Now the joy of (Tova) was so great even that (she) was full; yea, (she) was swallowed up in the joy of (her) God, even to the exhausting of (her) strength; ...
Now was not this exceeding joy? Behold, this is joy which none receiveth save it be the truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness.
Hello! Sorry it's been a while. School can be pretty overwhelming :). Thankfully, one of my classes now encourages posting on my blog, so I can remember to do it more often.
Today I'd like to share my thoughts on something very sacred and very important to me.
In my darkest times, times when I've felt lonely, scared, stressed out, or just plain sad, the Book of Mormon has been a light that I have been able to turn to. It's helped to bring me closer to my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
This book of scripture was written by ancient prophets in America who knew and testified of Jesus Christ. It was translated by Joseph Smith (a modern day prophet) through divine guidance. (If you haven't come into contact with this book before, here are links to the introduction and a place where you can request a physical copy).
Another modern day prophet said this about the importance of the Book of Mormon to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints: How important is the Book of Mormon? ... Just as the arch crumbles if the keystone is removed, so does all the Church stand or fall with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. The enemies of the Church understand this clearly. This is why they go to such great lengths to try to disprove the Book of Mormon, for if it can be discredited, the Prophet Joseph Smith goes with it.
Like Pres. Ezra Taft Benson says, there have been many attempts to discredit the Book of Mormon and many articles by church members who have supported it with logical arguments and historical evidence*. While I love reading those articles and learning from their insights, I don't have the scholarly experience necessary to write something like that. Thankfully, I don't need to.
I have read and still read the Book of Mormon. I have come to know my Savior through the verses and have also come to better understand the Holy Bible.
One of my favorite parts of the Book of Mormon is Alma 33. A missionary-- Amulek-- is using the example of Moses and the Brass Serpent to testify of Christ.
Christ really is the one to turn to for healing. He loves us and wants to help us with our daily challenges. One way to come to Him, to "behold (him) quickly," is by reading the Book of Mormon.
I know that the Book of Mormon was brought to me by the power of God. He inspired ancient prophets to write it, prepared Joseph Smith to receive it, gave him the tools to translate it, and guided missionaries who taught my ancestors about it. He also blessed me with a love for it, with a desire to read it, so that I already know that it's His word to me.
Earlier I mentioned that the Book of Mormon has helped me through some tough times. One of those times was when I was preparing to be a missionary myself. I left home, traveled to Argentina, and was with a group of other young adults who were preparing. I was homesick and trying to learn Spanish. One day, I zoned out the teacher and just opened up the Book of Mormon I was holding. I was praying to know that God still loved me and was there to help me through this. The scripture I read said, "Behold, I know my sheep, and they are numbered." As I read it, I felt like the person who had written it had reached through time and seen where I was at and had put those words on the page for me.
The Book of Mormon is the word of God, and I know that "a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” (Joseph Smith, Introduction). Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ saw our difficult times and gave us an added help to get through them. If we read the Book of Mormon, we'll be able to feel Their presence in our lives through the Spirit and will be able to return to Them in the end.
My family discovered Hank Smith last year. He's a youth speaker and seminary teacher. A lot of his talks are on CDs (10 of which we own :)). On his CD "5 Temptation Killers" he talks about how to fight Satan.
Temptation killer #3 is the scriptures.
He tells the story of Jesus fasting on the mountain. Satan comes and tries to tempt Jesus. Every time Jesus comes back with a scripture.
The challenge then was for us to come up with our own "Temptation Killing Scriptures."
These are a few I've found:
2 Nephi 4:28 Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.
Alma 11:23 O thou child of hell, why tempt ye me? Knowest thou that the righteous yieldeth to no such temptations?
Alma 12: 6 And behold I say unto you all that this was a snare of the adversary, which he has laid to catch this people, that he might bring you into subjection unto him, that he might encircle you about with his chains, that he might chain you down to everlasting destruction, according to the power of his captivity.
(Now from the Bible :))
1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (Also my brother's favorite scripture)
What are some of your temptation killing scriptures?
General Conference Thoughts: Becoming a more Disciplined Disciple
Okay, so I have a confession. A few months ago (alright, so around a year ago), I realized I had a problem with self-discipline. I had a hard time controlling desires such as my desire for chocolate, my desire for sleeping in (which I couldn’t do anyway :( ), and my desire to NOT run. At first I ignored it, because that’s what I do when I initially see my weaknesses-- I hide from them. Then I decided it needed to be faced and fixed.
But how do you fix a problem with self-discipline? You need the very virtue you’re struggling with in order to strengthen it!
So I tried a few different things. I tried rewarding myself.
Epic fail!
Whenever I didn’t do what I was trying to do (which was frequently) I had created a whole new battle for myself. “Oh, but I tried.” “But it looks so good.” “I’ll get it now to motivate myself for next time.” etc. etc. etc.
I tried making lists, schedules, and plans. There were some pretty good ones, too. However, there wasn’t the accountability that I was needing.
So this year, for the October session of the General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I had two questions prepared. 1) How can I develop more discipline? 2) How can I become a better disciple? One of the talks that stood out the most to me was by Devin Durrant, "My Heart Pondereth them Continually." In it, he invites us to take a verse of scripture each week, print it out, and put it somewhere where we will see it. Well, one of the aspects of my struggle with discipline has been doing things daily. So, I decided to put my mini-scriptures in my work bag so I could read them and look at my verse during my breaks. The verse I opened up to was in Mormon 9: 28 Be wise in the days of your probation; strip yourselves of all uncleanness; ask not, that ye may consume it on your lusts, but ask with a firmness unshaken, that ye will yield to no temptation, but that ye will serve the true and living God. (this is where my jaw drops open) In one scripture, I had my answers. As I "ponderized" the verse, a plan of action came. This plan was unlike my other ones for two reasons. God was in this one, and He wanted me to include my mom and brother. I know that through the spirit I was guided to my answer. God could have given me the plan a year ago when I started trying to overcome my challenge. But I needed to be listening and acting on words of the prophets, reading my scriptures, and showing that I was ready to listen and obey.
Death is a scary thing.
So it might be weird that I've spent the last five minutes looking up scriptures on death.
But the scriptures offer a lot of comfort.
If you've lost a love one recently, have moments of grief remembering someone who's passed away, or if you have a friend who needs help coping with loss turn to the scriptures. They provide simple truths about the reality of death; not the giant wall our human minds have set up, but the doorway it is meant to be.
Here are some of the scriptures I found, and a basic summary next to them:
And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and enviethnot, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easilyprovoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. (Moroni 7:46) To truly understand charity, I'd like to look at each of the aspects mentioned in the scripture. And charity suffereth long, ...
...and is kind, ...
...and envieth not, ...
(sorry for all of the videos, but they are such a great way to teach and to illustrate a point) ...and is not puffed up, ... https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/images/gospel-library/manual/32506/32506_000_057_08-thecycle.pdf
--This is a cycle noted not only in the Book of Mormon, but in other histories as well. How does charity fit into the cycle? Where would you put it? How could we end the cycle in our lives? Does it take charity? ...seeketh not her own, ...
... Slowly Janie stood. OK, she thought. I’ll forgive him seventy times seven. But then he’s really going to get it! She went to her bedroom and sat down at her desk. On a piece of scratch paper, she multiplied seventy times seven. “Four hundred and ninety times!” she exclaimed, dismayed. She opened a notebook and wrote “Number of times I’ve forgiven Jimmy” on the top of the first page. Underneath, she made two slashes. “That’s two,” she said aloud. “Only four hundred and eighty-eight to go.” ...
...thinketh no evil, ... Why would having charity require you to "think no evil"? Can you steal and have perfect charity? Can you lust and have perfect charity? Can you allow unclean thoughts that involve God or others into your mind and have charity? Are any thoughts unclean that don't include impure thoughts of God or others?
...and rejoiceth not in iniquity ...
"Love the sinner, not the sin." I've found that to be a very important, but a very difficult maxim. ...but rejoiceth in the truth, ...
God the Eternal Father did not give that first great commandment because He needs us to love Him. ...No, God does not need us to love Him. But oh, how we need to love God!For what we love determines what we seek.What we seek determines what we think and do.What we think and do determines who we are—and who we will become.
-Pres. Uchtdorf ...beareth all things, ... ...believeth all things, ... Faith, Hope, and Charity. You see them together a lot. Can you really have one without the other? It makes sense that in order to have charity, you need to have hope and faith. When you can believe in the eternal identity of others, and the amazing potential they possess it becomes so much easier to love them. ...hopeth all things, ... Loved Back into Activity (activity=attending church and fulfilling callings) Along with this story, I think of the story of Alma the Younger (see Mosiah 27, or this article) ...endureth all things.
1 Corinthians 13:13
And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;
"Four,"
would be the average response. But about all the unknowns? Two of what
plus two of what? What type of equal are we looking for?
For example, what if the equation was asking for the amount of apples on two apple trees plus two acres of apple trees?
The
world today is confusing, and it's hard to find absolute truth. But
there are absolute truths out there. How do we find them? I thought
you'd never ask...
The
first method is using your intuition; also known as your conscience or
the Light of Christ. Although you can be trained to ignore this voice,
it will always be there if you have the desire to listen. Deep within us
we have a burning will to do what's right, we have a yearning for the
truth. As long as we are humble enough to hear and heed that whisper, it will guide us.
Another guide is the word of prophets, or spiritual leaders. Forms of scripture fall under this category.
Scriptures assist you in fine-tuning your conscience. They offer
experiences of those who've gone before, and words of God. That is
another way to find truth. If it is the word of God, it is true. (Titus
1:2)
The final way to discern truth, is to look at the results. The scriptures say that "… by theirfruits ye shallknowthem."
(Matt 7:20) Hitler is a fine example. He came forward telling the
Germans how wonderful he could make Germany. Did he use true principles?
The "fruit" of his work was Germany in smolders,
and millions of Jews and others inhumanely killed. One the other hand,
Joan of Arc promised the same thing: to save France. Did she use true principles? Her "fruit" was a free France, a stronger king, and an inspiring death.
And
there you have it: use the Light of Christ, the word of God, and try to
see the results. By using those three tools, we can disperse the
darkness that Satan is trying to pull over our eyes. We can see through
the lies of the world, and find those precious truths that our souls
desire so much. Not only that, we can search for our real selves. We can
dig past the lies that we and others tell us, and become the royal
child of God we were made to be.
Each year, the Church comes up with a theme for the youth based on a scripture.
A few years ago, it was D&C 115:5 "Arise and shine forth!"
Last year it was D&C 87:8 "Stand ye in holy places"
This year, it's Moroni 10:32 "Come unto Christ"
I love that it shows such different and real struggles: self-worth, death/illness, parental/family relationships, and addiction. He really can help us with ANYTHING!! No matter how unique your trial is, He knows what you feel! Because of the Atonement, He can relate with us.
7 And if thou shouldst be cast into the apit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the bdeep;
if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become
thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements
combine to chedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of dhell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee eexperience, and shall be for thy good.
I know that Coming Unto Christ is what we have to do in this life (or at least TRY to do :)). The more we try to become like Him, the better we'll be, the more peace and happiness we'll have, and the better our lives will be (but not neccessarily in a worldy sense ;))
Moroni 10:32Yea, acome unto Christ, and be bperfected in him, and cdeny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and dlove God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be eperfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.
Luke 1 26 And in the sixth month the aangel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27 To a avirgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among awomen.
29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
30 And the angel said unto her, aFear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name aJesus.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the aSon of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the bthrone of his father cDavid:
33 And he shall areign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no bend.
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I aknow not a man?
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The aHoly Ghost
shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow
thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall
be called the bSon of God.
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
Matt 1
18 ¶aNow the bbirth of Jesus Christ was con this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick aexample, bwas minded to cput her away privily.
20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a adream, saying, Joseph, thou son of bDavid, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the cHoly Ghost.
21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his anamebJesus: for he shall csave his people from their sins.
22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
23 aBehold, a bvirgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his cnamedEmmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his awife:
Luke 2
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all athe world should be btaxed.
2 (And this ataxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called aBethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)
5 To be taxed with Mary his aespoused wife, being great with child.
6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
7 And she brought forth her afirstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the binn.
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the aglory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you agood tidings of great bjoy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is aborn this day in the city of David a bSaviour, which is Christ the cLord.
12 And this shall be a asign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 aGlory to God in the highest, and on earth bpeace, good will toward men.
15 And
it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven,
the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem,
and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known
unto us.
16 And they came with ahaste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
18 And all they that heard itawondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these things, and aponderedthem in her heart.
20 And
the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things
that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
21 And when eight days were accomplished for the acircumcising of the child, his name was called bJesus, which was so cnamed of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
22 And when the days of her apurification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord;
23 (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the awomb shall be called holy to the Lord;)
24 And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of aturtledoves, or two young pigeons.
25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27 And
he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in
the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,
28 Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
31 Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32 A alightbto lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
33 And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.
34 And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is aset for the bfall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;
35 (Yea, a sword shall apierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.
36 And there was one Anna, a aprophetess,
the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age,
and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;
37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with afastings and prayers night and day.
38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for aredemption in Jerusalem.
39 And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth.
Matt 3
1 Now when Jesus was aborn in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 aAnd when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he bdemanded of them where Christ should be born.
5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judæa: for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 And thou aBethlehem, in the land of bJuda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a cGovernor, that shall drule my people Israel.
7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
9 When
they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they
saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the
young child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
11 ¶And
when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary
his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened
their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and afrankincense, and myrrh.
12 And being warned of God in a adream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
13 And
when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to
Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his
mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word:
for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of aEgypt have I called my son.
16 ¶Then Herod, when he saw that he was amocked of the wise men, bwas exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and cslew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the dcoasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by aJeremy the prophet, saying,
18 In aRama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great bmourning, Rachel weeping for her cchildren, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
19 ¶But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a adream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the aland of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.
21 And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judæa in the aroom of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a bdream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee:
23 And he came and dwelt in a city called aNazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was bspoken by the prophets, He shall be called a cNazarene.
This book of scripture was written by ancient prophets in America who knew and testified of Jesus Christ. It was translated by Joseph Smith (a modern day prophet) through divine guidance. (If you haven't come into contact with this book before, here are links to the introduction and a place where you can request a physical copy).
