It's Been a While...

Hello again!

I know it's been a while, but I can now say I am officially done with my first year at BYU-Idaho! :D It was a fun-filled year with lots of new experiences for me that definitely stretched and shaped me into who I am today. I can tell that I will still be growing, and I can't wait until September when school starts again and I can meet new people, have new experiences, and enjoy the college life once more. :)

However, I feel like I have a ton of things I want to do this summer. Both activities, and journal writing. It feels like my mind is going crazy with everything I want to do. So, I decided that instead of writing all these different journal things in different journals that I have always been so scatterbrained in, I would write on my blog. Hopefully it will help me feel like I have a responsibility to always write in here. If it's not every day, hopefully it can be weekly, or on a somewhat regular basis.

There are several things I wish to do with my blog this summer.
1) Record fun things I do, experiences I have, etc.
2) Record my 100 Day Reading the Book of Mormon challenge.
3) Share the thoughts and inspiration from a book I have, a daily inspiration/question/challenge.

To start off with fun things I've done recently:
1) I moved back home from school! I love it! (Free laundry, food, I get a job again, a few familiar friends, etc)
2) Attended a friend's farewell who is going to New York, New York South. We did some sort of Jewish dance while he was being bounced around in a chair in his yard during his open house after the farewell. TONS of fun. I haven't had that much fun in a LONG time!
3) Played hide and seek with my family throughout the entire house...in the dark. One of the greatest nights of my life. It was terrifying, but extremely fun!
4) Watched one of my friends open his mission call to London, England!
5) Finished the last season with David Tennant in Doctor Who. I only cried a little bit. :) Pretty sure my soul is still in mourning though...haha! ;)
6) Started working at Dairy Keen again to earn money for college in the fall.
7) I am now a member of the Heber Singles Ward!

Okay, so now I guess I can start the Book of Mormon Challenge today. :) I should be finished on.....let's see.....let me count.....Thursday, August 15. Let's see if I can stay on top of this! This will be difficult, but it should be really good! I can't wait! Either before or after the scripture thought and section that I will include a link for in the blog, I will post a thought from a book I got at school called, "Walking with the Savior". There are daily inspirational things you can do, think about, read, etc, and they're called the "365 days of miracles." I started it while at school, and they don't take long, but in the chaos of moving, finals, starting a job, getting used to a new routine at home, etc, it was just recently that I was able to pull it out of the box and get started on it again. I'm only on week 2, but maybe I'll start it again, just to get a new fresh feeling of starting the Book of Mormon and the journal at the same time. :) I'm crazy like that, haha.

Well, here's to what should hopefully be the greatest journey over the next 100 and 365 days! :) Wish me luck! I'd love to have any readers along with me for the journey! We'll keep each other growing!

Book of Mormon: Introduction to Reading for 100 days

"I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase, mutual respect, and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will council their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope and charity--the pure love of Christ--will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness." 
{President Marion G. Romney}

Day 1: Preface (Title Page), Introduction, Testimony of Three Witnesses, Testimony of Eight Witnesses, Testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith

What to mark: The quote from Joseph Smith in the Introduction, "I told the brethren...any other book."

"I would like to urge [everyone] to again read the Book of Mormon...There is nothing we could do of greater importance than to have fortified in our individual lives an unshakable conviction that Jesus is the Christ, the Living Son of the Living God. And, my brothers and sisters, that is the purpose of the coming forth of this remarkable and wonderful book."
{President Gordon B. Hinckley}

Links to Reading Selections: 
Title Page: http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/bofm-title?lang=eng
Introduction: http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/introduction?lang=eng
Three Witnesses: http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/three?lang=eng
Eight Witnesses: http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/eight?lang=eng
Testimony of Joseph Smith: http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/js?lang=eng

I really liked the paragraph in the Introduction that says, "We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost." That's what this journey will take us to!

The testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith is extremely powerful, and I love the descriptions and stories he tells us in how this wonderful book came to be. If there is something that chokes me up almost more than anything is the power, the spirit and the strength of that wonderful prophet. Even writing this right now is making me tear up a little bit.  Joseph Smith and the atoning sacrifice of our Savior are the two things that I feel the strongest about in this gospel, because I know they needed to happen, and they happened for me. I'm thankful for the scriptures as well, because they are how I get answers and revelation perhaps more than anything else.

Here is the first daily thing from the book, "Walking with the Savior".

Week One: Can I Become a Disciple of Christ?

Day 1: 

So, you've decided to embark on a special journey to discipleship and may be wondering what you've gotten yourself into! Or, you might be worried that you don't have what it takes to be a disciple of Christ. Elder Joseph B Wirthlin taught, "Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us--even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will. We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won't, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and women for the eternities" (Joseph B Wirthlin, "The Great Commandment," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 29-30). Becoming a disciple of Christ is a process and a journey of refinement--it does not happen overnight--but it will happen when we can begin to see our worth in the eyes of the Savior. When we plan a vacation or a business trip we prepare long lists of items we need to take along with us. The only thing you need to take with you on this journey is a willing heart. 

This week: I will remember: I don't have to be perfect to be the Savior's disciple.

See you tomorrow. Keep reading! :)

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.