EFY, Ladies and Gentlemen

Hey guys, guess what? EFY was amazing, as usual!! It was SO amazing that when I got home yesterday, I took a six-hour nap. I was that exhausted!
Of course, at EFY, my favorite parts are the devotionals, dances, and awesome people that I meet. But really, the best aspect of EFY is the incredible Spirit which always envelops us. It is that Spirit which teaches us and helps our testimonies to grow. There were several people who got up to bear their testimonies at our testimony meeting on Thursday who explained that they didn't really know the church was true until they came that week and felt the Spirit bearing witness of the truth to them. Many others, myself included, watched their already-present testimonies increase right before their eyes.
Before EFY I had a very solid testimony of Christ and His atonement. But now my understanding Jesus' love and my love for him have grown so much. It's beautiful. It was so wonderful to feel the Holy Ghost teach all of us. I learned how I can apply the atonement to my life to fix and heal any problem or trial.
The people who surrounded me at EFY were such great examples of righteous living. They all came because they wanted to come closer to Christ and learn more of Him. I was particularly impressed by the young men I was with last week. They were wonderful examples of the kinds of guys I should date when I'm able to. They were thoughtful, respectful, chivalrous, and had awesome testimonies of the gospel. Plus, they were so much fun to be around, and super cute! At our company's testimony meeting, there were a few girls who cried, but mostly they quietly felt the peace of the Spirit in the room. The boys, on the contrary, were all crying so hard. Their eyes were wet the whole time, and they were all sniffling a lot. I thought it was the most awesome thing ever to see the guys be so visibly touched by the Spirit. It was adorable, and I loved it.
I'm so grateful for the opportunity I had to go to EFY. It's truly the best week of my year, every year. If you ever get the opportunity to go, seize it, and cherish every minute. Milk it for all that it's worth, and let me tell you, it's worth a lot.

Our company! I love every one of them!

Besties with one of our awesome counselors!

We love Mormon Boys.

These are some amazing young men.

God Thinks I'm Awesome

We had an awesome lesson today in Sunday School. I love the new youth curriculum, because it lets us take the lesson where it benefits us most through discussion. Our lesson was about Covenants and Ordinances, but it turned into an impromptu testimony-sharing session about what it means to us to be children of God. The Spirit was with us so strongly, and it was incredible.
My relationship with my Heavenly Father has always been strong, but lately it has grown even more. I have a tendency to tear myself apart, and even though I have so many friends and am surrounded by so many people, there are times when I feel lonely, as so many of us do. In the past, I have had to consciously draw closer to my God to enter into His peace and rest. However, lately I have noticed several times where I might have become very sad and discouraged, or lonely, but didn't. Instead of beating myself up or comparing myself to others, I didn't have to worry, because embedded and ingrained into my very soul was the knowledge that Heavenly Father loves me. And that even if other people didn't like me, God thinks I'm awesome. In the past I had to call that knowledge up in times of stress, but recently, this knowledge came by itself. This has been such a blessing and comfort for me.
I hope that made sense. I was trying to articulate my feelings, which can be difficult sometimes.
I hope all of you have a lovely week! I am heading to EFY tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhhhh!!!! I'm so excited! EFY is the best! I'm sure you'll hear at least something about it when I get back.
Maybe I'll see you there?

Arise and Shine Forth: EFY 2012!!

Hey guys! I know I haven't blogged in a while, but I have something exciting to tell you. I just came back from the BEST week of my life! Yep! The best week EVER!!! I went to EFY last week, and it was incredible!

EFY is a one week camp sponsored by BYU for LDS teens which helps them learn more about the gospel, themselves, and helps them make AMAZING friends!!!! I had such a marvelous time.

At EFY I learned how to better make use of my scripture study. I also became much closer to my Savior, my heavenly Father, and the Holy Ghost. I was able to strengthen my faith in so many things like prayer, the Holy Ghost, Jesus Christ, Heavenly Father, the scriptures, love, and myself.

I also gained soooo many new friends. Over the week, we became extremely close. I now have about forty new best friends! It's great! I will never lose touch with them, for they mean too much to me.

My testimony has grown so incredibly much! EFY has changed my life forever! I am so so so grateful for the opportunity to go to EFY. I know Heavenly Father helped me get there. I know that I am so blessed to be able to have gone.

Here are some pictures from the week!