Lord, is it I?

Matthew 26:21-22 “Lord, Is It I?”. I like the video that went along with these scriptures. Video 1. Video 2. Video 3  The apostles didn’t look at each other and point fingers, gossip or question the Lord’s pronouncement. They looked within themselves at the shortcomings and wondered if they could betray the Savior. These men walked with Christ. They knew Him better than most people, yet they were also weak and could be tempted like anyone else.

This makes me think of all the times when hearing a chastisement or counsel from our leaders about something, and we say to ourselves; “So and so should be here to hear this.” I have been guilty of this too many times to count. This passage is telling us not to judge others and focus on ourselves and what we could improve upon.

Matthew 26:31-35 “All Ye Shall Be Offended Because of Me This Night.” If these apostles that knew personally the Savior and walked with Him yet could be scattered, how important is it for me to strengthen my relationship with my Savior so I can stand firm and testify of Him.

Luke 22:19-20 “This Do in Remembrance of Me”. I liked how the commentary pointed out that “To remember is more than a mental image, it meant “re-experiencing, reaffirming, and recommitting.” All these things are action items. We need to DO something to make the “remembering” more meaningful.

Luke 22:32 “When Thou Art Converted, Strengthen Thy Brethren.” Even the apostles that walked with Jesus still needed to be converted. That means I need to work especially hard on BEING truly converted and BECOMING what the Savior wants me to BECOME.

John 14:7-11 “He That Hath Seen Me Hath Seen the Father”. What do we do with our ancestor’s names? What do we do with our Father’s name? What do we do with our Heavenly Father’s name? Do people see my parents in the things that I do and say? Do they see the Savior and Heavenly Father through me by my actions?

John 14:15 “If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments” – Joseph B. Wirthlin said “When we love the Lord, obedience ceases to be a burden. Obedience becomes a delight. I have noticed this over my years of conversion. The more I tried to love my Savior instead of missing my friends and “pre-church” life, the easier it is to be obedient. I am far from perfect and that is why I am thankful for the atonement and the blessing it is to partake of the sacrament each week.

This week the insights for me were all about where my relationship is with my Savior? Do I take offense when my weaknesses are pointed out, or do I try to recognize them and make things right? Am I offended by others or am I trying to be truly be converted and strive to Love One Another and be a good example so that my Heavenly Father and Savior would be proud to call their own? Do people know Heavenly Father and the Savior through my actions? I am so thankful for the gospel. I am thankful for all the materials that the church puts out to help with my “hands on and visual” learning. Most of all I am thankful for the love that Heavenly Father and Jesus have for me personally and the blessing of the atonement. I can’t imagine what Christ went through for just MY sins and imperfections within that time frame in the garden. But that He willingly, even though He knew it would be so hard, suffered just for me so that He would better know how to help me in my time of need. It is my responsibility now to apply the atonement to my life DAILY. It is a blessing and a gift that I shouldn’t take for granted.

Study Skills

For the Study skills the past few weeks, these are the insights that I have gained and want to practice more.

Flag phrases – in Matthew 42 starts “Watch therefore”, 43 “But know this”, 44 “Therefore”. All of these are ready to tell me something and I need to pay attention. More than likely there will be a commandment or a guideline on what I need to do as well.

One of the most important flag phrases is in John 13:34-35. “A new commandment I give unto you, (pay attention because the Savior commands me to do the following) That ye love one another; as I have love you, that ye also love one another.”

Lists – This lesson included the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matt 25:1-13). Even though the scripture itself didn’t elaborate on the “lists” of things that the oil could represent, the Study Manual and my own experiences combine a list for this parable. There are many things on a list that you cannot “give away” to someone else. These things are only for us to work on and improve upon throughout our lives. What woman doesn’t like lists? Except in this case, the list sometimes represents all the things that I am failing at. However, if I just focus on a few items at a time on the “gospel list” and do my best, I am not failing. There will be certain times in my life that other items will be of more importance. The key is to not procrastinate but not overwhelm myself as well.
Flag phrases – I need to slow down while reading, especially when the flag phrases pop up. Sometimes I just get reading and my mind wanders but if I pay attention at least with this study skill, then hopefully I won’t miss something.

I have been struggling with a little of complacency or depression the last few weeks and so some of my reading hasn't been as intense. As I reflect on the study skills, I am reminded that there are many blessings and guidelines in the scriptures that will help me pull out of my slum. I do NOT want to back there. I CAN do this.

Out with the old, In with the newish.

Early Friday morning, March 8, 2019 (Doran's day off, sort of), I was laying awake, trying to go back to sleep when I heard a loud crash! At first I thought it was Doran getting up and fell either in the bathroom or kitchen. I looked over in bed and didn't see him so I jumped out of bed and went looking for him. I couldn't find him in the house so I came back and found him nestled in bed still. He asked what was wrong and I told him I heard a loud noise. I looked out the window and said, "Oh my gosh! Someone just hit your car!"

While he was throwing some clothes on to see if anyone was hurt, I called the police and got dressed.

There was a 24 year old guy that hit our car. He claimed that for some reason his wheel locked up and pulled to the side and by that time he didn't have time to hit the brakes. He said that he just got it fixed a few weeks ago.

Doran's car had been parked just about right behind where the ambulance was. This kid hit the car so hard it pushed it a couple of car lengths. 

Doran came in and asked for a towel for the guys hand. Somehow he cut it up pretty bad.

The kid was pretty distraught and while we waited for the police and his father (he was on the phone when Doran went outside), he asked to use our bathroom. After he got in the house I got thinking that if he was impaired, he might be flushing the evidence down the toilet. He was in there awhile and the police basically told him to get out.

It looks like it did more damage to his car than it did ours.

After the driver was checked out in the ambulance, he was cuffed and arrested for DUI. Later in the paper it said that he had substance and paraphernalia. I bet we let him flush some down. We didn't even think about it until it was too late.

Poor old car. Doran put almost 300,000 miles on it, so we figure they will probably total the car. Hopefully we will get something out of it. It was supposed to last three more years until we retire.

Because we knew that they would either total it or it would cost too much to fix, we went to get a replacement so he didn't have to drive my car out to work.

Meet the newest member of our family.

We found another Camry, knowing that the blue one was such a good car and had many miles yet on it. This one is a 2018 and had just over 40,000 miles on it.

YES. I really was about to shed some tears. This has been such a good car and it felt like we were giving up on him.

FAREWELL GOOD FRIEND!!

So sorry, Cookie. (We were going to give this to her when we retired.)

BE good, DO good

Matthew 24:10 “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.”

      We have been told time and time again to “be not offended”, but sometimes that is so hard. We have also been told to “Be steadfast and immovable”. I have seen so many people that have been offended and left the church. This is where we forget that people aren’t perfect and when we “leave the church”, that just puts the offender between us and the Savior. Some people are looking to be offended so they can withdraw from their responsibilities. It is so sad to watch this. I pray that I can always stay strong and committed to the gospel, no matter what we, as imperfect people, do.

Matthew 24:42-51 Being prepared for the Second Coming.

     Last week I attended a viewing and graveside service for a close family friend. Tomorrow, I will be attending his daughters viewing and graveside service. Laurie is just a couple of years older than me and she was divorced and living with her father, taking care of him. Laurie’s mother passed away several years ago. He had a heart attack and died instantly, she had a massive stroke two days later and passed away a week later.

     This really hits home when we think about time and the fact that we never know when it is our time to die. We can’t procrastinate our preparation. It doesn’t mean we have to be perfect in everything, but that we must keep trying to BE and DO good. We don’t know when the Savior will come but we also don’t know when it is our time to go meet the Savior. Am I ready to meet the Savior? Am I doing all I can NOW to prepare to meet Him?

          Luke 21:36 Pray always – to be counted worthy.

     We are commanded to pray always. By doing so we have a better chance to withstand the temptations that will come our way. Just recently we were told that in order to survive the trials and tribulations of the world, we will need the companionship of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost will help us to stay strong, but we must be doing good and praying for strength and guidance…ALWAYS! Don’t let your guard down.