November 13, 2010

Tonight I read a few verses in D&C 1:19-24. I really like verse 19 that says, "the weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones." To me that just shows what is truly weak and what is truly strong. And I love verses 21-23 also that express the desires of the Lord in these last days: "that faith might increase in the earth; that mine everlasting covenant might be established; that the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed..." The use of the word "might" stands out to me because it shows a loving Father who has great hopes for his children and who allows them their free agency. These things will come about only if we, as His faithful children, choose to do our part in bringing them about. I, for one, choose to do my part. I love the Lord and His holy purposes. I will follow His plan.

October 15, 2010

I read Alma chapter 35. In it, it talks about the people of the Zoramites who were "angry because of the word, for it did destroy their craft." And later Alma is thinking about all the people he had been to preach the gospel and he saw people in every city whose "hearts began to wax hard, and they began to be offended because of the strictness of the word." There were also many who were converted because of the word, but it seems that the majority of the people had hard hearts and were angry because of what they heard. Obeying the word of God is hard if one is set on doing things their own way. To be obedient, I have to be willing to set aside all my own will and obey the will of God. This is not conceivable for many and they feel offended and angry because of their unwillingness to humble themselves and let go of their own ways.

October 13, 2010

I read a talk in the August Ensign that was a "classic" by Marion G. Romney called Unity. It was awesome, and especially relevant to the thoughts that have been on my mind lately. During General Conference this month, President Packer gave a talk that has stirred up a lot of discussion and opposition. The issue is that of same sex attraction and has been something I've been thinking about for some time now as I have watched my mom's evolution of her feelings and beliefs in relations to my sister's choices to embrace the homosexual lifestyle. I was deeply touched by a blog I read today written by an LDS young man who is absolutely stalwart in the gospel and who struggles with same gender attraction. His blog gave me a lot of hope and really has helped me to understand better the importance of choosing the Lord's plan no matter what.

This talk on unity was very powerful coming from this frame of reference and these are the parts that stood out most to me:

"Some members assume that one can be in full harmony with the Spirit of the gospel, enjoy full fellowship in the Church, and at the same time be out of harmony with the leaders of the Church and the counsel and direction they give. Such a position is wholly inconsistent, because the guidance of this Church comes not alone from the written word but also from continuous revelation, and the Lord gives that revelation to the Church through his chosen prophet. It follows, therefore, that those who profess to accept the gospel and who at the same time criticize and refuse to follow the counsel of the prophet are assuming an indefensible position. Such a spirit leads to apostasy."

The quoted scripture 3 Nephi 11:28-29: "He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another."

"Unity comes by following the light from above. It does not come out of the confusions below."

"The way to unity is for us to learn the will of the Lord and then to do it."

"The major reason for the world's troubles today is that men are not seeking to know the will of the Lord and then to do it. Rather do they seek to solve their problems in their own wisdom and in their own way."

Quoted scripture D&C 1:15-16: "They have strayed from mine ordinances and have broken mine everlasting covenant; they seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way."

"If we will study the word of the Lord as it comes to us through the standard works and through the instructions of the living prophet and not harden our hearts, but humble ourselves and develop a real desire to understand its application to us in our own particular circumstances, and then to ask the Lord in faith, believing that we shall receive, all the while being diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord, surely the path we should follow will be made known unto us, and we will be able to face the world as a solid unit."

I really, really loved this article. It helped to realign my thinking and to keep me anchored on the straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life.

September 13, 2010

Tonight I read an Ensign article from August Ensign called Listening as Samuel Listened by Elder Walter F. Gonzales. I liked this article a lot and what really stood out to me is the repetition of the phrase: "speak; for they servant heareth." And that it was "only after he showed his willingness to listen... that the Lord revealed His will." He focuses on two ways that the Lord reveals His will to us: through prophets and through the Spirit. I really liked how he taught the difference between hearing and listening. "When we hear the words of the prophets, we realize that those words are the will of God and that we must be willing to follow them. Hearing the voice of the Spirit is more than feeling His promptings. It is acting according to those promptings." I love receiving and hearing the Lord's will for me in my life. I truly feel that He knows me and He wants my happiness eternally. I trust His plan. I love to hear and obey. It brings great joy to me.

August 23, 2010

Tonight I read Alma 27 about Ammon and the Anti Nephi Lehis leaving the land of the Lamanites and seeking refuge among the Nephites. A couple of things stood out to me in this chapter. The first is that the king and his people were willing to stay in their land and be killed by the Lamanites rather than go to the Nephites and be destroyed by them. They were so worried about their past sins and murders of the Nephites that they assumed the Nephites would want nothing to do with them but kill them. But more than giving in to their worry, the important thing is that they were willing to go to the Nephites if that is what the Lord commanded them. I think that is a wonderful example of being willing to obey the Lord's will over our own. The thing to remember is that God wants us to be happy! By obeying His will, we are leading ourselves in the path of joy and true happiness. Such was the case in this instance. The Anti Nephi Lehis found total forgiveness, generosity, sacrifice, service and protection from the Nephites. It must have been a humbling experience for both groups of people. I totally also admire the example of the Nephites, when hearing of the conversion of these people they were completely generous in offering them land and protection from the Lamanites as well. This was towards a group of people that had committed "many murders" among them. This is a beautiful example of forgiveness.

Another thing I thought was really neat in this chapter is when Alma comes with Ammon to tell the people the news and he shares his own conversion story with them. It occurred to me how powerful and uniting that must have been because Alma and his friends came from a wicked background, just as the Anti Nephi Lehis did. So I am sure they could relate to each other's conversion stories. It must have been strengthening and uplifting to them both. I feel inspired to remember my own conversion and to be willing at all times to declare my love for Jesus Christ and my testimony of and faith in the plan of happiness.