Into the unknown.

This last week has been a little crazy! My sister had her wedding reception Thursday and then got married Friday, and so we spent all week finalizing preparations. The reception and wedding were both very beautiful. My sister made a beautiful bride and I am very happy for her and proud of her. 

This week is Thanksgiving, and I am very grateful for all of the blessings in my life. I am grateful for my Savior, and my Heavenly Parents. I am grateful for the love that I feel from Them, and for the blessings that They give me in my life. I am grateful for the opportunities that I had to attend college and increase my education. I am grateful for my job, and for the happiness that it brings me to work with my kiddos. I am grateful for my parents, and my siblings–new brother-in-law included. I am grateful for my friends, and for all of their love and support during my trials in the last several years. And I am grateful for my boyfriend, who is the sweetest and most thoughtful guy, and who is the best blessing in my life right now. 💜

My life hasn't always gone the way that I had hoped that it would, but I know that this is something that everyone struggles with. Life doesn't always go as planned. God has a bigger plan for us. And His timing is always perfect–even when it doesn't seem like it is. We don't always know why things happen when they do–or don't happen–but not knowing why can often help us increase our faith and trust in the Lord. As of right now, I don't know why God's timing is perfect for me right now.  Sometimes it's really hard to trust the Lord, especially when it doesn't feel like He is listening. But as we are praying in a way that means God can actually answer our prayers, we can come to better understand His plans for us. Sometimes His timing doesn't feel perfect, and sometimes it doesn't seem like I can hear Him answering me, but I know that eventually–whether in this life or the next–things will all make sense. 

As we step forward into the unknown (phrase courtesy of Frozen II and its soundtrack, which I conveniently saw yesterday evening and I HIGHLY recommend everyone sees! I recommend seeing it blindly but you can do what you want), we are facing our fears. We are trusting God and trusting ourselves, and standing tall and taking a step into the dark. The future is unknown, but as we strive to follow God's plan for us, we can come to take things one moment at a time and even though it might not always make sense, it will always be a lesson or a blessing–something to learn from, or something to grow from. 

A bit of a shorter post today, but if you're interested, on Friday I posted on my Facebook page about my sister's wedding and some tips on relationships from President and Sister Nelson. 

Hope everyone has a wonderful week preparing for Thanksgiving this week! Remember to count your blessings and be thankful. I know that I am going to be focusing on gratitude and my blessings this week, and for the rest of the holiday season this year. 

Xoxo

Mattie

Putting aside your needs and wants for the needs and wants of others.

I love my ward! I am so thankful for the beautiful souls that I get to see all the time. They've blessed my life and I learn so much from them. <3 <3

Today during the sacrament, I was thinking about patience, and this thought came to my mind:

Sometimes being patient and letting God take the reins is hard. When you want something to go one way, and it doesn't happen that way, or it happens down the road, can be frustrating. But honestly, God knows what's best. He knows what you need and when you need it. Trust Him. He loves you and wants what's best for you. Take your time and just know that it will all work out.

Here's some of my favorite things that were said in sacrament meeting:
Even when we're going through hard things, Christ is there. He is cheering us on. You can do hard things.
"Secure your own mask before you attempt to help others." You can't help someone if you can't breathe on your own. That won't help them or you. Be secure in your own testimony before you start to help someone else.
Forgiveness helps us.

In Gospel Doctrine, we talked about 3 Nephi 17-19:
We talked about how the Nephites might not have understood all that Christ said but they understood enough to know that what He was saying was important enough and they wanted Him to stay with them.
Even though He was probably exhausted, He stayed to heal their sick and afflicted, and He made time for the little children.
Christ put aside His own needs and wants for the needs and wants of the Nephite people. "If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat them as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming." ~~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Christ is the epitome of charity, which is why charity is called the "Pure Love of Christ".

Relief Society was great! We talked about charity. So it was kind of a continuation of Gospel Doctrine. :)

I loved this quote from Elder Marvin J. Ashton that was shared: "Real charity is not something you give away; it is something that you acquire and make a part of yourself...Perhaps the greatest charity comes when we are kind to each other, when we don’t judge or categorize someone else, when we simply give each other the benefit of the doubt or remain quiet. Charity is accepting someone’s differences, weaknesses, and shortcomings; having patience with someone who has let us down; or resisting the impulse to become offended when someone doesn’t handle something the way we might have hoped. Charity is refusing to take advantage of another’s weakness and being willing to forgive someone who has hurt us. Charity is expecting the best of each other." 

I loved this. Charity is so much more than we often remember it is.  

The Savior taught us to love everyone, including those who may be difficult to love. "Excuses [not to do so] are easy to find; they spring up as readily and plentifully as weeds by the wayside." ~Elder James E. Talmage

I love talking about charity because I've had so many examples of charity and Christlike love in my life and it's something that I try to always do/be. Charity isn't something that I usually have trouble doing but sometimes I have trouble remembering all the things that encompass charity and so it's always a nice lesson to have because it helps me remember all the times I've had/done charity but also all the ways that I could be better at it. Charity is something that often is something we have to choose to do at first, but if you do it long enough it just becomes a part of you.

This week is Thanksgiving and I'm excited to be going home! I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have to spend time with my family and I'm grateful for the holiday season that is upon us. It's a time to remember to be thankful, and a time to spread love, and a time to be and do so much to help those in need. At this moment in my life, it (life) is changing, slowly and surely, and oftentimes it's so crazy and I have a lot going on, but I always try to make time for my friends when they need me. And then things [in my life] go better than I thought they would. I know that putting aside my to-do list when a friend or family member needs me is not only what I need to do but what I want to do. I want to be there. I want them to know that I love them and they are more important to me than my to-do list. Because they are.  I would choose them over my to-do list. And I would do anything to show them that I love them, and that God loves them, and that they are loved and needed here on earth.

I hope you guys have a great Thanksgiving! Travel safely and enjoy your time with your family! :)

Xoxo
Mattie

Happy Thanksgiving!

Two separate Facebook posts about today. I had a blast with my family today! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!! I'm grateful for so many things!! I'm so grateful that I have the opportunity to go to school and get an education. I'm lucky and grateful to have been surrounded by so many great examples throughout my life. I'm so grateful that there are temples around. I'm so grateful for all of the opportunities that I have had (and will have) to grow as a person and to grow in the gospel. I'm so grateful for my family and friends (they love me in spite of my weirdness and craziness ;) ). I'm so grateful for the scriptures and the prophets. But most of all I'm grateful for my Heavenly Father, and my Savior, Jesus Christ. His Atonement has helped me heal more times than I can count, but I know that I can always count on Him to be there for me.

It's been a really fun day. Filled with family, food, dessert (yes it's a separate category of food), funny videos, and laughing fits and outbursts. I love my family and I'm so grateful that I got to spend the day with them. I'm also grateful that I get to be myself. I know I'm crazier and weirder than most but I wouldn't trade who I am to be anyone else. I'm grateful that I get to be me because my world is better when I'm being myself–it's real. :)

End of November gratitude.

Hard to believe it's already the end of November!! I'm so grateful for my family and friends and for all they do and for their examples to me. I am grateful for the Thanksgiving season to get me in the mood for gratitude and I'm so excited for the Christmas season to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I'm grateful for Him and for all He's done for me, and for His love and faith in me. I love Him and am grateful that He believes in me and wants me to return to live with our Heavenly Father. 

Callings and Thanksgiving.

Today I was released from my calling as the Laurel class president and I'm grateful for the opportunity I had to serve with my two wonderful counselors and my awesome secretary. It was a wonderful experience and I am going to miss being the president but I'm grateful that I was released because I've had a lot of experience being a class president and I think other girls need the opportunity to serve.

This week is Thanksgiving!! I am so excited because I get to spend time with my (extended) family and eat food! I'm grateful for this country and for the freedoms we enjoy; I'm grateful for my family; I'm grateful for the home I live in; I'm grateful for my friends; I'm grateful for wonderful leaders, teachers, and mentors in my life; and most of all, I'm thankful for my Savior, and for His Atonement, and for His love for me. I know He lives and I know He loves me and I know He wants us all to return to live with our Heavenly Father. 

Gratitude.

So I feel kind of bad because I wasn't able to post yesterday! I got home from choir practice super late and then I was super sleepy and went to bed after I read my scriptures. This month is Thanksgiving! People always try and keep Christmas and Thangsgiving separated, but it's the holiday season! We should be grateful for Christ, because without Him we wouldn't have a reason to celebrate...He was born to save us, and it bothers me sometimes that people think that they are two separate holidays, because they go hand-in-hand with each other. Thanksgiving gets us into the mood of gratitude. And then we celebrate Christ's birth. I'm so grateful for Jesus Christ. Without Him, we wouldn't be able to return to Heavenly Father. So, even though some people believe Thanksgiving and Christmas should be separate, I believe they should go hand-in-hand. What's your opinion? Should November be about Thanksgiving and December about Christmas? Do you listen to Christmas music earlier than December? Comment below; I'd love to know what you think. :)

Thanksgiving Day Gratitude.

The Number Twenty-Eight: I am so, so, so, so, so, sooo thankful for everything. I am so thankful for my family. My cousins are so cute! I am so thankful for my friends. I love learning from them and hanging out with them. I am so thankful for food. I love mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, and pie. I am so thankful for music; I love to express myself using good music. I am so thankful for my talents. I love to share them with others. I am so thankful for good tv shows. I love to watch them; they help me get away from reality a bit. I am so thankful for good movies. I love to watch cute sweet ones. I am so thankful for good books. I love to read fantasy and romance. I am so thankful for teachers and leaders who listen and teach very well. I learn a lot from them. But most of all, I am so, so thankful for this gospel. I am so thankful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, who suffered and died for me and for all of us. I am so thankful for His example in His reign on this earth. I am so thankful for my Heavenly Father, who loves me, and you, and sent His Only Begotten Son to die for us. I am so thankful for the Holy Ghost who helps me every day. I am so thankful for all the prophets, apostles, and missionaries. I am so thankful for this beautiful world that has been designed for us. So, I am so grateful for all that has been given to me (and to everyone on this earth).