Great week. Nothing too
noteworthy to share. Hermana Word and I have really been trying to
balance our time between our area and the VC. Because she is a trainer,
it's been difficult to dedicate as much time as we'd like to our ward,
and the individuals in Olney, but it's a work in progress--well duh,
always.
There
are, however some verses I'd like to share with you from Mosiah chapter
2 that have particularly stood out to me recently. I borrowed a section
of the following for my farewell talk, and it's just been on my mind
lately:
"20 I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another--
21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another-- I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.
22 And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.
23 And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.
24 And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?"
"20 I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another--
21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another-- I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.
22 And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.
23 And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.
24 And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?"
Makes
you feel a little small, huh? That’s okay. I felt the
same. What I am beginning to realize more and more is that there is
at least one way we can begin to “return the favor” so to speak.
We can give God something that would be impossible for Him to
get without us.
Because it is us.
He can only ever ask for, but never take, from us our will. After figuring out that to offer my agency would mean to give Him everything, my most recent focus has been on the “how”. How can I give “myself” to Him? Not sure yet. Still trying to figure that one out, but I’ll let you know when I make progress.
I love you all so much.
Hope
things back home are well. Family, be sure to read scriptures every
night together. No amount of time, energy, or effort is worth missing
the protection that comes from reading the words of the prophets on a
daily basis. Will you all make that a goal for this new school year? You
can totally do it. Family prayer, as well as family home evening are
important as well. These are the "little things" that lay our foundation
so to speak. Without them, there is nothing stable to build on, and any
attempted structure will surely crumble and fall.
Just some thing to keep in mind. Until next week!
Hermana Graff
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