Everything Awesome bLog

[heatherdvdprincess]

When you're going through some hard stuff, remember that God said He will not let you go through anything more than you can bear. The fact that you are getting this, then, means you are stronger than you think you are. You may even be stronger than most of us.

And you signed up for this-- mortality-- to grow! God is helping you. I bear my testimony of this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

[thoughtfloodway]

Every Day Is a Breakthrough

At Church last week, the Bishop gave the last speaker permission to go over time. After applying what was taught, I can see why!

The Brother said he does this thing every day, where he prays, saying all his thoughts, and then listens and records whatever God says, and then goes and does the prompting, however weird it is. Once, he said, the Spirit told him to go to the fridge and open the door. (He didn’t tell us why, but that is an example of how weird God’s promptings may be.)

I interpreted his counsel to “say all your thoughts” as to mean, “Say all the thoughts you never thought you should acknowledge, say aloud, or tell God.” 

And so I did. I told God some feelings I had. I had never dared entertain them, and they seemed too sinful to mention to Him. To mention them would be to accept them as mine, and I could not do that! But I finally told Him these thoughts and feelings I’d had. He told me to go play ukulele. 

I didn’t know how to play, but just a week or so before, I’d learned how to tune the ukulele, which I had requested for my birthday several years before. When I learned to tune it, I also learned that playing it gives you a high similar to a runners’ high.

I went and played, and it did help me feel better. Now I use it as a stress reliever and am learning more. I hope to use it on my mission.

I wrote my notes about this experience– what I said in my prayer, what God said in return, etc.– in a journal I now reserve just for this nightly time to tell God my feelings and hear His in return.

It has made my testimony stronger, my faith stronger, and His realness to me much stronger. My relationship with Him is deepening. I love Him like a mortal Father, and I know He will always take care of my emotional needs. In addition, I have learned that He will never “upbraid” me (James 1:5-6). 

Definition of upbraid:

“find fault with (someone); scold”

I pray that you will find your way to doing this every day, too.

You can remember “pray, listen, act.” 

With God, and doing this, every day for me has been a breakthrough. I pray it will be for you, 

In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

[heatherdvdprincess]

I was thinking how easy it is to memorize songs, and I thought, "Why doesn't God do that for scripture?" And then I remembered, He does!! The Psalms were songs from their original language, and Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others used poetry from their culture.

[heatherdvdprincess]

Not like my usual posts, but this is so cute and worth sharing! I especially love imagining all the times the mom said the same things to him when he did something and then said he was really sorry. Patience like a saint. We could all stand to strive to be more patient like her. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN2F1zxOC8w

[heatherdvdprincess]

God said that we can become...

God said that we can become like Him. We can become like Heavenly Father. Some faiths think we can't. But then what did Jesus say in His sermon, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:48).

[heatherdvdprincess]

Simple Truth

Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles summarized conditions and key events of our premortal life: “What occurred in this first estate is dimly understood, but we do know that we lived there as spirits, children of our Heavenly Father, and we made certain steps of advancement to prepare for the opportunity of housing our eternal spirits in earthly bodies. We also know that our Father held a great council to explain the purpose of earth life. We had the opportunity of accepting or rejecting the plan of salvation. It was not forced upon us. The essence of the plan was that man would have an opportunity of working out his own salvation on earth, with God’s help. A leader was selected to teach us how to follow the plan and to redeem us from sin and death. As the Lord explained to Moses, ‘Behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever’ (Moses 4:2). “Jesus Christ, our Elder Brother, became the leader in advocating the plan designed by the Father, and we accepted the plan and its conditions. With that choice we earned the right to come to earth and enter our second estate” (in Conference Report, Oct. 2006, 74; or Ensign, Nov. 2006, 70).

[heatherdvdprincess]

I believe that if we could truly understand the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, we would realize how precious is one son or daughter of God. I believe our Heavenly Father’s everlasting purpose for His children is generally achieved by the small and simple things we do for one another. At the heart of the English word atonement is the word one. If all mankind understood this, there would never be anyone with whom we would not be concerned, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, or social or economic standing. . . . “If we truly understood the Atonement and the eternal value of each soul, we would seek out the wayward boy and girl and every other wayward child of God. We would help them to know of the love Christ has for them. We would do all that we can to help prepare them to receive the saving ordinances of the gospel. . . .

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Please Share.

[heatherdvdprincess]

The Capacity of Souls is Great

Thomas S. Monson said the worth of souls is their capacity to become like God (Ensign, May 2006, 56). God has said in Doctrine and Covenants: "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; “For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him” (D&C 18:10–11.) Therefore, if the worth of souls is their capacity to become like God Almighty, and the worth of souls is great, then the capacity of souls to become like God is great. #ChurchofJesusChristofLatterDaySaints #ChurchofJesusChrist

[heatherdvdprincess]

Don’t Win the Battle; Win the War By Making Peace: in Marriage

Reading about power struggles in marriages. Thinking about it make me think of this:"We seem to be winning battles, when the war requires peace."

[heatherdvdprincess]

“Live your life that you wouldn’t be worried about selling your family’s parrot to the town gossip.”    

Will Rogers

[thoughtfloodway]

How to Adjust

I've been learning what it takes for me to slowly change my health habits and like it.

Currently, I do not eat desserts or other sugary things, even on special occasions; I eat veggies at almost every meal; and I only eat whole grains, never refined ones. I also jog a mile once a week.

I do no sweets because I recently learned about the adidictive nature of sugar, plus we already know that in excess it hurts us. This especially stuck with me when a person I know who does pot said they felt the same way after eating sugar as they did after vaping pot.

I'm only eating whole grains because the Word of Wisdom says "all wholesome herbs," and wholesome means not refined. After transitioning to whole grain, I learned that on many "diets" (I don't think I believe in doing short-term diets; I believe in lifestyles.), whole grains are fine, and it's the refined grains that hurt you. (Often because of a low glycemic index, which means it lowers inflammation, doesn't spike insulin, has no energy spikes or crashes, and essentially isn't treated like sugar. Yes, eating like this is awesome!).)

And I'm eating more vegetables and jogging weekly for obvious reasons.

But I did NOT go cold turkey to get here. I used to eat 3 donuts a week, plus whatever goodies my Dad brought home, and at one point was even eating a meal-sized dessert EVERY NIGHT. I ate no vegetables and no whole grains, and I did no challenging exercise except in P.E. (I walked a mile or so almost everyday, though, to get to school after seminary and to get home after school). With that, when I TRIED to eat healthier, it lead to a sense of (yummy) food scarcity, and my desires would build up until I couldn't handle it anymore and ate a ton of goodies, just to prove, to the self-disciplined voice in my head, that I was in control, not her. So I finally stopped trying that.

Then I tried basically only eating salad, because I learned about changing your gut bacteria. (There are lots of different bacteria in our intestines, and how much of any one type there is depends on what that specific bacteria eats, and how much of it it's getting from you. They also affect your cravings. The bacteria that eat sugar are different from the ones that eat healthy stuff, and you can drown out the bad bacteria by feeding the good bacteria better.) So I started eating basically only salad. And I loved it! And then someone told me that was impossible and the wind blew out of my sails and I stopped. I tried to continue with a salad daily, but then I went to college, and the ceasar salad dressing there had too much vinagar in it, and I couldn't bring myself to eat plain lettuce, so...

I started eating a serving of veggies every lunch and dinner, and I let myself have a little dessert (like, one brownie) every day. (As for soda, I didn't care about it. I never drank any while at school.) I also avoided refined grains, walked or biked around campus and biked anywhere off campus that I needed to, and did a few other things, including getting enough sleep. I lost 9 pounds in 3 months.

Then I went home and stopped exercising, eating veggies, avoiding refined grains, eating at a regular time each day, using small plates, not getting seconds, and drinking water after meals, and I gained it ALL back. Plus 1.

So I worked on it. And I learned how to boil the frog slowly to be ACTUALLY COMFORTABLE not eating sweets, even on special occasions. (Although I did watch my friend eating my favorite chocolate cheescake from Olive Garden and imagine it in my mouth. In my imagination, the texture was perfect, but honestly, even in my imagination, it was too sweet. I shouldn't be writing this before breakfast...) So change COMFORTABLE to WILLING. Here is my recommended plan for easing yourself in:

Only goodies on weekends

Only goodies on special occasions

Never eat goodies, unless you have a real NEED and ask God and He approves.

Eat a serving of veggies every day

Eat most meals with a big serving of veggies with it

Eat all meals with a big serving of veggies

Exercise every weekend

Exercise 2-3 times a week

Exercise 4 times a week (every other day)

Exercise every day except Sunday

Exercise every day (if desired)

Find out how much sleep you need

Pick when to wake up/ when to go to bed

Make a list of everything you have to do before bed

Estimate how much time you need for that

Set alarms to remind you when to start your night routine (anything you have to do before bed)

Listen to your alarms. If you struggle to, then set an alarm to give you warning for it so you can prepare your mind to stop doing what you're doing.

You can satisfy cravings for sugar with fruit (I fully recommend nectarines. They are the best!), and make dessert items by replacing white flour with whole grain flour and replacing sugar with Swerve.

I've learned that if you do something that you are willing to do, then you will soon become willing to go a step further. And you can use that to comfortably become the health nut you've always wanted to be but thought it would be too much not fun. You'll find it is surprisingly fun! And there's no guilt in it.

How might you apply this to other areas of your life, especially with emphasis on obedience to your Heavenly Father?

[heatherdvdprincess]

Ends don’t justify means

The ends don't justify the means; any means that has to be justified wasn't going to accomplish the end anyway. At least, not a good end. That's why Satan's plan was one of deceit; it wouldn't have worked even if we had tried it.

[heatherdvdprincess]

Insights on Parenting from Doctrine and Covenants 121:41-46

The first insight I got was from footnote 43b, on the word "sharpness." It referenced Doctrine and Covenants 15:2, which used the word "sharpness" along with the phrase, "with power." So part of "reproving with sharpness" is reproving "with power." Before trying to write an example of what this would look like, my ideas varied and were not what I define it as now. Previously, I thought it to be like Super Nanny telling a girl very sternly to get ready for bed. But after looking up another example that came to my mind, from the Book of Mormon, I realized it is much, much different. The example I looked up was of Nephi telling to his brothers Laman and Lemuel to “touch [him] not.” When I actually saw it, I saw the attitude in it. Here is the exact quote: “In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even to the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed” (1 Nephi 17:48). I realized that Nephi was not just telling someone in a stern way that they needed to do something, or that they were wicked, or that bad things would happen if they disobeyed; he was speaking with the power of God, from spiritual anger, the kind which inspired Jesus to whip the sellers in the temple. This is the kind of teaching that is only for times when a person is being grossly disobedient to God. If reproving with sharpness is the most severe of correction that God wants us to give, then correcting our children in all other circumstances must be very peaceful.

One of the next insights I got was on the footnote on the word "reproving." It referenced the Topical Guide for chastening. I went to the Topical Guide and read some of it. One of the scriptures was Deuteronomy 8:5, which said, "As a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord God chasteneth thee." Perhaps this verse is comparing Heavenly Father to our earthly father and how he teaches us, but it also got me to think that we shouldn't chasten our kids in ways we wouldn't want God to chasten us. This especially makes sense because Jesus told us that we should love others as much as we love ourselves and that as we forgive others (or do not forgive others), we will be forgiven by our Father in Heaven. So it makes sense that how we chasten our children could also be how Heavenly Father will chasten us.

The next insight I got was also from the Topical Guide for Chastening. I went to a reference there for Leviticus 26:28, but what really caught my eye was verses 29-31, where God told all the ways He'd punish His people if they did not repent. I went back to earlier in the chapter and looked for principles of his parenting. Though what I came up with may not be perfect, the principles I saw were in these steps: (1) a kid sins. (2) God teaches them and uses positive reinforcement. (3) He gives them time to change and actively helps them change if they want Him to help. (4) If they don't change, then He punishes them, and he increases the punishment until they do change. Every blessing is predicated on keeping a commandment (Doctrine and Covenants 130:20-21). So, He basically just takes away the blessings that they no longer qualify for. Every blessing is a privilege. Therefore, you can discipline your children by taking away privileges they no longer qualify for.

I know this is already long, but there are two additional insights I would like to share. The first is on a footnote in verse 42, on the word "Soul." It leads to the Topical Guide for understanding. If you replace the word "soul" with "understanding," then you get that "maintaining [influence]" by "kindness and pure knowledge [...] shall greatly enlarge the understanding." And that, it seems to me, is a promise! Since understanding will lead to obedience (https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/todd-b-parker/true-doctrine-understood-changes-attitudes-behavior/), kindness and knowledge will increase obedience! What a wonderful, useful promise to parents!

 The 2nd is from the same verse, but from a footnote before it. It is from the footnote on the word "kindness." It references the Topical Guide for courtesy, which describes being polite. Applying this to parenting, this tells me that we should give kids the same politeness our culture requires for adults. This also reminds me of something I learned while reading a blog post about parenting and other cultures. (Unfortunately, I could not find the blog to reference it here.) In either China or Japan, parents usually revere their kids as "adults in training." This perspective definitely would cause you to be equally polite to children, as with adults.

Therefore, we know from these verses and insights from their footnotes that we must be sensitive to the Spirit, correct our children as God guides us to, treat our children how we want to be treated by God our Father, use positive enforcement, teaching, patience, and then punishment, and “maintain” authority by” kindness and pure knowledge,” which will be the most likely to increase obedience. There is more, but this does not have to be an end-all-be-all.

[heatherdvdprincess]

Why Do So Many People Judge the Book of Mormon Before Even Reading it?

https://www.quora.com/Why-do-so-many-people-judge-the-book-of-Mormon-before-even-reading-the-first-few-pages/answer/Heather-Toomey

[heatherdvdprincess]

Tiny Things in Covenants

Have you ever heard that it is the little things you do that shows whether you are good or not? When it comes to salvation, it can seem harsh that you have to do the little things, too. But "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass" (Alma 37:6).

I know this is true. This is true because, as "a straw thrown up indicates the direction of the wind, even so the small things of our lives indicate largely our future destiny." This is what Elder George F. Richards said. I wanted to share this. He also said, “Let us keep our covenants by keeping the commandments as fast as made known unto us, attending to the little things and prove our spirits to be willing.” “Obedience to the gospel, to simple things," he said, "shows our spirits.”

I hope you will do your best to keep your covenants in the little things. I hope I will, at that. I will certainly strive to. It will make all of us happy and joyful. I encourage you to make a journal entry of what you can do to do better in the little things, and then pray for help to do them, and make an effort to do them. Then record the result and your testimony of it, if you want to. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 🙂

[heatherdvdprincess]

Restoration

We know there was an apostasy, where the gospel fell away from earth, because Paul said to the Thessalonians, that the Day Christ would come "shall not come, except there come a falling away first" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). The Greek translation, here, of "falling away," is apostasy.

Therefore, we needed the Restoration done through Joseph Smith. Learn how it happened in this pamphlet: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.lds.org/bc/content/ldsorg/content/english/manual/missionary/pdf/36920_the-restoration-eng.pdf%3Flang%3Deng&ved=2ahUKEwiNlIuF5bHhAhVLhq0KHfwnAxUQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw3GO29eYyNJmM_RzacSmP4H

I say these things in the Name of Jesus Christ, amen.

[thoughtfloodway]

Why Obedience is Strict, (Hint: it is for Good)

I was studying in the Book of Mormon today and found where Alma tells his son that, yes, the commandments ARE strict, but you’ll be blessed for following them.

So will YOU be blessed if you follow them. I know this for myself, from my day to day life.

“O remember, remember, my son Helaman, how strict are the commandments of God. And he said: If ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land—but if ye keep not his commandments ye shall be cut off from his presence.” (Alma 36:13)

I found another verse that goes with this;

“Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.” (Alma 36:6, in the same chapter.)

Now you may suppose that the commandments of God are too strict. That He commands even on the little things.: don’t drink even a little alcahol, go to bed early, honor your parents, work cheerfully, and more. Well, He does (command on even the little things). And that’s because He’s trying to change our whole person. That’s what we agreed with when we came down here to live mortally on earth. We agreed to talk to Him, to let Him tell us what to do to become perfect as He is. There is no greater gift than this. So how could there be an action worth doing that goes against what we know He has told us? Nothing is.

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. I know He loves you. And that, too, I say in the name of Jesus Christ, amen, because He says it.