OUR FAMILY: Wednesday, October 26th, 2022: Debbie Macomber prayer journal, trip & fall, meeting w/ new RS presidency moved to our house, My blessing,

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

94th operating temple

Dedicated: 16 July 2000

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Son of Man

Luke 9:22

Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.

Book of Mormon

3 Nephi 13:1-15

"Come Follow Me"

Ezekiel 33:10-19 The Lord wants to forgive. Ezekiel 33

OctGenCon

"The Answer Is Jesus"

Elder Ryan K. Olsen

Of the Seventy

No matter how difficult or confusing the challenges may be, you can always remember that the answer is simple: it is always Jesus.

"That They Might Know Thee"

Elder Jonathan S. Schmitt

Of the Seventy

My earnest desire is that you will come to know Jesus by His many names and that you will become like Him.

I read an article this morning from Guidepost magazine written by the author Debbie Macomber. The article was about keeping a prayer journal. Debbie says she gets up at 4 a.m., reads from the Bible and then begins her prayer, and writes it in her journal. She writes down all of the things that are going through her head. What she is thankful for, what she is worried about, who she is praying for, and what she is dreaming about, and what she is unhappy about. She says she wouldn't be where she is today - as a mom, a wife, a grandmother, a writer, a child of God - if it weren't for this spiritual practice. She says is has formed her. I quote from the article:

"My journals are personal to me - unlike the books I publish. They're so precious that I've stored the old ones in a safe. They are a witness to the prayers I've said, the many prayers God has answered and the prayers I'm still saying. I recently wrote a book to help people jump-start their journaling. 'Be a Blessing,' I titled it. Journaling is a blessing. No, you don't have to get up at 4 a.m. You don't even have to do it in the morning. Just do it."

Here are six journaling tips from Debbie:

1. Make it a habit. My journals come with me wherever I go. I might skip a day here or there, but that's it. Never skip two days in a row. Why? Because when you make something a daily habit, you're agreeing to open yourself up to the Spirit. Every day. It's as though God knows exactly where to find me each morning. Here's what's on my mind, I can say. It's right there on the page in ink.

Why write it down? Doesn't God know what's on our hearts? Of course God does. But it helps us to verbalize it. I think about how Jesus often asked people to explain what they wanted before healing them. Not because the Lord didn't know but because Jesus wanted them to articulate it. When I put down a prayer, it becomes more tangible to me. And when I write, I discover things about myself I might not have acknowledged without a journal.

2. Use pen and paper. Research has shown that we're more likely to remember things when we write them down by hand. I'm glad to have a computer to compose my novels. It sure makes revisions easier to do. But journal keeping is something else. Every week I pick a different Bible verse to memorize. And every day I write it down to help me remember. Recently I was learning Isaiah 41:13: "For I am the Lord your God, who upholds your right hand, who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you.'" I've had carpal tunnel syndrome in the past, and I was worried that it might be coming back. I depend so much on my right hand. Each time I wrote those words down, I felt them etched in my heart.

3. Be grateful. Declare your gratitude. Don't just say it to yourself' make a record of it. There are plenty of mornings when I wake up feeling out of sorts. I've faced devastating losses and wondered how I could go on. Reminding myself of what I'm grateful for is essential. Every day I write down five things. And if I can't think of five things, then I'm not being grateful enough. As you put down your gratitude, it becomes more real and changes your whole perspective on life. You will become a more grateful person.

4. See your dreams come true. I took up journaling when I was struggling to become a writer. While the kids were in school, I'd pound out one novel after another on a rented typewriter - one we could barely afford. I sent those novels out and they came back, with one devastating rejection letter after another. What kept me going were those prayers I wrote in the morning: "Please let me publish one book." "Just one book, God." When we give our dreams over to God - and let go - there's no telling what will happen. All I wanted was one book published. I could never have guessed that there would be many, many more. Putting down a prayer is not only a way of recording it. It is also a way of giving it over to God and getting out of the way. Sometimes what happens is beyond our wildest dreams.

5. Put down the hard stuff. All my life I struggled with my weight. So put stuff down in your journal that's hard to talk about, things that are impossible to share with anyone but God.

6. Thank God for the time together. When the kids were younger, they'd come into the kitchen for breakfast and see me at the counter, writing in my prayer journal. "Mom," they'd say with a yawn, "I've got a big test today. Pray for that." I did, writing it down. I can't tell you how many thousands of prayers I've recorded over the years, for friends, for my children, grandchildren, and other relatives. Thumbing through old journals, I can see prayers that looked like they'd never be answered. I prayed for a brother to be healed of alcoholism, to no avail. Nothing seemed to help. I might have felt hopeless, but I didn't give up. Today he's sober. And I have written proof of how hard I prayed for him! Think of how journaling could change your spiritual life.

At the end of my morning session, I always thank God for our time together. It's like signing off at the end of a letter: "Love, Debbie"

The words I've put down might pale in comparison to what God does with them, but it starts there. Every day.

Debbie Macomber is not a member of our Church but she is certainly a devout Christian.

Today as I was puttering around, moving things in and out of my closet, I caught my toe on something and was propelled into the bathroom and landed hard on the floor, landing on my right side.

I managed to get myself up off the floor but it wasn't graceful or pretty. I'm glad no one was watching. My right knee hurts. James wasn't home, he had been working at Barbara Bartels, henceforth known as Barbara. He came home for lunch and I told him my woes. We had some lunch and then went into the bedroom to take a nap. Before my nap I texted Tamara and told her about my fall. I told her I would still be at the meeting tonight but that I would be limping. After my nap I went over to the computer and worked on my blog for awhile. When I got up my knee was so painful and stiff I needed the walker to walk. It was 4:30 and I texted Tamara and told her I would not be able to be at our meeting at six. About an hour later she called me and ask if it would be all right if we had the meeting at my house. I said yes, that would be fine but give me a few minutes to get ready. A few minutes. it was. I put some makeup on and combed through my hair. I didn't change my clothes as I intended because there wasn't time. I lead the sisters into the family room hobbling along on my walker. Cheryl and Natalie have never been here and they both said how beautiful our house was. Cheryl said we must do a lot of entertaining. I said no, only with our kids and grandkids and an occasional Church meeting or party.

The new presidency consists of Cheryl Sedig, President, Rosie Lauritzen first counselor, and Natalie Robles, second counselor. Tamara and Kerri were also here. Tamara had already met with Cheryl and gone over responsibilities with her so it was just Kerri and I. Rosie said the opening prayer and Tamara the closing. Cheryl wants Natalie to be over teaching, activities, and Just Serve. She had Rosie over missionary work, family history and temple work. I think it says somewhere in the handbook that one counselor is over missionary work and activities and the other one over teaching and family history. They meet with the stake tomorrow so they will find out from them. Cheryl says it's not in the handbook so I guess I was wrong.

Brother Lauritzen was sitting by the fireplace and when we talked about a sister he knew something about he would come over and talk to us. He also asked me if I wanted a blessing for my knee. I told him thank you but I would ask James when he got home and he could have Chuck come over to help him. Everyone left except Tamara. We would talking when James and Chuck came in. I had texted James and asked him to have Chuck come over and help give me a blessing. Tamara stayed for the blessing. Chuck sealed it and James gave the blessing. It help me to feel peaceful and that everything would be okay even though my knee was giving me a great deal of pain. I slept on the recliner in the family room again.

I found out that the Sedig's lived "off the grid" in the valley, for fifteen years. I have a new respect for them. She and Natalie should get along great. Natalie and her husband have a YouTube channel, "A Boulder Life, Off the Grid."