With family and friends, Ryan and I enjoyed General Conference, a semi-annual gathering of our church to hear leaders share inspired messages. Every six months, we are reminded of our priorities, and inspired to keep God at the center of our lives.
After conference, Ry and I talked about what stood out most to us. For Ryan, service was a key topic woven throughout the talks. Missionary work stood out to me, especially with the announcement of the new policy, lowering the age for both guys and gals to serve as full-time missionaries.
I walked away from conference with two messages imprinted in my heart. One came from Elder Uchtdorf on Saturday when he reminded us, "We are that we might have JOY." Life's too short to let it pass by without enjoying the journey. Being busy is no excuse. We're all busy. But in the end, I don't want to look back and regret not letting myself be happy along the way. I've decided to treat myself more often and choose JOY.
Second message? President Monson's Sunday invitation:
He added, "I have found, that, rather than dwelling on the negative, if we will take a step back and consider the blessings in our lives, including seemingly small, sometimes overlooked blessings, we can find greater happiness."
Tonight, I took his challenge. Journal in hand, I went up the nearby beautiful canyon, found a worn bench next to a gurgling creek and wrote out my blessings, one by one. I kept writing for an hour and filled PAGES, everything from health and ability to walk to thrift stores (both to donate to and find gems), supportive parents and in-laws, modern plumbing, and our ability to vote.
You're blessed too. If you take on this challenge, I guess you'll have an experience like mine: Once you start listing your blessings, you'll see more and more that's good in your life. We'd love to hear how it goes!
Image courtesy of Mormon Newsroom.
