College Life

Tonight I had the privilege of attending a celebration for the 20th anniversary of The Family: A Proclamation to the World that my major, The School of Family Life, hosted. 

It was wonderful. 

The entire program, my body was filled and overflowing with the Spirit. I know--most of you are wondering how in the world I get that from my major, right? I'm so lucky, because I get to study social sciences with the foundation of my major being truths of The Proclamation on the Family. 

As I was sitting, listening, and enjoying the feelings of peace and comfort, I was reminded of a similar feeling almost two years ago as I received an answer that The School of Family Life was supposed to be my major. During one of my classes, we talked about how this major focuses on how to help the family and how it's based on The Family Proclamation. In that class period and tonight, I felt the exact same, undeniable confirmation from the Spirit that this is where I'm supposed to be. I'm supposed to study the family to help my own family and to help others strengthen their families. 

While the world is drastically changing the definition of the family, the Proclamation is a constant standard for families to find happiness. During tonight's program, President Worthen (the President of BYU) and a professor shared the apostles' vision for The School of Family Life. Their vision is for us to use our knowledge to not only help strengthen our families, but to share what we can with others in all that we do. 

So--while I'm no expert--I've made a new goal for myself to share things I'm learning and my testimony of the traditional family on social media.

I'm grateful that Heavenly Father sends us confirmations as we follow His will for us. This was definitely a Divine Signature for me today!

"Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when
founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ."

-The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Voices of Courage-Elizabeth Smart

Today I had the opportunity to listen to Elizabeth Smart speak as part of BYU's Voices of Courage Campaign. As she shared her story and insights, I gained my own insight and recognized what a Divine Signature it was to hear her speak. 

As Elizabeth captivated her audience by sharing her experience, she testified of her knowledge that God loves all of us--no matter what. The advice she received from her mother upon being rescued is applicable to us all in our own trials. Her captor stole 9 months of her life, but she refuses to let him steal anymore. Instead of letting her horrific experience hold her back, she chose to be happy, be thankful, and live her life to the fullest. So can we--our trials don't define us, but how we react to them does. 

Throughout her story, so many little Divine Signatures popped out at me. To share a few...

• When she was taken, Elizabeth's "most important" decision was to stay alive, no matter what. During our own trials, we need to keep an eternal perspective. Remember, "Wonderful, glorious things are in store for you, if only you will believe, obey, and endure." (President Thomas S. Monson)
• What kept Elizabeth going was remembering the words of her mother, that only two opinions mattered: God's, and her mother's. God's opinion is truly over all else; He is constant and His love for you is constant. It is perfect. 
• "Your Heavenly Father loves you--each of you. That love never changes. It is not influenced by your appearance, by your possessions, or by the amount of money you have in your bank account. It is not changed by your talents and abilities. It is simply there. It is there for you when you are sad or happy, discouraged or hopeful. God's love is there for you whether or not you feel you deserve love. It is simply always there." (Pres. Monson)
• Elizabeth shared that she was so worried about forgetting who she was. She would think about her friends and family and old life so she wouldn't forget who she was. This got me thinking: I need to be more like this. We all have a divine potential to live up to, and we can live up to it if we remember who we are and allow our Savior to help us become. 
• Hearing Elizabeth talk about how much she wanted to be with her family reminded me of how much I want to return home to my Heavenly Parents. If only this was constantly on our mind, how much easier would it be to make decisions and go through our daily life?!