Simply because I can't be there and post my own pictures yet... I am borrowing the awesome ones brabby shared with me today. I am so thankful for a happy and healthy mom and baby... welcome to the fam Sienna Elise!!! I love you!!! Love, Aunt Ashwee!
Really no words can adequately express the multitude of emotions that wash over you when seeing the atrocities of the Holocaust. The childrens museum hit me with particular significance because of the great love that I have for my nieces and nephew and the children here in Jerusalem... the candles are in the museum in honor of the 1.5 million children that suffered and died in the Holocaust. How grateful I am for the atonement of Jesus Christ that in and through Him, all things can be made right, if not in this life than in the next. I hope and pray that we can all help prevent such world suffering.
Although it was good... I'm not referring to the Packers & the Steelers I am definitely talking about the showdown between David & Goliath and the re-make we had here in that same valley yesterday... It drew my mind to the words of the late President Gordon B. Hinckley, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who said speaking of this battle:
"David spoke these great words: “Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.
“This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel” (see 1 Sam. 17:42–46).
That was brave talk for a boy who stood against a nine-foot giant.
In anger Goliath came at him. Then David, running toward the giant, “put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth” (1 Sam. 17:49).
We all have "evil giants in our lives"
I would like to apply this story to our lives. There are Goliaths all around us, hulking giants with evil intent to destroy. These are not nine-foot-tall men, but they are people and institutions that control attractive but evil things that may challenge and weaken and destroy us. Included in these are beer and other liquors and tobacco. Those who market these products would like to enslave you into their use. There are illegal drugs of various kinds which, I am told, are relatively easy to obtain. For those who peddle them this is a multibillion-dollar industry, a giant web of evil.
There is pornography, seductive and interesting and inviting. It has become a giant industry, producing magazines, films, and other materials. It is available on the Internet and, if you allow, it will intrude into your home via your television. It is designed to take your money and lead you toward activities that utterly destroy.
It is almost impossible to entirely avoid exposure to their products. You see these materials on all sides. But you need not fear if you have the slingshot of truth in your hands. You have been counseled and taught and advised. You have the stones of virtue and honor and integrity to use against these enemies who would like to conquer you. When they challenge you, you can hit them “between the eyes,” to use a figurative expression. You can triumph over them by disciplining yourself to avoid them. You can say to the whole lot of them as David said to Goliath, “Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.”
Victory will be yours. There is not a person in this Church who needs to succumb to any of these forces. You are a child of God. You have His power within you to sustain you. You have the right to call upon God to protect you. Do not let Goliath frighten you. Stand your ground and hold your place, and you will be triumphant. As the years pass, you will look back with satisfaction upon the battles you have won in your individual lives.
When temptation comes your way, name that boastful, deceitful giant “Goliath!” and do with it as David did to the Philistine of Gath. I humbly pray that God will bless each of you."
I am so grateful for the perspective the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ yields in my life. I am grateful to be here learning on site, the experiences of the people in the scriptures and cultivating an even greater desire to do good and to face the Goliaths in my life. I know that these are true and correct principles and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ it is possible to do as Paul says in Philippians 4:13 to do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
ps pics to come...
I have more from the unrest, hiking Sinai... roughly 6,000 photos from our little adventure to Egypt but for now here are a few from the program.
Just to let everyone know I have enjoyed a safe and uneventful exodus from Egypt. The hand of the Lord was upon us each step of the way and I am more thankful than ever to live in a country with the religious and political freedoms I enjoy.
We were never in harms way and can thank the directors of the Jerusalem Center and the Leaders of the LDS church for faith and prayers and for wise planning and great execution. I would also like thank my family and loved ones for your faith and prayers and know that I have truly been blessed. I have truly seen fulfilment of the promise that the Lord will go before my face and be on my right hand and on my left and am so thankful for the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and the many blessings it affords.
We had great tour guides and armed guards with us 24x7 and never once felt that I was in danger. The night before we left Cairo one of our guides went to help protect the National Museum and was shot with a rubber bullet and he was even at work the next morning.
I hope you will join with me in praying for the nations of the World that are in a state of turmoil that the Lord may be with them and that His will may be done. There were so many good people there and such great peverty (40 million beneath the poverty line with one meal/2$--or less--per day). I hope to see a president elected that will change things for the better and a system of checks and balances be established to protect the rights and interests of the people. I also realize that I know relatively little about so many of the issues abroad and my graditude for my rights and privliges is compounded greatly by this.
Thank you again for your faith and prayers in our behalf.
Love,Ash
Today I finished my last exam at BYU--EVER!!! I feel like writing Pres. Samuelson a letter that says... I am no longer one of those statistics that didn't finish... I completed my degree!!! I also moved out of my house, packed for my holiday (on which I embark @6am), the next 5 months of world travels & put the rest of my stuff in storage.. it has truly been an adventure!
When I left Provo 4 years ago, honestly, I never thought nor wanted to back; however, for all the WONDERFUL people I met, the opportunities i've had to serve, and just to say... I'M A FINISHER... I'm so glad I did!!! I would not have finished a degree that has nothing to do with my current earning capacity if I weren't. I faced and conquered so many fears and have truly enjoyed the journey!
I haven't blogged in SO long... and am sure all the additional time was spent in my text books, working on clients, running, skiing & just plain enjoying great people.
I just want to say thank you to my mom, brothers, little ones, roommate, and to all of you great friends for your love & support. I am a better person today than I was when I first went to Provo and I plan to live up to those privileges each and everyday and do as the motto says: go forth to serve!!!
So good, so busy. All the things I love about Fall:
Crisp apples, General Conference, Vegas w/ LC, 2-for-1 tickets to Snowbird, fall leaves, great hikes, apple crisps, college football, midterms, the golden hour, homecoming, all kinds of great things... my last Fall in Provo... I think it makes the cool crisp air even more appealing.
Cheers!
