25 NOvember, 2025 TUesday    

This morning I listened to a podcast that explored the them of privilege and meritocracy.  I've thought a lot about the blessings I have received in my life and how much those blessings have allowed me to develop skills that I have today.  I'm eternally grateful to have parents that taught me the Gospel of Jeuss Christ in our home and modelled how to be a disciple of Christ.  I'm grateful that they sacrificed their own time and selfish desires to raise me and my six siblings.  THese 8 people (my parents and siblings) have had a great impact on me than anyone else in my life, with the exception of my husband!

My parents helped me get an education and taught me the essential skills to take care of myself - personal finances, cooking, cleaning, hygiene, tax preparation, minor home and car maintenance and repair, home improvement (like painting), shopping on a budget, and time management.  THese are skills that I took for granted until I started to realize that not everyone learns these skills at home.  So many people are struggling in life simply because they never learned these basic skills.

My siblings have helped me learn to share and make compromises, even when it's hard.  They've taught me how to repent and forgive and how to see the good in others.  THey've also given me confidence that I can do hard things and persevere through trials. Their examples have shown me that if I trust in God, I have no need to fear, and can accomplish the things that might seem impossible today.

All of these blessings have come to me as gifts that I did nothing to deserve.  Even the skills I've developed, including hard work, can be traced back to these blessings.  It often seems so unfair that people are born into such different circumstances that make their lives more difficult than mine.  I have to remind myself every time I see someone living on the streets, or begging for help - that that could be me if I hadn't been born where and when I was.

It gives me hope to know that this life is just a tiny blip in our eternal existence.  And that the circumstances in this life are known to God and HE will be our truly just and meriful judge in the end.  We will ALL receive a portion of His Glory and have the opportunity to progress further in the afterlife.