Gifts

1 Corinthians 12:8-11:

 8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;

 9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

 10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:

 11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

For some, faith comes easy. They "just know." Others have this ability to take testimony of others and use it to light their own lamps. But there are others who don't have either.

Some simply don't have the experiences or exposure to know what faith feels like. They think too much. They don't have the ability to shut their brain off enough to just listen and feel.

In a way, I envy these people- their lives seem so much more simple. WYSIWYG- What you see is what you get. The world is exactly as it appears on the surface. Nothing more, nothing less.

But then again, I don't. I'm so grateful for the knowledge of the gospel. I'm grateful to know that I will see and be with my family again. Some of them I may not like, or they may make me feel inferior.. or superior. Some are goofs, some are somber. Some are pretty rough around the edges and others are refined and genteel. Some are young and naive, others are wise beyond their years, and some are so full of wisdom they are beginning to loose the ability to remember all they know.

But they are mine. They are my brothers and sisters (in law). They are my aunts and uncles, my cousins )and in-law).

I'm sealed to them- They. Are. Mine.

And I am theirs.

I an a daughter, a sister (in-law), a cousin, an aunt, and a friend.

Our faults and flaws- bossy, irreverent, rebellious, selfish, lazy, judgmental, paranoid, arrogant- those are all covered by the Atonement. The faults and flaws and sins inside each of my family members are accommodated for. Through the At-one-ment of our Eldest Brother, each one of us can return to Father.

We can return to Him in the greatest family reunion ever! Our brothers and sisters who came to all the corners of this earth for a body, through all the history of mankind- each of us can tap into the sacrifice our Brother made and repent, become clean each week through the sacrament, become refined and polished gems- the great and noble ones He knew us to be so long ago.

I know I'm flawed. I'm bossy and arrogant. I'm selfish and lazy. I don't always have all the answers... but I can make it. We all can.

The peace that brings, the confidence the knowledge of who I really am, the comfort this brings cannot be found anywhere else.

I'm unspeakably grateful for the wisdom that created this plan, the love that allows this plan to function, the work and sacrifice that brought that knowledge to this day, for this gift.

In Which my "Lady Parts" Respond

"Vote like your lady-parts depend on it!".. Yeah, I know what my "lady-parts" want--

No more Planned Parenthood with their disproportionately high rates of abortion-related fatalities. Did you know that one of the primary founding principals of PP is eugenics? Yes, please look it up. This makes it all the more ironic that a man of mixed racial heritage supports it. By the ideals of eugenics, he should have been aborted.
 
No more forcing me to fund (via my tax dollars) these deaths- both the deaths of the women and the deaths of the unborn. Yes, I'm pro-choice. But I'm also pro-consequence. If you're grown up enough to be doing the things that cause pregnancy, then you're grown up enough to put someone else's right to exist over your discomfort and inconvenience. Besides, is it really worth dying for (see above)??
 
No more chauvinistic patronizing about "lady-parts." Seriously, if this had come out of the mouth of a Republican, it woulda blown up in his face! But it was a Dem who penned this, and the only repercussion has been minor scoffing from various quarters.
 
No more 8% unemployment- so I can afford my own health care vs his costly bureaucracy-driven "health care." Before Obama-care, we couldn't afford doctors, diagnostic tests, pharmaceuticals, etc.. but with Obama-care, we can afford doctors, diagnostic tests, pharmaceuticals, etc.. AND a big bulky bureaucracy to manage it, right?

No more gas prices over $3./gallon so I can afford more than just gas in my tank. As the meme says, $3.79 gas prices are a lot less economic collapse-y than $1.98, right? *facepalm!
 
No more pussy-footing around other nations' delicate sensibilities. Leave that for the tourists to do, not leaders of nations.



Yeah, I know who me and my "lady-parts" (like my lady-brain) are voting for. Thanks for the tip, Obama.


Edit:
And also, my lady-parts would be comforted to know that at any time I like, I can purchase a gun and sufficient ammunition to become proficient in protecting them. The reality is that 99% of the men in this world are bigger, heavier, and stronger than I am. Stop and think about that for a minute- If a man attempts to hurt me, he will most likely be successful. I'm not ok with that. My having a gun at my side brings an equality to the table that isn't exactly possible otherwise.

Yes, Mr Obama, your advice to vote as if my lady-parts depend on it is most wise, indeed.