Ben's book OFFICIALLY went LIVE on Amazon on Friday, March 15th! He held a Live drawing for a free signed copy on both his Author Facebook page and his Instagram page. It was quite impressive when all of the books got delivered (that he'd ordered to autograph)... He held a "Release Party" and celebrated with all of his friends coming over and being excited with him! He's knee deep into the 2nd book of the Trilogy and spends time most days working on some sort of Marketing (which he as found that he really enjoys!)
Mom, Dad and girls went to the movies and saw "Captain Marvel" - we hit the Tuesday showing when all movies are $5. It was actually pretty decent. The boys were gone with the youth to do Temple Baptisms :)
It's not like Ben hasn't already had a very exciting MONTH... but he also had a "campout" with the Priests here at the house during Spring Break. They talked the Bishop into letting them use his Projector and they hooked up the PS4 to it for their entertainment! Our Amazing dad also took them all out shooting earlier in the day!
Another celebration we had this month was... ST. PATRICK'S DAY! Aubrie and Lexi put on a fantastic afternoon of all things Leprechaun! They even worked up for a few weeks to have the money to pay for EVERYTHING!
And then the rest of month looked a little something like:
Spiritually Speaking...
First of all, dad and I have been very diligent in our weekly Temple attendance! We were able to go each week in the month of March! In fact, we have attended together every single week of the year so far (well, minus the first week in January when we were driving back home from Nebraska and getting Seth to School!) This month we did a couple of Endowment sessions, some Initiatories and even did a Sealing session with some couples from the Ward. We love having TWO Temples within 30 minutes that we can choose from! Boise is our typical "go to" Temple but we went to the Meridian one so that we could check out the Sealing Room where August and McKendra will get married in. Mom also attended the Meridian Temple with Stephanie this month. The boys also did some Baptisms this month as part of our Ward's Temple Extravaganza (that dad was over)...
I've listened (mom) to many great Conference talks, Devotionals, TOFW speakers and church podcasts throughout the month and have been greatly uplifted by these. 2 things that have stuck with me moreso than others is:
* A talk about the Holy Ghost and how we should be praying for its constant companionship to help us throughout our day and when temptations come, we should remember that prayer (and even pray for added strength to get us through). I have been doing this and one thing that has come from it is that I've been more productive and a better steward of my time! I've been very aware of how I spend my days (when purposefully thinking of the Holy Ghost being with me at all times!). I've made better choices with my eating and even done better with homeschooling and my calling!
* The second thing that has stuck with me is a BYU Devotional where the speaker shared 6 Invitations (and their Blessings) from our Prophet, Russell M. Nelson. Those 6 invitations are:
1) Ask your Heavenly how He truly feels about you and your life's mission. Record those impressions and review them often. Follow through with (those promptings) with exactness.
Promised Blessing: When we catch even a glimpse how Heavenly Father sees us AND what He is counting on us to do for Him, Our lives will NEVER be the same!
2) Learn ALL we can about Jesus Christ and Follow Him
Promised Blessing: Our love for Christ and Christ's Laws will grow beyond what we currently imagine. Our ability to turn away from sin will increase. Our desire to keep the commandments will soar. We will be able to walk away from entertainment entanglements.
Questions to ask: WHAT will I do to learn ALL that I can about the Savior? WHAT will I do to better follow Him?
3) Pray for courage NOT to give up (when we're discouraged).
Promised Blessing: As we follow Jesus Christ we will find sustained peace and True Joy! As we keep our covenants with increased precision, defend the church, the Lord will bless us with strength and wisdom to ACCOMPLISH THE IMPOSSIBLE!
Question to ask myself: Do I believe I can accomplish the impossible!?
4) Spend more time - MUCH MORE TIME in places where the Spirit is present. More time with friends who are seeking to have the Spirit with them. More time on our knees in prayer. More time in the scriptures. More time in Family History work. More time in the Temple.
Promised Blessing: As we consistently give the Lord a generous portion of our time, He will MULTIPLY THE REMAINDER!
5) Learn to recognize the Spirit. Persistently do the Spiritual work needed to develop the crucial spiritual skill of How To Hear the Whisperings of the Holy Ghost
Promised Blessing: As we develop this skill, we will have ALL THE DIRECTION that we'll ever need in our lives. We will be given answers to our questions.
6) Make an appointment with the Lord to be in His Holy House and then KEEP that appointment with Exactness AND Joy.
Promised Blessing: The Lord will bring the Miracles He knows that we need as we make sacrifices to serve in the Temple
I loved how these invitations and associated blessings were all put together in one place. It then got me thinking that I would really love to go back through Conference talks and pull out the Prophetic Invitations and blessings in all of them! I'm sure if one did this, they would have a treasure trove of awesomeness!
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