LDS General Conference and Reinforcement -

I know what I know; I do what I know; I'm totally capable of handling the ups and downs of my life - in fact, I'm personally responsible for most of those good and bad days. And yet, I'm a believer in positive reinforcement, in whatever form I can get. I'm a follower of Pema Chodron, Depak Chopra,and many other contemporary philosophers and religious guides as well as spiritual leaders who influence my life's choices - including a Higher Power. I believe there is goodness all around me, if I only open my eyes to see it. And I'm a believer that if I sit and meditate and contemplate and listen, I will know, because of the goodness that is in me, what I need to know and understand. 

And so this weekend was The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' semi-annual General Conference. And I listen - with my soul wide open for words and messages and feelings shared that will lighten my load (mostly the load I put on myself), and reinforce the hope that I'm on the right life's path. 

I was touched by these messages this weekend: 

"Please remember tomorrow and all the days after that that the Lord blesses those who want to improve, who accept the need for commandments and try to keep them, who cherish Christ-like virtues and strive to the best of their ability to acquire them. If you stumble in that pursuit, so does everyone; call on the Savior to help you and keep going." -Jeffrey R. Holland

"God sees us as we truly are—and He sees us worthy of rescue.
"You may feel that your life is in ruins. You may have sinned. You may be afraid, angry, grieving, or tortured by doubt. But just as the Good Shepherd finds His lost sheep, if you will only lift up your heart to the Savior of the world, He will find you.
"He will rescue you.
"He will lift you up and place you on His shoulders.
"He will carry you home.
"If mortal hands can transform rubble and ruins into a beautiful house of worship, then we can have confidence and trust that our loving Heavenly Father can and will rebuild us. His plan is to build us into something far greater than what we were—far greater than what we can ever imagine. With each step of faith on the path of discipleship, we grow into the beings of eternal glory and infinite joy we were designed to become." -Dieter F. Uchtdorf 

"Children need parents willing to listen to them." -M Russell Ballard

"When we reach out to lift one another, we prove those powerful words: 'No one goes his way alone.'" -Ronald A Rasband

"There are times when we will experience heartbreaking sorrow, when we will grieve, and when we may be tested to our limits. However, such difficulties allow us to change for the better, to rebuild our lives in the way our Heavenly Father teaches us, and to become something different from what we were—better than we were, more understanding than we were, more empathetic than we were, with stronger testimonies than we had before.
"This should be our purpose—to persevere and endure, yes, but also to become more spiritually refined as we make our way through sunshine and sorrow. Were it not for challenges to overcome and problems to solve, we would remain much as we are, with little or no progress toward our goal of eternal life." -Thomas S. Monson

The below thought grabbed me this weekend as well; you'd think that at 57 I no longer doubt, but I do, and I need these self-confidence boosters as well. 

Here's to starting a new week, a new month, with my eyes wide-open and my soul well-fed.