happy sunday!

"There may be some among you who feel darkness encroaching upon you. You may feel burdened by worry, fear, or doubt. To you and to all of us, I repeat a wonderful and certain truth: God’s light is real. It is available to all! It gives life to all things. It has the power to soften the sting of the deepest wound. It can be a healing balm for the loneliness and sickness of our souls. In the furrows of despair, it can plant the seeds of a brighter hope. It can enlighten the deepest valleys of sorrow. It can illuminate the path before us and lead us through the darkest night into the promise of a new dawn." -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Free Printable: Simple New Year's Resolutions for 2016

2016 resolutions printable

It's that time of year! That time when we start thinking about our goals for the new year and are suddenly flooded with all the ways in which we want to improve and then become overwhelmed because there's no way we can possibly do it all.

I created this printable to keep things simple this year and to keep me from setting too many goals. Choosing just a couple of things has caused me to think about what goals are really the most important right now. I really like the bottom question because making resolutions tends to bring up all the areas where I'm falling short, but by thinking about something to continue doing, I get a chance to think about the things I'm doing well, something we definitely don't do enough.

I'm really good at making weekly or monthly goals, but sticking with something for a year is not my forte. This year I've decided to keep it simple and also make sure that my new year's resolutions are somewhere I can see them often.

I've found that even just writing down a goal increases the likelihood that I will stick with it.

What are your goals for the new year? I usually try to make one silly goal that I know I'll accomplish. This year it's hold lots of babies (:

God will give you more than you can handle

If December taught me nothing else, it's that God will give you more than you can handle.

The last couple of weeks of the semester were nearly the end of me. I had a lot of plans for this semester and speaking at one of my best friend's funeral certainly wasn't one of them. I've been behind this entire semester because of getting a concussion and other things, but this was the final straw, the point where I knew I couldn't handle any more. I was operating at more than 100% and for far too long. Quite simply, God had given me more than I could handle.

The scriptures contain a lot of promises, but no where do they say that you won't be given more than you can bear.

But the key is, God will never give you more than you can handle alone. 

What the scriptures do say is this: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; and ye shall find rest unto your souls." -Matthew 11:28-29

God will give us more than we can handle because we are not meant to carry the load alone. Trials and burdens are meant to teach us to reach out to our Savior, to allow Him to help you carry the weight you were never meant to carry on your own.

"Healing blessings come in many ways, each suited to our individual needs, as known to Him who loves us best. Sometimes a “healing” cures our illness or lifts our burden. But sometimes we are “healed” by being given strength or understanding or patience to bear the burdens placed upon us." -Dallin H. Oaks

In Mosiah 24, the Lord did "strengthen up [Alma and his brethren] that they could bear up their burdens with ease.

Sometimes God takes away our pain or trials, but I think more often he gives us the strength to get through them.

We grow, not despite our trials, but because of them.

The struggles of this semester caused me to rely even greater on my Savior. I cried and prayed every day to be able to do what I needed to. It's kind of like how you're always grateful for the ability to breathe, but you suddenly become a whole lot more grateful when you get a cold. I'm always grateful for a Savior to rely on, but trials make me rely on Him a whole lot more.

2015 was a year of an incredible amount of learning and growth, largely due to the trials that I experienced. I don't know what 2016 holds in store, but I sure am excited for the lessons and growth that are sure to come.