Kenneth Cope concert

I mooch off my parents for a lot of things. After all, what are parents for? Last night I mooched off them for their stake activity. They had a Kenneth Cope concert. Hello! Totally worth the mooching! We had GREAT seats. Fifth row I think, and I was dead center, practically eye to eye with Kennetch Cope. It was an amazing concert. He's kind of a quirky guy, but I loved his songs. They had such great messages. And he has such a strong testimony. That totally comes out in his songs. He believes so strongly in the gospel, in our Savior and in His ability to heal and strengthen us. It was a great testimony builer to hear him perform. Some of his song really hit me and so I found some links to listen to them on YouTube. I am so thankful for experiences like this that help me to get back into focus on what is important, what I need to be doing right now, what I need to be worrying about and spending my time on. I have a few goals in mind that came from last night and I really want to try to be even more in tune with the spirit. I also went Visiting Teaching yesterday and loved one quote in this months message:

Margaret D. Nadauld, former Young Women general president: “Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. … We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith” (“The Joy of Womanhood,” Liahona, Jan. 2001, 18; Ensign, Nov. 2000, 15).

I loved this because it again reminded me of what I need to be focusing on and what it is to be a woman. So many times I compare myself to women of the world or even just peers. But i shouldn't do that. I shouldn't aspire to be like them necessarily. I need to aspire to have worthy qualities maybe, but I need to especially aspire to be tender, kind, and faithful. That's the woman I want to be. Kenneth Cope said something last night that I thought was pretty insightful. We came to earth to get bodies, but those bodies aren't "us." We can't look in the mirror and not like what we see and then not like us. That's not US. We are the eternal spirits that come from our Eternal Father. Who cares about the other stuff? Well, I guess I should care a little. But I shouldn't let it get me down. I don't need to be the prettiest, the skinniest, the funniest. But I should be striving to be the most faithful, the most obedient, the most loving woman that I can be. He also commented on the Atonement and how without Christ, we are nothing. We can do nothing and we can achieve nothing. We need to realize this to realize that the things we do here on Earth aren't getting us into Heaven. We're not earning our way into Heaven. We're not going to deserve to go to Heaven. The only way we get into Heaven is through Jesus Christ. But of course what we do is important. EXTREMELY important. It shows our love for the Savior, for our Father. It shows that we believe in Him, it shows our FAITH. It shows that we know him. We can do good all around us, but unless we know Him, it's no good. Last night gave me a lot to think about and it's awesome. I have such a desire to prove my love for the Savior by being the best I can be. Mostly by trying to be the kind of person that the Savior was here on Earth. TRYING. I know I'll have a hard time, but it's that effort, that desire that I want to be evident. I want people to know that I love the Savior because of my countenance. I want His image in my countenance. Anyway, listen to these songs, they are truly inspiring and beautiful.