Category Archives: Divinity

The spiritual side of motherhood.

Worth Celebrating

Posted in Divinity by

I already know I’m repeating myself a lot this week, but it’s a message worth repeating. A few days ago, I made this little graphic to try to get moms to look at Mother’s Day a little differently.

Mother's Day

Then today, I have a piece up over at LDS Living that highlights some of the reasons why moms should give themselves permission to be celebrated.  It’s called “Hey, Moms: George Washington Wasn’t Perfect Either.” Go check it out and then pat yourself on the back for a minute.

LDS Living is also offering a free e-book for moms that you can download right here.

Cover

So do me (and yourself) a favor, and tell me in the comments one thing you do well as a mom, or one good thing you think your children will remember about you. (If it’s really that hard, just ask them. You might be surprised.) I’ll celebrate that with you this Mother’s Day.

The Mother Well

Posted in Diapers, Divinity by

well

In November 2009, I had three small children, ages 6, 5, and 3. I had spent about a year in an intense personal journey to gain a better testimony of my role as a mother. One early morning at the gym, my friend and I had a discussion about the pressures of womanhood and motherhood as we huffed and puffed on the treadmill. My mind sifted through scriptures and I began to put together some thoughts that would later become important ingredients in the book I would eventually write. Many experiences like this one polished my understanding of my divine role. Here is what I learned on the treadmill that day.

…. Read the rest over at Real Intent, where I’m guest posting today.

Quotes and Happenings from BYU Women’s Conference Day 2

Posted in Divinity, Uncategorized by

Day two is over and I’m ready for a good night’s sleep. There were some great classes and talks today and I learned a lot. I also met some really wonderful people. One of the highlights of my day was meeting Annie Henrie, the artist whose work is on the cover of my book, and being able to tell her how much I love her work and how honored I feel to have my work connected to hers. I’m pretty sure we’re BFFs now.  Here are the tweets from today’s lessons, again in reverse chronological order. (And you can still click on the links to see photos, etc.)

Tweets

  1. Amen! I bear my testimony that God LOVES His daughters. #holyghostsaysso #byuwc #finaltweet

  2. Blessing from Pres. Eyring: You will feel by the Spirit his appreciation for your faithful service as His friend. #byuwc

  3. Can I leave “a glorious spiritual heritage” like John Taylor did? Am I a defender of the prophet? #thoughtsinspiredbyEyring #byuwc

  4. The gift if the HolyGhost in action= the gift he gives all His friends who are offering sanctification. #Eyring #byuwc

  5. The Lord’s power is greater than all the forces that that oppose His faithful servants. #Eyring #byuwc

  6. The Lord protects, guides, and watches over those who are His trusted friends. #Eyring #byuwc

  7. The friend of God is one for whom the Savior died. #Eyring #bookofjohn #byuwc

  9. There are physical and spiritual dangers for us and those we love. We will need divine protection. #presEyring #byuwc

  10. Gathering at the feet of a living prophet, seer, revelator. Waiting to hear Pres. Eyring. #thegospelisrestored #byuwc pic.twitter.com/hy4ybSO3Hy    View photo

  11. Singing all the longest hymns we know while Pres. Eyring is stuck in traffic. #waitingontheLord #byuwc pic.twitter.com/W6Krv1W55H   View photo

  12. Just because I can’t do it today doesn’t mean I can’t do it someday. #carlahansen #byuwc

  13. The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The 2nd best time to plant a tree is today. # chineseproverb # carlahansen #byuwc

  14. The Lord needs healthy servants. He needs us to run and not be weary. #carlahansen #byuwc

  15. Count your blessings, not your blemishes. #katiedavis #byuwc

  16. You are worth more than a number on a scale. Your weight is not what defines you. #katiedavis #byuwc

  17. If you have a relationship you want to improve, try taking them for a walk. #katiedavis #byuwc

  18. D&C 59:19 Food enlivens the soul. Food is not the enemy. #katiedavis #byuwc

  19. Men can learn. Men can be taught. They don’t learn from criticism. They learn from a constant, elevating vision. #brosandberg #byuwc

  20. Making love begins in the kitchen. (Do the dishes.) #sandbergs #byuwc

  21. When we nurture love and friendship and marriage, we create a safe haven and a secure base. #sandbergs #byuwc

  22. “Pray for the love which allows you to see the good in your companion.” #eldernelson #sandbergs #byuwc

  23. When we love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, it’s manifest in the choices we make. #michelleking #byuwc

  24. In marriage, we have to avoid negativity just like we avoid pornography. #paraphrased #sandbergs #byuwc

  25. Charity is a state of becoming. It is a way of life that takes a lifetime to achieve. #michelleking #byuwc

  27. We become better and not bitter as we humble ourselves. #michelleking #byuwc

  28. “The most common problem in marriage is DRIFT. Life will do that to you if you are not intentional.” #sandbergs #byuwc

  29. “If you want something to last forever, you treat it different.” #elderhoward #sandbergs #byuwc

    NEXT WEEK, I’LL TRY TO TAKE THE TIME TO WRITE UP MY NOTES MORE THOROUGHLY AND SHARE THE MESSAGES FROM THE CLASSES I ATTENDED.  SO, HAVE A GOOD WEEKEND, BUT STAY TUNED….

     

 

Invigorating?

Posted in Books, Diapers, Divinity by
PrayerDraw1[image credit: Jenny Stevning]

Nick Galieti, who interviewed me about my book a while back (you can listen to that here), wrote me this morning to let me know that he had written an article about it in the Deseret News.

That was a fun surprise.

There were also a couple other surprises.

The title of the article was “LDS author Stephanie Dibb Sorensen invigorates motherhood with practical doctrine”. I love that he used the words motherhood and doctrine together because that’s really what I hope makes the book different. I tried hard to steer away from fluff and to just show through scripture and personal experiences how our daily mothering is really the doctrine of Jesus Christ in action. The word “invigorates” made me laugh a little because, although it’s a great word and it felt like a compliment, the idea that I “invigorate motherhood” just humors me. I spent several hours this week doing yard work. This made me feel old and sore. Ever since I got home from church today, I’ve been fantasizing about taking a nap. I fantasize about naps on most days. So I don’t consider myself a very invigorating specimen of motherhood, but I’m so glad Nick thinks I am. 🙂

The other surprise from the article was the discovery that I apparently speak out loud in very long run-on sentences. I should really learn to punctuate a little bit when I speak. I am a fast talker, especially when I’m nervous, but now I know that I also craft paragraph-sized sentences effortlessly.

Warning: subject change….

I’ve been blogging for a long time, and one thing I’ve learned is how thoughtful and smart my readers are. There are many times that your comments have encouraged me or helped to me to gain insight into circumstances and principles. Some of you may have read a recent post I wrote called “An open letter to two real moms.” Among lots of other run-on sentences, I whined a little about book signings and I shared a few lessons I learned from general conference, including this one:

President Packer testified of the power of mothers’ prayers. Sure that means prayers for our children, but I also think it means prayers when we need help being a parent. God will honor those prayers.

Well, this morning I got a comment on that post that is still in my moderation queue, and I’ve been thinking about it most of the day. I have a variety of ideas, but I’m not sure I know how to answer her. I decided that I’m going to open it up to you to help answer her question.

Where is the help, I need it now! I have been poring out prayers to heaven. They say we have this power as a mother to get help from heaven. Well, where is it. I need it, and have been asking for it for years.

I will allow her to remain anonymous and I will email her and let her know that many wise mothers will be sharing some thoughts with her. Be kind to her and answer as if she were your own daughter, because I think she could use a little “invigorating.” Just share your thoughts in the comments below. Thanks, friends.

An open letter to two real moms

Posted in Divinity by

First of all, let me set the scene.

Wallflower

Imagine you are at one of your first dances. You’re standing on the sidelines and there are hundreds of people mingling all around you. You try to look alert and available and smile at people, but no one–no one–wants to make eye contact with you. After you manage to smile at a few boys, they come over and say hi, ask you a few questions about yourself, then half smile and walk away. You do that for two hours, and in the end you danced with a small handful of boys, but the rest of the time you just sweat bullets and tried not to run and hide in the bathroom.

That’s what it feels like to be an unknown author at a book signing.

Tonight I signed books for Ladies Night at Deseret Book. This is an actual picture from my phone of all the people there:

DBnight

Notice that none of them are looking my direction. It’s okay. If I could throw my name in a hat and win a dozen cinnamon rolls or free books and DVDs, I would have done that too. I don’t blame them.

Okay, so the two moms.

Mom #1 came over to my table, browsed through my book, and said, “Too bad I already failed as a mom. My son’s about to go to jail.” I tried to be encouraging and tell her how my book testifies that parents are not responsible for their children’s agency and should not feel they have failed when children wander. I told her that many general authorities have taught that our covenants have power to reach out after and rescue our struggling children. She just looked at me, crossed her fingers, and walked away.

Mom #2 came over and looked through my book with another lady. Someone else had asked me a question, so I only overheard their conversation. She opened to the table of contents and scanned the list of chapters.  It looks like this.

Introduction: Motherhood Testifies of Christ
Chapter 1: Jesus Christ Creates
Chapter 2: Jesus Christ Teaches
Chapter 4: Jesus Christ Provides
Chapter 5: Jesus Christ Cleanses
Chapter 6: Jesus Christ Defends and Protects
Chapter 7: Jesus Christ Loves and Sacrifices
Chapter 8: Jesus Christ Forgives and Shares Burdens
Chapter 9: Jesus Christ Saves
Chapter 10: Grace and the Covenant
Chapter 11: The Eternal Influence of Covenant Motherhood

And I heard her say, “I want a chapter called Jesus Yells,” and she put it down and walked away. Do you know what I wanted to do to both of these ladies? I wanted to shake them and then give them a hug. But I didn’t. On the way home, I thought about what I wanted to say to them. This is obviously too late, but here goes.

Dear real moms,

I get it. Motherhood is hard. We mess it up all the time. And even when we think we’re getting it right, our kids sometimes choose wrong. Hard. Really hard. But I can’t help but wonder… did you hear the same general conference that I did today? Because there are some powerful truths that were taught that you might have missed because you were so busy believing that you are failing.  Here are just a few I remember off the top of my head:

  1. President Packer testified of the power of mothers’ prayers. Sure that means prayers for our children, but I also think it means prayers when we need help being a parent. God will honor those prayers.
  2. Elaine Dalton declared that our daily contributions matter and that keeping our covenants will call down the powers of heaven to bless us.
  3. Craig Cardon said over and over again that Jesus wants to forgive us when we make mistakes, and He will do it seventy times seven times. He said the Savior allows for improvement over time and doesn’t demand immediate perfection.
  4. Elder Ballard told us the parable of the tomato plant and testified that we have unlimited potential. Even when we feel wilted, the light and power of the gospel can nourish us and give us life.
  5. President Eyring taught that our simple acts of obedience and service (hello, motherhood) can help us feel closer to the Savior.
  6. Elder Scott counseled us to recognize the good in others, not their stains. Mom #1 and Mom #2, recognize the good in yourselves, too, and stop staring at those stains.
  7. Elder Cook testified that we can feel peace even in times of disaster and chaos (that means every day from 4-8 pm at my house).

Those are just a few of the things I heard today from men (and women) who we sustain as mouthpieces for our Father in Heaven. I don’t care if you never read my book, but I hope you know that you are not failing if you are trying. The good you do every day is not cancelled out by raising your voice or a child’s bad decision. There’s the Atonement for that. Use it. Believe it. Rely on Jesus Christ. He loves that you are a mother. He loves you. I think you should love you too. That is all. I hope you like the rest of conference tomorrow.  Good night.