Quotes, and thoughts.

“You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way you select your clothes every day. This is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind. That’s the only thing you should be trying to control.”  
Elder Marvin J. Ashton taught: “When others disagree with our stand we should not argue, retaliate in kind, or contend with them. … Ours is to explain our position through reason, friendly persuasion, and accurate facts. Ours is to stand firm and unyielding on the moral issues of the day and the eternal principles of the gospel, but to contend with no man or organization. Contention builds walls and puts up barriers. Love opens doors. … Contention never was and never will be an ally of progress” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1978, 10; or Ensign, May 1978, 7–8).
I really like the first quote that a friend from Disney posted on Facebook, she posts a lot of great quotes. For me personally controlling my thought is one of the things I fight the most, so I love how it says we should choose our thoughts like we choose our clothes. It tells me that I should be very deliberate in what I choose to think, like I would with what I wear. In the church we're taught not to be sloppy in appearance and that we should dress modestly. I like that I can apply that analogy to my mind, I also like the part of if you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind, and how that is truly the only thing we can control. 
Then if you add Elder Ashton's thoughts about it starting with Contention builds walls and puts up barriers. Love opens doors...Contention never was and never will be an ally to progress. So can our thoughts be contention in and of our bodies??? And if they are then shouldn't we try to stop those thoughts that are destroying our bodies then we can better be servants of the Lord. Now I'm going to get personal with these two thoughts...When I was at Disney I got very sick part was colds that didn't seem to go away, and on top of that I was fighting my periods, and both of those are hard enough to deal with but combined they were HELL. The colds I just tried to fight with OTC meds, but my periods they scared me, so I did what I would always do I called my dad. When he told me to go to the doctor the freaked me out even more...so I waited until my parents came down and we able to take me. Partly because I had no car, no time off, and because I was that worried. I went to the doctor and the best she could do was tell me to go get an ultrasound done, and give me birth control...well I had no car and very little time off. So I couldn't get the ultrasound done, until I came home and went in October. What I learned was interesting and worrisome, but I know why I didn't find it out while I was at Disney. It would have been one more level of stress that I couldn't been able to handle at the time and would have come home...so since that time I've been mad at my body for being so weak with colds, and worrying about if I could actually risk my babies life like that. There is no promise that I'll be able to go full term, or the baby, itself could change my body and make it more normal, then I could possible go full term. But it's just something that I haven't decided I can handle...or I'll need a husband beside me how can help calm my fears. But back to contention and love, so for the past two years I've been hating with my body because of those two things. I've been sick, weak, tired, and depressed, so maybe it's time I start loving my body, the weakness of it, the headaches, and the uniqueness of it, then maybe I'll start to heal. Since I'll no longer be fighting it, and I hope to lose the weight I gained also that I hate. So I can say someday...maybe two years from now that YES!!! I do love my body.