Cup Overflowing

Here I sit, back at work, another ordinary work week....
However ordinary it may be, I am grateful to have a cup overflowing once more, and I've spent the past couple of days digesting what exactly has filled my cup, my heart, and my soul....

Well, we had Stake Conference in my Stake this past weekend--for the Pompano Beach Florida Stake--and I found myself hardly able to wait to hear the speakers and the messages.  I feel like I've been running on empty lately, basically barely making it on the spiritual fumes in my nearly bone-dry tank.
 
Why was my "tank" bone-dry, you might ask?
Part of it circumstantial, part of it my own tendencies to "shrink back" to regroup when faced with stressful, difficult, or unpleasant things, and part of it was simply time.  T-I-M-E (or, as one speaker referenced, "how love is spelled in today's world:  T-I-M-E."). 
We have Stake Conference twice a year, and it was simply that time again to hear from our local leaders and get guidance, direction, and a renewal of Spirit.  My soul knew it was time for a new spiritual dose to keep me going for the next few months.  Funny, it knew but I didn't.  Hmmmm....
I was also very curious to see if there were any new developments about the South Florida Temple. 

So, Saturday night I went, sat by myself (my hubby had hurt his knee and was trying to stay off it as long as possible), listening to one of my closest friends' sisters give a lovely talk about faith, listening to a beautifully stirring piano solo of "Be Still My Soul," which brought me to tears (it almost always does), and focused on simply soaking up that spiritual sunshine. 

We had a lovely session opened up to Q-and-A by Elder Giddens of the Seventy, which lasted about an hour. WOW--we could ask him ANYTHING and he'd try to answer us the best he could :) 
Of particular interest to me was the emphasis and importance placed on using social media and internet tools the Church has created to help get the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ out to every corner of the earth.  He and President Hale (the President of the Fort Lauderdale Florida Mission) discussed Mormon.org, and how members can create profiles and then link to their other sites such as blogs, Twitter accounts or Facebook pages. 
YAY!!! 
I really liked that, as I have been working to link all my social media sites together and connect them.  He then invited us to go home and pray, preparing ourselves to hear the message that would be given to us the following morning. 

After getting together with Nancy and praising her sister Diana on her talk, we girls grabbed a bite to eat and giggled, chatted, and had some great gal-pal time.  I felt renewed and invigorated. So, driving home, I quietly thanked my Heavenly Father for giving me such a wonderfully uplifting evening.

Sunday morning, I arose, got dressed, and headed to our Stake Center in Coral Springs for another session of Stake Conference. Now, mind you, I'm curious by nature, so I had no idea what to expect at this session; but I was all a-buzz and excited to hear more. 
My soul simply craved more (much as I frequently crave chocolate and Twizzlers); and the session did not disappoint in any way whatsoever. 
The choir from the Coral Springs Ward sang "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" so beautifully--I couldn't keep the tears from spilling down my cheeks.  Oh, I wish Ben or my dad or family were there with me to share in that beautiful music!  I felt a little alone, even among over 1,200 members of the Stake.  Oh well....

I sat listening to the inspirational messages of hope, repentance, running to save souls, forgiveness, and last, the message of Elder Giddens which emphasized the difference between justification and sanctification of a soul--how, as a person continues to follow down the path of repentance and forgiveness, he/she gradually becomes less and less desireful to sin; but, eventually, still following that path, he/she will grow and long to do good continually--as King Benjamin in the Book of Mosiah taught, and as the Apostle Paul taught in the New Testament.  I felt like a spiritual slingshot had smacked me right between the eyes--POW!!!! 

I needed to hear that with my spiritual ears, to wake up and smell the hot cocoa, as it were....

This message rippled through me all Sunday, through today.  I began pondering ways in how I can work to go from being justified in Christ to strive to become sanctified in Christ.  Up til that point, I don't honestly think I paid too much personal attention to the powerful difference between those two concepts. 
Amazing....
My heart began to burn with a warmth as I reflect upon how I long to be in the Temple, whether serving others, learning, or simply as a patron--that there's no other place on earth I rather be right now.  That desire to be there, the desire to be with my family and serve them, help make them more comfortable in their suffering and pain, and the desire to be the best wife, best daughter, best sister, and best friend I can be--those desires are all the stirrings and startings of wanting "to do good continually."  When I embrace that and turn my back away from my complaining, my own personal hurt/sorrow, or selfish or lazy tendencies, I take a step further toward that process of sanctification.  I need to personally focus on that and try to minimize and reduce the negative things that hold me back from that spiritual progression. 

One of the many, many wonderful quotes Elder Giddens gave towards his closing remarks was an amazing quote given by President Hinckley, modern-day Prophet of God, that I printed out and stuck in my wallet, in my scriptures, on my desk at work:

“It isn’t as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out.... If you do your best, it will all work out. Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future."-- Gordon B. Hinckley.

I am so grateful to have the opportunity to listen to Church leaders give instruction, bear witness, and testify with the Spirit of Gospel principles I so needed to hear. 
It renewed in me a sense of hope, of possibility, and of good cheer, that everything will work out. 
I just have to put one foot in front of the other, trust in the Lord, and do my best. 
Simple, true--but not necessarily easy.  Ahh, but there's the rub....
But with the incredible example of President Hinckley, I'm sure gonna try a lot harder.