Cada Dia

When I woke up Saturday morning, I decided to attend a baptism. I didn't know who the heck the guy was but I was going. At 4:50pm I took my seat near the front of the room and waited for the service to begin. People filed in and shortly after a guy stood up and said, " Just so you know, this service is going to be entirely in Spanish. So find a  return missionary to sit by if you don't understand Spanish." There was no way of bailing now, especially when you sit in the front of the room. I figured I took three years of California Spanish (6 years ago....) soooo I should be able to get something out of this.

About half way through, my brain was straining. Laugh when people laugh, look interested and pretend that you understand exactly what  they're saying, is what I told myself. I was mediocre at Spanish as it was but the guy speaking spoke European Spanish and if you're not used to it, you get thrown for a loop (think New York accent with a lisp). I understood the gist of what was going on because hey, I'd been attending baptisms my whole life. But I was struggling to find what I needed to learn from something I couldn't understand 100% of the time. 

The service was almost over and I was trying so hard to see if miraculously I could have the gift of tongues bestowed upon me. The Elders Quorum President got up to speak. Laugh, look interested. But as he spoke I noticed that he kept using a phrase over and over again: cada dia. For a second my three years of Spanish kicked in. "I know that one! Huzzah!" And then my mind started to think about it a little more. What would I tell a newly baptized member of the church, especially in the sense of "every day"?

And then I started to think about my baptismal covenants. When we take the sacrament every week, we promise to remember our Savior and act as he would act. In return, we are given the Spirit as our companion every day long as we seek him. As members of the church, we are entitled to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost as long as we keep the covenants we made at baptism. The Spirit is not just a thing to feel on Sunday but a companion to us as we try to become better and seek God's will.

I also started to think about the need to talk to God every day. This past week I came to the realization that my relationship with my Heavenly Father was greatly diminished mostly due to the lack of constant communication with Him. It was heart breaking to realize that the choices I had made drew me away from my Father. My Heavenly Father loves me and I purposefully chose not to spend the daily necessary time building my relationship with Him. What a terrible daughter I am. But going to the baptism made me realize that I can change those things now. I can change that very minute. I have been baptized and because of that, I can change my life and have the companionship of the Holy Ghost once again. I can rebuild and repair my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  

Every day we face challenges, most of the time ones of our own doing. This past week showed me that I can't just go through life thinking only about God on Sundays when I'm taking the sacrament. Our membership in the Gospel goes further than that. It is an everyday commitment. It is commitment that if kept benefits us. Is it hard? Yes but it is entirely worth it. It is worth giving up temporary happiness for happiness that lasts. 

I will never forget the phrase Cada Dia. It is a reminder that to me to become better every day. Happiness is not a one-day workshop. It is a life long pursuit. As my mom once said, "Living the Gospel is like shaving your legs: no matter how good you do it one day, you'll have to do it just as good the next day." By living each day a little better than the last, we can truly be happy. By arranging our lives to fit Heavenly Father's will for us, the things that matter will work out and happiness will be ours. President Ezra Taft Benson said, "When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives." The happy and worthwhile things will always remain. I know this to be true and I know that Heavenly Father sees what is to come in our lives and as long as we seek His will and guidance, we will lead us to avenues of true happiness. He will require things that are not always easy but in the end, they are always worth it.