All is well

I've been M.I.A in blog land...but it's been for at least one good reason!

In early July I was called as the Young Womens president in our ward. Wow! What an amazing & humbling experience it has been thus far. I was shocked when I was asked to serve in this capacity. I just kept thinking about all the ways in which I wasn't qualified for a task so great. The spirit quietly whispered to my heart to not forget all the ways in which I was qualified for a task so great. I still have times when it is so incredibly overwhelming, because of the inadequacies I feel, but those are the times the Lord is able teach me of the things I can do better & the things that I'm doing well.

I feel like I am constantly in evaluation mode. When activities or meetings go poorly I wonder what I didn't do right, when they go well, I wonder what we could have done to make them even better. I'm not sure I'll ever be 100% content in this calling.

It has taken a ton of time...in ward council recently someone suggestion serving as a president in the church is like taking on a 2nd part-time job if you try, & if you try as hard as you should it is like taking on a 2nd full-time job. I didn't realize the truth to that statement at the time...I do now! There is always something to be done.

I was super shocked yet excited when I first got called. I knew it was going to be tons of fun & I was very excited about who the Lord chose for me to call to work with me. There is so much to be taught & so little time to do the teaching & these women help lighten my load.

I have enjoyed this journey so far. I have cried, been frustrated & wondered how on earth anyone would think I was capable of something so extraordinary! I am so grateful I have felt the precise & clear guidance of the spirit in making decisions, which has been a huge blessing to our girls. I have felt the love & support of our bishopric as I've prayerfully considered the direction & emphasis our girls needed. I've felt the strength of the women that serve by my side, they have so much to offer & may even touch these girls lives more than I will.

Through all the stress & anxiety that comes with a call like this, I have a hymn that always comes to my mind & offers a sweet assurance that everything will be ok. It's one that came into my mind when the spirit testified to me of my calling & when I instantly felt the anxiety creeping in, just as I do every so often, I think of it & read the words frequently & feel at peace.

Come, come, ye saints, no toil nor labor fear;

But with joy wend your way.

Though hard to you this journey may appear,

Grace shall be as your day.

Tis better far for us to strive our useless cares from us to drive;

Do this, and joy your hearts will swell -

All is well! All is well!

Why should we mourn or think our lot is hard?
'Tis not so; all is right.
Why should we think to earn a great reward if we now shun the fight?
Gird up your loins; fresh courage take.
Our God will never us forsake;
And soon we'll have this tale to tell-
All is well! All is well!

All is well, & all will be well! I know that this journey will be hard, but oh how sweet will the reward be in the end. When I am released from serving in this capacity & I can hold my head high, knowing I did my very best for these girls! I have much work to do, not just in our organization, but in my personal life, for me. I love the quote below about what the Lord needs from us as women. I think that it is helping shape me into the leader that my Father in Heaven needs me to be for these girls. 

“Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity.”

(Margaret D. Nadauld “The Joy of Womanhood,” Ensign, Nov. 2000, 15)

So, if I'm missing from blogland, it's not because I don't want to be here. It's because there are much more important things going on right now & I promise I'll be back as I have time!! I do have quiet a few posts that are almost ready to go & do have a trip I can't wait to take & blog about after my return! 

Until next time,
Heather =)