Have you ever lost something and then couldn't find it again?
Even if you put it down somewhere only five seconds ago?
I have. I have lost everything from CDs, jackets, and books. And mind you, I'm not losing anything I don't care about. Oh, no! Heaven forbid I lose something I actually could care less about, or feel any satisfaction for losing it in the first place.
More times than not, I haven't ever been able to find what I've lost. There have been a few times, however, where I have found things again. This post tells such a story.
Easter of this year, after getting the idea from my in-laws, I decided to create an Easter egg hunt for my siblings and my father (who has more of a kid inside of him than my own little brother) inside my parents home. I bought pastel eggs and filled all of the eggs with candy, except for the yellow or "golden" eggs. Those I filled with dollar bills. I divided my eggs in half and hid them all equally on the first and second floors. Then I let my family have at it.
World War III erupted in my living room.
Fortunately for us, we all love each other too much to do any serious or permanent damage.
They found all the eggs, some more easily than others, all but one. One lost egg. And it wasn't just any egg with candy. It was one of the "golden" eggs. No one could find it. I couldn't find it! And I had hid the darn thing! Too well it appeared.
So I kept retracing my steps, over and over. Nothing. Oh, and by the way, if you ever decide to have an indoor egg hunt, it would help to keep note of where you hide the eggs. Why didn't I think of that before I hid them???
Anyways so I get to the point where I stop and think. I pray and I asked Heavenly Father to help me find the egg. I wasn't asking for myself. The whole reason I had done this was so my family could have fun and enjoy Easter. It was such a small thing. Who would pray to find a lost egg? Well, I did. I cared about it and I figured if I did, then my Heavenly Father would too.
After my short, simple but sincere prayer, I resume searching. I'm looking in my bathroom when all of a sudden, I'm not seeing my bathroom anymore. I'm seeing a moving picture in my mind, like a movie, and it's me hiding the egg in the spot I can't find, as if I'm hiding it again at that same moment. It was like God went into my brain and hit a "rewind" button. It was that clear.
Talk about an "Ah-HA!" moment and multiply it by 10! That's how cool it was. I rush over to the spot in our game room where we have a basket of winter gloves, and sure enough there's the egg, hidden a little too well I might add. I would never have found that egg by myself.
So I tell my family I found it, give them a few clues and watch them find it. There was much rejoicing over that one little egg.
So right now you might be wondering, how did that happen? I know that memory did not come from myself. It was a gift God sent me through the power of the Holy Ghost. John 14:26 "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost...shall...bring all things to your remembrance..."
God cares about the little things in our lives, even lost eggs. If you pray and ask for His help for things big or small, He will help you as He helped me to bless my family. It might not come the same way as my example, but help will come. :)
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Opportunities and Red Flags
One of Disney's cooler animations, Aladdin, tells the story of a young poor boy and his discovery of a magic lamp which has imprisoned a powerful genie. Rubbing the lamp, Aladdin frees the genie and is rewarded with three wishes. Suddenly Aladdin realizes he could have anything and everything he has ever wanted.
In the story the lamp is like a red flag of opportunity, something capable of fulfilling one of your desires that almost feels like it fell out of the sky right in front of your eyes...without you even asking for it. But as most everyone else knows, those red flags can also serve as warnings. In this post I will be linking them to opportunities.
One of the challenges for me and for my fiance earlier this year was figuring out where we would live. We had set a date to be married in July and both our families couldn't have been happier with our decision. There were a few challenges we quickly encountered, I'm sure as most people do when they plan their life together with a loved one.
Challenge #1- Where would we live?
Challenge #2- How would we support ourselves?
Challenge #4- What about school?
I was 25 at the time my fiance proposed and I had not yet obtained a college degree, (see my other blog for details) and neither had he. We both planned and prepared to attend and eventually graduate with degrees but for either of us, that time was a little too far in the distant future to satisfy any worryings we had about providing for ourselves. I had my current job at Sweet Tomatoes while my fiance worked at a day care. As you can imagine, neither provided a substantial income. So....what to do?
Both sets of parents had offered to let us live in their home until one of us had a degree. Though the most financial friendly option at the time, our concerns about privacy eventually persuaded us to look for a solution else where. The idea of an apartment appealed to both of us because of privacy, independence and distance it could allow us, however in my area, cheap apartments are not something you want to look for, no matter how many pennies you're pinching.
Confident we'd work out this challenge, we continued forward with our plans and prepared for our marriage. Little time after our engagement, I talked with a lady from my church. We were at a park with a group of other women from my church. This lady I talked too told me of her husband's project assignment oversees and their need of seeking out a couple to watch their house for them for a couple of years until the assignment was completed.
This is what I mean about red flags of opportunity.
And no, I did not ask for this.
The idea hadn't even crossed my mind until that present time. As soon as the words came out of her mouth, I knew that was the best solution for me and my future husband. We talked with the couple. Planned and negotiated and were chosen to be the keepers of their house.
Because of this great blessing, my husband and I will be able to save more money than most young couples are able to in the first couple years of marriage. I can't say I've been blessed because it feels more like I've been spoiled!
I don't know what I've done or did to receive this rich blessing from my Father in Heaven. All I can say is that He knows me well and cares about me enough to shower me with rich blessings that I don't even have to ask for, because He loves me. Just like He loves to bless me, He loves to bless you just as much. Sometimes those blessings might be disguises as "luck" or "chance" or "fate". Whatever the reason, everything good comes from God, and therefore, everything good that happens to you in your life, come from Him. :)
In the story the lamp is like a red flag of opportunity, something capable of fulfilling one of your desires that almost feels like it fell out of the sky right in front of your eyes...without you even asking for it. But as most everyone else knows, those red flags can also serve as warnings. In this post I will be linking them to opportunities.
One of the challenges for me and for my fiance earlier this year was figuring out where we would live. We had set a date to be married in July and both our families couldn't have been happier with our decision. There were a few challenges we quickly encountered, I'm sure as most people do when they plan their life together with a loved one.
Challenge #1- Where would we live?
Challenge #2- How would we support ourselves?
Challenge #4- What about school?
I was 25 at the time my fiance proposed and I had not yet obtained a college degree, (see my other blog for details) and neither had he. We both planned and prepared to attend and eventually graduate with degrees but for either of us, that time was a little too far in the distant future to satisfy any worryings we had about providing for ourselves. I had my current job at Sweet Tomatoes while my fiance worked at a day care. As you can imagine, neither provided a substantial income. So....what to do?
Both sets of parents had offered to let us live in their home until one of us had a degree. Though the most financial friendly option at the time, our concerns about privacy eventually persuaded us to look for a solution else where. The idea of an apartment appealed to both of us because of privacy, independence and distance it could allow us, however in my area, cheap apartments are not something you want to look for, no matter how many pennies you're pinching.
Confident we'd work out this challenge, we continued forward with our plans and prepared for our marriage. Little time after our engagement, I talked with a lady from my church. We were at a park with a group of other women from my church. This lady I talked too told me of her husband's project assignment oversees and their need of seeking out a couple to watch their house for them for a couple of years until the assignment was completed.
This is what I mean about red flags of opportunity.
And no, I did not ask for this.
The idea hadn't even crossed my mind until that present time. As soon as the words came out of her mouth, I knew that was the best solution for me and my future husband. We talked with the couple. Planned and negotiated and were chosen to be the keepers of their house.
Because of this great blessing, my husband and I will be able to save more money than most young couples are able to in the first couple years of marriage. I can't say I've been blessed because it feels more like I've been spoiled!
I don't know what I've done or did to receive this rich blessing from my Father in Heaven. All I can say is that He knows me well and cares about me enough to shower me with rich blessings that I don't even have to ask for, because He loves me. Just like He loves to bless me, He loves to bless you just as much. Sometimes those blessings might be disguises as "luck" or "chance" or "fate". Whatever the reason, everything good comes from God, and therefore, everything good that happens to you in your life, come from Him. :)
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