19 Years Ago

Nineteen years ago today, I became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is crazy to think it has been that long. But, I think of how I've grown and learned so much in that amount of time. At eight years old I had such limited knowledge. But, I felt in my heart that the Church was true. My testimony started to grow at an early age. I can honestly say that I've always known the Church is true. I feel that that is truly a gift from God. As I've grown older, I have studied it out in my mind and prayed to know if it is right. And I have felt the confirmation from the Spirit.

At eight years old I had no idea what lied ahead or who I'd become. Little did I know that years down the road I'd become a representative of The Lord and the Church as I served a mission in Chicago.

I can honestly say that being a member of the LDS Church has been the best thing I have ever done. No one is forcing me to remain active in the Church. I do it on my own. And I see the blessings that come from it. I know who I am, where I came from before I was born, why I am here and where I am going after this life.

I'm a Mormon. I know it. I live it. I love it.

Trials

I've been thinking about trials lately. I have a couple of trials that I've been dealing with for a long time. Several years, actually. One in particular is getting very difficult to bear. Like many others, I find myself asking, "why?" Unlike some people, I don't think it's wrong to ask "why." I think this is good. I'd like to know what I am suppose to learn from this trial.

I read a talk tonight by President Henry B. Eyring that was very enlightening. He says, "Dependence on God can fade quickly when prayers are answered. And when the trouble lessens, so do the prayers." This really hit me. I think one of the reasons for my trial is so I will be humble and depend on God.

I'm sure there are many other things I am supposed to be learning from that trial and the other things I deal with, but that was just a thought I had that I wanted to share

Elder Orson F. Whitney said, “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God . . . and it is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire and which will make us more like our Father and Mother in heaven.” 

I love that. It is so powerful. It's interesting to me that some may think trials are punishment from God, when in reality they are gifts from God. A loving Heavenly Father gives us the trials that are most perfect for us so we can become who He wants us to become. Our trials are necessary.

Heavenly Father truly loves all of us. 

Perilous Times

I, like the rest of the nation, am deeply saddened by what happened in Boston on Monday. So horrible. So incomprehensible. 

It's a sad, sad world we live in today. We are all at risk. At school, the movie theater, watching a marathon, on the airplane. Violence is part of our society. 

I'm not surprised by this however. These are the signs of the times. Along with man made disturbances, there are natural disasters happening left and right. Just today, there was an earthquake in China - killing 30 people. Ancient and modern prophets have foretold of natural disasters and violence that will precede the second coming. 

In Doctrine and Covenants 45:33 we read, 

"And there shall be earthquakes also in divers places, and many desolations; yet men will harden their hearts against me, and they will take up the sword, one against another, and they will kill one another."

Umm, yeah. This week.  Verse 33 goes on to say, 

"And I said unto them: Be not troubled, for, when all these things shall come to pass, ye may know that the promises which have been made unto you shall be fulfilled."

I think that is very important. It is scary, but we should not fear. We must recognize that this is going to happen. I feel like we don't spend enough time discussing the second coming. It's real. It's going to happen. Perhaps sooner than we realize. We need to be prepared. 

In the end, everything will be ok. Justice will be served. The righteous will be blessed.

"Lord, I Believe"

Last weekend was General Conference. Members of the LDS Church (and the public) had the opportunity to hear from modern day prophets & apostles, the leaders of our Church. I love General Conference. It is such a spiritual feast.

My favorite talk was given by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. He spoke about faith. I was touched. (As I mentioned previously, I've been thinking about faith a lot lately.) View the whole talk here. I haven't really been thinking of faith as in whether or not I have faith that the Church is true (which I kind of felt like that's what Elder Holland was addressing in the talk. But, maybe not). But, rather, I've been wanting to grow my faith that the Lord can provide miracles in my life.

At the beginning of Elder Holland's talk, he gives an example from the scriptures where Jesus heals a boy. Before Jesus healed the boy, there was a conversation that took place between Jesus and they boy's father.

“If thou canst do any thing,”  [the father] said, “have compassion on us, and help us.

“Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

“And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
The Lord can perform miracles in our lives, if we believe. Gaining that faith and belief is a process. But, Heavenly Father knows we are not perfect. He is patient with us. Thankfully, we don't have to be perfect to see miracles in our lives.

What touches me most in these passages of scripture is "all things are possible to him that believeth." ALL things. Even when it seems there is absolutely no way something can happen. (Of course, we must realize that the Lord has His will and sometimes His will is not what we want to happen. But, we can come to know that that the Lord has the power to do anything, if it is His will.)

One of my favorite church songs is by Felicia Sorenson. It is titled, "Just Like He Said He Would." Listen to it here. I love it. I tried to find the lyrics, but couldn't. So, listen to it. One of my favorite lines is, "Just like He said He would... He'll make a way when there's no way at all." I know that is true. Sometimes I have to ask for Heavenly Father to help me remember and feel that that is true, but that's ok.

I'm so grateful for the Savior. It is amazing to know that yes, He performed some amazing miracles while He was on the earth, but He can also perform miracles today - personal miracles for each of us. We just need to have faith.

I don't know if anyone actually reads this blog, but if someone does, I hope you find something here that helps you. Writing on this blog has been a great thing for me, so if nothing else, I am really loving it!

Faith

I don't have a lot of time to write tonight, but I wanted to post some thoughts. Lately I've been studying about and working to increase my faith. There are so many aspects of my life where I could really use more faith.

I recently came across a really neat chapter of scripture regarding faith. If you're interested, go read Hebrews 11. The chapter gives several examples of people who have had faith.

I also once came across the following quote that I really like: "Faith means trusting in advance what only makes sense in reverse."

Having faith can be really hard. But, life was never meant to be easy. The only way we truly grow and become who God wants us to be is by living a life full of Faith..

Just some thoughts to think about. I'll post more later.

There is a Plan

I posted a version of this post on my personal blog, but thought I'd post it here also. 

 One of my former roommate's sister-in-law (husband's sister) passed away in a tragic car accident on Monday. I've thought a lot about this. It breaks my heart, really. I didn't know her, I might add. She was twenty years old. She never got the chance to do so many things in this life. I've already experienced more than she got to experience by the fact that I've lived seven years longer than she lived.

These things really stop and make me think about what matters most. Life can change so quickly. I should be grateful to simply be alive and breathing. Here I am approaching my 27th birthday dreading the fact that I'm getting pretty close to thirty and am getting so old. But, oh my goodness! I am lucky to be alive. I once read the following quote: "Never regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many." That sure puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

We often take for granted the small and simple things. Boy, it so important to enjoy every moment we have.

I know God has a plan for all of us. One of the fundamental beliefs of Mormonism is that families can be together forever. Meaning, when we "die" we really don't "die." Our bodies may die, but our spirits go to the Spirit World. And one day we'll be reunited with our bodies and live as families forever. So,we don't believe in "till death do us part." We believe if we live righteous lives we can see our loved ones again.

This knowledge changes everything. It gives meaning and perspective to my life. I can't imagine what life would be like without this knowledge. It gives me hope and happiness.

Families are forever. God has a plan. I know this is true. If you don't know if it's true- think about it, study the doctrine, find out for yourself and pray to know if it's true.

Savior, Redeemer of My Soul

Having celebrated Easter this past week, I have been pondering and reflecting on what the Savior has done for me and how much I love Him. I had the opportunity to go to the Mesa Easter Pageant last week. Thousands of volunteers acted out scenes from the Savior's life. I was touched. As the person playing Jesus depicted the Atonement and the crucifixion, I was filled with so many emotions. He did that for me. He suffered for me. All because He loves me. I know I may never comprehend all that He went through. But I am so very grateful He did what He did for me. 

I honestly cannot even imagine what my life would be like without a belief in and a knowledge of my Savior. It affects every part of my life. It gives me perspective. It helps me to know I am not alone. I have a friend who knows exactly how I feel because He's suffered it all. 

Most of all, and what we celebrate at Easter is the fact that Christ lives. He is risen. We too will be able to be resurrected one day. 

I'm so thankful for my Savior. I love Him so much. I cannot wait for the day when I can see Him again. I want to live my life worthily now so I will  be able to see Him again.