Charity never faileth

I'm loving these words this morning by  Guy Finley:

For us, the fulfillment of our desires is the acquisition of things, isn't it? "Get him to like me," "Get more of this," "Get that to work." Our mindset works in these opposites of this and that, here I am and there I will become. The Truth is saying to us: "No, no, no, no. Love -- the rule of Divine Life -- before all things." When we live by the rule of Divine Life and its completely equitable (meaning fair, balanced) character, all the concerns we have about all the things we need to do and be... fall away.

A spark of Divine Grace, a celestial seed has been sown into each of us, creating a need to find for ourselves that Goodness which will make us whole and free. We can't create that seed. So what must we do to find the Love that buried this seed, this hidden treasure within us? In one respect, the only thing we can do as a man or a woman on this earth is see to it that the ground in which it lies is properly prepared, nourished, and given everything it needs to flourish. Because if we do that, then that which put this celestial seed in us sees to it that we are in relationship with the part of ourselves that we have been seeking in everyone and everything else throughout our lives.

During the last year of struggle that I went through I kept getting the message, "The answer is always charity.  Charity never faileth."  It's comforting to me to know that no matter what the dilemma or problem is, the answer is always the same, charity.  Charity will never fail you.  It is always the answer.

He is the way, the truth, the light

This video made me cry.  To see how this man longed to know Allah and in the strength of his intent and desire he came to know Jesus Christ, the Living God.  And I love how he explains with such emotion the love Jesus has for us and how easy it is for Him to forgive us.  We just need to want it.  We must believe in Him.  He is the answer to all of our problems.  He is the way, the truth, and the light.

The Sheep

Last week I was in Ireland.  Yes.  Ireland.  I flew to Ireland and went from Dublin to Galway to Killarny to Mullingar.  It was an awesome trip and all around the way, especially around the Dingle Peninsula and the Ring of Kerry, we saw lots of sheep.  Sheep all over the place!

In this video, you can learn more about sheep.  Two things stood out to me, sheep flock together.  And #2- almost everything sheep produce is useful!  They produce milk, wool, meat, and even manure!  I couldn't help but wonder how that applies to human beings as we are often referred to as sheep in the Bible.  I think we DO flock together and we are often more protected when we seek help from someone else and choose to not be isolated.  And that we are literally full of infinite potential, just like sheep, we are full of energy and the things we produce are not trash.  They are powerful and necessary in the world and we must learn to value ourselves and others in this way.  If God created the sheep to be such a productive animal, how much better would he produce us, his children?

So while in Ireland I saw lots of sheep.  I didn't think much of it until I got home and this Sunday at church the lesson was on the birth of Jesus.
 

In Luke 2 we read:

 8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

 15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.

 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.

 18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

 19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

And we talked about the shepherds and how they were believers.  They believed it all and they were the very first missionaries, making it known abroad!  They were brave.  They didn't dwell on fear or doubts.  They believed!  And as we believe we are protected and given the power to manifest our greatest desires.

We have been promised:

Ezekiel 34:12

As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.

I think my trip to Ireland was a reminder to me that God is with me.  He is with you too!  He gathers us and our job is simply to believe.  Be a believer.  Believe that there is something greater than you.  Believe that it is on your side.  Believe that you can have the things you desire.  Believe that you are powerful because you are a son or daughter of God.  Believe that Jesus Christ came to this Earth and He will return again.  

Whispering Elephants and Talking Flowers

If you listen to the video in my last post you will hear Martha Beck speak about a time when she went to Africa and talked with elephants,,,

The school mistress in a little village had a palsy arm, and an elephant told them to go looking for this boy.  An elephant had been born 8 years before with shriveled legs and they thought she'd die and she didn't.  The whole herd began to behave differently from any other herd in the wild: all aggression stopped, the herd began walking in a horseshoe formation with this little elephant in the center, the elephants cleared the way for her and would lift her with their trunks and carry her across.  She came up to Martha and got as close as possible and held up her trunk to her.  And suddenly she could understand the elephants and they could understand her.  It was a space of no words.  The elephant she understood and was telling her she was here for a reason, pain is not necessarily suffering and disability is not what we think it is.

I love this message!

This summer at work I got into the habit of taking my lunch under a huge beautiful tree outside of my workplace on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.  In the summertime Temple Square has a garden that is so beautiful that it requires a team of gardeners to tend to it and people come from all over the world to enjoy the grounds and take pictures of the flowers.  So as I sat eating my lunch under this amazing beautiful tree (I wish I knew what type of tree it was but I don't), I just know I called it My Tree.  It was My Tree  because it provided this great shade that protected the flowers all around.  And the leaves draped down in such a poetic manner.  It was just a beautiful tree.  I sat there eating my lunch.  Feeling so much gratitude for the beauty around me.  All the colors of the flowers were so inspiring and the smell of the flowers was out of this world.  I could not help but feel inspired as I sat there happily feeding my stomach good food, smelling the sweet smell of summer and enjoying the beautiful colors- bright reds, pinks of all different shades, bright yellows and purples.  I once touched a flower and it was like the softest silk.  I marveled at how beautiful it was.  And all of a sudden I heard the flower talk back to me.  It told me of how beautiful I was!!!  and as I kept eating my lunch under that tree I realized the flowers were talking to me.   I started hearing messages from the flowers!   Another lesson the flowers taught me was the message of diversity and how each flavor of talent and skill is needed in this world.  How each person is a universe unto themselves.   And we need all the flavors.  All the colors are necessary and welcomed.  I learned so many lessons from the flowers this summer.  It was probably the best summer of my life.  One cold morning I was walking to work and realized the flowers were gone.  The gardeners had taken them out in preparation for winter.  It made me sad to see them go.  They were my friends.  I do know that they needed to rest and that I will get to see them again in the spring.  In the meantime I will reflect on the knowledge they gave me.  I also got some messages from the trees.  Trees have a lot of wisdom I learned.  So now whenever I see the flowers I greet them.  I marvel at their beauty and they send me back their love.

If you listen, you will hear the messages from the flowers and the elephants.  Just ask and listen.

And if you are having a hard time believing this post, check this one out of the Elephant Whisperer in Africa.  And what about the elephants in Thailand who knew the tsunami was coming before any human beings even fathomed the idea.

10 pathways to your best life

I'm loving this video!  Your right road is the road you are on right now!  If you are suffering, you just need to make some changes because you know something is wrong.  If you are feeling joy you are on the right path.  So either way you win!
1. Become still "Be still and know that I am God"--

“The way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be. . . . The simple secret is this: put your trust in the Lord, do your best, then leave the rest to Him” (“Come What May, and Love It,” Ensign, November 2008, 26, 28).

Less speaking, more listening.   We hear with our souls!!  Find time to be wordless.
2. Truth- when we move towards our truth we get stronger. physically and spiritually
3. Yearning or Desire- Your brain yammers, the soul of you is not corruptible.  Think of something you want.  Then get still and answer this question "What do you yearn for?"  Really feel it.  You are meant to have what you yearn for- peace, freedom, safety, you matter.  What you yearn for is what you deserve to have.  "God pulls us through life by the heart" Open your imagination to whatever you yearn for.
4. Creativity- problem solve and make it happen.
Read the book the Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
5. Risk- when you do what you fear you lose the fear of it
6. Treats- we love treats!  It doesn't have to be expensive but it has to be beautiful to your senses.
7. Play-what do you love to do?  See it as play.  Use the language that calls it what it is--play.
8. Rest- we don't do enough of this in our culture. Learn to rest.  We play until we feel grumpy and give yourself rest as a gift.  Rest for yourself.  Rest for your body.  I am resting for my fears and loves.  I am resting for my heart.  The rhythm of life is play and rest, play and rest, play and rest.
9 Laughter and Tears- feel it and let go.
10 Gratitude- pray in gratitude- prayer is not begging and apologizing.  Gratitude for the accident, for what had happened.    

Love is Giving Others Room to Grow

I love this post from Guy Finley in which he talks about the importance of staying in your own space instead of trying to change others by invading their space.  He explains that when we stay in our own space we will see miracles begin to happen.  This is possible when we try to hear God and focus on our own actions.  We then cease to be a victim of someone else's actions.  Instead we begin to connect to Truth and we are now playing on higher level of energy.

I have seen the movie Zorro many times before but I had never realized the wisdom in these words:
 "Stay in your circle. Don't go outside the circle for any reason whatsoever, because if you'll stay in your circle, what you need will come to you. Then, because you have remained in your circle, you will be able to deal with it on your terms."
 http://www.guyfinley.org/free-content/writings/special-lessons/5460?src=KL&lyid=206788396&klsid=sid0000_KL

MEME time!

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