A Day Like Today

This is a day of significant meaning in our family.  Brady turned twelve and that is a milestone that we will remember for the rest of his life.
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a boy can receive the Priesthood.  The Priesthood is something very special--it is the authority to act in the name of our Father in Heaven.
I am so grateful for the kind of young man Brady is and the way he chooses to live his life.
On Saturday he will receive the Priesthood and be ordained a deacon.  With that responsibility comes opportunity to serve others and to thereby serve his God.
I want him to know that I love him and I am grateful for who he is.  He has looked forward to this day with great anticipation.
Happy Birthday and may our Heavenly Father continue to bless you abundantly.  I love you!

I'm Feel Thankful For Modern Blessings

I need to reflect for just a few minutes on the things that we so commonly overlook and focus on the importance they are in our lives.
It is beginning to get quite chilly in the evenings here in Utah.  I am thankful for our home that blesses us with shelter and warmth from the cold.  We have comfortable beds with thick blankets and soft pillows.  Whenever we need to go somewhere we are able to climb in one of our cars and drive to our destination.  How convenient!  There is delicious food placed before us and we consider ourselves richly blessed.
Our love spreads from one person to another in our family.  We feel the security in our family that love provides.  We are devout in our love and we do the things that uplift and edify each other.
Our faith is our life.  We have promised to serve our Father in Heaven and to take care of His children through our selfless acts of love.  We will do all that is required to do His will.
We live in a beautiful time in the existence of this earth.  Times are exciting and there is a lot to learn.
We are continually blessed with goodness.  It is a wonderful life!

Hands That Help Lift The Heart of Another

We live in a time when natural disasters seem to be a common occurrence.  A large hurricane swept through many parts of the east coast of the U.S.--Hurricane Sandy was her name.  As you can imagine it it wrecked many homes, businesses, and many lives.  The thing that I love about these types of happenings is the rendering of service that follows. 





These two young missionaries get to experience first-hand what it's like to offer Christ-like service.

For decades missionary work in the area has been slow, but at the end of their first day of service, when the missionaries gathered for a group picture, they were greeted with cheers from those they helped.
“It is softening hearts, and regardless of what you read in the press, these New Yorkers are resilient and are keeping their humor,” President Calderwood said. “The Lord has a way of turning calamities into His favor.”  (lds.org)

Although our opportunities to serve may not be to this extreme we have daily opportunities in our own communities to help lift the hands that hang low and the hearts that know devastation in one form or another.

In the Church of Jesus Christ there is a well-known scripture that defines the role of a missionary.  I believe that this scripture applies perfectly to our service.

"Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men.

Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day.

Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work;

For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul;

And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.

Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.

Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Amen." (Doctrine and Covenants 4)

 

There To Love And To Nurture

I went to 7-Eleven to purchase a couple of loaves of bread that our family really likes.  When I went to pay for the bread the cashier was on her telephone and I could hear that her call was a difficult one.  As I sat the two loaves of bread onto the counter she said, "I love you" and then hung up the phone.  She had tears in her eyes and I asked her how her day was going.  She wiped the tears from one eye and then the other.  She told me that her grandson was terribly ill but that nobody was at home to really take care of him.  She said that she had to work and that she hoped he would be okay.  I hurt for her and hoped that her situation would be okay.
One of the many things I am grateful for is that Becky is a nurturing mother who loves on our kids, openly, and they love it.  She has always cared about showing me affection no matter where we are.  I have always appreciated her nurturing and kind nature.
It brings me great joy to have a mother who nurtured me and my siblings and took care of the needs that we had.  My father has always fulfilled his important role in our home and allowed our mom to be the nurturing type of mom that we needed.  Becky will always be considered blessed by our children. 
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't give thanks for my cherished life.

Safety In The Truth

From as far back as I can remember I have heard and been taught that to tell the truth is always the better way.  That truth was first taught to me within the walls of our own home.
Please allow me to speak about some feelings I have received lately in my heart with regards to honesty.
I stood in a grocery store line where the customer in front of me had unloaded all of their groceries up on the conveyor belt to be checked by the cashier.  The cashier asked if there was anything on the bottom of the cart (as a friendly reminder if a customer had put something under the cart).  I could see that there was a case of water bottles on the shelf on the bottom of the cart.  The customer quickly answered with a "no".  The bottles were not visible to the cashier so she just proceeded to check out the other grocery items.  I stood there wondering why the customer had not told the truth.  I finally reached over and tapped the customer on the shoulder.  I pointed to the water bottles and this person gave me a glare.  Then  they reached down and grabbed the case of water bottles. 
This may not sound like a big deal to some but I believe that our responsibility is to be honest--all of the time!
This is one of those principles that teaches a long-term lesson.  I am thankful for parents who taught me to tell the truth.  It continues to bless my life for good.

Polished And Clean

In the aircraft building business I drill a lot of holes through aluminum parts and then use various fasteners to assemble those parts to mating parts that feed into different sub-assemblies of the aircraft.  It is important that the holes that I drill are straight but even more important than that is after the hole is drilled it must then be cleaned up so that no sharp burrs are left on the edge of the hole.  The two main reasons for that are to give the fastener that is installed the maximum life of it's designed strength and also to eliminate the possibility of corrosion.
Life is much the same.
When I was a teenager my parents spoke repeatedly about the importance of keeping ourselves well-kept.  I have always liked to be clean but I didn't fully understand the impact their teaching would have on me.
We are much like the holes that I drill in the parts of an aircraft.  Every day there are natural 'burrs' that have the potential of corroding our lives.  We need to take the time to break the edges of our personalities so that the 'fasteners' that keep us all together will have longevity and endure their designed life.
Look around and observe those people who do this very well.  Mimic what they do and put into practice those things that will be of greatest benefit.
Who would've ever thought that the act of drilling holes into aluminum aircraft parts would have the impact they have had today.  It is proof that no matter how old and experienced you are, there are always plenty of worthwhile lessons to learn.

There Are Times

When I awakened this morning I was grateful that the night was over and a new day was about to begin.  My night was filled with strange dreams and my body really didn't seem to be able to rest.  Just like my dreams of the night, life seems to parallel that.  Have you ever felt like the happenings of life are going to smother you?
A elderly man and woman were strolling along the parking lot of a local grocery store.  They caught my attention immediately and I watched them for several minutes.  Theirs was a life restricted by a wheelchair--for both of them.  They rolled along side by side in their motorized wheelchairs, one hand on the joystick control the other hand holding each other.  I couldn't help but smile at their outlook on life.
I visited with a man at work that is on another team than I.  I hardly know him but we were in a meeting together.  He spoke of the difficulties of life that he is currently faced with and the struggle that it is to muddle through.  I agreed with him but my first thought was that before our conversation concluded, I would offer him a thread of hope that would help him get over the undulation of his own life.  He talked about our spouses and then naturally that led to our children.  We spoke of the things there are to learn and what the best ways are to go about different situations.  None of us have all the answers but we have lived through many experiences and through those we have gained some valuable insight.
I am constantly amazed at all of the various struggles that weigh people down.  Many of those are just life.  I can't stress enough the importance of holding our heads up high and striving daily to see the good in every situation--because it is there!  It may be hard to see but we need to make a special effort to look closely and find the very best.
It's all worth it.  The whole journey is extremely important.