Follow the Light!

A talk that Jeff and I heard on Sunday during General Conference that made us stop and think. In that talk we were challenged to pick out one verse of scripture each week and Ponderize on it. The speaker went on to say that Ponderize is not in the dictionary but his explanation of the word was it is more like a combination of 2 things.. the first is 80% should be pondering about this scripture and the other 20% was in memorizing the scripture. Then he went on to explain how to do that in 2 simple steps, here they are...

First, choose a verse of scripture each week and place it where you will see it every day.

Second, read or think of the verse several times each day and ponder the meaning of its words and key phrases throughout the week.

Imagine the uplifting results of doing this weekly for six months, a year, 10 years, or more.

As you make this effort, you will feel an increase in spirituality. You will also be able to teach and lift those you love in more meaningful ways.

If you choose to ponderize weekly, you may feel a bit like a person who has enjoyed snorkeling in the past but has now decided to try scuba diving. With that decision, a deeper understanding of gospel principles will be yours and new spiritual perspectives will bless your life.

As you reflect on your selected verse each week, words and phrases will be written on your heart.⁴ Words and phrases will also be written on your mind. In other words, memorization will take place easily and naturally. But the primary goal of ponderizing is to provide an uplifting place for your thoughts to go—a place that keeps you close to the Spirit of the Lord.

The Savior said, “Treasure up in your minds continuallythe words of life.”⁵ Ponderizing is a simple and edifying way to do just that.

I have to admit, there are so many negative things in the world that floods our minds on a daily basis, through, Television, Radio and Internet. It is easy for our thoughts to become worried and discouraged. Why not have a higher place for our thoughts to go? It was a brillant idea and Jeff and I wanted to try and incorperate that in our day. Here is the scripture I picked...
St.John chapter 12

 35 Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.

 36 While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. 

When I think of light, and people who have light in their lives, I am grateful to have them in my life. I am drawn to people who have that light, that hope, that happiness, that kindness that truly makes you want to be with them as much as you can. People who have that light, truly are the happiest people I know. I think that is exactly what type of people the Lord expects us to be at all times, not just on Sunday or when we know someone is watching us!
So this was one of the great spiritual message that I got this weekend.
I will let you know how it goes!
Good Night dear friends!

You can watch or read it yourself HERE:

Food for thought!

  As I sit here tonight with a house full of college kids ( that are here between semesters ) and I am so happy to have my house full and with so much fun and laughter in it. I have missed having my kids around, so for a week...I will be very happy! Tonight as I started to do my blog, they all kept helping me and giving me advice so here is one of the stories that they heard and so I looked it up and .... I like it, so I thought I would share it with you tonight. 
Good night dear friends!


The university professor challenged his students with this question. Did God create everything that exists?
A student bravely replied yes, he did!"
"God created everything?" The professor asked.
"Yes, sir," the student replied.

The professor answered, "If God created everything, then God created evil since evil exists, and according to the principal that our works define who we are then God is evil."
The student became quiet before such an answer.

The professor was quite pleased with himself and boasted to the students that he had proven once more that the Christian faith was a myth.

Another student raised his hand and said, "Can I ask you a question professor?" "Of course", replied the professor. The student stood up and asked, "Professor, does cold exist?"

"What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never been cold?" The students snickered at the young man's question.

The young man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat. Everybody and every object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (- 460 degrees F) is the total absence of heat; all matter becomes inert and incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We have created this word to describe how we feel if we have too little heat.

The student continued. "Professor, does darkness exist?"

The professor responded, "Of course it does".

The student replied, "Once again you are wrong sir, darkness does not exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present."

Finally the young man asked the professor. "Sir, does evil exist?"

Now uncertain, the professor responded, "Of course as I have already said. We see it every day. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. "These manifestations are nothing else but evil."

To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is not like faith, or love, that exist just as does light and heat. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light."

The professor sat down.

The young mans name --- Albert Einstein

We need to be the light!

Today I heard someone at church speak on the topic of Light, Faith and Hope. You can listen to it yourself, it is found here: I loved that analogy that was given about Light. A couple of the quotes were... "Darkness cannot exist when there is Light", and another one is  "Happiness is contagious" that is certainly true. Think of the people you know who are Happy, you know the Half Full type of people, who seem to always bring Happiness where ever they go. Don't you catch yourself wanting to spend more time with them. Just being with them seems to make you feel better. I think that we are all suppose to be more like that person we are talking about. Those people seem to have a Light within because of the Faith they have and the HOPE that the Faith gives them. When  you have Hope, you have Light at the end of the tunnel and just knowing we aren't alone in our trials and struggles; that we have a loving Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ to be there with us always .... does bring a Happiness that you can't find in this world.
It made me want to try and be more full of Faith and Hope, and to be that PERSON that seems to carry a Light within them. Yes, this was an inspiring talk to say the least!
Just what I needed to hear today!
Hope you had a wonderful Sabbath!
Good night dear friends!  

 "A good teacher is like a candle - it consumes itself, to the light the way for others."

"Be the light that helps Others to see" 

Getting used to the dark!

When I was a young girl, I worked in a pre-school for Handicapped Children. We would have to do home visits often, to see if there were things that could be changed in their homes, to help the children's progress. It was heartbreaking to go into those apartments or trailers, the situation these kids lived in...were often of abuse and neglect. Sometimes we had to get CPS involved, and they tried to get the kids out of these homes and away from their abusers.Each time the child didn't want to leave. I wondered why they wouldn't want to get out of these situations and once CPS worker said "it is familiar to them, this is all they have ever known, leaving the situation seems worse because it is the unknown". Heartbreaking is the only way to explain it.

When I read this survivor's story from the Chainbreakers Foundation, I wanted to share it. I remember well, getting used to the dark (as a child of incest). It isn't until you get out of that situation, into the light ...that you realize how bad your situation and perception was. This story is to ...once again help all of us to surround ourselves by light, and also to bring that light to anyone around us who is still suffering in the dark! (If you need information on how to help a friend or loved one, please go to this web site below...)

A Dark Room

http://www.chainbreakerfoundation.com/

The light switch goes off. It’s dark. I can hardly make out shapes and objects. All I have to do is wait. Sit frozen and wait until I can start to see again. Just a small wait in the dark and things start to become a little more clear, a little more comfortable. There is my nightstand; there are the piles of clothes on the floor. Why did I leave my closet door open again?

After a while I can see so “well,” I hardly notice that it is dark. My eyes have adjusted. I can freely and contently move about the room; things appear normal. I can see so clearly again. There is almost no notice to the darkness that has taken over the room.

My mind jumps to all those comments. Comments that enrage me; “Tamara, your room is a mess. Come out into the light.”

The light? What are they talking about? I can see just fine. My eyes are adjusted to the dark. Things are clear to me. Things make sense in the dark. I have learned how to get from one place to the next without tripping. Dark is normal for me.

It happens. Someday cracks the door open. That small amount of light allows me to see the things that I couldn’t see in the dark. There are my headphones I have been looking for, what is a bag of crackers doing on the floor?

I then become lucky. Winning a million dollar lottery lucky.

That same door that kept people out for so long, comes down. The hinges ripped out from the wall socket. The door is destroyed. Not only is the light pouring in, the blinds are then opened and I am introduced to sunshine. Sunshine?? Sunshine??? I have been longing for sunshine.

It is at this moment I see the room I have been sitting in for 10 years. This room is chaos. Things are turned upside down, broken, nothing has a place. How can I let my children live like this? Broken glass is all around me. How could I possibly be sitting in this place for so long and not have noticed? I feel stupid, embarrassed.

. . .

I crave light. I crave sunshine. It’s been so long. I finally have realized how to answer the question, “If things were that bad, why did you stick around for so long?” The truth; I had no idea I had been sitting in a dark room for 10 years. I got lucky. I got lucky that somebody pushed down that door and allowed me see the light. I love you Deneka Strom!!   You forever will be my angel!   ~ Tamara Chamberlain

 

"We cannot liberate victims; we can only educate them.
  They must liberate themselves."

What do you dream about?

   What an amazing story, I just knew I had to share it with you. I love the fact ...that it is important to dream, and do everything possible to make those dreams come true. I remember a couple of times, in the midst of battling cancer...that I no longer dreamed, those were dark days. Dreaming was the future... and when you are in the middle or beginning of fighting cancer, the future is unsure and so many of us stopped dreaming.
   I remember well the day I started dreaming again...living again. It was like someone turned on a light and I could see things better in that light. I could feel hope again, therefore I could DREAM!

Everybody Has a Dream

Some years ago I took on an assignment in a southern county to work with people on public welfare. What I wanted to do was show that everybody has the capacity to be self-sufficient, and all we have to do is to activate them. I asked the county to pick a group of people who were on public welfare, people from different racial groups and different family constellations. I would then see them as a group for three hours every Friday. I also asked for a little petty cash to work with as I needed it.

The first thing I said after I shook hands with everybody was, "I would like to know what your dreams are." Everyone looked at me as if I were kind of wacky.

"Dreams? We don't have dreams." I said, "Well, when you were a kid what happened? Wasn't there something you wanted to do?"

One woman said to me, "I don't know what you can do with dreams. The rats are eating up my kids."

"Oh," I said.

"That's terrible. No, of course, you are very much involved with the rats and your kids. How can that be helped?"

"Well, I could use a new screen door because there are holes in my screen door."

I asked, "Is there anybody around here who knows how to fix a screen door?"

There was a man in the group, and he said, "A long time ago I used to do things like that, but now I have a terribly bad back, but I'll try."

I told him I had some money if he would go to the store, buy some screening, and go and fix the lady's screen door.

"Do you think you can do that?"

"Yes, I'll try."

The next week, when the group was seated, I said to the woman, "Well is your screen door fixed?"

"Oh, yes," she said. "Then we can start dreaming, can't we?" She sort of smiled at me. I said to the man who did the work,

"How do you feel?"

He said, "Well, you know, it's a very funny thing. I'm beginning to feel a lot better." That helped the group to begin to dream. These seemingly small successes allowed the group to see that dreams were not insane. These small steps began to get people to see and feel that something really could happen.

I began to ask other people about their dreams. One woman shared that she always wanted to be a secretary. I said, "Well, what stands in your way?" (That's always my next question).

She said, "I have six kids, and I don't have anyone to take care of them while I'm away."

"Let's find out," I said.

"Is there anybody in this group who would take care of six kids for a day or two a week while this woman gets some training here at the community college?"

One woman said, "I got kids, too, but I could do that."

"Let's do it," I said. A plan was created and the woman went to school.

Everyone found something. The man who put in the screen door became a handyman. The woman who took in the children became a licensed foster care person. In 12 weeks I had all these people off public welfare. I've not only done that once, I've done it many times.

  by: Virginia Satir, Source Unknown

"Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today."   ~ James Dean

"Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe."  ~ Gail Devers

"Really great people make you feel that you, too, can become great."   ~ Mark Twain

Finding HOPE!

In a book (Armor) that I am reading, the author (Kim B. Clark) talks about what it felt like to him, when his daughter and wife both got diagnosed with cancer...within months of each other.  I thought I would share part of this chapter with you.
"In those months, we learned much about cancer and how it works. Cancer cells grow in an uncontrolled, haphazard way. They invade  and destroy tissues and organs around them, and they can spread the work of destruction far beyond where they start. If the cancer is not stopped, it will grow and spread until it causes death. It is , therefore, important to find cancer cells early and good to get rid of them before they wreak havoc in the body. But it is hard to find them early. When cancer first begins there are no outward signs it is there. It grows quietly at first, hidden away until it grows enough to disrupt. Sometimes there are blood tests or physical examinations that will reveal the presence of cancer in the body at an early stage of development. But sometimes we find out about it only when its destruction becomes obvious.
Cancer can also disrupt lives. When it happens, or when the doctor suspect it has happened, there are lots of tests, including different kinds of imaging and often biopsies. The treatment options are difficult. Sometimes the treatment is to cut out the cancer ( and surrounding tissue). In other cases the doctors prescribe toxic drugs that kill rapidly growing cells everywhere in the body. Yet another therapy is to bombard the cancerous cells with radiation. And in some cases the patient has to undergo all three.
Interlaced with all of this coming and going from doctor's offices and hospitals and laboratories is the worry, the fear associated with a disease that can bring and end to mortal life. Every case is different, but every case of cancer comes with that underlying apprehension and fear. We experienced all of this in a double dose over those several months. The tests and the operations and the treatments disrupted our lives. There was much pain and suffering ( cancer is one of those diseases where to save your life the doctors have to do some pretty bad thing to your body ), and there was much anxiety, worry and fear."

After all this, he then talks about how you find HOPE and PEACE ...under such circumstances!  Although he stated well the real facts and fears of cancer, he ended it with how to get help! I liked that! He talked about the scriptures which testify to us that God will not leave us alone in these types of battles in our lives. But we must come to Him, seek Him out and ask for help. He will not force that on us, even if we need it! We all have the ability to choose. In John 12:46 we read "I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness."  That is exactly what fear and worry can feel like, very dark and scary. Why not " Go towards the LIGHT!"

"In all things it is better to hope than to despair"  ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"Man can live forty days without food, about three days without water, about eight minutes without air, but only for one second without hope"

"Hope is faith holding out its hand in the dark"  ~ George Illes

 

 

From darkness into light

I have to admit that for some reason the past few days, have seemed very dark for me. I couldn't find much to be happy about and the feelings I had about myself, were very self defeating to say the least. I sorta felt that this darkness, has been creeping up on me for the few weeks now. I cry more than normal, everything seems too big to handle and the worst is, I felt a sadness about myself and my life that really wasn't healthy at all. I was sharing these feelings with a dear friend and her comment was, 'you need to go easy on yourself Lynn, for the past 3 weeks  you and Jeff both have had pneumonia, you had a friend pass away, Lee was sick, your granddaughter got really sick and because of your illnesses, you haven't been able to keep up on the exercises that the PT has given you, so you haven't really had very much improvement on your back, neck and knees. You have had a lot on you.'

Well, that is good and true but the truth is, that is exactly what most of what my life has been and yet I usually can always find things to be happy and grateful about. I even noticed a week or so ago, that I was jealous of someone, for something! That is really not like me, oh I some times wonder what it would be like to have health, money, resources to go on vacations and so on, but I am truly not jealous. And yet I was, and it felt bad. I noticed that my communication with my Heavenly Father has even been less and that always makes me feel sad too. Probably it also makes Him sad.
So the past couple of days, I have tried to stay off to myself, keep my mouth shut, so some of the discouraging things...didn't come out, and then I just prayed and prayed hard to know what was going on. Last night after another sincere, and heartfelt prayer, I felt a bit of light coming through. I felt hopeful that this darkness that was around me, didn't have to stay forever! Today has been even better and once again, even though I am still in pain, still make the same amount of money, still have the same limitations and restrictions...I feel happy and I am soooooooooooo grateful for that.
Another dear friend of mine spoke in church lately, and her talk was about prayer.  She compared it to light. She was kind enough to share her notes with me so I could use it in my blog. I will only use part of it tonight, but it was exactly what I needed to read again. What a great friend she is to me. So I will leave you with these words, and tell you that I probably did take for granted these last few weeks, my communication with my Heavenly Father. I was too sick, too tired, or whatever, to do what I needed to do...which was  pray for help and strength. Prayer has always been essential in my life, I am not sure why I let that slip?  I now can feel the light, and it is something I need not take for granted anymore! Good night dear friends!

The Power of Prayer

Since 1879, the electric light bulb has changed the way we see the world. Small shacks may be merely lit by a dusty yellow street lamp outside, and lavish mansions are illuminated by great chandeliers. Because of them we can work 24 hours a day, we can perform surgery in the dead of night if we need to, we can illuminate anything, almost anywhere, at the flip of a switch. Think of the hope and joy that comes to one, struggling in a dark cave or well, when finally they see the lights of rescuers coming to save them. Rescuers who will call their name, until they hear a response….

What power is behind that little carbon filament, what power behind that light we take so for granted.

Prayer is something that many of us may take for granted, perhaps we do it, but it has become too routine, mundane. We underestimate the power it can have in our lives. The truth is, sincere, heartfelt prayer has the power to save our souls, our marriages, our families, and enable us to be a light to others.

 

“God knows our needs better than we can state them, but He wants us to approach Him in faith to ask for blessings, safety, and comfort.”   ~ James E. Faust

"The value of consistent prayer is not that He will hear us, but that we will hear Him."  ~William McGill

"Prayer may not change things for you, but it for sure changes you for things."  ~Samuel M. Shoemaker

Lessons learned

I was grateful for the opportunity to be able to go to church today. It has been a while since I have been healthy enough to go. I am always thankful for the lessons that are taught, and only hope that I can use them and apply them in my life for the upcoming week. One of the lessons that I learned today.... was about repentance. It was about how often we handle repentance in our lives, even when we have been forgiven, we sometimes suffer more than we should. Why, because we refuse to forgive ourselves. I personally know this can happen, because I have been guilty of that myself. But when I heard this story it just hit home on how much unnecessary suffering we can put ourselves through, unnecessary is the key word here!

I hope when you read this (that like me), we will remember to take the time out to not only repent, when it is necessary... but also to remember to forgive ourselves. There are many wonderful things that can be given to us after true repentance...peace, happiness,compassion, wisdom and joy are some of them!

 "So many live with accusing guilt when relief is ever at hand. So many are like the immigrant woman who skimped and saved and deprived herself until, by selling all of her possessions, she bought a steerage-class ticket to America.

She rationed out the meager provisions she was able to bring with her. Even so, they were gone early in the voyage. When others went for their meals, she stayed below deck—determined to suffer through it. Finally, on the last day, she must, she thought, afford one meal to give her strength for the journey yet ahead. When she asked what the meal would cost, she was told that all of the meals had been included in the price of her ticket.

That great morning of forgiveness may not come at once. Do not give up if at first you fail. Often the most difficult part of repentance is to forgive yourself. Discouragement is part of that test. Do not give up. That brilliant morning will come."  ~ Boyd K. Packer

"The black moment is the moment when the real message of transformation is going to come.  At the darkest moment comes the light."  ~Joseph Campbell

"I will love the light for it shows me the way.  Yet I will endure the darkness for it shows me the stars."  ~Og Mandino 

"Some who have spent a long winter of guilt and spiritual starvation emerge into the morning of forgiveness."    ~ Boyd K. Packer

Light verses Darkness

I have a few dear friends, who are truly going through some huge challenges in their lives. Some of a physical nature, others of a emotional and spiritual nature. One this that is common with all of them is PAIN! They are hurting in different ways, but they certainly are hurting. I don't have answers for them or a cure for their problems, but I do know that they will need all the light that they can find. Still I know that the dark times are part of the lessons in life.

I found this inspirational story and thought of my dear friends, who are surrounded my some darkness and hopeless feelings. I pray that they will hang on and that soon, there will be healing that comes there way and I am sure when it does, there will be a lot of light that comes with it too!

Walk In The Light.
By: Audrina Jones Bunton

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It was a mild October night, weeks after the horrific September 11 terrorists attacks on our nation. With a mix of anticipation and apprehension, my husband, children and I, entered the gates of the North Carolina state fair. The fair lights illuminated the sky as thousands of fair attendees attempted to escape into hours of fun and fantasy. While trying to temporarily remove the overshadowing fear that more tragedy may be imminent, the excessive police security constantly reminded us of our nation's tragic events.

Despite the constant reminders, we went about as usual, playing games, enjoying the rides, and consuming loads of food. Before we knew it, the thrill was gone, our bellies were full, and our time at this annual event was concluding. We retraced our previous path, searching for the exit, while making pit stops along the way.

All of a sudden, we stepped out of the illuminating light into darkness. The fair lights vanished -- though only in a certain area -- our area. What happened? Could it be another terrorist attack, or just a coincidence? Glancing around at fellow fair attendees, I calmly observed actions and reactions. Amazingly, hundreds continued walking around in the dark, as though things were okay, never trying to go toward the light. Like us, others chose to take the necessary steps to follow the light -- the light that would lead us to the exit. Step after step, we finally reached the light.

This darkness is symbolic of life. Many of us consciously choose to stay in the dark areas of our lives with unsatisfying jobs, meaningless relationships, and unfulfilling lives. Knowing that the light surrounds us, we choose to remain in the dark. Only by taking the necessary steps will we see the light out of our situations. If we never take the steps, we will never see the light of fulfillment and purpose.

Today, examine your situation and then take the necessary steps toward the light. For there, you will find the life you've deservingly longed for. Who knows -- the light may only be one step away.

 

"When we walk to the edge of all the light we have and take the step into the darkness of the unknown, we must believe that one of two things will happen. There will be something solid for us to stand on or we will be taught to fly."  ~ Patrick Overton

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