There You Are, Peter!

While watching the movie "Hook" the other day, a few thoughts came to mind...

The the biggest thought, was of our tendency to forget who we really are. The movie basically centers around Peter Pan, and that as he grew older, he forgot who he really was.

So often this happens to us too. We allow others to determine what we think of ourselves. We compare ourselves to others. We take our weaknesses, and hold them up in comparison to others strengths. We forget who we really are. Our potential. Our Divine nature. Our greatness. At times we forget who and Who's we really are.

"God does not look on the outward appearance. I believe that He doesn't care one bit if we live in a castle or a cottage, if we are handsome or homely, if we are famous or forgotten. Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God's love encompasses us completely." -President Dieter F Uchtdorf

We are wonderful. We are beautiful. We are inherently good, strong, and powerful. We are His...

His love will find and remind us of who we really are. He will send others to help in this process as well. Loving family and friends often help us and lift us, when we doubt ourselves. They encourage and love us. They see the good in us and remind us of who we really are.

In 'Hook' it was a friend of Peter's named 'Pockets' that believed in him, and helped him remember who he really was. (Click the link below to see what we are talking about...)

There You Are, Peter! Scene from Hook Movie (1991) | MOVIECLIPS

We all need a 'Pockets' in our lives. And it would be a wonderful thing if we could be a bit more like 'Pockets' in encouraging, loving, and believing those around us. Remind them who they really are, of their greatness and potential. It will greatly bless our lives if we try with all we are to see each other, and ourselves, as He see us...

"...for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." 

1 Samuel 16:7

An Attitude of Gratitude...

Blessings...

We've all received them. Big. Small. The obvious, and the unnoticed. But constantly, daily, we are being blessed by our Father in Heaven. He is giving us those things which we stand in need of. Sure there are times that we feel far from blessed...those times of difficulty and struggle. The times when things aren't turning out just like we think they should. In those moments, we must remember that God loves us deeply and completely, and because of this He will always do what is best for us, giving us what we need, rather than what we want. Those two things, may be very different. Nevertheless, let us remember that He is blessing us. During those times that we may not feel so blessed, let us remember the words of Marion G Romney, he said "Gratitude is not a courtesy, but a commandment." When we are thankful...When our hearts are filled with gratitude...When we see the haves, rather than the have nots...That is when we are happiest. It is when we are able to feel peace. Gratitude is a vehicle that brings us closer to Him.

Then there are the times that the blessings flow so abundantly and obviously, and we are overwhelmed and humbled by what we are receiving, wondering what we ever did to deserve such goodness and grace.

Have you ever sat back and done as the hymn suggests..."Count your many blessings, name them one by one?" It is a very humbling experience. And might we say, impossible? Impossible in the fact that we could not ever count or quantify all the blessings He has given us. There are too many. They are incalculable. He blesses us daily with things big and small, the seen and the unseen. It will not be until we are Home, that we will be able to see just how much He blessed our lives...

On Friday, this was the view of the Brigham City Temple...

Seeing this magnificent sight brought to mind the words of President Hinckley, "Be grateful. Be thankful to the Almighty for His wonderful blessings upon you. You have all that this great age has to offer, and beyond that the marvelous blessings of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. How lucky can you be. Walk with appreciation and respect for the blessings of life and happiness which you enjoy."

Let us count our blessings. We have so much to be thankful for. Our Father in Heaven lives and loves us, and blesses us each day of our lives. May we do our best to always maintain 'an attitude of gratitude'...

~ ~ ~

"...render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you...

"...serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another...

"...all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper... 

"...he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted to him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?"

(Mosiah 2:20-24)

~ ~ ~

He Heals...

Recently we heard of a powerful fast and testimony that occurred in a local Singles Ward. It began as many do, brothers and sisters getting up and sharing their faith and love for the Lord and His Church. And then, a young man got up to bear his testimony...it was not like any of the others that had come before. He shared his story of living a life of gang membership, drugs, and violence. He said he had gone to prison at the age of 17, for shooting and killing a friend of his. He spent 15 years behind bars. He has only been free for three months. But that wasn't the freedom he spoke of. He spoke of the freedom that comes through Jesus. The saving and healing power, and freedom from death and sin, that comes through the Atonement.

Following this incredibly powerful testimony, not one, but two more young men got up and shared their stories, that were quite similar.

These three men shared more than the fact that they had messed up...big time...and had to pay a price. More than the fact that they were all on a difficult road to recovery...

They each shared personal experience and knowledge of the Savior and His ability to help and heal. They bore powerful testimonies of the reality of the Savior and His Atonement. They bore witness of His ability to reach us, no matter how low we have fallen or how dark of a place we are in...

Boyd K. Packer offered these powerful words: "Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke and cannot fix is the very purpose of the Atonement of Christ...
"There is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no apostasy, no crime exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness. That is the promise of the Atonement of Christ."

Read these words. Really read them. Believe them. For they are true. They are meant for you. And for me. We all need forgiveness. We all need the Atonement. We all need Jesus.

Jesus will never leave us. Never abandon us. No matter how far we estrange ourselves from Him, one thing is certain...He will never be more than an arm's length away, because that is as far as we can push Him. The very minute we turn to Him, He will be there. Ready to help, and bless, and heal.

If you have lost your way for a moment, all is not lost. You are not a lost cause. There is hope. There is help. And it comes in the form of the loving Savior and His Atonement. They way back may not be easy. But you will not travel it alone. He will be with you every step of the way, no matter how long or hard the journey. He loves you. He wants to help. Turn to Him. He will make you whole. He will make you new.

Trust Him. He is who He says He is, and He can do all for you He says He can do. He is your older brother, your Savior. And His love and power know no end...

Here is a music video to a song called "Cry Out To Jesus" by the band Third Day...

"One of the most viscous and destructive lies concocted by the father of all lies (the devil) is that there is no return from mistakes and sin. He would have us believe that there are no U-Turns allowed. This is wrong. We can turn around, change our minds, change our hearts, and come unto Christ." 

-Mary Ellen Edmunds

We Thank Thee, O God, For A Prophet...

We are SO blessed to have the opportunity to listen to General Conference! It is such a gift. A reminder that God lives, and loves us enough to keep a Prophet...a mouthpiece for Him...on the earth, to lead us back to Him.

The counsel we receive twice a year from the Lord's servants is a priceless gift. For they speak the things He wants and needs us to know, or to remember.

Recently a man was giving a talk in his Sacrament Meeting, and spoke of his friend Tom, from Fiji. One day he was talking to Tom and asked him why he would ever move from Fiji, as it is practically paradise! Tom's response was simple, immediate, and quite moving...He said, "I wanted to be close to the Prophet." Powerful stuff there!

Do we fully appreciate the fact that we have a living Prophet in our midst? One who continually speaks to us. Do we listen? Do we seize every opportunity to listen to his voice? Do we follow the counsel he gives?

Our thoughts turn to those early pioneers...Would we have done as they did? Would we have left behind our homes and all we held dear to follow his counsel, and him, to an unknown place? And even more humbling is to think of those Saints who came from other countries to follow! They wanted to be near him. And in faith they followed him. Knowing, that he truly was a prophet of God.

Let us be as faith filled...To be near to the prophet. Maybe not physically. But spiritually. Let us follow his counsel, for we know with surety where it will lead...Back to the loving arms of our Father and Savior.

Here is a song by The Nashville Tribute Band, that exemplifies the faith of those early pioneers...

"We thank thee, O God, for a prophet to guide us in these latter days..."