The plan (2)

My turn, it's my turn
It ends with death it begins with birth
And it's my turn, it's my turn
It's my turn on Earth

Yes my friends it is our turn on earth. In the last blog we talked about 1.Where we came from, (as well as hinted a bit of 2.what our purpose on earth is for.) But I want to talk about for a minute about Adam and Eve, now some of you reading this might know a little bit about Adam and Eve, but for those of you who do not know who they are let me fill you in. 

Adam and Eve were the first two of God's children to come down to earth. They were created in the exact image of God In Genesis 1:26-27 we read 26 ¶And God said, Let ^aus ^bmake ^cman in our ^dimage, after our ^elikeness: and let them have ^fdominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

 27 So God created man in his own ^aimage, in the image of God created he him; male and ^bfemale created he them.    That means that you and I are created in God's image as well.

Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden.Genesis 2:8  8 ¶And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in ^aEden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. While They (Adam and Eve) were in the garden they were living in God's presence and since they lived in His presence they also lived in a state of innocence, having everything they needed provided for them. (Innocence means not knowing good from evil.)  Adam and Eve were given two commandment while in the Garden of Eden. 1)To have Children 1:28 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be ^afruitful, and ^bmultiply, and ^creplenish the ^dearth, and subdue it: and have ^edominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.  2) Not to eat of the fruit 2:16-17

16 And the Lord God ^acommanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest ^bfreely eat:

 17But of the ^atree of the ^bknowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the ^cday that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely ^ddie. 

As we know Adam and Ever partook of the fruit and were kicked out of the Garden of Eden. Now was that a bad thing? The answer can be found in the Book of Mormon in 2Nephi 2:22-25

 22And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end.

 23And they would have had no ^achildren; 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.

 24But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who ^aknoweth all things.

 25^aAdam ^bfell that men might be; and men ^care, that they might have ^djoy.

So because Adam and Eve Partook of the Fruit we were now able to come down to earth and recieve our body.       

Now we get to the part that you have been waiting for. What are purpose is for being here on the earth.

In the Book of Mormon the prophet Alma gives us this reason for life. Alma 34:34 32For behold, this ^alife is the time for men to ^bprepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of ^cthis life is the day for men to perform their ^dlabors. 33And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many ^awitnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not ^bprocrastinate the day of your ^crepentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the ^dnight of ^edarkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

 34Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful ^acrisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth ^bpossess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.

So as we can see my friend we are told that this life that you and I live right now, is the time for us to repent and to meet God.  Because once we die the same spirit/Personality that we have when we leave this earth will be the same one that we have when we are resurrected. 

I testify that this life is the time for us to truly repent of our sins and to do everything we can to follow the saviors commandments. As we do this I know we will be saved in the last days. I end this blog in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Plan! Part 1

The Plan! Part 1

(This is part one of a three part blog.)

Our Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us. This plan covers three basic questions that many people in this world today always seem to be asking:

1. Where did I come from?
   
2. What is my purpose being here on this earth?
   
3. Where do I go when I die?
   

If you have had these questions it is okay, because I too like many of you have asked these question, and there are answers to these questions. I will answer these questions but! I would ask that you keep your ears and your eyes and your heart open and humble to what I am about to tell you.

We came from a place called Pre-Earth life which sounds exactly as it means. Before we came to earth we lived with God the Father and with everyone else that is on the earth today. In Jeremiah 1:4-5 we read:

"Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." 

The Lord told Jeremiah that he KNEW HIM before he was in the womb of his mother. Now if the Lord knew Jeremiah don't you think the Lord knew who we were as well? Part of this plan that our Father in Heaven presented to us was that we were to come down here to earth and to get a body and to see if we would prove faithful to the lord. In Abraham chapter 3:25 It states:

"And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them."

Our Heavenly Father knew we would all fall short and knew we would make mistakes so he asked who would go down to atone for our sins, and there were two responses.

“And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first. And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him.” 

(See also revelations 12:7-9) Revelation's continues and says:

"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”

Those who overcame the Devil and his angels were those who chose to follow Jesus Christ and had a strong testimony, those people were US. We know this because of the fact that we are down here on earth today.

(To be continued in: The Plan! Part 2)

New Years

Hello Everyone today I would like to start off by asking this one simple question. Why is it that a lot of people have a hard time believing in a modern day prophet? I mean honestly people have no trouble at all believing that Moses was a prophet or Noah. The reason why people have a hard time believing that the Prophet Joseph Smith was called by God is because it is too simple for them.

I would like to show you some examples from Joseph Smiths own words and experiences that might show you what to do since we are all in the spot he used to be in.

Joseph smith during 1820 is a young boy at the age of 14 years old. while he was growing up there were many different religions out there claiming they were the Lords church and that the people needed to follow their church. Jospeh smith being young as he was says in his own words. "In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself: What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right; or, are they all wrong together? If any one of them be ^aright, which is it, and how shall I know it?" JSH 1:10

He then goes on to say "While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of ^aJames, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack ^bwisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."JSH 1:11 James 1:5

"Never did any passage of ^ascripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed ^bwisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know; for the teachers of religion of the different sects ^cunderstood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible." At length the young prophet comes to the decision that he has to go and pray to God in order to get more wisdom (Answer) to his question. JSH 1:12


He retires to the woods just by his house and he then kneels down and begins to pray and tell God the Desires of his heart. As he prays he has a remarkable experience, he says in his own words "I saw a pillar of ^clight exactly over my head, above the brightness of the ^dsun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. When the light rested upon me I ^bsaw two ^cPersonages, whose brightness and ^dglory defy all description, ^estanding above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My ^fBeloved ^gSon. Hear Him!"

I bear you my witness this day that Joseph Smith Saw God the Father and Jesus Christ. Because of his faith and his humility he was able to receive an answer to his prayer. I testify to you that he was called by God to be a prophet,to bring in the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I testify to you that if you are truly humble and have  faith God will answer your prayers. If you do not believe my words, why don't you do as James tells us to do. If any of you lack wisdom let HIM ASK of God.

Christmas

Hello Friends. Today I want to talk about Christmas.  Usually when I think of Christmas I think of Lights and decorations such as tree,lights,stockings,gifts,and many other things.

I wont lie to you when I hear Christmas I think about all of those things, But ever since I came out on my mission over a year ago there is two thing that has always stuck with me on my mind and that was my family and the birth of our Savior.          

The one question that I have recently been asking myself is what gift can I give the Savior? I cant give him Gold or anything worldly, so what can I give to my Savior for Christmas? And then it dawned on me. Serving my fellow man, and taking the time to reflect on the greatest gift the Savior could ever give to mankind.    Let me show some references as to why serving people is important. 

In Mosiah 2:17 "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

In John 13:34 "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." 

We have all heard of the Golden rule "Do unto others as you would have done unto you" Also we know just by reading the Holy Bible that the Savior's life and ministry was nothing but service. Healing the sick and the afflicted, raising people from the dead, Feeding the multitudes of people, Etc... The list can go on for a while.

Now you might be saying right now ok so serving our fellow man is important, But what is the greatest gift that the Savior gave to us.   May I be bold and say it is Eternal Life or what is known as Salvation? 

In the Doctrine and Covenants 6:13 we read "If thou wilt do good, yea, and hold out faithful to the end, thou shalt be saved in the kingdom of God, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God; for there is no gift greater than the gift of salvation. "

My friends because the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was born into the world we have hope. Because of the Savior and his Atonement we can be with our families in the kingdom of God. It is my hope and prayer that we all take the time to serve our fellow man, and I hope we take the time to show how grateful we are to our families, friends and to our Savior.   Merry Christmas!

God is Loving Heavenly Father

Today I am going to talk about how God is our loving Heavenly Father. In the scriptures we have many references that show us how much God loves us. In John 3:16-17 we read

16¶For ^aGod so ^bloved the ^cworld, that he ^dgave his ^eonly begotten ^fSon, that whosoever ^gbelieveth in him should not perish, but have ^heverlasting ⁱlife.

17For God ^asent not his Son into the world to ^bcondemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Can you imagine having to give up your only child to save some people you dont even know! How about a best friend? 

In the book of Moses chapter 7 the prophet Enoch sees in a vison Satan holding a great big chain and this chain that satan is holding covers the earth with darkness, and Satan is laughing with his angels.

Then the prophet Enoch sees angels coming down from heaven teaching and testifying of the God head. He then says, 

"And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the ^aresidue of the people, and he wept"(Moses 7:28).  After Enoch sees this Enoch asks this question, "How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains?"

As we can clearly read from the scriptures, God loves us so much that when we turn away from Him he weeps for us. If God weeps for us when we turn away from him then think of how happy he is when we turn to him and obey his commandments.

It is my witness that God is our loving Heavenly Father and that he loves each and every one of us so much that His arms of mercy are opened waiting for us to grab hold of them.

I also bear witness that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ it is possible for all of Gods children to return to live with him once again.

ThanksGiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Here is a good scripture that talks about being thankful. I hope you enjoy it.

“O how you ought to thank your heavenly King!
“I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another—
“I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.” (Mosiah 2:19–21.)

Lets Talk

I was reading in Isaiah 29:10-19 And I began thinking about how Great and wonderful the scriptures are to us. As I was reading these few versus I began to think about what the Lord said to Isaiah. I believe with all my heart that The Lord was talking about the Book Of Mormon. I know that Heavenly Father loves his children! As you continue to follow this Blog you will see more scriptures that will point out that the Book Of Mormon is the Word of God, just as the Holy Bible is. You will also see how Joseph Smith was called by God to be a prophet, and to restore Christ's church.

                                                                                                                                                                         

We read, For the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep ^asleep, and hath closed your ^beyes: the ^cprophets and your rulers, the ^dseers hath he ^ecovered.

  11 And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a ^abook that is ^bsealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed:

  12 And the book is delivered to ^ahim that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned.

  13 ¶ Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people ^adraw near me with their ^bmouth, and with their lips do ^chonour me, but have ^dremoved their ^eheart far from me, and their ^ffear toward me is taught by the ^gprecept of men:

  14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a ^amarvellous ^bwork among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the ^cwisdom of their wise men shall ^dperish, and the ^eunderstanding of their ^fprudent men shall be hid.

And in 15-19 we also read, 15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their ^acounsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who ^bseeth us? and who knoweth us?

  16 Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay: for shall the ^awork say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding?

  17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?

  18 ¶ And in that ^aday shall the deaf hear the words of the ^bbook, and the ^ceyes of the blind shall see out of ^dobscurity, and out of darkness.

  19 The meek also shall increase their ^ajoy in the Lord, and the ^bpoor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.