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Monday, October 7, 2013

thoughts on general conference.

How awesome was General Conference this past weekend? 

Is it me or was it just as powerful as it has ever been? 
I feel that with age comes spiritual growth, & as I get older my heart becomes more compassionate, filling it up with so much love, and the depth of appreciation for the Savior becomes more and more deep.  

I lament to my kids about how critical it is for us to live this life having a firm foundation of Christ in our life, and to live happily no matter what trials, or sadness comes our way. 

I have a daughter in college, and so many of these talks spoke to me. They always do. There is never a year that goes by every six months where one of these talks is directed at me, or for me. Life is hard for many of us, and some of us handle "life" in different ways. Some of us are strong, and some of us are weak. Knowing that I have The Lord on my side to help through any trial gives me hope and the strength to help another. 

Elder Holland's talks always inspire me, and I'm probably bias because he is after all my favorite apostle. This time he gave a talk on mental illness, and I'm so glad that he is the one that brought up this issue because it had to be said. I personally have never suffered any major depression, but I know of some of my friends & family members who have, and it breaks my heart sometimes because I have no idea how it feels like to go into such deep depression. How does one get out of it when it becomes so severe? Knowing that we have the Savior to help us throughout those "depressing times" is assuring, but still...that may not be enough for those who suffer from it in a massive capacity. 

I certainly have my moments of depression, and thank the man above for making it tolerable enough for me to "snap out of it" without any medication. 

There are so many strong women out there who have persevered through the worst adversity possible, relied on The Lord, support from their family, friends, made a miraculous recovery, and made it through "life". Amazing examples such as Stephanie Nielson who suffered and survived a horrific plane crash, and a personal friend of mine Casey who has suffered from major depression, and infertility all at the same time. 

I can never imagine my life being filled with so much despair that it's hard to come out of it. Fortunately for them they have all that was needed for them to overcome their trials. Love, and God.  

My trials are obviously different from theirs. The Lord knows what we can handle, and He obviously planned my life differently than any other. Sometimes I wonder if he's given me the "small struggles" which to me are a big deal such as my husband losing his job, and having an eight year old that acts like a teenager because of the things I endured as a young child

Those are minor trials for me, but sometimes its hard. If I didn't have the scriptures to rely on, my family, or the Savior in my life I know that the hard things I've endured until now would have been so much harder to bear. Who knows what would happen to my family of six if we didn't have the faith, and hope to trust in God as to how to handle any trials that come our way. Who knows how our children will turn out if we don't anchor them in a gospel centered home. I really don't want to find out! 

Especially now when our oldest daughter is in college. I count my blessings, and thank God that Sierra is as strong as they come when someone invites her to a party where there's going to be alcohol, and let's be honest...drugs. 

That's college life in Philly, and luckily she as has a firm rooted testimony of the word of wisdom, and the courage to say "no". 

She has told me many times that she's strong enough to go to said parties, but absolutely has no desire to attend. She is strengthened by the holy ghost, and having taught her true principles of the gospel makes her so appreciative that we did. 

This whole weekend was too exciting for me. Having my daughter here with us from college to watch conference together made my entire weekend complete. I love my family, and am so grateful that we can all get up on a Sunday morning, get dressed, and drive to a chapel to watch conference on the big screen instead of our mac computer to listen to the words of a prophet, and his apostles.  
Our Sundays can be exhausting especially when you have little children, but knowing that you are making the effort to take them to a place where they will learn true principles, and to feel the spirit every Sunday is the perfect beginning for them to grow in the gospel, and to develop a strong love for the Savior.  
So thankful for all the sessions that were held this past weekend. I love being a mother, and knowing that I have the Savior in my life to help me through those "tough, being a mean mommy" kind of days gives me relief to know that I can wake up tomorrow to start all over again, and another chance to do it better.    

Let's make this week better than our last! 

Happy Monday!

**You can watch this awesome season of General Conference & listen to all of the talks here.  

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