Man's Greatest Work

    One of the greatest opportunities that we have been given in this life is to serve our fellow man. There are all sorts of people around us that could use a helping hand, an ear to listen, a shoulder to cry on, or even an approaching smile. There are many instances in my life where I could have, or did, receive a small act of service from one person or another. There are many instances where I have been given the opportunity to do that myself. I was recently able to help a family pack up and move. Boxes needed to be made, clothes needed to be organized, blankets needed to be folded, and the list went on. Though they are packing up, they have yet to find a place to move to… I found as I was helping them, that I could look into each of their eyes and recognize them as a child of God. I all of a sudden began to realize that nothing that I could be doing at that moment was more important.

     There is a great saying in the Book of Mormon that says “when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.” (Mosiah 2:17, pg 148) It is through service that we can perform the greatest work that mankind can do, and that is to serve God.

Mormonism 101...

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, a Mormon church leader, speaks to Law Students at Harvard University on the basics of the Mormon religion, as well as opens up to a question and answer session. He talks about the role of women in the church, their stance on the Trinity, Missionary work etc etc.

Watch this video and go to

http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/mormonism-101

to find out more!

This Sunday is a great day in which we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Might I invite you to remember Him always, but to especially remember the meaning of Easter.

     Matthew 22:31-32. Christ's response to the Sadducees' question, who claimed that there is no life after death, proclaims, "Have yes not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the LIVING." It has always been God's plan for us to live after this temporary state which we call morta...lity. But it is through Christ, and ONLY through him, that our lives are mercifully handed back to us. We celebrate Easter in remembrance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Savior, who overcame death so that we could too. Might I humbly give thanks to Him who gave me life, to Him which only asks of me to have faith, that I might have eternal life.
If you are interested in learning more about how Jesus Christ can help you in your life, facebook me!

Come, listen to a Prophet's Voice...

When I read the Bible, I sometimes have to think to myself  "Wouldn't it have been great to have been part of such a grand story?" I think of how when Moses led the people of Israel through the Red Sea by parting the waters. I think of how Noah built a great ark just before a flood of the entire earth occured. I think of how Daniel was preserved after having been thrown into a lion's den. I think of those type of people, who were quite literally messengers of God, who contained the power of God and were able to use that power for good in order to save their people. We, as Latter-Day Saints, boldly proclaim that those same men who were known as prophets and apostles, who acted under the authority of God to lead and guide His people, exist on this earth today. We faithfully follow the guidance of a living man who has been called of God to fill the office of a Prophet. He does so with the help of 12 Apostles who fill the same office that Christ's original 12 Apostles filled. In the book of Ephesians the Apostle Paul speaks of the structure of the household of God,   

19 Now therefore ye are no more ^astrangers and foreigners, but ^bfellowcitizens with the ^csaints, and of the ^dhousehold of God;

 20 And are built upon the foundation of the ^aapostles and ^bprophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief ^ccorner stone;

 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

   

Might I boldly testify myself that we too are part of a great day and age where great miracles can and do occur around us. We have the opportunity to follow after a man who is called to the same office as Noah, Daniel, Moses etc, who has the same power as they did to accomplish the work of God on the earth. I invite everyone to come and listen to a prophet's voice.

This weekend, President Thomas S. Monson, our prophet of today, will be addressing everyone in a worldwide conference. If you would like to watch or listen to the Conference, you can find more information here:

http://www.lds.org/church/events/april-2012-general-conference-dates-announced?lang=eng

It can be watched live on TV and online. Scroll to the bottom of the linked article to learn more about TV program listings in your area.

Sorry I haven't written in the past few weeks, but I love this video about judging people...

For the Perfectionist...

It is too often that I catch myself trying to run faster than I have the ability to. What I mean by that is that I find that when I take on a task or decide to commit to something, I want to not only do it well, but with perfection. I get caught up in the little details of things, often times losing site of my purpose. My greatest weakness, I think, isn’t that I don’t try hard enough, but that I try too hard to reach a goal of perfection that may not be attainable for me.

I was recently reading in the book of Matthew (Bible, New Testament) when I came across a scripture that hit me like a ton of bricks. It’s in Matthew 9. It is when Jesus Christ is eating with sinners and publicans, that the Pharisees (a religious group of people who prided themselves in their strict observance of the law) ask Him why he chooses to surround himself with those who are so imperfect. Jesus, the perfect man, so simply responds that his purpose is not to call the righteous to repentance, but the sinners. He relates himself to a doctor, whose patients are not those who are healthy, but those who are sick…I then came to a realization that since we are all “sinners,” afflicted with the sickness of mortal life, we will never attain that perfection. The purpose of the Christ was to make up for those shortcomings that we humans all inevitably have.

            It has been quite humbling for me to accept my imperfections. Sometimes I just have to give it my all and hope that Christ will make up for the rest. Even in the small things. No one, besides Christ, has attained human perfection. It is through my own tiring efforts of trying to be perfect that I have found that there is something more powerful, more perfect, out there. And that once I’ve created my own imperfect piece of work, I can hand it to Him and he will turn it into a perfect masterpiece.

    

Pain Runs Deep...

Sometimes in life, pain runs deep… what I mean by that is that sometimes we find ourselves in grieving circumstances, or painful situations, whether it be a result of our own doings, or someone else’s, that we wonder why we have to experience such misery. I know what that feeling feels like. At least to some extent. I know what it feels like to have someone let you down. I know what it feels like to give someone your heart, and have them break it. I know what it feels like when you’ve let yourself down. I know what it feels like… to fall. In life, we’ve all fallen to sorrow or misery in one aspect or another.

One of the first stories in the Bible is the story of the first man, Adam, and his companion Eve. In this story, Adam and Eve lived in a perfect place called the Garden of Eden. Adam was told by God not to partake of a certain fruit in that garden, or else he would be cast out of Eden, and left to experience a miserable world. We all know the ending to this story, Adam did partake of the fruit, and he and Eve were cast out. They experienced pain, suffering, sin, and misery for the rest of their lives.

 Looking on that story, we might be inclined to feel sorry for Adam. In relation to us, we might be inclined to feel sorry for ourselves when we see that in the present, we are experiencing pain or misery. I would invite you to look on your pains in a different light, however. There is a scripture in the Book of Mormon that talks about the commonality between misery and joy. It says:

“And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden…wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no ^bjoy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no ^csin.”

Sometimes in life, pain runs deep. We may experience pains that cause us to question if life is even worth it. On the other hand, life also hands us those moments of pure joy. We must realize that if Adam hadn’t walked the path of misery, he wouldn’t have known the path to joy. So when those painful moments come to you in your walk of life, remind yourself that you are quite literally walking the path that Adam has paved for you.   For “Adam ^bfell that men might be; and men ^care, that they might have ^djoy.”