I am home!

So to skip a few weeks, I wanted to write out some things that I have been thinking about.

1. WE HAVE TO BE SO CAREFUL TO REMEMBER WHAT IS IMPORTANT. We need to put the most important things first in our lives. In the mission field, for me this was a lot more simple to do. But being home and having many things to juggle around has made this more of a challenge. Here is my list of WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO ME:

God: Pleasing Heavenly Father and Following Jesus Christ. Doing His will and becoming like Him. Being strictly obedient to be HAPPY.

Family: Putting my family before others and making sure that I serve them, show them I love them, and help them with their testimonies.

Friends: Be a good friend and help my friends see their potential and feel good about themselves. Help them see what heaven sees in them.

School: Getting the best education possible to be highly trained to help others in the community

Work: Supporting myself. Becoming the best nurse possible.

Sports: Use my talents and have fun. Take care of my body.


Joseph Smith made a list similar to this and his list said: 1. Kingdom of God  2. Family and Friends.
I know that it is critical and vital to REMEMBER what really requires our attention. The world has several voices yelling at us to go this way....think about this....do this....go for this....THIS should be your goal...this will make you happy....this is most important...blah blah blah. Well, wisdom in all of this is that if it isn't a part of the gospel of Jesus Christ or if it is not light so to speak or rather a thing that will lead you closer to God, it is wrong.

I know for women and even men these days they are pressured on every corner to look and be a certain way. To overfocus on things that will eventually pass away in 30 years or less. What a waste of a life to overfocus on those things. Let's focus on things that will STAY. Not sports team wins, not lottery, not prince charming, not a model body....but virtue:)

I have a goal this week to focus on the REAL and EVERLASTING things that will in the end HELP ME BECOME LIKE HEAVENLY FATHER AND WHO HE WANTS ME TO BE.

I know God lives. I want to be like Him. I am thankful for Jesus Christ. I want to do all that He has showed. I know that by following Christ, we will be happy and it will be a joy that will never leave.

5 days left!

It is right around the corner! I leave for my mission in just about 5 days. I have been going through every emotion, no joke! Happy, sad, excited, nervous, anxious- you name it. I am so thrilled to serve though! I have struggled to feel at peace this last week as I have realized that I am really leaving, but a huge wave of peace came over me today. I just know that serving a mission is the right thing! I have felt this great adversity leading up to this point and it gets stronger and stronger the closer I get to my mission, but at the same time I feel this added strength. I am so thankful for knowledge of who I am. That I am my Father in Heaven's daughter. I know He leads and guides us today! Whether the right place for us to be is on a mission, at school, or whatever- if we seek his guidance and put our trust in Him, He will lead us to the place that will bring us the most joy in the end. I know that the Lord lives and knows the details of our lives. He knows us individually and has given us hope- hope to know that even when things are bad, as we use His atonement and strive to be like Him we will one day be raised up and recieve all that our Father has. Lets make each day count- for today is the day for men to prepare to meet God! It is real. I know that we will one day stand before God and be judged by our works and our heart. Let's strive each day to be better that we will be able to stand with confidence at that day!

Makes me think of eternity. Life is happier, choices are clearer, and burdens are lighter when we keep the perspective of eternity and press on looking forward with that hope that we will one day rest and be free of hurt/sin because of our great Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Hands

                                     This is one of my favorite pictures

Lose yourself

I had the best day today. Not because I did anything extraordinary but because I simply lost myself. I tried my best to focus on others today and had a blast doing it. I testify that loving others and serving them first is 100% better than serving ourselves. I have realized that everyone needs help! There is always some way we can help everyone- whether its a smile, listening to them, encouraging them, complimenting, helping them move, etc... There are so many ways to serve! I testify that if we fill our lives with service and strive to help our fellowman, that we will feel God's love even stronger. We will feel peace and confidence. We will feel more power and enrichment in our lives and we will truly become more and more like our savior. I know that God lives! He hears our prayers and stands ready to bless each of us. All He asks is to live like His son.

"Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies" PROVERBS 31:10

President Gordon B. Hinckly stated

"To you women, I wish to issue a challenge tonight. That challenge is to rise to the stature of the divine within you. As you have been reminded, yours is a godly inheritance. “I am a child of God” is not an idle or meaningless statement. You were there “when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons [and daughters] of God shouted for joy.” (Job 38:7.) You brought some of that inheritance with you when you came “trailing clouds of glory … from God who is our home.” (William Wordsworth, “Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood,” st. 5.) You were there when “there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. …

“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Rev. 12:7, 9.) You were among those who chose to follow the plan of Him who became our Redeemer rather than the plan of him who became our adversary. Great and marvelous is your place in the plan of God our Eternal Father.