Talk of the Week Club: Week 20: Finding Joy in the Journey

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Week 20: Finding Joy in the Journey

I have heard this talk before many times. For whatever reason, this time it impacted me more than ever before. I hope you enjoy it and I hope that it encourages you to "find joy in the journey".

MP3 link

Finding Joy in the Journey

President Thomas S. Monson

Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family.

My dear brothers and sisters, I am humbled as I stand before you this morning. I ask for your faith and prayers in my behalf as I speak about those things which have been on my mind and which I have felt impressed to share with you.

I begin by mentioning one of the most inevitable aspects of our lives here upon the earth, and that is change. At one time or another we’ve all heard some form of the familiar adage: “Nothing is as constant as change.”

Throughout our lives, we must deal with change. Some changes are welcome; some are not. There are changes in our lives which are sudden, such as the unexpected passing of a loved one, an unforeseen illness, the loss of a possession we treasure. But most of the changes take place subtly and slowly.

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I am a mother, wife, daughter, sister, and friend. I grew up in Washington, Utah then in 1994 moved to Logan, Utah. I was married in 1995 and in 1999 I became a mother and began a whole new journey in life. Here I am 12 years later with 3 beautiful children who have been a blessing and have been the cause of much of my growth! I hope that I am a person who brings hope and happiness to others. This year I am working on just being me and serving Jesus Christ. Ever since I can remember I have enjoyed learning about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I enjoyed all the classes and opportunities I have had to learn and grow in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For many years I based a lot of my studies on knowing who I am and what I am supposed to be. I am grateful for the things I have learned and desire so much for as many people as possible to know what I know and trust in what they feel in their hearts.

I was born in Logan, Utah and spent my school years in Snowflake, Arizona. I met my awesome husband the second month I attended Ricks College. In June of 1985, after he returned from serving a mission, we married in the Logan Temple and I graduated from BYU in December of that year. We spent 8 of our first married years in Canada-- Magrath, Alberta and Hamilton, Ontario--where 3 of our sons were born. We moved to Utah 15 years ago.
I am becoming a woman of Faith. I strive to live each day with eternal goals in mind. The past three years, I have grown immensely as I have been stretched and challenged. I have learned to rely on our Father in Heaven and the Savior as never before. Most of all, I have learned to trust Them and Their perfect plan for each of us. The days I let Them steer my ship, my life is much sweeter, despite the difficulties, than the times I rely on my own strength and insights. I know as we each allow Them to guide our daily activities, we can feel the peace and joy that come from being in Their service and doing exactly what They would have us do each day. I am daily striving to be more like Them and know that our joys increase as we do this. I am also learning to better hear and heed the Spirit and I am so grateful for His direction in my life. I know our safety depends on each of us developing this Gift. Most of all, I want to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord to fulfill His purposes while I have the privilege of being here on earth. I love being a wife and mother to five wonderful sons, and my desire is that each person I have contact with each day feels better for the time we have shared and that somehow I might assist in bringing the light of the Gospel to them.

I am a mother, wife, daughter, friend, mentor and business owner. I grew up in a small town in central NJ and then in 1992 I moved to ID to attend college. I met and fell in love with the man of my dreams and we were married in the SLC, Temple on General Conference weekend. In 1996, I graduated from USU with a Bachelor’s of Science and a few weeks later became a mother. It’s been over 16 years since I was married and I now have 3 strong-willed and valiant children. I can honestly say that the last 7 years I have been on the steepest learning curve of my whole life. I have been blessed both temporally and spiritually in ways I never dreamed. Since I was a little girl I have listened to conference talks and the scriptures. My mom would play them on a small tape recorder while she hand-washed dishes, made dinner, or even while we were driving in the car. When I started my own family we started listening to the CDs of the scriptures as well as General Conference. Now we simply put them on our IPOD. Whatever the medium of listening, I have been strengthened throughout my life to hear the voice of the God. I know he loves each of us. We are his children and because we are His he blesses us each day and encourages us to lift, heal, edify, strengthen, love, learn and more.

I am the daughter of a loving Heavenly Father who has blessed me in countless ways. I am a mother to 5 beautiful children, the wife to an amazing priesthood holder, a daughter of goodly parents, a sister and a friend to many. My journey began almost 19 years ago when I was just 8 years old and two beautiful sister missionaries knocked on our door in Bayside, Queens, NY. That day my life changed forever. Two short months later I was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Our membership in the church led us to Provo, Utah when I was 12 years old. After graduating from Provo High School, I married my best friend on April 17, 1999. We were sealed together in the Bountiful, Utah Temple. Over the last 9 years, our life together has seen its share of ups and downs, including the birth of a child with Cystic Hygroma. Throughout our trials I have been able to stay close to the Lord through study and much prayer. The knowledge that we have a living prophet by which He speaks to us has sustained me. I know that I can always turn to Latter-day talks to build my faith and understanding. I always seem to find the right words at the right time when I seek to know more. Throughout this year I have been striving to learn patience and trust in the Lord and in his timing. I want to be an example of Christ-like love and to make Him the center of my home. I know that through the gospel of Jesus Christ those things are not hard to achieve if we put our faith in him. I am thankful that he guided those two sister missionaries to our house that September day in 1989 and that my parents chose to let them come in and share their message. I am dedicated to sharing that message with the world so that they to may know my JOY!

Making the Most of the Talk of the Week

Here are a few helpful hints to make the most of the Talk of the Week

~upload the talk to your MP3 player, listen while exercising , cleaning or getting ready for the day
~burn the talk to a CD and listen to it in the car, kitchen, bathroom, etc.
~have your journal nearby to write your thoughts and inspiration
~share your thoughts with a friend or family member or comment on the blog
~remember that this is supposed to be an enjoyable experience read or listen to the talks that catch your attention first
~ be open to the Spirit's promptings and you will never go wrong