Day 264 of 365 days of Solace: God of Second Chances!

Our puppy when we first got her.
Seen in the arms of a small 6 yr old.

Last night as I was picking up in the kitchen I was growing increasing sad about a personal insecurity involving a current life experience.

Around this time I looked over at our beautiful puppy/teen dog asleep in her kennel. She just looked so adorable and my heart was strangely filled with love for her!

Our puppy 7 months later!!!
Seen in the arms of my 5'8" daughter! 

I did something I never have done before. I went over and opened her kennel to pet her soft cream and tan fur. She laid her head and paws out of the kennel and just enjoyed my scratching her behind her ears and under her chin. When I finished, she ("Sunny") was mildly resistant to going back to bed, but she climbed back in as I closed the door for the night.

Same daughter with the same doggy just 7 months earlier!

As I turned to walk off, I realized something. For those few minutes I felt happy as I petted and loved
on her adorableness, and I'd even forgotten what I'd been thinking about. "Wow!" I thought, "So that's why people have dogs. To help with sadness or depression." It was fascinating to see how a simple, loving act could alter my mood!

I am generally a very happy person, but I do have to keep my mood in check. Last night was one of those kind of nights.

As melancholy feelings set in again, after petting Sunny, I did everything in my power to fight them off! I prayed, read my scriptures and wrote careful notes in my journal as to why I think I was beginning to feel less happy than usual.

I needed to analyze the thought processes and try to catch and alter (through positive, hopeful words) any unhealthy thought patterns which would lead me to feeling sadness and apathy for my many blessings.

I don't like feeling that way, and I will always put up a fight at the first sign of sadness! I knew I could have put on a movie, played music, eat cookies or ice cream!, but those things are generally band-aides to console the symptom of pain, not treat the wound for real and eventual healing. I chose to be spiritually proactive at this time, even if the other way would have been easier.

My prayerful and reflective journal writing helped me to understand what insecurity was influencing my mood. The only problem is that I felt my reasoning was not overly unhealthy, but plausibly justifiable! Meaning--maybe there was a good reason to be concerned over my concern!

As I wrote I had a song come to my thoughts, "Someone Is Listening When you Pray", and I was not only reminded that a deeply compassionate God is very aware of my feelings, but that it is important to remember that I must walk with faith, not always being able to understand the answers to some questions--no matter how important I think those answers are at the time! (I must trust His perfect timing!) 

So I went to bed without the answers, and took comfort that Heavenly Father knew me, his daughter, and that my life is in His hands. I hoped that getting some sleep would help my mood.

When I woke up to a quiet house I was surprised to hear that in my thoughts the song was blaring, "Do you believe God's love is true, that you know what you should do...God is a God of second chances." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wj-7_HUa2kY

I realized that my sadness was gone! I happily jumped out of bed and went in and greeted my sleeping boys with a "Goodmorning, Goodmorning. It's a wonderful morning" song! Today is my second chance!




I hope you find things to feel grateful for today.
I hope that if you are feeling sad or worried that you will do all the positive things in your power to alter your mood for the better. 

I hope you will ultimately allow the power of Christ's atonement to help heal you.


Some healing doesn't come immediately, or quickly, but I KNOW that healing will ultimately come if we look to God and allow him to guide us through the choices of our earthly experience.

Know that even when you feel sad, that you can have the peace of God to help you through any darkness.

Do your best! Give God the rest!

I am thankful for God's compassion, and for music that fills this world with beauty and testament of His love for each one of us.

Look Up! "There is HOPE and Happiness Ahead." (Jeffrey R. Holland)

God Gives all of US second Chances!

Much Love,
Christine