For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.

When our faith and desires for healing align with the Lord’s plan and will for our lives, miracles occur!

I’ve known Ella Glover for decades. She dedicates her life to serving others professionally and personally. She’s the Relief Society president of our new ward in Lubbock. Anthony and I have prayerfully watched her journey since hearing she contracted COVID several months ago.

Her COVID battle just ended. Ella shared her story with the Relief Society sisters recently and agreed to let me share her story (in her own words, which I have italicized below) more broadly to testify that we serve a God of miracles who knows us and loves us as individuals and as a collective humanity. Miracles are available in every form — healing is one, comfort when grieving a loved one’s loss is another.

What miracles do you see in your life? What miracle would you like to see? I invite you to search for the thing or trait or blessing you need most today and ask the Lord to give you a miracle for what you need most.

Ella Glover’s Miraculous COVID Healing

Ella Glover

Thank you so much for all of your prayers and for your concern for me as I battled for my life after I was diagnosed with COVID–19. I wanted to share my rather miraculous story with you. The Lord does perform miracles; I am living proof. Here are my past three months in a nutshell.

On August 20, 2020, I was diagnosed with COVID-19. My doctor called me in a Z-Pak and told me to quarantine myself for 10 days. He also said, “If you can’t breathe, call 911.”

I had another appointment to see my doctor on September 1 (11 days after the positive test). I got up that morning and drove to see my doctor, but I did feel as if I were short of breath. The doctor tested me and saw that my oxygen level was very low. I was immediately taken by ambulance to the emergency room and admitted to the hospital. Within 24 hours, I was moved into the COVID ICU.

Receiving A Blessing In COVID ICU

During my stay, I was put on four different breathing machines. After several tests, the doctors realized that I had no antibodies against COVID. I also have underlying health problems that could complicate things. The major one is leukemia, which I have had for 17 years, fortunately with no issues. However, because of the leukemia, my body did not make antibodies. To solve that problem, I was given plasma with someone else’s antibodies, but it would take several days before the antibodies would start to work.

I texted my son and asked if someone could come and give me a blessing. I know that there are members of the Church working at Covenant Hospital, and since I was on a strict “No Visitors” floor, I thought perhaps a priesthood holder who worked at the hospital could come.

Imagine my surprise when, within a few hours, into my room walks my son, the charming firefighter, in uniform. He looked so worried and nervous, but he gave me a beautiful blessing. He said that I would have a complete recovery and that the doctors would be “astonished” with my progress. After he left, I wrote down the few things that I could remember that he had said.

For the next 14 days, I hung on to this blessing as I tried to do everything the doctors told me to do. I would cling to every text and word of encouragement that I received. I felt my Savior at my side and I felt every prayer that was said on my behalf. 

Finally, after 18 days in the ICU, I was able to go home. I had to take home oxygen with me. I was on it 24/7 and was instructed to wean myself off it.

Thirty-Day Checkup

Ella the day she got home from the hospital

Thirty days after coming home, I had a follow-up appointment with my lung doctor. I just knew he would be happy with the fact that my oxygen was down to 2.5%, I was doing my physical therapy and I was feeling so good.

Well, it turned out that he was not happy. We looked at my X-rays and he gave me a diagnosis: I would be on oxygen for 6 months to a year and the damage and scar tissue I had was going to be a lifelong problem.

I was very sad. He decided to put me on another round of high dose steroids for a month and told me to come back in two weeks. Again, I was not happy, but I do listen to doctors.

“My Savior Loves Me and He Knows My Name”

A few days before the two-week appointment, I was able to go most of the day without oxygen. The closer it came to the appointment, the longer I could go without oxygen — it was working.

Happy to be home

The morning of the appointment, I was hopeful that he was going to tell me something good. They did a chest X-ray, and within a few minutes, he walked into the room. His first words were, “You’re healed. Your oxygen level is perfect and your lungs are clear.”

I said, “What about the scar tissue?”

He replied, “It’s all gone. I am astonished.”

He actually said it twice. We talked for about 20 minutes as he told me about the previous day. He had hospital duty and five of his patients died.

He said, “We are at a loss on how to help COVID patients, so we just throw everything we have at it and hope it works. You have received two miracles, Mrs. Glover. I am just astonished at your recovery.”

I replied, “My Savior loves me and He knows my name. I have had hundreds of people praying for me, and I know that I have a lot of work to still do on this earth.”

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

New Calling

As the bishop and his counselor gave me the blessing, I recorded it. Afterward, my bishop mentioned he didn’t see that often. And I realized I needed to share with you why I do it. I have found that recording blessings — any and all — is one of the best tools for growth that I found in my life.

In any priesthood blessing, the Lord will give you gifts and blessings, along with counsel and suggestions to help you grow. In my family growing up, we always recorded blessings. My mom would sit there furiously writing as my dad gave the blessing, and we got to walk away with this heavenly gem of knowledge when it was over.

Blessings Rock!

In our family, I have continued the tradition my parents started. I am not as fast at writing as my Mom, so I record it on an app and type it up afterward. Honestly, I think all blessings should be recorded. It was in a healing blessing (for getting better during an illness) that the Lord told me that I needed to prepare for motherhood because we would get pregnant soon. It was in another blessing that I learned I would meet my husband while I was serving the Lord in one capacity or another. And it was in blessings that I have been given some of the greatest advice and comfort of my life.

Everyone is different. But after any blessing, I always like to think back and remember what was said. We seek God’s guidance and comfort in blessings. So why not record it for future reference? I have even started a binder for my son with each of his blessings typed up and saved in there. I have seen him read it and I know he is encouraged by the blessings the Lord pronounced on him.

Write It Down

I want to share a story about the power of referring to a blessing after the fact. When my son was given his baby blessing, the Lord told him that he would have many friends and that people would be drawn to him. It was a direct gift from our Heavenly Father to my tiny son. At the time, we didn’t know that he had high-functioning autism, and getting that diagnosis was scary and sad. But years later, that blessing has continued to comfort me.

My son has read that blessing and understands the Lord gave him a gift. But in the in-between years when he didn’t feel social, I wondered how the Lord would make that blessing happen. Now I see my son growing into that blessing. I see him reaching out to other kids at the park. He always finds a new friend nearly everywhere we go. People ARE drawn to him!

Refer Back to the Blessing Later

There have been adults who stopped and took my son under their wing when they witnessed his enthusiasm. I remember when he was four and LOVED to watch car washes, there was a manager who took the time to walk through the whole car wash when it was off and give my son a tour. It made his day!

Then there was the wonderful computer parts store associate who let my son explore the work room where they repair computers. He loved seeing the exposed computer parts and chatted knowledgeably with the man the whole time. Then there was the time when my son won over the hearts of the mechanics at our oil change place and they let him tour the bays below ground. He loved asking a million questions and they loved answering them. I’m witnessing my son’s blessing come true!

Watch It Come True

If I hadn’t recorded his blessing, we wouldn’t be able to see the miracles in his life nearly as easily. So I encourage you to do the same thing. Begin now and record the blessings the Lord gives you. Even when you are being blessed because you are sick, it’s a time that the Lord may have a golden nugget of heavenly insight.

To read more of Abby’s articles in her Living in Harmony column, click here.

I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who knows us and pays attention to our lives. I am grateful we have the chance to turn to Him for help and blessings when we need them. And I am grateful for the love He shows us as He answers our prayers and gives us the gifts to keep going that we need.

We live in an amazing time. The heavens are open and I marvel at the modern-day revelation that comes from our prophet every conference. Recording our personal blessings is like recording our own personal version of conference as we gain counsel and direction directly from heaven.

Abby Christianson

Abby is capable and caring. She is learning more about Autism and parenthood every day. Having completed training to be an RBT (Registered Behavior Technician) for ABA therapy she is beginning to understand her son. And even though she is the first to admit she makes a lot of mistakes, she is so grateful to be on this journey. She comes from a family with many autistic members. She invites us to join her, as she shares her adventures. She wishes to emphasize that Autism is a difference not a defect. If you or a family member have autism, Abby wants you to know that the challenges can be overcome, and there are blessings in autism. You or your loved one are not sick or broken. Together we will teach the world this new language.

Meeting My Husband

My husband and I met in a Young Single Adult (YSA) Ward. But what he didn’t know is that the Lord carefully crafted that day. To set the scene, I must give you a little back story. I had a terrible fear of commitment. I’d already witnessed my brother endure a terrible divorce, and the idea of marriage to the wrong person really scared me.

So, a year before I met my husband, I was being set apart for the Institute Council and the Lord surprised me by telling me that I was going to meet the man he had in mind for me in the next year. (I needed a full year to stop freaking out!) The Lord had also told me in my patriarchal blessing to take every chance for service because the greatest blessings would come to me through service.

Which leads me to the Sunday before Hubby and I met, when my friend called me up and asked me to cover her Sunday School class. She had to be out of town for something. It was the one and only time I ever taught in that ward — and it was the one Sunday Hubby decided to leave his regular ward and check out the local YSA Ward. We wouldn’t have met if I hadn’t been teaching.

Gaining a Testimony of Joseph Smith

A depiction of the First Vision

I still remember that the topic that day was about Joseph Smith. It was during preparation for that lesson that I gained a testimony that he was a prophet of God. I saw him in a different light and learned to truly love him. It was a wonderful spiritual experience and I felt closer to God than ever. After my lesson, three guys came up to me and asked me out. Hubby wasn’t one of them. And I’m glad, because I was SO mad at those guys for asking me out.

Here I had shone a light on the key figure in the Restoration, an event that changed the world. I had shared my heart to feed their souls. And all they could think of was a date?! Yes. I was mad!

Looking back, I was probably a little hard on them, because that’s the kind of girl I’d love for my son to find one day. But honestly, people, don’t ask her out right after the lesson! Hubby waited a week and I’m so glad he did. At that point, I was in a much better frame of mind to think of dating.

Infertility

Service brought another amazing gift into my life. My son was my miracle baby. Hubby and I had been married for about a year when we got pregnant with our first child. I miscarried at 10 weeks. That time was a major trial for me. We ended up having 3 miscarriages in all and we saw a specialist for several years. Eventually she told me that I needed IVF or I’d never get pregnant successfully. But I had a coworker who had done IVF unsuccessfully seven times. They had mortgaged everything they had with nothing to show for it.

I knew that if I went down the IVF path that I would be just like her. I knew that once I started, my determination could easily ruin our relationship and finances. I couldn’t be objective and I needed guidance before we went down that road, so we went to our bishop for a blessing.

Service

Our bishop was truly an inspired man of God. In the blessing, the Lord told me that I was a determined soul, so he would be very clear. He said God needed our  — and if we would serve Him, He would bless us with a baby. Two weeks later, Hubby was called to the branch presidency of the first Young Single Adult Branch in northeast Philadelphia. We were the same age as the members in the Susquehanna Branch and it was so fun to serve with them. I got to be the branch “big sister,” and if we’d had children at that time, we couldn’t have served in that branch since there was no primary.

We made such wonderful friends and had a blast, and I mentally put motherhood on the back burner. We had been serving almost two years when we found out we were expecting.

My Son

It was a high-risk pregnancy because of all the miscarriages I’d had, so I had to see my doctor right away. She was in shock. She kept saying “You did this all by yourself!” and I had to remind her I didn’t do anything. It was all the Lord.

Now, before I continue, I need to tell you that I didn’t know at the time that I had a blood clotting disorder that made my pregnancy very dangerous. In fact, it wasn’t until years later that I learned the hormones I had to have daily to maintain the pregnancy could have given me a fatal clot. All I knew at the time was that I felt terrible — so I got another blessing, and the Lord gave me another miracle.

The Lord was very generous in that blessing. He said He appreciated the sacrifice I was making and, since I couldn’t have medication because of the pregnancy, He would be my medicine during that time. He kept His word. Every time I felt sick, I would pray. Sometimes the symptoms were severe. But every time, I felt a warm wash of love and every pain and illness went away within moments.

Health

That time was a beautiful testimony builder that God is deeply involved with every baby born on this earth. There are no accidents with Him. I know we had to wait till it was Heavenly Father’s time for Carter to join us. But when it was time, He made it possible even though I found out years later that I had five separate conditions that should have kept me from motherhood. But nothing is impossible with God. And bringing Carter into our family, He handed me miracles by the fistful.

To read more of Patty’s articles, click here.

Testimony

Every major blessing in my life can be directly tied to service. I’m grateful for the example of faithful parents who taught me by example to serve and trust the Lord. I’m grateful that I get to be my son’s mom and Hubby’s wife. I can’t say I’m easy to live with. I have some chronic health issues. But I know that this life is a unique time in my eternity. I will never again in all eternity know what it’s like to struggle with infertility. I will never again know what it’s like to have fragile health. Both have opened the doors for the Lord to show me His miracles. Without my human weakness, I couldn’t have learned so much about God’s power and love. And it is always through service that God gives me His greatest blessings.

Patty Sampson

Patty thrives on all things creative. You’ll often find her in the garden pretending she is a suburban farmer. She loves meeting new people, and is devoted to her friends and family. In her heart she is a Midwesterner even though life has moved her all over the country. She believes in “blooming where you’re planted” and has found purpose in every place she has been. She has a deep and abiding love for the Savior and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And she loves editing LDS Blogs because it is a constant spiritual uplift. Not many people can say their job builds their witness of the Savior.

This analogy caused me to further reflect on my life as a single adult. Some may say that the moon of marriage is missing from my night sky. In fact, when I go home for visits or talk to my married friends, it seems that the missing moon is the first thing that everyone notices. What about all of the individual bright stars in my life that are good, beautiful, and noteworthy?

Many young single adults are much more accomplished then myself, and so their lists of individual stars will be much longer than mine. However, pondering this analogy, I discovered a list of good things in my life besides marriage. I offer that list to the world in an effort to show that our lives can be full and abundant even without marriage.

Single With a Strong Testimony of the Lord

The first shining star in my night sky is that the Lord has blessed me to develop a strong relationship with Him. In my life, I have meaningful prayer and communication with God. He responds to me as I study His words and the life of His Son in the scriptures. He has blessed me with a knowledge of who He is and, therefore, who I am and of my value regardless of any accomplishment in life! This star became exceptionally bright in my night sky while I served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Value of Family to a Single Woman

The next shiny star in my life is my family. My parents are amazing! They have taught me the value of hard work and sacrifice. I have the coolest brothers and sister out of anyone I know. They are all unique and different but they teach me a lot about life, and also about having fun. Recently I have been blessed with beautiful nephews who are so adorable and fill many moments of my life with joy and satisfaction.

The Value of Education to a Single Woman

As a graduate of Brigham Young University, I have been blessed with an excellent education! I studied a rigorous course of linguistics. My professors placed me at the feet of people like Chomsky, Labov, and other famous linguists. Most of all what I learned in my education was that I possessed the ability to learn. This skill has greatly blessed my life.

Because of my education, I have a good job and work with excellent people. I am blessed also with an internship that provides even greater meaning and purpose in my life. These two take the most of my time, but I am learning so much from them and I am surrounded by incredible people while I work. The coolest part is that I am starting to see talents and skills that I can develop to make my life even more full of meaning and purpose.

The Value of Friendships to a Single Woman

Yet another shining star in my night sky is my incredible group of friends! There are several different personality types, characteristics, and styles among my friends. They range in cultural background from Mexican and Mongolian, to Utahan and Pennsylvanian. They make me a better person and allow me the opportunity to grow and become something different. They teach me how to have fun in good, clean ways. They make it easier to live my standards and feel God’s love in my life. They make it easier to work hard.

These are just five of the bright stars in my night sky, and they may differ from yours, but notice that even without a giant moon, my night sky has a lot of things to fill it up and make it beautiful. It may sound silly, but I actually feel like I am enjoying a most abundant life, even if it is different then I may have previously imagined it to be! I invite everyone, no matter your marital status, to look around and notice not only the bright stars in your sky, but also the bright stars in the skies of people around you. Perhaps focus on what each person does have, rather than on the one thing that is missing!

This article was originally published in 2014. Minor edits have been made.

Ashley Dewey

Ashley Dewey is extremely talented at being single. Hobbies include awkward conversations with members of the opposite sex, repelling third dates, talking to boys about their girl problems and to girls about their boy problems. In her spare time she also has a very fulfilling school life, work life, and social life.

Besides being a professional single, Ashley is also a BYU graduate with a degree in linguistics (Aka word nerd). She enjoys studying other languages, particularly American Sign Language, and finds most all of them fascinating. She is currently pursuing a masters degree in Teaching English as a Second Language.

Ashley works most of the time and has often been accused of being a workaholic. Currently she works full time as a merchandiser and supervisor in a retail store, and part time doing social media work. On her day off she works (really it doesn’t feel like work) in the Provo LDS temple. The only kind of work she finds difficulty focusing on is house work.

Her favorite activities in her free time are reading, writing, creating social experiments, and spending time with great friends and family. Specific activities with those family and friends include: going to concerts, plays, dance recitals, BYU basketball and football games, and watching sports on television.

I often say in recollection “As a teenager, I spent my young life trying to find a way off the farm, and after I grew to adulthood, I have spent my life trying to find my way back.” I want to pass on to my posterity the joys and opportunities I was given as a child.

There were many benefits to farm life, and I want my family and children to have those advantages for themselves, as well. But even though things are much different now, fond memories from my experience being reared on the farm has come to bless my life nearly every day.

It’s more than great memories, though I have a plethora of those, like picking a large bowl of fresh strawberries every day for my breakfast or cutting dozens of watermelons in the field in half with a machete so we could eat the cool center. My dad used to say that we ate better than kings. Fresh eggs, whole milk, butter and vine-ripened fruits, vegetables, and berries were just the beginning. We had the good things of life in abundance.

I can only share a few examples from the two-dozen exquisite years I spent there. It was hard work, and we sacrificed greatly to make it a reality, but the benefits are very sweet. My mom used to teach us that the sugar in the corn begins turning into starch just 15-minutes after the corn is picked, so she would say “Get the water boiling before you pick the corn,” and we did.

It made a difference then, and the truths taught in that lesson bless my life still today. Dad taught the same principle with a different saying. As we would build the sheds, animal pens, fence lines, and our home together, on occasion, I would cut the 2×4 board too short for the place it was destined to fill. With a twinkle in his eye, he would say “Measure twice; cut once.”

We learned to do new things and developed talents we never knew we had, and I have applied that principle in many different situations today. It has blessed my life. My parents taught me then lessons even more important today as they have come to bless and help my family and posterity. This happens in the scriptures, as well. Lessons taught by prophets of years gone by help and encourage us to be sure that we make decisions today we can live with tomorrow.

But as good as the vine-ripened produce was, I think my favorite memories of the farm were being with family and working side-by-side with my father. My mother and siblings were part of this as well. I cherish those moments especially today. Some lessons were taught with words; many we imparted by example.

• Get started early.
• Hard work is often necessary.
• Be thrifty.
• Compassion, empathy, and service are paramount.
• Get along with others.
• Work can be fun.

What I didn’t understand about my experience growing up on the farm—at least at the time—was how this opportunity would influence my life years later and be re-lived in my memory frequently. Hardly a day goes by that some lesson or experience or principle learned on the farm as a child doesn’t reveal itself in my life and memory today. Loving parents still help me be the father I am today. Joy and the remarkable experience of our lives on the farm have come to bless me every day of my life now.

Sometimes our imagination conceives something so phenomenal we can only live it in our minds or experience a small portion of the whole—visions of a picture-perfect reality. At these times, we handle the situation by saying that it’s too good to be true or perhaps this really only happens in storybooks, and rightfully so. Because these situations occur so infrequently, the opportunity truly becomes one in a million.

That makes our story even more remarkable, because indeed we had the chance to experience every tantalizing, invigorating detail. Time can alter the way we perceive history. We magnify the good things and minimize the challenges. Indeed, life is full of opposites. But it is also true that on occasion we experience something so remarkable that we cannot justifiably put it into words—a beautiful song, a breathtaking sunset, a stunning instance that cannot be reproduced any better than the original. Is it possible that a lifetime can achieve that kind of solidarity? I didn’t think so then, but I do now.

To read more of Walter’s articles, click the picture.

President Dieter F Uchtdorf has said “We have the faithful promise of God that He will neither forget nor forsake those who incline their hearts to Him. Have hope and faith in that promise. Learn to love your Heavenly Father and become His disciple in word and in deed.

“Be assured that if you but hold on, believe in Him, and remain faithful in keeping the commandments, one day you will experience for yourself the promises revealed to the Apostle Paul: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

That is a beautiful promise. It captures for me the breadth of how our Heavenly Father wants to bless us. Whether you are in the country on the farm or deep in the city, the promise is real.

And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy…

1 Nephi 8:10-35

Walter Penning

In 1989, Walter Penning formed a consultancy based in Salt Lake City and empowered his clients by streamlining processes and building a loyal, lifetime customer base with great customer service. His true passion is found in his family. He says the best decision he ever made was to marry his sweetheart and have children. The wonderful family she has given him and her constant love, support, and patience amid life’s challenges is his panacea.

“Dad, thanks so much for getting us a bite-to-eat. Do you want us to Venmo you the money for dinner?”

First of all, my son and his family had picked me up from work, and we were driving up to see the lights at Temple Square. My pregnant daughter-in-law had given up her front seat for me and was sitting in back with my grandson. The least I could do was buy dinner for the lot of us to do my part. We were on our way to meet the others in the family for an evening of fun with grandma, my wife, children, and grandsons.

I did it because I wanted to help.

It was a delightful evening. Parking was typically packed for this time of year in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah but soon we were bustling along with the last-minute shoppers across the South Temple to see the lights. Holiday fun and cheer were evident everywhere. Surrounded by friends with our entire immediate family basking in the shining lights on the temple grounds, we made our way to the visitor’s center, the tabernacle, and across the entire block. 

The night air was brisk, and our gloves, hats, scarves, and coats kept us snug and cozy, but the warmth and happiness that filled our hearts exceeded the cold that nipped at our noses. The warmth of the Joseph Smith building was a welcome haven. Dozens of people stood together and celebrated the season. Lines of shoppers waited to donate to the impoverished with the Get/Give vending machines just to one side of the main welcoming area. Excitement and anticipation filled the air. Even then, a feeling of reverence and gratitude permeated the area as these folks came together to Light the World.

My favorite Christmas gifts given are those great memories that make us happy when you get to this point in your life. Do you believe that? If you are a parent you know what I mean. Instead of Christmas morning being about what lays wait for us under the Christmas tree, over the years I have come to realize the real heartwarming gifts are the people who surround the brilliantly-lit tree on Christmas morning.

Parents await screams of joy and wide-eyed rapture from children who receive and open their much-anticipated presents. Starry-eyed lovers await the special gifts they exchange with their loved one. Yet gifts are simply a token of the love and appreciation we have for each other. And our gratitude and happiness, their result.

If we who are imperfect, forgetful, and selfish know how to give good gifts, then our Father in Heaven who is perfect certainly knows how to and will give good gifts to them that love and follow him.

This time of year in particular we remember and reflect on the gifts we have been given and the blessed opportunity to share those gifts with our family and loved ones. Because of the first Christmas story, we have many reasons to praise God and celebrate the victory of this glorious day.

To read more of Walter’s articles, click the picture.

We do it because we want to. This of all days gives us reason to rejoice.

Yet the bounty of blessings given us, our happiness, families, abundance, and joy is but a glimpse of what is in store for us when we love and serve the Lord Jesus Christ.

Hallelujah!

9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

                                                                                                                                                     1 Corinthians 2:9

2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

                                                                                                                                                             John 14:2-3

How do you feel about this?

Does it change the way you respond to life events?

Ordinances and covenants are the building blocks we use to construct our lives on the foundation of Christ and his atonement.

Remember, remember that it shall be on the rock of Christ … if men build they cannot fall.

Walter Penning

In 1989, Walter Penning formed a consultancy based in Salt Lake City and empowered his clients by streamlining processes and building a loyal, lifetime customer base with great customer service. His true passion is found in his family. He says the best decision he ever made was to marry his sweetheart and have children. The wonderful family she has given him and her constant love, support, and patience amid life’s challenges is his panacea.

Not only was I half-asleep from a long Turkey Day weekend, but also I’m uncomfortable with the question. (My slumber was not the teacher’s fault.  If you haven’t noticed, in the spirit of tradition, Moms across the U.S. work their tail ends off for 5 days straight.  Well, that’s my excuse.)  I am uncomfortable admitting publicly how far afield my rebellious spirit might have led me unchecked by any deep religious belief.  And I can’t really define how deep that darkness goes.

However, the question that is begging to be asked is, “What COULD your life be like if you actually fully embraced the Book of Mormon NOW?”  Sure, your life is significantly different because you belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and you have a testimony of the truth of the Book of Mormon.  You may have even read it a couple times.  But if you believe that those small steps have significantly made your life better, what more is there if you were ready to receive more?

If you actually studied your scriptures every day, not just read them on your way to slumber, how much better would your life be one year from now?  10 years from now?  What if you chose a topic and studied it until you exhausted it?  And when you had exhausted a topic, what if you wrote a short talk or testimony about it for your journal?  If you completed one topic every two weeks, that would be 26 in-depth Gospel study topics you would have studied and gained a testimony of within a year.

(Because within that two week period, I’m confident that the Holy Ghost would take the opportunity to teach and enlighten your mind on the topic.)  There would be 26 new entries in your journal for your children and grandchildren to read in the years to come.  And in your journal or on your laptop, there would be 26 different topics for sacrament meeting talks or Sunday school lessons that you already have a head start on (I didn’t say you should tell your Bishop – that’s just inviting trouble).

Well, I can guess a couple of outcomes.  You’d be less likely to use profanity, and more likely to speak in formal English. Since you are filling your mind with good words, you are more likely to have phrases and thoughts from the scriptures weave themselves into your speech.  You would be more willing to teach or answer a question when called upon in church. Knowledge is light, and light wants to be shared.  

Your answers in conversations and in classes would be more conducive to the Spirit, and more on-topic.  You’d also be more likely to share your testimony and gospel principles with those around you, without hesitation and probably without even thinking about it.  If you are shy or hesitant about sharing the Gospel or teaching a class, you should be reading the Book of Mormon more.  (Based on that theory, if you want to your ward meetings to be more spiritual, YOU can start by increasing YOUR study of the Book of Mormon.)

To read more of Molly’s articles, click here.

I also know that reading the Book of Mormon teaches you about loving God’s children.  There are incredible stories of patience and tolerance and loyalty.  Ammon leaves his life of comfort to serve a king with opposing religious beliefs and gains the king’s respect in the process.   

Even as Moroni is watching his people die all around him due to a great war, he is still filled with hope. He has hope for our generation.  He saw us in vision, knew our challenges, and completed his task in the HOPE that we would fully embrace his words.

How much more could you have in your life, if you were ready to fully receive The Book of Mormon?

Molly A. Kerr

Molly is on a life long quest to figure herself out. Born to be and educated as an aerospace engineer she is also blessed to be a wife and a mom of two in the present, previously served as a full-time missionary, is consistently called to teach the youth in her ward, is eagerly though slowly doing home improvement as money and time allow, all while gradually learning how to be herself and find peace and balance somewhere in between.

Despite her attempts to make “the right” decisions in her life, she has learned to deal with some unexpected challenges over the last two decades. Total tornadoes, really. What she has discovered is that her career has taught her a lot about the Gospel and being a better mother, and the Gospel, when applied to challenges at the office, has made her a better professional. She has also learned that it is okay to be herself, and God still loves (and forgives) her for it.

Count your blessings; name them one by one,

Count your blessings; see what God has done.

Count your blessings; name them one by one,

Count your many blessings; see what God has done.

While singing this chorus in Sacrament Meeting, my six year old nephew Brady leaned over to his dad and said, “I’m going to name mine Bob.”

When I heard the story I couldn’t stop laughing. It was so perfect. I could imagine his face about to deliver one of his all time greatest lines. “I’m going to name mine Bob.” Forever a family classic.

When my laughter finally subsided, I considered what he’d taught me. At the very least, he’d followed the song’s directive and named his blessings!

When I think about naming blessings, I think of ticking off items on some list or spreadsheet numbered down the side—the Savior and Atonement, my husband, my dog, Tex-Mex, life, et cetera. The more things I add to the list, the more self-satisfied I feel like I’ve hit an appropriate gratitude quotient or something. Listing XX items makes me YY grateful.

Now Thank We All Our God

One of the coordinating scriptures attached to “Count Your Blessings” in the LDS hymnal is Doctrine and Covenants 78:17-19. After a brief reading, I knew my gratitude list was a gross understatement.

“[Ye] are little children, and ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father hath in His own hands and prepared for you; And ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along. The kingdom is yours and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours.

 

And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.”

I get that I am seriously ignorant of Heavenly Father’s works and glory. Even in my most worshipful adoration, I can’t even grasp the enormity of Him.

It seems like the simplest commandment holds layer upon layer of instruction and knowledge. If God expects thankfulness from me, then He’s shown me the way.

To expand my mind’s eye, I checked out synonyms for thankfulness on thesaurus.com. Of course, gratitude is the obvious synonym. Reading the list of synonyms brought new thoughts. Here’s a few: awareness, perception, realization, knowledge, comprehension, responsiveness.

I felt so enthralled with synonyms I’d never really correlated specifically with thankfulness that I reviewed the antonyms: apathy, criticism, disapproval, disbelief, disdain, dishonor, disregard, disrespect, hate, ignorance, indifference, insensitivity, misinterpretation, misunderstanding.

A story sprang to mind. I suddenly saw Joseph as Pharaoh’s right-hand man in front of his 10 brothers. He knew them immediately. They did not see him – ie no awareness, perception, realization, knowledge, comprehension, or responsiveness. They talked with him (albeit through an interpreter) and bartered with him. They ate with him—according to their ages. And still, they did not see him. Why?

To them, he was dead. And despite the dreams that angered them, they couldn’t comprehend that Joseph would be a ruler over them. And so even if he seemed familiar—wouldn’t he have seemed familiar?!–they blinded themselves to the possibility. Maybe they were so beaten and battered with hunger and stress they couldn’t see beyond that basic need. Regardless, they didn’t see and therefore couldn’t truly be thankful.

Father, Thy Children to Thee Now Raise

So is thankfulness actually a commandment to know God completely?

During Moses’ call as a prophet, the Lord told Moses He would show him one thing. One thing!

“And now, behold, this one thing I show unto thee, Moses, my son, for thou art in the world, and now I show it unto thee. And it came to pass that Moses looked, and beheld the world upon which he was created; and Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered.

And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that His glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth.

And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.”

Suddenly, Moses  was aware, perceived, realized, comprehended, and responded to knowledge. He kept that awareness at the forefront of his mind as he recognized the lack of glory in Satan and as he returned to Egypt for the children of Israel. He stood before an earthly king in holy thankfulness to his heavenly King!

Thankfulness changed Moses forever. No more fleeing alone timeinto the desert. This newly uncovered Moses commanded plagues, opened the sea, and shepherded people without the same degree of thankfulness for 40 years.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Nephi sought awareness, perception, realization, knowledge, and comprehension after hearing his dad’s vision of the Tree of Life.

“And it came to pass after I, Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision, and also the things which he spake by the power of the Holy Ghost, which power he received by faith on the Son of God—and the Son of God was the Messiah who should come—I, Nephi was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek Him.”

He came to know God! After this, Nephi withstood a pole lashing, attempted murders, and the overall unthankfulness of his brothers (apathy, criticism, disapproval, disbelief, disdain, dishonor, disregard, disrespect, hate, ignorance, indifference, insensitivity, misinterpretation, misunderstanding.) He built a ship he’d never seen before. He led his followers to safety where they built a city and a temple.

My thoughts flowed to Nephi’s beautiful, real, emotional psalm in 2 Nephi 4. And in this context, I’m blown away by the way he counts his blessings, naming them one by one. Nephi truly sees what the Lord has done.

This isn’t all of it, but it’s still lengthy. Each word resonated on my heart and made my egotistically numbered gratitude list completely irrelevant.

“My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep. He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh. He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing of them to quake before me.

Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time. And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me. And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should not write them.

Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul. … Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.

O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?

O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! …

O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.

Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen.”

How Great Thou Art

After describing His glory, characteristics, and being in Doctrine and Covenants 93, the Lord simply said, “I give unto you these sayings that you may understand and know how to worship, and know what you worship, that you may come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of His fullness.”

And that sentence, my friends, is now my new definition of thankfulness. It addresses everything–awareness, perception, realization, knowledge, comprehension, responsiveness.

Count your blessings; name them one by one.

Count your many blessings—see what God has planned for you!!

Then, God willing, we will join the throng to sing the new song of thanksgiving–

“[All] shall know Me, who remain…and shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and shall see eye to eye, and shall life up their voice, and with the voice together sing this new song, saying:

The Lord hath brought again Zion; The Lord hath redeemed his people, Israel, According to the election of grace, Which was brought to pass by the faith And covenant of their fathers.

The Lord hath redeemed his people; And Satan is bound and time is no longer.The Lord hath gathered all things in one. The Lord hath brought down Zion from above. The Lord hath brought up Zion from beneath.

To read more of Delisa’s articles, click here.

The earth hath travailed and brought forth her strength; And truth is established in her bowels; And the heavens have smiled upon her; And she is clothed with the glory of her God; For he stands in the midst of his people.

Glory, and honor, and power, and might, Be ascribed to our God; for he is full of mercy, Justice, grace and truth, and peace, Forever and ever, Amen.”

Come! Ye thankful people, come!

Delisa Hargrove

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have moved 64 times and have not tired of experiencing this beautiful earth! I love the people, languages, histories/anthropologies, & especially religious cultures of the world. My life long passion is the study & searching out of religious symbolism, specifically related to ancient & modern temples. My husband Anthony and I love our bulldog Stig, adventures, traveling, movies, motorcycling, and time with friends and family.

True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not. — Seneca

I love the Thanksgiving holiday. People really do seem to sit back and take stock of their blessings. Wouldn’t it be nice if we did that every day of the year? It is perfect irony that the day after Thanksgiving is Black Friday. Thursday we count our blessings and tell each other how satisfied we are with our lives, then on Friday we go out on a mass expedition to spend money we don’t have on things that don’t matter. Have you ever thought about that? Bizarre!

I’m very blessed. I have a husband who adores me—though I’ve never been able to figure out why. My children and their spouses are good people who have given me precious grandchildren. Recently, I became a great-granny for the first time. I write my articles ahead of their publication date, so today is actually August 26th. I am expecting a new granddaughter just about the time this article will be published. Who knows? Maybe we will even have a Thanksgiving baby! As you read this, it’s possible I’m sitting in a hospital room holding her for the first time. Life is truly good.

There are a lot of “have nots,” but that’s okay. I’d love to travel, but I can travel through the eyes of my sister and good friends. I don’t own a lot of fancy technology, but I do just fine. I wash dishes by hand, and there are gouges in the linoleum floor in the kitchen. There are some minor repairs that need to be made at home, but they will have to wait until a better time financially. None of those things are important, and I am content with life as it is.

As we transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas, I hope we can all keep that feeling of gratitude in our hearts. Maybe we can focus on the gratitude we have for Jesus Christ. Hopefully, we will be thinking about our families and showing our gratitude for them.

I’m not the Grinch, and I don’t want to steal anyone’s Christmas buying fun here. I will also be making purchases for my loved ones. However, they will be modest purchases. There will be some handmade gifts that I made last January and have stored all year. These items were made with love. I know not everyone has the time, nor the inclination to make handmade gifts. This is something that I personally really enjoy. It is much more pleasurable for me to give a gift that I’ve made with my own hands as an expression of my love.

I also love receiving gifts of love. A couple of years ago, some family members taught their children a couple of hymns to sing to my husband and me for Christmas. That was a lovely gift. It was gift from the heart.

Thanksgiving and Christmas should both stir our hearts to remembrance for the important things—none of which can be found in a department store at the mall. I hope as we remember our blessings that we thank our Heavenly Father for them. Sometimes our prayers end up being a long list of problems we need solved or “have nots” that we want fulfilled. Just as we want to be appreciated for the time we spend fulfilling the sugar plum dreams of our children, our Heavenly Father wants to be appreciated for the blessings he showers upon us.

You pray in your distress and in your need; would that you might pray also in the fullness of your joy and in your days of abundance. — Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

I opened this article with a Seneca quote. Remember he said, “The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach.” Thinking about the greatest blessings being within us, maybe that means that the greatest blessings are when we serve others. Since most of us can’t go to a third world country to give service, we can serve those who are within our reach. We need not even stray far from our own family circle.

Serving others is truly a great blessing. Think about the last Christmas purchase you made, and then think about the last act of service you gave. Which was the greater blessing? The greatest blessings in our own lives are usually those blessings we are helping God bestow on others.

To read more of Tudie’s articles, click here.

Be content with your lot. Count your blessings. Show gratitude to your Heavenly Father for all that you have. Help God bestow blessings on those within your reach. Let both Thanksgiving and Christmas be a time of gratitude. Maybe it will become such a habit after a month that we will all have gratitude in our hearts all year.

Tudie Rose

Tudie Rose is a mother of four and grandmother of ten in Sacramento, California. You can find her on Twitter as @TudieRose. She blogs as Tudie Rose at http://potrackrose.wordpress.com. She has written articles for Familius. You will find a Tudie Rose essay in Lessons from My Parents, Michele Robbins, Familius 2013, at http://www.familius.com/lessons-from-my-parents.

What if I desired the blessing of an eternal family? What would I do differently today if I already had that family? What would change in my beliefs and behaviors? For me it came down to simple things. If I were a wife and a mother today I would spend some time cleaning and organizing.  I would try to do simple acts of service within my home. I would pray for each member of my family by name.

I don’t live with members of my family currently, but I spent time cleaning the kitchen floor. I tried to scrape the windows of my roommates cars in the morning before work. I started to pray individually for members of my family across the world. I started to pray more specifically for my roommates and friends.

I desire to live a healthy and fit lifestyle and have control over what I eat. So if this blessing were already granted I would have a working knowledge of the word of wisdom. I would have an exercise and eating plan. I would decide ahead of time what I would and would not eat. Then I would choose to do.

This is perhaps my favorite area of focus right now, because I have been seeing results, but I can always be better. I started by drinking a gallon of water each day. I determined that I would buy a different variety of green vegetables and learn new ways to prepare some varieties of squash. For cheat meals I decided to cheat less and eat foods that make my body feel better.

I desire to be blessed with a knowledge of the counsel of the living prophets at all times. If I already had that how did I get it? I would spend time studying, ponderizing, and praying for understanding of their words. When I learned something I might share it with a friend to help it stick.

Every morning while getting ready for the day I turned on general conference to listen to the messages that were most recently arriving. I chose just one phrase each morning to think about through the day. I would pray for an opportunity to share what I had learned. It wasn’t often in the way that I would have thought, but I was blessed to share and apply those phrases.

The Single Life.
To read more of Ashley’s articles, click here.

Throughout the process it became clear to me that in every instance as I chose to live as though my blessing was granted I was choosing to be happy. It made me wonder why I ever choose to accept less than the Lord wants me to receive. It also helped me understand that in small ways I already do have the blessings I desire. I just have to open my eyes to recognize them.

Will you do it with me starting today? Find one area of your life that you want to feel better about. Then start living as though God has already made it better. Share what your results are, and let’s all focus on how much we truly have to be thankful for.

Ashley Dewey

Ashley Dewey is extremely talented at being single. Hobbies include awkward conversations with members of the opposite sex, repelling third dates, talking to boys about their girl problems and to girls about their boy problems. In her spare time she also has a very fulfilling school life, work life, and social life.

Besides being a professional single, Ashley is also a BYU graduate with a degree in linguistics (Aka word nerd). She enjoys studying other languages, particularly American Sign Language, and finds most all of them fascinating. She is currently pursuing a masters degree in Teaching English as a Second Language.

Ashley works most of the time and has often been accused of being a workaholic. Currently she works full time as a merchandiser and supervisor in a retail store, and part time doing social media work. On her day off she works (really it doesn’t feel like work) in the Provo LDS temple. The only kind of work she finds difficulty focusing on is house work.

Her favorite activities in her free time are reading, writing, creating social experiments, and spending time with great friends and family. Specific activities with those family and friends include: going to concerts, plays, dance recitals, BYU basketball and football games, and watching sports on television.