Many of you may have heard the story of how our little Sydney ran off on Saturday evening. She had spent all afternoon in the backyard surrounded by a fence and really enjoyed the freedoms given to her by her owners. She could run and chew on her toys and just have a great time. However, later that evening she saw the front door crack open and took advantage of the fun she had earlier and dashed out the door. She had never been out the front door unless it was from house to car so I am sure she saw this as a delight.
When her owners realized she was gone, fear set in. How would this little dog survive this big world without the surroundings she already knew? Her owner went looking for her but it was late and dark outside, it was hard to find something so small and scared. So the owner went home and with the rest of the family prayed to Father in Heaven to keep this puppy safe and that it would find its way. At 4:30am, the little puppy did. Everyone was so excited and the little puppy even more grateful to be back in familiar territory.
Two things I learned from Sydney's adventure. First, the Lord gives us boundaries for a reason. He puts them in play to keep us safe and happy, but it is our decision to stay within the boundaries given to us. And Second, the mighty power of prayer. I want to go into a little detail on both so I hope you have time to read.
Respecting our boundaries. From the time we are small children our parents give us rules and boundaries. They tell us it is so that we will be safe and happy. The Lord has also given us those same principles to keep us happy and enjoying life. We can choose to leave those boundaries, but like Sydney we might find ourselves lost, scared and feeling alone. We do have the freedom to choose but with choice comes consequence and they can make us happy or leave us feeling vulnerable and miserable.
You may question what some of our boundaries are. For youth, and I think this applies to all age groups, can be set up by some of our easiest principles from who we spend our time with and the activities we choose to participate in. Also our covenants we individually make with our Heavenly Father sets up our own individual boundaries from the time we are baptized to even those covenants we make in the temple. I promise that if we stay within our given boundaries we will be happier and the Lord will bless us.
Now onto prayer. I am a firm believer in prayer. More than anything this past week I have needed something to show me that the Lord is there and that he does listen. When Sydney ran off, my mom was frantic. The first thought that came to my mind was, "Angelina, everything is going to be all right. You need to say a prayer." I sat down and prayed both for my mom and Sydney. I prayed for comfort and patience. We later would pray together as a family and plead to the Lord to have her return home because the weather was not going to be great.
During the whole ordeal I felt at ease and comfortable. I kept telling my mother to relax and be patient that the Lord was looking out for us and whatever will be, will be. Yes I was scared and wanted her home, but the calm and peaceful feelings I was having where no doubt from the Lord. Sure enough the answer to my own personal prayers where answered when Sydney came home. I needed that proof (for my own selfish reasons) that the Lord does answer prayers quickly. She came home and was safe. We couldn't help as a family kneel down again and pray for thanks. Heavenly Father looked out for all of us that night and taught me some valuable lessons.
Again, I hope that my words have some meaning. Often when I have thoughts my mind goes a hundred miles a minute and I just type so I don't forget. I pray that the Lord has helped me convey they message that I tried to share. I love you all!!
