Sorry!

I've been on a hiatus from posting since I got back from Panama, but I plan on getting back on track, so just be patient and I'll have some more thoughts soon!

At first glance...

I was driving home from the store today when I saw this lady crossing the street.  I first noticed her out of date clothes, her unkempt hair, her funny walk, and her worn out face.  At first I was severely judging her, wondering why she didn't keep up her looks better, assuming she was probably a smoker, alcoholic,  working minimum wage at the Taco Bell across the street, a loser with no ambition.

Then I stopped.  A little voice said, "Who are you to judge?  You don't even know her.  She's no better or worse than you.  She's a daughter of God.  She's a human being.  She's a person.  Just.  Like.  You.

My thoughts suddenly turned to what she was feeling...was she cold?  Was she sad?  Had she felt heartbreak recently?  Was she going through a rough time?  Did she have friends, or someone to love her, or someone to love?  Did she have goals, ambitions, dreams....?

The point of all this...Let's not be so quick to judge others.  We are all people with emotions, feelings, hopes, desires, dreams, goals, baggage, hope...

"For there is no respect of persons with God"  Romans 2:11

If He doesn't judge us, what place do we have to judge?

Let's give each other a break.  :)

Its not always about you....

I learned a little bit more about this lesson today.

So, I'm sick.  In light of my last post, I will leave it at that and not complain.  Just state the fact.  :)

Not only am I sick, but because of that I slept maybe two hours last night.  This morning at 9 I had a rehearsal to teach the youth in our ward a dance from "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers".  I really did not want to go.  I mean, I was sick right?  I didn't sleep at all right?  I deserved the morning off!

But there was only this rehearsal and one more, and a lot had to be done.  And those kids were depending on me.  So....I went.  And I bucked up, expended the right amount of energy, and got some stuff done.

The kids had a blast.

What is my point?  Its not always about you.  Sometimes you have to sacrifice to make someone else happy...to give them an opportunity to express them self...to be and influence in their life.  Granted, I don't recommend always doing things while you're sick....

But I dare us to think outside of ourselves just a bit more and see others' needs!

CAN I GET AN AMEN?!?  

:)

Don't complain!

So, a typical conversation with a friend might go something like this...

"Hey!  How's your day been?

"OH!  The WORST!  I'm so tired, I did such and such, and can you believe what so and so said about me?"

"I know right?  I heard!  But you won't believe how much crap I had to do today..."

Sound Familiar?

I find that a lot of times, my interactions with people end up being a competition to see who's life is worse.  Kinda reminds me of the song, "It Sucks to be Me" from "Avenue Q".  But in doing so, I feel like we brush off the parts of our day that were actually really good.  By focusing so much on the negative, we miss the little miracles and tiny blessings that are before us every day.  

I was reading in the Book of Mormon today, and I was struck by a passage.  The Prophet Nephi and his family had been traveling in the wilderness for a long time.  They had left behind their home, belongings, and comforts in Jerusalem to follow the command of the Lord to flee to a Promised Land that had been prepared for them.  The wives of Nephi and his brothers had all borne children while they were traveling.  Now, hiking around in the desert is bad enough, but imagine doing it while you're pregnant!  Then imagine giving birth to that kid in the desert with no doctors, no hospitals, and then having to do everything in your power to keep that new-born baby alive in the desert while trying to survive yourself.  

No. Thank. You.  

But here's what Nephi wrote about those amazing women, who often get overlooked in the scriptures...

"And it came to pass that we did again take our journey in the wilderness...And we did travel and wade through much affliction in the wilderness; and our women did bear children in the wilderness.  

And so great were the blessings of the Lord upon us, that while we did live upon raw meat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children, and were strong, yea, even like unto the men; and they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings." (1 Nephi 17:1-2) 

Wow.  They didn't complain.  

My challenge for me and for anyone who reads this is to stop complaining so much.  Let's focus on the positive things that happen to us, and be grateful for them.  This does NOT mean that we pretend like we don't have troubles or that we pretend that our lives are perfect....I think it means that we embrace everything that we're given in our lives, good AND bad.  And that we try to accentuate the positive, without following the popular trend to harp on the negative.  

Try it.  I dare you.  And let's see how much it can brighten your day.  :)

Can I Get an AMEN?!?

Well here it goes!  I'm starting this blog to publicly post my thoughts and musings that I get daily from either an experience I have or something I read in the scriptures.

Whether or not you are religious or believe in God, I hope you will read this blog and find something you can apply to your life to make it that much better!  I also hope that as you read, you feel inspired to comment, thus helping me to be a better person.

So read away, and can I get an AMEN?!?