The Shepherds

"On the eve of Christ’s birth in the stable at Bethlehem, shepherds watched over their flocks in fields not far distant. These were not ordinary shepherds, for it had been prophesied among the Nephites that angels would declare the glad tidings of the Messiah’s birth to “just and holy men” (Alma 13:26).

In the Americas, Samuel the Lamanite prophesied of the signs of the Savior’s coming. (See Hel. 14:3–6.) And Alma wrote that Christ’s birth would be heralded by angels to those who were “just and holy” (Alma 13:26). In the nation of Christ’s birth, the testimony of his coming went forth in ever-widening circles—especially among those who were keeping the commandments and ordinances of the Lord and were filled with the Holy Ghost."

Joseph Fielding McConkie

Who are the Shepherds? There names are not given, yet they are one of the 12 witnesses to Christ's birth. They were 'Holy men', who kept the commandments of God. They watched over their flocks dutifully. They were not distracted by worldly things. In the still of the night the angel Gabriel appeared to them and told them of the miraculous birth of the Christ child. They were ready.

Luke: 15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.

They ran to the Savior. Then they went to tell everyone else. They had found Him and felt a probably overwhelming desire to share this wondrous news with others. They were missionaries who, when they had become converted themselves, couldn't bare to keep the news hidden.

I am grateful that we have the story of the shepherds. I am grateful to know that the Lord calls those who are in a humble station in this life to be witnesses of Him.

I ask you to think of the shepherds this Christmas and why they were chosen and how we can become more like them, so that we too may be witnesses of Christ.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

God's Time

When we sync our watch with God's, we will always be on time.

In my life, I think quite a bit, that my time is God's time, when in fact I am the one that needs to be keeping my time with His. I want things now. But that is because my view is very limited.

A box of pasta says that you need to wait till the water boils. But I'm hungry now. So if I put my pan of water on the stove, but never let it boil, my macaroni is not going to taste very good. I went against the instructions to what I thought would be best, because I wanted it now. God needs time to work for our benefit, not His. He could give everything to us when we want it, but then we would get uncooked macaroni.

One of my favorite scriptures: D&C 50:40

'Behold, ye are little children and ye cannot bear all things now; Ye must grow in grace and in the knowledge of truth.'

Another: Jacob 4:8

'Behold, great and marvelous are the works of the Lord. How unsearchable are the depths of the mysteries of him; and it is impossible that man should find out all his ways. And no man knoweth of his ways save it be revealed unto him; wherefore, brethren, despise not the revelations of God.'

I know that as I 'sync' my watch with the God's, things go a lot smoother, I am happier and that I never have to wait for the Lord cause I know that he will be on time.

WHO WINS THE RACE?

'Instinctively we strive to win— No matter what the race, A still small voice within us says, “Don’t slacken off the pace.” Not all of us can come in first, There must be also-rans. He wins a special vict’ry though, Who does the best he can. And when it’s run, the question’s posed, Who really won the race, He who did the best he could, Or he who took first place?' George T. Johannesen Sr We all want to win. Some of us start off with the best shoes, some start with holes, some have none at all. The Lord only asks us to do what we can, he will make up the rest. Have a goal and go for it. The Lord never compares your best to anyone else's best. Neither should you.

Spiritual Resuscitation

Are you in need of some Spiritual resuscitation? Then ... DO-CPR! Diligence: Merriam-Webster definition: the attention and care legally expected or required of a person (as a party to a contract). The Lord expects our Diligence. We have made covenants with Him, and we are to use all Diligence in keeping those promises. Alma 32:43 Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you. Obedience: "One of the sneaky ploys of the adversary is to have us believe that unquestioning obedience to the principles and commandments of God is blind obedience. His goal is to have us believe that we should be following our own worldly ways and selfish ambitions. This he does by persuading us that “blindly” following the prophets and obeying the commandments is not thinking for ourselves. He teaches that it is not intelligent to do something just because we are told to do so by a living prophet or by prophets who speak to us from the scriptures. Our unquestioning obedience to the Lord’s commandments is not blind obedience. President Boyd K. Packer in the April conference of 1983 taught us about this: “Latter-day Saints are not obedient because they are compelled to be obedient. They are obedient because they know certain spiritual truths and have decided, as an expression of their own individual agency, to obey the commandments of God. … We are not obedient because we are blind, we are obedient because we can see” R. Conrad Schultz Charity: 1Peter 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Moroni 10:20 Wherefore, there must be faith; and if there must be faith there must also be hope; and if there must be hope there must also be charity. 21 And except ye have charity ye can in nowise be saved in the kingdom of God; neither can ye be saved in the kingdom of God if ye have not faith; neither can ye if ye have no hope. Patience: "The ability to put our desires on hold for a time—is a precious and rare virtue. We want what we want, and we want it now. Therefore, the very idea of patience may seem unpleasant and, at times, bitter. Nevertheless, without patience, we cannot please God; we cannot become perfect. Indeed, patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, deepens happiness, focuses action, and offers hope for peace." President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Repentance & Responsibility: Repentance is a divine gift, and there should be a smile on our faces when we speak of it. It points us to freedom, confidence, and peace. Rather than interrupting the celebration, the gift of repentance is the cause for true celebration. Responsibility is so essential to all of the above. Do we realize that we will be held accountable, or responsible for everything we do? Are we are diligent, obedient, have charity and patience? We are responsible for all that the Lord has given us. Even our time. I pray that WHEN we are all in need of 'Spiritual Rescusitaion' we will turn to the Savior and apply these principles to living a happier, more peaceful life.

Let's Get Real

For the past few months I have been trying to figure out why I don't like writing blogs. I love reading them and trying to think of new ones, but when I get to the keyboard and I'm staring at a blank screen, my mind becomes just that...blank. I believe that I have found my answer! As I was getting ready today my epiphany came to me. I have been faking it the whole time. I have not been myself. I have tried to be the 'perfect' missionary, and they just don't exist. (Except in the District 2)

I am Not a Barbie! I am not a Stepford Missionary!

When I first set out to write a missionary blog I had an idea of what it would be: I would be real. It would be me.

But then I started looking at other blogs and tried to be like them. Not that those other blogs are bad by any means, they are just not me. And anytime I try to be like someone else, I get depressed because I move farther and farther away from the person/missionary that Heavenly Father wants 'ME' to be. I put on a facade and failed.

So this is my attempt to apologize to my readers and rectify my mistake. From now on this blog is me. My life. My mission. My story.

What has been happening in my life: I just found out that I have a Gluten Intolerance. My life has turned upside down! Just when I thought I had every thing under control...I get this thrown into the loop. I have been praying for years to be able to be healthier, I just didn't expect the answer to come this way.

I have been gluten free for about 3 weeks. It is really hard! I feel so much better when I don't eat gluten and I can feel like a human again, but see there is one tiny, little problem...This new found diagnosis takes a lot of time and effort to make the treatment work. I'm a missionary. I don't really have time for anything else. So then this wonderful test came along to make me realize that I don't have everything under control as I would like. Plus I feel like such a burden to the members that we eat dinner with every night, becuase they have to tell me exactly what they are cooking and read all the ingredients to me and if there is anything that I can't eat they either have to start from scratch or make me a seperate meal. I'M SORRY! :(

Life is interesting. And I'm greatful that Heavenly Father doesn't allow me to beome complacent in my day to day routine. I'm thankful that he throws in a few sour skittles to let me realize how sweet life can be.

To be continued...

NASTY LITTLE THINGS

I HATE RUBIX CUBES!

For the main reason that they make me feel like the baby in the picture to the right. I don't get them. My brain feels like it's going to ooz out of me when I even think of rubix cu...nope I can't even write it that's how sick they make me. BUT I had a companion that LOVED them and she could pick any cube up and have it done in 10 minutes.

Apparently if you can finish one it's a sign of intelligence and I would marvel how she could do it, then she finally told me the long awaited secret...She read the Directions. Hmmm. Whatever. I don't need to read the directions. Besides if I do then I will be cheating. And I am no cheater!

Why do I think this way? The directions are there for a reason. To help. But it's my choice to use them. But the prideful me says 'No way, Jose!'.

Raise your hand if you read the directions...

All of them?

That's what I thought.

I don't read all of them either, and then I think, hmmm where is this bolt suppose to go, then it all comes crashing down. Now this is the point where I apply it to life.

READ THE DIRECTIONS

'What directions could there be,' you ask? Simple, the Book of Mormon. It really is that easy. But because of the easiness we don't do it? What?!

It's like the Israelites that needed to only LOOK at the staff and they would be healed, but because it was so simple...they perished! (Tsk, Tsk.)

'There MUST be a harder way,' you say! No. But you will have to sacrifice some of your precious, but useless t.v. time but 'the pain of sacrifice lasts only one moment. It is the fear of the pain of sacrifce that makes you hesitate to do it.' F. Enzio Busche

The scriptures are hear to be our directions. So why do most of us not read them...all the way? I bet you a million rubix cubes that if you do read them that God will not call you a cheater at life. You will not have any missing bolts. And you won't perish! Don't be scared at how easy it is. Love the easiness of it. There are too many other things in this life that are difficult, reading your 'Directions manual' doesn't have to be. I promise that if you do, what ever you are trying to build in this life will be a masterpiece.

The Tortoise and the Hare

Does slow and steady really win the race? Does it seem at times that you are battling an up hill climb with people passing you on every side? SO DO I!

I get so frustrated when I stumble over tiny pebbles and the guy next to me is clearing his boulder in one leap. I think to myself, 'why are they so different then me? Why must I struggle when they can hurry over them and then sit in the shade and wait for the next one to come?' Like the Tortoise I feel as if I am carrying a load on my back that doesn't allow me to move as quick. Some times I just want to give up!

HOWEVER...through my deepest, darkest, steepest climb; when my brow is covered with endless sweat and my knees are scraped and dirty, I choose to look up and there is always a light. This light is different at different spots in the journey. The light for me can be the knowledge and wisdom that I find in the scriptures, or knowing that someone else has climbed this mountain before me and is waiting on the other side.

When I finally make it over my mountain and look back I will see this person that I was allowed to become because of the things that I struggled through. I will have muscles! Spiritual muscles that cannot be taken away. I will see those hares sitting in the shade and realize that they didn't leap over their boulders, they went around them. And they will have endless things to go around unless they look up, and take one step at a time. Because that is how we make it back to our Heavenly Father. That makes the 'slow and steady' part all worth while.