Sunday, October 1, 2006

Diagnosis of Ben and Bekah/General Conference

The last few months have been very trying with the diagnosis of Ben and Bekah having A-T plus still contemplating about if and when to move. This stress has been especially hard on our marriage. I have had the opportunity to watch General Conference this weekend and identify in myself some weaknesses that I need to be working on.  After listening to Conference once again I have found hope.

Elder Bednar gave a talk on being easily offended.  A light bulb went off in my head as I realized just how easily I can be offended at times.  Elder Bednar reminded us that being offended is a choice because we have been endowed with agency.  He also reminded us that through the strength and power of the atonement that we can overcome offense.  I can see that I have some work ahead of me both in my marriage and relationships with other people.

The other weakness that I know I need to work on is really believing in who I am. Since the time I was a little girl, I have fallen into Satan's trap of believing that I am a failure and worthless. Anthony D. Perkins gave a talk on three traps of Satan and how to overcome them. Unfortunately, I have spent years falling prey to all three:

Satan's Traps:
1.  sense of false inadequacies
2.  exaggerated imperfections
3.  needless guilt

Five Steps that he gave us to overcome these traps are:
1.  see yourself as a precious child of a loving Heavenly Father
2.  place your burdens on Jesus Christ
3.  forgive yourself of sins and imperfections
4.  sustain hope of eternal life
5.  find joy each day through service

As I contemplate these thoughts I know that I have a lot of work ahead of me in integrating this new way of thinking into my life.

No comments:

Post a Comment