Prayer

Several things have happened this past week that have me thinking about prayer.  I know it is not going to sound like I am thinking about prayer to begin with but I will get there.

We have been reading 3 Nephi 1 where the sign of Christ's birth happens.  Here these people see a sign and sort of straighten up for a while.  Then within a few short years many of the people are lying, stealing, murdering, etc.  Why?  I keep asking myself why are they not doing what they should be doing.  Then I start wondering about myself.  These chapters in 3 Nephi are a type of things to come.  So I want to know:  Where do I stand?  Do I see signs and just pass them off as if it were nothing?  Why were people turning away from the church and from Christ?  What do I need to do to keep from turning away from the church and from Christ?  

David said I needed to read 3 Nephi 18:18-21

18 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation; for Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.
19 Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;
20 And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.
21 Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.

So there is where I get back to prayer.  I need to keep praying.  I need to improve the quality of my prayers.  So that is step one.  Pray.

2 Nephi 32: 8-9 says:

8 And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts; and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing. For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.
9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.

My ponderings have me wondering which spirit I am listening to.  Am I listening to a good spirit or an evil one?  I really want to be listening to a good spirit.  In order to listen to that spirit I need to be praying.  I really want to be ready for Christ's second coming.  May we each choose to be on the Lord's side.

Song of a fifth child

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking!

Oh, I've grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
And out in the yard there's hullabaloo
But I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren't her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
But children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep...

by Ruth Hulbert Hamilton, in Lady's Home Journal. 1958.

Lesson From Heaven by Karla Claybrook

“It’s scary to think about leaving,
to go where I can’t see your face.
How will I ever return,” I asked,
“if I can’t remember this place?”

“I’ll give you lessons from Heaven,”
He said with a smile in His eyes.
A sigh, then a look of confusion
was all I could give in reply.

“Lessons to guide your return, child,
to your home, this place you once knew.
Trials to help you grow stronger.
Don’t worry…I’ll be there for you.”

“The lessons won’t be very easy;
your heart will be aching with pain.
Some will seem harder than others,
though not one will you learn in vain.”

“You can do it,” He said as He hugged me,
“I know what you’re capable of.
You’re right…you won’t see my face;
But child, I’ll send you my love.”

http://www.lessonsfromheaven.net/index.htm

Lessons of Liberty Jail (Jeffrey R. Holland)

I love to listen to the CES Firesides for Young Adults.  This talk by Elder Jeffery R. Holland was so wonderful.  The talk is about 45 minutes long so I put it on my Google reader.  If you would like to listen to the talk you can go there .  You can also download the talk and listen to it as you have the time.  One of my favorite scriptures comes from Helaman 5:12:

And now, my sons (and daughters), remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

I like that scripture because it lets us know that there will be trials in our lives, but, we can over come those trials if we build on a sure foundation.  Elder Holland's talk gives some great ideas of how to build that foundation and how to withstand the trials we are or will be facing.

http://www.google.com/reader/shared/18167644038299635105

Dear Mr. Obama

This brought tears to my eyes.  I think we have a big responsibility when it comes to picking a president this time.  

Temples dot the Earth

I saw this video on another blog and enjoyed the message.  Aren't we lucky to live on the earth when the blessings of the temple are growing closer and closer to all of us.  May the temple work keep spreading!

Gems that are Close to my Heart

I have been thinking a lot about things that are close to my heart and gems sense Jennifer started her blog. I have some gems that are so precious to me.  They are my 14 beautiful grandchildren.

I was watching Emma the other day before Melanie and Les left to go back to school.  Emma was toddling down the sidewalk.  She stopped to look at the flowers.  She jabbered for a few minutes as she tenderly touched the flowers.  Then she did what every grandchild before her has done.  She played 'loves me loves me not' as she pulled each pedal off the flower.  Next she toddled over to the bell.  You could tell by the look on her face that she wanted to touch it.  She looked at me as she reached her hand toward the bell.  You could see that she was waiting for a "No, no, don't touch."  Instead I told her yes.  Still she looked hesitant.  Then she reached out and touched the bell.  How many other grandchildren have rung that same bell?  It amazes me that there are things that each grandchild seems to want to do.  For example:

• Pull the pedals off the flowers.
• Ring the bell by the sidewalk.
• Climb on Grandpa as he lies on the floor.
  
• Ring the chime by the dinning room door.
  
• Hide in the coat closet when someone is mad at them.
  
• Sit in the coat closet when they want to hide from someone else.
  
• Explore the yard past the garden.
  
• Climb the tree in the backyard.
• Roast marshmallows.
• Burn marshmallows. (because that is the way they like them)

My beautiful grandchildren, you are truly more precious than gold or any jewel on earth.  You are very close to my heart.  I am so grateful that families are eternal.  To know that you will be a part of my life for eternity is the most important gift my Heavenly Father could ever give me.  May the Lord always be an important part of your lives.  I pray for you daily.  You will always be my most precious gift.

Mormons are Christians

I saw this video on another blog. I liked it and decided to use it on my blog too. Hope your enjoy it.