Remember, I don't know everything...But I know enough

                         
A full day of walking and knocking doors. We knocked on this one door and he was a great man of faith, and diligence. However, he did have some questions and concerns.
Some of his questions left us in silence. I sat there and thought to myself, "I don't know enough. How can I be here and talk to people when I don't know everything."
I watched this video and felt some comfort. I am a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I stand as a witness of Him. My message, along with other missionaries in the world, is to talk about our Savior Jesus Christ. I don't know everything but I do know enough.
I know that Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ helps us and our families be together forever. I know that we all face questions and concerns, but with the help of this gospel and our Father in Heaven our questions can be answered.
I love my Heavenly Father, and I'm grateful that I don't know everything. If I did life would be lame because there would be nothing left to learn. I'm learning everyday and will continue to learn through out the rest of my days. I'm grateful for this life that I have to live, and to learn through the mistakes and challenges that come my way.
Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Remember, that ladder is always there.

This morning my companion showed me something that I really like, so I thought I would share it.

As you can see on the left, that is us. We are trying to make it back to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. But we have ditches along the way.

The first one is death. A bridge is built to walk over death, because of Christ we are able to walk over death.

Then the next ditch is sin. As we go through this life we aren't perfect we will fall into sin. But there is a ladder we can walk step by step to make our way back to Heavenly Father. To climb the ladder requires work each step is a principle of the gospel.

The first step is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The second step is Repentance. Faith in Jesus Christ leads us to repent to try and do better.

The third step is Baptism our first ordinance and covenant (promise) to our Heavenly Father. Our faith, and repentance leads us to baptism. We are able to have all of our sins washed away so we can be clean.

The fourth step after baptism is we receive the Holy Ghost. A wonderful gift our Heavenly Father gives us. The Holy Ghost helps guide us to make right choices and comforts us. He also testifies of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Of course it doesn't end after baptism, we have to continue to climb that ladder. At times we might slip and fall back into sin, but we can always get back on that ladder and start climbing back up to Heavenly Father.

That is the only way we can return to live with Him, its by climbing the ladder taking it one step at a time.

We role played teaching this principle this morning and this is what my companion showed me. Ah, it makes so much more sense than how I was trying to explain! :)

I'm grateful she showed this to me, it opened up my eyes in a way. I love this gospel. I know that at times we will fall into sin over and over again through out our life. We might even just sit down at the bottom for awhile, but that ladder is always there! The Lord will always be at the top of that ladder cheering us on to keep climbing then at that last step He will reach is hand out to us.

Remember your Father(S)

                          
To be honest I got on here and had no idea what I wanted to talk about. I started watching videos and reading talks to see if an idea would come. I watched this video of father and son, and it hit me real hard. Even though this is of a father and son it reminded me of me and my father. I love my dad, he knows I love him but I felt the same way Dylan did in this video. I rolled my eyes when he wanted to talk to me, and talking to him was just weird. During the video I started thinking of my dad and our relationship, I've thought about him alot, being here on a mission. I wouldn't say our relationship was terrible but I know it wasn't the best. To me there is nothing like a father and daughter relationship.
I think about my relationship with my Father in Heaven. To me that is very important and I know its important to Heavenly Father as well. If I want to have a close relationship with my Heavenly Father, I have to do these things that Elder Ballard counsels..
1- Trust Your Father- I know that Heavenly Father knows what is best for me and wants me to be happy.
2-Take an interest in your Father- I know that enjoying His creations we can take part of Him and who He is. I believe our talents are a huge part of this. I believe that when we share our talents with others we are taking an interest in our Heavenly Father.
3-Ask Him for advice- I know that we can talk to Him about anything. I have asked my Father in Heaven for advice, and I know that He has given me counsel.
My Heavenly Father has blessed me with a great earthly father. I want to take counsel to Elder Ballards counsel to my earthly father. I know that it is just as important to be close to him as it is with my Heavenly Father.
Thank you Heavenly Father for being there for me when I need the advice. I do trust you and am willing to do whatever you ask of me.
Thank you for my earthly father. I'm sorry for not showing my gratitude towards either of you. I am grateful for him, and I will do better to be an example to my father.
Remember who you are and what you stand for!

The Tree of Life: Part 2 of 2

                            
"I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree.

And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed... And after they tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost." (1 Nephi 8:24-25, 28)

I read these verses and thought to myself.."Is this something I would do? Am I sometimes ashamed of who I am and what I believe." I thought back and pondered on this.

As I pondered on this question, while reading an ensign talk, I came to a scripture that was quoted. "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation." (Romans 1:16)
The only thing that I could say was, "I hope not." I hope I'm not one of those people, like in the video, that feels ashamed and lets go of the iron rod. The mist of darkness is everywhere around us, Satan in constantly tempting us. I know that if I just hold tight to the iron rod I will be able to feel of Gods love for me, and everyone else around us. I know that to be true for everyone. I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ does make us happy. It doesn't matter about the people in the building laughing, mocking and pointing fingers. Yes at times it is and can be hard, but I know that if we have the courage we need to stand as witnesses of Him, He will help us. Don't be ashamed! "We will have the courage to face whatever comes." So I ask.. Are you ashamed?
Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Remember... Weak Times

Its a foggy morning here in Napa!!! We rode bike again today, and I have to say.. Its beautiful riding in the fog. It gave me alot of pondering time.
I thought back on the past couple of days, and realized that this week so far has been a spiritual one for me. I feel like the Lord has really been talking to me.
For the past month, as I said in my previous post, I have been struggling at somethings. I felt like I wasn't doing anything I needed to as a missionary. I was "WEAK" I guess you can say, and that's all I have been noticing is my weak points.

Well, we had a meeting with some missionaries and our mission president. He asked us to read this talk before the meeting, titled "The Atonement: All for All" by Bruce C. Hafen of the Seventy. Something he said in that talk didn't hit me until I heard our mission president say it. "If you're seeing more of your weakness, that just might mean you're moving nearer to God, not farther away." Once he said that, I sat and thought about it and it was like a HUGE relief/burden that was lifted off my shoulders. I look back now on the past month and look at my "weak" points and realized that there are some things that I wanna change. In the Book of Mormon, in Ether 21:27 it reads, "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."

Its so true, the Lord shows us our weakness so that we can try to be better, and be more like him. I'm so grateful for Heavenly Father loving me and caring for me so much that he is willing to show me my weakness so that I can, with His help become stronger.

I'm grateful for our mission president for the words that he said yesterday, they really helped me out and I know that the things he said to us missionaries was an answer to one of my prayers.
I love this gospel very much, and I know that Heavenly Father does care about each and every one of His children. I'm grateful that I am able to notice my weak moments, so that I can work harder to be more and more like my Heavenly Father. I'm grateful for the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ, because of the atonement, I'm able to repent of my mistakes and try harder. Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Remember, we all have "Challenging Times!"

I read a talk yesturday morning and this morning, that was really something that I needed. It was perfect for the way I have been feeling lately.
Yes, even though I am a missionary I still have my hard times. This past month I've just been stressing. I dont exactly know why, I'm just really trying to do my best as a missionary in serving the Lord.

I read this talk, "Finding Strength in Challenging Times!" by Elder Allan F. Packer. One thing that really stood out to me in this talk was when he talked about football and his experience in high school. He said, "We practiced until the skills became natural and automatic. During one play against our biggest rival, I had an experience that has helped me over the years. We were on defense. I knew my assigned opponent, and as the play unfolded, he moved to my right into the line of scrimmage. There was a lot of noise from players and fans. I reacted as the coach had taught us and followed my man into the line, not knowing if he had the ball. To my surprise, I felt the ball partially in my hands. I gave it a tug, but my opponent didn’t let go. As we tugged back and forth, amid all the noise I heard a voice yelling, “Packer, tackle him!” That was enough to bring me to my senses, so I dropped him on the spot.

I have wondered how I heard that voice above all the other noise. I had become acquainted with the voice of the coach during the practices, and I had learned to trust it. I knew that what he taught worked.

We need to be acquainted with the promptings of the Holy Ghost, and we need to practice and apply gospel teachings until they become natural and automatic. These promptings become the foundation of our testimonies. Then our testimonies will keep us happy and safe in troubled times."

How do we get to be acquainted with the promptings of the Spirit? I asked myself this question as I was reading it. There are several things we can do... 1 is to have the desire. "...He granteth unto men according to their desire..."  2 Study and learn, also to ponder. I feel like I have been doing alot of pondering lately and I find that those are the times when I find my answers in what I am pondering about. Its so important for all of us to be aquainted with the Spirit and to feel and understand when he is trying to help us, for it is the Lord speaks to us through the Holy Ghost.

I agree with what Elder Packer says at the end of his talk, "This is a great time to be alive! The Lord needs each of us. This is our day; it is our time!"

This is my time to serve Him here in California. Im so thankful for the Spirit to comfort me and guide me in the things that i need to do. I know that as long as I continue to study the scriptures and pray to my Father in Heaven I will come to be aquainted with the Spirit.

Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Remember....CHRISTmas

                     
On sunday we had a pretty awsome sacrament meeting. There were some good talks. The speakers that were chosen to speak, spoke on "What to give Jesus for Christmas." I thought this was a very interesting topic and it caught my attention. They all did an amazing job and shared some of the things they would give Jesus for Christmas. Some examples are like serving someone, or reading the scriptures everyday. It can be anything. One of the speakers invited us to wrap a present of something that we want to give Jesus for Christmas and put it under the Christmas tree. Then on Christmas day open it, and give that gift to Jesus.
I personally don't know what I'm going to give Jesus for Christmas, but I'm thinking alot about it. When I think of something I'm going to do it, I'm going to wrap a present then give it to Christ on Christmas.


Just imagine how Christ will feel if we all do this. I can just imagine His face on Christmas day! His smile and His eyes filled with tears, because we all love and care about Him so much that we are willing to give Him a Christmas present and live that present every single day for the rest of our lives. I know that by doing this we will feel closer to Our Savior and Our Heavenly Father as well. What a proud Father, Heavenly Father, would be! 
I love you all and I know that Heavenly Father loves each and everyone of you! 
Remember whoy you are and what you stand for!

Remember... To have Patience!

Yesterday morning I was studying something that I really need to work on... Patience!!
I was reading in Preach my Gospel, a Manuel that talks about the gospel of Christ, and I was reading about patience. Something that stood out to me was when I was reading about what patience is. "Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious... It's the ability to do God's will and accept His timing." Patience means staying with something to the END!
Ah, that can be so frustrating sometimes and hard, but I know that Heavenly Father is VERY timely, and its hard to wait for some of those answers to prayers or even blessings that He might not be ready to bless us with yet. We have to be patient for those answers and those blessings.
I was reading in Romans 8:24-25, which is my new favorite scripture.:)
It says, " For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it."
We have to have hope that the Lord will fulfil His promises to us, but we have to be patient to receive it. They are not always fulfilled as quickly or in the way we might hope.
I personally, need to be patient in receiving blessings and answers but I also need to be patient in the trials and hard times that I go through. In Romans 5:3-5 it says that "...tribulation worketh patience..." Remember to be patient in the hard times and the trials we go through! Yes, it is hard, but it is possible.
And be patient with yourself! Whether in school, work, or a hobby that you may have. Continue in going forward and working hard. I know that by being patient with ourselves we can progress in many things.
I'm not the most patient person in the world. I'm that person that wants things at that time and moment, so when I don't it is hard for me and I give up or quit.
When I started playing the guitar I wanted to be good at that moment. I bought it for myself for Christmas and didn't play it for a year cause I wasn't good. But one day I picked it up and just practiced and practiced. It hurt my fingers but I was patient with myself and kept going. Now, I still am not the best but I can play chords and songs. I'm happy for myself that I was able to keep going and keep working at it. Its that way with anything! Even the gospel. We have to read the scriptures (Bible and Book of Mormon), go to church, & keep the Lords commandments. I know that by doing these things we will be blessed and we can be patient.
With the Lords help, I know that we all can have that patience that we need. I know being patient will help us in everyday life.
So practice being patient. I love you all!!

Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Remember.. to be GrAtEfUl

 

"Lord I'm grateful for my life,
For my daughter for my wife,
For my heart aches, & my tears,
For the joy through all the years,
& I... I wanna thank you! For everything!
& Lord, I wanna thank you!
For everything and so I'll sing I'm grateful.. Lord, I'm grateful
Lord I'm grateful for thy life,
For thy sacred sacrifice,
For my knowledge for my friends,
For the love through all the years.
& I... I wanna thank you! For everything!
& Lord, I wanna thank you!
For everything and so I'll sing I'm grateful.. Lord, I'm grateful
Sing praise... to the Lord...
Sing praise... to the Lord...
Lord I'm grateful for my life,
For my daughter for my wife,
For my heart aches and my tears,
For the joy through all the years,

& I... I wanna thank you! For everything!

& I... I wanna thank you! For everything!

& Lord I wanna thank you! For everything!
& so I'll sing I'm grateful.. Lord, I'm grateful!
Sing praise... to the Lord...
Sing praise... to the Lord..."
I love this song! especially at the beginning when he says.."For my heart aches and my tears." This goes with my post that I posted yesturday. "As we regularly express our gratitude to our Heavenly Father, we cultivate an uplifting attitude. The Savior has promised, "He who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious (Doctrine and Covenants 78:19)."
Thanksgiving is over, but we should never stop thanking Heavenly Father for the many things that he has blessed us with..
Remember the things that matter most. "..and what is most important always evolves the people around us." -Pres. Thomas S. Monson.. I love this!!! I can't help but to think about my family!
 I wish that I didn't just "assume" that they knew I love them, I wish I could've showed them more. Because to me, they are what matters most. Them, and my Heavenly Father. I am very blessed to have them as my family, and that Heavenly Father let me have them as my family. So Lord, I wanna thank you! For my life, my family, for you, for my Savior Jesus Christ, for my trials, for EVERYTHING!
Remember, who you are and what you stand for! I love you all..

Remember... To Thank the Lord thy God.

I love this time of the year! I love the fall colors, the weather is great and the HOLIDAYS! Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times, and not just cause of the amazing food. Thanksgiving really reminds me of family, and spending time with them. I remember from way back, when I was little, always going to my grandmas or my aunts house for thanksgiving.

I love getting together with the family and seeing everybody. I love seeing how they are doing, and just laughing and joking around with them. This is the first time being away from my family for thanksgiving, I miss them dearly. One thing I really miss is my moms razelberry pie. Ah, its so good. However, I'm so grateful to be here in California with my new family. My mission family, and to be with the friends I have made out here.
Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful and to express our gratitude.
Thank you my family and friends back home for your love and support. Thank you President Bunker and Sister Bunker for the love you show, your examples and for being here to help lead and guide us missionaries! Thank you to all the missionaries serving the Lord, and for your faith. Thank you for all of you! For all of your love and support. Thank you Heavenly Father for this chance I have to be here.
I am so grateful the Lord called me to be here in California at this time. I love serving Him, and inviting others to come closer to Him. I'm very grateful for the people He has put into my life. I have Him to thank for everything. He has helped me so much in my life, and I know He has helped many of you as well. In 2 Nephi 9:52 it says," Behold, my beloved brethren, REMEMBER the words of your God; pray unto him continually by day, and give thanks unto his holy name by night. Let your hearts rejoice."
Remember Our Father in Heaven and show your gratitude to Him, and our Savior for His atoning sacrifice for us.
I'm so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father to send His son to die for us. I'm grateful for the family He has blessed me with. I'm grateful for this beautiful earth that He created for us to come and live on for a time. I love my Heavenly Father so much, and my Savior Jesus Christ. Remember Him! Express your love and gratitude to Him, not just tomorrow, but everyday! I love you all very much!
Remember who you are and what you stand for!

Happy ThanksGiving Family! I love you!

Remember.... 9 November 2010

During my morning studies, I was studying scriptures about how we need to diligently seek the word of the Lord.
I came to Doctrine and Covenants 138 and its the Prophet Joseph f. Smith

and he was reading the scriptures. He was thinking about the Savior and His atonement. His suffering for our sins, dying on the cross, and then being resurrected. Because of this event, we can return to live with him again.
He was reading in 1 Peter 3:18-20; 4:6, Which talks about Christ suffering for our sins, and talked about the spirit world and that the gospel was preached to the dead. He said, after reading this, "As I pondered over these things which are written, the eyes of my understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon me, and I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great."
I have had a couple very good friends of mine pass away, but after the death of Rex I've been thinking alot about the spirit world. I've just wanted a better understanding for myself of what happens after we die. This section of the Doctrine and Covenants has really helped my understanding. 
Reading this verse seriously just brought so much peace to my soul. Rex wasn't able to serve a mission because of his illness. I know that he is serving the Lord now, to those souls who didn't have a chance in this life. I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who continues to give us the opportunity to receive this gospel, that missionary work continues after this life. I am so grateful that life doesn't end after this one, that we continue living, learning and teaching. I know that we will see are loved ones again.! I will see my dear friends again! 
Remember who you are and what you stand for. 

Remembering Our True Identity

Our-True-Identity
It was fast and testimony meeting at church on sunday. I serve in the singles ward and it was amazing to me to see all these young single adults get up and express their feelings about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and of God.
In one of the meetings that we had, called relief society, where the women of the church get together and talk about the gospel from a womens point of view. It was on self worth. There are many of people in the world who struggle with this, especially women. I am one of these young women who struggle with this. I have for as long as I can remember.
I love this video, about the ugly duckling. "Think of where you come from, we are sons of daughters of God. He wants the best for us.....If we only understood who we are and what is in store for us."
I love that comment! "If we only understood who we are and what is in store for us." Obviously, because the title of my blog is Rememeber who you are and what you stand for!
I love the talk by Elder Jeffery R. Holland "To Young Women." This talk is amazing and it talks alot about how special women are to the Lord.. I mean we are all special, we are all sons and daughters.
In this talk he says something that i just love and read it often for myself..
"I plead with you young women to please be more accepting of yourselves, including your body shape and style, with a little less longing to look like someone else. We are all different. Some are tall, and some are short. Some are round, and some are thin. And almost everyone at some time or other wants to be something they are not! But as one adviser to teenage girls said: 'You can’t live your life worrying that the world is staring at you. When you let people’s opinions make you self-conscious you give away your power. … The key to feeling [confident] is to always listen to your inner self—[the real you.]' And in the kingdom of God, the real you is 'more precious than rubies.' Every young woman is a child of destiny and every adult woman a powerful force for good. I mention adult women because, sisters, you are our greatest examples and resource for these young women. And if you are obsessing over being a size 2, you won’t be very surprised when your daughter or the Mia Maid in your class does the same and makes herself physically ill trying to accomplish it. We should all be as fit as we can be—that’s good Word of Wisdom doctrine. That means eating right and exercising and helping our bodies function at their optimum strength. We could probably all do better in that regard. But I speak here of optimum health; there is no universal optimum size."
Please go to this talk and read it! The whole thing is amazing but I love this paragraph! I can really relate to this paragraph, cause this is something that I would do, we all do.
But why do we? I don't really know this answer. All i have to say is that I love this talk and I truly believe and agree with it..
We are precious daughters of God and He loves and we love Him. We are all different and thats ok. We have our own personalities, and talents. We are all special in our own way.
Remember, God created each and everyone of us individually. We are all special to Him. I know that! I'm still working on it. I know that Heavenly Father does love us no matter how we look! We are His children.
Remember,
Who you are and what you stand for!