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.