Spiritual thoughts

"The Lord doesn't expect us to work harder than we are able. He doesn't (nor should we) compare our efforts to those of others. Our Heavenly Father asks only that we do the best we can -- that we can work according to our full capacity, however great or small that may be." --President Dieter F. Uchtdorf
I got that quote on a cute little handout from one of our Relief Society teachers a few weeks ago, and since we're on a cleaning binge in my home, I found it on my desk and put it up on my desk almost without thinking. Then later (or NOW, in my grand timeline) I saw it again and was struck by it. I don't know what it is, but I have been thinking a lot about our Heavenly Father lately. He sent us all down here for a reason. He has a plan so that even though we all screw up, it won't ruin our chances of returning to Him. He has given us all that we have and all that we have to do is do our best. Our VERY best, mind you, and work at it, but that's it. Do our best and put our trust in Him. That doesn't seem like very much, does it?
I never understand why people think that God is mean. He is the reason that we exist! He blesses us with so many things! He is our Father and He lvoes us so much that He sent us Jesus Christ, our brother, who was willing to suffer and die for us so that our Father's plan could work! We are so loved by them that I can't even comprehend it!
In some of my more contemplative moments, I wonder why I was sent here and now. Why not when Jesus was on the earth? Why not during the Restoration? Why was I not a Nephite woman or a pilgrim or a peasant in Queen Elizabeth's time? Why am I in this place at this time? I do have days where I honestly wish I were somewhere else in some other time. But every time I have thought that, these two lines come into my mind: "The Lord does not make mistakes. You are meant to be here right now." Does that make me feel better? Yes. Does it answer anything? Nope, but I trust that the Lord knows exactly what He is doing. It's me I'm a little worried about.
Easter is coming. And General Conference is on Easter this year. I feel more inclined to prepare myself for conference this year than before, and whether that is due to the holiday or just my own spiritual sense, I don't know. But I am so excited for the opportunity to hear what the Lord wants me to hear. I hope--and pray--that I am ready and open enough to listen. "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

The end is near...

So February was a failure of a month as far as my blog posting stats go. But with the Olympics absorbing all of my love and devotion and attention, I'm not going to apologize. I am, however, going to have to excuse myself for feeling slightly less adoring over Mr. Sidney Crosby, who scored the winning goal for Team Canada during their gold medal game against Team USA. I still love him....it will just take a tiny bit for me to get over the sting. And I found a new hero in Ryan Miller, the goalie for Team USA. I even won an ebay bid on a Miller shirt from the Buffalo Sabres (and can I just say that I love him even more for playing for a team called the Sabres? I mean really, that's fabulous). True story.
ANYWAY.... February is over and all I can say is HALLELUJAH! It lasted SOOOOO LONG! Maybe it's because I tend to loop February with January as the longest stinkin dang months ever. Anything after Christmas is a let down for some time, and the cold, gray, dreary months of the remainder of winter are just a monotonous reminder that the holidays are ended and we must return to reality, which is cold, gray, and dreary compared to the magic of December.
But, as I said, it is over. March is here. March means warmth and rain and green and birds and SPRING!!!! The darkness is passing, the sun is coming! ALL HAIL MARCH!!!
I may be a little over exuberant, but I don't care. Winter is over and Spring is coming. I can smell it!