Post # 37 – One More Day

Dear Family and Friends

I hope this post finds each and every one of you healthy and happy in whatever situation or circumstance you may be in at this time of your lives. I think it is very important to find positive things no matter what life dishes out to us😊 Some things in our lives are very planned and we are prepared for their occurrence but there are so many that come upon us unawares.

So. we can get gloomy, grumpy, sad or disappointed about what is happening in our lives and ask why me – why is this happening to me, I am trying to live a good life, why me? OR we can ask ourselves – what am I supposed to learn from this particular situation or circumstance and then look for the learning that ca occur if you will allow it to happen.  Most times, being and staying positive is one of the hardest things we have to do in this life.

I had an occurrence that happened last Sunday – you see we have this special plate in our Relief Society class and each week someone puts goodies on the plate and brings it the following week and passes the plate to someone else – someone that inspires them. Well, last Sunday I received the plate and I was told by my friend –who also has cancer, that I inspire her because I am “positive and upbeat” about everything in my life. I do not see that in myself so much – I just do what I gotta do, right?

I do believe though, that it is so important to stay upbeat and positive in our lives no matter what we are going through! I mean what use is it for me to be upset or sad because I have cancer? There are a whole lot of people out there that have cancer – right? Several are people that I know and love – good friends that are suffering so much more than I have, their experiences much more traumatic than mine. I love them and keep them in my prayers.

Being sad, upset, angry, disappointed or any of the many other negative feelings out there would not change the fact that I have cancer and that it is not just a little cancer—it is stage IV. And if the truth be told with my rare – and very aggressive type of breast cancer I probably cannot look forward too many more years of my mortal life.  No, I am not trying to be morbid, or make you feel sorry for me. I am only stating facts here.

I do believe though that as long as the Lord has work for me to do – I am good to go😊 because after all He is in charge you know! The truth is that we – each one of us in reality may only have one more day in our lives to get our act together and focus ourselves on what matters most in this life! We never know when this particular day may be our last on this earth. So don’t you think that it is important for each of us to get our liver in order beginning right now?

With that said, I want to encourage as many of you as I can – to get your lives in order so that you will be so much better prepared to meet your Savior when your time comes, than I feel that I am right now! Having the gospel in my life has made such a positive difference for good – it has made my life so much better than it was that I want everyone to have that goodness, that happiness, and especially that great peace of mind that only the Lord can give you in each of your lives too!!

For each of you to believe in Jesus Christ and in our Heavenly Father, repent of your sins, be baptized --- washed clean of all your sins and begin your life anew – I remember when I had this opportunity and it was amazing!!! I am a very slow to learn I guess, because I am just now learning so many things that I feel like I should have already learned.  I don’t know if I am making any sense to you or if I am just rambling --- again!!😊 If you have been following me, you should know that I do tend to ramble a bit, so please hang in there with me😊

I promise each of you that it will be worth your effort. I want each of you to embrace your Savior and His teachings – especially my own family. I do not have much as far as material things in my life to leave behind and that is quite okay with me. I would much rather my family takes to heart the spiritual things I can teach them because in the long run --- they are what is the most important!!! The spiritual things are what matters most!! Our focus must be on those things of an eternal nature.

 T Like for example to have faith in Jesus Christ. To know that our Heavenly Father will answer each of our prayers. To know that Jesus Christ is our Savior --- the Only Begotten Son of our Heavenly Father. To know or at least believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins and for each of yours too.  And to know that He died and rose from the dead after three days. To understand that Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are three distinct beings who are the same in purpose!

Also to know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and the most correct book of scripture on the earth and that a man, woman, or child would get nearer to God by reading and studying the precious words within its cover than by any other book they can read and study. To know or at least believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. To believe that he translated the Book of Mormon through the Holy Ghost by power of God.

It is important to know that Jesus Christ has prepared a way for each of us to return to live with Him and our Heavenly Father some day after our mortal life is over. To know the Jesus Christ is the only way that we can return to our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ someday. To know or at least to believe that the Bible is the word of God, as far as it is translated correctly, but so many plain and precious things were taken from it through translations and other means. This loss was implemented by men who were guided by the one who is the father of all lies, who only wants us to be miserable like unto himself!

I have found that the Book of Mormon helps us to study the Bible and fill in the missing pieces when we read them side by side using the references and cross-indexing that are so helpful in our study of the scriptures.  The Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! All of these are the things that are important for each of us to know. Today in our Relief Society class they talked about each of us having one more day – from a conference talk at this past general conference.

One More Day  By Elder Taylor G. Godoy  Of the Seventy

We all have a “today” to live, and the key to making our day successful is to be willing to sacrifice.

A few years ago, my friends had a beautiful baby named Brigham. After his birth, Brigham was diagnosed with a rare condition called Hunter syndrome, which sadly meant that Brigham would have a short life. One day while Brigham and his family were visiting the temple grounds, Brigham pronounced a particular phrase; twice he said, “One more day.” The very next day, Brigham passed away.

I have visited Brigham’s grave a few times, and every time I do, I contemplate the phrase “one more day.” I wonder what it would mean, what effect it would have in my life to know that I had only one more day to live. How would I treat my wife, my children, and others? How patient and polite would I be? How would I take care of my body? How fervently would I pray and search the scriptures? I think that, in one way or another, we all at some point will have a “one more day” realization—a realization that we must use wisely the time we have.

In the Old Testament we read the story of Hezekiah, king of Judah. The prophet Isaiah announced to Hezekiah that Hezekiah’s life was about to end. When he heard the prophet’s words, Hezekiah began to pray, plead, and weep sorely. On that occasion, God added 15 years to Hezekiah’s life. (See Isaiah 38:1–5.)

If we were told we had a short time to live, we too might plead for more days of life in the name of things we should have done or done differently.

Regardless of the time the Lord, in His wisdom, determines to grant each of us, of one thing we can be sure: we all have a “today” to live, and the key to making our day successful is to be willing to sacrifice.

The Lord said, “Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice” (D&C 64:23; emphasis added).

The word sacrifice comes from the Latin words sacer,which means “sacred,” and facere, which means “to make”—in other words, to make things sacred, to bring honor to them.

“Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven” (“Praise to the Man,” Hymns, no. 27).

In what ways will sacrifice make our days meaningful and blessed?

First, personal sacrifice strengthens us and gives value to the things we sacrifice for.

Some years ago on fast Sunday, an elderly sister came to the pulpit to share her testimony. She lived in the city called Iquitos, which is in the Peruvian Amazon. She told us that from the time of her baptism, she had always had the goal of receiving the ordinances of the temple in Lima, Peru. She faithfully paid a full tithe and saved her meager income for years.

Her joy upon going to the temple and receiving the sacred ordinances therein was expressed in these words: “Today I can say that I finally feel ready to go through the veil. I am the happiest woman in the world; I have saved money, you have no idea for how long, to visit the temple, and after seven days on the river and 18 hours by bus, I was finally in the house of the Lord. When leaving that holy place, I said to myself, after all the sacrifice that has been required for me to come to the temple, I will not let anything make me take lightly every covenant I made; it would be a waste. This is a very serious commitment!”

I learned from this sweet sister that personal sacrifice is an invaluable force that drives our decisions and our determinations. Personal sacrifice drives our actions, our commitments, and our covenants and gives sacred things meaning.

Second, sacrifices we make for others, and that others make for us, result in blessings for all.

When I was a student in dental school, the financial outlook of our local economy was not very encouraging. Inflation dramatically decreased the value of currency from one day to the next.

I remember the year when I was to enroll in surgery practices; I needed to have all the necessary surgical equipment before enrolling that semester. My parents saved the needed funds. But one night something dramatic happened. We went to buy the equipment, only to discover that the amount of money we had to buy all the equipment now was sufficient to buy only a pair of surgical tweezers—and nothing else. We returned home with empty hands and with heavy hearts at the thought of my losing a semester of college. Suddenly, however, my mother said, “Taylor, come with me; let’s go out.”

We went downtown where there were many places that buy and sell jewelry. When we arrived at one store, my mother took out of her purse a small blue velvet bag containing a beautiful gold bracelet with an inscription that read, “To my dear daughter from your father.” It was a bracelet that my grandfather had given her on one of her birthdays. Then, before my eyes, she sold it.

When she received the money, she told me, “If there is one thing I am sure of, it is that you are going to be a dentist. Go and buy all the equipment you need.” Now, can you imagine what kind of student I became from that moment on? I wanted to be the best and finish my studies soon because I knew the high cost of the sacrifice she was making.

I learned that the sacrifices our loved ones make for us refresh us like cool water in the middle of the desert. Such sacrifice brings hope and motivation.

Third, any sacrifice we make is small compared to the sacrifice of the Son of God.

What is the value of even a beloved gold bracelet compared to the sacrifice of the very Son of God? How can we honor that infinite sacrifice? Each day we can remember that we have one more day to live and be faithful. Amulek taught, “Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you” (Alma 34:31). In other words, if we will offer to the Lord the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit, immediately the blessings of the great plan of happiness are manifest in our lives.

The plan of redemption is possible thanks to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. As He Himself described, the sacrifice “caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink” (D&C 19:18).

And it is because of this sacrifice, after following the process of sincere repentance, that we can feel the weight of our mistakes and sins lifted. In fact, guilt, shame, pain, sorrow, and looking down at ourselves are replaced with a clear conscience, happiness, joy, and hope.

At the same time, as we honor and are grateful for His sacrifice, we can receive in a great measure the intense desire to be better children of God, to stay away from sin, and to keep covenants like never before.

Then, like Enos after receiving the forgiveness of his sins, we will feel the desire ourselves to sacrifice and to seek the well-being of our brothers and sisters (see Enos 1:9). And we will be more willing every “one more day” to follow the invitation that President Howard W. Hunter extended to us when he said: “Mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. … Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. … Speak your love and then speak it again” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Howard W. Hunter [2015], 32; adapted from “What We Think Christmas Is,” McCall’s, Dec. 1959, 82–83).

May we fill our days with that impulse and the strength that personal sacrifice and the sacrifice that we make for or receive from others give us. And in a special way, may we enjoy the peace and rejoicing that the sacrifice of the Only Begotten offers us; yes, that peace that is mentioned when we read that Adam fell that men might be, and men are—you are—that you might have joy (see 2 Nephi 2:25). That joy is real joy that only the sacrifice and the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ can provide.

It is my prayer that we follow Him, that we believe Him, that we love Him, and that we feel the love demonstrated by His sacrifice every time we have the opportunity to live one more day. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

I have found in my own life experiences that we can never go wrong in helping one another – especially to help each other on our way to the Celestial Kingdom of heaven. It is so important for each of us to lift one another, to lighten one another’s burdens and to care for one another. Remember, we are the Lord’s hands here on the earth, so it is up to each of us to be our best, and to do our best. Simply put – when it is done unto the least of these my brethren, it is done unto me. So, when you give service to one another, you are in fact giving service to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

President Howard W. Hunter had given us some things to think about in how we can spend our ‘one more day,’

Mend a quarrel. – if you have had an argument or disagreement with someone, your spouse, sibling, parents, or other persons, you be the first to forgive them. You can fix this!

 Seek out a forgotten friend.  – is there a friend in your life that you have been too busy to call, send an email or a letter? Contact them today! You can fix this!

Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. …  is there someone with whom you have some suspicions about or where your trust in them has been broken? Forgiveness is what is needed. You can fix this!

Give a soft answer. -- Is there someone in your life who needs an answer from you in the heat of the moment? Remember the Savior never raised His voice, He only spoke softly to all who would listen – even when cleansing the temple, I don’t believe He raised His voice. You can fix this!

Encourage youth. – Are there some youth in your life that you can encourage along the right path in their lives? Can you encourage them to give1 willingly of their time and talents for another person today?  You can fix this

Manifest your loyalty in word and deed.  – is there someone in your life who needs your loyalty? Colossians 3:17

Keep a promise. -- Have you broken a promise to a family member, or friend? If you don’t mean it, then don’t say it! Keep your promises – especially to your children, they never forget! You can fix this!

Forgo a grudge.  Is there someone for whom you are holding a grudge against? Forget it! Forgive them! You can fix this!

Forgive an enemy. Has an enemy offended you or hurt you in some way? With the Lords help your can forgive this person or persons. You can fix this!

Apologize. – Is there someone in your life that you need to apologize to for one thing or another? Just do it! Swallow your pride and apologize to them. You can fix this!

Try to understand. --- Is there someone in your life that needs your understanding of them?  Can you understand your situation, their feelings? Can you look at them through the Savior’s eyes? You can fix this!

Examine your demands on others. --= Are you demanding too much of those around you? you can fix this! 2 Corinthians 13:5 

Think first of someone else. -- how often do you think of others first? how often do your thoughts make others first in your prayers? You can fix this!

Be kind.  --  Are you kind to everyone, or only those you love?  do your best each day to be kind to those along your way. leave them better that you found them! You can fix this!!\

Be gentle. -- How often do you find yourselves being gentle with those around you? Have your thoughts gone astray towards some one today? practice being gentle in thought and in deed. You can fix this!!

Laugh a little more. Do you find yourself full of laughter each day? or are you a huge frown pretending you're at play? decide now to laugh often -- laughter is truly a medicine in disguise. you can fix this!!

Express your gratitude. -- How often do you forget to say thank you to those who always do for you? what about your Heavenly Father -- do you remember to give Him thanks for all of your blessings too? You can fix this!!

Welcome a stranger. -- How quick are you to welcome a stranger? do you step out of your comfort zone right away or do you figure someone else will save the day? Step up, Step out! Say hello, introduce yourself, welcome them to town, the neighborhood, to church, wherever you chance to meet. You can fix this!!

Gladden the heart of a child. -- It's not hard to make a child smile, how often do you find yourself enjoying the smile of a child -- once your have shared yours with them? do you find yourself yelling at your children or praising them and bringing laughter into their lives? You can fix this!!

Speak your love and then speak it again” -- How often do you tell those you love that your love them? do you end every conversation with I love you? do you end every phone call, text, etc., with 'I Love you!?" Telling those that you love, that you love them is so important . You can fix this!! 

Well, Family and Friends, this it for today. I hope you have found this post not only interesting, but enlightening and uplifting. Please,  i challenge each of you try to do one of these things each day for the next twenty days:) Then begin again:)  Enjoy this challenge!! Keep praying, studying your scriptures and enjoying your family and friends until my next post have a wonderful week! Be positive, step out there and just say hello:)