The Power of Change

The Power of Change
When we think of change, we should think of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I have been pondering on the idea of change lately. I have my own weaknesses and oftentimes I find myself succumbing to those weaknesses again and again. It is a very frustrating process. I often question whether I will ever be able to conquer this weakness. I am reminded of the infamous verse in Ether 12:27. We read of the prophet Ether prophesying to the people to come to know and believe in God. He shares a powerful verse,
"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."
The purpose for our weaknesses is that we may humbles ourselves before God and ask for help/forgiveness in humility. We were INTENDED to have weaknesses. It is only when we humble ourselves and have enduring faith, that the Lord will bless us. Our weaknesses may not become PERFECT in this life, but they can be stronger. We can have a stronger ability to resist temptation. That is an empowering thought.

I was speaking to a woman the other day about the Atonement. She paraphrased a talk of one of her stake leaders. She said, "Our faithfulness to the commandments unlocks the powers of the Atonement of Christ." It is only when we are faithful and ACTING by keeping the commandments/covenants that we can experience the power of the Atonement in our lives. I think that the biggest thing is consistency. I know that if we make a consistent effort to pray for humility, to be more Christ-like, that we will see great things come to pass!

Miracle of Miracles

The other day I read from Mormon 9 about how God continues to be a god of miracles. Moroni delivers a powerful sermon to those who are unbelieving. Afterward, I seemed to notice the beautiful miracles of nature all around me, e.g. the breathtaking mountains, the perfectly fallen snow. I thought about how a new born baby is the greatest miracle that happens every single day. These are just reminders to me that God is real!

There was one verse that particularly struck me as I was reading. Vese 20 says, "And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust." I immediately thought of the people I met in Italy who refused to believe that miracles exist today. I explained and testified to them that God does indeed answer prayers. Miracles do not have to be this massive healing experience that Christ performs. It can be something as simple as being protected while driving that day. However, often as a faithful people we dwindle in unbelief. At times, our faith can be weaker. We have to do our part to nourish the faith we do have. We have to develop a strong trust in God EVERY day. We do this by EXPECTING a miracle, coming unto Christ through prayer and scripture study. The more that we believe and develop trust in God, the more miracles we will recognize and be blessed with. That is a simple, but profound thought. It is essentially saying that God will bless those who believe. God will bring miracles as we come to know God!