Category: Personal Improvemant

Inspiration Comes

Jeanne Leave a comment

When we look unto Jesus Christ; to His wondrous redeeming love,
Look for a quiet, secluded place, and ask for guidance from above.
Inspiration comes when our hearts and minds are still,
And our worries are replaced by our Lord’s sweet peaceful will.

Pray for Christ’s pure and honest grace to protect us so we may be
Free from Satan’s wiles and wrong thoughts, poisoned by our own insanity.
Ask God for ears and eyes to hear and see, and a heart to understand,
Then listen with a child-like faith, with broken heart and contrite hands.

Ask God to clear our mind and heart, to hear His sacred word,
Then listen with a humble soul and write what we have heard.
Life’s trials come with many parts we just don’t understand.
Our Father wants to enlighten us to His eternal plan….

Of light and life, hope and truth, happiness and peace,
Of wisdom beyond all our thoughts, that we may each increase.
It matters not our circumstance, in war’s hell, or in peace,
When humbled with a child-like faith, Christ’s light will increase.

I think the biggest roadblock to our receiving guidance and inspiration from the Holy Ghost, is distraction. There are so many things. Things to do, things to see, things to entertain us, things to do around the house. Many of these things are needful and should not be ignored, but I think perhaps we loose the ability to filter out the needful things from the ones that simply fill up time.

My mind goes back to the account in scripture where Jesus is visiting the home of Mary and Martha. Martha is busy doing those things that we all do when we have guests: fixing meals, cleaning up…but, Mary chooses to engage in a conversation with Jesus. Martha notices this, and asks Mary to help her with her ‘tasks’. This story, I can really relate to. then Jesus kindly rebukes Martha saying, “Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things. But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42

Are we able to recognize a precious moment and drop whatever we are doing to capture it before it’s gone?
Do we practice the ability to evaluate our activities?
Can we spot the time-wasters?
Can we identify those that have the potential of improving us in some way?
So we often look beyond ourselves to see the needs of others?…And do something about it?

Now, back to the poem…Like Mary, do we seek the things that build us? Do we stop long enough to see the ‘big picture’?
And to realize that life offers us peace and joy and contentment, IF WE SEEK IT.
IF WE ARE ABLE TO TURN OFF THE TV, STOP THE GAME, and spend some time fine tuning our lives by inspiration from Him who knows exactly how to make our lives more meaningful, peaceful and happy.

“Be still, and know that I am God..” (Psalm 46:10, D&C 101:16)
The following link is 58 second thought on stillness and revelation:
http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2012-06-1440-reverence-invites-revelation?category=topics/holy-ghost&lang=eng


When Changes Come

Jeanne Leave a comment

Recently I came to know of a pending divorce in our family. Those most close to the couple expressed the hurtful feelings. Anger, fear and heartache are companions to a failing family. Divorce hits at the very roots of all that which brings us happiness. I have reflected upon the good fortune of having a companion. Our activities, both daily and others which require more planning, such as vacations, are richer when shared. What do we do when we see or experience something grand, or beautiful, or delightful? We seek to share with someone else. Somehow, this enhances the experience for me. When I look at my vacation photos, it’s just not a whole lot of fun to do it alone. And when I reflect upon what makes me happy, it usually involves family. There is a real power and bond there, and when it is broken, we are cut off from that which is intended to bring happiness.

How sad that it is such a common thing. What can we do to protect ourselves from falling victim? What makes some marriages so successful, and others not so?

When changes come, are they bad, or could they help us grow,
Through life’s storms and troubled tests, we feel for those we know.
When death comes with saddened eyes, we feel for those we love,
When sickness comes we long for days when health smiled from above.

When changes come, we try to cope, no matter what they are.
Through each trial, we each must strive to reach our own star.
When our journey brings us to an unfamiliar place,
We have a chance to start anew, within life’s fleeting race.

When changes come, we each must try, our best to grow,
To strive for greater knowledge, God’s wisdom helps us know.
For within each changing moment, we can become more whole.
For changes are tools that mold us within life’s wondrous show.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2009-07-28-marriage-and-divorce?lang=eng


Pioneer Day

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Yesterday in church our kids enacted a 30-minute pioneer trek, complete with covered wagon, bonnets, neckerchiefs,taffy, horehound, berries, buffalo chips, homemade butter and rolls, and a snake. My mind did wander back to my great grandmother, Sara Jane Richards Perkins, who left wales as a young woman, leaving family and friends, and ending up here in Magna, or Pleasant Green, as it was called then. Our lives are built upon the hard work of those ambitious faithful people. And so, as we celebrate pioneer day (July 24, 1847 being the day they entered the Salt Lake Valley), I will be grateful for, running water, shelter, food, shade, health care, comfortable shoes, beds and toilets.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2016-12-01-pioneer-journeys-more-than-a-trek?lang=eng

It Will All Work Out

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I am a very controlling person. I have to plan. I have to see a way. I have to know how it will all go. I suppose that’s ok for a holiday party, or something that is controllable, but, I know we all live in a world where very little is under our direction. We do not know what lies ahead, and we cannot force or control people or events. Trying to do so produces a lot of stress. I think that perhaps it is a lack of faith and trust….an inability to take some steps into the dark, not knowing where they lead. I can live quite well like this when things are going well, as planned, BUT, when the future seems uncertain or scary or threatening, that’s when the stress kicks in. This short video is very applicable to me; one that I hope I can internalize for a more peaceful and happy life.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2017-01-0004-live-by-faith-not-by-fear?category=topics/courage-and-fear&lang=eng

Do Unto Others

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When I read of Jesus as more than a man,
Who lived in, and walked on the deserts of sand,
Who suffered in silence in Gethsemane,
His atoning blood shed for you and for me,
Then hung on the cross and finally died,
“How can I repay Him,” I asked as I cried?
How can all my tears and my sorrow compare
To the grief and the suffering He felt and saw there?
How can I express to Him how much I care?
What could I have done when I wasn’t there?
How can I comfort my Savior in grief?
What can I do to give Him relief?
For all this occured years and eons ago,
My birth, It has been 2000 years slow.
Oh Jesus, please let me show you my love,
Although you now dwell in some sphere above.
Then a small voice within me did say,
“Do unto others and do it today.”

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2015-06-016-matthew-2540?category=topics/service&lang=eng

Matthew 25:40


Sunshine and Shadows

Jeanne Leave a comment

At the end of every rainbow, there’s a pot of gold.
And clouds are lined with silver, so I’m told.
But don’t you think a rainbow and a cloud are pretty too?
Must you always look ahead for gold to come to you?
Sometimes we need a friend so say, “There’s beauty in a storm,
Although the winds blow chilly cold, we can be safe and warm.”
And suddenly the sun breaks through–a bright and shiny ray.
Sometimes I need a friend like you to help me through the day.

It’s odd that I would write this poem, because I’ve always been one who suffers through trials. I’m the one who rolls their eyes if someone suggests to look for lessons or growth in hardship, and I have a really hard time thanking God for everything, including troubles. The poem reminds me of my Dad when I was a child. I was absolutely terrified of lighting and could not understand how he could sit out on the front porch and watch a lightning storm and enjoy it! Sometimes he would see my terror and pull me onto his lap and try to comfort me, which it did, until the next storm.

But I do believe that it is true about how we grow the best when we are challenged; when things are tough. And I have noticed that heartfelt prayer is a great tool.

The following it a short video from the MormonChannel.org. It deals with trials and adversity and comfort through prayer.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2012-01-002-comfort-in-trials?lang=eng

John 14:27: Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Be Christ’s Hands

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Be Christ’s hands and heart to others here upon the earth.
Look to other’s needs and heartaches, and we will find true worth.
If we think too much of ourselves, our worries grow within.
When we serve the weak and poor, we gain pure light and win.

Recently, our church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, has challenged us to step outside ourselves and to minister unto others, using Jesus Christ as our example. The following short video (less than 2 minutes) illustrates that challenge.

http://www.lds.org/mycalling/ministering/a-vision-of-ministering?lang=eng

We have all been the recipient of well-timed service. I am grateful for those people who were discerning enough to see my needs, and, with the Spirit’s help, know how to meet those needs with simple acts of kindness, usually small, such as a note, or a phone call. Let us all make this world a better place by being Christ’s hands on a more consistent basis.

Strength

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The strength that really matters, child, isn’t found within one’s arm.
True strength is found in love, my child, toward thy fellowman.
To love and share and help, my child, or just to understand,
That, if I could, I’d help the one, fallen in despair,
To lift the souls that want to grow, and comfort them in prayer.
True strength, my child, is something that comes from up above,
And guides each torn and sin-tossed soul to God’s eternal love.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/im-a-mormon/im-a-mormon-2011?lang=eng

Strength and courage…what is the difference? Do we need one to have the other? Does one come first? Give me some examples, please!


Child of Indifference

Jeanne Leave a comment

Child of indifference
Please open up your eyes.
The eternal now awaits you.
So many different flowers shout in colors,
Sing in silence, touch in fragrance.
Child of bitterness
Please open up your ears
To hear the cries of morning as each new day appears.
So many different love songs are waiting to be heard,
From the cooing of a white dove,
To the thunder of a storm,
From the laughing of a young child who feels both safe and warm.
Child of many sorrows
Please open up your heart,
For only you can understand what part in life you play.
Child of tomorrow, let’s work for you today.

http://www.lds.org/friend/2018/03/heavenly-father-listens?lang=eng

Memories

Jeanne Leave a comment

Waves of reflection play upon our souls,
Like children free and laughing. Too soon we have to grow.
Like footprints on a sandy shore that fade then wash away.
Some memories, like singing birds, can brighten up our day.
Memories of lives shared through sweetness and despair.
True friendships are forever. Life teaches us to care.
To trust and love each other, unto a better day,
Then truth becomes our brother, and love becomes our way.

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2017-01-009-a-good-samaritan?lang=eng&_r=1