I Believe in Christ

President Thomas S. Monson said;

"To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, 

we need only drop the last syllable and it becomes 

the Spirit of Christ."

I started putting up Christmas decorations this past weekend because I needed do do something exciting and fun.   I needed to feel the Spirit of Christ.

I got the trees all up and the lights on them all and started to decorate them.  Usually my large real tree is the one that holds all the random ornaments from years and years of collecting, but this year I just wanted to make it my nativity or Christ tree.  So I left the majority of my ornaments in the box and began to decorate it with things like angels, nativities, stars, words, etc that remind me of Christ.

It was perfect!  Exactly what I needed to do, the way I needed to do it.   I needed to remind myself of the important things about life - about The Plan of Happiness.                         I need to feel closer to my husband so putting up Christ decorations made me feel closer to him and to Christ.  Both were much needed!

I decorated my "Terry Tree" and then, feeling more nostalgic I created a hanky tree to remind me of Christmas Eve in Seattle, and Christmas Day in Seattle.   I also put up the wreath with hankies (also from Seattle days).

I spent Friday and Saturday close to Christ and to memories of Terry and the miracle that makes eternity possible.    

(FYI - I love Elder Donald L. Hailstorm's message about miracles, HERE)   

"We are living a miracle, and further miracles lie ahead."

When I got done and things cleaned up, I sat down with my scriptures to read thru the block of scriptures for the seminary lessons this week.  I left Christmas music playing and was enjoying the candle light and tree lights all around me.   The lights are one of my favorite things about Christmas.

I don't mind if my house lights are not turned on in the evening because I always have a candle light going and night lights around the house.  It's a beautiful glow and I do enjoy it.   There is another Light I enjoy - the Light of Christ in my life - I could not live without it.

Today is the third anniversary of Terry's passing so my mind has certainly been preoccupied with that thought for the last few weeks.  As I sat there in the quiet solitude of the evening a thought came to me:


I do fine for a while then I hit a low.  Seems I should not do that so often since I am reading scriptures and studying daily...,  and I know the gospel is true and I believe in Christ.  When I recognize I am at a low point again I just need to continue to pray and fast and study and endure, because there will be a moment when something clicks, something helps.  Little moments adding up to lift me out of my low point.


Having this thought reminded me of a story I told in a sacrament meeting talk for Easter this year, about the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  I love this story and it was very personal to me.  I tell the story here and continue with the thoughts I shared after it.



"A woman walking along a road fell into a pit so deep she could not climb out. No matter what she did, she could not get out by herself. The woman called for help and rejoiced when a kind passerby heard her and lowered a ladder down into the pit. This allowed her to climb out of the pit and regain her freedom.

"We are like the woman in the pit. Sinning is like falling into the pit, and we can't get out by ourselves. Just as the kind passerby heard the woman's cry for help, Heavenly Father sent His Only Begotten Son to provide the means of escape.

Jesus Christ's atonement could be compared to lowering a ladder into the pit; it gives us the means to climb out." But the Savior does more than lower the ladder, He "comes down into the pit and makes it possible for us to use the ladder to escape."

"Just as the woman in the pit had to climb up the ladder, we must repent of our sins and obey the gospel principles and ordinances to climb out of our pit and make the Atonement of Jesus Christ work in our lives. Thus, after all we can do, the Atonement makes it possible for us to become worthy to return to Heavenly Father's presence."


Using this same analogy - too, at times, have felt like I was in a pit, unable to climb out on my own. This most recent time, I did not fall in because of devastating sin, but because of debilitating loneliness, sorrow, and despair. I even somehow felt betrayed because I didn't get what I was praying for.

Then in my darkest moment, Jesus Christ lowered a ladder and climbed in beside me and helped me find my way out. (In reality, He had probably lowered the ladder much earlier than I had seen.)

He did it in a way that gave me opportunity to accept or reject His help. He was there to help me, but I had to take that step upward and out. He was holding His hand out to rescue me, but I had to take hold and not let go.

There have been countless times that Christ has climbed in beside me and helped me escape whatever was holding me back. Each time I felt the peace He offers us. Sometimes the answer is simply PEACE.

We should never let our sin or sorrow or frustration and disappointments block the way and keep us from reaching out to Christ in faith and taking our Savior's hand, accepting the Atonement of Jesus Christ so that we may enjoy our lifetime of moments leading to eternity.

Well, my day has come to an end, and its been a great day.  I love my family.  I love the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I love the Savior and our Heavenly Father.
I do miss my husband, and I do feel a bit homesick..., but I'm Fine!  :)