A Tribute to the New Year

Happy New Year!!! Well almost. The new year is always such an exciting time. Everyone is remembering what they liked about 2010.  They are also remembering the things that they didnt do and things they should have done better. People are making promises of how they can have a better year. It is a time of renewal and recommitment. 2011 will be different. During this holiday we all think of what we want to change in ourselves. We become reborn as we welcome in the new year. Many make promises with themselves to do better next year. Whatever your thoughts might be, Happy New Year.

Merry Christmas

I love Christmas. I love Christmas carols and Christmas caramels. I love Christmas trees and Christmas lights. I love Christmas dinner and Christmas presents. I especially love the Christmas spirit. The spirit of giving and love. It is a time to remember our brothers and sisters. It is a time of service. We express our love for those around around us. I love this season. Mostly, I love the true meaning of Christmas.

God Be With You Til We Meet Again

Goodbyes are hard. It is difficult to leave those we love. As a missionary we are constantly moving. We go from area to area as the Lord directs. In each area we come to love those we serve. We would do anything for them. Then we get shipped off to another place to serve other of Gods children. It is hard leaving what you worked so hard to gain. However, we take faith knowing that God is with those we love when we cannot be there for them.

The main goal as a missionary is to see those we serve again in the life after this. That is why we invite people to be baptized. Baptism opens the gate. We cannot inherit the Kingdom of God except we are baptized and we recieve the Holy Ghost. (John 3:5) It is so important that we share this message with everyone so those we love have the oportunity to follow Jesus Christ in this life. We can become an important part in inviting others to enter in this gate to join the ranks in Gods kingdom. 

How joyful an event this will be when we all sit in Gods kingdom together rejoicing in the victory over sin. Can you just imagine singing praises to our Savior Jesus Christ for the sacrifice he made. Oh how great shall be our joy. To everyone I left in Crescent City may God be with you til we meet again. I look forward to that day of bliss when all shall know Jesus Christ. I know we will see one another in Gods kingdom and we will have eternal life. "Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of him who created all things, in heaven and in earth, who is God above all. Amen." (Mosiah 5:15)
 We all must endure faithfully to the end so we can return to live with our Father. I hope we all do our best to help others come unto Christ so we can all inherit His kingdom. May we be united in this cause to build Gods kingdom is my prayer.

Let It Snow

My companion saw snow for the first time today! He is from Fiji so for his whole life he has only seen rain and sunshine. Never before has he seen snow. He has never made a snowman or a snow angel. He has never went skiing or snowboarding. He has never been sledding. He has missed out completely on the experience of snow.

Mary Did You Know?

There is nothing quite like the Chrismas season. It is a jolly time of the year. The Spirit that is in the air is so contagious. I especially love the music that comes at Christmas time. Yesterday I was debating on what songs were my favorite. I narrowed it down to these three:

And The Blanket Comes Down

Last night we got to baptize a wonderful daughter of God. Her name was Dina Caruso. She is my hero. As I reflect on our lessons with her it brings tears to my eyes. I also laugh at all the fun we have had teaching her. She is so honest and she was really looking for God. She asked the best questions and we had some very spiritual experiences with her. God was with us in our lessons.

Take Care Of Your Dirty Clothes

Raise your hand if you enjoy doing laundry! Maybe you're like me who just stares at the pile of dirty clothes and loaths taking it to the laundry mat. It is moments like these where I appreciate my mother. I cant believe she did Laundry for my family of six for all of these years. What an amazing women. Laundry reminds me of how much my mother loves me and how much she has sacrificed for me. For this reason I love laundry because it reminds me of how much I love MOM.

No Dessert Until You Finish Your Dinner

How many of you enjoyed eating vegetables when you were a kid? How many of your kids enjoy eating vegetables? I dont know why but I to this day remember distinctly not liking broccili. I just refused to eat it. I wasnt too fond of eating the others either. It just didnt taste good. Mothers everywhere have to deal with this problem. Why do you torture your kids by forcing them to eat their greens?

Gluten Free Is The Way To Be

How would you feel if someone came up to you and told you that you can't eat cookies, cake, pasta, or bread anymore? You are forbidden to eat any of them for the rest of your life. Well that is what happened to me. The world of baked goods was from then on off limits to me.

Repenting Is Like Skateboarding

Skateboarders are crazy. Lets face it they have a lot of guts, or they are just plain stupid. I asked someone we teach today how long it takes him to master a trick. He said a week atleast, it depends on the trick. Then I asked him how many times he crashes and burns while he is practicing. Too many times. A couple of scrapped elbows and broken wrists don't scare these kids though. Only a rainy day will stop them from hitting the parks and rails. It is a way of life. It is worth it when you hit that kickflip or stick a grind. The bumps and bruises get farther in between. You just gotta stick to it. Stopping because the board slipped on the rail is no excuse. If you have your mind fixed on landing the trick nothing will prevent you from succeeding.

Life is a lot like skateboarding. We all have to have alot of guts to make right choices, or we are just plain stupid. The world is always trying to drag us behind. Satan really doesnt want us to be happy. He will do everything he can to prevent us from returning to live with our Heavenly Father. It takes us a while to make righteous choices. Following the Savior isnt easy but it is worth it. The way is very simple, we just have to have the faith the take those first steps.

Our Savior commanded us to be perfect (Matthew 5:48). Has anyone took a look around lately? How many perfect people do you see running around? We must be crazy for trying to be like Jesus who was absolutely perfect. Just like skateboarding we all crash and burn. We all make mistakes. We all commit sin and "fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). That doesnt stop us though. We are going to nail that trick. We are going to be like Christ. We just got to stick to it. We repent when we hop back on that skateboard and go at it again. It doesnt matter how many times we fall  we can always get back on the board. Each time we repent we learn something new and we become more like our Savior. The more we repent the farther there is between the bumps and bruises. Soon we master the trick and then we go onto a new aspect of life. There is always new tricks to be learned and new trials to face. If we truly want to be like our Savior we must be like the true boarders. We must fight through the broken bones. We must always be trying to learn new tricks. We enjoy the ride but we are never satisfied. We recognize we can always improve. We can always repent.

It is never to late to try skateboarding. I invite you all to hop on the board and get shredding. It is time to follow Jesus Christ. "And the Father said: Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son" (2 Nephi 31: 11). Just do it. Have the guts to give it a try. Dont be scared of a few broken bones and failed attempts because "This is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God" (2Nephi 31:21)