Testimony

Moroni 10:5

"And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."

I have a testimony of this gospel. I have felt the comfort and the confirmation of the Spirit in my life. On many occasions and in daily occurrences I have felt the power of this gospel. I am very thankful for it. I know that this church is true, and I know that I can return to live with my Father in Heaven.

Perfect? Think Again...

In 2 Nephi 4:17-23 it states:

"17 ...O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.

18 I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sibs which do soceasily beset me.

19 And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.

20 My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and ge hath preserved me upon the waters of te great deep.

21 He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.

22 He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing them to quake before me.

23 Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time."

To give a little explanation, this is when Nephi is lamenting how wicked he has been and how he doesn't deserve to be a prophet of God. When I first read this, I was completely surprised. Nephi? Being wicked? When I was younger I thought that Nephi was one of the most righteous prophets! Clearly though, we are not perfect.

This scripture has helped me to realize that even though someone may seem perfect, we may not know the truth. In all honesty, nobody is perfect. Hate to be the one to break it to you, but it's true. The only perfect person to have ever walked the earth was Jesus Christ. I believe that even though we may not be perfect, we can always do our best. It's not our actions that define us in the last days, it's who we have become.

Love Your Enemy

3 Nephi 12:43-44

"43 And behold it is written also, that thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy;
44 But behold I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you,do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you."


This scripture states that normal society tells us to hate our enemies. But in this scripture it tells us that it is better to love your enemies. You need to be nice to both your enemies as well as your allies. This is important because we ever know what people are going through. Though they may seem annoying or rude at first, by being nice to them they may cease to be our enemy. In fact, they may even become your friend!

I had one such experience with this. In seventh grade there was this girl in my PE class. I thought that she was really stuck up and was really rude, even though everyone loved her (she actually wasn't stuck up, but that was my view back then). I avoided her like the plague until the end of eighth grade, when I was against her team in badminton. Then in ninth grade for one of our english assignments, I had started to walk towards one of my friends. She spoke up and asked me if I wanted to be her partner. I hesitated, then agreed. Through the experience of being her partner, I gained a friend. I cane to realize just how awesome she was - how kind, smart, understanding, and beautiful she was. I don't see her often, but when I do, I feel joy, rather than disgust. I consider her to be a great friend.

Though she didn't start out as a real enemy, by being "tolerant" of her, I gained a friend. I am grateful for that english assignment for bringing me closer to her.

I truly believe that by being nice to your "enemy", you can gain a friend. We need to be kind to everyone becase you never know what they are going through. It may be tough to be nice to a particular person, but by trying you will be happier for it.

Religion Is More Than An Idea

In this video, Clayton Christensen talks about how important religion is - not just in our daily habits, but in our government as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZdlI_ZVPHY&feature=share

If we take religion away from our society, everything will collapse. Religion is what connects people in the world - even if they are of a different faith, we respect them. We know that they are dedicated to what they believe, and that is very honorable. My favorite quote from the video is: "If you take away religion, you can't hire enough police". The government is actually ruled by the people. If they (as a whole) chose to revolt or not obey the laws, the government would useless. The reason people are okay with being ruled by a leader and their laws is because they not only feel a sense of duty to their country, but also to their God(s).

I believe that if everyone read their religious texts at least most of the time, the world would improve greatly.

I know that religion is a very important part of the world today. By holding fast to what we know to be true, we can help to make the world a better place.


I have a testimony of this gospel. I know that it is true and that we can return to live with our Father in Heaven. I know that we have prophets on the earth today. I know that by learning and living the teachings of the prophets we can become better people and become more in tune with the Spirit.

To Thine Own Self Be True

This post is to talk about how sometimes you need to be yourself. Sometimes you have to stand up for what is right, even if you don't know what the outcome will be. In this video, our Prophet - Thomas S. Monson - speaks of a time when he had to go through the same thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_92mKlQOlk&feature=youtu.be

This post is going to be relatively short. Basically, stand up for what you know to be true. "This above all; to thine own self be true." If it's a personal standard, or a cultural thing, it is important to do what you know to be right. Sometimes we forget this, and end up making mistakes. But that's the beauty of the gospel - you can still repent. Through our Savior's love we can return to live with our Father in Heaven. You can be forgiven of your sins.

So remember, stand up for what is right - and if you slip up a bit, you can always repent.

Self Worth

For this post, I don't want to go into to much detail about what I think. I want you to be able to experience this topic for yourself. The topic is: Self Worth.

This first link connects to an article on lds.org about your self-worth. It compares the world's ideas of how you should view yourself to the church's perspective.

https://www.lds.org/youth/article/truth-lies-and-your-self-worth?lang=eng

This second link is to Lindsey Stirling's profile on mormon.org. I have often thought that she was amazing, though I never knew her background. After reading this and watching the video, I realized that even those you look up to aren't perfect. They've gone through tough times like you, cried like you, feared like you, and even loved like you.

http://mormon.org/lindsey

To be honest, I struggled with my own self worth for a little bit. I didn't really realize at the time that it was an issue, but looking back now I can see very clearly that it was. Here is my "life story":

When I was in elementary school I firmly believed that I was the angel child. I thought that all of my teachers loved me and there wasn't anything wrong. I was in a great soccer team that I had been on since I was six and I had friends. Turns out, I was wrong. And it took a little kick to the head to figure out that I was a brat. A downright jerk. One day when my mom picked me up from some extracurricular activity (I can't remember at this point in time), she had a letter for me. It was from my soccer coach. I don't have a copy of it anymore, but the main gist of it was: "We don't want a member on the team that we have to babysit. Shape up or ship out." Not quite that harsh, but in the mind of a young kid, that was devastating news. I cried the rest of the day. Now the happy news: I did shape up. In fact, I got to stay on the team until I turned 14, when the team disbanded and I was forced to go from AA competition to Rec league. In 7th and 8th grade, I was weird. Socially awkward. When I was placed into the advanced honors classes at my school, I gained friends that stuck with me all throughout junior high. But it started out rough. When we were first starting to get to know each other, we formed groups within our group. The nerds of the nerds, the more popular of the nerds, the downright weird of the nerds. Let's put it this way - I definitely was not one of the more popular of the nerds. I'm still not. But the difference is - now I don't care. But back then, I was jealous. I wanted to be loved and respected. I wanted to be like the girl who sat across from me in history. The one with the perfect hair, perfect personality, perfect clothes, perfect smile. Everyone loved her. They still do. The thing is, it's fine to respect someone - as long as you don't compare yourself to them in a way that downgrades your self worth. For the longest time I wanted to be like her. I tried to change who I was. I tried to be what was in my mind the perfect image of "beauty". I never succeeded. There is no "perfect" image. Don't try to be someone you're not. You're perfect the way you are - tears, bruises, and all. I'm definitely doing better with my self attitude. It's not perfect, but I'm working on it. I'm more confident and I have a purpose in life. When you commit to a team sport or a musical program or a club at school, you lose yourself in what you enjoy and you forget about what other people think of you. Find a passion, and stick with it. And most of all, "Don't be afraid to seem ridiculous." ;)

My point is, the Lord loves you for who you are. I have often felt His love in my life. He comforts me and is willing to help me through my trials. He wants each of us to return to live with Him. I know personally that His love is never ending, and that he will offer us opportunities to become a better person. In reference to my previous post, no matter what happens - it's for your own good. Always remember, "The worth of souls is great in the sight of God." (D&C 18:10)

Take Comfort, He Understands

In D&C 122:7 you will find:

"And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that lal these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good."

To me this is a scripture of great comfort. When you first glance over it (or at least when I did) it appears disturbing. Nobody wants to have every terrible thing in the world thrown at us, but neither does our Heavenly Father. Though He would rather let us go through life with no harm, He knows that it is for the better. He was willing to send his Only Begotten Son down to suffer for all of the pains and afflictions of the world.

Alma 7:11-13
11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.
12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how o succor his people according to their infirmities.
13 Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.

When this scripture says that He suffers for pains, afflictions, and temptations of every kind, it literally means every kind. For each person individually. This is absolutely amazing to me - to know that He truly does know everything I've gone through and will go through - both mentally and physically. The most amazing part of that is - He did it all for us because He loves us. Not because He felt obligated to. Because of the Atonement we can repent and return to live with our Father in Heaven. I know with a surety that this is true. I have been grateful for the Atonement throughout my life and I have felt our Savior's love for us. Jesus Christ loves us, He understands us, and He personally knows each and every one of us. I can honestly tell you that if you seek out His help you will be comforted, even if it seems impossible.


Matthew 19:26
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Mark 9:23
Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

Mark 10:27
And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.