Watch with Wonder Wednesday: You can do the Impossible!

Have you ever felt like you weren't good enough, or that the challenge in front of you was just too much? Many people have, but we know that "With God nothing shall be impossible." (Luke 1:37) Here is a man that I am sure felt like that, but he put his trust in God and has done amazing things!!!

View Jarem's Full Profile and read about his great accomplishments as he put his trust in God at mormon.org/jarem

When Church Hopping Ends!

Here is a snippet of what Sister Bowes wrote for Elder Walker:

"I want tell you how I came from searching for the Truth since I was a teenager. I've been to almost every denomination you can think of. At 14, I knew I was in the wrong church. At 16, when I started driving, I would church hop. Sometimes I would enter a church building and the people were very friendly but that's as far as it went. I also felt like an outsider at some and even though I yearned to be part of their service, it was too clickish and I was ignored.

 

I'd even begged members of these different churches to study with me, but to no avail. I felt like I was traveling in a foreign country where I didn't understand their language. I never would give up though and off I'd go to yet another church.

 

Nothing changed after I was married. We both ended up church hopping. We had children and we drug them with us. That is until one day.

 

We had a yard sale 6 months ago and up rode two little Elder fellers..." Read the rest of her story at eldermcwalker.blogspot.com

The Empty Tomb

Since it is Easter season, I have been thinking a lot about Christ and what he has done for us. I often focus on the suffering and pain that he went through in Gethsemane and on the cross to help me in my own trials and Gethsemanes. But this time I have decided to think more about the empty tomb that blessed Sunday morning!! This morning I read the accounts from the Gospels about Mary Magdalene and others discovering the empty tomb and the Resurrected Lord! The power of that experience hit me this morning! I can only imagine how Mary Magdalene felt as she went to the sepulchral to take care of the body of her beloved Savior, and find the tomb EMPTY!! I can imagine the rush of emotions that hit her all at once, fear, frustration, anger, doubt, depression etc. etc. As she was on the ground crying and I am sure wondering why, she looked in the tomb again, and saw angels, who then asked, "Woman why weepest thou?" (John 20:13) She responds "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him."(John 20:13) The angels comfort her by saying, "Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here for He is risen." (Matthew 28:5-6) And then "...she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master." (John 20:14-15) She realized that it was Him, that He truly had risen! I am sure that she was then filled with joy and excitement!

So in our lives we often come to a tomb, and find it empty. Those emotions of fear, frustration, anger, doubt, depression etc. etc. then swarm us but if we look with proper perspective we will too find comfort just as Mary did. I have found that comfort over and over again in my life, because of what happened there at the sepulchral that wonderful first Easter morn!

Sister's Sunday: "The Holy Temple - A Beacon to the World"

So this week, "Sister's Sunday" is written by Lauren!! Here she goes!

This was a very special week! Richard and I had the privilege to go to the Sacramento temple and be there as our friend was married and sealed for eternity to her husband. As I was sitting there, watching the two of them smiling and glowing with happiness and love for each other, I started crying! I couldn’t help it! The temple is definitely a sacred place where you can feel the Holy Spirit so strong and I was so happy for them because they will be able to be together forever! Then my thoughts turned to her older brother who was waiting outside and it just made me so sad that he couldn’t be in there at that time with her. I hope that his sister’s example that day will help him have the desire to make changes in his life and have the temple as his goal.
A few weeks ago in General Conference, President Monson spoke about temples and this is what he said about making the temple a priority in your life:

“If you have not yet been to the temple or if you have been but currently do not qualify for a recommend, there is no more important goal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to the temple. Your sacrifice may be bringing your life into compliance with what is required to receive a recommend, perhaps by forsaking long-held habits which disqualify you. It may be having the faith and the discipline to pay your tithing. Whatever it is, qualify to enter the temple of God. Secure a temple recommend and regard it as a precious possession, for such it is.

"Until you have entered the house of the Lord and have received all the blessings which await you there, you have not obtained everything the Church has to offer. The all-important and crowning blessings of membership in the Church are those blessings which we receive in the temples of God.” ("The Holy Temple - A Beacon to the World")

I am so grateful for temples! Being able to go to the temple is so important because the ordinances performed there allows us to be able to return to our Heavenly Father and have eternal families. These blessings cannot be received anywhere else, but in the temple. Let us all make the temple a priority in our lives!


Thanks Lauren! The Temple is amazing! I look up to all of my brothers and sisters, since they were all married in the Temple, for time and all of eternity! I know that they cherish that day, and go often to the temple to remember it!!! Here is a picture of Richard and Lauren on their wedding day at the Sacramento Temple!

I love all the temples, they are all beautiful and allow us to partake of the ordiances needed to return to God, here are some more pictures of the Temples!!

Learn more about Temples:
Temples.LDS.org
"The Blessings of the Temple"

Watch With Wonder Wednesday: Gifts From God

We have all been blessed with gifts!! One of the gifts that I believe I was blessed with was the ability to learn new things quickly (especially when it comes to technology.) When I was a senior in High School I got the opportunity to learn photography. I mostly taught myself but had a little coaching by a great man. So for "Watch with Wonder Wednesday" I wanted to share some of the pictures that I have taken. So here they are:

One day I had the urge to climb on top of the shed in our backyard, so I did, and of course I took my camera with me!!

I love the Beauty of the earth that God gave us and so I try to take a piece of that beauty with me!!

And so I continue: We all have gifts both temporal and spiritual. Today in a meeting of missionaries we had the opportunity to talk about spiritual gifts! It was a very spiritual meeting! We learned about each other and about ourselves! One of the main things that I stood out to me was the importance of being humble, but of being humble the right way! One of the missionaries said that "humility isn't tearing yourself down, but building God up!!!" That was such an eye opener to me. Often I think that in order to be humble I have to think that I am nothing, and that I don't have gifts like so many others do. That is just wrong! By doing so we are denying the reality of the blessings and gifts that God has given us. We are in essence telling God that our gifts aren't good enough! We have all been granted gifts because we have a Heavenly Father that truly loves us!! Our gifts are both for our benefit and for the benefit of those around us!

I love God and am so grateful for the lessons that I learn each day! I am full of gratitude for the gifts that God has granted me, and so deeply want to live up to them. I know that as we strive to do our best and seek to learn what our gifts are, we will be able to do great things for those around us and for our Heavenly Father!


Here is an article that I found today about spiritual gifts: "Recognize and Develop Your Spiritual Gifts, Elder Hales Counsels"

The Church is True... Amen!

My brother Ryan has a saying that he would often use! Randomly in just about any situation he would say "the church is true... amen!" So....

"THE CHURCH IS TRUE...

AMEN!"

Sister's Sunday: Family Prayer

So I have now declared Sunday as "Sister's Sunday." A day for women written by women! My great Mother and Sisters have agreed to be so gracious as to write the post for me! So here is Jenna:


In this months Ensign there is an article by Diane M. Ferguson titled "Families That Pray Together."  I have always believed in the power of prayer and of it's importance for us to stay close to our families and close to our Heavenly Father. I remember I was teaching a children's primary class one Sunday, and I was trying to relate to the children why it is so important to pray. I asked the children why their parents like to ask them about their day and how school went for them.  I explained to them that their parents love them and want to know what is going on in their lives. The same is true with our Father in Heaven.  Our Heavenly Father loves us very much and he wants to know what we are doing.  He wants to bless us and provide us with comfort and strength.  The only way, however, for our Father in Heaven to know how to help us, is if we talk to him. At the beginning of the article it says "Praying with our families helps us align our will with our Heavenly Father's, resulting in blessings of strength, comfort, and inspiration that enable our families to experience the love of the Savior more abundantly."  My question is, why would we want to deny ourselves and our families of those wonderful blessings?  There are many challenges in this life and I am grateful for the ability to pray to our Heavenly Father to receive comfort and strength. I am grateful for the blessings of family and the ability to grow stronger as we pray with each other and for each other. I know that prayer is a true principle of the gospel and I am grateful for the love of my Savior and Heavenly Father. President Thomas S. Monson said "There is no more beautiful sight in all this world than to see a family praying together. There is real meaning behind the oft-quoted 'The family that prays together stays together.'" ("Come Unto Him in Prayer and Faith")

Thank you so much Jenna, for sharing that great post about Prayer. I too know the power of Prayer, especially in the busy lives that so many women have. I know that prayer can and will help you in all that you do to bless your families and those around you!

The Power of the Temple

Every Wednesday we have a meeting in Franklin, and last week we were up there a little early because of us giving some service, so we had the opportunity to walk around the temple before those with the keys to the church building arrived! It was a great experience! I had been stressing and really worried about some things, and the peace of the Temple came from just being on it's grounds! The peace of the temple is amazing!! These buildings truly are the House of the Lord! Here are some pictures from my experience!

It was a beautiful day with the Bright blue sky and the flowers blooming!

I would encourage all of you to visit the Temple and visit often! Member or not, you can still feel it's power by being on it grounds! Also, for those in the Tennessee area, you have a great opportunity to go inside a temple, before it is re-dedicated! The Atlanta Georgia Temple is having an open house this month! Go check it out, I know you can find happiness at the temple! For information on the open house click on the image below:

Watch with Wonder Wednesday: "Waiting on the Road to Damascus"

So, I have now deemed Wednesday as "Watch with Wonder Wednesday" where i will be using primarily some source of multimedia each Wednesday! So here it goes:

I loved President Uchtdorf's talk in Conference "Waiting on the Road to Damascus". He says, "There are many who, for different reasons, find themselves waiting on the road to Damascus. They delay becoming fully engaged as disciples. They hope to receive the priesthood but hesitate to live worthy of that privilege. They desire to enter the temple but delay the final act of faith to qualify. They remain waiting for the Christ to be given to them like a magnificent Carl Bloch painting—to remove once and for all their doubts and fears.

The truth is, those who diligently seek to learn of Christ eventually will come to know Him. They will personally receive a divine portrait of the Master, although it most often comes in the form of a puzzle—one piece at a time. Each individual piece may not be easily recognizable by itself; it may not be clear how it relates to the whole. Each piece helps us to see the big picture a little more clearly. Eventually, after enough pieces have been put together, we recognize the grand beauty of it all. Then, looking back on our experience, we see that the Savior had indeed come to be with us—not all at once but quietly, gently, almost unnoticed.

This can be our experience if we move forward with faith and do not wait too long on the road to Damascus."

I know that as we step with Faith and move forward, relying on the small pieces and glimpses of Christ we have had, we will one day be able to put the pieces together and have the witness that we seek! We just have to rely on God and take it one step at a time. Don't Wait on the Road to Damascus, piece Christ together right now, in your life and in this puzzle!!

Play it below or follow this link!

Miracles Never Cease!!!

Christ performed many miracles while he walked the earth, and they still happen today. I with Moroni ask, "Have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to claim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?" And answer, "Behold I say unto you, Nay; for it is by faith that miracles are wrought." (Moroni 7:27,37)  Our God is a God of miracles, I know that for sure!!!! This last week was just filled with miracles! I would like to share a few with you today!!!

So Friday we were planning as usual, and everything was going pretty well, then we got a call from our ward mission leader. He told us that a family whose two sons had not been able to be baptized in the past, due to some legal issues, are now able to! We immediately contacted them and began to make plans. they have wanted to do this for many years, but have not been able to, and now all of a sudden God has made a way! We were able to go to their home yesterday and have a  very spiritual lesson with them, and commit them to baptism. Thanks to my awesome companion's humble story and testimony, he was able to touch and relate to one of the boys who had been struggling in the past! They both felt the spirit testify to them strongly last night that the church is true and that they need to be baptized!! They are so ready!! They will make great priesthood holders and future missionaries!!

Sunday we were also able to experience another amazing miracle. We had felt like we should go to try and see a referral that we got from a member that day! She was in a nursing home, so we drove across town to get there. We went in and she was asleep, so we left unsuccessfully, then as we were walking towards our car a lady  driving by asked out her window if we were Mormon. We said yes and began talking to her! She is a really kind lady, and she said that she wanted some help, spiritually, we assured her we could give it to her. We got her address, gave her our number, and went on our way! We felt strongly that the Lord had prepared us to be there to come in contact with her. Today we had the opportunity to meet with her again. She is a very kind and open lady. We had a good lesson with her, and learned that our experience of meeting was even more inspired. She was supposed to be there at the home 2 hours prior, however with thing running late her arrived as we were walking out! She said she knew she needed to talk to us. She has sought help from other places, but in vain, and then she found us!!

I know that these things might seem simple and of little worth to some, but they are huge, amazing miracles to me!!!

Christ lives and performs miracles everyday in our lives, if we but open our eyes to see them, and say as the father in Mark 9:24 , "Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief." As we turn to Christ and seek for his help, we too can see the miracles in our lives and the lives of those around us everyday!!! I know that Christ lives and loves us, he wants us to be able to experience miracles, if we will just believe!! Cast out your fear and doubt, trust in God, do as He would do, and you will see miracles!!!!

Here are some other Resources on Miracles and having faith:
"Miracles" By Elder Dallin H.Oaks
"Help Thou my Unbelief" - Elder L. Whitney Clayton
"A God of Miracles" - Sister Sydney S. Reynolds

We Are to Have Joy

"Men are that they might have joy." (2 Nephi 2:25)

Pretty simple eh? Well it is true! We are here to have joy and it is a choice. One thing that I learned today in my study was that hope leads us to happiness. As we have an abiding trust in God He will bless us and we will be happy.

You are a child of God and you are supposed to be happy!!! So go ahead:

 Jump for JOY!!!

Laugh!

Smile!

And Just:

Here are some talks about joy and hope:
"Come What May and Love It"
"The Infinite Power of Hope"
Steven E. Snow - This one is a video because the text will not come out until tomorrow.

Short Cuts!

So last week we were walking a lot because we did not have any miles left for the month on our car. As we were walking last Tuesday we decided to take a short cut. There was a sub-division that ended and there was a big open field, of which we could see the sub-division we wanted to go to on the other side. So we walked through it. It was all dandy, and cut off a lot of time. So after some lessons and things on that side of town, it was about 8:30 and we were headed home, we decided to take the short cut again so that we could get home by 9:00. As we walked in the dark in the place we thought we were earlier that day we began to question, and to feel like maybe we weren't in the right place. However, we both were trying to reassure ourselves that we were headed the right direction, saying things like, "Oh, I remember seeing that," or "The path is just up here, I am pretty sure."  So with these type of comments we fooled each other into thinking everything was fine.

As we were looking for the path through the trees back into the sub-division close to home, we found "it," well we found a path at least. As we walked through the path things began to get a little creepy!

We see large trailers with writings on the sides, and trash all over the place. It turns from a joyful experience of saving time to a hair-raising experience of sudden horror.

We realized we weren't in the right place. And the place we were was not a place we wanted to be. We were actually now about an hour and a half from our apartment, rather than just thirty minutes. Luckily though, we were able to call a member who was kinda enough to give us a ride home!!

So now to apply this story to all of our lives! There are times when we try to take short cuts in life, such as not obeying God's commandments exactly. As we start down the path we might think that we are okay, or that we are close enough to the right path. Then as we get subtle promptings and messages from God that we are on the wrong path headed towards a place we don't want to be, we rationalize them. We try to talk ourselves into thinking that we recognize this or that, and that all is good, when it is not! We eventually end up in a menacing place that we don't want to be in. We now realize that our choice to take the path we did was not the right one. We are now far from our home (heaven) and aren't sure how to get back before it is too late. Thankfully there is Christ who loves us and has provided a way for us to get home just in time. it is called the atonement. We can access the atonement by exercising faith, repenting, being baptized (or renewing our covenants if we have been already), receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. As we do that we are able to get away from the scary into a safe path that we know where it leads! I hope that we will all strive to stay on the path, but when we do take the short cuts, to quickly realize we are wrong and get back on the path through accessing the atonement!!

Here's a talk about how Obedience leads to Freedom.