Our Weekly Promise to God

This morning I was studying my scriptures and I had the thought of working on my Duty to God a little bit. I love the new format! It really does prepare the young men for our missions. Anyways, I was studying about the sacrament prayer and it came to my mind that this would be a good blog post to do! I feel like sometimes some members of the Church (and even me), take this sacred ordinance for granted. We get to receive a cleansing of our sins every week! That's so awesome! I'm so grateful for that. We start off our week with a new start. I love it. So to understand what really happens I thought I would include the sacrament prayers and discuss them a little. 

Doctrine and Covenants 20:77,79:

"O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he has given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen."

"O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this wine to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them. Amen."

So, these prayers are really powerful if you study them closely. When we partake of the bread and drink of the water, we promise to always remember Him, keep His commandments, and take His name upon us. In return, if we do this, we will always have His spirit to be with us! Isn't that sweet!?! And we are not perfect, so as long as we are willing and striving to do these things, we will have the Holy Ghost with us. 

In today's world there are so many distractions and it can be hard to always remember Jesus Christ. Luckily, the Church has numerous resources and helpful reminders! I ordered my own CTR ring (Choose the Right), and it always helps me remember who I am representing and who I am indebted to for giving me the opportunity to live with God again. Jesus Christ paved the way for you and I, and without Him, there would be no way to return. I am eternally grateful that Heavenly Father was willing to give up His Only Begotten Son. For ME! :) Another resource is seminary for youth. It's so awesome waking up every morning and hearing a message about the Gospel. My day is different without it. Those who aren't in seminary? Set aside a time each day to study your scriptures. Whether it's for 5 minutes or 20, that time spent will give you the power and the strength to get through your day. 

One of my favorite ways to receive strength and one that I lean on the most is through prayer. The Bible Dictionary gives great insight on prayer: "As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God, then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them." 

And when we use these many things that God has given us to get through our hard weeks, we will still fall short. We will still sin. But, we need not be ashamed. Because last that I heard, our Church isn't for perfect people. We are all imperfect. We strengthen each other as we work our way back home. Dieter F. Uchtdorf says it much better than I can: "Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God's love encompasses us completely. ... He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward, sorrowful, or broken.”

I know that we can receive strength through the sacrament prayer. If we are just willing to do those three things, we will be blessed with the Spirit. And with the Spirit, nothing can stop us. I know that Christ is my Redeemer. Without Him I would be lost forever. I'm so grateful for how much Heavenly Father loves me, though I have imperfections. And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. 

Let us Recommit Ourselves to the Gospel.

“I am pleased to announce that effective immediately all worthy and able young men who have graduated from high school or its equivalent, regardless of where they live, will have the option of being recommended for missionary service beginning at the age of 18, instead of age 19. I am not suggesting that all young men will—or should—serve at this earlier age.” This was President Thomas S. Monson’s announcement in his opening remarks at this past General Conference.  When I first heard this, I was wondering if it was a dream. When I finally realized that it wasn’t, (this was a few days later…) I was so excited. It puts things that much closer for me. I’ll be in the field in 3 years! It really is causing me to be more focused on the Gospel because I want to be a good missionary and we all should recommit ourselves to preparing for a mission. “Perspective missionaries will be asked to enhance and improve and take more seriously, their pre-mission preparation. This should include: total personal worthiness, supplemented by gospel study of the Book of Mormon and the Standard works of the Church, seminary classes, and systematic study of the missionary handbook, Preach My Gospel.” (Jeffrey R. Holland). I have also realized that I need to be making the right choices in my everyday life, because one bad choice can hurt me along the way.

I know that because of this announcement I must(among a few):
1. Study His Gospel everyday
2. Learn to teach how Christ teaches
3. Try my hardest now to love everyone
4. Be more selfless
5. Always have the Spirit to be with me (never be in a place where it is hard to hear his still small voice.
6. Establish a good connection with my Father in Heaven through daily prayer.

In D&C 11:21 it reads: “Seek not to ^adeclare my word, but first seek to ^bobtain my ^cword, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my ^dSpirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the ^econvincing of men.” Jeffrey R. Holland insight in this new announcement is as follows: “It means that God is hastening His work. And He needs more and more willing and worthy missionaries to spread the light and the truth and the hope and the salvation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to an often dark and fearful world.” We need to commit ourselves to being completely worthy as Elder Holland has advised us. God only sends the most worthy to do His work. (D&C 105:35 - There has been a day of ^acalling, but the time has come for a day of choosing; and let those be chosen that are ^bworthy.) Russell M. Nelson in his talk at this conference gives the youth of the church some counsel. “All missionaries, younger and older, serve with the sole hope of making life better for other people. The decision to serve a mission will shape the spiritual destiny of the missionary, his or her spouse, and their posterity for generations to come.” I know that this Church is true and that this new announcement was indeed inspiration from Heaven and we need to answer the Lord's call. I love this Gospel and I cannot wait to get out and preach the truth unto the world. And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

P.S. Here is a link to this past conference, if you did not get a chance to hear all of conference, I strongly urge you to do so! It is so awesome! https://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2012/10?lang=eng

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