So this week I started back at BYU, and it was quite the experience for me. All of the sudden I was surrounded by several students that excel at everything, it seems. The Midas touch of Mormon-ville. However, it is amazing how the Lord reminds us of where our focus should be. I became overwhelmed at times during the week, thinking I couldn't possible do this all on my own again. I wanted to crawl back under my proverbial comfort rock. But as I continued to maintain habits I had developed on my mission (daily prayer, scripture study, temple attendance, etc.), I was open to receive a reminder of who really is in charge. Me? Not so much. The Lord? Most definitely. I find that when we are frustrated, overwhelmed, or intimidated, it is because we are focused more on what our arm of the flesh is doing, and not so much what the arm of God is offering. But when we live the scripture "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5-6), we put ourselves in a position to recognize what the Lord is trying to show us. In a CES Fireside with Jay E. Jensen, he talked about this as being "alert spiritually and physically" to receive promptings from the Holy Ghost. In summation, this week I have been reminded to take a deep breath, take a step back, and look at the guidance God is willing to give to help you overcome the big, hard things through small, simple means He shows.

This picture is from my mission! What a wonderful white Thanksgiving!