Agency

Agency is one of the most sacred things that the Lord has given us.  It allows us to make our own choices.  Our Heavenly Father loves us so much that he gave us this gift to be able to choose for ourselves what is right and wrong.  I learned this week that everyone has their own agency and we can't force people to do what we want them to do.  Every one makes their own decisions and we can't make it for them.

This could be one of the most important principles that we can learn.  Once we learn this, we will learn that we can't manipulate people to do things that they don't want to do. Also, we need to learn to use our agency correctly by choosing to make decisions that are in line with the Lord's will.  The only thing we have to give to the Lord is our will and once we learn how to do that, we will live a happy life and the Lord will bless us beyond measure.

I need to practice this principle every day of my life.  It won't be easy but I am going to start putting this into practice right now.  I am going to do that by doing everything I can to give my will to the Lord.  I can do that by serving others, fulfilling my church calling, studying my scriptures, and helping others whenever they are in need.  Life will be easier and much more enjoyable when we learn to give our will to the Lord.

Eternal Perspective

This week in my marriage and family class with Brother Brooks, we talked about our eternal perspective and specifically a talk given by Elder Uchtdorf.  The talk was entitled "Forget Me Not".  In this talk he talked about 5 things that we shouldn't forget to do and one of them stuck out to me more than the others.  He counseled us to forget not to be patient with yourself.  He talked about how God knows that none of us are perfect and that we are all going to make mistakes.  We need to be patient with all of our weaknesses and do everything we can so that one day we will be able to become like our Savior.

This is important because it is one of the most important lessons we can learn in this life.  I struggle a lot with the weaknesses that I have and sometimes it is hard to overlook those.  If we have that eternal perspective of being patient with ourselves, we will live a much happier life and we will be able to find those ways to become more like Christ.

Now what? Now I am going to look at my weaknesses as an opportunity to grow because I know if I do that then I will be much happier in my life.  I will also try not to focus too much on my weaknesses, and instead, look at the strengths in my life and how I can help people with those strengths.  I know this kind of patience won't come right away but as I work at it, day by day, I know that the Lord will help me to become a better person and help to make those weaknesses, that I have, become a strength.  All I have to do is be patient with myself.

Time Management

This week I learned all about time management.  I was having a hard time managing my school work, my job, and my social life.  Because of this, I have been talking a lot with my dad and he was given me a lot of suggestions of what I should do to be able to get everything done in a timely manner and what I should make my priorities.

This is important because I need to be able to get my school work done and get good grades.  I have already procrastinated a lot of assignments and it has been very stressful.  I need to eliminate the stress by putting these things into practice.  We all need to be able to manage our time effectively because that is one of the most needed skills by college students but it is the one most lacked by college students.

I am going to put these things in practice right now during this next week so that I can better prepare myself for the things in life.  I am going to do this by making a little schedule of assignments and things that are due, by doing my homework before I go out with friends (even if it means staying on campus and doing homework in the library), and by using a schedule to put things down that I need to complete first before I do anything else.  Also, I am going to list my priorities on a piece of paper so that I can make sure I do those things first.  I know it will be difficult but if I want to be successful, I know that I need to develop this skill.