Speaking In Church On Gratitude

Corey and I spoke in sacrament meeting today. We had a fun view of the kids from the stand. Corey tried to discretely take a photo (Wesley was over at the sacrament table, and I guess two girls were out of view because of the pulpit, sorry Lily and Sophi!) (Katharine is so cute!)

Our topic was gratitude. Corey's talk was awesome. I will paste it at the bottom of this post after I ramble for a minute (if he sends it to me). I can't share my talk, cause it was not put together in coherent form. Here were my notes like an hour before church (I resorted to cutting and pasting the different attempts I had made to write up a talk...) 

Lily was sitting on the floor next to me - she was trying to get help preparing for her teaching a lesson in young women's class, but I wasn't much help since I was working on my talk. My message was a bit jumbled in my head and written form, but it came out ok I think. I started my message with things that Dennis Prager shared at the beginning of this video. That video helped me years ago when I was first learning about my gratitude problem. The video has since been updated. I had so many thoughts and tried a few times to write it up, then to make an outline, but ended up kinda just walking up there not exactly sure everything that I would say in the 15 minutes I had to share. I talked about how I've struggled with gratitude for a good portion of the past 10+ years. I think I first became aware of it during our first few months in Brazil in 2007. I shared some of my trials and bad attitude when we were there, like the water pump to our house breaking and having to flush the toilets with water we collected from the rain gutters, washing clothes by hand, our kitchen stovetop and oven both had to be lit with a match! Just lots of stupid problems and my attitude didn't help. I read Mary Ellen Edmunds' book "The Quest for Contentment" and it helped a little bit. Also Elder Holland's talk "The Tongue of Angels" - "No misfortune is so bad that whining about it won’t make it worse." 

After we were back in the US from 2007 - 2010, I had Walmart and Costco again, but my bad attitude was a habit now and the gray clouds were still all around me. Even though our temporal circumstances had improved, I was unhappy - I remember stressing about paying rent a lot, and Corey once called me out on it and said how we've always been able to pay it each month, and my stress wasn't helping... either I didn't trust him or I didn't trust the Lord. I pondered that, I think he was right, but I still struggled with complaining and murmuring, even if most of it was in my head. Now I know it's no surprise that I was unhappy, because ingratitude leads to unhappiness!

Then in Costa Rica in 2010, I was complaining again, this time about having a maid, and Corey told me it sounded to him like I was being ungrateful. It took President Monson's general conference address that October 2010 on (you guessed it) GRATITUDE for me to accept that it was true and begin to try and repent. And really, my trials at all of those times were so small compared to those faced by others, like Stephanie Nielsen or Chris Williams. My did have my closing thoughts written out: 

Trials are blessings in disguise if we accept them with humility, faith, and fortitude. All that we suffer and endure with patience will build within us a more charitable and tender person, having acquired the education we came on earth to receive.

God help us to be grateful for our blessings and our trials. The Lord has said, “And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more” (D&C 78:19).

This great principle of gratitude, made a daily part of our lives and our prayers, can lift and bless us as individuals, as members of the Church, and as parents and families.

This testimony, I bear humbly and in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Corey said it was good. I was glad that I went first so that I could sit and enjoy listening to his talk. Corey's great, and I love the life that we have been given. It was fun to have the college kids home to listen to it. Corey said a lot of his thoughts were for Ethan. 

The kids put up the tree today after church. 

They do a good job. Mel is sitting on the couch there with Katharine. I think Abi was bringing up the last/top part of the tree. Sophi, Lily and Natalie are there pulling down the branches. We enjoyed hanging out with all the kids after church. Life is good.