Its been a minute hasn't it! What a crazy week! But today made it all worth it! We have been teaching a man and today he was baptized! It was so amazing and the spirit there was sooo strong! I absolutely love being a missionary and helping others receive the joy, peace, and love that comes with following our Savior through baptism and keeping the commandments.
A few days ago I read in Mosiah 27. I've probably already said this but I lOvE Mosiah! In verse 9 it doesn't really have anything to do with what I wanted to share but I thought it was interesting; It says that dissension gives "a chance for the enemy of God to exercise his power over them" (us). It is soooo true 3 Nephi 11:29. Alright back to the topic; Mosiah's sons are desires to go and share the gospel with their brethren the Lamanites and those around them. In verse 36 it says "And thus they were instruments in the hands of God in bringing many to the knowledge of the truth, yea, to the knowledge of their Redeemer." This is what I want to be, an instrument in the hands of the Lord. I want to be someone who (not only as a missionary but forever) brings the knowledge of truth and the knowledge of our Reedeemer to many! In Mosiah 28:3 it says "Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not ^abear that any human ^bsoul should ^cperish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure ^dendless torment did cause them to quake and ^etremble." As a missionary my love for others has greatly increased and I want what is best for them. It breaks my heart every time someone chooses not to accept the Gospel or listen to what we have to share. But I am far from the sons of Mosiah's desires. I love my brethren but I still need to strengthen that love and start sharing what I know with EVERYONE I come in contact with. Some times I think we are a little to casual with the knowledge we have. We don't understand the impact and Eternal outcome it has on us and others.
I love being a missionary and one day as I strive to do so now, I will be as the sons of Mosiah and declare salvation to EVERY creature!

Today I was reading in Mosiah 21 and one of the verses caught my attention. It was in verse 6 and reads, "And it came to pass that the people began to murmur with the king because of their afflictions; and they began to be desirous to go against them to battle. And they did afflict the king sorely with their complaints; therefore he granted unto them that they should do according to their desires." This verse made me think of us when we ask the Lord for things over and over again, even when we know the answer. The Lord loves us and will grant unto us our desires but...do we really want that? There are examples throughout The Book of Mormon that show that we probably don't always really want what we ask for. Some of those examples are from those who asked for a sign 'they would believe if only they had a sign'. Well they eventually received their signs- being struck dumb, being destroyed through the fulfilment of a sign and so on. Side note: Signs are a whole different topic but, signs don't benefit anyone anything, for if we will only believe if we have a sign wherein lies our conversion? Ok back to the topic. Others asked for things that weren't necessarily bad but had negative repercussions. 
The Lord knows what is best for us and what will benefit us the most. He knows what we need and we only think we know what we need. "Wherefore, brethren, seek not to ^acounsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand. For behold, ye yourselves know that he counseleth in ^bwisdom, and in justice, and in great mercy, over all his works" (Jacob 4:10). Take the answers that come and learn what is needed and always seek that which will bring you closer to our Savior. Make your desires that of righteousness. Follow and make your will His will.

Trust in Him.

Where is our trust? Is it in ourselves or in the Lord? Ponder that. Are you continually praying to Him asking for His help and guidance while continuing to do all that you can? If not something needs to change. I know I need to work on it and change some things. Its not always easy nor our first reaction but we need to make it so.
I love in Mosiah 9 & 10 how it teaches us the importance of trusting the Lord and relying on His strength rather than ours alone. "Yea, in the ^astrength of the Lord did we go forth to battle against the Lamanites; for I and my people did cry mightily to the Lord that he would ^bdeliver us out of the hands of our enemies, for we were awakened to a remembrance of the deliverance of our fathers. And God did ^ahear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might; yea, we did go forth against the Lamanites, and in one day and a night we did slay three thousand and forty-three; we did slay them even until we had driven them out of our land" (Mosiah 9:17-18).
"...we did go up in the ^astrength of the Lord to battle. Now, the Lamanites knew nothing concerning the Lord, nor the strength of the Lord, therefore they depended upon their own strength. Yet they were a strong people, as to the ^astrength of men...putting [our] trust in the Lord; therefore, we did contend with them, face to face. And it came to pass that we did drive them again out of our land..." (Mosiah 9:17 & 10:10-11 & 19-20).
We can do a lot. But with the Lord with us we can do even more. Seek for His strength. Be worthy of it and strive to obtain it through righteous desires. The Lord is there waiting for you to put your trust in Him so that you can achieve more & reach your full potential. He loves you and will always be there to help.

With all Diligence

Today's post will be short and sweet! I was reading in Mosiah 7 today and I absolutely LOVE this verse!: "But if ye will ^aturn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all ^bdiligence of mind, if ye do this, he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of bondage." Bondage can be a spiritual bondage, a temporal bondage or anything that is holding us back and keeping us from progressing and returning to our Father in Heaven. Don't let life get you down. Trust Him. He knows what He is doing and what we need. He loves us and will not give us anything that we cannot handle (1 Nephi 3:7).
Turn to Him and he will help you in all your endeavors as long as they are righteous. I love this work and I love my Savior and Father in Heaven sooooo much! Have an AmAzInG day!!!

Testimony

Today I would just like to bear my testimony.

I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Jesus Christ's church on the earth today. It has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith who was called of God and given the Priesthood authority to do so. I know that we have a living Prophet on the earth today, just as in Bible and Book of Mormon times, his name is Thomas S. Monson and he has been called of God. I know that my Father in Heaven is there. I know that he is aware of EVERYTHING that I (and all of you) have and have yet to experience. I know He loves me and is waiting for me to return home to Him. I know that my Savior Jesus Christ lives and that he atoned for each of us, individually, so that we could return to our Father's presence. I love my family more than anything and I am so grateful to know that I can be with them for all eternity. I love this Gospel. It has brought so much joy and happiness into my life. I am inexpressibly grateful for the opportunity I have to share what I know with my brothers and sisters so they too can have this joy in knowing.

I know these things to be true and I know the Book of Mormon and the Bible are from God and that they support one another and teach us of the things we must do to return to live with our families and our Father in Heaven. I am grateful God loves us enough to share these sacred records with us and to continue to give us modern day revelation through the Apostles and Prophets to guide us back to Him. I know and I so testify in the name of my beloved brother and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.

God's Eternal Plan

This last week I've been reading in a book called 'Our Search for Happiness' written by M. Russell Ballard. Today I was reading about God's Eternal Plan. I just wanted to jot down some things that really stood out to me.
"...[we are] a mortal mixture of human frailty and divine potential."
"...the quality of our lives has more to do with substance than style. A quality life is one that positively influences others and makes the world around it a better place in which to live. A quality life is one that is constantly growing, expanding its horizons and enlarging its borders. A quality life is one that is filled with love and loyalty, patience and perseverance, kindness and compassion. A quality life is one that is based on eternal potential and not confined to this life only. A quality life is a life well-lived. But it isn't necessarily a perfect life."
"...adversity becomes a vehicle for growth and death becomes a doorway from one phase of our eternal existence to another."
One of my favorites was the one about our potential. Are we living up to our divine potential? Do we realize how great our potential is? God loves us. We are His children, His sons and daughters and therefore have the potential to become like Him. That is why we came to this earth, so that we could reach our potential and rejoice with our Father in Heaven in the joy and blessings that await us. Make the most of who you are to become who you want to be.

How Strong is Your Faith?

Oh if only we all had the faith of Enos! He hears the voice of the Lord and is fogiven of all of his sins. When he asks the Lord how it is made possible the Lord says: ^"aBecause of thy ^bfaith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen...thy faith hath made thee ^cwhole" (vs. 8). His faith in Christ causes him to have great love for his brethren and he desires for their welfare-even those who are his enemies. He wants to please the Lord and he "knows". Do I know?

Every time I read this chapter is always think 'how strong is my faith?' Is it sufficiently and continually strong enough that I too have the promise given to Enos by the Lord? -"Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it" (vs. 15).

We should each, each day strive to increase and strengthen our faith in our Savior Jesus Christ and our loving Father in Heaven. As we do so we too like Enos will "rejoice in the day when [our] ^cmortal shall put on ^dimmortality, and [we] shall stand before him; then shall [we] see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto [us]: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the ^emansions of my Father" (vs. 27).
I love the scriptures! I especially love the Book of Mormon. I love the testimonies which fill its pages and I love the great examples we can learn from and the lessons that are taught. I love my Father in Heaven and am so grateful for the many things he puts in each of our lives to show His love for each of us. I know He loves me. I know He loves you.

He "leadeth them away carefully..."

First I just have to say I love Nephi. He just flat out says it how it is. Ok. So with that this morning my companion were biking to the computer lab. On the way to the lab there is a very small pond we pass. Well my previous companion told me that once she saw a gator there so every time I pass it I keep my eye out for one. This morning it payed off! I saw one! My companion and I were SO excited and quickly threw our bikes down to get some pictures. Well it was just chillin there all nonchalant and didn't look to be at all dangerous (which we all know to the contrary). At first we were as far away from it as possible then we began edging closer and closer until we were within five feet of it. His lazy appearance and I don't care if you touch me attitude was dulling our instincts and I soon found myself wanting to touch it. But luckily I do have some common sense and decided against it. So what does this have to do with what I studied today? -everything.

In verses 21-22 of 2 Nephi 28 it talks about the evil cunning and craftiness of Satan. You've got to admit he is a pretty slick dude. He uses the tiniest and simplest things to move us ever so slightly away from our end goal: eternal life. Don't fall for it. Stick to what you know and feel is right. If something leads you away or causes you to do something contrary to Christ's teachings, don't do it. Satan is tricky and knows how to entice us but the only way he can have power over us is if we let him. Always be worthy of the Holy Ghost so that it will and can be your constant companion. He will protect and guide you.

God loves His children more than any earthly parent could.

Today I was reading in 2 Nephi 26, which talks about Christ ministering unto the Nephites. I love verse 24 which reads: "He doeth not ^aanything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he ^bloveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw ^call men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation." Our Saviors entire purpose and goal is and was to enable us to return to live with our Heavenly Father. As the Father and His son are one in purpose, our Father in Heaven doeth nothing save it be for our benefit as well. This is hard to remember when we see all of the suffering in the world, when we feel like everything around us is falling apart, and when our tedious life planning completely and slowly unravels; But it is all part of a much greater 'life plan' and part of our learning and experience here on this earth. We shouldn't be so concerned as to why its happening but more how we deal with what is happening. Are we helping those that may have less or who are suffering as much as we can? Are we taking the trials that come into our paths or the unseen turns in our plans and making them into something positive, into something to overcome and learn from? When we "^acheerfully ^bdo all things that lie in our power;... then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the ^csalvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed" (D&C 123:17).
We may not know all the whys or be able to paint in our minds the magnitude of God's love and plan for us but we can strive to make the most of things. When in those times of uncertainty or when we are in the darkest abyss that is when we have the potential to grow the most. That is when we have the ability to put all of our trust in the Lord and feel His love more than at any other time in our lives.
Our Savior, Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven love us. That is all we need to know. Now just put your faith and trust in them, do your very best, learn, and find what God has in store for you.
Also read D&C 121, 122, 123