The Spirit of Christmas

I have been unusually grumpy this Christmas season!

Yes, a strange sentence to begin a Christmas blog post with! But it's important!! Thursday especially I was just in a sour mood for no identifiable reason (a teenager thing, I guess!). Anyway, that evening my mom was running an errand and I begged her to let me tag along to get my Christmas shopping done (since I only had four days to get it all done! Procrastination is a bad habit of mine...).

My brother and I wandered the aisles of Walmart, searching for gifts for family and friends. We laughed and consulted with each other about what would be the best thing for ______? Who would enjoy _____? We came home and shooed our little sisters upstairs, frantically wrapping, labeling, and placing presents under the tree. Then we ventured online to buy the rest of our gift lists.

By the time I had everyone taken care of, I was smiling and cheerful - feeling happier than I had in a week!! I realized it was because I was giving, thinking of others more than myself. "It's the Christmas spirit," I thought. "It's a real thing!!!"

But then I remembered this quote from President Monson:

"Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. We feel more kindly one to another. We reach out in love to help those less fortunate. Our hearts are softened. . .To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the Spirit of Christ." (2013 First Presidency Christmas Devotional)
That makes complete sense to me. Remember Moroni 7:12-12, "Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God. . .But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, every thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God." The Christmas spirit seems to fit that bill! It "inviteth and enticeth to do good", and it inspires us to focus on the Savior! Yes, I think a more fitting name is "the Spirit of Christ"!
Merry Christmas!!!

When have you recognized the influence of the Spirit of Christ in your life? 

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If you're looking for a way to feel the Spirit of Christ this Christmas, check out some of the experiences in Good Works - it's all about becoming more selfless and giving of yourself to others. I especially love #3 - coming up with your own ideas for service and then doing them!!

Guest Post--Emma!

I asked my cousin Emma to write a 'Guest Post' for me on an experience she has had with Personal Progress. I love her story! Please let Emma know in the comments what you think about it! ~Annalee

In the first year I was in Young Women, I did Good Works #1.  In that experience, you read some scriptures, and then for two weeks record examples of service you see in your family. These two week experiences were a bit of a struggle for me because it'd be hard to remember to do them.

However, I pushed through, and each day, I'd write a sentence or two of service examples I saw.  By the end, I had realized that my mother was the most serviceable person in our house.  Once I started recording all the things that my family did from day to day, it was obvious that she was the first to offer a helping hand.  Some of the things she did we just took for granted, like making dinner and shopping.  She'd always help if one of us needed something.  

After doing that for two weeks, it really strengthened my testimony of Motherhood, and made me appreciate my Mother and all that she does for me and my family so much.  I'm glad that Annalee asked me to write this, because that made me remember this experience and the things I learned from it.  

A Journey's Ending...

Ready??

I GOT MY YW RECOGNITION AWARD!

I am so happy! 

So here is a recap of my Value Projects, if you guys need ideas (and a huge thank you to all the YW I know who suggested great projects that they did that inspired me!).

FAITH:

I memorized 'The Living Christ'! So cool! My testimony of the Savior and His life was really strengthened and solidified through this.

 

DIVINE NATURE:

I organized, coordinated, and participated in an annual Christmas Cousin Gift Exchange on both sides of my family. I was able to start it for the first time on my dad's side, and continue the tradition on my mom's side!

INDIVIDUAL WORTH:

Family History! I was able to do ten awesome hours of searching for and reserving names and performing or sharing ordinances for my ancestors! Throughout this project, I visited the Jordan River, Mt. Timpanogos, and Draper Utah temples, as well my 'home' temple, Columbia South Carolina.

KNOWLEDGE:

I read D&C 89 and committed to ten hours of exercise and preparing a healthy snacks and meals for myself. Many summer evenings, I'd grab my brother and a cousin or two and walk, run, scooter, or bike around the block for 20-30 minutes. And I ate lots of salad!!! :)

CHOICE & ACCOUNTABILITY:

I took a week-long tech vacation! This was an interesting one and harder than I expected. Even though I don't have a phone, tablet, or iPod, I was still tempted. For example, the TV show Granite Flats (which is, btw, phenomenal, and produced by BYUtv) is premiering on TV and my siblings and I were anxiously awaiting its release. However, because of my project, I had to be able to suggest not watching the new episode. That was probably the hardest moment throughout the week. (I have caught up on all the episodes now!) I stayed away from tech for the majority of the week, but I must admit to giving in for a total of probably 1 1/2 hours. But we are all human, right? Anyway, I spent the time I would have used on technology to get more sleep, read, or finish schoolwork. It was so cool! 

GOOD WORKS:

All right, I really loved this one! I put together a recipe book of my favorite recipes, as well as others I've never tried that sound great! I still have lots of room for more as I grow up, but I have enough to give me a start. This is one way to ensure that my future college student self and her roommates won't be eating Chinese takeout every night! :) I think it will also be awesome for a mission. 

INTEGRITY:

You saw this, but I'll link to the post here:

Integrity, YW in Excellence, and Things People Hang on Their Walls!!!

VIRTUE:

I also posted about my reading of the Book of Mormon here. I love this book!!!

So, there's my Young Women's journey for you, project by project! Please tell me about yours in the comments, whether completed long ago or not yet through. I'd love to hear from you! 

Now Serving!

This is a wonderful video produced by the Church! Please take the time to watch it.

While we are on the topic of service...Personal Progress has tons of ways to serve! Just a small listing below:

You need Faith that your service will bless you and the recipient of your service.

You have to know of your Divine Nature and the potential you both nurture and gain when you serve. 

Remembering the Individual Worth of the person you're serving can help you to serve them more personally, knowing that you are both Children of a King!

When you've made gaining varied Knowledge and experience a priority, you can serve people in more unique and personalized ways.

Choice and Accountability - you can choose to serve or not, but you will be accountable for that choice!

Good Works and service are the same. Service can only be good works. Good works is defined as service!

Integrity is required to do the service well and to do it with a pure heart, with no intent of personal gain. 

And finally, Virtue is needed because, as one 2009 MormonAd put it, "Virtue [is] the Gold Standard". And how can we achieve the 'Gold Standard' without serving others as Christ did? Christ led a virtuous life, and thus we can look to HIM as our Gold Standard.

I hope we can all remember how our Savior lived and how much He served everyone during his life and through His Atonement!

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Note: I found this video on my cousin Lily's blog. Please read her many informative and fun posts on family history and the Spirit of Elijah here. Don't forget to comment!!!

Know Before You Go...To a Litter Pickup in the Rain

In a post written a couple of weeks ago, I wrote that in the near future I would have two opportunities to complete Good Works Elective Experience #6:

Spend at least three hours giving service outside your family. Ask your ward or branch Relief Society president or a community leader for suggestions for service. For example, you might take care of children while parents attend the temple; collect, make, or recondition toys or games for a nursery; accept an assignment to clean the meetinghouse; or perform errands for or read to a homebound person or others in need. Record in your journal the reactions of the person you served and possible goals for future service opportunities.

On Tuesday, March 31, the Young Women of our ward went to an orphan relief organization and helped them for two hours in their distribution center. We sorted clothes, hung them up or folded them, restocked shelves, and hauled boxes. It was a fun activity and everyone loved the feel of serving.

Yesterday was our town's annual 'Day of Service', which our ward participated in. We were assigned to do a litter pickup at several parks in the area. Our group found some pretty odd things, namely, dozens of zip-ties, a bunch of blue confetti, a $1 coin in a plastic Easter egg, and cat food bowls, just to name a few. 

Oh, and did I mention that it rained? Only lightly, but the ground was a bit muddy, and my shoes and socks were instantly soaked at the toes. Plus, it is apparently gnat season right now, and everyone was swatting at flies. In fact, I found a dead bug in my ear a few hours later!

All in all, it was fantastic service, and I enjoyed it. I hope that everyone gets to have an opportunity to do service and feel the joy it brings!!!

Embark!

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Serve, Serve, Serve!

Hey everyone! Good Works must be a really great value if it's already getting two posts just to itself! (Read the other here.) But it goes really well with the Mutual Theme this year: 'O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve Him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength, that ye may stand blameless before Him at the last day.' (D&C 4:2)

In the January New Era, there was an article called 'Serving God Through Personal Progress'. It gives some great ideas for ways to serve and live the 2015 theme while doing Personal Progress. 

In addition to the suggestions given in this article, Good Works Elective Experience #6 is great! Three hours of service, however, seemed a bit...much. How could I possibly find that much service??? I wasn't sure if I would be doing that one...

Until my awesome ward and Young Women leaders plan two separate service projects that are each about three hours.

Yep. I just hit the mother lode. 

I had actually been not-too-seriously pondering this experience, but I was still trying to think what types of service I could do. Then, over the pulpit in Sacrament Meeting, the bishop's counselor announced and outlined our annual 'Day of Service'. We'd literally spend three hours just serving our beautiful community! That's going to be in a few weeks. Just two hours later, in Young Women Opening Exercises, the YW President told us that next week, we'll be going to an orphan relief place and spending the whole morning serving there. 

Seriously, this is the best coincidence. Or maybe not. I don't really think it's a coincidence. But there it is. More than enough service hours for me to do this awesome experience and serve others! I'm excited for these opportunities, and I'll keep you posted (pun not intended). 

Have a lovely Wednesday! And tell me your favorite service experience in the comments. I'd love to hear about it!

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Special Edition!!!

I know, I posted only yesterday, but I wanted to share something really neat. My cousin, Lily, who is a family history guru, has started a blog on the Spirit of Elijah and how youth can get involved, their purpose in being here on earth in the last days, etc. Anyway, I was very impressed by her thorough knowledge and explanation. You can read her blog here.

Well, I am very excited for this new resource to help youth in their quest to find their ancestors, but I also noticed that this correlates closely with some Personal Progress Experiences. And, of course, I am always looking for fun ways to get involved with Personal Progress. ;)

Individual Worth Elective Experience #6 says:

When you participate in family history, you come to understand your identity and individual worth. Visit with your living relatives to learn as much information about your family history as possible. Then complete a pedigree chart of your family and list the temple ordinances that have been completed for each person.

Well, this is pretty self-explanatory, at least to me, but if you have questions, please ask in the comments!

Knowledge Elective Experience #4 says:

Select a gospel principle you would like to understand better (for example, faith, repentance, charity, eternal families, or baptismal covenants). Read scriptures and the words of latter-day prophets that relate to the principle. Prepare a five-minute talk on the subject and give the talk in a sacrament meeting, in a Young Women meeting, to your family, or to your class. Record in your journal how you can apply this gospel principle in your life.

If you are curious about genealogy (the fancy-schmancy word for family history), you can research that using the resources they have suggested and prepare your talk on what you have learned!

Good Works Elective Experience #6 says:

Spend at least three hours giving service outside your family. Ask your ward or branch Relief Society president or a community leader for suggestions for service. For example, you might take care of children while parents attend the temple; collect, make, or recondition toys or games for a nursery; accept an assignment to clean the meetinghouse; or perform errands for or read to a homebound person or others in need. Record in your journal the reactions of the person you served and possible goals for future service opportunities.

Family history is SERVICE!!!! Finding names, taking them to the temple, and doing their ordinances may be the one of the biggest, most important services you will ever do for other people. I mean, it's their SALVATION we're talking about here, people! Who KNOWS how long people have been waiting to cross from Spirit Prison into Spirit Paradise?! 

You can also do family history and temple work for a project in many of the values. Be creative!

If you want to get more involved in the work of salvation for the dead (who are NOT actually dead!), familysearch.org is a wonderful resource! Create an account (or log in with your LDS account) and start searching! I promise that you will experience the Spirit of Elijah for yourself and feel your ancestors smiling down on you. 

Here are some great recent conference talks on family history. You don't have to read them all in their entirety, but skim over them and if something catches your eye, read it!

Elder Bednar's "The Hearts of the Children Shall Turn" from the October 2011 General Conference is probably my favorite: The Hearts of the Children Shall Turn. If you don't read the whole of this one, please read these:

I now invite the attention of the young women, young men, and children of the rising generation as I emphasize the importance of the Spirit of Elijah in your lives today. My message is intended for the entire Church in general—but for you in particular.

Many of you may think family history work is to be performed primarily by older people. But I know of no age limit described in the scriptures or guidelines announced by Church leaders restricting this important service to mature adults. You are sons and daughters of God, children of the covenant, and builders of the kingdom. You need not wait until you reach an arbitrary age to fulfill your responsibility to assist in the work of salvation for the human family.

The Lord has made available in our day remarkable resources that enable you to learn about and love this work that is sparked by the Spirit of Elijah. For example,FamilySearch is a collection of records, resources, and services easily accessible with personal computers and a variety of handheld devices, designed to help people discover and document their family history. These resources also are available in the family history centers located in many of our Church buildings throughout the world.

It is no coincidence that FamilySearch and other tools have come forth at a time when young people are so familiar with a wide range of information and communication technologies. Your fingers have been trained to text and tweet to accelerate and advance the work of the Lord—not just to communicate quickly with your friends. The skills and aptitude evident among many young people today are a preparation to contribute to the work of salvation.

I invite the young people of the Church to learn about and experience the Spirit of Elijah. I encourage you to study, to search out your ancestors, and to prepare yourselves to perform proxy baptisms in the house of the Lord for your kindred dead (see D&C 124:28–36).And I urge you to help other people identify their family histories.

As you respond in faith to this invitation, your hearts shall turn to the fathers. The promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be implanted in your hearts. Your patriarchal blessing, with its declaration of lineage, will link you to these fathers and be more meaningful to you. Your love and gratitude for your ancestors will increase. Your testimony of and conversion to the Savior will become deep and abiding.And I promise you will be protected against the intensifying influence of the adversary. As you participate in and love this holy work, you will be safeguarded in your youth and throughout your lives. 

Elder Cook's talk, "Roots and Branches" from the April 2014 conference is a popular one: Roots and Branches.

And Elder Richard G. Scott's "The Joy of Redeeming the Dead" from the October 2012 conference--The Joy of Redeeming the Dead.

Thanks for reading my rambling!