Spiritual Menu Board

Well, it has been over a year since I posted here. I'm not even going to pretend to make excuses. I'm just not a very good blogger. But today, I feel like I have something to say. Jacom has been gone for almost 10 months. It has been very difficult and very fulfilling taking care of things with him gone. I sometimes wonder how I'm going to get through a day, but then I look back and I am amazed at the things that I was able to get done. I have been able to do so much more than I ever imagined possible this past year. I moved while pregnant, without a husband, but with the help of many wonderful family members and friends. I took care of my 2-year-old, had a baby with skype as my only link to my husband, without any medication I might add, and I have been taking care of a baby and a toddler on my own for the last four months. Now I am not trying to boast of myself. I know there is no way I ever would have been able to do this on my own. I have been bolstered and strengthened in so many ways. My life has been touched by the caring and service of ward members, family members, my dear army wives, and my wonderful husband who is half a world away. The saying, you never know what you have until it is gone is sooo true! Jacom and I both didn't realize how blessed we were, until he left.
That being said, I didn't get on here to write about my struggles as an army wife. I have another goal in mind. Last night I made a menu board. I know many people who have them, and I have seen them all over pinterest. And, finallly, I got the materials to make my own. I was so excited, because I hate the idea of coming up with a menu and a shopping list for the week. I hate it mostly because I hate going out shopping-late at night if I don't want to take my kids with me, or with a crying baby and a whiny toddler in tow. So, I figured that if I finally got a tangible menu board, I might do better with figuring out what to fix and writing down my shopping list. I made it. It is super cute! I am so excited to use it. I even wrote out tonight's dinner menu to start off using it with a bang.

This morning, as I got ready to go to church, (I was blessed to be able to sleep in til 7:30 because of daylight  savings time throwing off my children's sleep patterns) I started to think about how excited I am to use my menu board. Then I paused and thought about my spiritual menu. Here I am constantly thinking about what I am going to fix for dinner, if I have to go to the store, how good it is going to taste and if my toddler will eat it. I rarely think about what is on the daily spiritual menu. I say my prayers, I read my scriptures, I try to teach my children to love the Lord, but half the time, when I think of spiritual things it is a half-hearted thought.
. Yet, this obsession I have with food will only do me good for a short time. The eternal feast that I overlook because of my carnal desires is where I should focus most of my thoughts. Today, I have decided to make a "spiritual menu board." This board will list all of the things that will add to my spiritual feast and that of my family. Things like "praying with real intent," "feasting on the words of Christ," "doing a good dead," "sharing the Gospel," "praying for others," "sharing a smile," "giving a hug," etc... are going to be written on my menu board. Maybe, if I have something tangible to look at and a list of things to go on my "menu," I will look forward to fixing my daily "feast." Perhaps I will find new and fun things that I can do to make this spiritual feast even better. Today, in church, I was spiritually fed. I was moved and touched by the Spirit repeatedly throughout all of my meetings. Now, if I will take what I learned and utilize it in my "menu" for tomorrow's feast, who knows how much more I will be fed?
This past week, I had moments that I was really fed spiritually. I was translating the "Women at the Well" program from English to Spanish for my mom. She was putting the program together and there is a large number of Hispanic women who attended the program, and she wanted them to understand a little more what was going on. If you have not read or heard the music from that program, please do. The lyrics are beautiful and inspired. I sing the Spanish version of one of the songs to my children every night as a lullaby. It is called, "He Came for Me." When I first heard that song, I decided I would sing it to my children. This week, as I was going through the different songs, I was spiritually touched in so many ways. One song, in particular, really moved me. It is called, "If Thou Had Been Here." It is sung in first person by the two sisters, Mary and Martha, of Lazarus, who died and was brought back to life. As I translated the song, I truly felt the depth of the sorrow those two women must have felt after sending for their Lord and Master, expecting him to come heal their brother, watching their brother die, waiting four days, and finally seeing the Master coming. In Jewish tradition, the spirit takes four days after death to be separated from the body. The Savior came after the fourth day. Lazarus had begun to stink. When Mary and Martha saw the Master coming, they went to him and said, "If thou hadst been here, my brother had not died." The story continues: Jesus weeps with the two sisters as they express their loss and the faith that they had that He could have saved their brother's life. They take him to the tomb, Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, and His power over death is made known unto all who see. At the end of the song, the lyrics are, "If He had been here, when we hoped He'd be here, we might be doubting His power over death. Somehow He knew when to be here. Son of God, He is always here." When I got to that point in the translation, I was in awe, tears streaming down my face. There is such truth in those words. HE IS ALWAYS HERE.
This spiritual feast that I was given this week has strengthened my soul and given me courage to move forward. My goal with this "spiritual menu board" is to be able to consciously nourish my spirit daily, and in doing so, nourish those around me who would want to partake of my "spiritual feast." When we are given a brownie, or something else delicious, who doesn't go around saying, "You have to try this"? I know I do. And hopefully, with my "spiritual menu board," I will have something on the menu to "feast" on daily.