He lives!

"And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. And He will take upon Him death, that He may loose the bands of death which bind His people; and He will take upon Him their infirmities, that His bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that He may know according to the flesh how to succor His people according to their infirmities" Alma 7:11-12

This passage of scripture has made an amazing impression on me in the last week. I had the opportunity to see a life-changing, incredible film, "Silence". The international cinema presented the edited version of this film. It boosted my hope for the good and faith that exists in the world. It is the story of Jesuit priests who preach their Christian faith to the people of Japan at a time when people were persecuted, tortured, and killed for living this way. It really moved me to see how people had such a strong faith in Christ that they were willing to die for Him. It made me reflect on my relationship with my Savior, but more than anything it made me reflect on Him and His sacrifice.

Most faiths focus on the fact that He was crucified for us. He was, indeed. However, He also suffered EVERY pain and sin imaginable for EACH of us. Yes, the people of this story suffered willingly and horrendously; however Christ not only suffered every pain ever felt by man. He suffered all of it in a moment's time or an hour. It blows my mind that as Alma describes, "He shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind." And He does all of this so that He "may be filled with mercy." I love that. He is a merciful God. He did all of this, so that He could understand ALL of our pains. He could comfort us and be there for us when others literally and figuratively cannot.

I know that Christ walks with us. He carries us when we feel burdened, dejected, alone. He loves us more than we can imagine.  He loves you Morgan. He is with you every step of the way! Preach His perfect word with that incredible faith that you have! You will touch so many lives (companions, leaders, Chileans) with your testimony! I am so excited for you! Love you!

sent to a new-convert friend who just left for her mission

We can be His hands.

Recently I have become well acquainted with 2 Nephi 4. This chapter is so beautifully written, it is like poetry. The chapter is basically Nephi's lament and I know that we can all relate to it. I particularly love verses 23-24."Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time. And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me."
As long as we seek God in our lives, He will speak to us. As we offer up our sincerest desires in sacred and humble prayer, He absolutely hears us. In fact, He listens and answers. From my experience, He definitely doesn't answer in the timing or the way I'd like, but He always answers.

One thing I know for sure is that God uses His angels, on both sides of the veil, to answer those prayers. It's been amazing to me to see how people have touched my lives through their actions, words, testimonies..etc. I have also been blessed to see God guiding me in the words I say. We must first recognize the Lord's influence in our lives through other people. Then we must realize that He uses us as instruments to serve His children. Once we do, we will recognize opportunities to uplift someone. We can be EVIDENCE of God's love. Isn't that beautiful?

I was reminded yesterday of how unaware we are of the trials of those in our midst. A girl in my ward expressed the heartache she experiences from those not sympathizing with her and her depression. She advocated the importance of not only doing missionary work with investigators, but with members as well. There are many that are struggling, and many may be struggling with their own testimonies. I believe that these last days are for bringing the gospel to the whole earth, but I also believe that our missionary efforts will be focused on those members struggling with their faith.
That is why we MUST be ready to receive God's promptings. We must seek and pray to be His hands, His angels in these last days. He expects great things of us! I know that this is His great work. This is the way in which we can become more like Christ.

His Grace

Now is the time of my life that I am faced with what feels like, a million decisions. As a graduating senior, I have quite a few decisions to make in the next few weeks. It is really stressing me out. Sometimes, actually oftentimes, Satan creeps in and tells me that I'm not enough, that I won't succeed...etc. Any form of doubt creeps in. It is very discouraging. Even during the smallest feat, I allow myself to stress and doubt my abilities. When I'm working on a goal that seems insurmountable, I question the power of change. I was reminded of a scripture found in 2 Nephi 25:23 where Nephi says, "For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." First of all, I love the first focus, that is essentially the purpose of the scriptures: it is to persuade US to believe in Christ. Christ truly is the center of the gospel, of the Book of Mormon, of His restored church in these latter-days.

Although we are often reminded that Christ has the power to save us, we often only rely on our efforts. We need to strengthen and renew our faith that Christ can heal and save us. At the end of the day, it is Christ who will deliver us. After ALL we can do, after we do our best, by the Lord's grace, we will be saved us and given the greatest, most joyous, path that will polish and refine us. We will reach a divine potential! That is the whole purpose of this life. I am so grateful for the knowledge of Christ's Atonement. I pray that I can better reflect on it's power in my daily life. I know that through Christ, we can be saved and changed in the day-to-day matters.