A Balanced Life is a Powerful Life

You were BORN to take power over your life. You are a Daughter of God and in that you hold His Character or at least the potential to resemble His character as you progress in this mortal journey.

Moses 2:26-28 "And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, which was with me from the beginning: Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness; and it was so. And I, God, said: Let them have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."

"And I, God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him; male and female created I them."

"And I, God, blessed them, and said unto them: Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."

Heavenly Father gave dominion over "all the earth." You are a Child of God, and with that you are part of "all the earth." You have dominion over every living thing, that means YOU! You have the ability and control to TAKE POWER OVER YOUR OWN LIFE!! You were born to improve, to learn, to grow, and to become like Him.

Parley P. Pratt has said:
"An intelligent being, in the image of God, possess every organ, attribute, sense, sympathy, affection, that is possessed by God himself. But these are possessed by man, in his rudimental state,... these attributes are in embryo; and are to be gradually developed. They resemble a bud, a germ, which gradually develops into bloom, and then, by progress, produces the mature fruit, after its own kind."

You were born to be AMAZING! You are a CHILD OF GOD and because of that YOU ARE AMAZING!!

Here are some tips to help you create more balance giving you a greater sense of power over your own life: 

1. Clean your room and your car AND KEEP IT CLEAN!!
Whenever your space is in a state of chaos, you will find your life and your spirit will be too. Make it a goal to always make your space cleaner than it is. This means spending a few minutes putting away your make-up in the morning, or making your bed, or picking up clothes off the floor. It means using extra minutes when you have them to put away papers, sort socks, hang up clothes.

Never leave food, water bottles, or any papers in your car unless they serve a purpose. If you brought it to your car, take it out of your car with you. This will help your mind to be clear, you to feel confident at ease, and for you to never run into a panic of "Where did that go?" or "I don't have time for this mess."

2. Prayer, Journal, Scriptures 
I feel these all go hand in hand. Don't try and separate them! In Young Women's we used to call them putting on your PJ'S, you know kind of like putting on the Armor of God. Your spirit needs each one of these daily and you find out that life is so much better and more beautiful when you giving your heart to God through each one of these spiritual building blocks.

3. Well Groomed
You always feel better when you've showered, done your hair, shaved, and your just clean, right? Showering always makes me feel simply renewed and in power of my life. You will feel so much better when you put effort into getting ready. Don't do it for the world, do it for YOU! You decide what well grooming means for you and then always take the time needed to make it happen.

4. Eat Healthy 
Your body needs nutrients to function well. It needs many vitamins and minerals to help you function strong mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually, and socially. Yes they all go hand in hand and yes a huge part of your life comes down to the foods you are eating and the vitamins you are getting. If you aren't eating every color of the rainbow daily, then you are missing out on many functional vitamins your body is craving and in need of so you can thrive. 

5. Get LOTS of sleep 
Your body needs SO much sleep and it's so easy to not get it when you're going going going. But take a minute to rest. Every week, go to bed early at least one night if not two so you can be sure you are catching you're quality Z's. For optimal mental function and a healthy body you need about 8 hours a night. Don't skimp.

6. Serve Others 
It's so easy to get focused on a way street, trying to constantly solve your own problems and never leaving enough time to save the worlds as well. While it isn't your obligation to fix all the chaos that is happening in our own backyard, you sure have the ability to do something. We were born with talents and skills and we keep on improving these gifts because God created us to DO SOMETHING! The more you focus on the lives of others and start bringing joy to those who may be struggling with loss of hope, the more you will find joy and self-esteem entering your own life. Just like it says in Alma 41:15 "For that which ye do send out shall return unto you again." Give more to find more balance. 

It's Part Of Our Divine Nature To Desire Beauty

I've been thinking a lot about beauty and appearance lately. I guess you could say I've gone through some phases in life regarding thoughts and beliefs on beauty and whether or not it's okay to desire to be beautiful. At one point I thought it was wrong to desire beauty because we need to focus more on our spiritual development. I felt guilty for my desires to be beautiful and the time I spent getting ready and looking nice because I had a false belief that all that really matters is what's found within. What I didn't realize then that I do now is our spiritual and physical beings are completely inseparable. The Spirit can't shine out of a careless body. 

Beauty is much more than having flawless features, it's about taking power over our physical appearance through self-discipline. It's about eating healthy, taking care of our skin, enhancing our features, caring for our hair, exercising, and keeping a clean home that sends a message out into the world that we know we have power over our lives and the gifts (aka our body) Heavenly Father has blessed us with does matter. Desiring beauty shows that you care; care about yourself, about Heavenly Father's creations, about life, and about aspiring to become great. Looking our best at all times allows us to make greater connections and influences more people because showing you care develops trust, and you touch and influence lives when people feel as if they can trust you. 

President McKay is reported to have said, when asked by the Brethren if Mormon women should wear make-up, "well, even an old barn looks better when it's painted!"

By our divine nature as children of a loving Heavenly Father, we were made to strive to be beautiful, strong, confident, and poised daughters of God. Heavenly Father is perfect and our goal is to strive to be like Him, I can only imagine how beautiful and well poised our Heavenly Mother is. I can only imagine the self-discipline she has and the time she took to work on her beauty and grace.

Every single daughter of God holds within her a gift, a gift that is an Eternal burning and longing to be feminine, to be lovely, to be honored and cherished. It is part of our divine nature to rise to the election of Goddess. Every daughter of God would be more productive, motivated, and more enthusiastic towards life if they felt peace with their physical appearance and with their surroundings. 

It will take self-discipline, but we are here to learn how to take power over our physical bodies. It takes dedication and self-discipline to wash your face before going to bed, to brush your teeth, to put on make-up, to take the time to style your hair, to eat healthy and say no to treats when it matters, to getting enough sleep every night, and to work out. If you've already developed these habits, then you know it's something you don't even have to think about or make a decision about, you just do it because it's now ingrained in you. 

If you haven't already made it a habit for each of the following above, then start today! Self control and discipline comes with practice, and with increased practice comes mastery. Every time you do this, you will gain a little bit more self-respect (self-esteem) and it will motivate you to do it again and again creating a habit. Start now! Self-esteem shines when you feel good on both the inside and out. 

It starts with Christ, and Christ wants to help you feel beautiful, master self-discipline and follow the commandment found in D&C 88:119-120, 124:

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;

That your incomings may be in the name of the Lord; that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord;that all your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most high...

Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, taht your bodies and your minds may be invigorated."

To Be Crowned By Christ

Art created by Robert Barrett - Thank you so much for collaborating Robert. 

Psalms 21:3 - 

"For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness:

 thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head."

As a little girl, it was all I could dream about to become a Princess. I imagined what it would be like to have a closet full of clothes only royalty would wear, living in a huge castle where there was a guard at every corner, and of course a gorgeous gold plated crown that showed a declaration of nobility would be placed on the crown of my head.

Since my princess dream didn't come true at my young age, despite wishing upon a star. So I decided to take matters into my own hands; I made the choice I would compete in a pageant to earn a title and a crown myself. I knew it would be hard work, but I had no idea nine pageants later with such great sacrifice and dedication I still wouldn't have the crown my heart had been yearning for. 

But one day it hit me, what if I had been seeking the wrong crown all along? What if I had been working so hard for a corruptible crown and Heavenly Father was saying "I want to give you an incorruptible one". (1 Corinthians 9:25)

I gave blood, sweat, and tears to that dream; literally. I gave it my all! I pleaded my heart out in prayer to Heavenly Father, and all along He had a different plan for my life.

"When life is cut too deep and left you hurting. The future you had hoped for is now burning. The dreams you held so tight left their meaning and you don't know if you will ever find the healing. You're going to make it! If your heart is breaking, there is a promise for the ones who just hold on. The sun is rising." - Britt Nicole

It's so easy to become distracted in this world by jewels and titles. We think what makes someone popular, beautiful, or of importance comes from what the world deems as success, but the world has it so wrong. This painting means everything in the world to me, when I first saw it, my eyes filled with tears. It's a picture of Christ putting a crown on my head. I didn't need a worldly crown to be deemed worthy or accepted; Christ already paid that price for me. 

I want you to picture yourself in this painting, picture Christ putting a crown on your head. The beautiful thing about crowns is most of the time when someone is crowned, it is a declaration of acceptance and self-worth. What do people do with their heads when they are insecure? They look down to the ground, their body language displays they are not happy, they are not confident, they don't feel secure. What would happen if an insecure person looks down with the crown on their head? It would fall off! We have to know who we are and that our individual worth and divine nature is found in Christ for the crown to stay on that Christ places on each one of our heads. And how do we know this? By coming unto Him an by following in His ways. 

When we aren't living with an open heart, we can't feel the love of our Savior. That love, that acceptance that Christ has for every single one of His children can only be felt as we are accepting and using the atonement in our lives. It is for EVERYONE. Inviting the atonement of Jesus Christ into my life is the greatest crown I could have ever imagined being placed on my head. Without Christ, I am nothing. Christ has all the answers and He is the only way to light and good things to come. 

The love my Savior has for me is everything to me. I love in the Book of Mormon where it says "After ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches." (Jacob 2:18) A hope in Christ literally feels as if you are rich. That hope in Christ is something I have to work on every single day of my life. 

That crown Christ puts on your head is a symbol of his

 love for you. Every day he crowns your head saying,   

 "You are worth it!"

Remember Who You Are

Picture Source

We live in a world where Satan wants us to forget who we are. If we forget who we are and whose we are, then we become distracted by less important things and we never end up reaching our full potential, the potential God sees within us. 

I really love Disney movies, I mean, who doesn't right? There are so many valuable hidden lessons that can be found in Disney movies. I LOVE this line from the above clip: "You have forgotten who you are, so have forgotten me. Look inside yourself, you are more than you have become."

Picture Source

"You are more than you have become", let's just explore that for just a moment shall we? 

We are all children of God, agreed? Okay, great! 

And being a child of God means we have the potential to become all that Heavenly Father is. Heavenly Father is perfect in every way, which means we have the potential to become perfect as we strive for this perfection. I think we sometimes become hindered by this principal. We know we are capable of so much, we know we have power within us to make a difference, touch lives, and to change our very own life...but sometimes we get stuck. Sometimes we become so focused on who we are not that we don't see who we are. 

It is absolutely impossible to know who you are, your true authentic self and spirit without first knowing who Heavenly Father is. It was Him that created you, Him that believed in you, and Him that loved you enough to allow you to come to earth and grow. If you become blinded to who you really are, if you forget your worth, your potential, your spiritual gifts, and your spirit that lived in Heaven, then by so doing you are forgetting Heavenly Father. 

The more you learn of God, the more you learn of yourself. But it's not just knowing of Him , it's not just knowing that He is our Father in Heaven watching over us, it's not just knowing He has good intentions for our lives...it comes down to KNOWING Him. Knowing what makes Him happy and what makes Him sad. Knowing God by knowing of so many stories that display His nature and character that He is the same God yesterday, today, and forever. For me, the absolute best way to get to know anybody is by serving that person. By putting yourself in that person's shoes and seeing how you can help that person or how that person might feel, that is how you really get to know who they are and not just know of that person. 

The world is sending all these messages to you of who you should become, what you should do with your life, what makes you successful, and what will make you popular; every single time anyone listens to those messages and acts upon them they will start to lose a little piece of who they are. You were sent here to be YOU! God had a very specific purpose for you when you came down to earth. You have to be true to who God sees you to be, you have to forget about who you were told to be, to be who you really truly are!

Our world portrays having different beliefs from society as a hindrance, but quite the opposite is true; as you stay true to those beliefs that are absolute truth, the beliefs that are good and praiseworthy, that is what unlocks your power to reach your TRUE potential. 

{Here's a short + cute clip for your enjoyment}

The Ugly Nature of Comparisons

Oh goodness, am I ever a girl that compares. I found this cute video 'The Ugly Trap of Comparison' that one of my friends was a part of and had shared on Facebook. I instantly loved it because comparison has a tendency to get the best of all of us, despite the fact we know how unhealthy and how depressing it can be.

Comparison is ugly.
Comparison is unappealing.
Comparison is a sin. 

In 2 Corinthians 10:12 we read:
"For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise."

When I look inside my life I find that every bit of my comparing comes from a sense of pride. I am trying to be something "more" than someone else whether I consciously recognize this or not. Either I will try to build myself up by comparing that I'm better off than others, but more often I compare that I am worse off and not good enough. If you were to step into my mind, these are some of the thoughts you would hear that I am not proud to admit...

"At least I don't have that weakness."
"I'm stronger than her."
"I probably would have handled that better."
"My pain is so much worse."
"Her features are so much prettier than mine."

These are just a few of my thoughts that I have caught myself saying. I often have to put these thoughts on a shelf, evaluate if they are true or not, and then take them back if they are or throw them in the trash if they aren't. 

No good ever comes out of comparing. This is one of the adversary's favorite tools he uses to get us off track. My dream is to be a people builder, one that always helps others to feel good about themselves, as if they were a queen in my presence. I know that is how Christ would treat each of us, and I want to be found doing the same. If I am constantly worried about whether or not I am good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, it becomes rather hard and nearly impossible to focus on other people and to build them up the way my heart yearns to do so. As I worry about what others are thinking of me, my mind becomes distracted, my guard goes up, and my actions display I am in a defense mode and I'm too worried about myself, to think of you. That is why self-esteem is so important, the self-esteem that comes from God because knowing we are enough in His eyes, we don't even have to spend time thinking about accepting who we are, because Christ has done it for us, and that is beautiful.

Place your trust in Christ, He said you were worth dying for, believe Him. You don't have to spend time worrying about if you are enough or finding every single way to accept and love who you are, when you love and trust Christ, it just happens. It's a spiritual gift you will find yourself humbly stumbling upon. 

Stay True to Your Inner Core

You were born with an inner core, it's who you are! Confusion is a warning sign you're trying to change and go against it. Your spirit knows exactly who you are, and exactly what you are capable of becoming!

Clothing security tags are a way to protect the profit of a store. The way these tags set off an alarm is an essential necessity used to alert a store attendant that something that is part of the store is about to be taken without authority or payment. Until it is paid for, the item must stay in the store!

We too have a security tag within us, a device that sends off an alarm as we are about to go too far from our inner core. You see, we were born with traits and characteristics that make up who we are as a person. Each one of us is unique and different. Each one of us has an individual worth that is different from any other person. If we try to change that for another person or for any other reason, our security tag starts to set off an alarm. An alarm of misery, of confusion, of doubt, and sometimes even depression.

Have you ever been so confused or so fearful that you just wanted to break? That confusion where you know something, but you lie to yourself? You lie and say you don't need it or it doesn't sound like it fits but that tiny, ever so quiet voice within you is screaming the correct answer to you. It's screaming the answer that won't make you satisfied in this moment, but it will save you from a lot of heart break and tears in the future. Your inner voice wants to protect you from all of those pieces that could potentially fall apart.

Why do we hide this voice of ours? Why do we bury it and pretend it isn't there or it doesn't know the real way to bring us happiness? Naturally, we are human beings looking for satisfaction and happiness in the moment. We forget that a little bit of pain and sacrifice now will bring us the greatest peace and happiness we will ever know if we wait and sacrifice but just a moment.

Listen to the voice trying to get your attention, that voice setting off all of those alarms of confusion and misery is there to save you. Trust that voice, because I promise you it won't lead you astray. 

Trusting and acting on your inner voice, those gut feelings that are telling you what and what not to do will allow you to live out your greatest potential. If you ignore them, yes there is always hope back, but you will pay a painful price and it will take so much longer to become who you are destined to be.

There is beauty in every weakness

I suspected something was wrong when I would have deep incredible conversations with others. Conversations I was eating up every word and feeling the spirit so strongly, then when I would get home I had forgot what it was we just discussed. It didn't make sense to me. I have always had a problem retaining new information. I knew I was capable of so much more. I knew I was putting in the work and doing everything I possibly could to retain information, study, get good grades, learn the piano, learn dance numbers for pageants - so why wasn't it sticking? Why I was having to work ten bazillion times harder than everyone else was and I was still so far behind from everyone?

At the age of 25, I was diagnosed with Inattentive ADHD (by the way, ADHD is something you are born with. So even though I was diagnosed in my adult years, I've had it my entire life). I was heartbroken and relived all at the same time. I was relieved that I could put a label on my problems and there was reason and science behind my weaknesses. Although I had feelings of relief, words can't even describe to you how heartbroken I was that I actually had ADHD. This isn't going to be a a whiny post, promise! But can I just say, ADHD SUCKS!!! It really does. Especially when you go your whole life knowing you are so different from every other person, but having the inability to have a reason why.

Inattentive ADHD is very different from Hyperactive ADHD. For me, it means information I hear and learn doesn't always stick and I can't retain as much as I would prefer. This makes school and pursuing my journalism career oh, so very hard! It means that it's so hard for me to keep attention on anything for too long and motivation of doing the daily tasks is a battle. My desires and ambitions don't show through my results. It's frustrating and I find myself discouraged over this problem often.

But the beauty of this weakness is the gifts that come with it. While I may not talk tons in conversation, I'm listening to you more than you will ever realize, I'm caring more than you can comprehend, and I'm internalizing your words in a way you have never thought of before. I can see the bright side of just about anything and my greatest ideas come at the very last minute. 

There is good in all things, and while I'm still trying to figure out how to treat this problem I know there is purpose and beauty in it. I know that Heavenly Father doesn't give us challenges without giving us mercy and the atonement to help us through the process. I know Christ has felt the discouragement I face and I have felt him lift me and comfort me in the times I need it most. I know our weaknesses can bring us closer to Christ if we allow them to. I know confidence is a gift that comes from the Holy Ghost as we take our problems to Heavenly Father. For the Holy Ghost has the answer to EVERYTHING!

I can't wait for my mind to be perfected in the next life. I can't wait to learn more about Christ on this journey that seems so daunting and discouraging at times. While living with ADHD is SO difficult, a rare form of it that I have yet to meet people with my same struggles and people that can even slightly understand what I'm going though, I do know I have found SO much beauty in my weakness. I see grace in my trial daily and I am forever grateful for that. I refuse to be defined by this problem. I will take what I have been given, I will water the flowers and not the weeds and I will embrace it all. I will keep moving forward and see the beauty in what I have been blessed with (because weaknesses can very much be blessings). I have SO much faith that every single thing we go through and we're given can be for our good. {D+C 90:24}

I like this blog to be a happy and beautiful place, but here's my philosophy: Can I really help girls build their self esteem and embrace all that they are; weaknesses and strengths alike if I'm not real and honest? No! I don't believe I can. 

So dear girls that read this, What's your biggest weakness, the thing that weighs you down the most? Go write about it! Write about the sucky parts as well as the beautiful parts found within your weakness. Then share about it so you can inspire those in your circle of influence. After all, we are here to learn and grow from one another as we find the roses among our thorns.

Be real.
Be true. 
Be authentic. 
Be yourself!

Empowering girls to always be "Unstoppable" - the Lord's way

Empowering girls to have strong self esteem and confidence is my passion. It's what I thrive upon. I believe girls are so much more than the labels society chooses for them. 

Always just came out with another campaign to empower girls, it's titled "Unstoppable".

 I love the message that girls are powerful and we should inspire girls to do anything they want to do, teaching them they have the power within to be strong and capable of so much more than the road blocks society chooses to define them by. I love the word unstoppable!! Isn't that such a power word?

Unstoppable - Impossible to stop or prevent

The word reminded me of this quote I absolutely love by Sister Rosemary M. Wixom. She said, “As individuals, we are strong. Together with God, we are unstoppable." 

I think of all the times I was unstoppable, all of those times when I took Heavenly Father on my team, it was only through Him that things that should have been impossible were actually unstoppable. I am nothing without Heavenly Father. While I am still learning to remember this through the bad AND the good days, I do know it with my whole heart. I know that He knows everything I don't know. (Mosiah 4:9)

In Luke 1:37 we read, "For with God nothing shall be impossible." How empowering is that? While I am a HUGE fan of girl power and I believe girls should chase their dreams no matter what the world says, I don't think it's more girl power we are in need of. I think we are actually in more need of divine power from deity. While girls are pretty capable of...well basically anything, Heavenly Father is capable of EVERYTHING! He holds all power, all knowledge, and He is holding everything together. 

Let's teach girls that they are stronger than they think they are, that they have the power to do anything they set their mind to, but let's also teach them the importance of turning to Heavenly Father to reach the impossible.

Let's teach girls that Heavenly Father knows all things and it is through Him that dreams will be achieved. 

Let's teach girls to prove society wrong about all the labels, but let's also teach them to embrace the qualities Heavenly Father blessed them with BECAUSE they are a girl. 

Girls and guys are different for a reason and while I desire to empower girls, I want to teach girls to love all that they are because Heavenly Father hand crafted their unique attributes for divine purposes. These qualities are worth celebrating, not hiding!!

This quote is absolutely inspiring by President Ezra Taft Benson:

“You [women] were not created to be the same as men. Your natural attributes, affections, and personalities are entirely different from a man’s. They consist of faithfulness, benevolence, kindness, and charity. They give you the personality of a woman. They also balance the more aggressive and competitive nature of a man."

“The business world is competitive and sometimes ruthless. We do not doubt that women have both the brainpower and skills—and in some instances superior abilities—to compete with men. But by competing they must, of necessity, become aggressive and competitive. Thus their godly attributes are diminished and they acquire a quality of sameness with man” (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 547–48).

Let's teach girls to welcome with open arms the labels they have of being faithful, benevolent, kind, and charitable.

Let's teach girls to complete each other rather than compete with each other, just as Sister Burton has taught us!

Let's teach girls that the power is within them to choose the will of Heavenly Father every single time and that will be the only empowerment they will need in order to win and become more unstoppable than they can comprehend.

Dear Girls, you will ALWAYS be 

unstoppable when you take

 Heavenly Father as your

best friend. 

He is ALWAYS on your side!

What's been unstoppable in your life because of Heavenly Father?

How the atonement helped me overcome self-objectification

I was sitting in my PR Cases & Campaigns class bright and early this morning and we were watching examples of social ad campaigns. We observed this ad produced by Dove, one that I have seen numerous times previously, and the Spirit just hit me so strongly, right there in class reminding me of how incredible the atonement is! This is a bit of an interesting example and I have many, many more experiences with the atonement, but today I feel the need to share with you how incredibly powerful the atonement is through my personal self-objectification experience. 

Last year, from January to August 2014, I was more insecure of my personal image than I had ever been in my life. I feel prompted to share my experience with you even though I'm ashamed of it. I'm ashamed of it because of my perception now. I'm ashamed of it because the thoughts that I'm going to share with you are real and I know now exactly who they were coming from, the adversary. I'm ashamed because of the moments I wasted loving myself for who I am.

I had never really had much acne until January 2014, and it hit me hard. I was going through some stressful situations at this time, so maybe that triggered it, I have no idea because I'm still fighting it as I write this, but the words I am going to use to describe how I felt don't even slightly compare with the emotions that I feel now. Waking up one day with blemishes all over my face was a very new and real thing for me. I felt so self-conscious every single day. On every single date I went on, I wondered if they could see, I wondered if they noticed it. It was so hard for me to see past my acne, I would spend hours in my car crying, asking and pleading for comfort and trying to find my worth in the world. These words don't do justice to my feelings or emotions. It wasn't just my acne I was concerned with, I just didn't feel beautiful and glamorous like I desired. I don't look like a pageant girl, I never had. For some unknown reason the thought that I wasn't pretty enough and that's what mattered in this world would not leave me alone. My favorite place to go was the temple, I felt so beautiful in the temple. I felt my image didn't matter there. 

But on the days that I wasn't at the temple, every single morning I would wake up, put on my make-up, say "This is as good as it's going to get" and then I would cry and cry. How I looked was on my mind much more than I can proudly admit. These thoughts of what I wanted to change about my face and features consumed everything in me. I wanted to look like the stars you see on TV and in magazines. I would stare at these pictures, then go back and look in the mirror and I nit picked everything about myself. I'm telling you, these unhealthy thoughts consumed me like crazy. 

I didn't think any guy would ever desire to love me or marry me, because I didn't have flawless skin. I told you I'm ashamed to write out this post because huge mistake I had made in my thought process, mistaking guys for being that shallow. If you think a guy won't love you because you have acne or any other imperfection you would consider a flaw, then you are searching for the wrong guy. The right guy won't care one bit, I promise you this! Sure, there are plenty of conceited guys out there who will only date girls with a certain image, but do you really truly want to be with one of them? Love isn't based on image, attraction is very important in marriage don't get me wrong. But the right guy will be attracted to you just the way you are, I know this to be true. The right guy for you will first fall in love with you for your heart and everything will fall into place thereafter. 

I can distinctly remember sitting in my car, reflecting on my imperfections a few different times, I remember the exact location of where I was and how deeply my heart was grieving. Once again, I remind you that my description of my heart break doesn't even slightly reflect the worthlessness and heartbreak I felt based on my appearance. So I was sitting there just sobbing, and I asked Heavenly Father for a little help and understanding of why I felt the way I did and how I could feel beautiful and valuable once again. This was the beginning of my thought change process that took place through the atonement of Jesus Christ. 

Months passed by, every day I would wrestle with the Lord in my thoughts of my worth, why I thought it was all based on appearance during this time, I know not. July came and Colbie Callat released her new song 'Try'. I loved it but hated it. I would listen to it over, and over, and over again trying to convince myself that I didn't need to "try" to be beautiful and I already was. It didn't help that when Colbie takes off her makeup and all in the music video, the girl is still absolutely flawless. I should post a picture of me with no make-up on so you can see what I am talking about. 

As I prayed more and studied more of what it meant to be a daughter of God, my heart changed and grace carried me. It wasn't easy and it wasn't all over night, but I remember one day thinking, "You know, I stopped critiquing myself and crying over my image a few weeks ago. I really like who I am and I can see Christ's countenance in my image. It was then that I understood what Elaine Dalton meant by this quote; "There is no more beautiful sight than a young woman who glows with the light of the Spirit, who is confident and courageous because she is virtuous."

Suddenly I didn't care about looking like the girls in the media, I didn't care about comparing myself to others, and I didn't care as much about the flawed skin underneath my foundation. I just didn't care, and I felt beautiful just the way I am and I'm so grateful I was able to recognize that it was the atonement and grace that brought me to that point. I don't know why I had to go through those painful emotions over such a worldly thing, but I do know it helped teach me an invaluable lesson of worth and that it's the spiritual things that will always matter. Spiritual blessings can help you overcome or lessen any worldly pain you experience. 

I was spending all that time looking at myself through the eyes of the adversary. It was so damaging because it was distracting me of my divine earthly mission. Satan knows exactly what he is doing, don't let him win girls, fight back!! Did you wake up this morning and see yourself through the eyes of the Savior or the eyes of the adversary? It's a daily choice you get to make but I want to share 5 things that might help you to understand your worth and to feel beautiful inside and out every single day. 

5 actions to see yourself through the eyes of the Savior

1. Spend more time with the Savior

To see yourself through the eyes of someone, you really need to get to know them and understand who they are and what they believe in. Spend more time with the Savior than you actually spend getting ready in the morning. In fact, I challenge you to double the time. If you spend 30 minutes on your hair and makeup each morning, spend an hour with the Savior.

So how exactly do you spend time with the Savior? Learn of Him, learn of His teachings, learn of His attributes, and learn of His life and His legacy.

Here are a few suggestions...
- Watch bible videos of the Savior.
- Read '21 Days closer to Christ'
- Study Chapter 6 in Preach my Gospel about Christlike attributes
- Pray for gratitude and an understanding of the atonement + of grace
- Watch for Him daily in your life

2. Pray for an understanding of Individual worth and a love for who you are

So you've heard about individual worth, right? It's spoken of and recited all the time in Young Women's. Here's my favorite part about it though, even if you don't fully grasp what it means or understand how it applies to you personally, IT'S STILL THERE! Even if you don't feel individual worth and God's love pouring in your life or heart at this moment, that doesn't mean it is taken away. It is NEVER changing. It is perfect. It is infinite. It is there in the moments you feel and it is there in the moments you don't. If you don't understand it, pray to feel it, pray to understand it, pray to see it in your personal life. If you are diligent with this prayer, I personally testify to you that you will see it and feel it. I don't know when or how, but it will surround you and without a doubt you will know if you will just stay diligent!

3. Listen to empowering messages that teach you about who you are. Study what it means to be a daughter of God, more than you have ever studied anything ever before!

For me, this one was essential because if you are doubting your worth based on your outer beauty, you're missing the most important teaching in this church. For me, I had to really understand who I was and love that more than all else before I could learn or understand any other principle. This is the foundation for anything else to be built upon. Article of Faith number four teaches us that faith is the first principle of the gospel and if you don't understand that you're a beloved daughter of Heavenly Father and all that that entails, then you're missing something and that's why for me, this was the best place to start. 

Some great places to start:
- Daughter of a King playlist 
- Daughters of Heavenly Father talk
- Mosiah 5 
- This Lesson 

4. Dig deep into the scriptures

Really immerse yourself in the scriptures and get to know them inside and out. The goal is to know them so well that you find yourself reflecting more on scriptures and their stories instead of all the negative thoughts of worthlessness this world can have you believing. You want to be so focused on the goodness and gems the scriptures offer that you won't have time to really focus on the insecurities that you may be faced with. Study scriptures based on individual worth. Study the stories of the woman heroes and make it a goal to become as noble as them. 

5. SERVE

Lose yourself and go serve others! If you find yourself thinking too much about yourself, it's time to forget yourself and let Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ take care of all your worries and concerns while you serve Them. You are the chosen one to serve those in your circle of influence. If you find yourself dwelling on imperfections and insecurities, pray about, forget it, then go bake cookies and take them to a friend! I promise you it works. You deserve a treat too! (No bake cookies are my favorite, just in case you were wondering ;) 

Then watch this short clip!

But please girls, 
please remember that you are NEVER, EVER alone!