Once upon a time and happily ever afters

 

Heavenly Father loves ALL his children. 

 We all have a once upon a time, a dream, and goals we hope to reach in our life. To each and every story there are trials, there is joy, there is sorrow, there is peace, and there is heart ache. All a necessity to appreciate the good and to teach us to run from the bad.

To every fairytale there is a source of evil, and a source of rescue. The villain vs. the hero Batman has the Joker, Cinderella has her evil step mother, Thor has his brother Loki, Mufasa has Scar, and it’s just the way the movie world goes. To every character they have to make choices. To stick true to what they know or stray from the path that they know to be correct. We all have our Scar, Loki, and Jokers in our life. We all have the temptations, distractions, and discouragements from Satan. However, to each story there is also a hero, a batman, a prince, or in our case a SAVIOR. He knew we wouldn't make it out of this life un scraped.

 We were put here on earth to make a choice. Through the whirlwinds and storms of life a choice to return to our Heavenly Father or a choice to wander a stray

We enter life full of expectations, ambition and desire. Through what we think is failure, lack of support from loved ones, or poor actions from others the flame is dimmed and the dreams seem more and more impossible to reach... In a world that is darkening WE MUST BE THE LIGHT. In a world of no hope we must be the ones to lend our arms to hold those up who can't stand on their own.

 In between our once upon a time and our happily ever after things don't always go as planned. Life is hard. However it is possible. Not just possible, it too can be enjoyable. You might think who is this goofy 22 year old missionary to tell me my life can be enjoyable, she probably hasn't experienced a trial in her life. Let me tell ya something, my life hasn't been easy, nor has yours or anyone around you. None of us pass through life without scraping a knee or and elbow. HOWEVER I am finding joy in the journey.

How is it possible to find joy? Let me share some scriptures with you.

(Mosiah 24 Book of Mormon)

"12 And Alma and his people did not raise their voices to the Lord their God, but did pour out their hearts to him; and he did know the thoughts of their hearts.

13 And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.

14 And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.

15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord.

16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage.

 17 And he said unto Alma: Thou shalt go before this people, and I will go with thee and deliver this people out of bondage."

 God knows your heart, he hears your prayers. Poor it out to Him, tell Him everything, have you thought to thank Him for the little things each day? Tell Him what’s good and what is bad, ask him for help. He is your best friend. The one person that will listen to you through it all. The one person that won’t hurt you or let you down.

 The Lord came to these people He spoke to them don't worry my children, I am here. I am always here. ESPECIALLY in your trials. I promise you I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU ALONE. In fact I am going to come to you and rescue you from these bonds whether you might be bound from sin, abuse from others, heart ache, debt, other peoples choices, or your own, I am here. I will come to you.

 He will speak to you. The Lord isn't going to just be like alright Hermana Carlson, you prayed so now I am going to lift this trial. He wants us to learn. Thank Him for the opportunity to pass through the storms and ask him which direction to steer the ship, ask him how to strengthen the sail. Your life guard can walk on water. Don't panic, take Christ by the hand and walk to him. Peter didn't sink until he glanced around to see the storm. The burdens for these people were made light because they became stronger. They had trust so deep in Christ that they knew it would be possible. Once they recognized God was there they relaxed and became cheerful. Have you found Christ in your life? 

There is a grand sense of peace that comes from building a personal relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ.

Next these people had faith, faith and patience, working together to build their strength. Once the Lord sees that these people have grown as much as possible from this trial He comes and he sets them free.

 We can be freed from the spiritual bondage that comes as we go through life. We have the greatest Hero of all time and this isn't a made up story. This is real life. Christ lives. He loves, and He saves.

 While you are in between once upon a time and happily ever after don't lose hope, don't give up. The only way to fail is by never trying. Let Christ be your strength. He will deliver you from the forest filled with wolves. He will light the way when the path becomes dark. Smile and know you are beautiful because you are a child of God. Of a God, who loves so deeply that He weeps when you weep, He rejoices when you draw near to Him and his arms of love are always extended, reaching for you, grab a hold and let Him walk with you through life. He will get you to your happily ever after, back home with Him safe in His arms.

 I love my Savior Jesus Christ. He gives me a great sense of peace and belonging in a world that is hard to fit in. He gives me a sense of worth that can't come through money. He is my brother; He rescues me each and every day. He lives and He loves. Now run to Him, take His hand and find your way to your happily ever after and have joy along the way :)