LIFE GOAL

I've been pondering about my "Mission Statement," or life goal lately. So many companies have a mission statement to describe what their company is trying to achieve. I've been trying to think of a statement that could describe percisely what I want to achieve in this life, and the best thing that I've come up with are three words: SIMPLICITY*HUMILITY*CHARITY

All that I want to have, accomplish, or be, comes under these three words and their definitions. I want joy in simplicity...being happy with what I have and grateful for those things in life that God has given me. I don't want to be bogged down with too much stuff. I don't want to be material minded. I want to escape the stress of clutter...the clutter of possessions, the clutter of busyness, the clutter of trying to be all things to all people, and minimize. I want to treasure the moment, special friends and family, talents/gifts, myself, and value these things for what they are...gifts from God.

Next, I want meekness in humility...to erase pride from my heart and seek what God wants for me. I want to see myself EXACTLY as God sees me...nothing more, and nothing less, and see what my divine potential can be. I want to see others in the same way as God sees them too. I want to use my talents and abilities for the glory of God, and I want to remember where those talents and abilities come from and how they are nothing without the spark of the divine, or the influence of the Spirit. I want to give the Lord the gift of my heart, because my heart...my will...is the only thing that I have that is totally mine to give....everything else He has already given me.

Last of all, I want purification and sanctification through charity, or the pure love of Christ. With the pure love of Christ in my heart, I want to be virtuous in my thoughts and actions....kind. I don't want to be critical, but I want to think of kind, generous things of others...and then tell them. I want my thoughts to then be reflected in my actions. I want all that I think, say and do to be a mirror of my faith in Christ, so that all who see me will see Him.

I could go on and on, but no matter what thing I want to emulate in my life, I can place in one of these 3 catagories.

I hope I didn't get too personal here. It is the true desire of my heart, and now all of you know what that is too.

TIS THE SEASON TO BE JOLLY....

I love the holidays! I love making gifts for my family, and making treats for friends. As the days become colder, I enjoy the warmth of my cozy home and the feelings of warmth that generate from within. This time of year brings such joy to me! I used to try and do it all, but as I grow older I realize that I can't do it all and that some things just don't matter. For those of you who still try and do it all, here is one of my favorite quotes to help relieve the stress and maybe help you see that you don't want to do it all....just those things that really matter. I know it is talking of the busyness of our daily lives, but if we make ourselves too busy in our average days, how much more crazy we will be when the extra bustle of the holidays come. And if we are too busy in those common busy days to remember the Lord, then how will we ever find time to remember the real "Reason for the Season" when the hectic holidays come?

“...One of the adversaries favourite tactics among righteous LDS women is busyness -getting us so preoccupied with the flurry of daily life that we fail to immerse ourselves in the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

– Sheri L. Dew


I hope that during this holiday season we will all ponder what is truly most important to us, and work hard at achieving unbusyness. Do we need excessive gifts? Are "things" really what make Christmas? Or would 1 gift from the heart be worth so much more? I pray our quest for unbusyness increases our joy of the holidays, and in Him who, is not only the reason for the season, but He who also created us that "we might have joy."

Okay, Now I'm Really Back...

Emily has informed me that if I'm back then I need to post something....so here is a little something.

I guess I was caught up in the election too much to really focus on my blogs, and in a frenzy over the obvious bias of the media for their candidate. Having a black president doesn't bother me, in fact, if he were a good, righteous man I would have loved it! Kind of like a Morgan Freeman, or a Denzel Washington!! But Obama has too shady of a past, with too many powerful and corrupt people behind him making it all happen, to win me to his side! Is the voice of the people really for a wicked man? I'm so shocked that the majority of voters actually voted for a man they knew nothing about, because he and the media wouldn't let anything come out about him. All he had to do was put out this nebulous word...change...he didn't even have to say what the changes were, and people were going nuts! I have been so frustrated by all of this that I wasn't able to see clearly the things that I love. Now the election is over and we can't change the outcome. I know that God is in charge. If Obama is in office to help fulfill His plans for this country....whether 'great or terrible'....then we (I) need to be more faithful and immerse myself in those things that will bring me closer to a knowledge of God's will for me and my family. As I was on the treadmill this morning I listened to a talk by Elder Jeffrey Holland called, "Tongues of Angels." He said so many wonderful things in it about virtuous words, deeds and thoughts, and it struck me again how much I need to keep my conversation on a happy, positive note. When he said, "I don't know of any bad things that can't be made worse by whinning," that I knew he was right. I'm through with whinning! I'll now look forward with faith, though with the future hard times may come, we will always have peace and security in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I'M BACK....

Between gardening, harvesting all the produce, getting the house ready for my son, Daniel returning from his mission in Australia, and having my son from Germany visiting with his wife and children, I have been too busy for my blog. I now have a little breather before the holidays and the arrival of my daughter living in Africa with her husband and children in December. Life is good!!!

Grand Champion Winner!

I entered Dad's picture "Man of Integrity" in the Madison County fair, fine arts/ professional division, and it won Grand Champion! Woo hoo! It is entered as an older post if you want to see it again to see what I'm talking about.

REACHING THE SUMMIT

Life is a series of summits...goals that we make for ourselves and strive to attain. They are small when we are young, but the confidence we gain from those small summits encourages us to larger goals and heights. You might say it is those beginning summits that make all the difference in our lives. Without those small hills the large ones can never be climbed.

Ben climbing his smaller summits of Boy Scout camp with his dad in Utah. He has since climbed larger summits... service in Iraq being only one of them!

Fun Game

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember--it can be funny, weird, awkward, random, etc.!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.