Power of Prayer

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! Just wanted to take a short moment to talk about the power of prayer. I know we just finished up with a wonderful General Conference and I will talk about all of that on this blog, too! Here is my post regarding the LDS General Relief Society Meeting 2013.

I have had experiences in the past where I have felt the power of prayers from others! In fact a couple of years ago, I was headed out on a trip to Arizona, I had been there a few times before and every time I go, I have really bad weather experiences. Yes, Arizona does not like me! Well, just before I was headed out for this trip, my visiting teachers came over and I was telling them about my bad experiences, but that we were about to take my nephews home to Arizona! They said they would pray for me! Of course, I've heard it before and have even said it before and followed through with said prayers...BUT...this time... Well, we took the boys home and as we were headed back up, there were a few times we could see storms brewing in the distance where we were headed or off to the side of where we were driving! I would say little prayers that we wouldn't have to go through what we were seeing and I can honestly say that I really felt the prayers of my visiting teachers, too! It was a very special feeling of comfort! For the first time, I made it through an entire Arizona trip with no major bad weather stories!

Fast forward to tonight when we had some specials friends visit at our home and we talked about many things including several things going on in our lives right now, one of which was a recent bad experience with a 4 hour position where incorrect assessments were made by the employer and led to there not being a job after all. Anyway, without going into much detail here, because it is beside the point, I just wanted to say that as the topic came up in the conversation, it was most touching when one of the visitors told us that their children were praying for the situation, everyday, in their prayers!

Now, I'm sure that most, if not all, of you know the wondrous power of prayer! I just wanted to write this short note about the gratitude that so many others in our lives are open to that Holy Ghost that prompted them to include us in their prayers! This came at a perfect time when I've been struggling with patience through our current trials which started a long time ago, the comfort such a little statement gave me...WOW!

I know that prayer can be a most powerful source of blessings for ourselves and for others. We must live righteously so we are open to the Holy Ghost and know what to pray for and open to the blessings that our loving Heavenly Father wishes to bestow upon us, yes, everyone! I just want to testify that our loving Heavenly Father listens to our prayers and he is there for us, ALWAYS! This is a little of what the power of prayer is to me...watsit2u?

Anti-Bullying Fair - Midvale, Utah

Last July, I spent a week in Las Vegas, Nevada. There will be more posts on the reasons why, but one of the most awesome parts was becoming involved with the End Bullying Now Campaign! I will blog more specifically on that soon, as well...but for today, I want to tell you about an awesome event happening tomorrow at the Midvale City Park and IT IS FREE!

Did you know that October is National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month? Sad that such a thing is needed, but great that because it is, we have this opportunity to educate ourselves and others on the subject! This is the first Anti-Bullying Fair sponsored by Dolls and Gents! I am so excited about this FREE event and look forward to many more to come! Here are the basics you need to know:

This Saturday, from 12-5, at Midvale Park. 

Family Friendly Anti-Bully Fair

Childrens Activities

Talent Show by the Boys and Girls Clubs of Midvale kids

Mayor of Midvale as a guest speaker

Entertainment

Local Business Vendors

Did I mention that is FREE? But any and all support of the vendors and such is greatly appreciated! So, come hang out, have fun, buy some good eats and learn more about how you can help the effort! Oh, and yes, End Bullying Now will have a booth there, so please, come on by, say hi and sign your pledge to End Bullying Now! Please share your story...were you bullied? are you being bullied? OR were you the bully? are you the bully? I was definitely bullied and sadly, even as an adult, still experience being bullied! So, I'm passionate about this effort and that is what it is to me...watsit2u?

Breast Cancer - Pink Ribbon (Wordless Wednesday)

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In July 2000, I attended a business conference in Las Vegas, there were over 12,000 people in attendance. There was a presentation of a check to the American Cancer Society. At the beginning of this presentation, the speaker had everyone stand that had cancer themselves. Then added those who knew someone with cancer and by the time it was all said and done, there were very few people not standing. One of these was a women in our group. She was so touched by this demonstration, she chose to quit smoking. I have no idea where this person is now, but her experience at that moment of being surrounded by standing people has never left me, in fact, I've shared it on my blog before! My point is, that most everyone knows someone who has cancer! So, to change directions, a little, what is the craziest thing you have ever done for someone? Especially someone who has cancer? Here is my story and blessing:

I always joked around about shaving my head because I would get tired of dealing with longer hair, but was never serious about it, at all. Then in 2011, enter a great friend of mine chose to shave her head to honor her mom, who, at that time, was dying of cancer. You can read about that here! Unfortunately, her mom lost her battle a very short time afterward. When my friend made this choice, it was about time for me to do my donation to Locks of Love, again! I've done it every 2 years or so since about 1999ish. So, again, I very jokingly told my husband I was going to shave my head like our friend and, this time, he simply looked at me and said, OK! I was floored, so I quickly thought about it and chose to go ahead and get my head shaved! It really was an easy choice! So, on 25 Mar 2011, I got my head shaved!
 

These pics were taken, in order, 25 Mar 2011....4 May 2011...3 Jul 2011...I show this to show the progression of hair growth. Everyone says my hairs grows fast, it sure doesn't feel like it!

Ok, back to the story...Now, I have to say, I was sad to hear that my friend had some not so positive reactions from people she came across soon after she shaved her head. I found this to be very sad yet motivating, how dare anyone judge her or mistreat for such a choice! My husband and I talked about this and the morning I was to go get my head shaved, I confirmed with him that he really was ok with my choice. His response was just to say that it was ok, if I was ok with people staring at me. My response to that was that I'm fat, people stare at me ALL THE TIME! So, I guess, in a way, shaving my head, was more than just to support her, it was to tell the world, here I am, I dare you to mess with me! Ok, maybe not, but I am happy to report, most everyone was pleasant and concerned, even strangers, most everyone just wanted to be assured that I wasn't sick myself! Of course, most of them gasped first and I did have a few people, mostly those that know me well, just laugh, my brother included. He would laugh and shake his head, then rub my head, then laugh...over and over again...I snapped this pic while he was staring and laughing, wish I could have gotten some of the initial gasping looks, there were some great ones:

One thing to keep in mind, I guess, for some, is the timing of when you choose to shave your head. I did so just before we had a cold snap in weather, so I was grateful that another friend had some years before made me this hat:

Ok, warp two years and it is time to cut my hair again for Locks of Love and I have chosen to shave my head once again! This time it's a little different, I am not necessarily doing it to prove anything to the world. I am making this choice to honor all who have survived cancer and the many, many in my life at that very moment who were, and, some who still are, battling cancer! Most of these 20+ friends and family have breast cancer, and some are now done with treatment and some even in remission! Many are still in the fight for their lives!

So, on 1 Apr 2013, I had my head shaved again...the pics below are from 1 Apr 2013, 21 Jun 2013, today, 01 Oct 2013...I'm told my hair grows fast, I'm still not convinced!

So...again, the response from those in my life, many of which were not around for the experience two years ago, was that of concern. Then, when assured that I was not the one that was sick but that I was doing this to honor all my friends and family that were suffering, were very supportive! Here it is six months later and some still tell me what a wonderful thing they think I did...when, in reality, it was nothing! I have the choice, at any time, to shave my head or not, so many out there fighting this battle do not have that choice! (yes, some make the choice to shave before having no choice but to lose their hair...amazing people!) It is to all of these wonderfully strong souls that I dedicate my efforts and support!

To all my friends and family out there fighting the battle and ugliness that is cancer, I think about you each and every day! I pray for you and I cheer your progress and successes! I mourn the setbacks, as well...but I honor you for your strength and example! Thank you and God bless each and every one you great ones! Thank you, Twizzz, for inspiring me in the first place! HUGS to you all....

SIDENOTE:

For anyone reading this post, if you should choose to have your hair cut for Locks of Love, go here for the rules, but the main one is that it must be at least 10 inches for the donation and just an FYI, Great Clips offers free hair cuts for those donating and they will even mail the hair in for you. Just go to the Locks of Love website to print and fill out the form to take with you for them, even if you are going to mail it in yourself. If your local Great Clips says they don't do that, they should, why wouldn't they want that good karma and such...but, if they refuse, find one that will do it and let corporate office know about the ones that won't, maybe they can 'encourage' them to get on board!

Ask a Stupid Question Day...

Who knew such a thing existed?! I come across many strange 'days' and have wonder about them and where they come from...so I looked up a little about this, there is no major website for it, and, of course, there is a wikipedia page for it, all sources I could find stated that it was started in the 1980's by some school teachers to encourage kids to ask more questions at school. It is officially on September 28, or whatever happens to be the last day of school in the month of September! This year that is today, September 30.

?

So...

What is the most stupid question you have ever asked?

What is the most stupid question someone has asked you?

What do you think about this 'holiday'?

Just a few of my thoughts on this 'day'...watsit2u?

Peace - Spiritual peace vs Worldly peace

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! Today our sacrament speakers were people that we highly admire and happen to be our neighbors, too! Guess I should clarify that comment, most wards in this Church are organized by neighborhoods, so most all the members are neighbors. We attend the local signing Branch, so our boundaries are more outspread and include several towns, so not all the members live close to each other. This family actually attends the hearing ward where we live, but are also involved with and friends with many people in our Branch, thus they were asked to speak! Anyway, on to my thoughts, which I will share backwards...instead of starting with the first speaker! Their topic was peace...

The father: He shared some stories, starting with a boy scout camp near a lake. They had to go up to the camp on a Saturday instead of waiting until Monday when the camp was supposed to start. On Sunday morning, the leaders woke the boys to attend church, much to their dismay. They had to walk about 20 minutes to where they were going to have the services. Much to their surprise, they were at the nearby lake and had one of the most spectacular views of this lake. The water was still as could be and they were awestruck by the view as the meeting quickly turned into a testimony meeting. This meeting ended with a leader throwing a rock into the lake, creating nonstop ripples, taking away the stillness. This shocked the boys, but they learned many lessons with this entire experience.

The mother: She talked about her family reading the New Testament as a family and how great it is to be reading about the life of Jesus Christ. She talked about many things we can do to help bring peace in our lives. She spoke a lot about taking action and several things we could do, including scripture study! One of the best lines from her talk is "Heavenly Father knows our plan from beginning to end." She talked about his desire to help us, if we pray. She also asked us to think about how the Gospel has influenced us, how has it influenced you? She pointed out that scriptures will bring us peace. Then challenged us to serve each other in our homes, which also creates peace.

The teenage son: He introduced the topic of peace and talked about there being more than one type of peace. Then he shared the experience of a recent youth conference in his ward. It was a three day event. The first day, they walked 22 miles from the Draper Utah Temple to the Salt Lake Utah Temple. The second day, they did baptisms for the dead at the Logan Utah Temple, Brigham City Utah Temple and Salt Lake Utah Temple. The third day they spent at Seven Peaks, including playing laser tag. He pointed out that the first two days brought spiritual peace and the third day was about worldly peace. His conclusion was that you could get worldly peace fairly easy by doing things but that you had to focus and work for spiritual peace by making specific choices. 

The son had the quote of the day, which I share in the following pic, that also includes the three main things they spoke about to bring spiritual peace! Even though this lake is in California, I highly doubt it is the perfect lake the father spoke about, but he talked about the mirror effect, so I felt this would do!

I guess that sums it all up pretty well...watsit2u?

LDS General Relief Society Meeting 2013

Just thought I'd take a moment to share my notes and thoughts on this inspired session in preparation for General Conference next week!

Sister Linda K Burton, President in Relief SocietyGeneral Presidency:  Covenant keeping…means choosing to bind ourselves to our Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ.  It is committing to follow the Savior; it is trusting him and desiring to show Him our gratitude.  Why make and keep Covenants? 1 – Covenant keeping strengthens, empowers and protects.  “Oh sisters, we all have burdens to bear and burdens to share.” An invitation to bear one another’s burdens is an invitation to keep our covenants. 2 – keeping covenants is essential for true happiness.  “Covenant keepers are commandment keepers” 3 – keeping our covenants demonstrates our love for the Savior and our Father in Heaven.  Joseph Fielding Smith: Covenant keeping is one way to show our love…   Evaluate how much we love the Savior, how well do we keep our covenants?

Sister Carole MStephens, 1st counselor in Relief Society General Presidency:  10 year old Porter is an awesome example! Maria is also a great example or enduring to the end of helping others! (Woah, I started typing that just before Sister Stephens actually said the words!!) A great reminder of how I used to be so much better at my Visiting Teaching responsibilities and the promptings I’ve been receiving recently to go back to some of the things I used to do for my sisters! “As I shared these experiences with you, did you see yourself in the work of salvation? Take a moment to think of another daughter of God who needs encouragement to get back on the path or needs a little help to stay on the path. Ask your Father in Heaven about her. She is his daughter, he knows her name. He also knows you and he will tell you what she needs. Be patient and continue in faith and prayer on her behalf, and act on the promptings you receive. As you act on these promptings, the Spirit will confirm that your offering is acceptable to the Lord.”

Sister Linda SReeves, 2nd counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency:  I love the story about the young man saying the sacrament prayer so carefully, especially since it was his first! I have a lot of stories where the young man has to start over or repeat the prayer. I often go to these young men and reassure them that someone in that room was not ready for the sacrament to begin. And have even had the experience of being that someone! I thank them for doing a great job! “Sisters, I testify of the strength and power of prayer as we express our deepest pains and desires to our Heavenly Father and the answers received as we feast upon the scriptures and the words of the living prophets.” “My dear sisters, the Lord allows us to be tried and tested, sometimes to our maximum capacity. We have seen the lives of loved ones and maybe our own figuratively burned to the ground and have wondered why a loving Heavenly Father would allow such things to happen. But he doesn’t leave us in the ashes; he stands with open arms, eagerly inviting us to come to him. He is building our lives in magnificent temples where his spirit can dwell eternally.” D&C 58: 3-4 “Sisters, I testify that the Lord has a plan for each of our lives, nothing that happens is a shock or a surprise to him. He is all knowing and all loving. He is eager to comfort us and ease our pain, as we rely on the power of the atonement and honor our covenants.”  “We bind the Lord to keep his promises when we keep our covenants and exercise our faith. Come to the Temple, dear sisters, and claim your blessings.” “We sometimes, as women, have a tendency to be critical of ourselves. During these times, we need to seek the spirit and ask Is this what the Lords wants me to think of myself, or is Satan trying to beat me down? Remember the nature of our Heavenly Father, whose love is perfect and infinite. He wants to build us up, not tear us down.”

https://twitter.com/ldsconf/status/384128809714208768

 President Thomas S Monson, President of TheChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints: “Full House” after looking over the congregation. “My dear sisters, the spirit we feel this evening is a reflection of your strength, your devotion and your goodness. To quote the Master, “Ye are the salt of the earth, the light of the world.” “I miss her more than words can express” (right after almost getting choked up talking about his departed wife) “There are many of you who have aging parents who require the loving care only you can give.” “There will be times when you will walk a path strewn with thorns and marked by struggle. There may be times when you feel detached-even isolated-from the giver of every good gift. You worry that you walk alone. Fear replaces faith. When you find yourself in such circumstances, I plead with you to remember prayer.” Peace is that which we seek, that for which we yearn. We were not placed on this earth to walk alone. What an amazing source of power of strength and of comfort is available to each of us. He who knows us better than we know ourselves, he who sees the larger picture and knows the end from the beginning has assured us that he will be there for us to provide help. If we but ask. We have the promise, pray always, and be believing, and all things shall work together for your good.” (scripture?) “Allied with prayer in helping us cope in our often difficult world is scripture study. The words of truth and inspiration found in our four standard works are prized possessions to me. I never tire of reading them. I’m lifted spiritually. “My Dear Sisters, your Heavenly Father loves you, each of you, that love never changes. It is not influenced by your appearance, by your possessions, or by the amount of money you have in your bank account, it is not changed by your talents and abilities. It is simply there. It is there for you when you are sad or happy, discouraged or hopeful. God’s love is there for you whether or not you deserve love. It is simply always there.”

Sister Ana de Agostini (closing prayer): “We ask thee Father to help us with greater understanding of our mission on this earth as daughters in these latter days”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Did you watch it? There were so many thoughts expressed that really apply to things going on in my personal life and I already feel renewed and refreshed, I can't imagine what next week's General Conference sessions have in store for me and all of us....watsit2u?