Truth, Tap, and my Foundation.

Hi-ya!!

So thoughts, and lots of them!!
I have been thinking a lot about how the Holy Ghost works with us and for us.
The power of the Holy Ghost is incredibly powerful.
One of the main roles of the Holy Ghost is to teach us what is true. He helps us better know the way that our Father in Heaven would have us go.

In the Book of Mormon the last prophet, Moroni, as his closing testimony to us states, " 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."

This scripture has come to mean a lot to me in my life. I know that the Holy Ghost has been able to teach me the truth of ALL things. It is only through the Holy Ghost that I am able to stand daily and bare witness of the love that our Saviour Jesus Christ has for each of us. 

But what is so wonderful about it is that the Holy Ghost will help us in many simple ways as well. When I was attending University, I was taking a tap class. I love dancing! But I had never taken tap or done a tap dance before. I could pretend, but it was terrible! Towards the end of the semester we were learning a new combination, and I was struggling with it. I could not for the life of me figure it out. So I prayed. I asked my Heavenly Father for help in being able to do the combination. The next day, I was able to figure out what I was doing wrong and how it was that I needed to fix it, in order to be able to do the combination. 

It seems like such a little thing, but it has meant the world to me. To know that in the simplest of things, God cares and will help in every way. 

This experience has helped me solidify my testimony and foundation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The prophet Helaman said, "...remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation;..."

I know that my testimony of the Saviour has been helped so much and it has come through the Holy Ghost teaching me the truth. And that because it happened for me, it can happen for everyone. God's love is REAL and we can learn of it through the Holy Ghost as we build our foundation. 

Char-i-ty

Hi-ya!
So this week in Relief Society we had a wonderful lesson about Charity..

Charity is something that we talk a lot about as missionaries. It is something that is discussed quite in depth in the scriptures. Charity incompasses so much! There is so much covered within charity, and with it, it changes so much.
1 Corinthians 13 talks ALL about charity! And I LOVE IT!!! I just wanted to share what is said in the first three verse:

"1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing."

Charity is so important in everything we do. Charity is everything. It truly is the pure love that is found in our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

Why does Charity have the power that it does?

This is something that I have been thinking a lot about.... which is why I started this post on Tuesday... and its now Saturday.... haha :) ya..... 

Anyways, charity has the power it does because of the love that is described in John 3:16, 

"16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

I think this really describes the power of charity. It is the pure love, not simply from our Saviour, but also our Heavenly Father. They have such incredible love for each of us and I know that love is not only real but is powerful. 

The Who I am Challenge

Hello again!!! :)
As always I am so incredibly grateful to be able to use technology in sharing the joy of the gospel!! :) It could not be better.

This morning while I was studying I read an amazing scripture and I am so grateful for it!
It is found in Romans 1:16 which says,

¨16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.¨

I love Paul's faith and courage in this verse. He knows who he is and what he stands for and he won't let others lead him away from the conversion that he had. 

I know in my life I have not always been the best at sharing what it is that I believe. But I am so grateful that now as a missionary I get to do it each and everyday. 

I know that I am who I am today because of this gospel. It has brought the greatest joy into my life. 

 

As the focus of our lives is on our Saviour we are filled with happiness. Turning to Christ brings the most incredible change in our lives! I am forever grateful to my Saviour for making me who I am today. 

And I am disciple of Jesus Christ, and I am not ashamed of the Gospel that I share! :)

New Beginnings and Old Times

Hello There!!!
I am sooo sorry that it has been so long since I've been on the blog! It has been pretty insane the last little while. Things are settling in more now, so I am really excited to be posting today! :)

Going with the title today, tomorrow marks one year since I began my mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

It has certainly been a crazy and miracle filled year!
Also, I am blessed to currently be training a new missionary. She has been out for one month. She describes the last month as, "A roller-coaster of emotions."

The experiences I recall as I look back upon the last year, and for her the last month, are entertaining for sure. It has also been incredible for me to see the growth that can happen in a short period of time for an individual as we draw nearer to Christ.

I was reading today a talk by President Dieter F. Utchdorf of the First Presidency of the church. The talk is titled He Will Place You on His Shoulders and Carry You Home, which you can access HERE.
This talk is incredible! I love in it how he talks about how obedience brings about faith and by faith we are able to be changed. He says,

 

The light of the gospel comes through obedience to the commandments. Wherever we are on our journey; whether we are experienced travelers or beginners we all have to do the same things to progress. We all need to keep the commandments and we will be blessed in the gospel. 

Through the new beginnings we can have faith and hope. And as we reflect on the old times we will be filled with joy, if we have done what we needed to. 

Choose to Obey

Hello!!
It is truly a beautiful day!!
I wanted to talk, again (sorry!), about choices.
I know I seem to talk about it a lot, but it is SO important! There are so many choices that we face everyday. If we do not understand the consequences of our choices, our ability to choose wisely and righteously will be lessened.
Today I wanted to talk about a choice we really only need to make once in our lives, but it will affect us for the rest of our lives.
This is the choice to keep the commandments of God.  
This is the single most important choice of our lives. Everything we do stems from this choice. If we want to be happy, we choose to follow the commandments (Mosiah 2:41). If we want to be free from... well anything, then we choose to follow Christ, by keeping the commandments (2 Nephi 2:27). If we want to know who we are and where we are going, we simply to ask God, and keep the commandments in faith (Romans 8:16). 

In all of the choices we make we should ask ourselves how this affects us in the future. How do our choices now, whether to obey or to not obey affect us eternally.
It can be difficult to follow the commandments, especially to follow them willingly. However, I know how incredibly rewarding it is to do so. To truly give it all over to God and obey His commandments. Then in the end we have the assurance that we will recieve the greatest blessings and joy available to us; living with our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and our families for eternity.

Thankful for a Prophet's Voice

Hi There!!
Wowza! The last little bit has just been crazy for us! Lots of traveling! But it has been so worth it and I have learned a lot!! :)

Today I wanted to share some of my thoughts on one of my favourite people in the history of the world!

This is the Prophet Joseph Smith. 

My dear companion and I have been listening today to different talks about his life. It is amazing to know that such a man, as he, lived. A man so concerned with the welfare of his soul and humility enough to ask God where the truth was to be found. And then, the spiritual strength to endure through all that he was called to endure in his mortal life.

As a prophet called of God some would think that his life would have been easier. On the contrary his life was anything but easy. Many times he was wrongly accused and imprisoned, beaten, tarred and feathered, and drive from his home. And through it all, although he sometimes struggled, he remained faithful to the truths that he had learned from his Father in Heaven.
One of my favourite verses of scripture is found in Doctrine and Covenants 122:7-8,

" 7 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 all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.

 8 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?" 

These verses mean the world to me. I doubt that I will ever be called upon to suffer as Joseph did, or to even endure half of the things listed in verse seven. BUT through what I do go through I, have the promise that Christ knows exactly how I feel. He knows exactly what I am experiencing. And He knows exactly how to help. 
And the BEST part is, that this is not a promise just for me, or for some random person along the way. This is a promise for ALL of us as children of God.

I am incredibly grateful to the Prophet Joseph Smith and all that he taught us about moving forward with faith. Through trials and test we can truly feel our Saviour there with us. I know that this is true. I have felt it so many times in my life. I also know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. He was truly called to restore the many truths that had been lost.

The Parable of the Pizza

Hi-ya!
So first off, please don't laugh to hard at the ensuing story. And I promise it will all make sense in the end. :)

So once upon a time Sister Smith and her companion decided they wanted to make pizza for dinner. So they did... or they attempted to.

Their hopes for a delicious pizza were crushed.

But there is a lesson to be learned, and not just a cooking lesson.
A lesson on FAITH and on CHRIST.

Through the scriptures we learn how true faith in centered on Jesus Christ and His Atonement. And that as we learn to apply the Atonement we are able to be forgiven, recieve the help and strength that we need, and be with our families again.

In our desire for a quick meal we failed to think thoroughly about the decisions we were making. This is like us in life in sooo many ways. We get busy, distracted, and have differing desires and we fail to think about the consequences our choices have on us in our lives.
When this happens, like our pizza, we begin to fall, to get caught in the traps of Satan. And Life is No fun!

With in these traps, we are faced with another choice, to remain where we are, or to look for help and relief through Jesus Christ.  I love this quote by Sister Beck:

  We cannot do it by ourselves! When we are in these traps, and even if we are not. We can only making lasting changes through Faith in Jesus Christ. I know that I have been able to experience the power of His Atonement in my life. And I know that there is true freedom in keeping His commandments and striving to be a little better today than we were yesterday. Although it is hard, it is ALWAYS worth it.