Dessert Disaster

A few weeks ago, my companion and I made brownies! We decided that it would be a great idea to put some marshmallows on top and then broil it so the marshmallows would be perfectly golden. We of course were chatting as we are experimenting, which then leads us to completely forgetting that we just put something in the broiler! We go off in our room, still chatting away when all of a sudden my mind flashes back to about 10 minutes ago when we put those brownies in the broiler! I drop everything, sprint into the kitchen, open the oven to see

 MASSIVE FLAMES!!!

 (i'm not exaggerating at all)

In shock I shouted, "Sister!! The brownies are on fire!!"

My companion came running out as we are both laughing so hard because we didn't know what else to do. She grabbed a huge bowl, filled it with water and dumped it on the brownies as I pulled them out. We couldn't stop laughing after that! Although our lovely idea of making brownies ended up a pile of black mush, we had a lot to be happy about.

(as you can see we destroyed them...)

We learned a few valuable lessons that day:

 1. Don't have deep chats when you put things in the oven. 

2. When things get crazy and your world goes up in flames, learn to look around and see to good.

 God put us here so we could learn, grow and experience joy! We slip up and make mistakes...sometimes we cause food to catch on fire! Regardless of the challenges we face, I am thoroughly convinced that there is always something that we can be happy about!

Did You Think to Pray?

Throughout my life I have always known to pray. There was never any question about it! Need comfort? Pray! Happy? Pray! Sad? Pray! Grateful? Pray! See the pattern there? We should always be praying! There is a reason the Savior instructed us in 3rd Nephi to "pray on." 

My companion and I were driving down to a part of our mission that I had never been to before. While we were driving, it started to get dark out which made it very difficult to see any street names. Before we knew it, we were at a "T" in the road and we had no idea where we were with no ideas on which way to turn. So what did we do? We prayed!! 

After arriving home safely, we prayed then planned for the next day like usual. We woke up the next morning and did some studies but something felt off. As I gave it some thought, I realized there was one factor of our day that we had not prayed about and some things needed to be switched around. I knelt with my companion in prayer and as we took the situation to our Father in Heaven, He gave us guidance on what we needed to do and where we needed to be. It changed things up a bit, but we knew that it was what needed to happen. 

It was such a stellar day! We saw so many miracles and were blessed to be exactly where Heavenly Father needed us to be at the right time and with the right people. It was incredible! 

In Pinocchio we hear the song that we are all familiar with, "When you wish upon a star." As a little kid, I remember thinking how cool it would be to have a fairy come when I wished upon a star and grant my wish. But what we have is so much better. 

Our Heavenly Father knows us perfectly and loves us perfectly. No matter where we are, what time it is, no matter anything, we can talk to Him. He not only listens to us, but answers us back. He knows what we can become and when we turn to him and act in faith, He leads us to live and eternal life that is greater than we can imagine. 

We should ALWAYS pray to our Heavenly Father. I know He is there and that He answers prayers.

More than a "Five Year Plan"

Sometimes I have this problem where I think I need to plan out every little detail of my life. For a long time, I made detailed "five year plans." 

Funny story... my plan is never what happens. 

If you would have asked the 5 year old me what I would be doing at this point in my life, I would have said that I saw myself as a professional football player.

Obviously that plan has changed! :)

As I look back on my 20 years of life, I can't help but sometimes laugh. I thought that this perfect life I had dreamed up for myself was the best option ever. I've learned, however, that there is someone who knows me better than I know myself. Someone who knows who I can become. Someone who is helping me get there. My Heavenly Father. His plan for me is perfect!

Rapunzel, in the movie "Tangled" (one of the greatest movies of all time) has a goal to see the floating lanterns. When she meets the striking Flynn Rider, she comes up with her plan that he will be the one to take her to her destination. Simple enough right? No. The story would be no good if there wasn't a crazy old lady trying to keep Rapunzel's "gift" to herself, a horse that has some sass and a man named Vladimir who collects ceramic unicorns! The ending would not have the same effect if it wasn't for the journey that Rapunzel had gone through. Her journey allowed her to grow and reach the potential that she had to be a princess. 

Things in this life aren't always going to go as WE plan but as we follow direction we receive from our Heavenly Father, things will go according to HIS plan. HIS plan is perfect. Most times, we won't be able to see how things will turn out. That is where faith steps in. If we trust in God, we can keep pushing forward even when we can't fully see what is ahead. We can trust that He has a plan for us that is better than our own. We can trust that He will help us become the amazing people He knows we can be. 

I have a wonderful friend named Joy who is such a good example to me and recently joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, along with her mom. As I was visiting with her last week, she said something that really struck me. Although she is a planner, Joy said she has come to know that God has a perfect plan for her. Her faith amazes me! Joy was willing to share how she has come to know of God's perfect plan. 

"With the different health related trials I've been dealing with, it's been so shocking to me how much easier it all is now that I have direction and guidance from my Heavenly Father. Before, when I was trying to 'figure it out on my own' I would have these breakdowns pretty regularly where I just felt like I didn't have it in me to go to another doctor's appointment, get another procedure done, have another surgery...etc. I was directionless and I felt like I was running out of strength. But after I started to build my relationship with the Lord, I had a new source of strength. Now, if something seems difficult, I just take a moment to say a prayer or look up a scripture and I feel the courage to carry on with a smile. I know that God would never put something in my path that I couldn't handle and every trial I face, if I stay close to God, will just lead me to my happiest possible life."

I have learned so much from Joy and her example of trusting in the Lord and His timing. She didn't ask for or expect her trials to come...none of us do; but we can rely on the Lord and trust that He is leading us in the right direction. We can trust that if we follow His plan, it will lead us to the greatest happiness. 

Just as Rapunzel experiences great joy at the end of the movie, we can experience true and lasting joy as we trust in God and in His timing. We can know that as we do our part, God will bless us. 

Mosiah chapter 2 verse 41 in The Book of Mormon says, "And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it." 

 What an incredible promise! Keep the commandments and we will have never-ending happiness. That is what our loving Father in Heaven wants for all of His children. He knows the way there and is helping us get there. So when curve balls come, or His plan take you somewhere you didn't expect, remember that He loves you and is leading you to never-ending happiness!

The Walk

 My companion and I are running low on miles so we decided to walk around our area yesterday and find people to teach. It was a lovely, sunny day in Buffalo (which is very rare) so it was the perfect day to walk! Neither one of us knew where we were going too well, so we carried the GPS with us. That failed. We still got lost and as we tried talking to people, everyone shut their door on us. Someone even honked at us just to give us a not so nice sign. Instead of being upset, we did our best to laugh and keep walking. We were both more exhausted at the start of the day than we had been in a really long time and we knew that Satan was just working on us because he didn't want us to see the miracles that God had in store. We kept on walking. That primary song that goes "pioneer children sang as they walked and walked and walked and walked and walked..." was our theme song! After having walked around for a few hours, knocking on some doors, we both felt as if we were going to crumble to the ground.

Now lets talk about Cinderella. Her wicked stepmother locked her upstairs and tried to keep her from ending up with Prince Charming!! Cinderella started to get discouraged and thought that there was no way out. But some of her lovely little mouse friends came to rescue her. They helped her get out of the locked room so she could run down the stairs, put the glass slipper on and then marry Prince Charming!!! Just when things started to look dim, great things happened!!

Just like Cinderalla, things weren't looking so great for Sister Curtis and I. But we had faith that something good was about to happen. We had faith that we were going to see miracles. So...the walking continued. 

As we talked together on our trek through Orchard Park, we were both reminded of the scripture in Alma 26 that says, "Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to turn back, behold, the Lord comforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success." We truly believed that we would see miracles and so our legs kept moving and we talked to everyone we saw. But when people don't want to talk to you, it gets a little depressing. Our laughter started to fade and my heart began to sink.

 Just then, the biggest truck I have ever seen pulls on the side of the road and rolls the window down. Who could it be? Sister Liscom!!!!!!!!! With the brightest, loving smile on her face she said, "Hop in Sisters! Where can I take you?" Words cannot describe the love I felt from my Heavenly Father in that moment. He knew that we were struggling and needed some assistance, so He sent sweet Sister Liscom to rescue us. As she drove us around for the next few hours to our different destinations, people still didn't want to talk with us but I was comforted knowing that my Heavenly Father was aware of me. Sister Liscom pulling up yesterday was a miracle to me. 

As I've been thinking about this experience, I've realized that we all have moments where we feel like things aren't going to look up, like we are stuck walking in the same path and very well might be lost. I know that we have a loving Father in Heaven that wants to bless us, but the blessings might not come on our time table or in the way we expect. Just like Elder Holland stated, "Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don't come until heaven. But for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come." As we are obedient and live true to the teachings of Jesus Christ, I know that good things will come. Never quit. Keep going and believe in good things to come. 

Heroes

"Who put the glad in gladiator... HERCULES!" To be completely honest, I've only seen Hercules like twice and I don't remember that much but I do remember that song and "I can go the distance." Regardless of my terrible memory, we all know that Hercules is a great hero! He is strong, handsome, has GREAT hair and he gets the girl! Stud. We all have heroes in our lives and today I want to tell you all about my hero... my dad. 

I love my dad so much. He is strong, handsome, pulls off the "I'm losing my hair" look and he got his princess, my cute mom! To me, those aren't the things that make my dad a hero. Sure, they are all great but he is so much more than that. My dad is a man who loves the Lord more than anything and truly gives his all everyday to become more like the Savior. He reminds me of one of my Book of Mormon heroes, Captain Moroni! 

In the book of Alma, talking about Captain Moroni it says, "...Moroni was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding...a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God... yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ." Captain Moroni loved the Lord more than anything and he was always obedient regardless of what the Lord asked of him. Every time I read those verses, I think of my dad. He has always taught me by example to put God first and then everything else will fall into place. He is my hero because he turns outward like Christ does and puts everyone's needs before his own. He genuinely loves people and has such a strong desire to help. One of the many things I love about my dad is that he is ALWAYS smiling! Life is not easy for anyone, my dad included, but he chooses to find joy and recognize the blessings that God has given him instead of focusing on what he doesn't have. 

I know that my dad does more for me than I realize but I am so grateful for what he does. He has given me so many wonderful opportunities and helped me to find joy through living the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He has always lived worthy so our family could have the blessings of the priesthood in our home. I am so blessed to have been raised by such an amazing man of God. 

The relationship I have with my sweet dad has helped me to better understand the relationship between Heavenly Father and all of His children. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much and that love is unconditional.

Dad... I love you!!!! :)

Change

There is a word that has been plaguing my mind lately....CHANGE!! That word is scary to me, and I know that I'm not alone on that one. New things bring new challenges and that can be scary. It always seems to be that the moment we feel comfortable, change takes place. At Sacrament Meeting in the Palmyra Ward, a member said something that has completely changed (there is that word again) me. He said, "God cares more about your growth than your comfort." Throughout the past two weeks, that has been on repeat in my head. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much that he allows change to come into our live so we can grow. He sees us for what we can become, but we aren't there yet...so change needs to happen. 



In Mulan, she wants to fight, but she isn't at the level she needs to be. My favorite part of that movie is when they are singing "Need a man.. He must be swift as the coursing river, with all the force of a great typhoon, with all the strength of a raging fire; mysterious as the dark side of the moon!" That song lists the qualities of a good fighter and much to her dismay, Mulan isn't there yet; but she wants to be. Throughout that song it shows Mulan changing into a better fighter. Her transformation into a warrior did not happen overnight, it took time for that change to occur; but when it did, she came out stronger and better than she had been before. Change requires work but it makes us better.

Many times in the scriptures we are told to follow Jesus Christ. Christ is perfect and if we, who are imperfect, are going to follow a perfect being, change is inevitable. Everyday when I wake up I am determined to be better than I was the day before; but sometimes when Heavenly Father answers my prayers by putting changes in my life so I can be better, I panic inside. As a missionary there is a lot of change! Saying goodbye to my family for 18 months..that was a HUGE change. Flying off to a place I had never been to and being surrounded by completely new faces was another huge change. That change was hard and scary, but looking back after having served in the New York Rochester Mission for the past 9 months has made me realize that those changes in my life were absolutely needed in order for me to someday reach my full potential.

We all have a goal to return to live with our Heavenly Father. The scriptures teach us that "no unclean thing can dwell with God" (1 Nephi 10:21). None of us are perfect. We "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Because of our imperfections, we need to change if we want to return to live with our Father in Heaven. We need to "try a little harder to be a little better" everyday (President Hinkley). Through Christ and His Atonement, those changes everyday are possible. We can turn to Him and He will help us to become all that we can be. Our Savior not only provided the perfect example for us, but He is right by our side helping us to follow in His footsteps. 

Change is hard; but without change we will never become who our Heavenly Father knows we can be. Let the change that comes into your life allow you to grow and become more like the Savior. Enjoy the changes that come your way! Recognize that you are becoming more like Christ! We only live everyday once and so we might as well enjoy it. 

I am so grateful that our Heavenly Father loves us enough to put changes into our lives and that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, so we don't have to go through it alone. 

Just Keep Swimming

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming..what do we do keep SSWWWIIIMMMIINNNGGG!

I really hope that nice little jingle is stuck in your head for the rest of the day. It is super catchy and teaches a great lesson! Marlin and Dory are swimming into the dark, eerie and unknown depths of the ocean following the path the goggles have floated off to so they can be led to Nemo. It was definitely scary for them not being able to see and all, but they kept swimming because they knew it was necessary in order to get to Nemo. 

As we go throughout life trying to make our way back to our Father in Heaven, we often have to take steps into the dark unknown. We may not see how things are going to work out but just like Marlin and Dory, we MUST keep swimming! That requires faith. It can be scary to push through trials or to make certain decisions that he guides us to make because we can't see the outcome. It is like going from swimming in the light to taking a dive in dark waters. President Uchtdorf wisely said, "There are times when we have to step into the darkness in faith, confident that God will place solid ground beneath our feet once we do." We must have FAITH that God has a plan for us and that all of the things he places in our path are going to help us. But lets back up... what is faith??

In the Book of Mormon, there is a great definition of faith. "Faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true." We can't see the way things are going to pan out but we can have hope that we have a loving Heavenly Father who is leading us in the right direction. When we have faith, it leads us to act. We take that step into the darkness trusting that the Lord is going to make is all work out! Once we take that step of faith, we have to keep moving forward with faith even if we don't see the results yet. KEEP SWIMMING!! In the Church, this is often referred to as "enduring to the end." 

Enduring to the end isn't easy. So HOW do we do it??? Well, Elder Perry is awesome and gave a great conference talk in 2008 that tells us what we need to do! 

1. Enduring to the end requires the Savior's redemptive power:
We aren't perfect and "no unclean thing can dwell with God" (1 Nephi 10:21) so we need to repent and rely on the Savior and His Atonement. 

2. The Holy Ghost is required:
The Holy Ghost is a great gift from our Heavenly Father that guides us and sanctifies us.

3.We must be an integral part of the community of Saints:
We are all God's children and we need to work together and unify ourselves in Christ.

4.Share the Gospel with others:
Sharing the Gospel helps us to dig our roots deeper in the Gospel. We experience the most incredible joy as we share the things we know to be true! In Doctrine and Covenants 18:15 it says, "And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!" Open your mouths...great things will happen!

5.Always maintain faith and hope in our Savior, Jesus Christ:
We can increase our faith in Christ by reading the scriptures, praying, fasting and going to church. As President Uchtdorf said, "Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith." 

The blessings that come from enduring to the end are more than we can even imagine! In 2 Nephi 31:20 it says, "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." This is eternal life that's on the line so we better keep swimming.

God will never turn his back on us. As we turn to him, we will be able to feel his loving arms around us, helping us endure to the end. We are not alone! 

Something I love about Dory is that she is always happy. Their journey was not easy but she kept swimming and singing with a smile on her face, brightening everyone's day! We should all try to be more like that! Life is hard, but we should smile anyway because, "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." As we all strive to endure to the end by following the steps the Lord has given us, let us do it with a smile on our faces. When things don't go the way you planned, LAUGH!!! Find something to smile about. I know you can find something. 

I know that Heavenly Father loves us all so much and He wants us home. The Lord is on your side pushing through it with you; He believes in you. No matter what happens in life, just keep swimming! 

Forever Families

In the Disney movie "Lilo and Stitch," Lilo and her sister (whose name has left my mind) have this family saying that repeats throughout the movie. "Ohana means family. Family means no one gets left behind, or forgotten." Think about that for a second.... NO one gets left behind or forgotten. I know that as a daughter of the worlds greatest parents, they will never forget me! Neither does our Heavenly Father. He is the Father of all our Spirits and He doesn't forget His children. Our parents on Earth want what is best for us; they want us to have success and happiness and become like them. That is exactly what our Heavenly Father wants for us! He wants us to have experiences that allow us to grow so we can become like Him. When we chose to follow God's plan and come to this Earth, we were put into families. I don't know about you, but I love my family so much! They mean the world to me. Families help us to grow, feel of God's love and give us strength to endure the trials of life. God intends for our families to not only last for this time on earth but for FOREVER!!! Yeah...that is right. I said FOREVER!!! With the fullness of Christ's Gospel restored to the Earth, the priesthood power (the authority to act in God's name) gives us that opportunity to be with our families forever. In the temple, we can be sealed to our families not only for time, but also for eternity. 

When Christ was on the earth, He gave His apostles the power to seal. In Matthew 16: 19 it says, "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Because Christs' Gospel is on the earth again today, so is that power. The relationships we have with our families do not need to end at death! Christ performed the Atonement for us so we could be forgiven of our sins, overcome our weaknesses, sicknesses and pains that we all face in life (Alma 7:11-13). Christ overcame the obstacle of death through His Atonement so we will all be resurrected. What happens after is up to us. If we choose to follow the example of Jesus Christ, we are promised that we will "dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness" (Mosiah 2:41). If we, along with the members of our family "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ" (2 Nephi 31:20) we can be together with our Father in Heaven because of that sealing power that has been restored to the earth. 

I am grateful for temples where we can be sealed to our families for time and all eternity! And I am so grateful that my family is forever! :) They mean so much to me and knowing that God plans for us to be together forever makes me super happy! I know that as we trust in God's perfect plan and are obedient to the commandments, we will be blessed to be with our families forever. Forever families IS part of God's plan. 

This is my cute family... They are mine FOREVER!!!

I am a child of God

One of my all time favorite movies is Toy Story. I just love Disney! Something I love even more than Disney is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel has helped me to know WHO I am and the great potential that my Father in Heaven sees in me. God is the literal father of our spirits. We are ALL His children. Just as our parents here on earth love us, God loves us. He knows that we can become something great. In Toy Story, Buzz believes that he is something great...he thinks he is more than just a toy! Woody, tells him that he is just a toy. He even screams it at Buzz to try to get it in his head! Most of the time, Buzz didn't believe what Woody was telling him but after awhile it really started to get to him. He started to lose faith in himself. He began to believe that he didn't have great potential. Many times in our lives, people will tell us that we aren't good enough or that we don't have a purpose. They doubt our divine nature. Sometimes what people say eventually gets to us and we forget who we are. We are children of God! In my life I have felt what Buzz felt. I started to forget that I was a child of God. In the Young Women program, we state a theme that starts, "We are daughters of our Heavenly Father, who loves us and we love Him." Stating that helped remind me that I am a child of God. He does love me and is very aware of me. He knows that I can become something great. When I came to really believe it, I started to act like it. Being surrounded by many girls who knew that they were children of God helped me to see that we all can become something great! In Toy Story, Woody eventually changes his heart and realizes that even though they may be toys, they are also something more. They are Andy's toys!!!!! They love Andy and Andy loves them. When Woody and Buzz were able to see that they were of great worth, miracles happened!! They were able to be strong and help each other get back to Andy. We are all striving to get back to our Father in Heaven. When we can come to see that we are His children and that He loves us, we will be strengthened to get through the tough trials of life and we will be happier! There is so much joy found from knowing who you are! I invite all of you to pray to your Heavenly Father and ask Him to help you see yourself through His eyes. I promise that you will be able to feel of His love and you will be able to come to know for yourself that you are a child of God!