IF- By Rudyard Kipling

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn out tools;

 

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

 

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

Since i was young my Dad has had a favorite poem. If by Rudyard Kipling. I was reading through it a while ago and it came to my mind that these words of wisdom given to the son are much of what our heavenly father gives to us in our lives. And many of them are things i am sure the father gave to his beloved son, as he came down to fulfill his earthly ministry.

As in the scriptures and all the words of Christ, the Apostles and Prophets we receive guidance on how we can become men (and woman). That is our ultimate goal, to become the people who can be received back into the rest of our heavenly father!

Life will be hard, if we live right we will face persecution, and we will have to build ourselves up from the dust.

I think of some of the great men in my life and much like in the poem, they learned to discipline themselves and learned from the bad to make it good, to keep their head about them when all those around them are losing theirs, and to build their lives with worn out tools.

The Power Of Ones Testimony! (My Mom)

       A testimony is an open declaration or profession, as of faith. But not only is testimony an open declaration its personal and its a part of you. Your testimony is what shapes your life, as you live and search and pray you develop knowledge and experiences to build your testimony or to take away from your testimony. My testimony is one of the most precious things to me, its everything, its what i know to be true and i know that there is nothing more powerful that having a testimony in Jesus Christ! If a testimony is not taken care of and strengthened then it will wilt much like an un-nourished flower. 

...Let us nourish it with great care, that it may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit.- Alma 32:37

       One way we can nourish our testimony's is by hearing those testimony's of others. I have asked a few wonderful people to bear their testimonies, to share what they know to be true. This first Person is Amazing, well of course she is because she is my Mom! I grew up feeling the power of her testimony and i am so thankful that you all can feel her strength too. And by hearing hers and others testimony's it will strengthen yours.

 As I think about my membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Mormon", my heart is full of gratitude for the blessing this has been in my life.  My testimony has been influenced by the love the gospel brings into my home.  It began as a young girl with family prayer, Sunday evening family time, working together on family projects and even Saturday and weekday chores, attending church meetings, doing service projects, like going to the church welfare farms or helping neighbors with my parents, for they were always serving others.  I learned values such as faith, charity, moral cleanliness  and to keep the commandments.  I learned the importance of  the family and the eternal aspect of Temple ordinances and was blessed with the Priesthood in my home.  As one of 8 children I learned to share, to forgive and to repent after episodes of sibling rivalry .  I have  the knowledge that I am a child of God and a daughter of a Heavenly Father who loves me and I love him.
                  My testimony of the gospel comes from working to living it every day and knowing it is blessing my life and the lives of my family and others.  I have a testimony of the Atonement, that Jesus died on the cross for us.  That act is a tremendous gift that allows us to return to our Heavenly Father through our repentance and faith in him.  My faith in Christ helps me to change my thoughts and behaviors so I can be in harmony with his teachings and  become a better individual.  I know that after my baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, has given me a spiritual guide that enlightens my mind, warns me of danger, comforts me, helps me to recognize the truth  and helps me to feel God's love. Through that still small voice that you feel more than hear I am prompted of what to do or say as I take the time to listen to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost.   By my membership in the "Mormon" church I have been given this gift.

               My testimony is strengthened through daily prayer.  I know Heavenly Father hears and answers my prayers as I do so with a sincere heart and real intent.  As I pray for specific needs and desires I know that he will comfort, inspire and guide me, answering my prayers on his terms and sometimes through others.  I feel peace and love as I live the gospel with commitment and obedience.  This is not always easy as there are so many influences that would have me live and make choices differently. Free Agency is a wonderful thing if we choose to live our lives in accordance to the Savior's will. I can make my choices but I cannot always pick the consequences from those choices.  I make mistakes but through repentance and the atonement I can change to become a better person.    
             I have a testimony of the scriptures,the Bible and of the Book of Mormon which teaches us the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  By Joseph Smith's obedience and commitments to the gospel after his vision of God the Father and Jesus Christ in a grove of trees at the age of 14 ,enduring trials and tribulations until his death with unwavering faith and knowledge of what he had seen and learned testifies to me of the truthfulness of the restored gospel.  The Book of Mormon exists if not through Joseph Smith then how did it come to be? 
               I have a testimony of the Plan of Salvation and the opportunity of Eternal life with my family being together forever.  I know the gospel gives us daily guidance and inspires us to do good . It brings us peace,happiness, eternal joy and unconditional love!

How Do I Love thee.. Do I love Thee?

In the scriptures Jesus Christ was asked a question about the the commandments. The question was, "Master which is the greatest commandment in the law?" The Savior answered in a way that many did not expect. He said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind...This is the first and great commandment...And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." The savior declared that the most important thing to do over all is to love. It was not to pay tithing, or to fast everyday, But it was to love God and love others.

I know that too many times i don't remember that commandment, i think that a persons driving speed or appearance trumps my need to follow this crucial commandment. The commandment is not long or glorious but it is important and too often is forgotten. We put other commandments above and declare them to be more important than to love a person. We are working with Gods Children, no matter the clothing, the color or the attitude of the person neither what rule or commandment they have broken, we all are sons and daughters of God, and should be treated as one.

One of the hardest things for me to overcome on my mission was to love all those around me, especially with doors slammed in the face or cruel words thrown at your direction. I struggled a great deal with the fact that i was trying to share what is most valuable to me, and others didn't care. I found that it had become to easy to look past the good and only notive the bad. Then the time came when i realized that god didn't send me on a mission to find anger with others, But he sent me to learn to love them, no matter the circumstance, even if they were snott faces. I still face trials and sometimes its very, very hard to find love, but then i remember the words the savior said, "Love one another; as i have loved you, that ye have love one to another... By this shall men know ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." We truly are followers of Christ as we share the love Christ so freely gives to us. How can we so willingly take, but find no reason to give that love to others.

This lady arabelle, joined a group in new york where they got together to discuss civility and kindness, she found a great discovery from someone she never expected to.

We need to follow Gods most important law, we need to love more than we condemn and take those by the hand and show them gods love. Just as this woman arabelle learned from a sweet homeless man, we can learn from all those around us. As we learn more about the love of God we can spread that abroad to all those we see. Let us all love one another! Can't we all just get along? I think we can! so lets try it eh!

I Know It Is True.

I don't have too much to share today, but there has been something weighing heavy on my heart. As a missionary we meet a lot of people, we talk a great deal about their lives their choices and their influences.  I try so hard to share at least a bit of the gospel to them so they can feel the spirit, and every time i feel like i am giving them the most precious gift i could give them! Because it is, and i know it will change their lives and bring them so much happiness! It may not seem like much to some, and some people may not agree, But i know that the church is true, and no one can take that knowledge from me!

I wish so fully that i could in some portion say the fervor and love i have for this message! I know it is True! i know that Joseph Smith was the prophet who restored the church on the earth, i know that Jesus Christ is the son of god! The savior of all man kind, I know that god has a plan for each of us where we can be with our families forever, and i know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church on the earth and it contains the fullness of the everlasting gospel.

This is not a message of another church, but it is Christ's church on the earth. I know that by being baptized into the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day saints you can reach eternal salvation and family happiness, because that is what this work is all about! All of us getting back to our father! Let us share what we know to be true! for it is true! I am not good with words, or writing but i do know that the opportunity is there to know if this church is true, and it is to pray and ask god.. i am confident that he will tell you, by his holy spirit, that this church is true! Ask, please, because if this is true it is worth knowing.

In the Name of Jesus Christ Amen

THEY DID NOT DOUBT...a Tribute to Mothers

Its that time of year again! MOTHERS DAY! its a day that we reflect on how amazing mothers really are. There is a story in the book of Mormon about this group of people called the Anti-Nephi-Lehis. Now the men of this group were said to be a wild and a hardened and a ferocious people, but because of some missionaries they  had chosen to change their lives.  Because the the amazing change in their lives they made the choice to put away their weapons of war and make a covenant or promise with God that they would not fight against their brethren.

A few year after they made this promise a furious war broke out in the land. Soldiers were running low and they needed a greater support so these men were going to break the promise they made with god. Now the sons of these men were very young but men of great faith. They had not taken the promise upon themselves and they made the choice to fight in the stead of there fathers.

When Helaman their Captain explained why they would do this he said,  " Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the ^aliberty of their ^bfathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their ^cmothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.

 And they rehearsed unto me the words of their ^amothers, saying: We ^bdo not doubt our mothers knew it."

They were facing insurmountable odds yet they knew they would be okay because their mothers had taught them to put their trust in god. Because their mothers did teach them in all the ways of the lord their young men had unshaken faith, and they were men of integrity and courage.

Now these young men fought, and they fought with fervor. Every one of them was hurt, but not one of them was killed. That is much like our life we will all get hurt but if we follow what our amazing mothers have taught us then we will come out victorious. We must remember and listen to the words of our mothers.

I know that my mother is a mother just like these mothers in this story, she has taught us about our savior about life and how we can have faith and courage! Mothers are everything! So thanks to my mom (who just happens to be the greatest mother out there) and every mom that is working really hard to raise a crazy fun family, for it truly is the most important calling we could have as woman in this world.

A Wonderful Discovery!

So i have recently discovered that i am a complete and total nerd! When i woke up this morning i was just itching to pick up my scriptures and delve into the stories it contains! Stories of war, treachery and of our savior. This morning i was reading in Acts all about how Peter and John are teaching right after Christ passed and it was so amazing! then when it was time for companionship study i was trying to read as fast as i could.. i wanted to know what happened next!

The scriptures have such an amazing power behind them and if i am a nerd by being eager any opportunity to come so that i can begin my little scripture journey then so be it! It is through the scriptures we find answers, we find peace and we find the truth! I will be nerd every day of my life so that i can read the words of god! For the words of god will tell you all things what ye should do. -2 Nephi 32:3

And what is even neater is that we not only have the bible! but god loves us so much that he has given us more! More of his word, more of his fullness and that is through the book of Mormon. I know that God does love us and that he wants us to find the path back home! What i think is even cooler is that we can be nerds and learn the way, through reading the scriptures! It's the greatest.

Zion..The Park

I love camping, it is one of my greatest joys, and luckily i have some wonderful friends who have the same love for rolling around in the dirt all the time. One year for spring break my sister Jan and 2 of our friends Emily and sherylee decided to go on an adventure down to an awesome national park called Zion. So we packed up the car to the brim so that none of us could really move...

But we finally made it there and we set up camp, we decided to go on a hike and one of the most popular hikes is angels landing! we wanted to see what all the hype is about. After two and a half miles, and climbing in a few holes

We made it to the "top".. but little did we know, there was more. We look to the side and we see this cliff and we hear Jan say, "What if we had to go the the end of that.." and we all laughed.. well, we did have to go to the end of the cliff.

But determined to finish the hike, we persevered. We began walking and the trail got more and more narrow. And to make things more treacherous the path was covered with snow. But to aid all us weary travellers they had fastened a chain that we can grab hold of to safely make it to the true destination. . At first i thought i could walk the path without the chain.. but then as my feet slipped and me footing faltered i realized how important that chain was and how much i really needed it. So i clung to that chain as tight as i could.

After much fear and lots of slipping and sliding on our behinds and clinging to that chain we finally made it to the top. And we were able to see why this hike was a favorite.

Our lives our much like this hike. There are some who will make it to the "top" and feel accomplished without realizing what more there is and what lies ahead so they will turn back. There are some who will begin the path and then stop because it is too hard.. then there are some who see the path and know the challenge and take it head on to make it to the top. But the only way to make it is to cling to that chain.. to the gospel and the word of god.. the Book of Mormon. We often become like i was, trying to be fearless and not use the chain. But the chain is there for our safe guidance to something that is worth the hike. Where do you want to end your hike?

Take the hard route don't give up. When you feel you have made it to the top keep on going, it may be hard but it truly is worth it. And P.S the view is much better if you continue on. It is Worth it.