Life After Life

My sister called me today and we began to talk about the mother and her two children that were killed over the weekend from crashing into a river. My sister knew the family and she shed some details about the story that made it even more heart breaking.

Here is a copy of the story from the Deseret News

EAGLE MOUNTAIN — Thomas Powell wasn't sure how to break the news to his 7-year-old son that the boy's mother and two younger brothers won't be home when he's released from the hospital.

"I haven't told him," he said Sunday afternoon. "I don't know how to tell him."

Since Wednesday night, Anthony Powell has been at University Hospital's burn center, recovering from third-degree burns to his right foot. The boy had been playing with a lighter at the family's Eagle Mountain home, and his pant leg caught fire.

KSL-TV

In this family photo, Thomas Powell poses with his wife, Inndia, and their three sons, Ashton, 1, Anthony, 7, and Alexander, 3.

Thomas Powell was at the burn center with Anthony on Saturday afternoon when a Utah Highway Patrol trooper broke the news to him that his wife, Inndia, and their other two boys, 3-year-old Alexander and 1-year-old Ashton, were killed in an auto accident.

"She was a great mother, a hard worker and a good friend," Thomas Powell said from his home in Eagle Mountain. "She was my best friend. She was loved by everybody. Everybody who knew her loved her."

Inndia Cherie Powell, 26, was on her way to visit a friend in Evanston, Wyo., when the Dodge Caravan she was driving slid off a slick, snow-covered freeway and into a river. The woman was caught in a snowstorm, with limited visibility, police said.

Inndia Powell was traveling east on I-80 about 10 miles northeast of Coalville about 2:30 p.m. when she lost control of the minivan. The vehicle slid off the east side of the freeway, hit a fence, rolled down an embankment and ended up upside-down in the river.

Police said the tread on the minivan's rear tires was worn, and that contributed to the accident. Inndia Powell and the two boys all were wearing safety restraints.

Alexander and Ashton were flown to a Wyoming hospital but were not able to be resuscitated.

The boys, their father said, "liked to be rowdy and wrestle." Alexander was a fan of Star Wars and Transformers, and both he and Ashton loved trucks and airplanes.

Thomas and Inndia Powell would have been married eight years on New Year's Day. The couple hugged and kissed for the final time Saturday morning at the burn center. Inndia had planned to return to the hospital Saturday evening and spend the night with Anthony.

Thomas Powell said Anthony got out of bed late Wednesday night when he couldn't sleep and had gone downstairs to eat some of his Halloween candy. Alexander later joined his older brother, who had found a barbecue igniter and was burning candy wrappers.

At some point, Anthony's pants caught on fire, Thomas Powell said. The fire spread up the boy's right pant leg and to his shirt, though he was only injured on his right foot.

"Alex … ran upstairs and told Inndia, 'Anthony's on fire.' She sprang out of bed, came (downstairs) and found him just sitting here burning," he said.

Anthony is recovering from a skin-graft surgery and is expected to be released from the hospital this week, by Wednesday at the latest, Thomas Powell said. The boy will have to undergo physical therapy and relearn how to walk.

And together, father and son will have to learn to adjust to life without Inndia, Alexander and Ashton. But they won't have to do it alone.

"We have a lot of support in our family," Thomas Powell said. Friends and neighbors also have been very supportive, he said.

People can donate to the Inndia Powell Famly Memorial at any America First Credit Union.

When my sister talked about this story with me, she said, "Lindsey this is why I called you today. I felt that I really needed to tell you this." The hairs on my arm stood up. I also felt that what she was about to tell me , I needed to hear and that I needed to write about it on my blog.

My sister has been reading a book called The Message by Lance Richardson. We love books about Near Death Experiences and I own so many. Earlier this year a friend had messaged me on facebook and told me to read the book The Message by Lance Richardson. I was very excited to do so, and then from the busyness of life, put it out of mind. After talking with my sister today, I again feel the need to get that book and read it. I don't think anything is ever a coincidence in this life. Someone wants me to read this book.

My sister and I began to talk about families and the after life. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I know the importance of families and the role they play in the plan of salvation. I know why we are here at this time and what our purpose is. I know where we are going after we die and the plan laid out before us when that time comes. What I love about NDE books is that they confirm this knowledge that I already have. It's so divine to hear about real experiences from the other side that confirm what I already know to be true. In addition to that, they add a little extra food for thought. Pleasant and exciting aspects about the afterlife that we just can't comprehend with our mortal minds, yet they are so intriguing that they somehow make complete sense.

In the book The Message (I am going to read this book and share more later), Lance Richardson experiences several out of body experiences while in a medical induced coma for three weeks. During this time he learns many things about his mission on Earth and the greater picture in the grand scheme of things. One of the truths that he learns is that we agree and are apart of the decision making process of when our life will come to an end on this earth before we are ever born. We see the trails and challenges that wait for us in our earthly life before we even experience them. We plan with our families how we will help each other so that we can make it through those challenges and make it back to each other on the other side. Whether we help each other together here in mortality or we pass on and help from the other side, it is all a part of a great plan that we agreed to before we came here. We understood then what we can't understand now. It just doesn't make sense now to think that a mother would choose to leave her family here on Earth under such circumstances. However we just don't know what trials lie ahead for her husband and son. Maybe she and her other children are going to be a part of a great mission to help her family on Earth through what lies ahead. What love would fill my heart to know that my loved ones loved me enough to choose to leave this life before me so that they could better help me make it back to them. It's a selfless act and very Christlike indeed.

It is comforting for me to know that families are forever. It is not by chance that we end up as families on earth. Whether through adoption, or being married in, we were divinely selected and agreed to be family units here on this earth. Our ancestors whom we have never met, our best friends, neighbors, and distant cousins are all meant to be a part of our life in one way or another for special reasons. It is all a part of a greater design that we cannot fully comprehend. If we understood it all, we would not feel as much pain in this life because we would know the joy that awaits us.

Though we may not understand everything in this life we can continue to learn and grow in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Line upon line, precept upon precept. God is in control of all things. He knows when, where and how to help us we just have to ask. If there is something we desire to understand, God can shed some light on it for us when we ask. I am on a continuous journey of seeking personal revelation in my daily life. Because I know and understand the simple concepts of the gospel, it's easier for me to make sense of the more difficult aspects. I love learning and growing my testimony. No matter how tough this life gets, I am glad to have this experience and the opportunity to try to be more like my Savior amongst daily challenges and trials.

I pray for the family above and I know that it may not be easy but they will get through this. Their loved ones may have been taken from this earthly life but they live and are busy at work right now helping their family on earth and preparing for the Savior's return. What an amazing day that will be when we get to reunite with our loved ones. I know that families are a part of the plan of happiness that God has for us, and I say this in the name of Jesus Christ - amen.

He Hears and Answers (Even in a Shoe Closet)

I've had a few people reach out to me recently through my blog and tell me how it has been inspiring to them. I've been told more than once that it's refreshing to hear about topics other than craft making, decorating, and all the usual. I have to admit I do have a food blog that I share my most favorite recipes on weekly, and I have a private blog where I share fun photos and family activities. I have always wanted to blog about all the creative crafts and projects I seldom have the time to do but nonetheless always have the itch to talk about. Though I love to write and I love to create, if I spent my time blogging about all of those fun yet less important things then I would never find the time to share what's most important to me. My testimony.

Every week my testimony is strengthened through small means but in leaps and bounds. By sharing with you, the things that Heavenly Father puts in my heart every day - my testimony is strengthened and I feel I am more productive with my time. I feel good about spending 30 minutes of my time each week to testify of the Lord and His hand in my life. This blog has been a great blessing for me and I hope for you as well.

When I first started this blog a couple years ago, I wanted to remain as private as possible. Because of all things that I do on the side, I didn't want people to think that I had created another blog to spotlight those other areas in my life. My goal was just to be an anonymous woman sharing her testimony. However over the past few months I have had a strong impression that I need not be so private about my identity. As I struggled with this thought, more and more of you began reaching out to me and asking who I am, if I have a facebook page, an email address or a way that you can learn more about me and contact me. It's been very clear that the Lord is trying to tell me to not hide under a bushel any longer. I believe that the combination of what I do along with what I believe together can be a force for good. The Lord has made this very clear and I want everyone to know that any way that I can be an example and a voice for good I am willing to heed the call.

With that said, I'd like to share with you another way that the Lord has answered my prayers this week. I love that He works in mysterious ways because for me, it's the things that I least expect that have the biggest impact on my testimony. It's the unusual answers and impressions that are always the most profound and they help me recognize that God is always 100% involved.

Now, it's time to reveal something that I don't think my own husband even knows about me - that would be my "prayer closet". Do you have a place in your home where you feel the most in tune to the Spirit? For me that is the "prayer closet" (that's what I call it), or in other words my shoe closet. When I really need to plead with the Lord, receive revelation and feel His spirit I go to my prayer closet. Believe it or not but amongst those rows and rows of colorful shoes and the ever content sweaters hanging above, I feel the closest to the Lord in my home. Just between me and the shoes, I think the Lord would agree that He can communicate best with me when I am on my knees in the shoe closet.

Earlier this week I had a "prayer closet" type of plea that I needed answers to right away. I know that the Lord wants us to think for ourselves and exercise our accountability and agency in decision making. However when a big, risky decision is at hand I don't feel comfortable making it without direction from the Lord.

I have a product that I invented a couple years back and it has taken me on quite the adventure. So much to say, that I am writing a book about it and hope to release it in the spring. I will share more about that in the coming months. Anyway, I have come to a crossroads where I have to decide whether or not to take on a big financial risk/investment in order to take my business to the next level. Because I am a big advocate of zero debt it was tough for me to consider taking on debt as a means to support my current business growth. I knew that without this financial step my business would be on downward spiral as I could not continue keeping up with the demands on my own.

With that weighing heavy on my mind while trying to be a great mom and excellent wife, it was more than I could bear. I knew that there must be a way that I could achieve what I needed to without so much money involved. Every place that I contacted seemed to say otherwise, but I was determined. So, I went to the Lord and told him my dilemma. I told Him that I know that He knows all things and that He would know of a better direction for me to go with what I was trying to accomplish. A direction that I could feel good about that did not involve so much risk. I felt the Spirit confirm that God did know a way and that with my faith He would reveal it.

After I went to bed a thought came to my mind about a baby product I had ordered a year ago. The next thought that followed was that I needed to contact the owner of that business. Not sure how this would all unfold, I did know that the Lord was helping carry by burden and that He was watching out for me. That was all I needed to know to enjoy a good night sleep.

The next morning I remembered my thought. It was then I realized that I did not remember the name of the company I had ordered this product through. Not to mention that this baby product had nothing to do with my product. Still, I felt that by contacting this company I would get the answer I needed.

Rather than taking the time to track down this company,it seemed much easier just to contact similar companies. I quickly found this not to be effective and not what the Lord had prompted me to do. Finally, I sat down at my computer. The only thing I could think to do was to Google certain key words, "baby sling", "Utah company" etc. Maybe if I was lucky and after much time I would find it. To my surprise the very first link that came up in my search was the one! It was a mommy blog and the blogger had blogged about a baby sling she had bought from a Utah company and there was the link to their contact information. It was a picture of the same product I had purchased. I couldn't believe it! I then remembered that the Lord always provides the way, we just have to do what He asks and trust Him.

Just as we are told in 1 Nephi 3:7

And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.

It is no different with the promptings of the Spirit. When we are prompted to do something and it doesn't make any sense or even seem possible, we should remember that the Lord would never ask or prompt us to do something and then leave us completely on our own to do it. He will always provide a way.

I called the phone number and long story short, the owner of this company spoke to me for 45 minutes on the phone and gave me the solution I was looking for. I was so excited, it felt like Christmas morning! I called my husband and shared with him the great news. I now felt that I could continue to focus on being a great mom and excellent wife and the Lord would help me take care of my business. My priorities were in order and all would fall into place.

Yes, the Lord hears and answers our prayers - even in a shoe closet. It doesn't matter where we pray, the Lord will always hear us. What's important to us is important to Him and He knows the best solutions for all of our problems. I know that He heard my prayer this week and He answered it. I am always grateful for all the ways he blesses me and let's me know that He is there watching over me.

I say this in the name of Jesus Christ amen.

My Bout with Doubt

Since we moved into our transitional house, my youngest (the baby) has been coughing up a storm every night in the middle of the night. She has been getting over a cold and for some reason in the middle of the night it manifests itself.

Well, a couple of nights ago I was tired and exhausted from the move, her birthday party, Fall festivities and her coughing every night. When I heard her cough I was too tired to get up out of the bed and try all my experimental remedies that help her through the cough attacks. More than anything I just wanted to sleep. I had an idea.

I prayed a silent prayer to Heavenly Father that He would stop her coughing and allow her a restful sleep as well as myself. I told Him why I needed rest as did she and how much this would mean to the both of us. At the end of my prayer she stopped coughing - I was so grateful for the silence and was then able to fall asleep.

About 3:00 am I woke up and realized that she had been continuously silent and had no other coughing attacks. I couldn't believe it. Instead of attributing that to the Lord I began to wonder if something had happened to her. Maybe she had died and that's why she was silent. I would feel so bad if she had died and it was my fault because I was too tired to get up with her when she was coughing. Realizing that I was doubting the Lord I began to struggle with my thoughts. Getting out of bed to check on her would mean that I doubted the Lord, yet trying to fall back asleep left me feeling guilty - what if something had happened to her?

After struggling with these thoughts and the agonizing fatigue I was experiencing, the Lord sent me a tender mercy as well as a wake up call. My baby began to cough. I was so happy to hear it. Then as she coughed, and coughed, and coughed, I sheepishly said to the Heavenly Father, "Lord, I get it. I'm sorry I doubted. Thank you for your hand in all things. Please allow her coughing to stop....again." And just like that, her coughing stopped. It was silent the rest of the night.

And so it is with so many things in our lives. The Lord answers our prayers and blesses us and then we later question the choices we made on the confirmations we received. Were they really from Him? Was it our our thoughts and desires overpowering the Spirit?

Doctrine and Covenants 6:36

Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.

Mathew 14:31
And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Mormon 9:21

Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth.


Bottom line. When you ask the Lord for something recognizing and accepting His will, and you get it - He answered your prayer. Do not doubt but rejoice!

I say this in the name of Jesus Christ - amen.

Faith, Prayer and a Camera

It's amazing to see how traffic is rapidly increasing on this blog. When I first started it a couple of years ago I did not expect it to reach so many people! Thank you for all of your comments - I love to read them! For some reason blogger is having technical difficulties and it won't let me respond to your comments lately. Leave your emails and I'd be happy to write you personally anytime.

I just moved and so the last couple of weeks have been crazy. I had quite the spiritual experience this morning and I promised God that I would write about it right away on the blog today!

Last night I was taking pictures of some recipes I had made for my food blog and afterward had set my camera on the kitchen counter. 30 minutes later I went to grab it so I could take pictures of our amazing Halloween decorations in the front yard and....it was nowhere to found!

I did a quick search through the house and then had to leave for an appointment. While I was gone my husband and sweet children turned the house upside down looking for the camera. I really needed it because today I was going to catch up on all my blog posts and I had taken the cutest Halloween pictures of my family this week - also my youngest has a birthday party on Saturday and I needed my camera!

After the appointment I came home and for the next hour my husband and I searched every heater vent, window sill and pillow case for the camera. No spot was to be overlooked. We all knew I had set the camera on the kitchen counter and I hadn't left the kitchen at all. It was sure a mystery. I was certain it had been swallowed up by a black hole.

That night I prayed that the Lord would help me find it. I had the impression that this was to be a spiritual learning experience for my children about prayer. In the morning I had my children kneel with me and we prayed to God to help us find the camera. I then said my own personal prayer explaining to God why I needed to find my camera and that I know that he knows all things. He knew where my camera was and I had the faith that He would guide me to it. I asked Him to reveal to me where to look.

After my prayer I had the feeling to go back to the kitchen. We all began looking together. I then felt drawn to the pantry. We had looked there so many time already, but I knew I had to look again. As I combed the shelves I was reminded that after I had taken pictures the night before, I had cleaned up the kitchen. It was possible that I had put the camera in the pantry with something else. Trying to remember the things I had put away, I saw my cookbook. Just then I had the best feeling ever. I grabbed the cookbook and felt something heavy inside. I opened it up and the camera fell out - right in front of my kids!

Right then and there I told them that we needed to kneel down again and thank God for answering our prayers. So we did. My kids were beaming with joy as was I. I taught them that God answers prayers based on your faith. We asked, we had the faith and He answered.

As parents especially mothers, we need to teach these truths to are children. Even better - they need to witness it in action. This will give them the faith and testimony they need when life's challenges come their way.

So many scriptures come to mind about this very subject. My favorites are:

Doctrine and Covenants 29:6

And, as it is written—Whatsoever ye shall ask in faith, being united in prayer according to my command, ye shall receive.
JST Mark 9:45

Seek unto my Father, and it shall be done in that very moment what ye shall ask, if ye ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive.

3 Nephi 18:20

20 And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.

Alma 7:23

23 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive.


It is so true. The Lord knows all and if we have faith with no room for doubt He can tell us, show us and provide for us whatever we need at the time we need it!

I say this in the name of Jesus Christ - amen.

God is Great

We began the challenge of selling our home in a tough market about 40 days ago. When my husband first mentioned that he felt we should look into building 45 days ago, I strongly protested. Our son had just started Kindergarten and our daughter just began preschool around the corner. Everything was functioning perfectly and I didn't see a need to throw a stick in the wheel. Not to mention that we had tried selling a couple of years ago and after 6 months on the market it didn't sell. I didn't want to go through that again. Each time my husband would bring it up, I would tune him out and refuse to talk about it. So he quietly went about looking into some options anyway.

One day he came home and said he made an appointment to meet with a builder. He invited me to come with and of course I said he'd have to go alone. I then went to the store to pick up some things I needed. While there I happened to walk past a really cute hand painted shelf. As I looked at this shelf the strangest thing happened. I felt something come over me and almost like a heavy blanket (of doubt) was lifted off of me, my mind and body became light. I felt that we were supposed to build - it was right. I smiled.

When I got home, I told my husband that I would go with him to the appointment. He couldn't believe it. He ended up making a second appointment with another builder. When we drove out to the first appointment - as soon as we pulled into the neighborhood I felt really good about it. Last time when we went through this process, none of the homes we looked at felt right and we never sold our house. This time we fell in love with the first model home we saw. I felt that this was the floor plan we were supposed to have and this was the neighborhood we were supposed to live in. My husband felt the same. In fact we didn't think we should meet with the second builder which is not like us. We did anyways and it felt very wrong.

We both agreed we felt good about the first builder, so we would fast and pray about it. Since we felt so good, we prayed that if it was not the Lord's will for us to build, we would get a bad feeling about it. The next day was fast Sunday and we fasted. The next day we both felt very good about it still. So, we went back to the first builder that day and signed the paper work to build. I went from not wanting to sell at all, to the following Monday signing on a home to build. Strange? Now came the faith part. We had to sell our home. The contract was contingent upon us selling our home, so we were safe, however I did not want to go though all the hassle and pains of trying to sell and build for nothing. It needed to work this time. It felt to right.

We had always said that if we ever built or moved the house would need to face west this time. My husband and I wanted to have a shady backyard. There were a lot of lots available however only one lot was left in this subdivision that faced west - I knew that we were being directed to the exact spot where we were supposed to be.

I picked up the phone, to call our the Realtor we had used last time. Something told me that he was going to tell me that he does not work in realty anymore - but I felt I should call him anyways. We promised him that we would use him again if we ever were to sell. So, I called him and of course he told me that he doesn't work in realty anymore but he did keep his license. He referred me to an agent that he helps out now and then. He then told me that a family I absolutely adore who used to live on my street had built a home where we were building. When I mentioned their names to the builder's agent she smiled and showed me where they were building. Just a couple streets away. We would now have a friend to welcome us to the neighborhood! The next day we had the sign in our lawn. The Realtor said it was average for a home to sit 45 days on the market before an offer and at least 10 showings. I hoped he was right.

The first week came and we had a few showings. Things were looking good - but no offers. Then three weeks went by without any showings. I was getting worried. I kept telling myself that if this was meant to be it would happen. It felt right - I just needed to exercise faith in God. When the timing was right the home would sell. Over the next couple of weeks we lowered the price a little bit to generate more showings. It seemed to work - but no offers. The feedback was always great about our home. The only concern was that our backyard faced west - something we couldn't change.

One day while wondering when our home would sell, our builder called and said that they wouldn't dig the hole for our house until we sold our house or lowered it to $189,000. We had initially listed it at $199,900. We did not want to lower it that much, especially in the first 30 days. As I began to notice all the other homes like ours (that weren't short sales) not having any progress either I just kept telling myself that it would happen. I needed to have faith.

It was a sunny afternoon when inspiration came. I was writing a chapter in a book I'm working on when I happened to come across a talk from Elder Bednar titled Ask in Faith I was reminded in his talk about the importance of being specific when praying and then exercising faith. All this time I had been praying that our house would sell if it was the Lord's will but that was it. After reading this talk I knew what I needed to do. I took Elder Ballard's council to heart and that night I prayed for at least 2 showings to come through that weekend and for one of the showings to make an offer. This was specific.

I prayed each night throughout the week for this very thing. Thursday my agent called and said that morning two calls came through at the exact same time. The first call scheduled for a showing Thursday night and the other for Friday morning. I was very happy. Right after the second showing ended on Friday morning my agent called and said that the Thursday night showing had put in an offer. After 35 days and about 10 showings it happened. I was so happy and humbled. God had answered my specific prayer. That Saturday they accepted our counter offer and that night my husband and I were scheduled to go to the temple. I was so happy to thank the Lord by serving Him. As we dropped our kids off at Parent Date Night at my daughter's preschool, there had been a mix up. They did not have our kids on the list and there was not an infant teacher there to watch our baby. They offered to watch the older two but not the baby. My heart sank. Then I remembered how I had watched a friend's kids earlier that day. Maybe she would be willing to return the favor at the last minute on a Friday night. I called and she was happy to help. Again, I felt the Lord's love.

After the weekend ended and our celebrations died down, we quickly realized we would need to find a place to rent very soon. I thought this would be pretty easy. We would be excellent renters with good references. Who could say no to that? How wrong was I? The first available 15 homes I called on (in the vicinity of where I live) told me that they only do year leases - no exceptions. I needed a 4-5 month. I called on apartments, condos you name it. No one was willing to work with me. I had wanted to stay in my neighborhood so that my son could keep going to his school and I could continue to serve in my Primary calling in our ward. I wanted things to remain familiar for the kids. It would be hard to move twice with unfamiliar surroundings. I prayed to the Lord that He could help.

That day a friend in the ward told me that her backyard neighbor (who lived a couple homes north west of me) had moved out and might be renting. She gave me this lady's cell phone number. This would be perfect. We could move right across the street. We wouldn't even need a moving truck! A house was most ideal so that we wouldn't need to continue renting a storage unit. I said a prayer in my heart and then called. The lady listened to my request and my assurance that we would be her best renters ever. She was very kind and laughed at my silly yet desperate ways of convincing her to rent to us. She said she'd talk to her husband about it and call back later that night.

Later that night we were outside playing with the kids in the front yard. I saw the lady and her husband at the house moving things out. Should I go talk to them? No...she promised to call back, I would just wait. About 9:30 pm I wondered if she had decided not rent to us and didn't know how to tell me. Then something assured me that she was busy with moving and cleaning and realized it may be too late to call me. I prayed again that night.

The next morning about 9:30 am I decided to call her again. I needed to secure something soon to avoid getting an ulcer from all the stress of not knowing. Another woman had called and offered to work with us. Her home was very tiny (built in 1944) and no garage. The neighborhood looked very iffy and I wouldn't feel safe living there. It didn't feel right. I prayed that God would answer my prayer with my neighbor. Ater a couple of rings she answered. "I was just going to call you." she happily said. "I talked with my husband and he'd be happy to rent to you on a month to month basis." The hairs on my arm stood up. I had never asked or even suggested a month to month and here she was willing to offer it to us. Rather than us as renters trying to accommodate her, she was going to accommodate us. I couldn't believe it. I was so happy I almost cried.

I can't help but tell the world how great God is. He is there to work out all the kinks in the intricate design of our wonderful lives. He wants to bless us with what we desire all we have to do is ask. We also need to recognize His will. If you pray about it and you feel good, then you need to have faith that your prayers will be answered. It wasn't His will for us to move two years ago. We were looking down in Herriman last time to be closer to Manuel's job and my family. We never did get that assurance that we were looking in the right place and our house never sold. This summer Manuel got a job in Ogden - we can now see why our house never sold. He would be commuting again. Now he gets to work in under 20 minutes. We were supposed to stay up here. Manuel needed to get a job up here so that we would be led to where we were supposed to live. The Lord works in mysterious ways.

In addition to asking the Lord for blessings and answers we have to be specific with what we ask for. I believe it's because He wants us to clearly recognize His hand in our blessings - not to confuse them as a coincidence or "good luck". He then requires that we exercise our best faith in Him. This is the best part but not always easy. When you try it however, it's the best most euphoric and humbling feeling! Nothing compares to receiving a blessing or answer to a prayer that you know came from the Lord. It feels absolutely amazing to know that He hears your prayers and He speaks back. It feels absolutely amazing to see faith in action and to witness miracles. What a testimony builder!

Lastly, I have been making an effort to thank God by telling Him what I can do for Him rather than always asking what He can do for me. I ask Him to place service opportunities before me and for opportunities to share the gospel and my testimony. Let me just tell you - God always takes you up on your offers. I am grateful for the opportunities he has placed in my path because it confirms that He loves me, He hears me and He is communicating with me. Also, it feels great to serve the Lord!

I challenge you to look for ways to exercise your faith and to improve your prayers with God. I know if you do, He will show you His love, mercy and grace. You will be blessed. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ - amen.

The Contact Lens

I love this story. I first read it in an email a month ago and have enjoyed sharing it since. It's the perfect example of how faith and prayer go hand in hand. Enjoy!

Brenda was almost halfway to the top of the tremendous granite cliff.. She was standing on a ledge where she was taking a breather during this, her first rock climb. As she rested there, the safety rope snapped against her eye and knocked out her contact lens.

'Great', she thought. 'Here I am on a rock ledge, hundreds of feet from the bottom and hundreds of feet to the top of this cliff, and now my sight is blurry.' She looked and looked, hoping that somehow it had landed on the ledge. But it just wasn't there.

She felt the panic rising in her, so she began praying. She prayed for calm, and she prayed that she might find her contact lens. When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but it was not to be found. Although she was calm now that she was at the top, she was saddened because she could not clearly see across the range of mountains. She thought of the bible verse 'The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth.'

She thought, 'Lord, You can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and You know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me.'

Later, when they had hiked down the trail to the bottom of the cliff they met another party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff. One of them shouted out, 'Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?'

Well, that would be startling enough, but you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across a twig on the face of the rock, carrying it!

The story doesn't end there. Brenda's father is a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the ant, the prayer, and the contact lens, he drew a cartoon of an ant lugging that contact lens with the caption, 'Lord, I don't know why you want me to carry this thing. I can't eat it, and it's awfully heavy. But if this is what you want me to do; I'll carry it for you.'




God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called

Pioneer Day Tribute

Today I gave the sharing time lesson in Primary and it was on the sacrifices that the pioneers made for the temples. The lessons are only 15 minutes but it seemed longer and turned out better than I imagined.

I want to share with you some of the special thoughts and messages that I shared with the beautiful primary children today in tribute of Pioneer Day next week!

A millennia ago, the prophet Micah predicted the following:

Micah 4:1-2

“But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.

“And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

Micah saw the Salt Lake temple and temple square - the place where saints from all over the world gather twice a year. It is also a temple that visitors from all over the world come to see all year long.

When the prophet

Joseph Smith was commanded to build a temple, he had never seen one before and did not know how it should look. There were no temples in his time. The Lord needed a place where his sacred ordinances could be carried out just as in the days of Moses and Solomon, Joseph wanted it to be pleasing unto the Lord. He and the first presidency prayed together and they were shown a vision of the Kirtland temple and how it should be built.

Prior to the temple's dedication the prophet Joseph Smith, his counselors and many other witnesses experienced marvelous visions inside the temple. One vision in particular, when Joseph received revelation about those who die before hearing about the gospel is as follows:

After all the men had been anointed, Joseph Smith testified that “the heavens were opened upon us” and he “beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof”( D&C 137:1-10) He saw “the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son.” He “saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold.” He saw “Fathers Adam and Abraham” and others who were then living, including his father (who was with him in the room), his mother (who was home in Kirtland), and his deceased brother, Alvin. He saw the twelve Apostles, who had been called the year before, and he saw Jesus standing in their midst. He also saw in the celestial kingdom all of the presidency and many others. Upon asking the Lord how Alvin, who had died before the Church was restored, could inherit the celestial kingdom, he received the remarkable assurance that “All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God

According to the Prophet Joseph Smith, during this vision angels not only ministered to him but to others who had received their anointings. “The power of the Highest rested upon us,” he said, and “the house was filled with the glory of God.” His scribe, Warren Parrish, recorded his own experience at the Prophet’s dictation: “My scribe … saw in a vision the armies of heaven protecting the Saints in their return to Zion, and many [of the same] things which I [Joseph Smith] saw.”

Following this ordinance, says the Prophet Joseph Smith, “The visions of heaven were opened to them also. Some of them saw the face of the Savior, and others were ministered unto by holy angels.” He further testified that “we all communed with the heavenly host. … The spirit of prophecy and revelation,” he added, “was poured out in mighty power.”

The early saints (pioneers) had such a powerful testimony of temples that after the mobs drove them out of Kirtland, Ohio, to abandon the temple (that all their sacrifice of blood, sweat and tears went into), they would go on to Nauvoo, Illinois where they would again sacrifice to build a House of the Lord. The prophet Joseph Smith was martyred half way through the construction of the Nauvoo temple. Shortly after the temple was dedicated the mobs came and drove the saints out of Nauvoo and destroyed the temple. The pioneers watched their hard work and sacrifice burn to the ground. You would think that most people would say, "Hey, I've had enough. I give up - this just isn't worth it." No, not the pioneers. They made the long trek across the plains to the Salt Lake Valley in Utah, many giving their very lives for the sake of what they held so dear. It was there they again sacrificed blood, sweat and tears to build the Salt Lake temple.

The Salt Lake temple is my favorite temple. It was where I was married and sealed for time and all eternity to my husband. Whenever I visit, I feel the testimony of those early pioneers. From the gold Angel Moroni mounted on top to the "Holiness to the Lord" engraved on the east side. They all are a visible testimony of those early saints.

The prophet Brigham Young had a vision of the Salt Lake temple years before it was built. Though he never lived to see it completed he was in attendance that day. On the morning of 6 April 1893, the prophet Wilford Woodruff entered the Salt Lake Temple through the southwest doors and proceeded to the fourth floor. At 10:00 A.M., with twenty-five hundred people in attendance, the first of a series of forty-one dedication services began. The dedication was the final step in a forty-year saga of sacrifice and labor surrounding the construction of the Salt Lake Temple.

“The Heavenly Host were in attendance at the [first] dedication [service],” President Woodruff told the congregation in a subsequent dedicatory service. “If the eyes of the congregation could be opened they would [have] seen Joseph and Hyrum [Smith], Brigham Young, John Taylor and all the good men who had lived in this dispensation assembled with us, as also Esaias, Jeremiah, and all the Holy Prophets and Apostles who had prophesied of the latter day work. … They were rejoicing with us in this building which had been accepted of the Lord and [when] the [Hosanna] shout had reached the throne of the Almighty,” they too had joined in the joyous shout." My great, great, great grandmother, Elizabeth Mills Oakden Whitaker was a little girl when she came with her family from Ireland to Nauvoo. She saw the Nauvoo temple built and later destroyed. She also witnessed the building of the Salt Lake temple. Her accounts from her biography are as follows: "Well, if you're going to write a book about me, I suppose I should go back to when i was just a little girl in Nauvoo, and they were building the Nauvoo Temple. I used to take my father's lunch to him every day and there I would see the prophet Joseph. My mother was an excellent cook, and she'd sometimes put in an extra piece of chocolate cake, or other dessert, and father would share it with the Prophet. Sometimes, that wonderful man would take me on my knee, there on the steps of the temple and stroke my hair and tell me how beautiful it was, and that I must always strive to be as beautiful on the inside as I was on the outside. "For," said he, "Jesus loves little children and he wants them to grow up pure and clean so they can come back to Heaven and dwell with him, forever. Did I tell you that my father was a professional tin-smith and that he made and mounted the hoofs, horns and bars of the oxen in the basement of the temple, that held up the baptismal fonts? I wasn't old enough then when the temple was finished to be baptized in it, but I remember that glorious building and how hard everyone worked and skimped and saved, to get it finished. It never was completely finished. My parents were permitted to go through it for their own endowments and sealing, December 13, 1845. It was opened only one day for living sealings, when the city was mobbed and that glorious Temple was destroyed by them. It was burned to the ground and as foretold in prophecy, 'not one stone was left on top of another'. This was after the martyrdom. " Account of the Salt Lake Temple "I remember when the Salt Lake Temple was finished and decorated. They opened it up and let everyone, outsiders and all, who wanted to go through it and see it for one whole week before they dedicated it. Oh, it was the most beautiful building west of the Mississippi." My great, great, great grandmother made great sacrifices. When traveling across the plains she was kidnapped by Indians. Her father later risked his life to go save her. I have other great, great grandparents who helped build the Manti, Utah temple. They too sacrificed much for the work. Many of the pioneers sold all they had to earn money to build the temples. They risked their lives, sold their belongings, and endured great trials to come to Utah. Here in Utah, would be a permanent refuge for the saints, where they could live in peace. "We are here! Thank the Almighty God of Israel!” exclaimed Brigham Young. The exodus to the west was very similar to that of Moses and the children of Israel. Instead of crossing the parted sea and wandering in the desert for 40 years, the saints crossed the plains and made their home in the desert of what is now Utah. I will forever be grateful for what my pioneer ancestors gave and sacrificed for they believed. It is because of them that I enjoy this beautiful valley, the gospel and the blessings of the temple. I strive each day of my life to live a legacy that would be pleasing to my pioneer ancestors and the Lord. I don't want their sacrifices to have been in vein. I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true. I know that temples are a House of the Lord and allow families to be together forever. This is my testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.