mountains and cake

Today I faced a fear.

Honestly, it is a little silly but I learned some good things!

I'm taking a political science class right now and although I love the material, sometimes I really dread going to class. There are only two girls in my class and I am one of them. The boys in my class are very passionate to say the least and their comments usually end up in a heated discussion. It kind of scares me. So i have been content to just stay in my little quiet hole, listen to the teacher and then leave.

As I thought about this class and how I was slowly losing interest in it, I realized something needed to change. I have a very wise, handsome man in my life who suggested that I comment to help me stay engaged....haha like I was going to do that! Eventually, as I gave it a lot more thought I realized A.that he was right. B.If I wanted to get the most out of that class I needed to give a little! So I came to the conclusion that I was going to try my very best to comment and make the class enjoyable for myself as I became more engaged.

Walking to my class today I said a little prayer that Heavenly Father would give me courage. I felt very hopeful and determined. As class went on I could feel the time coming when I needed to say something. I got nervous, my hands were getting sweaty...lame I know but it happens. Then all of a sudden my hand shot up in the air and I said a silent prayer for deliverance. Words started coming out of my mouth and although it was nothing profound, I felt like I was sitting on the top of a mountain staring at the most wonderful view with a big piece of chocolate cake in my hands! 

Heavenly Father helped me overcome my fear! As minuscule as my fear was, He heard my prayers and gave me the strength to overcome. All of us have fears...it is totally normal. There are going to be times in life where we feel down and just want to hide from the world and be miserable by ourselves. But what I learned from this experience is that we choose the outcome! We might not be able to choose all the little bumps in the road but we do choose what we do about it. Happiness, faith, courage and all those other good things are choices! You don't just wake up one day and say "I'm finally happy!" We have the blessing of waking up every day and saying, "Today, I choose to be happy!" That was something I really admired about my mission President. Anytime anyone would talk to him and ask how he was he would say, "I'm happy!" And he always meant it. 

So let us choose to be happy! Choose to find joy in every moment! Choose to be engaged in life and make the most of it! There are going to be ups and there are going to be downs but we can always choose happiness! And when we choose happiness, we choose Christ. That is the path that leads to more joy than any cake could bring. :)

Lessons from the Grove

Well...I'm HOME!!!

The New York Rochester Mission 

and the people there...

 will FOREVER have my heart.

^^^This is my favorite tree in the sacred grove. ^^^

You are probably wondering why because it obviously isn't standing anymore..but that is why I love it so much! This tree is filled with wonderful life lessons that taught me more than I imagined I could ever learn from a fallen tree.

Over the past two years as I have gone through the process of deciding to serve a mission, getting my call, leaving to New York and coming home, I've thought a lot about the little things that the Lord placed in my life to get me where I am today. Right before the missionary age change was made, the Mormon Tabernacle choir sang "How Firm a Foundation." When they sang that song, I was just slapped by the Spirit. I remember thinking about my parents and church leaders and what incredible examples they were to me of having a firm foundation in Christ and helping others build their foundation. I just wanted to be awesome like them! Then the epic announcement was made, I knew Heavenly Father's plan for me was a mission and I was pumped to go!

My first day in the mission field, my mission President brought us to this tree. This particular tree was one of the largest in the grove but it fell because it hadn't dug its roots deep. He went on to tell us that not only had this tree fallen, but so many other trees were taken down by it as well. My Mission President then reminded us how important it was that our roots were deep in the gospel so that we could stand strong and also so we could help those around us stand strong. 

Heavenly Father has given us such a powerful promise in Helaman 5:12 that Christ is the foundation if whom we build upon we "cannot fall." For me, this fallen tree is a reminder of how badly Satan doesn't want us to build a strong foundation in Christ or to dig our roots deep in the gospel. He wants us to fall! What a punk. But Satan can't get us to tumble down or fall when we are building our foundation on Christ. It is a constant effort every single day! I'm definitely not perfect at it, but Heavenly Father is so merciful and helps me everyday. 

I love this gospel so much! Jesus Christ is my best friend and I'm so grateful that He let me have such an epic mission experience! Life is crazy, busy, awkward, great, hard and fun but no matter what comes in life I know that I don't need to fear because with Christ I CANNOT fall.

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!!!! :)