Have I Done Any Good?

"Often we live side by side but do not communicate heart to heart. How many times has your heart been touched as you have witnessed the need of another? How often have you intended to be the one to help? And yet how often has day-to-day living interfered and you’ve left it for others to help, feeling that “oh, surely someone will take care of that need.”

We become so caught up in the busyness of our lives. Were we to step back, however, and take a good look at what we’re doing, we may find that we have immersed ourselves in the “thick of thin things.” In other words, too often we spend most of our time taking care of the things which do not really matter much at all in the grand scheme of things, neglecting those more important causes.

That service to which all of us have been called is the service of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As He enlists us to His cause, He invites us to draw close to Him. He speaks to you and to me:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

-Thomas S. Monson, “What Have I Done for Someone Today?,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 84–87

Love.

The great test of life is obedience to God

The great task of life is to learn the will of the Lord and then do it.

The great commandment of life is to love the Lord.

-Ezra Taft Benson, “The Great Commandment—Love the Lord,” Ensign, May 1988, 4

I have been thinking.....

How blessed are WE to be able to come to earth, given such wonderful bodies, have SO many wonderful experiences and memories, and to be surrounded by such wonderful people. We all have the opportunity to find a wonderful eternal companion and raise wonderful families. How blessed we ARE! Heavenly Father made this ALL possible. He loves us SO much and wants happiness for us. We owe SO much to Him, and all He asks in return is to show love to those around us and follow His commandments. If we do, He will feel OUR love for Him.

Joy

As our family is our greatest source of joy in this life, so it may well be in the eternity"
-President Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, May 1979, 33-34

Families Can Be Together Forever

I have been thinking a lot about the eternal blessing of a eternal family. How wonderful it is to know I can spend infinite moments with my husband. I am so happy to have been raised knowing the important things I must do on this earth in order to receive these blessings. What greater reward could God give us for being righteous, than to give us eternal life with our loved ones? When loved ones die, do not despair, please remember that they are in the arms of our Heavenly Father. We can live with them forever. There will be infinite times after this life for all of us to spend with our children, spouses, and family. I hope we can all find this peace, even during the hardest times.

"The eternal nature of our body and our spirit is a question often pondered by those who live in mortality. All people who will ever live on earth are members of a human family and are eternal children of God, our loving Heavenly Father. After birth and tasting of death in mortality, all will be resurrected because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God the Father. Depending on our individual obedience to the laws, ordinances, and commandments of God, each mortal can have the blessing of attaining eternal life; that is, returning to live in the presence of their Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, having eternal increase for all the eternities to come. Through making and keeping the sacred covenants found in the temple ordinances, individuals can return to the presence of God and will be reunited with their families eternally." -Robert D. Hales, “The Eternal Family,” Ensign, Nov 1996, 64

Love

"Life is eternal. The God of heaven has also made possible eternal love and eternal family relationships."
- Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Marriage That Endures,” Ensign, May 1974, 22

I am so happy to KNOW that I am going to spend my eternities with my parents, my siblings, my husband, my children, and THEIR children. As long as I do as Heavenly Father asks me to, I will receive that MIRACULOUS blessing. What greater joy could their be in this world, than to know that life on this earth is not the end? We have forever to spend with our family. Those that we love most. We are so incredibly blessed.

Forgiveness

"I think it may be the greatest virtue on earth, and certainly the most needed"
-Gordon B. Hinckley

Well, I have been thinking about forgiveness for a few weeks, and today I feel the need to share some thoughts...
Forgiveness can be hard. REALLY hard. But it such a necessary part of the entire Salvation process. It can seem so unjust what others do to you or anyone else, but keeping ill feelings towards another only hurts yourself. It makes your life turn upside down, or at least a little tipsy. And who doesn't want peace in their life? In order to have that peace, we have to learn to humble ourselves and forgive. It can be so difficult. I know that I have had to learn that the hard way, many times around. But now I have peace. I trust that I will be be happy because God promises that I will have peace and feel such great happiness if I forgive. By forgiving, I am trying to be more like my Savior Jesus Christ. And above everything else that happens in my life, being like Him is most important.

"Somehow forgiveness, with love and tolerance, accomplishes miracles that can happen in no other way. The great Atonement was the supreme act of forgiveness. The magnitude of that Atonement is beyond our ability to completely understand. I know only that it happened, and that it was for me and for you. The suffering was so great, the agony so intense, that none of us can comprehend it when the Savior offered Himself as a ransom for the sins of all mankind.
It is through Him that we gain forgiveness. It is through Him that there comes the certain promise that all mankind will be granted the blessings of salvation, with resurrection from the dead. It is through Him and His great overarching sacrifice that we are offered the opportunity through obedience of exaltation and eternal life. May God help us to be a little kinder, showing forth greater forbearance, to be more forgiving, more willing to walk the second mile, to reach down and lift up those who may have sinned but have brought forth the fruits of repentance, to lay aside old grudges and nurture them no more."

Gordon B. Hinckley, “Forgiveness,” Liahona, Nov 2005, 81–84

We Are Happy

"We are happy as we pray every morning and every night, when we can feel that the Lord hears us and is always willing to bless, forgive, and help us. We are happy as we feel the promptings of the Holy Ghost in our lives—as we feel the Spirit when we have to make important life decisions. We are happy as we go home after a stressful and tiresome day at work to the arms of our families, as they express love and appreciation for us. We are happy to talk to our children, to enjoy the family, to get together on family night. In short, we can feel happiness every day in our lives through little things we do, and we are fully happy as we keep the commandments of a loving God who cares about us."
-Claudio R. M. Costa, “Fun and Happiness,” Liahona, Nov 2002, 92–94