My TOFW - Auckland Experience - Part II

After lunch we heard from a local presenter. The theme of the conference was "living proof"and how are we being living proof of what we believe. Sister Melanie Riwai-Couch is a Principal in Wellington where all 5 of her children attend. Probably one of the talks that amazed me the most because she made a small point which I have been pondering on lately. I have been wondering about women or more specifically mothers who don't remain in the home and chose to work. I have always believed a mothers place is in the home. Well she shared her experience of asking her Stake president if she should go to work and he said to her that is not the right question. The question is "Are you doing what the Lord wants you to be doing?" She then went on to say that if we are a church that believes individuals are entitled to personal revelation and we know that revelation is from God then we need to stop judging others for making the choice (based on revelation) that the right decision for them is to be outside the home. I know that people can receive personal revelation so I am going to work very hard to not question or judge a sister anymore on her decision to work because she is untitled to receive that revelation from God for herself and her family and to do what the Lord tells her to do.

David Archuleta then sang "In the arms of the Angel".

Brad Wilcox was the next speaker and he spoke about the importance of having Humor in your life. His topic was "If you can laugh at it, you can live through it". He shared a story of how when he would teach 6 graders his days were very up and down, then he asked his wife (who was a nurse) about when life could level out and he said to him "If people have a flat line they are dead, we like to see the up and down because it means you are living!" This spoke to me because many times as a mother it can feel like that, up and down and now I can see that this is living. This is life, going through the ups and downs.

He was able to have us laughing our heads off while teaching us some truths:
* Laughing about eggs breaking is a good idea because nothing you say or do will bring those eggs back
* Even bad moments can be made good with humor. You can use it as a medicine when you are feeling down.
* Jesus Christ was a happy man, he bore our sorrows but was not sorrowful. We are to be here on eart and find "joy".
For me I often get upset or angry about things that go wrong in the house, messy lounges or bedrooms that have just been cleaned, the 100th toilet training accident and such and my goal from TOFW is to hopefully look more for funny moments rather than become negative or upset because no matter what nothing is bringing "those eggs back".

 

For the final part of the conference Sandra Turley sang a compilation of Les Mis and it was so cool. It was like watching the whole show in 6.30minutes. 

 

Sister Dew was the concluding speaker and she was  so powerful. A lot of women had written in questions that they had and she read several of these out and then shared 3 experiences which in a lot of ways answered the questions that were asked. 

* Do we want to believe the church is true? If you do are you willing to work for it? To wrestle with it.

* Questions are good but you must be willing to accept that you may not get answers to your questions in this life

* When you have questions go to a true source, do not just google and see what you find. Pray to God to know the answer, search the scriptures or read modern day revelations or talks  by general authorities to get answers. Ask in faith while still keeping the commandments.

We must be willing to engage in a spiritual wrestle everyday in our normal average lives. He may not tell you everything or answer all your questions but he can bless you with the spirit of peace. 

Recognise:

1. What it is like when the spirit talks to you. How does he speak to you personally? The scriptures can help you identify how he speaks to you!

2. Ministering angels are real, they will help you. Pray for their help when you have hard times, big decisions, family troubles and they will attend you

3. Gain a testimony of Jesus Christ and he can and will heal you. He can remove pain, weaknesses, sadness that you have. He can lift it off your shoulders and it will not hold you back any more. 

This conference has lightened my load and helped to see that I am doing okay and of course that their are areas in my life I can continue to improve upon. They challenged us to look for opportunities to serve in our communities and to be "living proof" of what we believe. I am committed to find the humor in things more and to continue to increase my testimony of Jesus Christ. 

(My friend Sarah Tafuna from BYU-Hawaii, we both have 2 girls and 2 boys and don't think we are done either!)

My TOFW - Auckland Experience Part I

I am a mother to four children. Many of my days consist of just that. Being their mum. They keep me very busy. Today I was privileged to be able to attend "Time Out for Women" which is a special program designed to allow all women the day off to attend a conference with motivational talks. While it is not an official conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints (a religion to which I belong) nor is it sole for the members of the this, the speakers who speak are more than likely members of this church.

For me this is a special day because firstly I live in NZ so the fact that they all travel to come and talk to us is a big deal. Secondly having a day off for myself is also a treat. To be able to not have to do anything child related and even leave the house when it is quiet and everyone is sleeping is a gift also. I was able to travel with my mum and 2 sisters and also my Aunty Cerian and Aunty Karen. Right now I am very blessed to live very close to my mum and sisters and so this day was even more special.

There was almost no traffic on our way to the conference center and we got a good place in line to sit near the front. I wrote in my journal that I hoped to be hear the things that my heart longs to hear and for me to be moved by the spirit for the things that I do not hear but Heavenly Father would have me know.

I was not sure what exactly I was needing answers to when I went today but as a young mother with 4 children under 6 I figured it was mostly along the lines of how can I be the mother I need to be, fully my role as wife and also do all the other things the Lord would have me do. Also am I doing the will of the Lord?

David Archuleta was one of the music artists that performed. He started off the day with Glorious! It was really cool to see someone that I feel like I have grown up watching. We watched American Idol for all of the year he was in it and then have continued to follow his story. He really is a fabulous singer.

Then Sister Dalton was the first speaker. She spoke on returning to virtue. These are the points that stood out to me:
* Each of us was women was reserved to be on the earth right now.
* We must arise and  become our divine potential. We must intentionally become who we need to be.
* In a world that does not believe in morals we must stand for that which is correct.

Something profound which she said was "When you save a girl you save generations!" This was so real to me as I realized how much more the role of mothers mean, more often however the mother acts will lead the rest of the family to live a certain way.

"What would embarrass you if the Lord came to visit you?" was another question she posed. For me I took a small moment to think on that and I realize that while I have been working on some of slang/language I use I am not really trying my best and I would be embarrassed if the Lord heard me using those words. Finally I felt impressed by the spirit that even though my husband and I are currently going to great strides to eliminate debt and build our savings we need to also give a lot of focus to going to the temple and that it may be more important than trying to get out of debt - I only felt it in the sense that he would help us with our debt if we go to his house and do his work

David then sang 3 more songs. Beautiful, Like a bridge over troubled water and a song all the older generation new about Pride and Love.

He shared this quote while talking to each of us "Even the smallest person can change the course of the future" which funnily enough he quoted from The Lord of the Rings.

Sandra Turley spoke next and to be honest I had no idea who she was or what she did. Turns out she was a performer on Broadway and has a wicked awesome voice. She sang 2 of my most favorite songs "Think of Me" from Phantom of the Opera and "For Good" from Wicked the musical. Seriously I was singing along (silently) the whole time. She talked about her struggle with infertility and also with adoption and then the birth mother changing her mind. She went on to explain how she had always thought the Atonement was to be forgiven of our sins and our wrongs but she learned after that experience that the Atonement can also heal the hurt we feel because of what others may done to us and he can also remove that pain to.

In reference to Think of Me she talked about this song is a perfect example of how our Heavenly Father will never move away from us and is always asking us to think of him! She is a mother to 4 little children (like me) and shared some funny videos of her kids being naughty. I got to talk to her later for a second and she said someone told her to film her children when they are being naughty because it makes you less likely to yell and you have some good blackmail! Lol. I loved that.

Sister Heidi S. Swinton was the next speaker and again I didn't know who she was. Turns out she is a writer and was asked by President Monson to write his Biography. She shared many stories of his life and his influence of service. I felt like I grew to learn more about our beloved prophet and again built my testimony that he is a living prophet today.

Points I gained:
* 5/10 virgins were not ready. If we apply that in our life than it can mean that 1/2 of our ward, friends, relief society will not be ready when the Lord returns. We must fill up our lamps and our vessels with oil.
* We must make sure that we are women who are fulfilling our callings because we may be teaching the future prophet, apostles, bishops of the church.
* The sweetest experience we can have is to be the answer to someone elses prayer.
* President Monson helps us to realize we can be better at what we do. Be better at being a normal average person, at being a mum, at being a visiting teacher, at our callings.

Lunch Time Photos:

 (That is Sister Daltons head. We couldn't get a photo with her so we just did a selfie with her in the background!)