"Peace be unto you."

I think that there are a lot of different ways to be at peace or for it to be peaceful. Peace is "freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility; mental calm; serenity". I think peace is a state of mind and part of your attitude. But peace can also be given to you. It is a blessing from our Heavenly Father. In John 14 verse 27, it says, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Jesus is saying that He gives us peace, but we have to be open to it; we have to open our hearts, which is like I was saying, that it's an attitude/state of mind. In Helaman 5 verse 47, it says, "Peace, peace be into you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world." This is Heavenly Father, and He is blessing the Nephites because of their faith in His son, Jesus Christ. Peace can be a blessing: if you're doing the right things and believing in Jesus Christ; or peace can be a state of mind and part of your attitude. True to the Faith says "You work for peace when keep the commandments, give service, care for family members and neighbkrs, and share the gospel. You work for peace whenever you help relieve the suffering of another." You can have peace when you are alone and all is quiet. You can even have peace when it is noisy and boisterous all around you! Just today, my brothers were playing barricade in the toy room, and they were being loud and probably hurting each other—which usually results in my interference—but I let them be and I was at peace. Today I have been at peace quite a lot, which is strange because today has been a bit hectic, but I know that Heavenly Father blessed me with patience, compassion, and a desire in my heart for peace, which led to me feeling at peace today. I'm going to try and have peace in my heart and be compassionate and soft-spoken this week. I will make mistakes, I know—I already made some today—but I want to be better about having peace and being peaceful. It's made me happier today. 

Some days. All days. Those days.

Some days go fantastically. Some days go magnificently. And some days don't. Some days you check all your due dates and things. Some days you don't. Some days you get homework done. You hope some days you won't not get it done. Some days you get so tired of everything. Some days you don't. But all days have good things to them. All days have lessons. All days have experiences. All days are full of love for you, whether you know it or not. Some days may be filled with pain, but He can help you bear it. So long as you turn to Him, He will help you bear it. So long as you keep Him in your life He will always help you. Those days are the best kinds of days. Those days can be all days, if you'll have just the right kind of attitude. 

Happiness.

Happy. Love. Service. Attitude. Optimism. These are all words that can be used to describe how one feels or how one's personality usually is. Someone can just always have a positive attitude or outlook to life. Someone can do everything they do with love. Someone can do all things service. Someone can do all things with a bit of attitude. And finally someone can always be optimistic in everything. Now, I'm sure you've noticed that they all have something in common except one. If you guessed "attitude", then you were correct. If not, well...better luck next time. Most of these four nouns and one adjective are all happy, bright words use to describe things in positive and uplifting ways. The best way to become like Christ is to act like Him. And the way He acts is some of the words I said: service, love, happy, optimism. Christ never did anything in any selfish attitude, nor for any glory. The glory is His Father's, and He knows that. I think that's how we can live. Live and act knowing that the glory is all God's, and live with a purpose; of happiness, service, or love. But where there's one of these, there is usually the other. You can't serve someone without loving them. You can't serve without being happy. Just remember that's it's all in the attitude. Your attitude depends upon all of these things. As does your happiness. So, try to be the best you can be, and pray for your friends and family. And, don't worry; be happy. :)

Miracles and attitudes.

I know that The Lord works many miracles. I have been busting out the seams with stuff: I've had homework that's extremely hard and/or time consuming, I've been working on my medallion (almost finished!!!): five projects all at the same time. Did I mention homework?? For the last two weeks, homework and Personal Progress has been my focus. And music, but I'm always in a music mood, so that doesn't count. But seriously. I don't know how I would have gotten though the past two weeks without Him. I am positive that I would NEVER have been able to get anything done without The Lord's help. I've been really busy trying to keep up with my homework and trying to work on my Personal Progress and trying to stay happy and positive. All the while, The Lord has been my rock, and my quiet place when I have needed a break. He has been my go-to guy for when I've had questions or problems. He has just listened and watched when I've needed to state my problems. He has helped me realize my potential, and my worth, and everything that I am through this blog that I wanted to do. He has been my northern star. I am surprised that I have gotten as much done as I have. He has been the best listener because, as I've said before, Christ is the best listener. It's been extremely crazy and I'm grateful for The Lord's hand in my life recently. But I am sure that when Wednesday comes around, my load will be considerably lightened, and I will be so grateful. It's just been so hectic, but, looking back, it doesn't look as hectic as I remember, and I know that this is because of The Lord. He is so amazing and merciful and loving and I am so grateful to Him. And, to be honest, I don't have it as hard as some. I'm really lucky to live in a happy home, with food, and I'm lucky to be able to go to school. I'm lucky my dad has a job, and I'm lucky that none of my siblings or either of my parents is terminally ill. I'm extremely lucky to live in this day and age, and I'm thankful for that. And, no matter what your situation, it's always your attitude that makes your life happy or sad or bad. Remember that. It's your attitude. 

Tithing.

Now, I know you're probably thinking, "There's not much to do with tithing. You pay ten percent, easy. What's she going to talk about?" And yes, you're partly right. Tithing is ten percent, but there's more to it. Well, not really, but you'll see what I mean in a second. I've been paying tithing for about four years. That's a long time. I've been babysitting for a long time, and I usually get around $10-20 each time I babysit. Sometimes I'll forget to pay tithing for a while, so when I do pay tithing, instead of it being one or two dollars, it ends up being four or five dollars. But this doesn't bother me. Paying tithing, for me, is just so natural, I don't even think about. It's just natural instinct. That money is rightfully The Lord's and it doesn't bother me that I have to pay ten percent of my earnings. Right now, I have about $400 or so in total. If I didn't pay my tithing, I'd have a lot more money, and adding to that what I've already spent, it's probably quite a lot. I'll never know. But I don't care. Tithing is a simple concept, but you have to have the right attitude and heart about it. You have to realize that nothing is ever truly yours. Everything you get comes from The Lord. So, really, ten percent is nothing. Heavenly Father has given us such a beautiful world with brilliant minds and many great inventions. Without Him, you wouldn't be reading this, I wouldn't have typed it, the technology would be impossible (improbable at the very least). But He wants us to have a good life, a nice life, not just a church-going life. So He's given us entertainment: books, movies, technology. But He still wants us to recognize Him; He wants to make sure that we know that everything has come from Him. He doesn't want the recognition, nor the money. He wants us to know what He's done for us. It's not a gift to Him. It's a gift for us. He has given us so much, it's only fair that we give back to Him. 

Looking back on my life, I've seen the hand of The Lord so many times, and just because I've paid my tithing. I have a strong testimony of tithing. I have often felt like I have had less money than I actually do sometimes, and I know that The Lord has blessed me. Tithing is not just a ritual to me, and it's not just natural. I think tithing is an attitude, a lifestyle, and it's giving a heartfelt thanks to our Heavenly Father.