Patterns of Light: Discerning Light

In the second video, Bednar is discussing discerning the inspiration from the Holy Ghost, and just an everyday thought. He says: "Everything that entices us to do good and to be good comes from the Holy Ghost. So everyday, whenever you feel the need to help someone either by holding the door open or helping them to understand something, both of which you are not obligated to do, is the Holy Ghost. He also informs that God should not have to get our attention in obvious ways. We should always be in a place where we will be able to hear His still small voice. In this ever busy world, we need to put the Kingdom of God first. What helps me personally is asking myself what it is like for other people that don't have the Gospel. They don't know why they are actually here, where they are going after they die, and how they even came to be. But with the Gospel, we know. So let's not take that for granted. We have been chosen to be on this Earth at this time for a reason. One is to spread the gospel to our friends. You would be surprised who is watching you and needing that comfort that the Gospel brings. To get back on topic, Bednar says that "Any person, anywhere in the world can and is influenced by the Holy Ghost. He is our conscience that warns us of things that are not right and what we should do. He can also confirm spiritual truths. Like if we want to know if the Book of Mormon is true. 
"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ^aask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not ^btrue; and if ye shall ask with a ^csincere heart, with ^dreal intent, having ^efaith in Christ, he will ^fmanifest the^gtruth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may ^aknow the ^btruth of all things." (Moroni 10:4-5)

I know that if we are in an environment where we can feel the Spirit that the Holy Ghost will never lead us astray. He wants what is best for us. I love this Church with all of my heart. It gives me comfort beyond belief. I cannot wait for this Saturday to hear from our Living Prophet President Thomas S. Monson. I hope that you will heed to his words and to everyone's words this upcoming weekend. They have pondered over their subjects and their messages are truly inspired. And I say that in the name of my Beloved Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen. 

Patterns of Light: Part I

Elder David A Bednar, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, talks about patterns of light, and it is separated into three separate videos. Part 1 discusses The Light of Christ. He explains light as radiance. He has some really awesome points about how light and darkness work together (I don't want to ruin it for you! :) ) He says that the Light of Christ is an influence to do good. And everyone is influenced by it. Even if you don't think you are, dude, you are. It comes as a thought to help someone in need, like a service conscience! As he concludes, he warns us of the consequences of disobedience and the blessings that we can have if we listen to His still small voice. There is also a scripture reference from Doctrine and Covenants that I challenge you all to think about. It is D&C 50:24. I love this video so much and I encourage you to study about Christ's life, because as you do, you will learn of Him and as a result, become closer to Him. I am so happy to a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It is such a blessing! If you have never heard of us, go to mormon.org RIGHT NOW. You will be blessed if you do this and as you continue to live righteously throughout your lives. Let's all have the Light of Christ! And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.



 Patterns of Light: The Light of Christ

Honesty is the BEST Policy!

Hello again! :) This time I would like to talk about Honesty. This principle is key to not only the LDS Church but to life itself! If you are not honest, you can lose your job or lose a life-long friend. In our Church, "^aWe believe in being ^bhonest, true, ^cchaste, ^dbenevolent, virtuous, and in doing ^egood to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we ^fhope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to^gendure all things. If there is anything ^hvirtuous, ⁱlovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." (Articles of Faith -13) If we are honest with ourselves, others, and the Lord, he will be pleased and we will be blessed. To those who have started your school up, it is not good to cheat. Because even if no one sees you cheat, Christ knows you did. And whenever I think about it, it reminds me of a primary song, If the Savior Stood Beside Me. Here's the first verse:

"If the Savior stood beside me, would I do the things I do?
Would I think of His commandments and try harder to be true?
Would I follow His example? Would I live more righteously 
if I could the Savior standing nigh, watching over me?"

I love the words to that song. I didn't realize it while singing it in Primary, but pondering on those words makes me want to make the right choices all the time. I hope that you think the same. We need to make this a part of our daily lives. Not just on Sundays or whenever we feel like it. Now is the time to live righteously. I would like to conclude with the words of Nephi: "I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from hell." (2 Nephi 33:6) 

May we always "glory in truth" and live righteous lives. I love talking about it and sharing it because it strengthens my testimony immensely! I love this Church and everything that it has done for me. The happiness it has brought into my life is beyond belief. I know that President Thomas S. Monson is the true and living Prophet on this Earth today, and I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, Our Redeemer, Amen.

The Plan of Happiness! :)

Have you ever wondered, Where we came from? Why we're here? And what the point is to life? Well I have the answer for you! In our church, we believe that we lived in the presence of God before Earth, and that we will return to him one day. In the "premortal life" as we call it, we were all spirits and living with God. Our elder brother, had a plan for us (Jesus Christ). His plan for us was to come here on this Earth, not knowing where we came from, and having agency (the right and power to choose). We would be on Earth to be tested our willingness to follow our Savior. We could choose whatever we wanted. There was not just one plan though. Satan or Lucifer, suggested that we have no agency, that we would follow Christ no matter what. All of Satan's followers were cast out of heaven and sent to outer darkness. Those who chose to follow Christ's plan, came down to Earth to receive a body and continue on our path to come back to Him. That means all of you chose to follow Christ before! Isn't that great?!?!?! LDS.org explains our mortal life very weel so I'll just quote them: "We are now experiencing mortal life. Our spirits are united with our bodies, giving us opportunities to grow and develop in ways that were not possible in premortal life. This part of our existence is a time of learning in which we can prove ourselves, choose to come unto Christ, and prepare to be worthy of eternal life. It is also a time when we can help others find the truth and gain a testimony of the plan of salvation." So after we die, our bodies stay on Earth and our spirits go back to heaven. In Alma 40:11 it states: " Now, concerning the ^astate of the soul between ^bdeath and the resurrection—Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are ^ctaken ^dhome to that God who gave them life." This is one of my favorite scriptures of all time. It just gives me so much peace. I LOVE IT. We will at this point remember premortal life! We are either in two places, Paradise, or Spirit Prison. Now it isn't actually a prison, it is where those who have not had the opportunity to hear of the Gospel have the chance to accept it, or those who did not accept it on Earth, have a second chance. Those who followed Christ on Earth, are the teachers. We get to teach others in heaven! After this, we will all be resurrected. Because Christ took upon all the sins of the World through the Atonement we can become like Him. Our bodies will reunite with our spirits and the we will be judged. Our Savior will be judging us. Now our Savior is merciful and we will be judged fairly. We will see all of our wrongdoings, and be placed into 1 of 3 kingdoms: Celestial, Terrestial, and Telestial. Celestial is the one we are aiming for. If we are in this kingdom, we will live in the presence of God forever and ever. I think everyone would want that! In this kingdom, we also can live with our families and friends for time and all eternity! And even the telestial kingdom, the lowest of the three, is greater in glory than the Earth! I cannot even begin to imagine how great that will be and I look forward to it. Our Savior's Plan gives me comfort and I am happier every day having this knowledge. I hope that we all Come unto Him and endure to the end. Through the Atonement, we can be made perfect. I know that that is true. And I love this Gospel so much. And I say that in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

P.S. - Here is the website that explains The Plan of  Happiness much better than I do! http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?locale=0&sourceId=45af9daac5d98010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&vgnextoid=bbd508f54922d010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

Seeking First the Kingdom of God.

Sorry it has been so long! I'm still pretty busy. The one thing that I have learned recently, heard a lot, and challenge you to test for yourself as I have, is to Seek First the Kingdom of God. If we do so, we are promised that all of our earthly capacities will increase. (Matthew 6:33 - "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.") That is a great promise. This promise can include any aspect of your life. Whether it be physical, mental, emotional, social or spiritual; "...all these things shall be added unto you." We need to have a strong faith in this promise. Our Heavenly Father wants the best for us and sometimes that means putting us through trials that we don't like. But it is for the best and it will make us even stronger than we could ever imagine. We must have the patience when we ask for things. The Lord may give us those blessings instantly when we seek for His Kingdom, but we may have to wait a little. We need to have a close and personal relationship with our Heavenly Father through daily prayer and scripture study. If we do so, the Lord will teach us and reveal important things unto us that we need at that particualr moment in our lives. I would hope that all of you would apply this in your life because from my personal experience of doing so, it has made my life much more rewarding, happy, and enjoyable. I love this Church and I have NO clue what I would do without it. I would be totally lost. I know that the Book of Mormon is the most true book upon the Earth and "if you pray with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ that the truth will be manifested unto you." I know that families can be together forever, and that God has a plan for us. I know that Joseph Smith did restore The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day-Saints upon the earth. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.