The purpose of LIFE

Life is so short. Seriously. One of my good friends from high school passed away in his sleep last week. Today my sister-in-law's sister died in a tragic car crash. It seems like everywhere I turn there are tragedies and heartbreak. A baby in my ward was born 8 weeks early, with a cancerous tumor in his stomach. He is two months old and starting chemotherapy.

Amidst all of this sad news and heartbreaking stories and things that life throws at us... one thing is constant and unchanging and ESSENTIAL to surviving the obstacles that we are given. That is the Atonement of Jesus Christ. My sister in law (the same one who just lost her sister today) lost her first newborn son 5 days after he was born. It breaks my heart to think of how much she's been through, yet how strong she is. I wrote a song for him (and them) when he passed, and I just wanted to post the words here. 

"Choose To Be Strong"

Little baby you’ve come as a blessing and joy
To the most prepared parents of a little boy
You’ve united a family in prayer and song
And we pray for you now

Choose to be strong, choose to hold on
Choose to fight for a life even when your strength’s gone

As a father be strong for your little son,
As a child be strong ‘till your time has come.
As a mother remember that you’re not alone
There is One who’s prepared his safe journey back Home.

Choose to be strong, choose to hold on
Choose to trust in the Lord even when your hope’s gone.

Sweet little boy when you get to the other side,
Be strong for your parents as they’re tossed and they’re tried.
Be strong help them know that you’re in safe hands
And you’re waiting for them ‘cause that’s part of God’s plan

Be strong
And our Savior will carry us along.
Hold on to his hand, you’re not alone
And wait for us there in that Heavenly home.

I know that the purpose of life is to come here, be tried, tested, suffer incredible heartbreak and ache and in our darkest moments is when we need to RELY on our Savior Jesus Christ. His atonement was for us, so that we can feel PEACE, JOY, COMFORT and HOPE that we will see our loved ones again. I KNOW we will. Life is forever, it doesn't just end with death. 

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27 

Articles of Faith

This is Michele here, and I wanted to share a little video of my oldest son. (I have 2 boys, ages 2.5 and 1) We set a goal as a family. I printed off these cute Article of Faith pages from Pinterest (Click HERE for the source) and determined to work on one per month of this year. In January we did Article of Faith #1, February we are doing #2, etc. I just wanted to say that I am so excited that Parker has remembered both of them so well! We recite it with our nightly routine (scriptures, song, article of faith, prayer) and I wanted to record it so you could see how he's coming along. Parker is 2 years old (he turns 3 in May) and I wouldn't have thought he would remember these but I decided to just try and have him repeat after me and sure enough, he's learning them! I want him to always know what we believe and I feel strongly that he'll need to rely on these in times of question or doubt. I figured if he can remember lines from Disney movies, he can remember lines about what we believe! :)

Tri Color Pasta Salad

Okay, I just have to say... this pasta salad was INCREDIBLE. I love Mel's Kitchen Cafe. If you haven't been over to her website, you are missing out on some seriously delicious recipes! I made this pasta salad for a family get-together and honestly, it was a HUGE hit. (I had even doubled it and it was the first thing to go) The pesto is the kicker. If you want something fresh, Mediterranean, (yet not too authentic), delicious and easy, this is a great go-to recipe! Click on the picture and it will take you there! 

Recognizing the Holy Ghost

Today I gave a talk at a baptism for one of the girls in my ward- it was about having the Gift of the Holy Ghost. It got me thinking. Does each of us really know when we're feeling the Holy Ghost? And why is it so crucial to recognize it in our daily lives?

I shared the story of one of my best friends from high school, her name is Kelsey. She isn't a member of the church, but she is one of the most sincere and thoughtful and loving people I know.

We had just turned 16, so we just got our driver's licenses. One day she was driving to school and she was stopped at an intersection, preparing to turn left. The light turned green, and no one was in the intersection so normally she should have just gone and turned left. However, she didn't. She felt like she should just wait a minute. Right when she decided she should probably go, a car came ZOOMING down the intersection in the opposite direction, running the red light. If she would have turned left, it would have crashed right in to her and she could have been seriously hurt.

Later she came to me, told me the story, and knowing what I believe asked why that happened to her; why she didn't just turn left. It was an opportunity for me to share with her about the Holy Ghost and how in feeling like she should wait, she felt a prompting from the Holy Ghost to protect her and keep her safe.

We are all children of our Heavenly Father, and He loves us and wants us to be safe and happy. He is watching over us, and through the Holy Ghost, He can talk to us and let us know His will. The key is to know how the Holy Ghost talks to us. Some people feel a warm, peaceful feeling. Some people hear a still, small, voice. In Galatians 5:22-23 it says "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

In Kelsey's case, she felt a feeling inside her that she needed to wait. I also need to mention that there is a difference between feeling the influence of the Holy Ghost, which she did, and have the Gift of the Holy Ghost, which can only come after being baptized by the proper authority, and then receiving it by the laying on of hands.  

Teach your children how to feel the Holy Ghost. After we sang the closing song at the baptism, I watched this little girl's Primary teacher come up to her and hold her hands as she asked her how she felt. She said "good, happy" and her teacher taught, "That's the Holy Ghost." Once our children can recognize HOW they feel the Holy Ghost, they will be able to seek it more and more and it will be a guiding influence for good in their lives forever. 

(For more about this read chapter 4 of Preach My Gospel- it is titled, "Recognize the Spirit.")