Happy St. Patty's Day

I realize that this is a bit unorthodox, but since I'm not Irish- I'm not too worried about keeping the traditions...

I had a feel thoughts for this Patty's Day. A few months ago, a friend Emily gave a talk in church. When you are still thinking about a quote from that long ago, it is worth giving attention to. She was talking about missionary work, and quoted from President Hunter in Preach my Gospel. "A great indicator of one's personal conversion is the desire to share the gospel with others."

Is my lack of attention to sharing the good news an indicator of the level of my testimony? There was a time I lived in Thailand for 18 months for a chance just to have people understand how much it meant to me. Yet as of late- it hasn't been at the top of my to-do list.

That was a pretty big reality check for me- Hence the thinking about it for the past bit. But it is such a true and simple principle. If I truly believe that something is the purpose of this life, the greatest way to find happiness, and has promised me a way to be with those I love forever, isn't that something worth talking about? Isn't that a greater gift than a home-made apron, or better small talk than the movie we saw this weekend? How can I believe that, love someone, and not bring those worlds together- and give something precious to those I love. Yet- I've been pretty lazy about sharing it.

For those of you who don't know, I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) I believe in Jesus Christ. I believe in families. I believe that the Bible and the Book of Mormon teach of both and teach of living a simple life filled with the most important kinds of happiness. It is more than a religion, it is a purpose for life, and a greater understand of who we are.

So why today to share this? Besides the fact that it is about time, March 17th marks the anniversary of the day that a dear friend of mine joined the church. At the time I don't think that I appreciated the sacrifice and importance of the decision she made 12 years ago. Jenny was introduced to the church in high school and grabbed on. It was all normal to me at the time, having been raised with the teachings of Jesus Christ, but looking back, I am in awe of her strength. She wanted to understand. She wanted to know if it was true. She found out, and she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she came to believe. Beliefs that, I will remind you, aren't mainstream for popular high school students, at least not in my hometown. This is the part where I remember that when I was in high school, I just cared that my outfit didn't look dumb, and hopefully actually looked cute...

On that note I say Happy St. Patty's Day to Jenny, and to you all. May you all find what can bring you true happiness. I had to find out for myself (after the superficial high school days) and the promise is that you can find out to.

If you want to learn more about the basic beliefs of our church visit: www.mormon.org