The voice of His servants

Becoming Meek

I have been pondering what it means to be meek.

Today this definition worked its way into my mind and resonated with my heart for what I had been searching for to help me better apply meekness in my life.

Meekness: being gracefully grateful for the blessings of today while continuously hopeful for the promises of eternity.

What does that mean for me? 

It means showing, expressing and acting in gratitude for the wonderful blessings I have.

"It means staying with something and doing all that [I] can—working, hoping, and exercising faith; bearing hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of [my] heart are delayed." ~ Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf - "Continue in Patience" (April 2010 General Conference)

It means moving forward from the broken hearts of yesterday and embracing the promises of the Lord for my eternal happiness.

It means not allowing the fear of a broken and pained heart stop me from acting in faith.

It means not letting the disappointment of today's unchanged status dash the hopes of my bright future.

Update: The very scripture and thoughts that led me on my search for understanding of meekness in my life was spoken in General Conference* today. When I heard this talk I felt the Lord was speaking directly to me saying I know you, I love you, and I know you are listening to me. Grateful for tender mercies of the Lord.

*General Conference is a world wide broadcast conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Millions of members and others gather every 6 months to hear the words that our Prophet and Apostles have to say. They seek for questions to be answered and to understand what the Lord would want them to know and do. They ponder on the messages and try to apply them into their daily lives seeking to know of truth and to be a disciple of Christ. 

New Adventures

 Want to frame my picture of Christ and put it above the lamp.

 Art created by my sisters. :)

 I get to pretend I am at the beach when I do my dishes! :)

It's beginning to feel a lot like home! :)

As I was putting up things on the wall and placing things around I was rushed with beautiful memories of my friends and family. Gifts of love that they have given to me or experiences I shared with them. My apartment feels full of love. A few more touches to add. 

A picture of my siblings and me being silly that I am getting printed up. 

An Arizona art project.

A Saguaro cactus art project to be similar to the tree above. I have been out hiking for inspiration. :)

Random: They have green trees out here.

Every time I see them I think of Elphaba.

 And what my sister and I like to call Bob Marley Cactus

She has grown a foot or two!

When I was 10 years old I had 3 brothers. For the longest time I had the desire of having a sister. 

I will always remember the Sunday she was born.

 A family friend pulled me out of my Sunday School class. 

My parents had not even told him if the baby was a girl or a boy.

They were calling me on the telephone at church so that I would be the first to know that I had a baby sister. My desires became a reality! 

I have had the privilege of watching her grow up these last 19 years. Independent, strong-willed, faithful, diligent, hilarious, capable, goofy, talented. These are just a few of the words that describe her beauty. 

When Shannon was preparing to receive a mission call she had an interview with the Stake President.*

I wanted to share a portion of that interview that my sister shared with me.

Stake President: What if they send you to a humid place?

Shannon: I guess I would have frizzy hair.

SP: What if they send you to a cold place?

S: Then I will get a jacket.

SP: What if they send you to Baton Rouge, Louisiana?

S: Oh perfect, I am learning French, I can make it better.

SP: Oh, well, what if they send you to an English speaking mission?

S: President, I speak English, that's fabulous!

SP: So if I tell them you would be willing to serve anywhere you would be good.

S: Definitely!

I wish you could hear her tone in the text. Shannon's desire is to serve the Lord wherever he may send her.

Where is she going you ask.

"Dear Sister Clements,
You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the New Zealand Hamilton mission!!
I'm Going to NEW ZEALAND! I report straight to the MTC in NEW ZEALAND! I leave august 1st! I am ready to get out there and serve the Lord!" 

Ever since she has received her mission call she has been researching everything New Zealand and the people who live there, learning of their culture. You can imagine the response that she gets when she says she will be in New Zealand for her mission. "What a dream mission!" For her though it is not about the place she is going to. For her it is the purpose of her service and who she will be serving. Her dream mission is going wherever the Lord wants her and being in his service.**

*In preparing for a mission applications are filled out and interviews occur. The Stake President is a local leader overseeing several congregations in a geographical area. 

 

**As a sister in the LDS church it is not a requirement to serve a full-time mission, but if you have a desire to do so and feel that is a purpose you are to fulfill you may do so. The principle I think Shannon so well demonstrates is that sisters in the church can all fulfill a dream mission if we strive to be where the Lord wants us and in his service whether or not it is a call extended by the church to go to another location.

While I'm Waiting



Scriptural Friends

I am grateful for those who have lived before us and their stories and experiences have been shared so that we might be able to learn from their examples of faith and trust in God. 

I have a few friends from the scriptures that have taught me valuable lessons.

While I was studying Job I had this thought,

 Sometimes the Lord shows forth his great power through us by his great miracles of deliverance, fulfilling our desires, healings... and other times his power is shown through us by his great miracles of strength to endure, patience, and faith. Either way a miracle is provided and his mighty arm is shown.  I love what the scriptures taught me about Job. He endured many hard things, lost much, and had people think that because of his hardships or lack, he must have done wrong or not been doing enough. Job, humbly praised the Lord, he humbly asked forgiveness of his sins, he is brought closer to the lord through his hardships, and eventually he was given twice as much as he had before.Gives me hope for the future and ability to let go of the past.And know that all things as we follow the Lord's impressions are for our good, even if they are a sacrifice for our hearts.The pains of today can be swallowed up in the joys of tomorrow. We have reason to rejoice.Because we are in God's hands.

 

Abraham is another great example to me and I have sought to learn from his example.

This being a great example of his hope and faith:

Abraham believed God... Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become... he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that what he had promised, he was able also to perform. Romans 4:3,18-21

What do I Stand For?

This question invokes many different opinions from individuals in the world
We all have different beliefs or ideas often shaped by our personal experiences and knowledge.
Anytime an individual endeavors to voice an opinion that may be contrary to another, especially if they are a loud voice* is often met with much criticism, immediate judgement, and often even hate.

I am but a small voice, and will likely not be heard. Still I want to share my stand on those things that are important to me. What I stand for stems from those things that I am grateful for and do not want to take for granted.

Liberty
Freedom
Virtue
Family

In the United States we have been blessed with liberty and freedom.
When this country came into existence it was stated in The Constitution:

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

Establish Justice - Accountability
Insure domestic tranquility - creating an environment in our country where peace may thrive, not forced by the government, but by the principles we live by as a people and were established in the constitution for our society.
Provide for the common defense - to create a place of protection
Promote the general welfare - work as a community to care for one another, not create dependency of individuals.
Secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity -create an environment where liberty can abound.

Let us remember Liberty is a blessing, something that has been fought for since before this world was. As children of God we all have been granted liberty through Christ. We all fought for this very liberty before we ever came to this earth and as a result were blessed with the privilege of receiving a body. God is the author of our liberty, let us not take it for granted. Let us choose liberty! Let us stand with our forefathers in Liberty and continue to secure the blessings for ourselves and our posterity.

A wise man that lived long ago understood Liberty and fought for it. He was prepared both temporally and spiritually in faith. Alma 48

 Alma 46:12



Let us not be lulled into a false sense of security and think that we do not need to be prepared. We have the ability to act for ourselves, not to be acted upon. Each individual should always be prepared both spiritually and temporally in faith. We are blessed to live in a time of relative peace. We have not had to really witness the devastation of war in our own backyard for years, we have not had to fight for our liberty like those of the past. We have had small battles throughout the years, and these small battles have left an effect on those who have witnessed them. But our land has not been taken away, our religious rights have not been taken, for the most part we live in peace. Let us not live in a bubble and think that we are safe and allow for little things to occur that will lead to our loss of liberty because we said, All is well and neglected to prepare ourselves. Let us consistently fight for our rights and stand up for what we believe in!

* a thought the world hears most often through a form of media