17: Finding LOVE in the worst parking spot

"I feel my Savior's love, the love he freely gives me."

I leaned this song in primary, not thinking too much about the meaning of it.  Today, it reminds me of the presence of the Savior in my life.  I have to admit my days do not always go as perfectly as I would like, which is not even a surprise because everyone has bad days.  One thing I've learned is whenever I feel the need to complain, I make myself turn that complaint into something I am grateful for.

For example, at my high school, we had a parking lot and a long strip of parking that extended pretty far from the school that we called "the drag."  Whoever arrived late to school got the wonderful opportunity to park at the bottom (end) of the drag and walk the 5-7 minutes up to the school (for the student who's already running late, the walk up to the school ensured the student a tardy on their record).  The few times I was "that" late student (yes, I was late once in a while), rather than complaining about the awful parking spot I had, I would tell myself how grateful I was to even have a car to drive to and from school even though it meant I would not always get the prime parking spot.

Through this exercise, I was able to see that good exists in everything.  I was able to recognize how much my Savior really loves me.  He is constantly showing us his love through all the blessings he gives us but sometimes we just don't see or recognize it.  Rather than being blinded by my awful parking spot, Forcing myself to focus on the positive side opened my eyes to all the other blessings I've been given.  I really should never feel the need to complain or mope because Christ has packaged so much love for me within my experiences.  

As we prepare for this upcoming Christmas season, I am going to make an added effort to recognize all the love our Savior has given me, and make an effort to help others recognize that love through Christ-like service.