I can do hard things.

So, I just have to say that I got into BYU!!!! I'm so excited!! I can't wait to start the next chapter of my life, but first, I have to finish the current one. Bleh, haha...High school is hard–third term especially. But I know I can do it. I can do hard things. God is on my side, and He will not let me fail as long as I do my part. I'm so excited and glad that I got into the school I wanted to. I know that I will learn and grow there in ways that I never could elsewhere, and I also know that I will meet people that will help me in my life–for better or for worse, they will have an impact on me–and I on them. I will need to "be strong and of good courage" (1) and "stand in holy places" (2) because no one will be there to tell me what to do. But I can do it, and I can be an example for those around me. I know that God knows what He is doing and I know that I can be a good example and do good things at BYU. Wish me luck! :)

1-Joshua 1:9
2-D&C 87:8

Life isn't always easy.

Well, this week was pretty eventful. Yesterday in PE, we had a couple of marine corps guys come and we did this really vigorous obstacle course; it was a competition, and my team lost, so we had to do it again. I hadn't even fully recovered from the first time around, and I had to do it again?! I was super frustrated, and I was having a hard time breathing. Part of the obstacle course was we had two little ammo boxes filled with sand, weighing thirty pounds each, and we had to carry them and run down the gym and back. I honestly could not breathe and I thought I was having a panic attack/hyperventilating. When I finally finished it the second time around, I was panting so hard, and taking deep breaths, and trying to calm my body down. I went to get a drink, and that sort of helped, but only while I was drinking. For the rest of the day, I had trouble breathing. All throughout flex and lunch I was coughing and coughing. It was so bad...I honestly thought I was going to get asthma. I know it's not something you 'get' but I really thought I was going to get it, my breathing was so bad.

Life isn't always easy. There are always going to be obstacles in our paths, and just when we've finished one, another one is right around the corner. There will always be times where we can't breathe, so to speak. But, unlike my experience, our Living Water, Jesus Christ, will always help us. Our Lifeguard walks on water. He controls the storms and the waters. He will help us breathe, and He will help us drink and eat. He is the Bread of Life, and He is the Living Water. This is why, when we take the sacrament, we use bread and water in remembrance of Him. Even though life is crazy, and we sometimes don't get breathers between obstacles on our path, we can always count on our Savior to be there to help us. He walks on water, and He sees the bigger picture. He can and will help us through our troubled times if we let Him.

The Light of Christ.

"No matter how dark your days may seem, no matter how insignificant you may feel, no matter how overshadowed you think you may be, your Heavenly Father has not forgotten you. In fact, He loves you with an infinite love." –Dieter F. Uchtdorf

I love this!!! Heavenly Father never forgets you. In a world of darkness and despair, He has not forgotten you. As Professor Dumbledore once said:

"Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times,
if one only remembers to turn on the light. " –Albus Dumbledore,
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban movie

 Our world is getting darker. But we have a light inside of us: the Light of Christ. We need to let it shine. Heavenly Father hasn't forgotten you. He has not forgotten any one of us. He loves us so much that He gave us all the Light of Christ. We all have it. But everyone's light burns differently because we all act on it differently. Some people do not act on it at all, and sadly, their light is extinguishing. The Light of Christ makes it possible for us to discern truth from lies. If we do not act on the truths, however, and we make the wrong decision, the light inside of us grows smaller. When we act on the truths and choose the right and best decision, our light grows bigger and brighter, our testimony grows stronger, and we are more prepared to feel the truth the next time it comes.

What does God want me to learn from this?

Yesterday, I was talking with a friend and I was saying how I wished I had a job and also how I was super worried about college because I haven't heard back from any of my colleges (and one college I applied to a couple of my friends also applied to and they have already heard back) and how no one wants me to be productive. I didn't tell my friend, but I was crying because the idea of the future–which is unknown–is frightening to me, and I'm so scared I'll never get a job or get into college (also because I'm just a crybaby haha), and also I'm still depressed that I didn't get into the talent show again. Well, my friend said, 'Listen Mattie, think of it like this, don't ask "why do I not have a job right now?" ask "what does God want me to learn from this?"' He also said that "pearls given are rocks, pearls earned are priceless", meaning that finding things out for ourselves is a much sweeter reward than just being given the answers.
He also gave me this poem:

"My life is but a weaving
Between my Lord and me,
I cannot choose the colors
He worketh steadily.
Oftimes He weaveth sorrow,
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I, the underside.
Not till the loom in silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the Weaver's skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned."
(Unknown)

And I thought, "Sure, these are great words, but I'm still so scared and I don't know what to do." And I follow this blog that I go on reading splurges–when I first found it, I read the blog posts for hours and then I didn't really read any more until yesterday when I went on another splurge–and I was reading it yesterday and she said some things that hit home. God will always send us what we need. He sends us who we need, and He sends them when we need it. Never before we're ready. He only sends us answers when we are ready for them. And I love that. Sometimes, the answers are not what we want or expect, and so if we receive them before we are ready, we won't understand. We need to be humbled before God can give us the answers that we need and will be able to understand. We may not always understand why He gave us the answers He did, but we will be humbler and more ready for the answers. We need to humble ourselves and look for the answer; only then will God reveal His answer and plan to us (in pieces). He doesn't just give us the answers; I saw this thing that said, "The teacher is quiet during the test", and it's true. God doesn't just hand out answers willy-nilly. We need to work hard for them. I know that He loves us, and I know that He will help us if we ask Him to. So, to answer my question, "What does God want me to learn from this?" Right now, I don't know what He wants me to learn. But I am definitely going to find out soon.

He Will Ease Your Burdens.

Well, today in sacrament, Sunday School, and Relief Society, I heard a lot of things that I really needed to hear. Sometimes, telling people what you're having problems with helps you because then it's not just inside you. You're not the only who knows about it anymore. It makes it more real, and you can finally do something about it. We talked about the talk by Elder Bednar entitled "Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease", which you can find here. The only way that Elder Bednar's friend could make the truck go when it was stuck was to fill the truck bed with firewood. He says that "Sometimes we mistakenly may believe that happiness is the absence of a load. But bearing a load is a necessary and essential part of the plan of happiness. Because our individual load needs to generate spiritual traction, we should be careful to not haul around in our lives so many nice but unnecessary things that we are distracted and diverted from the things that truly matter most." Yes, we all have loads. Whether the load is that you don't know if you're being a good mom, or if you don't know what you are going to do when your friend is sick or dying, or if you don't know if Heavenly Father loves you anymore, we all have loads. They are necessary for us to grow. Jesus Christ said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest...For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Matthew 11: 28-30). Go to Him! He loves you so much and He wants to help ease your burdens because He knows. He knows how much your burden hurts you, and He knows how to relieve you. We have burdens so that we can turn to Him. He will help you ease your burdens. He wants us to know that we need Him, because we do. We can't do it all alone. I know, because I've tried. It doesn't work. You need Him. I know that He loves us. I know that He wants to help us with our burdens. I know that if you turn to Him, He will help you because He loves you and He wants you to come to Him.

He loves and treasures you.

So, yesterday was the Sweetheart's Dance, and it was so much fun! I had a blast! There were several miracles yesterday. The first one was when Jessica and I were looking for the boys' houses, and we kind of got lost. So at one point, we were stopped at a red light, and the next car over was waving wildly at us. It was Connor and Savannah and Brianna and them! So we quick rolled down the window and asked them if they knew where David or Dallin lived, and they were able to tell us that they lived in the direction that we were heading from. So we were able to turn around and then, after several minutes of turning onto the wrong streets, we finally turned onto the right one and–miracle number 2–I caught sight of Dallin's house and we were set from there because Dallin knew where David lived. Miracle number 3: At the dance, we were situated in front of the school store I think, and on the window was the Talent Show Audition sign-ups! I had been looking for them but I couldn't find them, but I was able to find them at the dance, which is so good, because I really, really, really wanted to try out again, because I chose an awesome song. Last year I auditioned with "Let It Go" from Frozen which probably wasn't the best idea because it was so popular and I didn't get in anyway. Which is ok. I am going to try out again this year, as I've mentioned, and I'm going to sing "The Call" by Regina Spektor, and it's played in "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian", I believe. Anyway, it was a really, really great night, and I had such a blast!

I'm so grateful for the tender mercies and miracles that happened yesterday, because they were not just a coincidence. I'm glad that Heavenly Father is watching out for me, because sometimes I feel alone, and helpless, but I'm not, because He is there to help me, and watch out for me, and help me realize that I am loved and treasured. He loves us so much! He is always watching out for us because He cares for us so much. We are treasured by Him because we are His precious children–we are His His sons and daughters. He loves us so much. He is always there for us, and He will always love us.

Love,
Mattie:)

Joseph Smith and the First Vision.

Okay, so I have the devotional in seminary on Monday, and I am going to be performing the musical number that I was going to perform for the seminary conference, but we ran out of time. So, I've been practicing, and I decided to record it the other day, and I did! Even though I'm still a little under the weather, I think it turned out nice. So it's the hymn "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" (Hymn No. 26) to the tune of the song/hymn "Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing" and I had to do just a little bit of arranging for the end of the song because the soundtrack I picked (done by Chris Rice) had a different ending, so I had to arrange the last two verses to combine them. I really had a wonderful time with this project, and I'm so excited to be performing it on Monday! I really am so grateful for Joseph Smith, who had the courage to ask God a question, and who had the courage to stand up for what he believed and knew was right. Please enjoy the song and video here. Here are the words and lyrics that I arranged:

Joseph Smith's First Prayer:

1. Oh, how lovely was the morning!

Radiant beamed the sun above.

Bees were humming, sweet birds singing,

Music ringing thru the grove,

When within the shady woodland

Joseph sought the God of love,

When within the shady woodland

Joseph sought the God of love.

2. Humbly kneeling, sweet appealing–

T'was the boy's first uttered prayer–

When the pow'rs of sin assailing

Filled his soul with deep despair;

But undaunted, still he trusted

In his Heav'nly Father's care;

But undaunted, still he trusted

In his Heav'nly Father's care.

3. Suddenly a light descended,

Brighter far than noonday sun,

"Joseph, this is my Beloved;

Hear him!" Oh, how sweet the word!

Oh, what rapture filled his bosom,

For he saw the living God;

(interlude)

Oh, what rapture filled his bosom,

For he saw the living God.

(interlude)

Oh, how lovely was the morning! For he saw the living God.

I just love this hymn and this arrangement because it's so pretty. Joseph had a question about which church he should join, and he went to God for an answer. He was only fourteen years old, but he really, really wanted to know which church he should join, so he went into a grove to pray and "ask of God" (King James Bible, James 1:5). He then received what we as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints call The First Vision. I know that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. I know that Joseph was the first Latter-day prophet. I know that Thomas S. Monson is our prophet today and that he speaks to us from Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I know that this church is true. I know that Jesus Christ lives, and I know that He loves us. I know that He sends us tender mercies, and I know that preparing this song to sing for my seminary class has really helped me gain a better testimony of Joseph Smith. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Adversity is difficult, but through it, Heavenly Father is making us stronger.

So, my birthday was two days ago, and I got a new laptop! I absolutely love it, and I have been using it constantly. And, because I got a new laptop, this means that I will soon be able to post me singing "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" to the tune of "Come Thou Fount" and I am so excited to have you guys listen to it! I am still sick this week, so I might not get it done until next week, but we will see.

Today I want to talk about adversity. We talked about it in Young Women's, and I learned a lot about it that I had never thought about before. There were several scriptures that we read about adversity:

2nd Nephi 2:11~ For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.
                ~We talked about how adversity is a part of life. There can't be happiness if we don't have misery. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve didn't understand misery or happiness, and they just were. They lived in the Garden but weren't necessarily happy or miserable. Once they partook of the fruit of the tree of good and evil, however, their eyes were opened and they had to be cast out, and they were able to have happiness, and sadness, and all other emotions we have (King James Bible, Genesis 3)
Mosiah 23:21~Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people; yea, he trieth their patience and their faith.
                ~Adversity tests our faith and makes it grow. Without adversity and trials, we can't grow. We stay where we are, which isn't good. We are always changing, and adversity helps us change and grow more.
Ether 12:27~And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.
                ~We are given weaknesses so that they can become strengths. Adversity makes us want to change, to be better, and become stronger. Without weakness, we aren't weak, nor strong. We just are. Weaknesses help us become stronger.
Doctrine and Covenants 58: 2-3~2) For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is faithfulin tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven. 3) Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation.
                ~If we have faith to get through our trial and we get through it, we will receive many blessings.

To conclude, I have a story about adversity. Four years ago, my great-grandpa died a few days before my birthday. The day before my birthday, we went up to Idaho and my birthday was the day of the funeral, I believe. Anyway, it was hard for me. I really miss him, but the way that I got through that trial was I was able to go to his funeral. I was able to get some closure. It was still hard, but I was able to get closure. A year and several months later, my great-grandma died. Again, it was really hard for me, and I miss her so much, and I wasn't able to go to her funeral. I still got closure, though. The day after I found out that she had died, the whole ninth grade at my school got to go to Lagoon. So that whole day, I spent it with my friends, and I was able to take my mind off of the loss of my great-grandmother. It was still hard, and still sad, but both times I was able to get some closure. I know that I will get to see them again, and I know that they are rooting for me, and helping me, and I hope that I can make them proud. I know that families are forever. I know that, even though adversities and trials are so hard, I know that they can make us better people, and I know that blessings come from enduring through them. There is a song entitled "Blessings" by Mercy River. They are an amazing group! I love their songs and the messages that they give. This one is about adversities and trials, so go look it up! It's a good one. :)