"One Sees Clearly Only with the Heart"

Photo by, Mark Maybry "Healing"
“One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.”
- Antoine de Saint Exupéry



“Sometimes the most precious and sacred things are right in front of us, in plain sight so to speak. But we cannot or will not see them.”

[During the Christmas Season] “All of these spectacular displays and decorations that compete for our attention can be beautiful and uplifting…. But if that’s all we see, we are missing something that’s in plain sight. Sometimes despite our best intentions we become so preoccupied with responsibilities, commitments and the stress of our many tasks that we fail to see with our hearts that which is essential and most sacred.”

“Even many who lived during the time of the Savior’s mortal ministry could not see Him though He walked among them in plain sight.”

“The self-righteous and unteachable, those whose hearts were closed to the Spirit could not see Him.

Now, can we see the Christ?

Sometimes when we read about a people who could not see the Savior for who He was, we marvel at their blindness…. But do we also let distractions obstruct our view of the Savior during this Christmas season and throughout the year?

Some are external distractions; the gifts we worry about, the decorations or the glamorous advertising…. But often it is what is inside us that blinds us from seeing the Christ.

Let us see the Christ in Christmas!

Photo by, Mark Maybry "Angels"

This is a season of rejoicing, a season of celebration, a wonderful time when we acknowledge that our Almighty God sent His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ to redeem the world, to redeem us. It is the season of charitable acts, of kindness, of brotherly love. It is a season of being more reflective about our own life and about the many blessings that our ours. It is a season of forgiving and being forgiven. But perhaps most of all, let it be a season of seeking the Lamb of God, the King of Glory, the Everlasting Light of the World, the Great Hope of Mankind, the Savior and Redeemer of our souls.

I promise that if we unclutter our lives a little bit and in sincerity and humility seek the pure and gentle Christ with our hearts, we will see Him. We will find Him on Christmas and throughout the year. Of this I testify, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”
- Dieter Friedrich Uchtdorf (Apostle of the Lord, Jesus Christ)

To watch the full Christmas Devotional click here.

What is happiness?

I was reading another blog a few days ago. They asked, "What is happiness?" this blogger had posed a very good question with some very good arguments.

I have pondered on this question for several days. I have scribbled down some thoughts in an attempt to try and describe it. I think there is often a confusion between "fun" and "happiness." Sometimes we define them as meaning the same thing but they are not. Of course we can have both at times. ..But we must understand that fun and happiness are different. I have more thoughts on this but I won't go into the details today.

As I continued to ponder on this question I remembered a talk given to the women (but certainly can be applied to men as well) by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Second Counselor in the First Presidency. The following is taken directly from his talk. This is some very wise counsel.

May the Lord bless you all and thanks for taking the time to visit my blog, I hope it inspires you and lifts your life today and gives you hope for tomorrow.
- Alicia

Here is a link to a youtube video also collaborated from bits and pieces of his talk. It's less than 2 minutes so take a second and check it out and then come back to read the rest ;) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhLlnq5yY7k


To All Who Are Weary
"Today I would like to speak to those who have ever felt inadequate, discouraged, or weary—in short, I would like to speak to all of us.

...We know that sometimes it can be difficult to keep our heads above water. In fact, in our world of change, challenges, and checklists, sometimes it can seem nearly impossible to avoid feeling overwhelmed by emotions of suffering and sorrow.

I am not suggesting that we can simply flip a switch and stop the negative feelings that distress us. This isn’t a pep talk or an attempt to encourage those sinking in quicksand to imagine instead they are relaxing on a beach. I recognize that in all of our lives there are real concerns. I know there are hearts here today that harbor deep sorrows. Others wrestle with fears that trouble the soul. For some, loneliness is their secret trial.

These things are not insignificant.

However, I would like to speak about two principles that may help you find a path to peace, hope, and joy—even during times of trial and distress. I want to speak about God’s happiness and how each one of us can taste of it in spite of the burdens that beset us.

Let me first pose a question: What do you suppose is the greatest kind of happiness possible? For me, the answer to this question is, God’s happiness.

This leads to another question: What is our Heavenly Father’s happiness?

This may be impossible to answer because His ways are not our ways. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are [God’s] ways higher than [our] ways, and [His] thoughts [higher] than [our] thoughts.”1

Though we cannot understand “the meaning of all things,” we do “know that [God] loveth his children”2 because He has said, “Behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”3

Heavenly Father is able to accomplish these two great goals—the immortality and eternal life of man—because He is a God of creation and compassion. Creating and being compassionate are two objectives that contribute to our Heavenly Father’s perfect happiness. Creating and being compassionate are two activities that we as His spirit children can and should emulate."

The Work of Creation
"...The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty—

What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. ...Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

If you still feel incapable of creating, start small. Try to see how many smiles you can create, write a letter of appreciation, learn a new skill, identify a space and beautify it.

The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. "

Being Compassionate
"Being compassionate is another great work of our Heavenly Father and a fundamental characteristic of who we are as a people. We are commanded to “succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.”7 Disciples of Christ throughout all ages of the world have been distinguished by their compassion. Those who follow the Savior “mourn with those that mourn … and comfort those that stand in need of comfort.”8

When we reach out to bless the lives of others, our lives are blessed as well. Service and sacrifice open the windows of heaven, allowing choice blessings to descend upon us. Surely our beloved Heavenly Father smiles upon those who care for the least of His children.

As we lift others, we rise a little higher ourselves. President Spencer W. Kimball taught, “The more we serve our fellowmen in appropriate ways, the more substance there is to our souls.”9
President Gordon B. Hinckley believed in the healing power of service. After the death of his wife, he provided a great example to the Church in the way he immersed himself in work and in serving others. It is told that President Hinckley remarked to one woman who had recently lost her husband, “Work will cure your grief. Serve others.”

These are profound words. As we lose ourselves in the service of others, we discover our own lives and our own happiness.

President Lorenzo Snow expressed a similar thought: “When you find yourselves a little gloomy, look around you and find somebody that is in a worse plight than yourself; go to him and find out what the trouble is, then try to remove it with the wisdom which the Lord bestows upon you; and the first thing you know, your gloom is gone, you feel light, the Spirit of the Lord is upon you, and everything seems illuminated.”10

In today’s world of pop psychology, junk TV, and feel-good self-help manuals, this advice may seem counterintuitive. We are sometimes told that the answer to our ills is to look inward, to indulge ourselves, to spend first and pay later, and to satisfy our own desires even at the expense of those around us. While there are times when it is prudent to look first to our own needs, in the long run it doesn’t lead to lasting happiness."

Conclusion
My dear sisters [and brothers], I have a simple faith. I believe that as you are faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, as you draw closer to Him in faith, hope, and charity, things will work together for your good.14 I believe that as you immerse yourselves in the work of our Father—as you create beauty and as you are compassionate to others—God will encircle you in the arms of His love.15 Discouragement, inadequacy, and weariness will give way to a life of meaning, grace, and fulfillment.

As spirit daughters [and sons] of our Heavenly Father, happiness is your heritage.

You are choice [children] of our Heavenly Father, and through the things you create and by your compassionate service, you are a great power for good. You will make the world a better place. Lift up your chin; walk tall. God loves you. We love and admire you.

Of this I testify, and leave you my blessing as an Apostle of the Lord, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Second Counselor in the First Presidency

He never gives up on us.

I was listening to some talks from last conference today and I really like this part. This is very comforting for me when I have had a day or days where I feel like such a crappy mom.

"There are some who believe that because they have made mistakes, they can no longer fully partake of the blessings of the gospel. How little they understand the purposes of the Lord. One of the great blessings of living the gospel is that it refines us and helps us learn from our mistakes. We “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,”11 yet the Atonement of Jesus Christ has the power to make us whole when we repent."
- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Second Counselor in the First Presidency

“Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us—even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will.

“We [might] see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. . . .

“The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and women for the eternities.”- Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

Encouragement

Just a couple of things I jotted down from Conference this past weekend that I really liked.

(Top left: President Henry B. Eyring, Top right: President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Front:President Thomas S. Monson)

"The Lord will shape the back to fit the burden placed upon it."- President Thomas S. Monson





"You can't plant a seed in the morning and expect corn on the cob in the afternoon."- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf





"My purpose today is to assure you that our Heavenly Father and the Savior live and that they love all humanity. The very opportunity for us to face adversity and affliction is part of the evidence of their infinite love."- President Henry B. Eyring

The Power of Hope

“Doubt, despair, and failure to care for our fellowmen lead us into temptation, which can cause us to forfeit choice and precious blessings."

"The adversary uses despair to bind hearts and minds in suffocating darkness. Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart. Despair can seem like a staircase that leads only and forever downward...."

..."Hope, on the other hand, is like the beam of sunlight rising up and above the horizon of our present circumstances. It pierces the darkness with a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father, who has prepared a way for those who seek for eternal truth in a world of relativism, confusion, and of fear.”

“Hope is critical to both faith and charity. When disobedience, disappointment, and procrastination erode faith, hope is there to uphold our faith. When frustration and impatience challenge charity, hope braces our resolve and urges us to care for our fellowmen even without expectation of reward. The brighter our hope, the greater our faith. The stronger our hope, the purer our charity.”

- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

“My beloved brothers and sisters, I testify of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. In doing so I am testifying that God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face. “[N]or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man [or woman or child] upon the face thereof to be saved.”13 On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal.”

- Elder Jeffery R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles