FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT--Turning Our Lives Over to God

President Ezra Taft Benson once said: “Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can.”

I have always loved this quote. It has always served as a sort of compass. Several times in my life, as I have struggled with various aspirations, it has occurred to me, that perhaps, I should invite the Lord to figure into the equation. Once I begin living with His will in mind and heart, praying more sincerely, serving with more frequency and earnest, studying His words more faithfully, I begin to see things falling into place. My heart becomes a conduit to the glorious power of personal revelation, which allows me to live with greater clarity of objective.

I have a often-quoted-by-me, very wise friend, Diane, who begins each day with an invitation. She asks the Lord to allow the Holy Ghost to help her to "orchestrate" her day. She has had many, many experiences where she was able to run into the right person at the gas station, or to read just the right conference talk, or think of just the right thing to say to her children. I want to be more valiant in following her example because I think that as we live thusly, we become better and better. Little by little, we become people so unlike what we had in mind, but more like what the Lord has in mind.

My life has had many twists and turns, especially in the last few years. I have faced personal adversity, and have been blessed beyond comprehension. I was thinking today, specifically about changes to my body in the last ten years since I was married and began having children. In that ten-year time period, I have had four children and have miscarried four times. Add to that, the general stresses of being a mother and of life in general, and my body is COMPLETELY different now. I'm not making excuses and I'm not accepting my weight gain and health as mere fate. But when all is said and done, I wouldn't change much else. If having my perfect size 10 wedding-dress body back meant that I couldn't have my babies, or even that I had to trade in all my trials with their attendant lessons and blessings, I wouldn't even consider it. Despite its challenges and dips and ditches, I love my life. Moreover, I invite the Lord to guide me, to continue to try me, and even to chastise me, if needed, because without all that, who would I end up as? I don't want to finish life without these experiences, because they TEACH me who I was and who I will become. So today, I publicly recommit to the Lord, that I will accept His will for me. I will follow Him and turn my life over to Him. I will invite Him to lead my paths in all things.