Unanswered Prayers

Transfers are this week on Thursday.  Hold all mail because I have a feeling I may be leaving Burke. This past week we watched How to Train Your Dragon 2 on New Year's Eve
#dontstoptheparty *airhorn*

I must apologize that I have not yet completed a full length post about "Why I decided to serve." Quite frankly it's not THAT exciting of a story, and I'm not sure which details to leave out. YA know like TMI. So I'm still working on that and it will be up shortly. As in the next couple of weeks. There's just so many side points I want to go into depth on but I promise to stay majority on topic.

I guess it's supposed to get pretty cold this week.  Like not even go above freezing. So that will be fun. W. & Y. took us to a Japanese Steakhouse where they cooked food in front of you. That was entertaining as well. It was a fun week. Lots of new stories and things. I wish I wrote them all down to tell you guys.  But I get enough complaints that my posts take a month to read. And the pictures explain that part enough (I think?)

If you have any questions about things send them in list formation to me via email during the week and I'll think about them. And get back to you soon. 




I want to share a story from my childhood.

I have four younger brothers.  They love animals. My parents would never let us have pets when we were younger. One of my brothers especially loved dogs. He begged and begged and begged my parents for a dog. For years. Finally they made a deal with him, that if he worked on a specific attribute (for almost an entire year) and did good at it, they would buy him a brand new boxer puppy for his birthday in March. So he did. He worked especially hard for a ten year old boy and accomplished this specific thing they asked him to do. 

Come March he had his very own puppy.  Only a couple weeks old. He named her Daisy. Daisy was a hoot. Our entire family loved her and babied her like maybe no other dog had ever been babied. She was a spoiled little puppy. If Dylan wasn't outside playing with her, one of the other five of us were. Most of the time it was all of us together chasing her around.  Teaching her to stalk bunnies and chase deer and cows out in the field. We would run up the mountainside behind our house and created these wild fantasies of her being this boss hunting dog (I don't even like hunting but we each had a wild imagination) We couldn't WAIT for her to get big and muscular so she could pull us up the hill with our roller blades on and be our guard dog. We had so many great plans for Daisy. She was our favorite. And Daisy loved us too. I'm not much of an animal person and I don't know much about them. But I can sure tell when a dog is excited to see people. And whenever Dylan came home from school Daisy was there waiting for him to come outside and play. To go on another adventure through the fields and mountains and have some fun.

At this point Daisy was only a month old. She was just barely beginning to grow but was still a very small pup. In April, it was the Annual Pinewood Derby for my brothers scout troop. They were so excited because my Dad gets really into making his cars smooth, fast and beautiful. So they had these little race cars and were prepared to win the whole thing. Our whole family got ready to pile into the car and head over to the Derby. 

Daisy was in our garage that day along with my baby sister Makenna and younger brother Ty. My parents opened the garage to start loading up and leave. They all watched the garage door go up and bolted out into the front yard to play before we took off.  Not seeing however, that there was a car racing down our street. 

Ty, Makenna and Daisy all ran straight outside.  Ty and Makenna were on the sidewalk and Daisy was just off the sidewalk in front of them.  All of a sudden a high school boy from our neighborhood was racing home in his red jeep. He saw his brother out on a skate board and starting talking to him while he was driving.  He was not paying attention and veered across to the wrong side of the road and in an instant he ran over Daisy.  He slammed on his brakes. All within a second he saw the situation at hand play out before him. A devastated mothers face, the swift movement of a running fathers pace, a five year old boy only a few feet away from the car, and a three year old toddler, Makenna, standing right next to his vehicle looking down at Daisy. Who was curled up next to his front tire.

There was really nothing to say as Daisy just lay there whimpering. My Dad scooped her into her kennel struggling to find the words for the horrific situation at hand. My mom piled five scared, crying children into a car. Now, not so much concerned with any Derby.  Instead headed to the vet. Everyone a little in shock at what just happened. Each of us kids were diligently praying.  Positive that God would hear the prayers of five innocent children and would recognize their current needs.

We each waited in the car as Dad took the puppy inside and had her x-rayed. It was a long wait before Dad came back out to share what the fate of our little puppy would be. Daisy was alive, but we learned that her entire pelvis and both hind legs were completely shattered and she had plenty of damage internally. If we were to try to save Daisy by doing countless surgeries, she would still never walk again. She would never run around and play like all dogs should. She would never grow and be our big guard dog, and pull us up hills on our roller blades and go hunting. She wouldn't be able to move, most of her bodily functions wouldn't work properly and we would manually have to help her all day everyday. She frankly would be miserable.The vets advice was to put Daisy down, to sleep.

This wasn't easy news to relay to five young children. We didn't understand why God didn't answer our prayers. The prayers of five innocent, young children, who didn't do anything wrong. This experience, was TRAUMATIZING in the eyes of a 11, 10, 8, 5 and 3 year old's eyes. But a few days later, a very wise Grandpa of mine pointed out a very important fact. 

Daisy saved Ty and Makenna's lives.  She had ran out right in front of them. She was protecting them.  She stepped into the street and was hit by the jeep. But if we recall the instance correctly, following Daisy had been three year old Makenna and five year old Ty. Only feet, maybe inches behind her. If Daisy hadn't been there, if the jeep was going three MPH faster, if the garage went up two seconds earlier, if the boy hadn't felt the bump of the dog first... what might have happened? Would Makenna still be here? Would Ty?

So what happens when your prayers to God go seemingly unanswered?
How do we react?

In that moment I recall us five kids being plenty upset because we prayed and prayed and prayed our little puppy would be okay, and seemingly to us God didn't answer our prayers. Because she wasn't okay! We went home that night with no puppy. 

But in a wider range perspective, God did answer our prayers. Because we went home that night with all five siblings in our family. Daisy was an answer to our prayers, we just didn't quite see that yet.

Similarly I want to relate the story of Shaderach, Meshach and Abednego. I was reading in Daniel in the New Testament this week and came across this interesting story. These three dudes were stellar. They believed in God and worshiped God. But the wicked King at the time commanded everybody to worship his golden image and not to pray to God. Obviously Shaderach, Meshach and Abednego were like...

...no.

So this king (after his raging furious tantrum) was like 
k. 
I'm throwing you into a fiery furnace then homeslice.


Still, Shaderach, Meshach and Abednego were steadfast. They were like k man, but we are still praying to our God. I think the King was quite baffled so he laughed at them and mocked them saying who is this God you speak of that can deliver you out of MY hands? Eh?

That's pretty much the condensed version of the story. But my favorite part is their reply to the King. Read it carefully. They said...

"If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.

But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy Gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up." -Daniel 3:17-18

IF IT BE SO
our God is all powerful.
He can save us.
He can do anything if he desires it.

BUT IF NOT



but if not.

EVEN if not, we still will worship our God.
Even if we are burned in a furnace, even if we die for our beliefs,
Even if our prayer to be saved from THIS trial goes seemingly unanswered in this circumstance..
We still will worship our God.


Way to be a Champ boys!



It was the "but if not" that caught my attention. Do I have that attitude? Do I truly believe my God is all powerful to answer EVERY LAST ONE of my prayers, but if he has a different plan, do I have the faith and courage to continue serving him until MY dying breath?

Do I have that kind of attitude when I'm on my knees praying for help?
If it be so, God.
But if not...

Do I have the kind of faith to hold on? To trust his plan?


Well in case you want to know what happened to those three guys who faced the king.. The king was pretty ticked at their reply. So he told his people to crank up the heat. He was gonna kill these guys. So the Kings people bound them up and threw the three men into the middle of this fire. (SO FIERCE)

Can you imagine how much faith that would take? Like God....... Where are you......? I'm literally five seconds away from being cast into a fire pit....

THEN the King looked up. And saw not only the three men cast into the fire pit, but a fourth. He asked his people, didn't we throw three men in there? And they said YEAH Shaderach, Meshach and Abednego.

"He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, 

walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; 

and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God!" -Daniel 3:22

And there was Christ standing in the midst of that fire with them.
Not above or outside looking in.
But literally by there side.
And they were not burnt, nor hurt in any fashion.
They were protected and saved.


I'm sure that wasn't in their plans.
You know ACTUALLY being cast into the fire pit.


The cool part is, that this applies to each and every one of us. God ACTUALLY IS answering our seemingly unanswered prayers. Even when it doesn't feel so now. Because technically, he sent his son JESUS CHRIST who suffered everything for us. Every hurt feeling, heartbreak, sickness and pain. And Christ is literally there standing in our fire pits with us. Not on the outside looking in.


In Mosiah in the Book of Mormon it talks about a group of people who felt their burdens were too great to bear. They prayed and prayed for help and had faith their God would answer them. And he did, uniquely enough he said

"...I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, 

that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, 

do visit my people in their afflictions.

...And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord." -Mosiah 24:14-15

We learn in the scriptures, and ultimately in life that God doesn't just wipe out all of our problems for us. But he is always there. To help us, to strengthen us. As we have the faith to turn to him, to ask for help he will ease the burdens upon our backs and strengthen us. And this he does and we can feel through our Savior Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice for us. 


As a kid, in a circumstance against my will, I didn't get it. I was confused at where Gods hand was in that situation. I knew he had all power, so why wasn't he using it? Only now have I discovered the bigger picture.


That all will eventually be made right. 
That right now is a period of testing, of faith, 
of building strength and courage. 
Of looking up to God and saying 

I KNOW YOU ARE THERE
and if it be so, 
I need you to take this one into your own hands 
because I can't do this anymore
But if not, I'm not giving up. 
I'm going to keep going. 
Because I trust you.



So what happens when your prayers to God go seemingly unanswered?
How do you react?

"...but if not..."

S.Stucki
January 5, 2015

It's not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves...

Merry Christmas - Call home.

#spoiled



so long burkians.

oh yeah guys we found sister Sydney wathen at the DC VC
dhhs sistas.



#CATLADY shout out to @madiwoahh

(we are the cat ladies)

(but not really)

(but the door signifies so)



Christmas caroling

hi Christmas

todds camera does cool things



in action.

2013Christmas Card

THE DC VC



HEY GUYS

I know there are a lot of readers of this blog from all walks of life and different backgrounds with different stories. If you have a particular topic or subject or question or interest you would like to read more about, shoot me an email at

madison.stucki@myldsmail.net

I would love to elaborate on the matter. I have gotten several emails about
WHY I DECIDED TO SERVE (type of questions)
I will share that story and post it in two weeks from today(ish). If you have any further questions or ideas arise shoot me an email and I will get on it.

As for this week,
Holy. Shnikey.
We got spoiled.

I'll give you the rundown because I know you all wanna know what the missionaries did for Christmas. ;)

Monday:
We went on a mini exchange with the Sisters. In the apartment complex we live in.  There are six of us English Sisters. The YSA Ward Sister Training Leaders, Us and Rolling Valley. We all met up at Target and switched companions so we could buy a gift for our current companion. We had a time limit and a budget. It was fun. Besides the fact that I had a manic coughing fit. THIS COLD. We also bought white elephant gifts for our District. Monday night we went to the DC temple with a family in the ward. We were supposed to have four investigators meet us there. But there was a crazy bad wreck on 495 so they turned around and went home. BUT since we were already there we watched the show. It was Todd Thatcher performing.  His family lived in my first area. So I got to see the Thatcher family and give them all hugs which was a fun time. It took us forever to drive home.

Tuesday:
District meeting. During District meeting we played a white elephant game and exchanged gifts. We also had a Facebook training that morning which was neat. For District meeting we all meet up at a church building as a zone. So there was probably about thirty plus missionaries gathered to have a meeting. Tuesday evening we went BACK up to the Washington DC Temple lights and watched another performance. It was a saxophone quartet. We went with another family in the ward and W. it was fun. The visitor center at the DC temple is so high tech. There are iPads and touch screen tv’s everywhere and its huge. They have a really cool Nativity display with over 90 different nativities from different countries. And Christmas trees everywhere. Then you go down to this huge auditorium and watch live performances. Outside you can see the temple and over 900 thousand Christmas lights.  It’s pretty. W. enjoyed it. On our way home he gave us these really kind Christmas cards.

Wednesday:
Christmas Eve! We went to lunch with the G. family. They took us to this authentic Latin American restaurant and had us try a little bit of everything. We had papusas, which is this popular El Salvador food that looks like a pancake but has cheese and sometimes pork in it with salsa. Yuka, which is a root of some sort, it looks and tastes like a giant, tough French fry with ultra spicy ranch or something. Plantanes, which is this fruit that looks like a giant banana cooked with those Spanish homemade runny beans on it. And then this other dish......which had all kinds of sea food I don't know what to describe it as. And horchatas.

FELIZ NAVIDAD AMIGOS. WELCOME TO THE DISTRICT of COLUMBIA

We went to a couple different members homes for treats, gifts and dinner.  Then we went Christmas caroling with our District. After that the Sisters met up at the Sister training leaders apartment and ate pizza, opened a present and reenacted the Nativity which was great.

Thursday:
CHRISTMAS DAY. We had a Sisters breakfast at our apartment.  It was cute. We opened presents, showered, wrote thank you cards, skyped home, ate at the G.'s home.  We played catch phrase with their family. Watched He is the Gift.  Went to a different church and socialized and fed homeless people for the rest of the night. It was quite the epic day.

thanks to the membs for the overlarge contribution of fruit.

notice how all they eat is bacon and cin. rolls.

the struggle

The rest of the weekend was average. Except we did have a Mission conference on Friday and we found out who the New Mission President is going to be! President David (and his wife Michelle) Huntsman. Like the guy who ran for Presidents brother. He comes in June. I actually leave the same transfer the Riggs do. So I won't have him for a Mission President but he sounds like a boss!

Things are pretty much back to the way they were before now.  The Holidays are dispersing.


...well....yeah...PRETTY much.

This next week is New Years! And with New Years comes NEW Resolutions. RIGHT? Remember when we would set New Years goals in elementary school? Do people still do that? I believe setting goals is important.

YOU SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE A BIG, HAIRY, AUDACIOUS GOAL. AND BELIEVE IN THAT GOAL. AND IN THE FACT THAT YOU CAN ACHIEVE THAT GOAL. -Jack Canfield


My companion said that was a gross quote. But a quote is a quote and that's all I have to work with so excuse the hairy part. Srry. Not srry. Blame Jack.

What's the point of a goal?

I don't think I did much goal setting back at home. But I have learned if you don't have a goal to work for you are just air balling it in any direction. Even if you don't end up accomplishing your goal, its better to be working towards something rather than nothing. If life takes you a different direction, so be it. I found a quote in a little book a friend sent me for Christmas by Earl Nightingale that fits perfectly, he says

"all you have to do is know where you are going. .

The answers will come to you of their own accord." 

So even you FREE SPIRIT HIPPIES can set goals and still be a free spirit. It's good to always have a plan formulated, to constantly be striving for something. To constantly be changing and improving.

So my conclusion is the reason to set goals, is to improve upon,
To NOT become a fence sitter.
To drop being 'mediocre'
To shoot for the stars!
To have a plan or idea
To try a little harder, to be a little better
To push ourselves, to stretch ourselves
And to experience and accomplish things we otherwise might not have thought we could accomplish beforehand.

At the Mission Conference this weekend, President Riggs was talking about "Becoming." Our ultimate 'goal' is to become more like our Savior, and to return to live with God. He shared this quote about a young man who wished to Receive his fathers inheritance. His father wanted to give him all that he had too. Not only his possessions but his stance, and what he had become. And he read a quote that stuck out to me, it was the father saying..

"What I have I can easily give you. 

What I am you must acquire for yourself."

It's very fitting in the context of our Heavenly Father. He can easily bless us with whatever he wants whether it be riches or our burdens lifted or whatever. But who we are, what we become here, what we do with the blessings we have been given is up to us. We acquire and choose the type of person we eventually become. This also relates back to goal setting because "Becoming" happens one step at a time. One goal at a time.

Preach My Gospel says:
"Goals reflect the desires of our hearts and our vision of what we can accomplish. Through goals and plans our hopes are transformed into action. Do everything you can within your power to achieve your goals while respecting others. The ultimate measure of success is not in achieving your goals alone. It is in the service you render and the progress you make."

Or as sir Edmund Hillary puts it
"It's not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves."

goals = to change, to progress, to become.
It's not necessarily the fact that we can check a box on our goal list and say we did it, but it's what we have incorporated into our life and the experiences that came along with it.
It's about conquering ourselves
Not just the mountain.

I have lots of goals for twenty fifteen believe me. Something tells me this year is going to be a year I won't ever forget. Lots of CHANGE but also lots of progression and learning experiences and beautiful memories. I'm ecstatic for what 2015 will bring! Last year at the beginning of 2014 and beginning of my mission, Sister Riggs gave a talk about having a one word goal. Meaning you pick one word you want to become. Rather than having a million things you want to try and change and improve on, to just pick one and really focus on it. Last year I chose the word

Discipline

I knew 2014 would be the bulk of my mission.  The full year that I would be out here serving. Before I came out and when I first became a missionary I felt discipline was something I struggled with. In every aspect I didn't like to be disciplined or particularly understand the purpose of it. But as I was listening to Sister Riggs one word talk this specific word kept popping into my head.

The definition of discipline that I liked the most was
"activity or experience that provides mental and physical training;
of the mind and body to produce obedience and self control."

or in other words, President Riggs defines discipline as
"doing what you don't want to do, when you don't want to do it, because you know you should."

and that is something I struggled with.
example a: My alarm clock goes off in the morning. Do I get out of bed? Or hit snooze?
example b: I need to workout because I'm gaining weight. Do I sit there and think about it? Or do I do it?
example c: Grandma sends me twelve boxes of double stuff oreos. Do I stow them away and eat them all myself? Or leave them on the table where my companion will eat them and get fat rather than me?

DISCIPLINE
Among many other things there are some favorable examples I will claim. Over the past year I hung a big quote above my desk reminding me to be Disciplined. In my thoughts, actions, daily routine, schedule, performance, tasks, teaching, time, passions etc. It's something I have really strived for this entire year.
AND it has really worked.
Picking ONE thing to focus on, one thing to apply to MY life daily.

DISCLAIMER:
I am not perfect at Discipline. I still slip up and I still get lazy. I'm not perfect at anything. BUT I have gotten better. It is something I have learned and will keep with me for the rest of my life.  The power behind being disciplined. The amount of work you can get done if you are disciplined. The kinds of success you will have. in life, as a missionary, whatever it may be.

For more about discipline click here


But because I liked the idea so much I decided to use this one word Goal Challenge again this year.
This year my word is:
CHARITY.
You probably read my last post on charity two weeks ago, and the importance of it. That is what I have decided to take on this year. I have been so caught up in being disciplined I think it has had a reverse effect on me slowing down, chilling out, smelling the roses, and loving life. and others.

I have always been fast paced.

You know the kid in kindergarten who takes their coloring page and scribbles all over the entire paper in 35 seconds then slams the crayon on the table and proclaims BOOM DONE. While all the other five year old children are learning to color inside the lines. Ya. That was me.

I like things done quickly and promptly. My life has always become a big task list where I'm continuously adding more checks and more check boxes. I've always felt I needed to be accomplishing something to be successful. Lately I have felt the need to slow down and experience things... Rather than simply accomplishing them. And truly loving and enjoying it along the way.

President Riggs also read a quote about Charity at the Conference. He said,

"the reason charity never fails, is because charity is not a single act, it is a state of being... 

a succession. something one becomes."

So in order to work on CHARITY this year.  I am gonna be toning it down a notch. Slowing down. Living and loving and enjoying the beauty around me. To not just Conquer a mountain by doing something charitable.  Rather my aim is to Conquer myself and BECOME a charitable person. To reach that state of being, or living, where charity is what I truly believe and live by.

Don't expect this to happen in a week. This is a year goal. Maybe a five year goal. SUCCESSION #chill

AND
With that I challenge you to find your own one word goal to improve on this year. Evaluate your life. Organize your priorities. Find something you can change and improve on. Don't worry about the impossible mountains to be conquered because that's besides the point.

It's not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves.
~Sir Edmund Hillary


As for next week, my Dad will be posting a little something about priorities, responsibilities and life lessons. So stay tuned for that.  You will hear from me in two! (weeks) If you have any preferences on what more you would like to read about on this blog.  Shoot me an email and I'll get back to ya!



love you!

Happy New Year
*horns & whistles*




s. stucki

Sent from my iPad

(12/29/2014)

Fall Seven Times, Stand Up Eight

I hope you all learned as much as I did from the last post, by Momma Stook.

I'm telling you, I have the most AMAZING MOTHER ON THE PLANET. 
She just has this way of inspiring everyone she talks to. 
I know her story and example has touched many people.  
I hope it has stood out to you also. 
If you missed last weeks post by her, click 

Mom's Post
to read up and don't forget to share, by copy and pasting the link above. 
Or click join page on the left side column.

For feedback shoot me an email at madison.stucki@myldsmail.net

I would love to hear your comments you have about past postings, hear
your stories, share inspiration or thoughts, as well as answer questions you may have about past blogs, The Plan of Salvation, The Gospel of Christ, The "Mormon" Church, Eternal families and Missionary work.  I try my best to respond to all emails and comments within eight days.

This past week was my ONE YEAR MARK of serving as a Missionary. Only six months left to go. We did lots of service this week. My companion has her nail license...like she does nails... So we went to D.'s house for Preparation day and gel polished all of our nails. It was quite fun actually. We got to meet her family and my nails look awesome. We also got a wreath to hang on our door from a member this week. Which is exciting!!! We also got Christmas lights for our apartment and started lighting up the tree and candles. Yay for Christmas. 19 days until Skype time :)

I’M SO EXCITED. 
We are going to the G. home to Skype at one o clock our time. Which means... Eleven’ish your time. 

We also had a Big Mission training this week on Charity and Love.
Maybe I will formulate it into a future Blog post because it was really
quite good and I know y'all wanna hear what the Riggs have to say
about CHARITY & love (#AMIRIGHT?)

Little Miss Sister Rossi was there! It was great to see her, can you believe she's already been out six months! (Mind. Blown.) Like remember her first day in the mission field? Remember when I trai(hazed)ned her? Whaaaat.

this must be what getting old feels like...

We went to a different church to do service this week and there was this guy there named S. who was in charge of the whole service project. Super funny guy. And he taught us all the "Santa Claus Song" for Christmas. I thought it was hilarious.  So let me virtually sing it to you....

"Ho, ho, ho, hosanna

Ha, ha, hallelujah

He, he, he, he saved me

I have the joy of The Lord,"

??
Deuces

So anyway... as of lately, giving advice to other people seems to resolve my own concerns. And bearing testimony to others, seems to strengthen myself more abundantly. Maybe this has always been the case for humanity. But this week I've felt the power behind sharing. Sharing thoughts, feelings, beliefs. Sharing a part of yourself with another, seems to take you beyond yourself and allow your own soul to expand.

We should all do it more often.

It seems lately things I've been concerned about, or maybe reluctant
to understand, have been proposed to me by others. I've seen my own
concerns in the lives of those around me.  It's interesting having
questions, or concerns arise, that seem to be exactly how you've been
feeling. It's funny, really. How God answers our prayers. Or maybe the
prayers of another. So that we may all learn together, grow together,
become together.

This past week my friend "Cary" we will call him (for privacy sake, we
won't use his real name), an older gentlemen proposed a question. Or I
suppose it may be considered more of a statement. As we were discussing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, discussing the Mormon faith and simply discussing in general, he stopped and said,

"I'm not good enough to be like you folks."

WHHHAAAAATTT?????????

He must not know very many people like me then…
LOLOL,
But really.

That phrase has been on my mind ever since! It's stuck with me. As he
formed the words “I'm not good enough“ My immediate reaction was "OF
COURSE YOU ARE!" But by the time he finished his sentence "I'm not
good enough" I heard My own voice, in My own mind, telling ME the
same exact thing.

I'm not good enough.

It was more of a flashback statement. Not necessarily a current agreement, with Cary. I feel like personally I have let that phrase define many insignificant aspects of my life. 

Like the time I wanted to try out for a school sport… 
but saw the other girls playing and thought to myself 
"I'm not good enough" 

or

when I had a crush on that boy in high school…
but he had a thing for my gorgeous friend and I thought 
"I'm not good enough" 

or 

when I wanted to get a scholarship to go to my favorite college…
but the kid sitting next to me had a 4.0 GPA and 32 ACT score 
so I convinced myself  "I'm not good enough" 

or 

even the day I met MY trainer and saw the kind of missionary she was…
and thought heeeccckkkk no. 
"I'm not good enough!"

AND THEN

..I settled.

So what? 
We settle for what is adequate? 
We become just mediocre?
Naw, girl.

Can we drop this whole I'm not good enough thing? 
And just go for it?

You have no idea how Grateful I am I let go of the "I'm not good enough" slogan and came out on a mission. Even though I continually find things I need to improve on, and people that are way more qualified for this than I am. I'm grateful I've given it a shot, stuck it out. I've learned so much, more then ever, and I've learned so much about myself as well.

I can remember countless moments in my life, countless self reflections, countless prayers where I've cried out "I'm not good enough!" "Forget it Mom, Dad, Heavenly Father, I'm done." Without regard to what anyone has to say about the matter. How silly it is to go to a parent for advice only to say NEVER MIND I’M SETTLING. I'm not good enough. And even more so, to go to your Father in Heaven in prayer, on your knees, seeking for answers, only to be closed minded, closed hearted and declare "I'm done trying!"

When Cary voiced that sentence "I'm not good enough" flashbacks throughout my lifetime popped into my head. All the times both minute and HUGELY IMPORTANT, where I have convinced myself I'm not good enough to even try.

I feel like God was just pushing the replay button on all his many recordings of me stubbornly telling him I'm done trying. For a split second talking to Cary, I felt like I was talking to myself. And I realized, for myself, I'm not done trying. I'm not inadequate. I'm not mediocre. I'm definitely not settling, and I truly am "good enough."

Let me explain.

Our God has given us a way to make it past
ADEQUATE
and
MEDIOCRE
and
Settling
and
"I'm not good enough"

Our God didn't send us here to conform to mediocracy. He most certainly didn't send us here to fail. To be tested and tried? Why yes. But to fail? Absolutely not. He set high expectations because he wants us to do good and to be good. To become someone, to become something more.

And sometimes that's a daunting task.

But our God has provided us A WAY to be good enough.

"Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how
can we know the WAY? ...Jesus saith unto him, I AM THE WAY, the truth,
and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." -John 14:4-6

JESUS CHRIST
is the WAY
The truth
The life
And may I add
'The gift'

The Gift
{see video clip}

The Gift from God.
To provide us a WAY
To be good enough.
And eventually, even more than that.

We all make mistakes. We all mess up. Seriously, reflect on the past week and I'm sure several moments will pop into your mind of instances you wish you could redo or take back. Whether they be big or small, we are all imperfect. We all can do better. But does this mean we are not good enough? Absolutely not. We are good enough, we just have a ways to go. And there's nothing "wrong" with that. It's improvement.

THIS GOSPEL IS 
THE GOSPEL OF CONSTANT IMPROVEMENT AND PROGRESSION
(I'm pretty sure Elder Holland said this to President Riggs one time or
something anyway..)

The best part about the Gospel of Christ is there isn't this set bar that qualifies us to be "good enough" rather, the gospel of Christ is personal and tailored to each of our individual needs. What is my best and what is your best is completely different. What you struggle with and what I struggle with are completely different. My strengths and your strengths are completely different. Thus, making it illogical to set a bar of "good enough" that is the exact same. We have different bars, different categories, different strengths and weaknesses, and our God has provided us a way that is personal to each of us individually.

A Savior,

He is the gift.
He is the way the light the truth

As we turn to the Savior and rely on him to give us strength, to help us change and become, we are good enough. And better than good enough.
Because with him we are continually improving. Toward becoming a Christlike person, a true Christian, a follower of him that is perfect. That is our goal.

Will we ever reach perfection here?

Oh heavens no.
Look at me?
I'm a mess!
But I'm trying

I feel we are all in a relatively similar conundrum,
Can I get an amen?

"We labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." 2 Nephi 25:23

Do what you can,
Control what you can,
Try your best,
Give your best effort.

God knows that you are trying. He knows that you're giving it your all. He knows when you feel like you simply aren't good enough. And he's provided a way for us, when we feel like we just can't do anymore, can't press on, aren't good enough, to be lifted up by the grace of Christ and carried on.

We are here to try
Not to fail
Sometimes we slip up
Or get discouraged

But Ya know what they say..
Fall seven times
Stand up eight

Don't fall and stay fallen
Not when you have The Lord on your side!

Some of my favorite empowering scriptures are in Peter. One in particular says,

"The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that 

perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and 

honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, 

ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." 1 Peter 1:7-8

The trial of your faith is more precious than gold
Imagine that?

Fall seven times
Stand up eight

Try, and try again.

He's there to pick you back up
He is the gift of God to all those who love and believe in his name
Turn to HIM

"...for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall."

2 Peter 1:10

You're good enough.
Fall seven times, stand up eight.

(Love You More!)
S. Stucki
(December 8, 2014)
P.S. Who's down to read a blog post from Daddy Stook? 
Can I get a head count? ;)