Ammonihah is rebuilt: What I learned today in Alma 49

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/alma/49?lang=eng

I think all of us have asked ourselves more than once,"why are there so many chapters on war in the Book of Mormon?"

I have heard that they are to help us understand how we can be prepared to live in these latter days.

Today I had an insight that helped me look past the story to a principle that applies to my life.

Ammonihah was such a wicked city that it had been destroyed.

This city, once destroyed because of wickedness and their refusal to repent, has been rebuilt. And those who thought to destroy it again find that because it is rebuilt  - they have no power there.

This is how our lives are with repentance and faithfulness.

No matter how low we have been dragged, how destroyed our lives have become, through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can be rebuilt  and become  - a new creature in Christ, fortified and prepared, and destroying influences will find that they have no power in our lives today.

No matter what our trials or weaknesses of the past. No matter how many times we have fallen. No matter how many times we have refused to get up. No matter how many times we have ignored the voice of the Spirit, inviting us to do better. We  can

overcome and through repentance we can become so strong and so fortified that old sins, old troubles will not be able to find a foothold or an entrance into our lives again.

I know this is true. I have experienced it in my life.

This story is a message of great hope to me today. 

I stand all amazed.

Love,

Mom

3.3.16

Reminders from Heaven?

Do you ever wonder if the Lord gives us bad weather days sometimes just to remind us to slow down a little and take a look at the beauty in the world around us?

Be not afraid because of them.

I am reading Joshua. I love his story. One thing that I have noted from Joshua day one is that the Lord keeps telling Joshua, I will be with you, "be strong and of a good courage". Literally every day, every battle, every circumstance, the Lord tells Joshua not to be afraid.
That has made me think about what things I am afraid of on any given day. What are my demons, my worries, my fears? What makes me want to go back to bed instead of getting up in the morning? What causes me to procrastinate instead of dealing with the issue? There are things in all of our lives, (dare I say each day?), at the very least on any given day, that hold us back from the freedom and triumph that we might know because we fear.
I believe that the Lord is saying the same thing to me that he said to Joshua, "don't be afraid" " I will fight your battles", "you can do it". At the same time I know that I have to act like Joshua and respond to what I am asked to do and to go forward with faith, confidence, and trust in Him. I have to be bold.
I hope that every day I can be more like Joshua.


Another thought that I love from Joshua 10:42 "because the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel."

A quote I love

Be at peace. . .

Do not fear what may happen tomorrow:

The same Everlasting Father who cares for you today

Will take care of you then and everyday.

He will either shield you from suffering,

or will give you unfailing strength to bear it.

Be at Peace,

and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations.

                                                            St Francis de Sales  1567

Collected Thoughts from Sacrament Meeting

20 Sept 2015. Brother Clint McKee
How do we realize the blessings God has for us?
https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/130?lang=eng.  D&C 130: 20-21
How do we extend our hand to recieve the blessings God is willing and desirous to give us?

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/7?lang=eng. Matthew 7: 7-12

How much will we allow him to bless us is how much he will bless us.
D&C 82:10.   https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/82?lang=eng

I am bound: when I do what he says I bind Him to my heart. yes, he is bound but I am binding him to me through my heart.

By obedience we may have specific trials  into our lives to bless us.

22 November 2015   Julienne Taylor.
 Body of Christ - We are all one and important. As we find who the Lord wants us to be we understand our importance.

Is it I?

Tad R Callister has given powerful insight in the past. This is a great article that I would like to keep.

https://www.lds.org/church/news/think-sunday-school-is-boring-ask-what-you-can-do-to-contribute?lang=eng

https://www.lds.org/manual/new-testament-student-manual/introduction-to-matthew/chapter-9.p24?lang=eng

It's been a week but this is only day three

I walked in the mall again this morning.
2.3 miles 43.37 minutes.
It was -25 wind chill so the mall was very iniviting.

This is only my third walk this year.
Last Tuesday - day 1
Wednesday I walked 2 miles with Carol DeVault
And today.
Let's see that means of my 1,300 mile goal I have 1292.04 miles to go.
I think I need to get more dedicated.

The blessing is - I do want to get up earlier and get more organized and the Lord helped me to know today that he will help me.
I asked for help in my prayers last night and then I could not get to sleep. For a very long time. 4 in the morning long. I did turn off my 6:30 alarm but at 7:21 I was wide awake and ready to get going.
This experience reminds me of scripture stories where the Lord wanted to let the people know that it was He who helped them and not anything they had done.

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/judg/7.6?lang=eng#5.   Judges 7

I am grateful to know that the Lord hears my prayers, that He answers them, and that he wants me to know that it is He who is watching over me - a daughter of Israel.

But we are all moving. . .

Today I became a mall walker.

I have set a goal to walk to the temple this year.  As in, the distance that the Saints walked from the Nauvoo Temple to the Salt Lake Temple ~ 1,300 miles.

Not walking on Sundays that is 4.15 miles a day. I just realized that today. Before I had divided by 365 and came up with 3.56. Also, this is the first day I have walked -- so. . .   I am already behind. Hopefully when the weather is warm I will be stronger and can have a few marathon days and stay on track.

Back to the mall.

I know that being a mall walker makes me sound old. And maybe, technically I am getting there but I don't feel old.
I am a mall walker because:
I live in Wisconsin and it is too cold and too icy to walk outside in the winter.
I hate treadmills.
20 minutes is about all I can take on the elliptical.
Tracks are boring.

The mall is different.
It is warm.
There are a variety of people there and things to notice in the storefronts as you pass by.
There is the added advantage of doing a little shopping when you are finished if you are so inclined.  :D

It is still long. It is still a bit boring.  It was hard.  My hips hurt by the time I was finished.

But.

I had a few observations as I walked today. They had me thinking about life's path.

Not everyone is there for the same reason.

Not everyone walks the same path - some take shortcuts.

The important thing is everyone is there and they are moving and there are always benefits when we show up and keep moving.

We are all on life's path at different places and I should not judge where another is at or the speed he is moving. I have no idea the strength that it may have taken for him to even show up today.
I hope I can be more kind and less judgmental to others on my life's path.

I had to fight the urge to be competitive - with old people - in the mall. What is wrong with me?

Actually, I decided that there is nothing wrong with me, I am just human and it is human nature to be competitive. I am happy to say that I did not give in. I walked the pace I set for myself and if I passed someone that was just what happened. It was not because I was trying to catch them or "beat" them.

I did pace myself against some of the walkers and I think that is okay, even a good thing. It is good to ask ourselves regularly if we are keeping up, if we are doing the things that we need to be doing, when we need to be doing them. It is okay to have someone to look to and see that they are still going strong and want to "keep up".

It was hard to get to my goal. But the truly interesting thing was that once I reached the goal I set today -  3.3 miles - I had no trouble at all going one last lap to 3.6 miles. Why is that? Where does the strength and motivation come to finish strong when we have struggled through so many laps?
I am not totally sure but I think there is some strength that comes from the joy of accomplishing hard things or meeting our goals and challenges.

Stretching makes all the difference. It feels so good to stretch after working out and it keeps me from being sore the next day.  Not sure how to tie that in to a life lesson but I will keep thinking.

Day 1 ~ Done.    1296.34 miles to the temple