Saturday, April 28, 2012

Quick Update

There is so much to say. I guess I will update you on the happenings of my life:

Robin and I after her baptism
1. One of the most excited things that has happened to me is that one of my best friends, Robin, decided to get baptized into the church! I was so stoked for her. I haven't been happier for anyone in such a long time. When she called to tell me that she'd met with the missionaries and felt that she should be baptized, it was all I could think about. She is such a strong, beautiful daughter of God and has always and a great relationship with Heavenly Father. It was about time that she feel the spirit of the church and make the choice to come into the most amazing blessing that I have been given, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. She overcame a lot of opposition to get to this point and despite the difficulties she faced, she went through with it. I am SO proud of her. I will always admire converts to the church...


2. I had the incredible opportunity to spend a few weeks in New York City for Model United nations this March and April. It was a blast. I have never had so much fun on a vacation my entire life. I made some of the best friends and know that they will last a forever. I became very close with one particular boy, that is my new big brother. He is a great listener and we developed a report that was unprecedented for me. I am usually so slow to trust and open up to people. But he is someone I felt comfortable with immediately. I am grateful for that relationship and the friendship that we will have... forever. I also became extremely close with 2 other girls and another guy. It is so much fun to have a silly, random group to play with. We saw eachother literally everyday after being home. We even found the Utah equivalents to some of our favorite NYC attractions. The "No Malice Palace"... where I don't get kicked out! The "Shake Shack" where the lines aren't as long, a lobby... with no hour long elevator ride, etc. I feel blessed and know for a fact that this experience changed my life and will forever be remembered. More to come on this! I'll break down each wonderful day in New York. Good times...
Our team outside the UN building with our awards!






The Teen Winner and I being crowed
 3. I won Miss Idaho! Woo hoo. It is something that I have wanted to do for years. I finally achieved my dreams. And it was NOT easy. I faced so much rejection and failure before I got to this point. But, it has finally paid off. I do not do pageants "for the heck of it" or because I thoroughly enjoy pretending like I am barbie in 8 inch heels in a swimsuit. I do pageants so that I can have a voice for issues and people will listen to me, as well as for scholarship money for school. I am not your typical pageant girl. But, I would love to represent well for Idaho at nationals and show them that a girl can still be modest and beautiful. More importantly, while we are in Illinois for nationals, we are also going to Nauvoo.... which is a historic LDS town, where Joseph Smith and pioneers lived and where the Martyrdom of Hyrum and Joseph Smith occured. A very sacred and beautiful place. I cannot wait! :) I am truly blessed.



4. MY BESTEST FRIEND COMES HOME SOON. Its so surreal. I can't believe its been so long. Today I got a letter from him. Literally nothing makes me happier. Everytime I get a letter from him, I am on cloud 9 all day. I am continually edified and learn so much about myself and the gospel through our correspondance. Its been a blessing for me in all that I have learned while he has been away. I hope that I can continue to grow and progress in the gospel before he comes home and after he returns. I have missed the connection and friendship that we had before and look forward to resuming that upon his arrival home. On the other hand, I don't want him to come home yet. I know how happy the work makes him and I know how much good he is doing for the Lord. I also know how much he helps me to progress  in the gospel because of his service. I pray that he doesn't come home and realize how far behind him I am. Because if he does, he will drop me so fast and never look back! HAHA. Anyways....




To sum up my life since my last post... I am BLESSED! I have the greatest life. I may not have everything I want or an disposable income, but I am so happy. I can attribute my happiness to the goodness of the Lord. God is good!!!


Friday, January 27, 2012

I hope they call me on a mission



Missionaries! Just the word sends shivers down my spine. I LOVE missionaries. I have since I was a little girl. Both of my parents served missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and have subsequently always maintained a very close relationship with the missionaries in our area. It is no surprise that I have a deep seeded love for missionary work. If you are not familiar with Latter Day Saint Missionaries, I am sure you would recognize the two young men roaming your community in black suits and ties, on their bikes, with a Book of Mormon in hand. I feel privledged to know many young men and women serving missions. They are some of the strongest people I know. I would suggest talking to the missionaries if you ever see them, they are chalk full of glorius information and a beautiful message.

Recently my mind has turned to the inspiration and guidance of my best friend who is serving a mission. First off might I say, I have the greatest best friend of all time! Seriously... he is such a stud. He has given his whole heart to the Lord during his service in the mission field. During our weekly correspondance he has taught me so much about the principle of exact obedience. Obeying God's every command with 100% commitment. It was something I was lacking. I would change out of my Sunday clothes right after church, or I would justify a skirt that was right above my kneecap. But to what end? This whole life is about the Lord! Can I not subdue my natural man in small instances too? I mean, if you really think about it, sacrificing 2 years of your entire life is a big commitment, why then can we not sacrifice our social life to make sure we are honoring the sabbath 12:01 a.m. Sunday morning? Its worth it! Its the only real gift we can give back to our Father in Heaven. He has given us literally everything. We can only commit our lives to his cause in hopes that we can show our gratitude.

Then comes this principle on the mission. Exact obedience as a missionary. This includes no e-mailing those outside your family, no calling girlfriends at Christmas, no letters on non-Pdays, no speeding in your car, no long dinner appointments with members, and locking your heart. You are cheating God if you are focused on other things. I made a firm resolve when I was a little girl that I would marry an LDS Returned Missionary in the temple. This is not to say that non-RM's are not amazing people and some of my greatest friends... but I made a choice and have not looked back. When I marry that RM, if they put me before God, we are going to have serious problems. It starts on their missions. If my best friend prioritized me on his mission... we would no longer have a relationship. I am truly blessed in that regard. There is a great talk by Spencer W. Kimball titled, "Lock Your Heart". You can find the link HERE. It is a great talk by a prophet of God about where our focuses should be on our mission.

My best friend put it best when he said, " The [Lord] has given me so much. I want to give Him a gift. I want to give Him me. All of me.  All of my might, mind, and strength. And even my heart too, for just this short time..." Isn't it true? What would the world be like if we all committed to giving the Lord our "heart, might, mind and strength" for a short time? For those on the fence about serving a mission, DO IT. It will change your life. You will be blessed, so will your families, and future wives, kids, husbands, etc. For those that are preparing to serve, give it your all. Its the Lord's work, not ours.

I cannot wait to serve a mission, whether when I am 21, or with my husband when I am 65. I WILL serve my Lord almighty. Here is a video to explain a little more about missionaries and missionary service. It is the greatest work you will ever do. I cannot express my passion any more. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ, and I want the world to know!!!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action

I am terrible at consistency. But I got around to another post finally! Huzzah.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because its a time that I get to be with family, forget my worldly cares for a day, and think about all the things that I am grateful for. This time of year reminds me of how much there is to be thankful for! So I am going to list some of the things that I am most thankful for this season.

- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
- Temples
- My family (and the opportunity I have to be with them for eternity)
- The Atoning Sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
- Living in America and having freedoms not enjoyed elsewhere
- Wholesome music
- Brigham Young University
- My incredible best friends (Special shout out to my bff Tori)
- LDS General Conference
- Wealth and Abundance
- The roof above my head
- My jobs
- My talents and the opportunities I have to share them with others
- Transportation
- Modern day technology and communication

These are just a few of the many things that I am so thankful for this season. Without them my life would be nothing. I would be lost and alone this world.

There is so much to be thankful for. The Lord has given us so so much. We would be nothing without him! So this season I decided to take upon myself a challenge. This year, instead of simply talking about what I am thankful for and not act upon it... I am going to take action! I am going to thank the Lord for all that I have by "tithing" 10% of everything that I own to the Lord. That means, 10% of my pictures will glorify him, 10% of my music will be church related, 10% of my facebook will be dedicated to him, 10% of my clothing (well- more like 100% of my clothing) will be modest and worthy of his presence, and 10% of my life will be dedicated to his service! I challenge you to do the same thing and watch as it forever changes your life! :)

This is a fabulous little clip about Thanksgiving. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did....

http://lds.org/pages/mormon-messages?lang=eng&query=Thanksgiving#in-the-spirit-of-thanksgiving

Thursday, September 22, 2011

I love to see the temple...

I love going to the temple to do baptisms for the dead... Now for those of you that aren't LDS and don't know what that is, let me explain.

 We have a 4 fold mission in the church, to paraphrase they are... service, missionary work, strengthening our church members, and redeeming the dead. Part of our ideology of redeeming the dead is that we do baptisms inside of our temples for those that have passed away. We allow them to accept the name of Christ in heaven, but we want to make sure they have that opportunity, so we do proxy baptisms. Once you are 12 years old, if found worthy, you can obtain a recommend from your bishop and start baptisms then. Its one of the most peaceful experiences.


 Today while I was doing baptisms I was overcome with a serenity and peace. It was so great! I just listened to the hymns that they had playing and wrote in my journal. When I opened it, the first thing that I saw was a quote that I'd put in there a few years ago. It read....

"The temple is the only 'university' for men and women to prepare spiritually for their graduation to eternal life."     --F. Enzio Busche


I LOVE this quote! I felt its truthfulness manifest to me as I sat in the Lord's house. I went into the temple today with a plagued mind. I came out knowing that everything will be ok. The Lord loves his children, this I have a firm testimony of. He cares about each one of us and even sent his only begotten son to die on our behalfs! What beautiful knowledge? I love this gospel with all of my heart. I love the Lord with all of my heart. As I come to know more about Jesus Christ, my witness and testimony is solidified. I cannot wait until I can be endowed and will be able to  go through the temple. I think about it all the time. When I volunteer at the MTC, see missionaries, get letters, and even every day in mission prep class, all I think about is how jealous I am of those missionaries to get to  a. be involved in such a marvelous work (which is a discussion for another post) and b. going through the temple! Temples are so amazing. "My temple" is the Manti, Utah temple. Its where I want to be married. Its so pretty (like a princess castle), and has a rich history. Sigh....


I love being LDS with all of my heart and soul. I love this gospel. I love my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Here's a link to learn more about LDS temples...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-x_-TQivCx8&feature=player_embedded And To learn more about what I believe and about others of my faith check out mormon.org. :)  

Sunday, September 4, 2011

First Attempt at a Blog

I'm not a blogger. I swore I would never do one of these... and here I am writing a blog. I started as a part of a requirment for my "Mission Prep" class with Brother Brad Wilcox. I hope that I am able to better cope with situations, by blogging and writing down my feelings. This should be interesting.

 I guess we'll start off with where I am at in life. I am almost 19 years old. I attend Brigham Young University. I am presently a Poltical Science/ International Relations major. I work at "The Roll Up" a cute little crepe place.

Of all of the things to know about me, the most important is my love for my Savior and Redeemer. I love the Lord with all of my heart and I have tried to refocus my life to be pleasing unto Him in all that I do. I have a great testimony of his atonement and His love for each and every one of us. I know that my testimony will find its way into many of my blog posts! :)

I just got back from dinner and a movie with a great friend from work! I am so blessed to have found such amazing people to spend my time with. I love the conversations we have and the relationships that I am able to build. I feel so blessed!