It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

No, I'm not talking about Christmas just yet. I'm talking about General Conference! Woo-hoo! It's a time when we get to listen to the Lord's prophet and apostles speak to us. Who wouldn't be excited about that?! It's a time when we can hear the word of the Lord through a living prophet. We can reflect on how we are living our lives and what we can work on to become better. As we watch or listen to these men called of God and other leaders of the church, we will receive answers to our prayers. As Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said it in his last conference talk, "If we teach by the Spirit, and you listen to the Spirit, some one of us will touch on your circumstance." I know that to be true. There is a prophet on the earth today. His name is Thomas S. Monson, and he is a man called of God. He receives revelation for how we can be prepared for things to come, how we can be happy.

Here is a little snip-it of one of President Monson's previous conference addresses:

Isn't he awesome?! I encourage you all to take some time this weekend to listen to the words of a living prophet. For more information, visit this link: http://lds.org/church/events/all-members-invited-to-participate-in-october-general-conference?lang=eng

Lost?

So twice in the past two days, my companion and I have gotten lost. Surprise, surprise. I know, it happens more often than I'd like. I just love spending 45 minutes finding your destination. Not. I hate feeling that I don't know where I'm going, that I'm just driving in circles until something stops me. The farther I go, the more lost I get. And yes there are tools to help you find your way, like a GPS (which we don't have) or a map. But something that always helps me is saying a prayer. Praying for guidance and direction from my Heavenly Father, and we can find our way.

Sometimes we can get lost in life. We can lose our way along the path of righteousness. But we're never too lost.

Coldplay is one of my favorite bands. They have a song entitled, "Lost."

Just because I'm losing,

doesn't mean I'm lost.

Doesn't mean I'll stop.

Doesn't mean I would cross.

We may get lost and stray from the strait and narrow path at times in our lives. But it doesn't mean we are lost completely. It doesn't mean we should stop completely. There is a way back. We have tools to help us. We have maps. As we turn to the scriptures, and to the counsel that prophets and apostles have given us, they can help us find our way again. We also have prayer. Who better to ask for help than God Himself? He will lead and guide us to where we need to be through the Holy Ghost. 

artwork by Liz Lemon Swindle

Just because I'm hurting,

Doesn't mean I'm hurt.

Doesn't mean I didn't get

What I deserved.

No better, no worse.

Sometimes it hurts. And usually we deserve it, because it was our choice. But there is no pain that isn't covered by the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He can take the pain and the hurt away. He can find us, no matter how lost we may feel. "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6) We can feel better as we come back to the path of righteousness where we are supposed to be. That is where we can find true happiness. 

Need Repairs?

I get upset when something I love breaks. Like a phone or toy or my camera or what have you. Usually it's my own fault that something gets ruined. And when I finally realize that it is my fault, I am upset with myself. In most cases, I could've done something to prevent it from breaking. I could have and should have been more careful. I want to fix what I broke, to bring it back to the way it was. But that can't always happen. Sometimes, I just have to let it go and move on.

Life can be like that too. Have you ever felt like you were broken? Like you messed up and you broke yourself? Like nothing you did could fix you? That you just wanted to give up because there was no point to keep going? You want so bad to be "fixed." To be the way you used to be. To rewind so you can prevent yourself from breaking. I know I have felt like that. But I also know that I can be "fixed," I can be healed. It's through the Atonement of Jesus Christ that you can be put back together.

I mess up all the time. Sometimes, I mess up big time. And it hurts. It hurts knowing that I have disappointed my Heavenly Father. One of the things that hurts me or breaks me the most, is when I hurt other people. And it's because of me. It's because of my wrong choices. It's because of my selfishness. It's because of my lack of patience and my lack of humility. When I finally come to realize how much I hurt someone else, there's not much I can do to fix it at the time. So I pray. I pray for forgiveness. I plead for forgiveness. For forgiveness of my many sins, my many mistakes. From those who I have hurt and most importantly from my Father in Heaven. I pray to be healed. Because I hate feeling broken.

artwork by Simon Dewey

And because of the healing power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, I can and I do feel forgiveness. I can and will be fixed. And not only does it fix me, it changes me. I grow so much in the healing process that I don't want things the way they used to be, I don't want to rewind to prevent it from happening, because it has made me so much stronger. I am repaired into someone stronger, someone better (I hope).

Isaiah teaches us about Jesus Christ, "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5). As we apply the Atonement into our lives, as we repent, and we try to be better, we will be healed. It may take some time, but we will be fixed. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. I know that His Atonement is real. I know, because I have experienced it. And as you experience the miracle of the Atonement, you will know that it is real too.

Listen

Everyone wants their prayers answered. I know I do. The thing is, Heavenly Father does answer our prayers, we just have to be listening. We have to recognize our answer. We have to put ourselves in places where we can pay attention to what the Spirit is telling us.