First off, Church was incredible. Everything about it. We had a member of the High Council come to speak. I would be lying if I said I didn't do a little muttering in my head. Boring... But I checked myself mentally and decided that I would try really hard to listen and learn.
It was such a beautiful talk. It was based off Elder Bednar's "The Tender Mercies of the Lord" talk from April conference 2005. There were a few things that really stuck out to me that I want to share.
Which brings me to my next point...
2. Children learn the most about God's attributes through us, the parents, as we temporarily take His place. The way we parent effects whether our children believe God is merciful or condemning. Of course it is important to help children learn right from wrong and that every choice has consequences. This is an eternal law. But it is also very important to help them learn the principles of repentance, forgiveness, and mercy. Again, our Heavenly Father is not sitting around waiting for us to mess up so he can toss us away. He loves us. As a parent, if your child messes up, you want them to do everything they can to make it right again. Their happiness and well being is the most important thing in the world. And if that's the way we feel here on earth, how much more must our Heavenly Father want his children to succeed! Repentance is a blessing. Mercy is God's love and law. If we can emanate that same feeling of love, understanding, and forgiveness as parents, it will help our children to be that much closer to their Heavenly parents.
3. The speaker said the most beautiful thing. I don't know he wrote it or if it came from another talk but he said something to the extent of, "You would never condemn a patient in the ICU for looking pale and weak. So why would you condemn someone who is recovering from surgery on their soul? Those stitches will eventually come out and the scars will heal. And remember, the chart is not the patient." Maybe it's because I work in the ER, but I thought this was such a beautiful analogy. Even though the chart details what the patient was seen for and what measures were taken, that chart does not define who the patient is. In fact, once released, the patient doesn't continue to carry their chart with them, their band still strapped to their wrist. They are clean, healthy, and whole. Absolutely beautiful.
It was a wonderful sacrament meeting. It was the first one in a long time that I found myself frantically scribbling thoughts down in my journal. (Not to discredit other meetings and their content. I am sure my determination to listen and learning probably helped a lot.)
Primary was equally as fantastic. Ryan and I have been in the primary now for 4+ years. We don't mind. Sure, we still don't know anyone in the ward, but primary is great. The kids are always entertaining and I think the simplistic truths taught are often the most important. There is no lesson as important as "I am a child of God."
For singing time, the chorister brought a box tied with a ribbon. "What is this?" she asked.
"A present!" the kids screamed.
"Right! A present, or a gift. Now inside I have the most precious gift in the world. But you know what? Even if you had all the money in the whole wide world, you couldn't buy this gift."
Looks of mixed confusion and excitement began to cross the children's faces.
"But this is something that each of you have."
More confusion. No one could possibly imagine a gift so beyond value, but that they all possessed at the same time. Sr. Primary had a lot of good guesses including the Holy Ghost, but no one got it. The chorister invited a child to come to the front and open the box, pull out of piece of paper, and show it to the others.
My Life.
Wow. So simple. And so profound. I sat pondering this, the truth of it - that no matter how much money you had, you cannot buy life. The world teaches that anything worth having can be bought. That happiness has a price tag. But of course nothing is more false. Then I began thinking about the miracles that science is making every day. I thought about the reality of in vitro and sci-fi movies like Gattaca and The Island and realized that even with all the advancements of science, you cannot truly create life. You can create a living organism - but life is not possible without a spirit. And that, you cannot create. You cannot buy. It is a gift beyond measure, beyond price. There is nothing more precious. This gift is what we fought for in Heaven. This is what we wanted more than anything. It's why we are here.
My life is a gift. My life has a plan.
My life has a purpose, in Heaven it began.
My choice was to come to this lovely home on earth,
To seek for God's light to direct me from birth.
I will follow God's plan for me,
Holding fast to His word and His love.
I will work, and I will pray,
I will always walk in His way.
Then I will be happy on earth,
And in my home above.
For the line "to seek for God's light to direct me from birth" the chorister turned off all the lights. As she suggested differents things we can do to seek for God's light such as reading our scriptures, going to church, listening to the prophet, etc, she would turn on a single little flashlight, then another, then another, until there was quite a beam of light. It was amazing the difference one small light to four lights combined made. Doing any one thing is wonderful as it still helps us to see and feel God's light, but how much more guidance we receive when we look seek in multiple areas!
For sharing time, we had a lesson on appreciating all of God's creations. We watched the most beautiful video of "Planet Earth" clips put to the song "Creation Calls" by Brian Doerksen. It was absolutely stunning. I can't figure out how to take the video from Youtube and post it here, but I totally suggest looking it up! Try this link, but I can't guranatee this will work either. If you have to look it up, the video is about 6.5 minutes and the first part starts with a picture of the world. Totally worth it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwGvfdtI2c0&feature=player_detailpage
After church I went home and watched Emma Smith: My Story. It was very touching. What an amazing woman. The faith that she had to have. Wow!
Beyond the spiritual side of thing, it was simply a gorgeous day! I took little Dodger for a walk around the block and it was 52 degrees! Ahhhh! It's amazing what the sunshine can do for a person.
As Dodger and I rounded to one of the neighboring streets, I felt myself tense as I realized that there were several neighbor dogs out in the frontyard. I have seen these dogs multiple times before and have always been grateful they were behind the fence because they are BIG! I found myself tightening my grip on Dodger's leash, prepared to yank him by his harness into my arms if needed.
First came a little cocker spaniel the same size as Dodger. I wasn't scared of this one, but still nervous about the reception. The two timidly smelled each other, and then their tails began to wag. Just then a large lab came bounding over. I held my breath as my tiny little guy looked up at this big black lurpy dog. They too sniffed each other and all was well. Then came the rottweiler. Ah!!! Gianormous animal! My heart was in my throat at this point. I could hear the owner yelling at the dogs to come back while simultaneously reassuring me that the rottweiler was very nice and just wanted to say hi. I nodded, knowing that the only thing to do was allow the dogs to sniff each other and say hello in their doggy way. The four of them stood in a huddle, sizing each other up, when suddenly Dodger and the spaniel began spinning in circles around each other. The lad and rottweiler just watched. Every tail was wagging and everything was good. At last I tugged at Dodger's leash to lead him away. He fought and pulled, just like a little child being lead away from the playground too soon. I honestly think they would have all been great friends and I am relieved nothing bad happened.
As we continued our walk we saw two other things that made me quite happy. One was a blue bird. What amazing birds. That bit of color brought out a spark in me as the little thing hopped from branch to branch. Maybe spring isn't so far away afterall!
As we continued our walk we saw two other things that made me quite happy. One was a blue bird. What amazing birds. That bit of color brought out a spark in me as the little thing hopped from branch to branch. Maybe spring isn't so far away afterall!
The other thing we saw started as a bit of movement in the flower bed between the driveway of two homes. I looked closer and realized it was 5-6 chickens wandering aimlessly. I don't know who they belonged to, or if the owners knew they were out and about, but it was fun to watch them. Dodger and I both stopped midstride and watched them for a while before heading home.
The evening ended with a great family birthday dinner for my little sister who was born on Valentine's Day. She is 17!!!
I know this post was super long, but it was just such a good day. And even though nothing really happened per say, I still just wanted to record it. I don't think I give enough credit or thanks for the small things, the moments of peace, and the messages of joy that come day by day. That's something I want to work on. This is a start.
The evening ended with a great family birthday dinner for my little sister who was born on Valentine's Day. She is 17!!!
I know this post was super long, but it was just such a good day. And even though nothing really happened per say, I still just wanted to record it. I don't think I give enough credit or thanks for the small things, the moments of peace, and the messages of joy that come day by day. That's something I want to work on. This is a start.
Seriously? Welding a BMW logo onto your Ford truck doesn't exactly count. Especially if you leave the Ford logo attached and emblazoned on the front. But I suppose a few points are deserved for creativity.