What's Building You?

This weekend I took a trip down to Provo for a basketball game with some of my friends from my mission. It was a great trip. During this trip I was hanging out will all my friends from my mission and we were talking and it was a great  time! Then in Sunday School we were at one of my friend’s brother’s ward and they had a youth program. One of the youth was talking a lot about their friends and who we surround ourselves with and how they shape our lives. This is such a true thing I was really thinking about it and throughout my life I can easily map out when I was happiest and when I was at my lowest points according to who I was friends with. Whatever is around us makes us who we are this principle is taught in Doctrine and Covenants 50:24 it says "That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day." When we recognize the light of God we are able to get more light so if we are hanging out with people who bring light into our lives then we will gain light and more light, but it doesn't only apply to who we hang out with but also what we let into our lives. Are we letting things that have the ability to let light into our lives and uplifts us? We have to think what do I watch what do I read. Everything that we interact with changes how we are built up whether we are being built up with light or not.
 Just like light leads to more light often darkness leads to more darkness once you starting letting your bad things into your life it becomes much easier to continue to let it in even more because that is just easier then changing back to letting light into your life. There was a time in my life when I realized that I needed to do something to make more light be in my life. It was my senior year of high school and I had been hanging out with the same friends since freshman year but I was getting ready to serve my mission and I had a strong feeling that I needed to stop hanging out with my friends as much and create some distance. It was a hard thing to do I mean it was my senior year,  but I knew it was what I needed to do. At this point in my life I am through a good bit of my senior year trying to keep my distance and from doing to many things with those friends and I saw a difference in my life and even though it was a hard thing do it helped build me into a better person. We all need to be constantly analyzIng our lives to try and see what we are letting build us. What are you letting in your life?  Is it building and filling your life with light or is it building your life in a wrong direction? If it is going in a direction you don't like don't be afraid to change it!
Just find a way make a plan and do it!

Are you stuck on a Beach?

I know the title might sound super random, but that was a phrase that was used in our Sunday School class today and I really liked it alot. So we were talking about the brother of Jared story and we were talking about how when they left all together and were traveling through the wilderness they came to the seashore and they called it Moriancumer and they stayed there for four years. What really brings the title into play is in her description she made of where they ended up she said she imagined it as a nice Mediterranean beach, clear water, beautiful weather. It seems perfect right and so some of the Jaredites probably thought, “well this feels like the promised land we are comfortable here.”It does seem like they got too comfortable. After 4 years the Lord comes to the brother of Jared again and chastens him for 3 hours because he did not remember to pray during that time. We aren't told why he forgot to pray maybe life was just so full and fast and there was just so much to do and so it sippled his mind. Maybe he was just so content there that he forgot all that the Lord had done for him to get him there. In most of our lives we tend to get content and lots of things become commonplace. This is because it is easier to be content and comfortable in life because we are doing the things we enjoy and we don't have to push ourselves to do new things. So as she  posed the question in class are we stuck on a beach that we think is the promised land? Are we living our life fully to what God wants us to be doing and are we where God wants us to be? I really thought about this trying to make sure there wasn't an area in my life where I am complacent in. This is something I have really strived to avoid in my life since my mission. Before my mission I was a very complacent person I took life pretty easy I didn't care to put myself out there very much or do much that pushed my limits. In high school I took all of the basic classes that didn't push me too hard in school. I thought that my life was pretty good being like that. But I realized on my mission that I could have been so much happier and done so much more. That is the trap with complacency Satan wants us to be complacent because if we are complacent we won't accomplish as much and we can. We tend to fall out of good habits like praying and reading everyday because we won't need as much help with our life. I learned that true happiness comes in life when we are continually striving to be better than the last day. When we are looking for things we can improve on. There was a talk given in General Conference that really helped me in this area. It is called “What Lack I Yet” by Elder Larry R Lawrence this talk has changed my life! in it he says the following
"I would like to suggest that each of you participate in a spiritual exercise sometime soon, perhaps even tonight while saying your prayers. Humbly ask the Lord the following question: “What is keeping me from progressing?” In other words: “What lack I yet?” Then wait quietly for a response. If you are sincere, the answer will soon become clear. It will be revelation intended just for you.
Perhaps the Spirit will tell you that you need to forgive someone. Or you may receive a message to be more selective about the movies you watch or the music you listen to. You may feel impressed to be more honest in your business dealings or more generous in your fast offerings. The possibilities are endless."
The challenge that he issued to us all here has great power I have done it and I try to ask the Lord at least once a week, “what lack i yet?” and the lord always helps me see what I need to do better what I need to improve on. Sometimes it is something big and other times just small things. I have had so much more joy in my life since I have started to look for ways that I can improve. I can testify that the Lord loves us all and because he loves us he will tell us what we can do better so that we can have greater happiness and so that he can bless us more. He want to bless us more so ask him what you can do to better to get more blessings! I encourage all who read this to take Elder Lawrence’s challenge I can promise that it will change your life for the better and you will have a happier life.Remember ask yourself am I stuck on a beach? look around there could be a lot more good that you could have and could be doing with your life! Just ask the Lord what you can do and ask him to help you and he will do both!