309. Today I am grateful for angels

Particularly hard days for me this week were Wednesday and Thursday, in between those days in my time zone was my Grandma’s funeral in Scotland and I really struggled with not being there. On Wednesday I signed on to the internet with my home page set to www.lds.org and saw a link to Elder Scott’s recent Conference talk, “How to Obtain Revelationand Inspiration for Your Personal Life”. It seemed to have come as an answer to my prayers. I have continued to read it several times throughout the week, particularly this section:

 “Another example of revelation is this guidance given to President Joseph F. Smith: “I believe we move and have our being in the presence of heavenly messengers and of heavenly beings. We are not separate from them. … We are closely related to our kindred, to our ancestors … who have preceded us into the spirit world. We can not forget them; we do not cease to love them; we always hold them in our hearts, in memory, and thus we are associated and united to them by ties that we can not break. … If this is the case with us in our finite condition, surrounded by our mortal weaknesses, … how much more certain it is … to believe that those who have been faithful, who have gone beyond … can see us better than we can see them; that they know us better than we know them. … We live in their presence, they see us, they are solicitous for our welfare, they love us now more than ever. For now they see the dangers that beset us; … their love for us and their desire for our well being must be greater than that which we feel for ourselves.”

Relationships can be strengthened through the veil with people we know and love. That is done by our determined effort to continually do what is right. We can strengthen our relationship with the departed individual we love by recognizing that the separation is temporary and that covenants made in the temple are eternal. When consistently obeyed, such covenants assure the eternal realization of the promises inherent in them.”

It reminded me of one of my all time favourite Conference talks, which was given in the October 2008 (was it really that long ago?!) Conference by Elder Holland, titled “The Ministry of Angels”. He speaks of both Heavenly and Mortal angels and that both have the same purpose to help in times of need. While reading over this talk again, this part is what I most needed to hear at this time:  

“My beloved brothers and sisters, I testify of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. In doing so I am testifying that God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face. “[N]or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man [or woman or child] upon the face thereof to be saved.” On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal.”

I know that my Grandma will always be there for me and continue to care for me as she watches over me.