Japan

I was just looking at some pictures from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. There are so many things that can be taken from something like this... A guarded (or otherwise overwhelming) sorrow and sympathy for their suffering, a desire to help, a feeling of helplessness because the task is so great, a reminder that this life is not all there is, a gratitude for that faith, a guilty reminder of the value and necessity of food storage and emergency preparedness, a gratitude for humanitarian work, a re-realization that no matter what problems I might be facing right now, it could be so much worse, the reminder to count my blessings - while I have them.
One of the things I thought about was a talk by Elder Ballard a few years ago.
He said: "Several of the Brethren and I recently visited a few of the refugee centers in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas where devastated and displaced victims of Hurricane Katrina were staying as they began to try to put their lives back together. Their stories and situations are tragic and poignant in many ways, but in all that I heard, what touched me most was the crying out for family. "Where is my mother?" "I can't find my son." "I've lost a sister." These were hungry, frightened people who had lost everything and needed food, medical attention, and help of all kinds, but what they wanted and needed most was their families."
I think this is a good reminder of what REALLY matters most. The title of Elder Ballard's talk explains what I mean: "What Matters Most Is What Lasts Longest".

Completely

This is one of my favorite quotes lately. I have it hanging on the fridge. I guess I feel like I need to be reminded of this - A LOT.

"Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God's love encompasses us completely." Deiter F. Uchtdorf, "The Love of God," Liahona, Nov. 2009, 21-24

Relief Society

I went Visiting Teaching yesterday and we were talking about Relief Society. I shared this experience from when we first moved to Oregon:
My Mom tried many times to teach me how to bake bread. I was never interested. Then I had kids. My desire to be a good homemaker grew, but bread scared me, and I had lost the chance to have my Mom teach me (we lived too far away). I was asked to serve on an Enrichment committee and they needed someone to bring rolls. I apologized that I couldn't because I didn't know how to bake bread. Barbara Jones (our Bishop's wife), quickly stepped in. "You will bring the rolls. I am coming to your house tomorrow and I am going to teach you how to bake bread." And she did. The next day she showed up at my door with the ingredients and her special bread-making bowl (an enormous Tupperware that had a tight-fitting lid - an extra, I later learned - that she GAVE me!), and she taught me how to make bread. I love this story because to me it demonstrates the beauty of belonging to Relief Society. I had a need that I couldn't meet on my own. One of my Relief Society sisters took time from her life to help. Because of her, I was enabled and enhanced. And I was able to use that new skill to serve others - and more importantly my family. I love Relief Society and I will ALWAYS be grateful to Sister Jones for teaching me to bake bread.

Work

I loved Elder Christofferson's talk last General Conference about a consecrated life. I have been thinking about what he said about work. "God has designed this mortal existence to require nearly constant exertion." Isn't that true?! And the work of my life is a lot less urgent than the work of most people throughout the history of time. They were basically trying to feed themelves and their families in order to survive. I am trying to clean my mirrors so we can look at ourselves without smudges. God really did design our lives to be MOSTLY work.

Elder Christofferson continued: "Work builds and refines character. ...A consecrated life is filled with work, sometimes repetitive, sometimes menial, sometimes unappreciated, but always work that improves, orders, sustains, lifts, ministers, aspires." There is something about work that is innately ennobling; the work itself - not whatever we are "getting done". There must be something about WORKING that is profoundly critical to our salvation. It makes sense to me, anyway, given the fact that God made, created, planned that SO much of our lives would be work. This idea is so freeing I think, especially as a mom. So many things don't get done, but if I can look at the work itself as the end - rather than a means to an end - then I am much happier to do what I can and let the rest go.

Old Wounds

LOVE this from President Hinckley. (Miss him).
"There is no peace in reflecting on the pain of old wounds. There is peace only in repentance and forgiveness. This is the sweet peace of the Christ, who said, 'blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God (Matthew 5:9)." President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008), "Of You It Is Required to Forgive," Ensign, June 1991, 5.

They Were Strengthened

I read today in Alma 2. This is a story that I guess I don't know very well, although it has a similar theme to many other stories in Alma. The people of the Lord are forced to fight those that have followed Amlici. Verse 17 says that "many of the Nephites did fall before the Amlicites. NEVERTHELESS, the Lord did strengthen the hand of the Nephites". This happens a lot in the scriptures, but it seemed particularly poignant to me today. In the lives of these faithful Nephites, The Horrible Thing happened. They had to fight. (And then they learned that their enemies had joined with the inumerable Lamanites too.) Some died. Horrible. BUT... in verses 18, 28 (twice), and 31 it teaches that "the Lord did hear their cries, and did strengthen them". So, I think that is part of the goal - to be able to pray and receive STRENGTH in the midst of challenges. They cannot be prevented or avoided, but the Lord can and will strengthen us.

A Good Pattern

Yesterday I read about one of king Mosiah's interactions with his sons and I thought it provided a good pattern for parents. His four sons, Ammon, Aaron, Omner, and Himni want to go serve a mission to the Lamanites. It says that they "did plead with their father many days that they might go up to the land of Nephi" (28:5). This denotes - to me - that Mosiah was resistant to the idea. He had seen and heard about a lot of suffering from the Lamanites. In Mosiah 28:6 it says "And king Mosiah went and inquired of the Lord". That is the pattern. When difficult decisions need to be made - inquire of the Lord. Then (like Mosiah) do what He says.