:31; 2 Nephi 18:17)  Tests and trials are given to all of us. These mortal challenges allow us and our Heavenly Father to see whether we will exercise our agency to follow His Son. He already knows, and we have the opportunity to learn, that no matter how difficult our circumstances, "all these things shall [be for our] experience, and ... [our] good" (D&C 122:7) (Waiting Upon the Lord: Thy Will Be Done).

Things don't always go the way we want. The Lord doesn't say He will take away our pain, but He does promise and say, "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you" (John 14:18). He wants to give us way more than a pain-free life or even all that we want. He wants to give us "all that my Father hath" (D&C 84:38). He wants to give us His greatest gift, eternal life.

Just like riding those century rides that were sometimes so long and very difficult, and it would have been way easier to quit, to give up at certain points, but I never did. Enduring is where we really prove how much we have grown and the reward is finishing all the way to the end no matter how painful. I testify it is the most amazing feeling to finish! Thus we are able to say, "Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours" (D&C 109:44)" because we recognize His will is always better than ours.

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth you, give I unto you." (John 14:27)

The other night as we were reading scriptures as a family one of our children was very frustrated and stated bluntly that it was boring and besides he "didn't understand a darn thing" we were reading. I don't blame him. We had been reading 2 Nephi, the Isaiah chapters as we call them, in The Book of Mormon (get your free copy here), the past several nights which can be very challenging for even the most proficient adult reader. As I have pondered his frustration I realized that reading the scriptures is really like reading a different language. It is learning the language of the Spirit and how God speaks, communicates, and ultimately behaves. I feel that it continues to be a life time of learning to understand this language and I am never left unsatisfied in my efforts as I continue to learn this powerful language that is more than just words on a page.

President Monson has said there is "one language...that is common to each missionary- the language of the Spirit. It is not learned from textbooks written by men of letters, nor is it acquired through reading and memorization. The language of the Spirit comes to him [or her] who seeks with all his [or her] heart to know God and keep His divine commandments. Proficiency in this language permits one to breach barriers, overcome obstacles, and touch the human heart" (The Spirit Giveth Life). As we learn the language of the Spirit we are able to understand how God communicates, and how He behaves. There are many references in the scriptures about how we can learn and understand this language.

One important thing to remember is that the Spirit is a "still small voice, which whispereth through and pierceth all things" (D&C 85:6; see also Helaman 5:30-31; 1 Kings 19:12). In order to understand a language we must first be able to hear it, which takes practice. The language of the Spirit is still- meaning quite, peaceful or calm. Think in contrast to the constant noise which is around us today with music or news playing in our ears wherever we go, with little chance of peace and quiet. We must make time to know how it feels to be "still", so that when the language is spoken or we hear it, we will recognize it in our minds and in our hearts (see D&C 8:2). President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said of the Spirit: "The Holy Ghost speaks with a voice that you feel more than you hear. It is described as a "still small voice". And while we speak of "listening" to the whisperings of the Spirit, most often one describes a spiritual prompting by saying, "I had a feeling..." (Personal Revelation: The Gift, The Test, and The Promise).

Nephi taught:

 "Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold , the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do. Wherefore, now after I have spoken these works, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark. For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all thing what ye should do" 

(2 Nephi 32:3-5).

There is much to learn about the language of the Spirit in these three verses. I testify that scripture study is a conduit to heaven. It opens the windows of communication and allows the Spirit to "tell" and "show" you "all things what ye should do". Things that seemed to make no sense have become clear as I have studied the scriptures and asked, just as Nephi taught. I know that as you take the time to learn this language, your communication skills will improve and the Lord's promise, "prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it" (Malachi 3:10) will be strengthened and given to you in all areas of your life.

The language of the Spirit is also the same as the fruit of the Spirit and will be manifest in your life as you come to understand and apply this heavenly and divine way of communicating. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law" (Galatians 5:22-23). This language is a way of living, not just nice words or phrases in a book. I have noticed these "fruits" are listed in several places in the scriptures (see D&C 4:6;  D&C 121:41-42; 2 Peter 1:4-8; Moroni 7:45). It is because they are the way Christ acts, it is His Divine nature. Christ promised that "...the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26). Even when we struggle with this beautiful and powerful language, which we will, He will send the Comforter, which is the Spirit to teach us how to learn it. It is our guide (see D&C 45:57) to bring us back to Him. He wants us to learn this language so that not only will our language of words be changed, but that our very natures are changed.

My son was right. Learning to read the scriptures and understand them is hard. Learning a new language is difficult and takes time and effort. But the most powerful and life changing language is the language of the Spirit and the Savior has promised us, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth you, give I unto you." (John 14:27). When we talk about the voice of the Spirit being a "still small voice" it truly is a voice of peace, we just need to learn how to understand, "hear and know the voice by which [we] shall be called" (Mosiah 5:12), and that is the voice of our Savior.



A few extra links for learning more about the language of the Spirit: (I would love to hear what links you have found that have helped you in your personal study. Please feel free to share them with me.)
How Do I Know What I Am Feeling Is the Spirit and Not Just My Own Emotions?
Hymn # 143 Let the Holy Spirit Guide
Prayer and Promptings
Reverence Invites Revelation

"The God of Hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:13)

The other morning my daughter came rushing into the kitchen a bit upset, and frazzled. This is so not like my daughter; she is usually like her dad, really laid back and very easy going. She proceeded to tell me that she had left her rings on the sink at the swim meet the night before, that she was late for an early morning meeting at school, and would I please call the pool across town and ask about her rings. The conversation proceeded something like this:

 I said, "You left them in Kearns?! Which rings? There is no way they are going to be there. Especially over there."

"Please, just call them and ask if they are there or if someone found them and turned them into the lost and found. I am late, so late! It's a thin silver one, a thicker silver one with my initials, and the one grandma gave me with the garnet."

"Okay, I'll call. Look up the number while I finish cooking the eggs. You know that they are not going to be there." I responded with absolutely no belief they would be turned in, they were worth a little money, and on the West side? Ha! I had little hope in that idea...but, I really wanted to hope, for my daughters sake.

She looked up the number and I asked the girl on the other end of the phone if there had been three rings turned in after the swim meet. She said, "Let me check the lost and found." I waited patiently as I stirred the eggs, potatoes, and sausage. A minute or so later the girl says, "What do the rings look like?" I proceeded to describe them to her. She said, "Yes. We have them here. What name should I put on them and you can pick them up?"

I was SO shocked and SO happy! My hope in humanity is...well returning, slowly. When I picked up the rings the woman at the counter told me to tell my daughter to, "...leave them at home next time, especially if she comes out here! She was lucky she got them back." I know my daughter was truly blessed to have them returned to her.

Two thoughts have come to mind from this experience (there are always more, but I think sharing two is sufficient for the day). One: The woman who turned the rings in was "...true at all times in whatsoever thing [she was] entrusted" (Alma 53:20). As women and men who follow Christ, true disciples, we "stand for truth and righteousness" (Relief Society Declaration) even when no one is watching us. The woman who found my daughters rings could have easily slipped those rings into her handbag or pocket without anyone noticing. Instead, she chose "the better part" (Father in Heaven, We Do Believe Hymn #180) by being honest and turning them into the lost and found. Through her example I was able to see that there are still good people in the world today and the news/media just needs to do a better job of reporting that kind of news. Also, I need to relinquish some of my doubts about others...not everyone wants to take "advantage of one" (2 Nephi 28:8). That's something I can work at doing a better job.

And the second thought: Even though I have had plenty of experiences to jade me and make me not trust people like I used to (I am definitely more cautious), there is great hope! After I got the rings and went to my car, I couldn't stop weeping from the blessings of  "lost and found". President Howard W. Hunter said, "I promise you...in the name of the Lord, whose servant I am, that God will always protect and care for His people. We will have our difficulties the way every generation and people have had difficulties. But with the gospel of Jesus Christ you have every hope, promise, and reassurance. The Lord has power over His Saints and will always prepare places of peace, defense and safety for His people. When we have faith in God we can hope for a better world- for us personally, and for all mankind. The prophet Ether taught anciently (and he knew something about troubles): 'Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God' (Ether 12:4)" (An Anchor to the Souls of Men).

We all have lost important items or perhaps even valuable relationships. We all have trials, challenges, dark days, fog, and cold, that might seem to last too long and we may get a little lost in some of the "dark and dreary waste" (1 Nephi 8:7). But, we need not despair. For most definitely, "whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world" (Ether 12:4), even our small world that sometimes may seem lost. Even if we hadn't found the rings, which would have been very disappointing, I can testify that nothing is lost to God. As Paul taught the Romans: "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:13).

Christ is "the God of hope". He taught through the parables of the the lost sheep, the lost piece of silver, and the prodigal son that nothing is lost to the Lord (read parables here). We must, in our relationships with our loved ones, and even our enemies, put our faith and trust in Him, the Keeper of the lost and found. I realized that to the Lord, we are all "the one" when He taught: "What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it" (Luke 15:4)?

The found rings~
honest people and hope.

We are all "prodigals" and the Father says of each of us, "It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found" (Luke 15:32). We are each that lost brother and He rejoices when we repent. Repentance is: "A change of mind and heart that brings a fresh attitude toward God, oneself, and life in general. Repentance implies that a person turns away from evil and turns his heart and will to God, submitting to God's commandments and desires and forsaking sin" (The Guide to the Scriptures). He rejoices when we return to Him in prayer each night or any time of our day for that matter.

Just as my daughter lost her rings and she wanted to find them, she needed to ask for help. We too must want to be found, ask for His help that He may find us (see 1 Nephi 8:8; Enos 1:1-5; Mark 9:14-29). We are never lost to Him, no matter what we are struggling with, our location, or perhaps even our mood. He is waiting for us to open the door and invite Him in (Rev. 3:20). "The God of Hope" will fill us with hope when the impossible seems to loom before us through the power of the Holy Ghost. He will fill us with hope when the "mist of darkness" (1 Nephi 8:23-24) makes the way difficult to see and we feel lost. He is just waiting for us to ask that we may be found.