Good Stuff

I was spiritually fed and uplifted today. These are the things that touched my heart today.

Do you recognize this picture? It is from The Lion King and is a picture of Simba as a baby. At one point in the movie, Simba is struggling to find happiness; he is searching for something more. An old friend, Rafiki, comes and reminds him of who he is. He reminds him that his father, Mufasa, lives within him. I thought of this scene when one of the speakers in sacrament meeting shared a quote from Joseph F. Smith that said successful fathers have children that permit them to live within their hearts (paraphrased because I can't find the exact quote--this is what distracted me in Sunday school). I was so struck by this quote. I believe that if I asked my children, they would feel this way about their father. They permit him to live in their heart and because of this they will always know who they are.

In Luke 22:43 we read Christ's words, pleading unto His Father "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless, not my will, but thine, be done." Can you imagine the anguish that our Heavenly Father must have been going through as He watched His son struggling so mightily? And yet He knew, as Christ also knew, what was occurring in Gethsemane and what was still to come, must continue. So in His perfect and infinite love, He responded, "And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him."(vs 44) What a perfect example for earthly fathers to follow. There will be times that their children will struggle, will go through difficult experiences that will be important for growth and learning. Those experiences might be tough to watch, but the father can stand by his child, lifting and encouraging, acting as an angel from heaven to strengthen his child.

We had a special visitor today at church. Sister Carole Stephens, First Counselor in the General Relief Society. Her message during sacrament meeting was short and sweet. She shared a few memories of her father. She then shared a thought she had as she watched the young men pass the sacrament. She was struck by how the priests extend their arm to the deacons to symbolically pass Christ to those deacons. The deacons then take those symbols (the bread representing Christ's body and the water representing the blood of Christ) and extend their arms to the congregation to pass along Christ. As members of the congregation we gratefully accept these symbols, thus accepting Christ into our bodies and souls. Since we have been blessed to have Christ with us, we should extend our arms to others to share this blessing of Christ in our lives.

I love Sunday's like this, where church doesn't feel like a 3-hour bore.