Post General Conference

General Conference weekend is always so uplifting, especially when you get to spend it with family. My husband and I had the opportunity to go and visit his Grandparents in South Jordan and enjoy watching conference with them and it was well worth the trip.

I just wanted to give you some highlights from conference. Let's begin

One of my personal favorites was given by Elder Quentin L. Cook and he talked about our "roots and branches." He talked a great deal about doing family history work and how important it is to reach down into our family roots. Doing family history is an excellent way to serve and it gives you the perfect excuse to go and attend the temple. If you would like to read/listen or watch his talk you can do so here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/roots-and-branches?lang=eng

One popular talk occurred during Priesthood Session and it was given by Elder Dallin H. Oaks and he addressed a controversial topic of Priesthood. The reason it has been controversial is because many women feel that they should have the same opportunity as men to hold the priesthood. Elder Oaks boldly approached this topic in the perfect way. He talks about the Keys and Authority of the Priesthood. I think the most important part of this whole topic that we need to understand is what Elder Oaks says under section III: "Ultimately, all keys of the priesthood are held by the Lord Jesus Christ, whose priesthood it is. He is the one who determines what keys are delegated to mortals and how those keys will be used." If we can come to accept and understand that fact then I think things would be much easier. God is not trying to keep anything away from the women,, in fact he is trying to do the opposite in my opinion. He wants women to have a part in his priesthood and so he lets us by giving us callings and by allowing us to be married to worthy men who hold his Holy Priesthood. I could go on, but I think it is sufficient to say that I believe that God has his purposes and they are right. Men hold God's priesthood because that is the way it needs to be. If you want more info on this wonderful talk I highly encourage you to read/watch or listen to Elder Oaks' talk here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/the-keys-and-authority-of-the-priesthood?lang=eng

Another wonderful talk was given by Brother Randall L. Ridd. He spoke about how we are the "Choice Generation." I think many of us have heard that before and we kind of just shake our heads and say ya ya ya... but Brother Ridd talked about how our generation has been blessed with so many choices and he says: "more choices means more opportunities." I really liked the perspective that he took on this topic. I enjoyed how he talked about technology and how it should be used to further the work of the Lord. I especially liked his analogy of how we plug in our phones every night and how we need to be plugging into the most important source of spiritual power, which is prayer and scripture study. Needless to say it was another excellent talk and you can read/watch or listen to it here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/the-choice-generation?lang=eng
Well those are some of the highlights from this General Conference. If you missed out on some of the talks I encourage you to go back and listen to them. You can find a list of all the talks from every session here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2014/04?cid=HPSU040614654&lang=eng 
 Thanks for reading and have a wonderful week.

Join Us for General Conference

If there is anyone that can teach us about life's lessons it's God's Prophets and Apostles and they are preparing to speak to us this weekend. I am so excited to listen to their words and their council. I invite everyone to come and join us for this fantastic weekend full of wonderful advise from these wise men and women.

Women and the priesthood in Mormon theology

Linda & Richard Eyre: Women and the priesthood in Mormon theology | Deseret News



There are many feminists out there and I'm not trying to offend anyone here. I just want to explain my view point. I found this article and I completely agree with and appreciate what it says. It talks about how many people believe that "equality" means "sameness" and this is simply not true. We can be equal and do different things. In fact, that is precisely how I believe God intended life to be.

 Worthy men hold the priesthood and worthy women share in that priesthood when they become legally and lawfully wedded and sealed to their husbands. Both roles are equal in importance in the eyes of God but they are different. Women don't need to hold the priesthood to be in the same "ranks" as a man. Men cannot give birth, but that doesn't make them any less than a woman. Man and Woman share in the child bearing process because they support one another. 

These two paragraphs from the article sum up this point really well and it says:

"In Mormon theology, neither a man nor a woman is a perfectible
entity. Neither can realize full potential alone or achieve the highest
heaven. Together, though, in a new kind of oneness defined by
interdependence rather than independence, they can form something
“exaltable.” Mormons believe that every person will, either here or in a
later sphere, have the opportunity for that oneness.




In such a union, striving for that kind of oneness
and that kind of salvation, two priesthoods would be redundant and
divisive. One priesthood, the power to bless and to call down divine
help, shared as indivisibly as the power of procreation, is
indispensable to the growth and progress we seek."

I hope you read this article with an open and understanding heart. I really enjoyed the article and I hope you will too. Have a wonderful week. Thanks for reading.

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

This document is definitely one of my very favorite documents that the church has put out. I’ll post the content below the picture so you can read it easier.

“We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.

In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.

The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.

Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.

The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.

We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”

After reviewing this document again I am so thankful for what it says about how families are a part of God’s eternal plan. I also love how it says that “gender is an essential characteristic…” That means that we are the gender that we are for a REASON. We have a PURPOSE! God knows exactly what he is doing and he knows exactly who to appoint to do it.

  

One of my favorite paragraphs is towards the end and it says “Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.” I don’t believe that it is any coincidence that the first principle there is faith. In article of faith number four it also states that “the first principle and ordinance of the gospel is faith.” Faith must certainly be important if it is the first.

Overall I just love that this document spells out exactly what a faithful family should basically look like in its structure. There should be a mother and a father who keep their marital vows to preside and children who honor their parents.

I love this document and am so grateful that the First Presidency of the church was inspired to release it to us in these latter days. So many are confused as to what a family should be and this clearly states that if we want to have well-functioning communities and nations then we will fight to keep families together and to keep them strong.

I just wanted to share with you my thoughts on this important document. I know that the worlds in it are true and they are beautifully written. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Don't be a bully!

I watched this video with my husband about a week or so ago and we really enjoyed it. I remember being in grade school and seeing the bullies. I always wondered why they had to treat others that way. People with that kind of personality must have some kind of problem in the home that makes them think they have to treat other kids poorly. Sometimes kids act out because their parents might set that kind of an example, others might act out because they have inner issues that they deal with by making others feel less of themselves. Whatever the case is, it is completely inappropriate and should be dealt with and fixed. No child deserves to think that they are any less than they are.

We are all taught that we are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. What does that mean to you exactly? I remember my leaders in young women's teaching me that we are Daughters of a King. That means we are born of royal birth. We have a noble birth right! WE MATTER! When I say "we" I mean EVERYONE! Everyone has a purpose to serve here on this earth. We are ALL daughters and sons of a king. We ALL have noble birth rights! Anyone that tells you otherwise is simply just wrong and you should tell them of their worth so that you can both be uplifted.

If we can instill in our children a firm foundation of knowing who they are and whose they are then I think we can better deal with the bully situation. Those who bully probably don't know or have just forgotten who they are and need some reminding.

I thought this was an excellent video and worth sharing. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Ask your kids if they are being bullied at school and work with them to find a solution to their problems. Sometimes as parents we don't even know what is going on with our kids until they tell us.

Thanks for reading and watching.

Motherhood- The good, The bad, and the Ugly

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765649017/When-Satan-steals-your-motherhood.html
I thought this was an interesting article because I feel that I can very much relate to these feelings of inadequacy.

My friends and family all know that I am a new mother of beautiful twin girls. I absolutely love them and think they are just the cutest things on our block. However, their cuteness does not calm me down when they are both crying their hardest because they are ready for a nap or very hungry. It is in these times after I finally get them calmed down I look back and say to myself, why did I get so angry? They don't mean to make me so crazy, they are just communicating the only way they know how to. Yet, in those moments I can't think that way. I almost always lose control and get very frustrated with my girls and they are only 5 months old. According to the article posted above, I believe this is the moment that is described as "Satan stealing my Motherhood." 

This is my own personal weakness that I will have to overcome. The biggest frustration I have is that I compare myself a lot to other moms around me. I hear them all say how they love being a mother and they love their child... and whatever else sparkly and perfect comes out of their mouths. I'm going to be perfectly honest here. I do love my daughters, but I'm not so sure that I absolutely love being a mom just yet. I think it is one of the hardest things to be! Especially when I have begun my journey with two babies! I get pretty crazy some days.



Some things that I do love is seeing my girls laugh and smile up at me. I absolutely love those looks on their face of pure joy. I love when they talk to me and I love how I can tell that they are so close to the veil. They used to talk to someone every time I sat in our rocking chair. I'm not sure who they would talk to, but as soon as I would sit down they would look out towards our window and start chatting and smiling up at someone. I'm pretty sure they were talking to some angel, perhaps a future sibling or a past ancestor. I'll never know, but I loved being able to see them calm down just by having me sit in that very chair.

I also love seeing them learn new things. It is fun to watch them concentrate so hard on something so that they can learn what it is or what it does.

One of my girls really enjoys seeing herself in the mirror. So that is our new thing when she gets angry. I'll bring her to the mirror and she starts to smile at herself or even laugh at times.

So, yes, I'm not perfect and I get very angry with my little girls sometimes and I often feel inadequate, but I do still love them and I know that I can do better.

I liked this part of the article that says: "Satan wants you to fail. And to feel alone. And to feel inadequate to what Someone Else has called you to do."
I love that last part "to what Someone Else has called you to do." That "Someone Else" is our Heavenly Father and he is the one who has called us to be mothers. He knew that I could handle being a mommy of twins. He never said it would be easy, but it would be worth it. I accepted that in the pre-existance. (I must have really liked a good challenge then :P)

As I said in the beginning, I am a new mom so I have a LONG way to go with MANY more lessons to learn. I know that with my Heavenly Father's help I can do all things. I just need to work on keeping the peace in my life.

I take my days one at a time and I do my best to be my best. I wish all you other moms out there luck with all that you have to do. I know it is not easy, but the effect that we have as mothers is incredible and divine. It is our mission to bring God's children back to him some day.

Thanks for reading.

Don't let abuse be your noose

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/03/the-burden-was-removed?lang=eng&media=audio#listen=audio

This article is about a woman who was abused as a child and finally decided it was time to tell her tale. I really admired her courage. I know how hard it is to talk about things of this nature.

I am a firm believer that getting help and telling someone you trust about your problem is the best way to go. If you don't get it off your shoulders it could become a wedge in your future marriage. I loved the quote by Elder Richard G. Scott: "Healing may begin with a thoughtful bishop or stake president or a wise professional counselor. If you had a broken leg, you wouldn’t decide to fix it yourself. Serious abuse can also benefit from professional help. There are many ways to begin healing, but remember that a full cure comes through the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, our Master and Redeemer. Have faith that with effort His perfect, eternal, infinite Atonement can heal your suffering from the consequences of abuse."

I also think it is wise to talk to the person who abused you, if possible, and get the closure you need from that individual. Ask them your questions that have gone unanswered. They owe you whatever explanation you want from them. (At least that is my opinion.)

Don't continue to live your life with a secret burden of being abused. TELL SOMEONE! You deserve to have what the atonement can offer you. That is one of the very reasons why Christ suffered for us on the cross. Living your life hiding this secret will only bring you heartache and pain and no one deserves that. Receiving closure and letting go of that pain is one of the most rewarding things you will ever feel in life. It literally feels like a million pound backpack being lifted from your shoulders. It really is an incredible feeling.

One down side is that even if you are able to move on with your life and feel that burden lifted, I'm afraid that the memory may always stay with you. (At least that's how it works in my case.) Sometimes you may forgive but you won't ever forget and I think that's okay. There may be a lesson in that experience that you can learn from and watch for when you have your own children to raise and protect. As long as we don't harbor cold/hurtful feelings towards the person who hurt us I think we can survive the sometimes haunting memories.

I know that God wants us to be free from our burdens. All we have to do is ask and go knock on His door. He loves us so much and doesn't want us to always be in pain. He wants us to overcome our trials and be finishers of the faith. I know that he loves each and every one of us. I know that we can get the help and relief we need through Christ's atonement.

If you are ever afraid to tell someone in person your situation then get on your knees and tell your Heavenly Father about it first and ask him to lead you to the right source to receive help.

Trials CAN make us stronger

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/03/trials-tribulations-and-trust-in-the-lord?lang=eng

I read this article about trials and tribulations and I really appreciated the thoughts that were given and the story shared. I just wanted to take some time and elaborate and share some of my own experiences with trials.

When I was in middle school my older brother was killed in a car accident after being sent off as a Missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New Zealand ( I feel that I can in some small way relate to this family in the story.) He had only been out for about 2 1/2 to 3 months. The news came to us early in the morning and our Stake President was the one who came over and told us the news. We were so devastated and shocked by the news.

We all had a choice at that time of how we would react and cope with this news. I believe that my reaction happened the way it did because of the faith and example of my parents, especially my mom. They were so strong and knew that one day they would see their son again. I don't feel like I made an actual conscious choice about staying strong and faithful on my own, but because my parents made that choice I followed their example. 

After my brother's death my life began to have so much more meaning. I felt like I understood the meaning of life just a little bit better. My friends began to look up to me more and more and they leaned on my strength that I had gained and that strengthened me even more. I was able to be their example. I still looked to them as my example, but in turn they did the same thing.

I began to become a stronger individual. I knew that I would see my brother again some day and that helped me to change my perspective on how to live my own life.

I know that having a family member die is not an easy trial to pass through, however it can make you stronger if you allow it to. Some people let trials defeat them, but I chose to rise above my challenge and become better because of it. It was also helpful to have my friends stand behind me and help me through this tough time in my life. Having a strong support system and good friends, I believe, is an important part of coping.

I loved this quote from the article, that says: "I have learned much from a book titled Why Did This Happen to Me? by Ray Pritchard. He says: “Sometimes we will face things for which there is no earthly explanation. In those moments we need to erect a sign that reads, ‘Quiet: God at Work.’ Meanwhile, hold on, child of God. Keep believing. Don’t quit. Don’t give up. Let God do His work in you. The greatest tragedy is to miss what God wants to teach us through our troubles.”"

I feel that this quote is particularly applicable in my life today as I have had struggles adapting to parenthood and being a new mommy of twin girls. I guess it is time for me to erect the sign that says "Quiet: God at Work" because he truly is and I know in my heart that it's true. I know that God loves me and knows my specific needs, so I won't give up, and I won't quit. 

I recently went to a meeting where Elder Dallin H. Oaks' wife spoke and she talked about how we have the choice to Falter or Finish. So when we face our trials in life will we choose to Falter or Finish? My goal is to be a finisher. I want to always have faith that things will work out, because they do so long as we do our part.

Life can be tough at times. It is not always fair, but that's why we have a God who loves and knows us. If we turn our hearts to him he will be there to comfort and guide us through our life.

Again, I hope you take the time to read the article I posted at the beginning because it is a good one and it has uplifted me today. Thanks for reading. Now go out and do your best to be a finisher! I know you can do it. Don't give up!