I lOvE Alma! Why are we here? What is the purpose of this life? How can a faith in Jesus Christ help me? These are just the tip of the ice burg of questions to the soul answered throughout The Book of Mormon. Yesterday I was reading in Alma 34 and it talks about why we are here. I love the lines "...now is the time and the day of your salvation" (vs. 31). "...this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity..." (vs. 34).  "this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors" (vs. 33). So why are we here? Well it tells us right there! I love that chapter!

Today I was reading in Alma 36 and I LoVe this chapter too! This chapter talks about how a faith in Christ can and will help us if we allow it to. In this chapter Alma is talking to his son Helaman. He shares an experience he had earlier in his life when he came to know Christ and was "born of God". He shares the exquisite joy and peace that came from accepting Jesus Christ and allowing the healing power of the Atonement to take place in him. I love how he describes his experience; "I ^dremembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world. Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, ^ahave mercy on me, who am ^bin the ^cgall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting ^dchains of ^edeath. And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my ^apains ^bno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more. And oh, what ^ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain! Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy" (Alma 36:17-21).

Our faith in the Savior brings joy, peace, love, and the ability to be forgiven. We can repent. We can overcome and be forgiven for our sins! I have felt the amazing powers of the Atonment work in my life. I have felt that forgiveness and cleansing power. It is real. I know that our Savior truly did live and die for me, and for you. He truely has felt everything each of us has ever has and will go through-each temptation, each pain, each sorrow, each sickness, everything (Alma 7:11-12 vs. 13 is a good one too!). He made it possible for us to return and live with our Father in Heaven. And why did he do it? "...that he may know according to the flesh how to ^csuccor his people according to their infirmities" (Alma 7:12). I love the definition of succor-to run to. He did it so that he would know exactly how to comfort and help each of us. I love Him so much! I love His gospel and I absolutely love the scriptures and the many many things they teach me each day! I love serving the Lord and just as Alma "...I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste" (Alma 36:24)! That is why I am here serving the people in Florida for 18 months. That is why when I return home I will never cease to share what I know about my Savior and His love with everyone around me. I love this work! I love my Savior and I love my God. I say these things in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

What is this life for, why are we here? Here is a great answer by the Prophet Alma and Amulek"...this life became a ^cprobationary state; a time to ^dprepare to meet God; a time to prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us, which is after the resurrection of the dead" (Alma 12:24). Which means everything we do in this life-we will be held accountable for so everything we do should be bringing us closer to our Savior and Father in Heaven. The time that we have here is so short! For example this first dash is a representation of the time we spent with our Father before coming to the earth, the period equals the time we have here on the earth and the rest equals what awaits us after this life -.---------------------------------and it never ends! Our time is so short and yet so crucial! What we do now impacts the rest of our Eternity.
I really like this chapter and one of my favorite parts is in Alma 12:14 "For our ^awords will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the ^bmountains to fall upon us to ^chide us from his presence." Will we be ashamed because of our actions here or will we be excited and look forward to that day when we will meet our God? Personally I want the later. So what are you going to do about it? Alma gives us great council when he says "cast off your sins, and [do] not ^cprocrastinate the day of your repentance; But...humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and ^awatch and pray continually, that ye may not be ^btempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be ^cled by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, ^dmeek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering; ^aHaving faith on the Lord; having a hope that ye shall receive eternal life; having the ^blove of God always in your hearts, that ye may be lifted up at the last day and enter into his ^crest. And may the Lord grant unto you repentance, that ye may not bring down his wrath upon you, that ye may not be ^abound down by the chains of ^bhell, that ye may not suffer the second ^cdeath" (Alma 13:27-30).
Eternal life is something that will come by our day to day and minute to minute efforts. Its a process in which we cannot afford to slacken our strength. It will and does take work-hard work but I know and I promise as a representative of Jesus Christ that it is and will all be so worth it! We cannot even begin to comprehend they pure joy and happiness that awaits us. So my dear brothers and sisters, let us do our very best each and everyday. Be an example that those around you can and will want to follow. Let us all work together in strengthening one another and bringing our brothers and sisters unto Christ so they too can have Eternal life. In the name of our 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.