"And when he had said these words, he wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them."

It is amazing to me how God knows His children--each and every one. He knows us personally, and is so mindful of us. If we keep our eyes open we will see the miracles that he performs to show how much He knows us individually.

Miracle #1: I was on a  phone call with my dad, just catching up on our day, when he told me a story. A story of something that had just happened the day before. Now that my parents live only a few miles away from my sister, they are able to spend a lot of precious time with their grandchildren. After being outside playing, Carly decided she was done for the day. She headed back inside. My dad soon followed after her, but before he opened the door he saw something that caught him off guard. It was a snake! But all that was seen was the back half of the snake, caught between the door that Carly had just gone through and shut. This meant there had been a snake right behind Carly when she headed inside, but miraculously shut the door, not only hard enough, but fast enough that she closed the door right on the snake, killing it; keeping Carly safe from any harm.

The Lord is mindful of us. He is watching over us. We will never know what could have happened if Carly did not close the door at the precise time that she did, but I know that it was a miracle.  I know that Heavenly Father knows Carly, and loves her just as He loves me. The blessings of God are there for each of us, all we need to do is accept them and we will see how much of our individual lives He really is.

"Come unto me, all ye that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

I heard a speaker this week that talked of this man who continued to go through trial after trial. He asked if God was angry with him or what he did to deserve these trials; losing everything. Another man then asked him, "How is your testimony?" The grieved man answered, "Stronger than ever."

How is it that we become stronger during times of affliction? Sometimes we actually expect hard times to just change us. I've noticed that we either give up and blame God for those times, or just simply "get through it"  thnking that if we get through one we can get through another. But we don't have to just "get through it." The reason that man's testimony became stronger was because he understood that He could not get through or truly overcome any of them without the help of the Savior. During this time of hardship, he had to rely on the Savior more than ever in his life. His testimony of Jesus Christ, who is the foundation we must stand on (Helaman 5:12), became strengthened as He allowed the Lord to stand by him to hold him up. 

Miracle #1: We NEVER have to be alone. This was a concept that I am still learning every day. At times I think, He is so far away, how can He help me and strengthen me? How is it he can lighten my burdens and make them light? They say that prayers are answered through other people; a concept never understood until now. After a wonderful session at the Provo Temple we were invited to my Bishops house for desserts. After being there for around 20 minutes, a group came walking in. In that group was a wonderful girl who has truly blessed my life forever. A miracle. After Bishop so kindly found a chair for me to sit on, I found myself speaking with this girl. Noticing her scrubs, I mentioned how being a nurse is a dream of mine, and that I always knew that it was a path I would one day cross. She then excitedly told me about The U's accelerated program! If you already have your Bachelor's degree, you can complete the nursing program within one school year. I cannot even describe the power of the spirit that hit me right at that moment. I could not stop thanking her for telling me about the program. Little did I know that Heavenly Father had an even greater purpose for putting her in my life.

What a miracle it was that we met, as she soon became a friend that I could rely on, find comfort in, and be strengthened by. The following Sunday she and I went on a walk for almost 3 hours. As I explained the pains and troubles I had been going through she would stop and tell me how she was going through the EXACT same things. We were able to compare hardships, and although they were different in scenario, the emotions and the solutions attached were the exact same. The heart aches we went through were the same. The pain I felt she was feeling. I truly felt that she was my Savior.  I had been praying for a friend that I would be able to talk to, that would understand me and would be able to give me strength through the power of the Lord. As I have learned more of the Saviors life I know we do not have to walk alone. He is there for us. He will lead us and guide us and give us rest. The Savior loves us so much, and works in mysterious and miraculous ways.

I know that if we let ourselves draw near to Christ, he will lighten our burdens. Sometimes it feels like those burdens might be too heavy to lift, but the Atonement- the greatest miracle of them all- can take it away. We simply need to "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding" Proverbs 3:5.