Time Flies

Where does time go? I remember when I was a kid and each day crawled by. When I was awaiting a special day, it took an eternity to arrive! Now, I blink and it has already happened. I can drive, I've graduated, I make my own rules, I'm married, I have children, I go by "ma'am" at the grocery store, I own a minivan! What the heck?!

I often wonder how women of old were able to do so much. Not only did they wash clothes and dishes by hand, they fetched and heated their own water. They baked everything from scratch and probably grew it, too! They made & mended their own clothing. I have all these modern conveniences (including running hot water), and I find myself struggling to get it all done.

I have lists of crafts I want to try, home projects I want to do, places I want to take the kids, books I want to read, FHE lessons I want to teach, etc. Now that I think about it, I just made a list of lists!! When will it ever get done? When will I feel satisfied?

A scripture clearly comes to mind (because I just heard it last night in the Relief Society Broadcast - thank goodness I'm doing one thing right). "Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy.  Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted, and let your soul delight in fatness." (2 Nephi 9:51)

Last night during the broadcast, one of the sisters asked what we do to find strength. I spend a lot of time blogging - it brings me great joy to remember the fun things we have done as a family and see what my friends are up to. I spend a lot of time searching out the best deals - man, I love to save money on groceries! I also spend a lot of time planning meals for my family - I find it keeps us healthier and saves us money with less eating out and less food going to waste. I spend a lot of time keeping our house clean and organized (you may not know it by the looks of things, but it's true!) - I find this absolutely necessary for my personal sanity.

While all of these things are of great benefit to me and my family, none of them bring me strength. My greatest and surest source of strength lies in personal prayer and scripture study (yes, personal is bold, italicized, and underlined). When I lack in these personal areas, I lack in all others. I get sloppy with other righteously devoted areas of my life like FHE, temple attendance, and visiting teaching - I don't do them as well as I could, and sometimes they get completely overlooked. Wow, another month has already flown by? All things hinge on those two simple daily tasks.

The world will tell us we need to take more time for ourselves to relieve the stresses of being a woman in this busy world. The Lord tells us to grab a bowl of ice cream and feast on his words (see above scripture, 2 Nephi 9:51). Okay, maybe that's a misinterpretation of scripture, but hey - let's enjoy scripture study! There is a strength and power that comes from the words of Christ we cannot find anywhere else in this world - not even on the internet. Don't take the time - there isn't any left! Make the time.