Thankful Heart

*I have one amazing family. We had our struggles this week being all together 24/7...but we did it. And we did well...at least I think we did.
*I have the gospel in my life. I haven't always thought of it so much as a blessing, sometimes it's seemed like a burden, but truly, I owe all that I am to this gospel.
*On that note, I am part of a church that so much was sacrificed for so that I could be here in my comfortable air-conditioned apartment, in comfortable store bought clothes, on a brand new couch, with electricity, and a laptop. I am not crossing the plains to a place that I have never seen before. I am here at school, in this day and age.
*I have awesome friends! They love me, even as they see my stupidness, as they see my weakness, as they see my shortcomings, they forgive, and allow me to come back to them, and welcome me back into their group.
*I have the atonement in my life. Even as I know that I have fallen short of what I should be, I take comfort in the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ suffered for me, my pains, my sins, and my emotional problems. And with that suffering I can return to Him. With that suffering I know that there is always someone who will understand EVERYTHING I am going through, utterly and completely. What more could I ask for?
*I am thankful for a roommate who I will call one of my best friends. It's amazing how well we've meshed this semester, and it's just felt like one extended hang-out. It's nice.
*I am thankful for the opportunities the Lord has given me to grow up. When traveling with my grandma and my brother, it was kinda scary to be trying to lead and act as an adult getting us through Salt Lake, through the airport, and onto Nauvoo, but the Lord strengthened me and made me able to bear it.
*I am thankful for the opportunity I had this last week to not only spend time in Nauvoo, but to spend a couple hours on Temple Square. And while at Temple Square meeting the sister missionaries there, who were so friendly, and so encouraging as they heard I was preparing to join them in the service of our Lord.
*I am thankful for the chance I had to meet the grandmother of one of my greatest friends while in Nauvoo. It was nice to hear that she had heard all about me, just a nice reassurance, that I felt I did mean something, maybe not everything I want to mean to her, but something.
*I am thankful for Joseph Smith. The world may mock him, but being in Nauvoo, seeing his home, seeing his grave, seeing Carthage, hearing the stories, seeing the temple, watching the Joseph Smith movie...all of it just made me appreciate everything this man did for the cause of our Lord.
*I am thankful for a car this summer, there have been complications with it, but overall, it's just nice to have that sitting out front.
*I am thankful for the friends that have come and visited, showing me that I do indeed matter to them, and that they do miss me.
*I am thankful for the safety of my friends this past year. I am thankful that although all of my Alabama friends were in danger during the storms, they are okay. And I am thankful that this past week that other friends remained safe, even in scary times.
*I am thankful for the scriptures, I don't study them as much as I should, and I will improve. But I am thankful for how well life goes when I spend time with them, and the things that they teach me when I need their guidance in my life (which is every day).
*I am thankful for the food that Michael and I have this summer. How grateful I am for the friends who didn't let us go hungry this summer.
*I am thankful for my mother. There are no women in this world I respect more than her. She's done everything she can for me, and she now stands willing to help, but able to let me go, and watch me attempt to make it on my own.
*I am thankful for my father. Although I've struggled some over the years with him. He has a sense of humor that I will always appreciate (sometimes much more than others). He has shown me what it means to give service, and to magnify the Priesthood.
*I am thankful for the Priesthood which the Lord has trusted me to hold. I am thankful for the service it allows me to provide, and I am thankful for the wonderful young women in my life who have called upon me to use this Priesthood to bless them. I am thankful for their reliance on me, so that I could stay worthy to use it.
*I am thankful for the children in my family. Watching them, playing with them, holding them, all of it, it's made me so excited to have a family of my own someday. To have children, and to try to raise them with my future wife to the best of my ability.
*I am thankful for my future wife. I don't know who you are, but whoever you are, you have shaped my life a great deal this past couple of years, and I hope that you will be as happy with me, as I have confidence I will be happy with you.
*I am thankful to be preparing to serve a mission. The Lord wants me there, and I want to be there. I want to serve people, I want to teach the gospel, and watch as the change that comes from the knowledge of this gospel comes into them.
*I am thankful for three older brothers who have served missions, and for the stories they tell me of them, and the examples they have set.
*I am thankful for music in my life. I love the sounds of music, and I can't imagine my life without it.
*I am thankful for the bishops I have had in my life. Bishop Mumford, Bishop Wilding, Bishop Cannon, Bishop Stratton, Bishop Nichols, Bishop Baugh, and my new Bishop (who I have only met once, so the name has slipped my mind). I see some of the sacrifices you make, and it inspires me. I see the care you have for me, even though you don't know me as well as a lot of other people, and it is amazing. I have so much gratitude for you.
*I am thankful for the prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He truly speaks to Heavenly Father and receives revelation for the entire church, as well as the entire world. There are so many things he has said that have helped me in times of need.
*I am thankful for all of the apostles and prophets from all the eras of this earth. They have set an example of giving your life to the Lord, which is one that I need to follow.
*I am thankful for Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, who is one of the men I respect most in this world. He is so full of the spirit, and I can't help but excitedly anticipate every time I will hear him speak to the church.
*I am thankful for the roommates I had this last year. Bryce, Ricky, Mitch, L.A., Tyrell, Sean, Michael, and Jordan. Each has been a particular blessing to me in times that they will have no idea. I am thankful for the friendships that we developed in Jones 201, and I am thankful for the examples set be each of .
*I am thankful for the young women in my life who encourage me to be better, by example, by word, and even by their disappointment when I don't live up to what I should be. I am thankful for the person they see me having the capability to become, and hope to someday meet their expectations.
*I am thankful for the Lord's guidance in my life. The comfort He has given me in knowing when I am where I need to be, both in my English classes, on Utah State campus, with my good friends, in my new apartment, in Jones, and in Institute. I am thankful that he is mindful of me at this time of my life, when I have so many choices to make, and I am thankful that He has helped me with these choices.
*I am thankful for the Lord as he helps me in my writing. I may not be the best writer, but the Lord blesses me with ideas that I thoroughly enjoy writing.
*I am thankful for my country, and for the freedoms I have here. I am thankful for a country where the Lord could restore His gospel to the earth.
*I am thankful for the Institute classes I have attended. I was never good at it, but I got the things I needed out of the ones I went to, and know that I missed opportunities for growth when I skipped. And so I am thankful for the opportunity to try once more this summer, and continue trying after my mission.
*I am thankful for the friends I have who are serving or preparing to serve their missions. I know that they will be incredible in their callings, and I pray that I will be able to do as well as I know they will.
*I am thankful for the passion that the Lord has blessed me with. I know that through this passion, the Lord will be able to lead me, as long as I direct the passion towards the things that He wishes for me.
*I am thankful for the trust my friends have in me. I am thankful for their ability to turn to me in times of need, and I am thankful for the Spirit which helps me as I try to bring comfort to them.
*I am thankful for so many things, the Lord has truly blessed my life, and I an thankful for the ability I have to sit down and see some of them, and acknowledge the Lord in these blessings, and as I do so, have a sense of bliss come into my life.

The Lord is aware of each of us, and He blesses our lives beyond our comprehension.