A #givethanks Compilation

A compilation of my #givethanks posts I put up on facebook during the 7-day invitation given by President Nelson. Starting from the first post going to the last.

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I'm thankful for a prophet:)

Hearing the words of a modern-day prophet is a calm reassurance that God is very much aware of us right now and always.

#givethanks

[Video of President Nelson's message shared from his page]

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I am thankful for my family 😊

I love my family too much to not make a thankful post about them. 

I am who I am in large part because they are who they are.

I have now sat here for many-a-minutes trying to find proper words to describe my adoration and appreciation for those in my family. 

I can't seem to find words that do justice to how important these six individuals are to me.

#givethanks

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I'm thankful for prayer!

Throughout a vast majority of my life, prayer has never been meaningful to me. I always prayed because I knew it was the thing to do, and I always did my best to say nice, eloquent things because it makes the prayer sound pretty/"good". 

But I never got anything out of it.

I rarely felt like anyone was listening.

There's obviously a whole lot more I could talk about there. 

Prayer is now so critical to me in my daily life. I rely on it, I recieve revelation through it, and I love it.

There's obviously a whole lot more there too that I could talk about. How this change came about and such, but I feel as though I should refrain.

Feel free to ask me about it all sometime, though.

I'm so very thankful for prayer.

#givethanks

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I'm thankful for cereal and ice cream (and pineapples, but we'll focus on the other two).

Yes, all of that cereal is mine. Cereal is wonderful. It works great both as a meal and as a snack. 

At any time of day or night, cereal can be depended upon.

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream is, quite possibly, my favorite food. (Although I prefer Meadow Gold over the Blue Ribbon that is featured in the photo.) 

There's a reason I worked at Dairy Queen for over a year.

#givethanks

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I'm thankful for the opportunity I've had thus far to serve a mission.

This past year has been a year of the most intense growth as a person I've experienced. Intense growth, of course, does not come through painless experiences.

This past year has been really really hard.

But I have seen God's hand in my life and in the lives of others. I have met people whom I will never forget and who I adore. I have experienced some of the greastest joys alongside those deep sorrows.

And my belief in Christ has never been stronger.

#givethanks

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I am thankful for my hobbies/passions!

Books (Brandon Sanderson with some others spiced in), Board games (actually good ones. Scythe, Viticulture, Dominion, Quacks of Quedlinburg, Caverna, and Coup are some of my favorites), Video Games (Nintendo with some others spiced in), Tennis (both singles and doubles).

I get so excited and happy when thinking/talking/doing any of those things:)

#givethanks

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I'm curious how many posts today will be about the Savior.

He is the ultimate thing to be grateful for, eh?

Because of him, we will all live again. Because of him, we can find peace and lasting joy in this life. Because of him, we can be with our family's for forever. Because of him, we can become more like him--more kind, loving, meek, humble, patient, happy, and understanding.

Are those not the greatest things?

And they are only because of Jesus Christ and what he's done for us.

#givethanks

My Own

I wish I had spent more of my time writing. Having thoughts on paper in a shareable format is really nice.

Of course, sometimes it's a struggle to have words come out the way we desire them to or they can't seem to do justice to what you want to say.

I think that's part of the joy, though. Wrestling with the complex thoughts in our head, trying to puzzle your way through the use of words.

Granted, at other times it's what can make writing terribly frustrating. When nothing you write seems to say what you want it to and you have very little time to mill through it again.

But, it makes it all the more satisfying when you finally do find what feel like the words that, in a way, were needing to be written. 

And, perhaps, even much more satisfying is when the words do seem to flow naturally. And what you do want to say align so flawlessly with the words appearing on the screen in front of you.

It's a beautiful thing, eh?

I could write much more about this, I'm sure. In fact, I already have in a blog post I wrote previously to this that will most likely remain unpublished until after my misson.

There is a God. One who loves us. We have a Savior. The Church and gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Russell M. Nelson is a prophet of God.

I have a strong belief in these things. Individually of everyone else, now. I love how I can now recognize that my testimony has become my own. Strengthened by others, of course. 

But my own.