Sabbath Day

Oh, how I love the sabbath

Saturday, September 15th

       The sabbath is such a wonderful day! I had the amazing opportunity of singing in church today accompanied by Alex on the violin and Anna on the piano. The song Savior, Redeemer of my soul holds a special place in my heart and will even more so now having performed it in such an incredible venue with angels to back me up. An experience i will cherish for quite some time. Sacrament meeting was fantastic as always. I absolutely love hearing the Organ play in that room and joining together in songs of praise and adoration. 

       Gospel doctrine and relief society were also very good. We have amazing teachers here who are excited about what they teach and definitely let the spirit guide the lessons. It is very common for our class to get through less than half of the written material and spend most of the time just talking and sharing stories and thought. To me, that is what these classes should always be like. It keeps everyone engaged more and is often the best way to let the spirit answer the prayers of those in the class. One of my favorite comments we talked about was the saying, "I sank to new heights". I love this thought that in order for us to grow and reach the highest potential we have to sink to a lower place. God cuts us down so that we may humble ourselves and let him make something of us that we can't make of ourselves without His help. We talked about the purpose of trails and struggles in this life and how they can become stepping stones and building blocks on our path back to our Heavenly Father.

 After church we walked from the center to the Garden of Gethsemane. What a beautiful garden! It is a lot like the garden tomb area in that a group owns it and in in charge of the upkeep and tours and such. It is amazing to me how many spots in the city where peace is found. This garden is located in the middle of a fairly busy area and outside it is not quiet, but once you step in the gate there is a sense of peace. The gardener there was telling us that a few of the trees were hundreds of years old. We took time to sit in silence and just think. It was one of the first times this week my mind truly felt at peace. I have been struggling with anxiety a bit in the last few months and sometimes finding a quiet moment where my mind and heart are at peace is nearly impossible. I am eternally grateful for Christ's Atonement and peace, hope, and love it provides.