Enslaving Addictions

Are You Enslaved?

Some of the saddest life stories I have heard, have all had one common denominator. Addictions. “Substance abuse is a leading cause of preventable illness and death in the United States. The misuse of drugs ruins families, costs billions in lost productivity, strains the healthcare system, and ends lives.” "Addictions are OFFENSIVE to the spirit!" President Faust says.

Whether it's an addiction to tobacco, alcohol, drugs, pornography, gambling, chocolate... (just teasing) or other unworthy habits, there is hope! I repeat there is hope! Do you remember the story about the 'fiery serpents', the Children of Israel, and Moses? Numbers 21 talks about how they were trapped in a land with fiery serpents that were going to kill the Children of Israel. Moses prayed to the Lord with all his might and asked what they should do. He was given this simple answer. “Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived”.

"Now Sister Vercillo, what in the world does this have to do with addictions?" you ask. Well I will tell you this incredible formula!
1. Look to the Savior- The Savior has ALREADY suffered for your addiction! He knows what you're feeling right now. So set it at his feet and look to the atonement. He knows the exact path you need to take to get out of this maze. Moses asked for a way out of the deathly situation they were in, and he gave it to them, simple and clear.

2. Don't focus on the serpents-  "Almost everyone I have met struggling with addiction suffers from a terrible sense of shame and a belief that he or she is broken, defective, and beyond the love and grace of God. But this belief, in my experience, is far from the truth. Usually I find that those who struggle with addictions are warriors with tenacity, courage, and a strong desire to be clean. They win far more battles than they lose as they march toward recovery." -Benjamin R. Erwin
The Children of Israel were asked to look to the brass serpent, not the fiery serpents (addiction) around them. They needed to focus on the light at the end of the tunnel. Don't drown in you sin, look up to the future!

3. Hang onto hope- Healing and repentance from addictions takes time. It is emotionally and physically taxing, but it is never impossible. The Lord doesn't ask us to do anything that is impossible. He gives us every tool we need to be obedient and worthy. Remember that through your process of recovery! You WILL be free from your addiction if you keep pressing forward. Don't give up!

4. Seek professional knowledge and help- Don't be afraid to tell a professional about your addiction. You are showing the Lord that you are ready for a change. The church has many addiction recovery programs, so find you local LDS building and ask about the classes they offer. A professional opinion and advice may be a good option. Never forget that the ultimate advice will be from your Heavenly Father.

You can overcome your addiction! I know it! Make a plan right now for how you're going to do it. Do it for your family! For your Savior! And always remember that those Children of Israel who looked to the brass serpent, lived. You can too.

http://www.lds.org/ensign/2012/09/overcoming-addiction-through-the-atonement?lang=eng

Overcoming Pornography        http://overcomingpornography.org/?lang=eng
Addiction Recovery Program   http://addictionrecovery.lds.org/?lang=eng

 

For Time and All Eternity

For Time and All Eternity

Today is dedicated to my wonderful companion's amazing sister! She's getting hitched! And as this is about as close as we can get to her wedding, instead of racing to catch the bouquet, we will be blogging about marriage:)

In “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles 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.” As I've gotten older I've realized that Heavenly Father has given everyone the nature to be a parent. It is a commandment of God! The most important thing that we can do to build the kingdom of God is to be loving parents to the children that we raise. And children are only to be brought into this world when a man and a woman are lawfully wedded. If you haven't read the "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" you should! It's incredible and has so much inspiration from God about families.

My mission president's wife recently talked to us about this. She told us "marry someone that loves God more than you!" I was confused at that at first, because I selfishly wanted my future husband to love me and only me, but as I pondered this I realized she was 100% right. Helaman 5: 12 says
 "And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." A spouse that loves God more than you, is living by this scripture. Marriage is like a triangle with God at the top, and you and your spouse on opposite sides. The closer you get to your Father, the closer you two become.


Of course this all begins in the temple. When a couple is married here, they are setting their family directly on the path that leads them to heaven. The blessings that come from being sealed in the temple are unfathomable. They never end! They won't guarantee that you'll never fight about money, or the dog, or whether or not to sell the kids, but marriage in the temple is ESSENTIAL in order to live, as families, in the celestial kingdom. Don't settle with "till death do you part". Your children deserve "for time and all eternity".

I'm sorry this is so long, but you had some picture breaks along the way right? I'm so grateful that my parents were married in the temple. They've been such an amazing example to me in their marriage. I'm excited for the day that I can be sealed to my future family and eventually live with them in God's presence.

http://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation

A Daily Task: Repentance

A Daily Task

 

Who ever thought that you could learn spiritual life lessons while mowing the lawn? Well this girl did yesterday. I started mowing the lawn for a lady we visit every week. Last Tuesday, I began a little bit too late and the sun went down before I was able to finish the front yard. Well luck would have it that it rained (torrential downpour) the rest of the week, and the times that it wasn't raining I was feeling lazy. Well yesterday as I was mowing, that procrastination of the unfinished part of the lawn hit me right in the face. Plus I had to mow the rest of the lawn again! So I am here to tell you folks; do not procrastinate the day of your repentance! You knew I had to be getting to the point sometime right?

Repentance is the ultimate gift that our Heavenly Father has given us. It is the only way that we, as humans, can enter the kingdom of God! "For we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" -Romans 3:23 So the steps of repentance are....

1. Recognize your sin and feel the guilt that comes from it (This usually comes pretty easily)

2. Desire to change. (This is the hardest one for me. I have to pray for a desire to change every day)

3. Confess to a leader if needed. They can help you more than you could ever imagine.

4. Correct the problem!

                                                      5. Tell your Father in Heaven that you will try your hardest not to

                                                      do it anymore.

I've been focusing on trying to become more Christlike and I continually fall short every day. I would give anything for Hermione's time turner some days, to go back and undo the things I did wrong. But thank goodness repentance is Spanish for "God will never turn his back on you if you're trying to better yourself every day, even if we fall short".

 

So this is where mowing the lawn comes in. Do not, I repeat, do not procrastinate your repentance. Repent every day for the things you've done wrong. I promise you that God is a loving and merciful God. "Mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encirlces them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice". So my friends, mercy only covers us if we are repenting along the way too.

 

I know that all of us want to live with our Heavenly Father again after our McDonald's runs and football watching days are over on this earth. No sin can be around God in the celestial kingdom, so we need to use this life to show him that we are willing to give all sin up through repentance. Boys and girls, I know what is going through your mind right now. Yes we will sin all the way until we die. Every day. But through the gift of repentance, we will be able to overcome that human nature, and become more like our Heavenly Father. We will be able to live with Him and our families for all time and eternity.  

 

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/the-divine-gift-of-repentance?lang=eng



Behold, Your Little Ones

Behold, Your Little Ones

"One of the greatest influences a person can have in this world is to influence a child," Rosemary M. Wixom (Primary General President) says. It seems that every general conference has a talk about treating children with love. I remember listening to Elder Dallin H. Oaks talk about "protecting the children" with a gaping mouth. I was sure that children weren't treated like that. They couldn't be! My home had always been a place that I ran to when someone was being mean or when I just needed to hug my mom and see somone smile. But as I've grown older (yeah I know I'm still a teenager mom) I've seen more children hurt by adults then I ever imagined.

This talk by Sister Wixom was incredible. She talked all about how kind words can work miracles on children. Christ never spoke with a harsh voice and neither should we. A calm demeanor will show your child that you love them and want what's best for them. She also gives the advice to "pray to know your child's needs". Heavenly Father is the ultimate parent and he knows EXACTLY what your child needs. Ask him! He'll tell you! I think one of the most important things we can do to show our children we love them is to "disconnect and listen". My dad was incredible at this.He'd be working on the computer, I'd say something to him, and he'd instantly put the laptop away and focus all his attention on me.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks' "Protecting the Children" talk is very blunt, and it should be! Children should never be abused in any way. "And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea"  The other day we were knocking on some one's house and a mom and a daughter opened the door. Right as they did, I stepped back and fell right off the porch onto the ground, flat on my back. I think I must have scared the mom because I was laughing so hard, and she quickly told her daughter to "get in the house". Parents you have a right to protect your children! They are not your children, they are God's children that we have the joy and privilege to raise on this earth. Do not take that lightly.

 

Children deserve to be loved in every way (that doesn't mean you have to buy all of Toys R Us for them) and they need to be shown love constantly! Tell them you love them. Smile and sing with them. Give them time to share their feelings with you, and listen sincerely. The way a child is raised affects generations to come. Let Heavenly Father be a parent alongside you during the most crucial, and enjoyable time of a person's life.

 

 

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/04/the-words-we-speak?lang=eng

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2012/10/protect-the-children?lang=eng

 

Music To My Ears



MUSIC TO MY EARS

 



First of all I have to apologize in advance if this post is a little choppy. Hermione and Ron are staring at me from the library wall reading posters they're trapped in, and I'm a little distracted... But here it goes.

Yesterday we had the chance to go and volunteer at a senior center in the morning. This is something we do regularly, and one of the days I noticed that they had a dusty piano in the corner of the room. I went over and starting playing around on it, and apparently they've designated that to be my job for two hours each time we go over there. Heavenly Father knew I was going to get this opportunity, so he made it so that I only learned how to play LDS hymns, and now the seniors have no choice but to listen to "Come Come Ye Saints", "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" and such during it. I noticed though, that yesterday as I was playing it would get really quiet in the room during each hymn.

Music is one of the easiest and quickest ways to bring the spirit into a room. "Sacred music has a unique capacity to communicate our feelings of love for the Lord. This kind of communication is a wonderful aid to our worship" the apostles say. Music is also one of the quickest ways to destroy the spirit that is in the room. Introduce your children at a young age to good, stimulating yet spiritual music! Help them to know that the spirit can't reside when they listen to lyrics or beats that are not in line with the Lord. “Through music, man’s ability to express himself extends beyond the limits of the spoken language in both subtlety and power. Music can be used to exalt and inspire or to carry messages of degradation and destruction."

As I was growing up I would wake up every Sunday morning to my dad playing and singing hymns at the piano. I can still remember the reverence that was in our house and he used his incredible music ability to share his testimony with his family. It's been said that if you have a hard time voicing your thanks to God, sing it! Sing the hymns reverently, yet proudly each Sunday! But keep them going through out the week in your homes. Music is one of God's greatest gifts he has given to us. He lives in each good note and lyric that is played. Show him your appreciation by listening and playing music that is in harmony with Him. I know that if we do these things, we will have an easier time listening to and feeling the spirit.

 “For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.” (D&C 25:12.)

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1973/10/inspiring-music-worthy-thoughts?lang=eng