Happy New Year!

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Happy New Year!

Well, 2008 is coming to an end. It's been an adventure from beginning to end. It's been a hard year in some ways, but a good year overall. It is amazing to look back to how the year started and what I would have expected at that point versus how it all played out. It seems like all of the most significant events of the year are the ones I never would have guessed. It makes me curious and a little excited to see what adventures are in store for 2009.

I just finished reading the year-end post of a blog I follow. This blog has been touching to me and I have benefited from my awareness of the tragedy and miracles this family experienced in the past several months. Take a moment to read it and remember that we truly have a Father in Heaven who will watch over us and get us through anything that we are called on to experience. And if you don't have that moment, at least take from her writing this thought:

"If any one year of my entire existence holds more sweet and sour than did 2008, I will be mortally surprised. I'm young though, and who knows what God will ask of me in years to come. He asks me to endure and then sends angels of every degree to help in the task. It is the definition of surreal. Try it sometime. (Or don't.)"

If there is one thing that my eyes were opened to this year it is this: All around us we have acquaintances, friends, even family members each with their unique and personal struggles. There is more heartache and difficulty in the world than I have really understood before. Not just in the extreme and obvious situations, but even in the subtle average lives all around us. Maybe it is the lady at the store, the person at church, or someone you know more intimately, but more likely than not you spend your day interacting with someone whose heart has a heavier burden than you would possibly have imagined. And as my eyes have been opened to this over the year, I have also learned that Heavenly Father is with us all. Always. And that peace and joy can be found through the Savior Jesus Christ in every circumstance.

As for what next year will bring? I have absolutely no idea. But ready or not, here comes 2009!

3 comments:

ToriDecember 31, 2008 at 5:24 PM
What a great post. Thank you for the optimism! ^_^
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vickiJanuary 1, 2009 at 2:50 AM
You are so right, so wise. Well said! love, (sr.) vicki f
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KristaJanuary 1, 2009 at 10:29 AM
Good thoughts, Jenny. Thanks for sharing.
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Family Proclamation

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God's eternal plan.Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

This proclamation was read by President Gordon B. Hinckley as part of his message at the General Relief Society Meeting held September 23, 1995, in Salt Lake City, Utah.