Foster care certainly has its challenges. Its exhausting and often overwhelming... but I have found the challenges are met far easier because of the help from my amazing children. My appreciation for each of my biological children has increased a hundred fold this past month as I've watched them adapt to their new life with their new siblings. They have displayed more patience, more compassion, more resilience and more creativity than I ever thought possible. They are truly amazing!
My husband has shown great strength too. I'm so proud of his perseverance and patience. He is a wonderful example to me of humility and obedience before the Lord. I'm so incredibly grateful I have him at my side in this difficult journey.
We've had so many people from our new ward tell us that they've witnessed our foster kids make leaps and bounds of improvement since they've been placed with us. Honestly, so much credit goes to my husband and children. My contribution is such a small fraction. This has been a huge team effort. There's no way I could move forward in this calling without each of them. I am richly blessed!
-Alicia
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The Purest Love
"The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and wom...
Showing posts with label Champions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Champions. Show all posts
Sunday, December 4, 2016
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Praying for My Friend - Ponderize - Week 11
I believe in the power of prayer. I believe that every time we approach the Lord with sincerity of heart that He hears us, even those things impressing on our mind that we can't seem to find the words for. I trust in His great wisdom, and find comfort in the truth that He sees the bigger picture and knows what is best for us in every moment of our lives. I know that "[I] cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, [He helps me to] be of good cheer, for [He] will lead [me] along." - D&C 78:18
Life is like a marathon that we are not meant to run alone so I believe the Lord places certain people in our lives who give us hope, people whose influence inspires us to keep going, to keep trying.
"Since we are what we are by the impacts of those who surround us, those who surround themselves with the highest will be those who change into the highest. There are some men and some women in whose company we are always at our best. While with them we cannot think mean thoughts or speak ungenerous words. Their mere presence is elevation, purification, sanctity.... Friendship is a spiritual thing. It is independent of matter, or space or time. That which I love in my friend is not that which I see. What influences me in my friend is not his body but his spirit. He influences me about as much in his absence as in his presence."
- Henry Drummond
We cheer each other on in our race most often through the channel of prayer. James encourages us, "Pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." - James 5:16
I was reading a talk this morning from Elder Bednar about prayer. He said, "Praying earnestly for others, both those whom we love and those who despitefully use us, is also an important element of meaningful prayer. Just as expressing gratitude more often in our prayers enlarges the conduit for revelation, so praying for others with all of the energy of our souls increases our capacity to hear and to heed the voice of the Lord." - Elder David A. Bednar, Pray Always
I trust the words of the Prophet James and Elder Bednar. I have a friend who shoulders such heavy burdens that I wish with all my heart I could somehow carry it for him. Especially when he is the very friend who brought light back in my life, gave me hope, and helped me through a terribly difficult time. If he only realized how deeply I pray for him. I hope he knows that he doesn't always have to be strong. No matter who we are or what our circumstances may be I think it's to be expected that we will stumble more when the load is heavier and it's possible we might become discouraged by the fact. But do not be dismayed. President Uchtdorf encouraged the brethren in a recent priesthood session:
"Brethren, there may be times in our lives when rising up and continuing on may seem beyond our own ability. That day on a snow-covered slope, I learned something. Even when we think we cannot rise up, there is still hope. And sometimes we just need someone to look us in the eyes, take our hand, and say, 'You can do it now!'
We may think that women are more likely than men to have feelings of inadequacy and disappointment—that these feelings affect them more than us. I’m not sure that this is true. Men experience feelings of guilt, depression, and failure. We might pretend these feelings don’t bother us, but they do. We can feel so burdened by our failures and shortcomings that we begin to think we will never be able to succeed. We might even assume that because we have fallen before, falling is our destiny. As one writer put it, 'We beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.'
...Brethren, our destiny is not determined by the number of times we stumble but by the number of times we rise up, dust ourselves off, and move forward." - President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, You Can Do It Now
This morning after my prayers, I opened up my scriptures to a place I already had bookmarked. My eyes fell upon a couple of verses that I've decided to "ponderize" for week 11.
"My beloved [friend], I rejoice exceedingly that your Lord Jesus Christ hath been mindful of you, and hath called you to his ministry, and to his holy work. I am mindful of you always in my prayers, continually praying unto God the Father in the name of his Holy Child, Jesus, that he, through his infinite goodness and grace, will keep you through the endurance of faith on his name to the end."- Moroni 8:2,3
-Alicia
"The Purest Love"
Life is like a marathon that we are not meant to run alone so I believe the Lord places certain people in our lives who give us hope, people whose influence inspires us to keep going, to keep trying.
"Since we are what we are by the impacts of those who surround us, those who surround themselves with the highest will be those who change into the highest. There are some men and some women in whose company we are always at our best. While with them we cannot think mean thoughts or speak ungenerous words. Their mere presence is elevation, purification, sanctity.... Friendship is a spiritual thing. It is independent of matter, or space or time. That which I love in my friend is not that which I see. What influences me in my friend is not his body but his spirit. He influences me about as much in his absence as in his presence."
- Henry Drummond
We cheer each other on in our race most often through the channel of prayer. James encourages us, "Pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." - James 5:16
I was reading a talk this morning from Elder Bednar about prayer. He said, "Praying earnestly for others, both those whom we love and those who despitefully use us, is also an important element of meaningful prayer. Just as expressing gratitude more often in our prayers enlarges the conduit for revelation, so praying for others with all of the energy of our souls increases our capacity to hear and to heed the voice of the Lord." - Elder David A. Bednar, Pray Always
I trust the words of the Prophet James and Elder Bednar. I have a friend who shoulders such heavy burdens that I wish with all my heart I could somehow carry it for him. Especially when he is the very friend who brought light back in my life, gave me hope, and helped me through a terribly difficult time. If he only realized how deeply I pray for him. I hope he knows that he doesn't always have to be strong. No matter who we are or what our circumstances may be I think it's to be expected that we will stumble more when the load is heavier and it's possible we might become discouraged by the fact. But do not be dismayed. President Uchtdorf encouraged the brethren in a recent priesthood session:
"Brethren, there may be times in our lives when rising up and continuing on may seem beyond our own ability. That day on a snow-covered slope, I learned something. Even when we think we cannot rise up, there is still hope. And sometimes we just need someone to look us in the eyes, take our hand, and say, 'You can do it now!'
We may think that women are more likely than men to have feelings of inadequacy and disappointment—that these feelings affect them more than us. I’m not sure that this is true. Men experience feelings of guilt, depression, and failure. We might pretend these feelings don’t bother us, but they do. We can feel so burdened by our failures and shortcomings that we begin to think we will never be able to succeed. We might even assume that because we have fallen before, falling is our destiny. As one writer put it, 'We beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.'
...Brethren, our destiny is not determined by the number of times we stumble but by the number of times we rise up, dust ourselves off, and move forward." - President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, You Can Do It Now
This morning after my prayers, I opened up my scriptures to a place I already had bookmarked. My eyes fell upon a couple of verses that I've decided to "ponderize" for week 11.
"My beloved [friend], I rejoice exceedingly that your Lord Jesus Christ hath been mindful of you, and hath called you to his ministry, and to his holy work. I am mindful of you always in my prayers, continually praying unto God the Father in the name of his Holy Child, Jesus, that he, through his infinite goodness and grace, will keep you through the endurance of faith on his name to the end."- Moroni 8:2,3
-Alicia
"The Purest Love"
by, Tenth Avenue North
I won't run, I will stay
I'm not leaving you
I know there's friction here
The struggle makes us new
I wish you never thought you had to go
Wish you never thought you had to leave
Together we can lift each other up
We can build a shelter for the weak
No man is an island, we can be found
No man is an island, let your guard down
You don't have to fight me, I am for you
We're not meant to live this life alone
I see fear in your eyes
There's no safety here
Oh, my friend, let me in
I will share your tears
I wish you never thought you had to go
I wish you never thought you had to leave
We can always lift each other up
We can build a shelter for the weak, come on
No man is an island, we can be found
No man is an island, let your guard down
Please don't try to fight me, I am for you
We're not meant to live this life alone
Through trouble, rain, or fire
Let's reach out to something higher
Ain't no life outside each other
We are not alone
Through trouble, rain, or fire
Let's reach out to something higher
Eyes open to one another
We are not alone
No man is alone
Why you try to fight me
We don't have to do it alone
We don't have to do it alone
We don't have to do it alone
Sunday, September 13, 2015
"Citius! Altius! Fortius!"
Chills ran through me from head to toe as I listened to the three-hundred-sixty voice choir accompanied by the Utah Symphony Orchestra perform Call of the Champions - "Faster! Higher! Stronger!" What an incredible experience it was to have the world gather in my own back yard for the Winter Olympics! It's hard to believe that was 13-and-a-half years ago. The fanfare composed for the 2002 opening ceremony still inspires me every time I hear it.
"Faster! Higher! Stronger!" has been the official Olympic motto since 1924. It reminds me of a motto one of my good friends, Scott Woodward, came up with when we were in college, "Up Only!" Scott was such a great example to me of what it meant to always seek to spiritually better ourselves. That was the direction he sought for in his life then and he continues to keep his eyes fixed heavenward today.
Many years ago, I remember someone saying, "If you reach for the stars, you may not get one but you won't get a handful of mud either." I've never forgotten that.
This is a church with extremely high standards and some may find reason to criticise us for it. But look at the standards one must follow to become a great athlete or even an Olympian. It is rigorous, tedious, "try and fail and try again" training!! Just because we may feel inadequate, unqualified, or that the workload exceeds our strength, doesn't mean we should throw in the towel. Miraculous things always happen when we continue to put forth our best efforts and trust in the grace of the Lord.
Bonnie L. Oscarson, the Young Women's General President encouraged us this last General Conference when she said, "Heavenly Father has a mission and plan for each of us, but He also has His own timetable. One of the hardest challenges in this life is to have faith in the Lord’s timing. It’s a good idea to have an alternative plan in mind, which helps us to be covenant-keeping, charitable, and righteous women who build the kingdom of God no matter which way our lives go. We need to teach our daughters to aim for the ideal but plan for contingencies."
I love that, "Aim for the ideal but plan for contingencies." It sounds like the quote about reaching for the stars. Spiritually, I am so far from the ideal- from being the kind of mother, wife, friend, and sister God intends me to become. I take comfort knowing that my Father in Heaven doesn't expect me to be perfect but he does expect the "perfect effort."
"It's not about perfect. It's about effort. And when you implement that effort into your life... every single day, that's where transformation happens. That's how change occurs. Keep going. Remember why you started." – Coach Ladouceur (De La Salle - Spartans)
Elder Richard G. Scott also gave a wonderful talk in Oct. 2003 where he said, "With all my capacity I encourage you to discover who you really are. I invite you to look beyond the daily routine of life. I urge you to discern through the Spirit your divinely given capacities. I exhort you to prayerfully make worthy choices that will lead you to realize your full potential....To share truth in difficult circumstances is to treasure it more. When you push against the boundaries of experience into the twilight of the unknown, the Lord will strengthen you. The beauty of your eternal soul will begin to unfold."
And so... to strive for and realize our full potential, we never settle. Just as the text of the beautiful hymn pleads, "More Holiness Give Me," we must always maintain this prayer in our hearts, a constant striving to be more than who we are right now. This is what it means to be champions on our Savior's team. No matter how hard things get, no matter the beatings we might take, we know how the story ends, we've read "the book," we can go forward with confidence (we may be bloodied, scarred, and bruised) but we can press forward with our heads held high because we're on the Lord's winning side.
"Never has the Church climbed higher, moved swifter, or been stronger to accomplish its mission. Now is the time for all of us to reach upward and move onward. In God’s work we too must be swifter, working with greater urgency; higher, striving for lofty spiritual goals; and stronger, relying on God’s strength. It can happen to you."- President James E. Faust - April 2002
We are destined for far greater things than we could have ever imagined when we set foot in this arena called life. We are born to be champions! And by the grace of our Savior and the faith to call down heaven, we can accomplish anything!
-Alicia
"Faster! Higher! Stronger!" has been the official Olympic motto since 1924. It reminds me of a motto one of my good friends, Scott Woodward, came up with when we were in college, "Up Only!" Scott was such a great example to me of what it meant to always seek to spiritually better ourselves. That was the direction he sought for in his life then and he continues to keep his eyes fixed heavenward today.
Many years ago, I remember someone saying, "If you reach for the stars, you may not get one but you won't get a handful of mud either." I've never forgotten that.
This is a church with extremely high standards and some may find reason to criticise us for it. But look at the standards one must follow to become a great athlete or even an Olympian. It is rigorous, tedious, "try and fail and try again" training!! Just because we may feel inadequate, unqualified, or that the workload exceeds our strength, doesn't mean we should throw in the towel. Miraculous things always happen when we continue to put forth our best efforts and trust in the grace of the Lord.
Bonnie L. Oscarson, the Young Women's General President encouraged us this last General Conference when she said, "Heavenly Father has a mission and plan for each of us, but He also has His own timetable. One of the hardest challenges in this life is to have faith in the Lord’s timing. It’s a good idea to have an alternative plan in mind, which helps us to be covenant-keeping, charitable, and righteous women who build the kingdom of God no matter which way our lives go. We need to teach our daughters to aim for the ideal but plan for contingencies."
I love that, "Aim for the ideal but plan for contingencies." It sounds like the quote about reaching for the stars. Spiritually, I am so far from the ideal- from being the kind of mother, wife, friend, and sister God intends me to become. I take comfort knowing that my Father in Heaven doesn't expect me to be perfect but he does expect the "perfect effort."
"It's not about perfect. It's about effort. And when you implement that effort into your life... every single day, that's where transformation happens. That's how change occurs. Keep going. Remember why you started." – Coach Ladouceur (De La Salle - Spartans)
Elder Richard G. Scott also gave a wonderful talk in Oct. 2003 where he said, "With all my capacity I encourage you to discover who you really are. I invite you to look beyond the daily routine of life. I urge you to discern through the Spirit your divinely given capacities. I exhort you to prayerfully make worthy choices that will lead you to realize your full potential....To share truth in difficult circumstances is to treasure it more. When you push against the boundaries of experience into the twilight of the unknown, the Lord will strengthen you. The beauty of your eternal soul will begin to unfold."
And so... to strive for and realize our full potential, we never settle. Just as the text of the beautiful hymn pleads, "More Holiness Give Me," we must always maintain this prayer in our hearts, a constant striving to be more than who we are right now. This is what it means to be champions on our Savior's team. No matter how hard things get, no matter the beatings we might take, we know how the story ends, we've read "the book," we can go forward with confidence (we may be bloodied, scarred, and bruised) but we can press forward with our heads held high because we're on the Lord's winning side.
"Never has the Church climbed higher, moved swifter, or been stronger to accomplish its mission. Now is the time for all of us to reach upward and move onward. In God’s work we too must be swifter, working with greater urgency; higher, striving for lofty spiritual goals; and stronger, relying on God’s strength. It can happen to you."- President James E. Faust - April 2002
We are destined for far greater things than we could have ever imagined when we set foot in this arena called life. We are born to be champions! And by the grace of our Savior and the faith to call down heaven, we can accomplish anything!
-Alicia
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