Monday, December 13, 2010

Giving With Joy


Feeling much better today...thank you heating pad and muscle relaxers! We had the Johnson Christmas party on Saturday. It was awesome! Danny's mom went to so much work preparing gingerbread houses for us to decorate in the afternoon. The great thing is, we didn't keep the houses for ourselves; we shared them with others. Danny and I visited a friend of mine that I thought would really enjoy the gingerbread house. I had no idea how perfect it was for her, but I am certain Heavenly Father did. He knew it would be a meaningful gift and prompted us to share. I won't share the details of our visit because I think they are personal, but I felt truly inspired and grateful to be part of an answer to someone else's prayer. I taught a lesson yesterday in Young Women's based on Elder Eyring's talk "Giving with Joy" . It's one of my favorite talks for the Christmas season, focusing on both how to give and how to receive. It was just the reminder I needed to really get me in the right spirit this season, the Spirit of Christ.

"I pray that we will freely give. I pray that we will be touched by the feelings of others, that we will give without feelings of compulsion or expectation of gain, and that we will know that sacrifice is made sweet to us when we treasure the joy it brings to another heart." Elder Henry B Eyring

With Love,
L

2 comments:

Whitney said...

Two things:

1. Your little house is adorable! That just looks like so much fun. How very like you guys to share with someone else.
2. That is one of my all time favorite talks, ever. I love how he talks about giving and receiving as being important. It is so important to give and to share, but equally important to receive, especially to receive Christ and his atonement into our lives. I sure would have loved to hear your lesson! :)

Lynley Jill said...

Thanks! I love how he talks about receiving Christ into our lives and how that makes us better gift givers. We have the little snowman and penguin you sculpted on our piano and I think of you and smile every time I see it:) They have a little village of woodland friends and are quite happy!