I'm not Dead Yet, So I must be Stronger!

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “If it doesn’t kill you, it will make you stronger!” Well, I’m not dead yet …so I must be stronger :o)
As you can tell from the majority of my posts this summer … I have struggled to make sense if drastic changes that have been thrust upon me in my life. I have had some amazing truths reaffirmed for me:

A: There is absolutely nothing in life more important than a personal relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ! That relationship alone will get you not only through this life, but through this life happily. You’ve heard “Endure to the End”, well that sounds like a lot of work and not too pleasant. Well, it’s true, enduring to the end is not always pleasant…but it is necessary, and by developing a relationship with Christ … growing a testimony of truth in your heart. Learning to apply spiritual knowledge and the atonement to your life and walking with God and His Son Jesus Christ and allowing them to be the center … the very core of who you are, this will keep you floating when you’re not strong enough to swim anymore!

B: And almost equal to that, there is nothing more important than family. It’s about cultivating relationships within that realm and about taking the time to make every moment matter. It’s about letting go of pettiness, and rivalry and rejoicing in the light of the wonderful gift of having someone to hang on to!

Time is fleeting … we only have a minute and then we’ll all be through! No-one is going to make it out of this life experience alive. I never cease to be amazed that time seems to be rolling by faster and faster every year. SO get in … hang on ….keeps your arms and legs inside the ride … feel the breeze in your hair as you slide from now to then!

Laugh … and feel the true joy that our Father desires us to experience!

Live out loud! … Be who God created you to be! You have a gift within you that no other soul that has ever lived or ever will live can share. Don’t leave this life looking back and wondering …did I do everything I was supposed to??

Dream! God did not give you the power to dream without also giving you the power to make them come true! So Dream and Dream Big for the world’s possibilities are endless if we are only open enough to receive them!

Be Grateful! True joy can also be experienced in gratitude for all you have been given!

Keep promises … promises ignored will cause pain and the pain caused takes value and self worth from another and only leaves you with regret!

Forgive! People can be thoughtless at times … be patient and be kind … be like the Savior. Find a way to take the conditions off of your love … I know there are times in life when that is not easy … but I know that it is worth it!

C: Learn to get along. ... God gave us agency and because of that agency we all make choices to the dictates of our own conscience … He did not command us to find offense with one another … I remember that one …it’s an easy one, He said Love one another. Love thy neighbor … We don’t have His permission to hate even if we learn that our neighbor is making a choice to live differently than we believe. We don’t have to condone the behavior of the man/woman in order to learn to love their soul! Christ loves all in whom He suffered and died for, He did not suffer for only a select few, and His atonement is for everyone … EVERY ONE! His word does not stipulate to only love the people who think the way you think and live the way you live. Our world is running rampant with people who choose to find offense and to hate. Satan is having a heyday with misunderstanding and anger! There is name calling and frustration reeking havoc in the streets. The garbage being thrown causes pain and heartache in the hearts of all who make the choice to participate! Be the change!
Be the shining example of Christ Like love and you will be a beacon for the world!

D: Be accountable! Everything in life that affects you, you hold accountability for. Whether you created the experience or it was thrust upon you, the accountability is how you choose to react to it! Own what is yours ... fix it (fixing is not necessarily easy ... I am aware!), then move on! Playing the blame game is a waste of time! Saying that my leaky toilet is not my fault is true ...but I have accountability in my choice of how to deal with it ... and though I did not cause the issue I am the one with the responsibility to fix it!