We Thank Thee Oh God...

" We thank thee, O God, for a prophet
To guide us in these latter days.

We thank thee for sending the gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.

We thank thee for every blessing
Bestowed by thy bounteous hand.

We feel it a pleasure to serve thee
And love to obey thy command."

I really love this hymn. A long time ago, before I actually paid attention to the words of songs, I thought it was just about Prophets and being grateful for them. It would still be a great song if that were true, but there really is so much more to it. The first verse is full of rejoicing and obvious gratitude, "We thank thee"!! for a Prophet, for the gospel, for every blessing, and even to serve and obey!

 Many people may balk at those words, "serve" and "obey". For allot of people they have very negative meanings. But think about it, your best friend has car trouble and you gladly pick her up and help however you can - service. If you have kids you perform service for them all day long, and you're happy to do it because you love them. If you love God than serving Him really is a pleasure! And get this, when you serve your friends and family, you're already serving God.

Mosiah 2:17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn ^awisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the ^bservice of your ^cfellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

"Obey" may be a little trickier, but lets think about trust here. Growing up we trusted that our parents knew what was best for us, don't touch the stove, don't play in the street, eat your veggies. We are all Gods children, and yes - we are still very young, there is allot for us to learn. He has set guidelines for us. If we trust Him, as children trust parents, we can obey Him joyfully, knowing that it is in our best interest to do so. 

Mosiah 2:41 And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and ^ahappy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are ^bblessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out ^cfaithful to the end they are received into ^dheaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it. 

I have officially gone on a tangent, but I think it was a good one! 

Pizza Bread and Wisdom from the Scarecrow

"It must be inconvenient to be made of flesh," said the Scarecrow, thoughtfully, "for you must sleep, and eat and drink. However, you have brains, and it is worth a lot of bother to be able to think properly." ~Scarecrow from "The Wizard of Oz"

So true! Unfortunately I concentrate too much on the "sleep, and eat and drink" part of life. When I remember that I feed my family so we can live happy, and learn and grow - it helps take the inconvenience out of it. In other words, when I think about the "why" of the daily things I do it all just makes more sense. Which puts me in mind of a great talk by President Uchtdorf.

"My dear sisters, seek out the majesty, the beauty, and the exhilarating joy of the “why” of the the gospel of Jesus Christ." 

  

And thereby the majesty, beauty and exhilaration of the "why" in our everyday life! I love it when things just click together! 

On that note, here's a recipe for Pizza Bread. It's one of those things that my mom would make for us kids, and we just knew she loved us! 

2 1/4 C warm water

2 packages active dry yeast (or 2 scant Tbls.)

1 T sugar

1 T salt

1 T softened butter

6 1/2 C all-purpose flour (approximate)

18 thin slices Provolone cheese (we always just use shredded mozzarella, or pizza cheese)

1 1/2 C chopped pepperoni (or plain old sliced pepperoni - whatever you prefer)

1 egg, beaten

Measure warm water into a large bowl. Sprinkle in yeast and stir or let sit until dissolved. Add sugar, salt, butter and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth.

Stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough. On lightly floured surface knead until smooth and elastic - about 10 minutes. Put it back in the bowl, cover, and let rest in a warm place until doubled - about an hour. (don't you love that bread needs to be a warm place! It just screams "LIFE" to me, but that's another post another time)

Punch it down and divide into 3 equal pieces. Roll one piece into a large rectangle (12x8 or so). Top with pepperoni and cheese, and roll it all up. Pinch the dough at the ends and along the seam to seal it.

Repeat with the other dough pieces. Place each loaf on a cookie sheet, cover and let rise until doubled (another hour or so).

Slash tops diagonally and brush loaves with the beaten egg (this is purely for presentation, but the egg makes the tops golden brown and yummy looking). Bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes, or until done. Serve warm - or cold - or room temperature - it's delicious! 

You can see that I got more egg on the 2 than on the one by itself, that's why it's lighter in color. I don't have a pastry brush, so I had to use my fingers, thus the inconsistent results. But it tasted great just the same! Happy normal day everyone!

Today's Lesson

I always think I get more out of lessons than the Young Women do! Every Sunday I have some kind of "aha" moment, where things click and I understand a small portion of what Heavenly Father is trying to teach me. Today I realized that my whole life has been a turning to the Lord, a changing of my heart, so that when I SAY, "I want what my Savior wants for my life, His will be done", I actually MEAN IT!

I continue to change and turn every day, and there's another part of the lesson, another piece clicking in my heart, "becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father." How do we do ALL this!?! Just as children live. They are totally present for every moment, their life really is one day at a time. What does the Lord want me to do TODAY? What does He want for my life TODAY? Of course we need to plan, think, and prepare for the future, but let's not forget that the road to our future is paved with our daily actions.

Straight out of the Young Women Manual -  

President David O. McKay described an experience he had that helped him understand how important it is to have your heart and life changed:

“I … fell asleep, and beheld in vision something infinitely sublime. In the distance I beheld a beautiful white city. Though far away, yet I seemed to realize that trees with luscious fruit, shrubbery with gorgeously-tinted leaves, and flowers in perfect bloom abounded everywhere. The clear sky above seemed to reflect these beautiful shades of color. I then saw a great concourse of people approaching the city. Each one wore a white flowing robe, and a white headdress. Instantly my attention seemed centered upon their Leader, and though I could see only the profile of his features and his body, I recognized him at once as my Savior! The tint and radiance of his countenance were glorious to behold! There was a peace about him which seemed sublime—it was divine!

“The city, I understood, was his. It was the City Eternal; and the people following him were to abide there in peace and eternal happiness.

“But who were they?

“As if the Savior read my thoughts, he answered by pointing to a semicircle that then appeared above them, and on which were written in gold the words:

“‘These Are They Who Have Overcome The World—Who Have Truly Been Born Again!’”

(Cherished Experiences from the Writings of President David O. McKay, comp. Clare Middlemiss [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1965], p. 102).

Lesson Application

Suggest that the young women read Mosiah chapters 2 through 5 so that they can better understand what it means to have a change of heart.