Gifts...from the sea and the Son

Gently I scoop a handful of sand, raising my palm upward, I spread my fingers apart...watching with fascination as the grains fall easily back to the sandy beach below. No matter how often I do this, the outcome remains the same...the sand slides easily between my open fingers and returns to the beach. Sometimes the sun will catch the moving sand and it sparkles, sometimes a gentle ocean breeze floats past the falling sand, giving it a different destination a little distance away from me. I can easily close my eyes and remember the feel of the gently moving sand across my hand and fingers as my palms empty themselves of their fleeting treasure. 

Since returning from Hawaii in late October, I have felt similar feelings in my heart. As if my life, like the handfuls of sparkling sand, was running at an alarming rate to a destination I did not want to go to. On some level I was being constantly reminded that I couldn't control the outcome of others choices. Even though the consequences of those choices would undoubtedly bring me heartache, on a level I couldn't possibly understand, and truthfully did not want to understand either. Metaphorically speaking, I continued to fill my palms with sand and then my fingers would separate and the sand would fall, ignoring my desires, and nothing I could do would stop that fall.

Afraid of what would spill out onto this page, I have avoided writing for awhile. Sometimes it seems I am able to make sense of my circumstances as I write...but lately the fear of the possible answers (that I may not want to hear and see) has kept me silent. He has been struggling since October, and we believed we'd averted another disaster, when by Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, it looked like he had come back to center in his life. His joy is captured here as his nieces and nephews tried to prevent him from leaving the family gathering.
I love this picture! 

However this reprieve unfortunately didn't last.

In light of these ongoing struggles I turned to my Heavenly Father and was gently reminded to trust Him, and ultimately the only one I can change is myself. So here I am at the New Year contemplating how this change will "come to pass" and the steps I need to take in affecting these changes. Recently I was taught about understanding and then drawing upon the power inherent in things and places that Christ has put His name on. I am compiling a list to assist me in this newly acquired knowledge.

His Temples: Holiness to the Lord
Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ
My prayers: In the name of Jesus Christ
The Sacrament: In the name of Jesus Christ
My callings: Set apart in the name of Jesus Christ
My Marriage: Covenants with Jesus Christ- Children born under that covenant 
Ministering: Representing Jesus Christ
Bishop's Storehouse: Purchasing food storage in a facility dedicated to Jesus Christ
Meetings that begin and end with prayer: In the name of Jesus Christ

My list is by no means complete, and I will continue to add to it. However I am already seeing daily, how His Power is so available to me. I also am seeing that when I am walking the path in the very moment that He wants me to, it easier for Him to direct His Power into my life and experiences...as long as I continue to ask and then use it to bless others around me.

"When you reach up for the Lord's power in your life with the same intensity that a drowning person has when grasping and gasping for air, power from Jesus Christ will be yours. When the Savior knows you truly want to reach up to Him-when He can feel that the greatest desire of your heart is to draw His power into your life-you will be led by the Holy Ghost to know exactly what you should do." Russell M. Nelson.

There it is! I never leave a blog unfinished...this one however has spanned two days, because I needed last nights experiences and this quote! So here is to a year of spiritual growth and seeking opportunities to draw His Power more fully into my life.