Not just today, but ALWAYS

Lately, I have been in an emotional fog. I am AMAZED at everything that I have in my life. I never understood all the great things that have been blessings in my life. And as this is the month for thanksgiving, (which I want you to know is not the reason I have been so thankful...I have been thinking about this for the last few months) I thought that I would share many of these things with my children.

It surprised me as I became more thankful for things and voiced how thankful I was, that my children became more thankful. During our family prayers, the things that my kids have been thankful for, I am in awe of. They have expressed that they are thankful for their beds, for a home, for friends, family, books...etc. I couldn't believe all the UN-selfish things that they are thankful for and how they have not ONCE mentioned anything selfish, even though they are more than welcome to be thankful for those things too.

I was thinking about this all last night and couldn't sleep because of this, so I feel like I need to document it. I was thinking about how grateful I was for my testimony. Through EVERYTHING that I have been through in my life, even though sometimes I fell and fell hard in life, I never once DOUBTED the gospel of my Savior. I questioned why this was. I had many opportunities to deny the gospel or to even fall away, but I couldn't, because I KNEW it was all true. I knew this because I knew that the only person that I could talk to during those awful times, someone that wouldn't judge me and would listen with all fullness of his heart, was my Heavenly Father.

I never worried about what he thought of me, because I knew he already knew everything that was going on in my life and that I didn't feel like there were secrets between him and I. I loved the feeling of KNOWING that he was there for me when others looked down on me. I could never doubt such a great knowledge. Even if I were not a member, and I was another religion, I know that as soon as someone told me that there was a father in Heaven that knew what I was going through and would always be there to answer my prayers, that I would have immediately embraced the chance to have that in my life.

I got the strong feeling that I needed to express this to my children so that they have a strong testimony of prayer and of our Heavenly Father. I have always told my children that they can tell me anything, but that even more, their Heavenly Father will hear them and answer their prayers. That if they have faith, Heavenly Father will always be there to answer your prayers. But, even if they are having difficulty in their lives and feel lost, that He is the first person you can turn to and he will listen and stand by you.

In life, I fell HARD when I was a teenager. I never felt like I fit in anywhere and that I had let everyone down in my life, but I knew that He had my back and I would do everything that I could to please him. I made BIG mistakes, but I knew I wouldn't stray far because of the testimony I had in HIM.

I can only hope that my children will learn this great part of the gospel, because to me, this is the greatest blessing that he could have given us, was the chance to have him every step of the way.