Perspective

Today I got an email from a good friend of mine. As she sat I'm her broken down car she was sent this story.

Love Bank account
 
 A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably combed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. 
 
  His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. 
 
 As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on his window. 
 
 I love it,' he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.   
 
Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait..' 
 
 'That doesn't have anything to do with it,' he replied. 
 
 Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time.   Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is  arranged .. it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it.  It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up.' I have a choice:        
 
I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful  for the ones that do. 
 
  Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away.. Just for this time in my life.. 
 
  Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. 
 
 So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories!  Thank you for your part in filling my bank account.
 
I am still depositing.             
 
Remember the five simple rules to be happy: 
 
 1. Free your heart from hatred. 
 2. Free your mind from worries. 
 3. Live simply. 
 4. Give more. 
 5. Expect less. 

Life is full of ups and downs, but that shouldn't determine our happiness. We have a choice to be happy or not. Why would we not chose to be happy? I hope that more often than not I can make the choice to be happy as I deposit memories into my love bank account.

Marriage is Ordained of God

What is marriage?

In “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles proclaim that “marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” 

I could leave this post at that and make my point. Marriage is between a man and a woman.  That's it. Nothing more.  No sub definitions.  There is just one definition.   This is completely contrary to what the world believes, where we argue and vote and petition about what marriage should be, not what it already is and forever will be.

The definition of what marriage is has been around since the world began.  When God put man Adam on the Earth he gave man a help meet, and equally yoked partner to journey through life and that partner was Eve, woman.

Moses 3

 19 And out of the ground I, the Lord God, formed every ^abeast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and commanded that they should come unto Adam, to see what he would call them; and they were also living souls; for I, God, breathed into them the ^bbreath of life, and commanded that whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that should be the name thereof.

 20 And Adam gave ^anames to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but as for Adam, there was not found an help meet for him.

 21 And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept, and I took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof;

 22 And the rib which I, the Lord God, had taken from man, made I a ^awoman, and brought her unto the man.

 23 And ^aAdam said: This I know now is bone of my bones, and ^bflesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of man.

 24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall ^acleave unto his ^bwife; and ^cthey shall be ^done flesh.

There is so much confusion in the world of what marriage really is. 

In 1995 Gordon B. Hinkley, Prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, along with the Quorum of Twelve Apostles issued "The Family: A Proclamation to the World." 

Almost twenty years ago the prophet declared what marriage is.  It sad see a worlds standards falling from the Lord's. 

Marriage is a wonderful thing.  I am so lucky to be married to my husband.  I honestly don't think there is a better man out there for me than him. And what is even more wonderful is that I get to spend eternity with him.  It doesn't get much better than that.

I'm sad to think they are peoples who are missing out on this wonderful marriage.   Marriage and family is central to God's plan. Children need a father and a mother to teach them and set examples for them. Parents to love them and care for them.  Family is so important in life. 

The world is out there to believe that we need to change the definition of marriage because the world is changing.  We need to change our standards to fit the worlds. Dress to fit in the world. Act to fit in the world. Everyone needs to be equal.  All need to be treated the same.  To the world is doesn't matter what God's laws are.  But to me it does matter.  I dont want to let the world tell me what to believe.  I know what's true and I'm going to fight for it.  I'm going to stand up for what I believe and I'm going to tell the world.  And this is what I believe.  

For questions on more of my beliefs here are two great sites.

http://mormon.org/faq/stand-on-homosexuality

http://www.lds.org/topics/same-gender-attraction?lang=eng

Becoming a Woman of God

How do I become a woman of God? By living the values that each of us is taught as a Young woman: Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice and Accountability, Good Works, Integrity and Virtue.

I have faith to know that there is a God who knows me personally and loves me. Faith in His plan for me. And faith that by following his plan everything will work out.

I know my divine nature by listening to God and leaning on what He thinks of me as a woman and not what the world believes. I know I have worth, for the scriptures state “how great is the worth of souls in the sight of God” Oh how great is worth worth in God's eyes, and so it should be in your own eyes.

D&C 131: 6 It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance.

Knowledge is key. Knowledge to understand the world around us. Knowledge to understand ourselves.

As we progress through life with knowledge of our divine nature with faith we make choices and then become accountable for those. By acting with faith and following the Lord's commandments we are blessed.

Proverbs 31:10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

The world would have you believe that integrity and virtue are things of the past. But the world is wrong. I believe that the time is now in which the world needs integrity and virtue more than ever. Life will be blessed by living a life with integrity and virtue.

There's one value I missed. Good works. I saved this for last because it is so important. What is faith if you don't act on it. What is knowledge if it stays within the textbook? You can't take the textbook to heaven. And what is virtue if it's only a thought and not the actions of how you live your life? They mean nothing without action. Good works is the action behind faith, divine nature, individual worth, knowledge, choice & Accountability, integrity and virtue.

Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven (3 Nephi 12:16).

Through your good works, friends, family and strangers will see what values you stand for. They will see that you are a witness of God at all times, and in all things, and in all places. They will see that you are truly a woman of God.

Becoming a woman of God doesn't happen over night, it's a life long journey. A journey where you will be taken into many different roles: Teacher, Student, friend, Coworker, wife and mother. But no matter what role you are in, you can always be a woman of God. So make a promise today to live your life every day that you can stand tall and proclaim to the world that YOU are a WOMAN of GOD. You know it. You live it. And you Love it!

I Am A Woman of God

The husband asked what I was going to blog about.  I replied with "being a woman." He commented, "that sounds complicated."

I am a woman. I'm also a daughter, a wife, a friend, a sister, a granddaughter, a niece, and a neighbor.  But first and foremost I am a woman of God.  Throughout my life, this knowledge of who I truly am has been taught to me repeatedly.

It started young when I learned, "I am a child of God." 
As I became a teenager I learned more about who I truly was, "I am a daughter of God, who loves me and I love Him."  (Words in italics changed from plural to singular)
As I progressed from teenage to woman, the emphasis of learning who I was as a daughter of God never stopped, "I am a woman of God striving daily to be all that He wants me to be."

"We are beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction. As a worldwide sisterhood, we are united in our devotion to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Exemplar. We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:

"Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ through prayer and scripture study.
Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.
Dedicate ourselves to strengthening marriages, families, and homes.
Find nobility in motherhood and joy in womanhood.
Delight in service and good works.
Love life and learning.
Stand for truth and righteousness.
Sustain the priesthood as the authority of God on earth.
Rejoice in the blessings of the temple, understand our divine destiny, and strive for exaltation. "
~ "The Relief Society Declaration," The Family: A Proclamation to the World, (2008)

I am a Woman of God. I know it.  I live it. And I love it.  I love that the Relief Society Declaration states that my life as meaning, purpose and direction.  I really don't think that it could be said any better that this.  This is truly a woman of God.  

There is a lot of confusion in the world today about what roles a woman should have.  The world gives a skewed view on what truly makes a woman successful.  The world believes as a woman I need a college education, high profile job, fancy house, successful husband, expensive clothes, and a perfect life.  Oh, and don't forget I'm a size 0 with manicured nails and wind blown hair that falls perfectly.  Wait, I just described Barbie.   The world believe that as a woman I need to essentially be a beautified man. Powerful and successful with a feminine touch.   There shouldn't be anything that a man has that I don't.  Well wake up world. I don't want to be a man.  I want to be a woman.  And not just any woman. I want to be a woman of God.

 What has really saddened me, is this world philosophy of treating everyone completely and entirely the same has now reached all aspects of my life.  Even into church.  Men and woman are different. We are all different.  We are not all the same.  Do you know how boring life would be if we were all the same?  I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I am a Mormon.

In recent media, I've seen woman feel they deserve the right to hold the Priesthood.  The priesthood authority is given to worthy males in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  This is how Christ set up his church and this is how he set up our church.  The priesthood doesn't make men better than women; it doesn't give them power to control woman.  It gives a man the proper authority, if they live and act righteously to "act in all things necessary for the salvation of God’s children."  As my husband explained it frankly, the priesthood power is service.

I love that my husband holds the priesthood.  He has the power to "act in all things for the salvation of God's children".  And I'm one of God's children.  I am not denied any blessings of the priesthood because I am woman.  If I live righteously I can enjoy all the blessings of the priesthood. As I attend the Temple, all the blessings that my husband receives as a man, I receive as a woman.  In God's eyes, we are both His children equally.  It does not bother me one bit that I, as a woman, do not hold priesthood keys. I have a different role to fill.

I am wife to my husband.  I support my husband in his job, his church callings, and in our home life.  I lean on him for strength and direction, and together as an eternal couple we make decisions for our family.   We walk side by side in our marriage relationship, not one behind the other.

"Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord." I Corinthians 11:11

Someday I am going to be a mother.  Oh how I look forward to that day.  I don't look forward to the day of long meetings, being a powerful CEO, working late and barely seeing my family.  I look forward to the day of little feet scampering around the house.  Children so excited to see you every day because you are their mother.  When I grow up, I want to be a mom.

This is the role I am here to fulfill.  Not one of leading congregations of people, and making decisions for everyone.  I am here to be a mother to my children and a wife to my husband.  I'm here for my family.  This is what my divine role is as a Woman of God.

We all may have different paths that lead us to this, but ultimately, it's all about family.  Everything is.

Also. I love how this woman put it. I agree with her.  Thank you for writing this Hannah.
 http://familiacabrerafairbrother.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/a-letter-to-sisters-of-ordain-women.html?m=1