Heaven's Weekend

Tonight I had the opportunity to attend the adult session of District Conference. Garrett was unable to go because he has the duty phone and can't stray too far from base, so I car pooled with a good friend of mine, Britta. We made it for dinner, excited not to have to cook tonight. They had great speakers tonight, the Spirit was overwhelming. Some of the reoccurring topics were prayer, missionary work, and families. I had a few series of thoughts throughout this wonderful evening.
One was of the fact that tomorrow I get to celebrate being married to my very best friend one year ago and that this has been the greatest year of my life. I have lived in Texas, Mississippi, and now Japan. Garrett and I have been blessed beyond measure, and we thank our Heavenly Father often for these wonderful wonders. We are not ignorant of the rich blessings that run through our life. I wouldn't say it started with, but that is where I will begin. Garrett and I had the originally planned on getting married in September of last year because we knew that he would be in Basic and Tech school between February and then. We thought about getting married before he left for Basic, but we waited based on preference from my parents and also because we didn't want to get married and be separated almost immediately. But when Garrett entered Tech school at the end of April of last year, we both felt prompted again that we needed to be married before he was out of Tech school. We prayed about our options and decided to get married the weekend I would be visited for his birthday, since it fell on Memorial Day weekend. We knew that it would help us make more money and I would be put on his orders as they were given to him. We knew that if he got called overseas it could take over 20 weeks for me to be able to make the trip to be with him. The Lord certainly blessed us with the inspiration because just two months after we were married Garrett got his orders to Okinawa Japan. How lucky I was to be able to travel with him initially. We have had countless other blessings since we made the decision to be married, and I will continuously thank the Lord for His loving inspiration and blessings.
Thinking of our anniversary leads me onto another thought I had tonight. Because we didn't wait to be married, we were not married and sealed together within the holy walls of a LDS temple. When we married, we knew in our hearts that the Lord was still pleased with our marriage to one another and that He knew we couldn't wait for the day that we could be sealed together for eternity a year after our marriage. We came to a conclusion with Garrett's family to create a kind of reunion a little later than our anniversary so that we could be together for many important occasions this summer. It has come to be called, Heaven's Weekend. This summer 4 of our nieces and nephews are turning 8 and making the decision to be baptized into the Church. If you read our last entry with the story Christina wrote, you will see that these cousins are all very close friends and wish to be baptized at the same time. We are blessed to have family in Utah who are able to give us permission to use their church building for the baptisms, even though none of the children are actually in a ward that uses the building. The next day, Garrett and I get to be sealed together and to each others' family in the Bountiful Temple. My heart swells every time I think of this wonderful experience. I'm so grateful that we have the means to afford to fly back to the States and want to send my thanks to who made it happen. We can never fully repay you. The third day is another joyous day when our sister Melanie, her husband, RJ, and their four kids get to be sealed together as a family for time and all eternity. As it gets closer to the time to come back to the States I just keep getting more and more excited. On the topic of this weekend, there have been a few kinks with Garrett's records and it's become a bit of a problem to get our temple recommends for Heaven's Weekend. I would like to ask for some prayers that Garrett's records can be worked out and that we may get our recommends in time to return to the States.
I cannot begin to express how blessed I am for the family I was born  into, and for the family that I married into. It is the greatest, and I get to be with them forever! How amazing is the Gospel of the Lord?
One point that Elder Ringwood (Area 70) spoke about was the Priesthood. At the beginning he asked for a few 'non-men' to stand up and define the Priesthood. A few comments made were: - It is the power to act on authority given by God - Used to do as He would if He were here - It provides blessings and strength - It is an opportunity and privilege, not a right. Elder Ringwood went on to say that men have the opportunity to use the priesthood but they are NOT  priesthood. He said that sometimes the church will classify that the priesthood goes here and the women go there, for this or that, but he wanted to amend and explain that they don't mean anything by it. He explained that the priesthood is shared equally between man and woman and if your home does not have a male priesthood holder, it did not mean your home was without the priesthood. He also explained that yes, there are ordinances such as Sacrament, baptisms, and temple ordinances that must be overseen by the keys of the priesthood, but within the home it functions without those keys.
There were so many great lessons taught tonight that I can't begin to expound upon them all here, but I just wanted to share my feelings from tonight and also my testimony.
I know that I am in the right place, and that though people say the military chooses where we go, that the Lord has the higher authority and has the military send us wherever, for his purposes. I have a great love for the Gospel and know that my life is only as good as it is because I have the knowledge and truth that allow me to look beyond the little trials I'm faced with. I have a sincere love for the priesthood and the authority my husband carries. He has blessed me with his knowledge of the Gospel when I am unsure and with his amazing ability to make missionary experiences wherever he goes. I have learned from his stories of experiences at work and have been able to apply it to experiences of my own. I am so grateful that we will be sealed before our child is born and that we will be able to raise our children in an eternal family with the Gospel forefront in our lives. Having faced this year without having that eternal seal has certainly given me a greater love for my husband and for the covenant we will make together this summer. The thought of not being sealed to him breaks my heart and brings tears to my eyes because Garrett is the only man I can ever imagine being with and I want to face every challenge and triumph with him by my side. Pulling through this year and being sealed together will be such a great triumph over Satan's clutching grasp to control us. I know that the happiness I feel each day will be ten-fold with the covenants we will make and being able to say that we made it when we cross over to the next side. I love my Heavenly Father and thank him always for all he does for me. I hope we are able to bless and share our knowledge many times over, even if it's simply by the way we live and the Spirit that resides around us and in our home.