Christmas

I just wanted to say Merry Christmas!

I love Christmas time and love trying to find people to serve. I used to be better at finding people to help out, but I think it is harder now since most of the people around us seem to be doing good. One thing I always have to remember though, is that if you act as if everyone you meet has a problem, you are more than likely right. Everyone has something they are going through, even if it is just something very small.

Pray for friends and neighbors, they might need the help right now.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Alma 63:2 - Am I like this?

Budgeting - God told us to.

I know it sounds weird, but I think God told us (not just my wife and me, everyone) to budget. I've been listening to Dave Ramsey and had the thought about the parable of the talents.

I know that this parable has other meanings, such as talking about people's abilities. Like the ability to play the piano well, or sing, or comfort others.

But I feel that God isn't going to give us more money if we can't handle the money we have now. In the parable the person given one talent is told he should have at least given his talent to the exchangers. To me this always seemed like the master was saying, "You could have at least put it into a savings account, even though the interest is really low, you still could have increased the talent that much."

This parable can be applied to a lot of things. One thing I'm trying to better in is managing my time better.

The parable of the talents. - Matt. 25:14-30

He is the only way

"And now, my son, I have told you this that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn of me that there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ. Behold, he is the life and the light of the world. Behold, he is the word of truth and righteousness."
- Alma 38:9
I liked this scripture this morning. It's true that the only way to be forgiven of the things we do wrong is through Jesus Christ. I think about all the ways the world wants us to be forgiven of our sins or even not worry about our sins, but each of those ways are in vain. Christ is the only way back to Heaven. I know He is the only way.

Patience

I think one thing to always work on is patience. Alma 32:43 - Those that work and are patient will receive the fruit of their labors. Can you imagine how patient God is? He is patient with you and me every single day. Through our imperfections, pride, arrogance, and other things that turn us away from Him. Turn to the Lord and you will be able to start walking to Him. I'm so grateful for God. He has given me everything. God does care about you and me.

Sometimes It's the Short Scriptures That Mean So Much

"I behold that ye are lowly in heart; and if so, blessed are ye."
- Alma 32:8

lowly in heart = humble (which I'm not, but should be)

Question of the day: What has God done for me today?

Turning to God

I have been trying to turn to God more, especially since work is hard. I say prayers that I can feel better about work and enjoy it more. He has blessed me to have a good job and I thank Him daily for it.

So we can turn to our Heavenly Father for even normal things like work or not getting upset while driving or with the kids. I know He is right there ready to lift us up. We just have to turn to Him.

Scriptures I read this morning that I felt I could relate.
Alma 26:19-20

General Conference

I love watching General Conference. It's when we get to listen to what the leaders of our church feel impressed that we need.

You can go and listen to them now at lds.org. I do sometimes when I'm at work and am doing something that doesn't require a lot of concentration.

One thing about this blog, is that it helps me return more to God, instead of the world. It's nice.

With God, All Things Are Possible

I read a verse in the scriptures that made me think.
"Therefore they did not fear Ammon, for they supposed that one of their men could slay him according to their pleasure, for they knew not that the Lord had promised Mosiah that he would deliver his sons out of their hands; neither did they know anything concerning the Lord; therefore they delighted in the destruction of their brethren; and for this cause they stood to scatter the flocks of the king."
- Alma 17:35 (emphasis added, by me!)

I forget that God will keep His promises and covenants. It's us that breaks our part. God must love us so much to constantly deal with us breaking our promises. I have a hard time trusting a person after they don't do something they said they were going to do. I say to God I'm going to do a lot, but fall short every time. He loves us so much. I know He does. I know He is there and that He cares.

Sidenote:
General Conference is coming up. This is when leaders of my church talk to us about what we need to do better. The Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, and the other apostles all talk at least once. I love listening to Conference. It's this Saturday and Sunday.
Audio and Video Stream

Day 51

I think it is time to set some more goals.
Daily, weekly, monthly, etc.

I know goals work. We may not always accomplish the goal, but we do accomplish more when we try.

Quote:
If you shoot for the stars, you will at least get up into the sky and clouds. If you shoot for the sky, you might not get off the ground. If you don't shoot for anything, you'll definitely not get off the ground.

One Person Can Make a Difference

A quote I got from someone, written by someone.

I AM ONLY ONE
I am only one,
But still I am one.
I cannot do everything,
But still I can do something;
And because I cannot do everything
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.

Make Your Children Laugh Day

I'm going to only use 'Day __' for days or posts that are impressions from reading the scriptures.

I was thinking, it is Make Your Children Laugh Day today. I think God is happy when we are teaching, loving, and taking care of our children. But I also think He is most happy when they are laughing. I love seeing my children laugh.

Day 44

So our church had an area meeting called a Stake Conference. The two meetings we went to were great. I know The Book of Mormon is true. It is worth more to me than any amount of money. If I had to give up my house in order to keep The Book of Mormon, I would. It would be hard, but I know I would be happier having it, then a house.

I also love the Bible. I love reading about Jesus Christ. His example and the Atonement... wow.

So much is in my heart.

If I had to sum it all up, I think I would quote Matt. 22:42.
"What think ye of Christ?" (a scripture shared at Stake Conference)
I need to be like Christ. He gave His whole life to others. He didn't sit around watching TV, He served every waking moment.

I love my Savior so much. He is reason I have everything and the reason I hope to have everything that is important to me after this life, my wife, my daughter, my son, my family. I pray God will bless you, too.

Give Your Spouse a Hug Day

I think today should be give your spouse a hug day, nothing special about today. Tomorrow should also be give your spouse a hug day, too, and the next and the next. You never know what they may be thinking, going through (although we should know how they are doing), or even if they are doing great, it may just be what they needed at that moment.

Day 39

I was reading Alma 9 this morning and had the same impression. That I need to serve God and other people. I know that serving other people and showing love to them brings us closer to them, but also closer to God and our Savior.

Day 39/40

I think it is interesting that after the thirty days it is a lot harder again to wake up earlier. I wanted to sleep in everyday before, but now that I'm not following a 'program' or it's not a goal, it's a lot harder.

So I'm going to wake earlier everyday for the rest of my life, so I can put God or my family first. The reason I say family is because sometimes I did the dishes or cleaned instead of read scriptures or prayed. I figure if I'm serving someone else, it is like I am serving God. (Mosiah 2-5?)

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."
- Mosiah 2:17

Everyone Needs to Watch This

Letters to God

Day 35

I have had a thought going through my mind lately. Maybe the Spirit telling me to share it.

There is no middle ground. We either choose Christ or satan. We choose Christ by serving, by helping others, by praying, by reading the scriptures, by teaching our children about God, and by doing those things that bring us closer to Him and to our families.

We choose satan when we get upset, aren't patient, are lazy, steal, fight, and those things that don't bring us closer to our families or God.

If we don't feel closer to God or to our family or friends after a certain activity, then maybe we should re-evaluate it. See if it is necessary, like working on the yard. See if it can be done with family or friends. Maybe think about that activity and would we feel comfortable singing a church song or would we feel comfortable with Christ sitting there next to us.

I guess this is almost what I mean...

Day 35

"Yea, I say unto you come and fear not, and lay aside every sin, which easily doth beset you, which doth bind you down to destruction, yea, come and go forth, and show unto your God that ye are willing to repent of your sins and enter into a covenant with him to keep his commandments, and witness it unto him this day by going into the waters of baptism." - Alma 7:15

Am I doing these things?

Day 33

I feel I should post something. What it turns into, God only knows.

There are so many paths that we can take, things that can get us offline, and more. We need to get ourselves back on the one path that is important. We are not here just to have fun, to sit and watch tv, to go on hikes, to do all the things of the world, although some things do have a small place in our lives to help us relax. We are here to learn and grow our faith, go through experiances/trials to grow our faith, and serve others as Christ would to grow our faith.

I know God has a plan for each of us. We are here to be tested, to see if we will follow Him.

Today is the time to turn to Him, not tonight, not tomorrow. If I am only somewhat turned to Him, I need to completely turn my whole self to Him. Remember He loves you.

Day 30

God is in the details. Today is the "last day" of the program. I say "last day" because I am going to try to do this the rest of my life. God sometimes uses coincidences to influence our lives. Today is 8-28.

Today was one of the best days I've had for a long time. Not that the other days were miserable, but rather I had so much fun just being with my family. I had so much fun walking around outside with my daughter and holding my son.

"And so great were their afflictions that every soul had cause to mourn; and they believed that it was the judgments of God sent upon them because of their wickedness and their abominations; therefore they were awakened to a remembrance of their duty." - Alma 4:3

I think physically kneeling while praying shows that we are humble, ready to receive from God, the guidance He knows we need.

Day 30, 8-28

Day 29

Pray for those standing up for freedom. They need our prayers, but we all need to be standing for freedom.

I didn't read this morning, because I woke up late and put the dishes away for my wife instead. I figured God would be happier with me serving my wife than with me reading the scriptures in the morning. I read tonight though.

God is in the details. I will be finishing the program tomorrow. I read Prov. 29:11 today and it means to me think before you speak. I think it is appropriate.

I'm trying to let the Holy Ghost lead what to say in this post and in tomorrows post. It is hard.

There is a war going on right now. Although the battles are for men's souls, God WILL win. 'Who's on the Lord's side?' (LDS Hymn Book) These are the impressions I had as I read Alma 2.

Day 28

I'm almost done! However, I haven't done very well at waking up early. But you know what, I did better at waking up early these past 28 days then I would have if I didn't set the goal. So goals work, sometimes we don't accomplish our goals, but we do accomplish more with a goal than without a goal. I am grateful to God that I have so much.

Day 22

So everyone is okay, but there was a car accident in my family. I realize that life is really fragile, short, and you never know when you will go home to God. So take advantage of every day, every minute, and every second. Even when you wish your kids would go to bed, instead of screaming; when you wish they would stop throwing their food on the floor; or other things that you wish they wouldn't do. Being a parent isn't about controlling our kids, although some of that is necessary to keep them safe and to teach them, it's about the little moments. For me it's that they are mine, forever. God has blessed me so much. I have an amazing, kind wife and beautiful kids that love me too. What more could I ask for?

I think this has made me realize how close I need to be with God and also with my wife. I need to tell my children every chance I get that I love them. I need to hold my sweet wife's hand while we sit on the couch at night. Every minute is precious. A blessing and gift from God. Now what are we going to do with each one of those minutes?

Day 20

I think I've learned a lot about myself already, since trying to put God first. Notice I said trying.

One is I have a really hard time waking early.

Another is I look for things to share or things that are inspiring to me or really how God is helping me that day. The reason is because I'm thinking of this program, which really is helping me think more of God, and what I can share next on my blog. It's like when you get a fortune, that says your lucky number is 44 and then you start to notice that number every where. It's not that the number is magically every where all of a sudden. It was always there. You just weren't paying attention.

So think about/look for God more and you will notice that He is in your life and usually in the details.

Day 18

I didn't read early the last two days, I should have, but didn't.

Thank you EvansFam for the comment.

Spouses

I really want to have a relationship like the below scripture with my wife. It's really hard sometimes.

I keep thinking that our church leaders and prophet tell us to treat our wives like queens. I feel like I should treat her more like a princess, because in my mind I would be nicer and more loving to a princess, than a queen.

I just keep forgetting to try to do this. Any suggestions?

Day 15

Not much to say except children are so wonderful. They always make me smile.

Mosiah 18
 - If we do this in our marriages, then nothing will tear us apart.
"And he commanded them that there should be no contention one with another, but that they should look forward with one eye, having one faith and one baptism, having their hearts knit together in unity and in love one towards another." - verse 21

Day 13

I've been trying to figure out what I'm to do in this blog.

I've been trying to let God direct me. I hope to be appreciative of everything I have in life without it being taken away. Because most of the time we don't appreciate it until it's gone. We don't appreciate people until they are gone. I hope to love others more with out having to go through a big tragedy.

That is what I learned this morning. The little moments matter. Every second is a choice. It is harder sometimes than at other times.

I loved holding my little boy while he looked up at me. Touching my chin with his tiny fingers.

I loved playing with my little girl before going to work, instead of just leaving because I didn't have time. She is so wonderful. I hope that I can tell her that enough. It was fun stacking blocks and knocking them down, while my wife got a few more minutes of sleep.

I loved watching my wife wake up to see her little girl smiling with the biggest grin on her face, giggling.

Mosiah 16-17
 - The only path to God is the one that Christ made, which we can make it, but only with His help.
 - Stand up to evil men. Stand up for good men.

Inspirational Videos

I love these uplifting videos.

 - God has done so much for us. Christ did so much for us. We may never understand.

Tired

I've noticed that sometimes when trying to do a lot of spiritual things, I get spiritually burned out. Right now I'm just feeling burnt out, from lack of sleep.

As mentioned in the previous post, I am watching 24 with my wife. We stayed up late last night watching tv and then this morning my son woke up about 20 minutes before my alarm went off. My children are so wonderful, but it's a lot easier to be loving when you get more sleep.

One thing I have noticed is that as I read more in the scriptures and pray more, I feel promptings to be more patient and loving to my kids when I feel like I'm going to raise my voice a little bit.

God has blessed me so abundantly I feel like I can never repay Him, which is true, but I am amazed at all God has given me.

Day 5

Trying to catch up, so it may not make sense.

Matt. 3
 - The Kingdom of God is always close at hand, because I could go there right now if God wanted.
 - Why did Jesus, the Son of God, go to a man that to me is dressed in rags, that was over 50 miles away? Because John the Baptist had the authority.
 - Even leaders need to repent. I say this because my wife and I have been watching 24. (don't watch this show if your trying to do something like this to be productive)
 - We must bring good fruit - service, teach about God
 - God uses trials to separate the good from the bad, the righteous from the wicked.
 - I am so grateful that other people's worthiness/actions/decisions doesn't determine or affect my salvation. Even if I were put in prison for the rest of my life (for doing nothing wrong), I am the only one that can work out my own salvation. Christ was baptized in order to be perfect.
 - God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are all present when Christ was baptized. That's how crucial baptism is.

1 Nephi 1:3
 - I know The Book of Mormon is true. I feel closer to God as I read it, just like I do when I read the Bible.

Mosiah 11:1-18
 - Following one person can be very bad, unless that one person is God or Christ.
 - The king surrounded himself with bad people to make it seem okay. 'Everyone else does it.'
 - We labor to support the government. Is the government good? The foundation of the government is.
 - It's okay to have nice things and maybe even to have extravagant things, but not if that is where our heart is. Not if we raise ourselves above others. Not if we say look at me instead of God.
 - If we have money it's to help the poor. To help them help themselves.
 - We need to be ready for satan's little attacks too. The flocks that get scattered by the Lamanites are like our friends, family. God is trying to keep us together and satan is trying to scatter us like a wolf scatters sheep.
 - We should never say I did it, but praise God. Say God gave me the strength to do it.
 - We should delight in serving God and others.
 - There are 'guards' at our doors. Are they good or bad? The good guards keep us safe and warn us. The bad guards restrict us, until all we can do to get free is pray to God. The guards are our choices we make. When we make good choices, the Holy Spirit becomes a guard too.

2 Nephi 33:1-4
 - I feel exactly like this.

Day 4

I didn't do much today.

Day 3

I read Matt. 2 and had these questions, thoughts, inspirations:
 - Would I be willing to travel that far, as far as the wise men did, after seeing a star in the sky?
 - What about if I didn't see a sign?
 - The Jewish leaders knew The Christ was going to be born in Bethlehem, but still didn't think it was Jesus Christ that was The Christ.
 - It's sometimes interesting to see how prophecies come true, like Jesus being a Nazareth. It was prophesied that The Christ would be a Nazarean and Joseph, Jesus' father, took them to Nazareth because he was afraid of the king that took Herod's place.

I then read 1 Nephi 1:1
It talks about making a record in the language of his fathers. I felt like I'm trying to do that with this blog. I want to share the things I learn in the language of my fathers.

Changes Already

So after doing this for 2 days, you would think I wouldn't notice a difference.

I somewhat have. Today I didn't wake up early and I feel like me, yes, but I don't feel as peaceful and happy as I did yesterday. That's weird because yesterday I woke up at 5:15 to my little boy crying. It took him about 20 minutes to settle down and then I decided to just stay up. I felt so tired and probably looked pretty bad too.

The thing is though, I felt closer to God and to my wife yesterday. Not that I'm not close to them now, but you know there are some days that you just are laughing, talking good, and loving your spouse and family more.

When I'm closer to God, I'm closer to my family. I can feel God's love for me and that makes me want to share my love with others. It's how I feel after going to church, especially.

I've heard it explained like a triangle. God, your spouse, yourself each at one point of the triangle. So as I get closer to God, I also get closer to my spouse, as she gets closer to God too. I love my family. Family is what this life is all about.

Day 2

Slept in.

It's so nice to sleep in, but I didn't do it on purpose. I forgot to set my alarm. At least I wasn't late for work.

Day 1

I woke up at 5:15 am this morning.

I will share my schedule either in a few days or after the first 30 days are over.

I read Matt. 1 and here are the thoughts/impressions I had.
- Why was Christ born the way he was?
- - So Mary would be pure, because He was, is, and needed to be pure
- - He is the First and the Last. He literally was the first to be born to the virgin Mary.
- - There was no other way for Christ to be born that way if He was the son of God

I then read the Introduction to a book I love and cherish like the Bible and here are the thoughts/impressions I had.
- Don't judge me on my mistakes. God is perfect, I'm not.
- The book I am talking about starts in 600 BC with a prophet named Nephi. His father, Lehi, is warned by God to leave Jerusalem because it is going to be destroyed. They leave and eventually come to Central America. They keeps records of God's dealings with them. These records are kept until about 450 AD when all the people eventually become wicked and destroy all the righteous. Those that remain are the beginning of the American Indians.
- This book doesn't take away from the Bible, it absolutely adds to it. As does the Bible add to this book.
- Think about it this way. If I had two children, hey I do, I would talk to both of them, right? Even if they lived in two different places, I would still want to stay in touch with them. So, we are God's children. There were people in Jerusalem that He was talking to, or trying to, and there were people here in Central America that He was talking to also.
- The best part, I feel is 3 Nephi 11, when Christ comes to visit the people in Central America after He was resurected.
- This book, said by the prophet who translated it, Joseph Smith, "[is] the most correct of any book on earth."
- I would like to invite you to read this amazing book. I know it is true and along with the Bible will help you and me become a better person. God is in the Bible and He is in this book. I know with all my heart that The Book of Mormon is true!

I had a few minutes, so I read 1 Nephi 1:1 and here are the thoughts/impressions I had.
- This is going to be my motto.
"I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days."

The inspiration

I heard on a program about a book I could get for free.

http://rizeup.us/

It's a program to get up an hour earlier each morning for 30 days.

Hello internet, again...

So I used to own a domain name and didn't have the money to keep it.

I didn't use it either, so it is now gone. I could have used wordpress (another blogging site, but it is ridiculously slow) and I could have bought the domain name back, but have no money. Two kids, new house, college grad = lots of debt.

I have been thinking that I need to share my thoughts and feelings with the world. I may not be able to change the world, but I hope to make you day a little brighter and your understanding a little better.

I'm not sure what I will post about on this blog, but I feel like I need to. You may see a few developments in the beginning, but please listen to what I have to say. A person said of me once, "You know you need to listen to Michael when he talks, because doesn't say anything unless it's important."

So there are about four different things I have thought about posting about. Religion, government, how religion shows that a republic works best, how to do certain things (grow strawberries, keep a good garden, etc.), and/or what I could accomplish if I woke up 30 minutes to an hour earlier. I'm leaning towards the last. For one, I really don't know anything better than anyone else. The things I know about won't help people become a better person, although maybe in another blog.

I think I will start with the last option and give you updates as I go. I keep getting drawn to this one. That way I could kind of involve all the different ideas I have.

Disclaimer: If I start a phrase with 'Ya know...' or 'Think about it this way...', that means it's going to be political. I will end most of my posts with my love for my family and for God, who gave me everything, including my family.

I want God to guide me in this and feel that if I listen, He will. He is there helping us, guiding us.

I pray for all of you.