Buckin' Hay

Have you ever bucked hay before?! I did it for the first time last week and again just the other day! Don't know how I lived in a cowboy state and NEVER bucked hay! Probably because I grew up in the city.

As I bucked I wondered how in the world they got all this grass cut and put into these perfectly tied bales?! It blew my mind! I could not figure it out as to how they were made and didn't believe they did it all by hand. I had this whole process made up in my head how they would cut it and rake it and then go around and tie it up by hand in nice little rectangle bales! Boy was I wrong!

All it took was for me, after coming up with this long complicated process in my head, was to ask the one in charge, "How do yall get them so nice and perfect?" Then she explained the process and the equipment used and made it seem so simple!

I think the same is with the gospel of Jesus Christ! Sometimes we make things so complicated and hard to understand. The gospel is so simple though even a child can understand it! We have to ask questions and be willing to be taught in order to learn and understand more :) 

I hope if any that read this have questions, that you will be willing to ask them and hopefully I will be able to answer them for you! 

LAVA CAKE!

 The famous, Chili's Chocolate Chip Molten Lave Cake, Here it is!

This is one of my all-time favorite desserts! It is a chocolate chip cake with a melted hot fudge center, a scoop of ice cream and hardening chocolate on top with Hershey syrup drizzled on top the entire dessert. Just thinkin' about it makes me hungry!

There are 2 reasons I love this dessert so much. The first is because It's just SO good :) The second, is because I have numerous memories with my little sister while eating this treat! Whenever she would have a bad day, needed to talk, or just wanted to get out of the house, she would come to me and say, "Lava cake time Justin?!" I would ALWAYS agree and never turned it down!

 Over the years, I can't tell you how many of these I've eaten and some times how long we stayed and talked and had to leave because they were closing! I loved these moments, because it allowed me to be a big brother and take interest in my sister's life and how I could help her! It created a friendship and bond that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

Families are essential to God's great plan for each of us! Successful families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. I invite each of you to take time out of you busy lives and do something with your family this week. You will be surprised how much closer you will grow with one another when you spend time laughing, playing and enjoying each others company!

I LOVE MY FAMILY!

John Wayne!

So we had a wonderful dinner the other night, and I got to meet someone really special. The one and only John Wayne!

You're probably thinking about the famous western cowboy, but I'm talking about a gold fish. Yes a goldfish named John Wayne. Not just any ordinary goldfish though! I learned John Wayne was the lone survivor in this pond from the past winter here in Bozeman, Montana! It survived the entire winter and is still going strong! Trapped under a sheet of frozen ice for months with I'm sure little food and a freezing cold environment! How did he do it?! Psh I have no idea, but I know he is still alive! haha

I think we each are like John Wayne the goldfish! All of us in our lives have hard times. Times where we feel trapped under the surface with no way out. A busy schedule that doesn't allow us to escape from the world. Situations or accidents that affect us, but that we don't have control over. Sometimes we feel alone. Maybe we're confused and don't know what we're really doing or where we are headed.

Each person has personal challenges and concerns. No matter what they are though the Savior and His teachings—the gospel—will help you. It will enable you to improve the quality of your lives. It will help you deal with the problems and challenges that we all face in life.

I hope that each of us can learn a lesson from John Wayne the goldfish and become stronger than we were yesterday. To face our difficulties and trials with faith and rely on the Lord for strength! To perservere and be courageous when times are hard. To face adversity with a smile and a cheerful heart. It's my prayer that if we do, when we look back, these experiences were the greatest moments of growth and development. That we gained a personal relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ! We will cherish them for the lessons learned and how they made us who we are today!

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Philippians 4:13