SUNDY'S SEVEN SABBATH SENTIMENTS - EDITION 16

1.

I had a great birthday on Saturday!  I guess 41 isn't so bad.  I love birthdays!  I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy all the well wishes and the attention.  I was able to relax most of the day.  My sister got me a one of a kind, quilted, yellow and purple scripture bag.  I LOVE it, and can't wait to use it tomorrow.  Amy got me a game called Curses.  It is absolutely hilarious and fun!  We played it Friday night and I almost wet my pants I was laughing so hard.  My family got me some television DVDs (season 2 of Once Upon a Time and season 3 of The Mentalist.)  I am truly spoiled.

2.

Friday was the beginning of my birthday celebration.  Scott and I went to the temple with the Bettenhausens.  I LOVE the temple!  And it was fun to share it with my husband, best friend and her husband.  We enjoyed discussing the new video and learning from each other.
After the temple, we went to Chuys for dinner.  Chris Thornton got us gift certificates for our birthdays so we had a yummy, Mexican supper.
Chris and the girls were babysitting while we had our fun evening out.  And when we got home, we had another surprise:  an impromptu game night with cake and ice-cream.  We played my new game: Curses.  I laughed so hard I nearly wet my pants.  It was so funny!  Chris, Hammond, Amy, Mark, Key Lime Pie, Kotten Kandy, Scott and I all laughed until our sides hurt.  I love all of these dear friends.  (And yes, I'm counting my daughters as FRIENDS!  Because they are!)

3.

Star Child is a church musical that I was in when I was 10 years old.  Like Saturday's Warrior (which was written by the same people), Star Child begins in the pre-existence, where Larry learns he is to be born to a non-member family in a foreign land.  His best friend, Chuck, promises to find him and bring him the gospel.  He also pledges to find and marry his sweetheart, Marie, so young Michael and Sarah can have the parents they've always dreamed of.  I played the role of Sarah.  The story deals with the plan of salvation and making hard moral choices.
Star Child is a great show with great music.  One of the songs, "Within Me," has really helped me throughout my life.  It deals with understanding our divine nature.  I have often come back to this song and used it as a crutch when I need to remember my divine worth.  Here are the lyrics:

WITHIN ME

   Okay I’m nothing great but still I’m me and that’s substantial.
   I may not be all wise but still I realize, I’ve got potential.

   So what if I’m alone that doesn’t mean I can’t be happy.
   Although I may conceal the pain deep down I feel, who says I’m lonely?

   I fret and I forget just who I am and what I’m after.
   Much like a kewpie doll so easily I fall and break like plaster.

   And so I ask again: Dear Father, do I really matter?
   He bends to pick me up.  I am His daughter.

   And with his spirit oh so near I see myself, the picture’s clear:
   As endless as the sands of time, I see my destiny, all I can become.
   Just like the stars up in the sky, I am a multitude, a universe am I!

   Within me, worlds without end!
   Within me, power to ascend!
   To glory if I am worthy for within me there is life!
   And within me, a multitude shall arise!

4.

Scott BBQed tonight.  It was DELICIOUS!  We were going to BBQ for my birthday on Saturday, but ran out of time as we prepared our talks for church today.  So today for dinner we had:  BBQ chicken, BBQ corn on the cob and cottage cheese!  It was soooooooooooo yummy!!!!!!

5.

This evening we went to the stake Back to School Fireside.  It was great!  They even mentioned home-schoolers which meant a lot to my kids and me!  Sometimes they forget that some of the youth are homeschooled.  We learned about becoming who we want to become.  We learned about kindness and civility.  And we learned to work hard, stand tall and that there are people who can help us grow.  I felt the Spirit.  So did the girls.  Glad we went.

6.

So I read Divergent by Veronica Roth this week.  I read it because Key Lime Pie and Kotten Kandy read it.  I read it planning on hating it.  And I did.  Sorta.
Divergent is a dystopia story.  And everyone seems to love dystopia stories lately.  (ie. The Hunger Games, The Giver, 1984, etc.)  I have read a few new dystopias recently and liked or disliked them to various degrees.  There are dystopias for any taste.  There are dystopias that are based on romance.  There are dystopias that are based on politics.  There are dystopias that are action novels.  And this one is an action novel
In a few words, Divergent is one long initiation trial  Beatrice is a member of a society that has been maintaining its peaceful existence by separating its citizens into 5 distinct factions.  At the age of 16, all citizens choose which faction they will be a part of.  Each faction is based on virtues such as honesty, selflessness, bravery, peacefulness and intelligence.  Beatrice, although her testing is inconclusive, decides to join the Dauntless faction which values bravery.  Her initiation trials are grueling, frightening and violent.
I liked the book OK.  But I didn't like the book too.  I'm not sure I can recommend it?!  And I'm not sure why?!  It was a book to read so I could talk about it with my daughters.  And I kinda wish they hadn't read it first... because I really don't think it was well written and I'm not sure I like some of the virtues and values it extols.  But on the other hand, it has some good virtues and values also.  Do I sound confused about this book?  I am.

7.

Here is a copy of the talk I gave today:

WHY ARE WE HERE?

   Most of us are pretty confident that we know why we’re here.  I knew the basic answers because of the church musical, “My Turn on Earth.”  It taught me that “Everybody ought to have a body!  A body is the only way to go!”  And the show also taught me that we are sent to earth to be tested and find love.  Both of those answers are correct.

   And even though I knew the two generic answers to that question, I still found myself wanting to sing:

     What is my mission in life?
     All I have I’d give to know.
     My place in the race, my spot on the map,
     How far I can go!

   As I’ve grown, I have realized that if we stop at those two generic answers, we’ll fall far short of our purpose and potential, which is to truly become as God is.

   Elder Neal A. Maxwell explained that there is more to life than we often think.  He said, “a superficial view of this life… will not do.”  If we hold to a surface-level of understanding, we may “mistakenly speak of this mortal experience only as coming here to get a body, as if we were merely picking up a suit at the cleaners.”  Or we may “casually recite how we have come here to be proved, as if a few brisk push-ups and deep knee bends would do.”

   There is more to getting a body than just picking it up.

   There is more to being tested than just doing some routine exercises.

   And there are more purposes in life than just two.  We have many.

   Some of these essential purposes of life are:

• Learning to differentiate between Satan’s tests and God’s tests.
• Developing a connection with God.
• Learning to recognize the voice of the Spirit.
• Coming unto Christ and partaking of the blessings of His grace.
• Learning to love with all our hearts.
• Learning how to receive direction through revelation.
• Coming to a mighty change of heart.
• Learning how to work as families to fulfill our united missions in life.
• And discovering our personal mission in life.

   Of course, this is a short list.  There are other purposes we need to discover and fulfill.

   One of our great reasons for being on earth is to find Christ and develop a relationship with Him, even though we cannot see Him.  I have pondered this purpose. 

   When asked “What is the greatest need in the world?  President Faust wisely responded, “Is not the greatest need in all the world for every person to have a personal, ongoing, daily, continuing relationship with the Savior?  Having such a relationship can unchain the divinity within us, and nothing can make a greater difference in our lives as we come to know and understand our divine relationship with God.”

   It’s not enough that we just know about Christ.  We need to strive to be one with Him.  According to President Faust, there are five essential ways which will help us become one with the Savior and develop a relationship with Him.

#1 – Daily prayer.  Sincere prayer and communication with our Heavenly Father will be the most important measure that will helps us develop the relationship we desire.

#2 – Daily selfless service.  In Matthew we read, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these…, ye have done it unto me.”  A wise man observed, “The man who lives by himself and for himself is apt to be corrupted by the company he keeps.”

#3 – Daily strive for increased obedience and perfection in our lives.  The Savior said, “What manner of men ought ye to be?  Verily I say unto you, even as I am.”

#4 – Daily acknowledge Christ’s divinity.  To have a daily, personal relationship with the Master, we must be His disciples.  In Mosiah 5:13:  “For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?”

#5 – Daily study the scriptures.  President Kimball said, “I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away.  If I immerse myself in the scriptures, the distance narrows and the spirituality returns.”

   The concept of developing a relationship with our Savior is only one example of the depth of understanding we can and should come to regard to our reasons for being on the earth.  The Lord would be pleased to help us come to similar understandings about our other purposes of being here. 

   And in addition to the purposes we all share, each of us also has a unique and personal mission to fulfill on the earth.  Our mission may be as small as a family, or as large as the world.  But the Lord knew before He sent us here what specific thing He would have us do for our brothers and sisters on earth, and He prepared us to accomplish it.

   Queen Esther was placed in a position where she could save her people.  Joseph Smith was prepared to ask God which Church to join and then to restore the gospel of Christ on the earth.  Jesus said of Himself, “I know whence I came and whither I go.”  We also can know whence we came and whither we go.  In fact, it is one of our purposes in life to do so.

   Joseph F. Smith said, “God sent every man and woman in the world to accomplish a mission, and that mission cannot be accomplished by neglect; nor by indifference, nor can it be accomplished in ignorance.  We must learn our duty; learn the requirements that the Lord has made at our hands, and understand the responsibilities that he has placed upon us.”

   This is why we are really here on earth.  Our purpose is far more than to get a body and be tested.  It encompasses all aspects of a godly life, a life designed to help us literally become like our Heavenly Parents.  We can’t view our life’s purpose casually.  Instead, by searching the scriptures, listening to the prophets, and seeking the Lord in prayer, we can learn why we are here – and begin to more fully accomplish God’s will in our lives.