Week #2 of the Dep/Mar Project

Okay, so how did everyone do? I hope you all had wonderful weeks full of love, gratitude, and spiritual experiences.

I think for me, it was a really good way to stay focused on what's important. Overall, I found that I had a hard time remembering to write things down at first. As I got going though I got more consistent. I also found that my lists were huge!!! I found that some things made it on the list every day (my kids, inspiration, energy, the gospel) not because of the general stuff, but because each day there was something that my kids did that made me laugh or helped me grow; there was not one day that I didn't need or receive inspiration and energy, and every day I was grateful for the blessings of the gospel. (My list was of course, more specific).

I hope you had some neat insights too. So this is week #2 - FAITH. Hope you're up for it and don't forget that the companion article(s) are listed to the right in the "pages" section.

The Letter:

To my SB (I won’t even spell it out),

Oh, best friend of mine, how awesome you are! You’ve now been gone a whole week and geez, if I think about it too much I‘ll miss you terribly. So I’ll just say we miss you, we’re doing fine, I’m sure, and we all hope you’re doing as well there as you’ve always done here.

I know that by now you’ve gotten into some sort of routine. Hopefully the food is good, the bed is soft/hard enough for you to really sleep, your back doesn’t hurt, you’ve made a friend or two, and you’ve actually felt the spirit. I really hope that last week’s study helped get you through the initial difficulties of adjusting and catching up. I know how hard it can be to jump into something new (weather it’s very new or just a little new) and to not have us to come home to in order to help you recoup from the day. Yes, I know you miss us too, right?

Magnify Your Faith

“And Alma cried saying: How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were bound; and when the people saw this, they began t flee, for the fear of destruction had come upon them… and the earth shook mightily, and the walls of the prison were rent in twain…” – Alma 14:26-7

So to keep us going on our little spiritual experiment, we will be starting another study. Don’t forget to continue recording your grateful moments and those blessings you’ve already received as the spirit continues to remind you. The point of these all is to build on the previous, not to stop and start. For week 2 – we will be studying faith. I know, you’re thinking holy cow, why are we studying something that you’ve already put so much study into on your own time. Well for one, principals are infinite in their vastness so I’m sure there’s stuff you haven’t learned yet, for two, as your life progresses your perspective changes so you have more to learn now, and finally, for three, we’ve not studied it together and you’ve never been deployed either. So there is a need to study faith again.

Okay, so our assignment this week is to grow in our faith. We are going to focus on magnifying our faith not gaining it as I know of a surety we both are faithful people. As the scripture I’ve chosen demonstrates quite clearly, we both know that faith is a principal of power and action. Alma and Amulek suffered greatly before they were delivered and yet their faith remained in tact. So much so that when they could no longer bear the wickedness of their captors (not the hardship of the imprisonment) they prayed and then were blessed with power to walk free. So first, we study the magnifying part and then we apply it to what we already know or are currently learning about faith. Let’s pray for the power of faith to do something and then do what we can to help it come to pass.

You are in a situation you’ve never been in before. You are meeting people you’ve never met before. You are doing things you’ve never done before. These are great times to be demonstrating your faith to Heavenly Father and by just being near you others will see your faith and the attitude that it brings. You are at your best when your faith is strong and you are practicing it. I love to watch you demonstrate your faith in the priesthood or the plan of salvation. It makes me so proud to be your wife, your helpmeet in this life. I know others have felt your strength and your confidence. That is why you have done so well in your career thus far. You have walked into the darkness of life with a sureness that comes only from the Father and you have been blessed as He has lightened your path. I know He will do it again.

You are wonderful. You are strong. You are my husband, my best friend, and my eternal companion. Remember who brought you to where you are and you cannot fail.

We love you so much and are so proud not only to be an airman’s family in the US military, but, more specifically, to be YOUR family. Have a little fun this week, be goofy, work hard, and pray often. Know you are dearly missed and loved deeply. Be good.