I delight in believing.

I've been reading in the Book of Alma in the Book of Mormon. I'm currently in Alma 33:20. Alma is explaining to the people about prophets of old, and about faith when he brings in one of my favorite stories--Moses raising up a serpent...and all those who looked...lived. And those who would not look perished.  Alma adds this insight: "Now the reason they would not look is because they did not believe that it would heal them (Alma 33: 20)." 

I'm lead to ask myself this question:

What am I not doing, simply because I don't believe it will help me? In those areas, I need to examine my faith. In some respects, I'm forced to stop before the comma and ask myself: What am I not doing?  And add this...That I know I should be doing? And then add this...Am I not doing it because I don't believe it will help me?

There are always those things that even though I know I should do them, I don't for whatever reason.  But what is the reason?  And why wouldn't I do all the things that I know that will help me live a happy, productive, fulfilled life?  Is it because I have not developed the faith to believe they will help me and ultimately heal me?  

As I ponder this, I think about my relationship with prayer. While I pray almost constantly, in my mind, in my thoughts, I have always had the most difficult time getting on my knees at the beginning of the day and starting my day with prayer.  It makes no sense to me and sometimes I think Heavenly Father must just think...how did she miss this foundational step?  I don't know. I do know and believe that prayer is something so good and so important to me and to my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I know its a commandment. But...alas, my knees hitting the floor first thing...does not happen as consistently as it should. 

But, Alma goes on to teach one of my favorite lessons that always gives me such hope for the future, for repentance, for change...

"And even all this can ye do, if ye will (Alma 33: 23)."

There's a choice. And everyday I can change my choices. *Beautiful isn't it?* It is in my power to change my actions and it is within the Lord's every desire, hope and ability that we will make those changes and choose Him. 

Look and live.

I delight in a new kind of school.

Today classes started at my old alma mater, the University of Utah.  I delighted that I didn't start with them.  I however, start "school" of a different kind come Thursday.  For the next two years I will be doing a post-grad fellowship program called URLEND.  There are LENDs all over the country, this one is LEND for the Utah Region (UR).  Specifically I'm doing the Autism Enhancement program which makes me SO excited.  Here's to new adventures!  Here's to continuing education!

because i love hammocks

and because i love to win
and because i especially LOVE treklight hammocks...i'm blogging about their amazing contest that is going on right now in honor of national hammock day!

the sibs and i up the in the mountains july 24, 2012, loving our hammock time!

i won something in the contest last year--3 of their tote bags and they're amazing!!! i use them all the time!  my dad and i ran across these guys at the salt lake city outdoors show oh 5 or 6 years back, we bought a hammock then, then later bought 4 more so we all have one.  i always keep two of them in the back of my trunk and pull them out on a moments notice.  i've used them by the lake, in the mountains, i've even slept in them in the middle of nowhere, and i do mean nowhere.  best nights sleep i've ever had in the backcountry.

and so...everyone should enter the contest!

click link below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I delight in desire.

In the past couple of days, I have read a lot of different things.  I've read from the Book of Mormon, I've read about the Lidcombe Stuttering Program, I've read all about protecting human research participants and all sorts of things on the NIH website, I've read about phonological disorders and about syndromes affecting speech and language development, I've read some of the book A Single Voice by the inspiring Sister Kristen Oaks, wife of Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in other words, I've been reading lots of very different kinds of things.

The interesting thing is that in all the reading I've done one word has continually come to my mind.  

Desire.

As a missionary, one of the most influential district meetings I was able to attend was about educating your desires.  At the time I remember thinking...what in the world does that even mean?  As the years have gone by since then, and starting within hours of that meeting I began to diligently reflect on what that phrase meant and what it could mean for me.  

Its definition has changed over time and today at this moment it means something like this to me:

What is the desire of my heart? And, do my current actions match those desires?  And if not, then what do I need to change?

In Relief Society today we talked about Advancing the Work of the Lord.  That is done in so many ways today, more ways than ever before.  As we brainstormed all the possible ways there are to share the gospel my mind kept coming back to the fact that first we have to start with the desire. Being aware of what we are desiring is crucial.  

Somedays, my desires get a little lost.  Somedays the desire for sleep seems to be overriding to all other desires.  Somedays the desire to be successful at work/school overcome the desire to be the places I ought to be instead.  Somedays the desire to be lazy overrides the desire to serve others. 

However, if I am constantly thinking and educating the desires I ought to have and truly deeply want to have, then I am more likely to achieve those desires.  Alma, in the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon Chapter 29 says this: "...for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction."

Point of the story?  Desire counts.  It counts to us and it counts to the Lord.  Educating our desires and knowing what we really want more than anything else is an active daily process that is reflected in our day-to-day actions. 

What's my goal this week?  Thinking and recognizing what desires my actions are reflecting.

I delight in a week of delightful moments.

Since my daily delighting just isn't in the cards at the moment...I've decided to give a run down of some of of the past week's delights:

• Finally seeing Wicked, loving Wicked as much as I always hoped I would, loving that my Mom and LB loved Wicked too.  And now, I really love that Wicked is Christin's CD of choice in the car (since it has been Taylor Swift for the past 2 years, it was time for a change!)
• Saying good-bye to Nat and JD. This is only half a delight because I miss them terribly and Utah won't be the same without them, but I am SO excited for their adventures in the northwest, and I'm so excited I now have a fantastic excuse to visit the northwest!  
• Attending my 'Cuz's' sealing in the Timpanogos  Temple on Saturday!  I am so happy for Breanne and Mark!  He is one lucky man because Breanne is amazing!  Attending the dinner that night and seeing how much everyone there loved and supported them was so great!  Pictures to come!
• Being in the temple with my Grandpa!  Grandpa B attended Breanne's wedding too and he and I have never been in the temple at the same time.  It was such a special moment for me to be there with family as that was a first for me!  I'm so grateful for such wonderful events to bring the family together.
• Spending time with Mom.  Its always a rare occasion so I always enjoy it when it happens...even though I am the worst passenger side driver ever.
• Teaching the 7-8 year olds in Primary on Sunday!  I haven't been in Primary since I was in Primary so I wasn't sure what to expect.  But boy, the girls and boys of my ward don't disappoint!  They are SO smart!  We talked about the importance of being kind and the scripture story of the Good Samaritan.  Possibly my favorite part was hearing them recount the story after the lesson...I love hearing what parts of the story they remember and how they interpret it.  Classic quotes from my experience in primary to come...and believe you me, they are classic!
• Playing memory with LB, we started playing a game of memory every night when I get home from work.  It's great!
• I ordered some new books off Amazon.  I sold a few of my grad school text books in the previous couple of weeks, only the ones I never liked anyway and wouldn't use ever, mostly because I never used them even when I had them.  So I decided to take the money I got from selling them and put it into books I would actually use.  I'm excited!

Just a few little delightful delights!  :)