...the angels stood in reverence...

Sorry for going all AWOL this last week... I know you all missed me so much... :)

I just didn't have any superbly pressing things to share. It takes a bit of thinking sometimes, and I just haven't had the time to sit down and... think (wow. lamest statement ever).

Anyways, I wanted to share this song with you guys. Emma by the Nashville Tribute Band.

I looked all over to find somewhere to embed it from. This was the best I found. Click play, it will open up in a separate window, click play again, switch back, and you can read the lyrics! I always like reading the lyrics while listening to a song. Gives you something to do.
(The big, bolded line is my favorite if you couldn't tell.)

Oh! And exit out of the window when the song ends. Another random one will probably start up. Seems to keep happening to me. Sorry, best I could do. :)


  Emm

-------------------------------------------------------
Never had an ordinary day

Never lived your life in an ordinary way

For everything you loved you paid a price

But you couldn't let the world see you cry

Never had a moment of peace

Never felt the sunlight

When the worries set you free

Every time your life turned a page

It seemed like your heart might break

With the world on your shoulders

When the nights had grown colder

You seemed to weather every storm

With a queen's grace

When you lost your husband

When you buried your children

I'm sure the angels stood in reverence as you prayed

How much can one heart take 

How much can one heart take

Never had a day to call your own

When so many needed your warm heart as a home

Whispering a mother's lullaby

As you sat alone by the fire

With the world on your shoulders

When the nights had grown colder

You seemed to weather every storm

With a queen's grace

When you lost your husband

When you buried your children

I'm sure the angels stood in reverence as you prayed

How much can one heart take 

How much can one heart take

With the world on your shoulders

When the nights had grown colder

You seemed to weather every storm

With a queen's grace

When you lost your husband

When you buried your children

I'm sure the angels stood in reverence as you prayed

And I'm sure your heart breaks, when some people still say

Somewhere down the line you lost your faith

How much can one heart take -

How much can one heart take?

-------------------------------------------------------------

Oh and just if you didn't know - Katherine Nelson sings this song. 

Mind = Blown. You're welcome.* 

Now I'm going to repeat that line that's quite simply just my favorite. 

I'm sure the angels stood in reverence as you prayed.

I love the thought of a God who weeps. 
Angels who feel. Who love. 

Just think of that. A God who weeps. The most powerful being you could ever imagine. Weeping for the sorrow of mankind.
The love our Father feels for all of us - even you and me - is unimaginable. This we know, and we always say.
But - a God who weeps? 

It's an incredible thought.

( ^We know the guy who painted this! His mom is in our ward!)

I think this is a cool picture of Christ's birth and depicts just how aware and close the Angels in Heaven truly are. 

They are aware of you. People you love beyond the veil - whether you remember them or not - are so much closer than you think. You could've been best friends with some of these spirits in years long ago. Those angels are rooting for you. 

They are angels who stand in reverence of you and cry with you. 

You are never alone. Powerful beings with infinite passion are all around you. 

An incredible thought, indeed. 







*This, for like 5 minutes, read "your welcome".  I almost fell over when I caught my mistake. That's always been a pet peeve of mine. :)

a stone of stumbling.

I shared this quote in a devotional I did in seminary the other day (from my favorite talk ever that you can read here)...

"I testify that one cannot come to full faith in this latter-day work—and thereby find the fullest measure of peace and comfort in these, our times—until he or she embraces the divinity of the Book of Mormon and the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it testifies. If anyone is foolish enough or misled enough to reject 531 pages of a heretofore unknown text teeming with literary and Semitic complexity without honestly attempting to account for the origin of those pages—especially without accounting for their powerful witness of Jesus Christ and the profound spiritual impact that witness has had on what is now tens of millions of readers—if that is the case, then such a person, elect or otherwise, has been deceived; and if he or she leaves this Church, it must be done by crawling over or under or around the Book of Mormon to make that exit. In that sense the book is what Christ Himself was said to be: 'a stone of stumbling, … a rock of offence,' a barrier in the path of one who wishes not to believe in this work. Witnesses, even witnesses who were for a time hostile to Joseph, testified to their death that they had seen an angel and had handled the plates. 'They have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man,” they declared. “Wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true.'"

-Jeffrey R. Holland

Okay so I know that was a long quote... but so good, right??

I underlined my favorite parts... oh, and you really should hear him give the talk. He is such a good speaker. I'm sure you could find it on youtube... the talk is called Safety for the Soul. 

So I wanted to do a post on the Book of Mormon because it is just such a blessing in my life and a major - and often misunderstood - part of our gospel.

I love this picture. 

You know, people sometimes find it hard to follow the Book of Mormon and don't learn from it the way they could. 

Ha. Who am I kidding? Me included.

But the Book of Mormon is so cool. It is a history book. 

Something I think is so cool is that this great book - well - makes perfect sense. 

Let me explain. We believe that the Book of Mormon is the record of the people living in the Americas in ancient days... The Old and New Testaments - the Bible - aren't set in North or South America. But people were there. 

And after Christ was resurrected, He appeared to them. 

It's such a cool record - and explains what went on among the Ancient Americas. See? History book. We just got it later than we got the Bible. 

Until 1827, the records were simply buried in the ground. 

I mean, even thinking it out logically it still makes sense to me. And reading it - praying about it - just seals the deal. 

When I went to Nauvoo and later to Kirtland visiting some church history sites, I learned a little about a group of people that broke off of our church a long time ago because after Joseph died, they didn't believe Brigham Young was a prophet. They created a completely separate church from ours that still exists today. 

Anyways. My point in this is that that church still claims to believe in the Book of Mormon. They were selling copies, in fact. 

There are so many things wrong with this in my mind. ha. But one thing I thought was interesting was that those people still didn't deny the Book of Mormon. Even if they don't practice their religion in the way I believe the Book of Mormon teaches - they don't deny its truthfulness. 

One of my favorite parts of the very first quote was when he said that to leave this church you would have to crawl over or under or around the Book of Mormon to make your exit. 

The witness of Jesus Christ it contains simply Cannot. Be. Denied. Because of this, it should act as a barrier. 

I guess they wanted to leave the church, so they took the Book of Mormon with them! Dumb loopholes. jk haha.

And now, in our day, this precious, absolutely true book is being attacked from all sides. 

So what do we do about it? 

I love one action the Church took. 

They bought ad space in the Broadway show The Book of Mormon's play books. 

They sought out a way they could make this a somewhat positive thing. And I have to say, I think those ads are pretty sweet. 

Anyways. Don't get all ticked off. People just don't know. 

So explain. Understand. Share your testimony. 

Because a testimony of the Book of Mormon is something I wish everyone could have in their life.

So be grateful for this wonderful book! Try to see it as a history of your people (whether they are technically your ancestors or not)!

See it as a blessing from God. An undeniable truth. A constant in your life. 

And you will be so incredibly blessed and learn so much. 

This I know. 

And I promise you can know too.

i could never find the words...

Last Wednesday marked the anniversary of the martyrdom of our own beloved prophet Joseph Smith.




Elder Holland (as always) gave an incredibly powerful talk. To read the whole thing, click here.

"They were willing to die rather than deny the divine origin and the eternal truthfulness of the Book of Mormon."


Something has to be really really important to someone if they are willing to die for it.

I know that if a man were ever to wrongly claim that they had received divine witness of the truthfulness of a book that they had written themselves... Well... I'm pretty sure that power would be the motive behind such a lie.
And what power would they have after they were dead?

No, if a man is willing to die rather than deny the truthfulness of that book... then that book is true.

[did all that make sense?]


The 135th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants is my very favorite.

"the Book of Mormon, and this book of Doctrine and Covenants of the church, cost the best blood of the nineteenth century to bring them forth for the salvation of a ruined world;"
[taken from verse 6]

I could never find the words to express my infinite gratitude and respect towards my prophet Joseph Smith.

I could never say thank you enough.





P.S. Please find the time to watch the video embedded in this post. It can strengthen your testimony so much... Aaah. I just don't have words. Please watch it. You will be so glad you did.

Memorial Day... 2012

A memory is what is left when something happens and does not completely unhappen.  ~Edward de Bono

You know... I've heard that remember is the most important word in the English language... 

And I think that that's true.

So... remember.

Remember what people have sacrificed for you in the past... 

And remember the people that are making sacrifices for you now.

And never ever take for granted the gifts that they have given you. 

And always live with a grateful heart.

To all those who have given me freedoms... and to those who are fighting today so that I can keep those freedoms... thank you.

To those who have sacrificed more than I could ever imagine... so that I could have the gospel... thank you.

And to you... thank you for giving me perspective... and something to look forward to.

Real People.

One Good Woman by Cherie Call

Mary Chilton never knew what the salty winds would do

When she stepped aboard and sailed away on a 1620 autumn day

At Plymouth Rock she was the first to touch dry ground

But she became an orphan when the winter came and the tears fell down

But she grew, and married a good man

And they had eleven children

And they would never understand what she'd been through but they knew 

That a girl of just thirteen 

Crossed one big ocean 

And that she grew up to be

One good woman

And Polly Angel didn't know what the hands of time would show

When she dressed in white and said, "I do" in the fall of 1832

Her life would change that very year forever more

When they heard the message of two strangers at their door they headed west

And Polly had six children, but only two survived

And they could never understand what she'd been through

But they knew that a woman of great faith

Crossed one big country

And that they were being raised 

By one good woman

There they are, written in the spaces of a family tree

Till it all comes down to me

I know that I can never say that I'm the only one who's prayed 

For pain to end or love to last or for time not to go by so fast

But it will fly and in a hundred years from now

Will there ever be someone who reads my name and wonders

If I laughed

Or if I believed in Jesus

Or if my heart were ever broken

They may never understand what I go through

But I will live the best that I know how

For one big lifetime

It's not too much to ask

Of one good woman

----------

     To forget one’s ancestors is to be a brook without a source, a tree without a root. 

(Chinese Proverb)

I know I've shared the following quote before, but I love what President Gordon B. Hinckley said about remembering the pioneers...

“I will never get over being thankful to them; I hope you never get over being thankful to them. I hope that we will always remember them. . . . Let us read again and again, and read to our children or our children’s children, the accounts of those who suffered so much.”
- Gordon B. Hinckley  

Joseph Smith said that "The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead." Just remember while doing genealogy... That those people are not just names on a page. 

They really lived and breathed.

They quarreled with their siblings

They fell in love.

They worked for their families.

They were homemakers.

They played with their kids.

They burnt dinner.

They laughed and goofed off.

It's hard for us to imagine sometimes... but when you research your family history or do ordinances for those who have died... try to picture them. 

...I'll bet that they're up there with a smile on their face, so grateful to you for completing the work they couldn't finish while on the earth. 

182 Years...

Just if you were wondering... the Church was organized on Apr. 6, 1830. 182 years ago today.

An Introduction to The Book of Mormon

     I've been writing this blog with the mind-set that it would be members of the church reading it... As I've gotten many page views from people all over the web, I decided that I want to do a basic introduction of the Book of Mormon and the missionaries...(missionaries tomorrow).



 

   
The following video is about a man whose life was changed forever because of this wonderful book. I'm sure that the lives of many others will also be changed because of him...




     I looked up the talk given by Tad R. Callister at the last General Conference to find a quote, because I remembered he gave an awesome talk on the Book of Mormon in the Sunday morning session last October...
     But there were too many good ones! It seriously took me forever to decide which words to quote on here... I did finally decided, but I would invite you to read the entire talk here. 


-----

"But why is the Book of Mormon so essential if we already have the Bible to teach us about Jesus Christ? Have you ever wondered why there are so many Christian churches in the world today when they obtain their doctrines from essentially the same Bible? It is because they interpret the Bible differently. If they interpreted it the same, they would be the same church. This is not a condition the Lord desires, for the Apostle Paul declared that there is “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5). To help bring this oneness about, the Lord established a divine law of witnesses. Paul taught, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established” (2 Corinthians 13:1)."

"The Bible is one witness of Jesus Christ; the Book of Mormon is another. Why is this second witness so crucial? The following illustration may help: How many straight lines can you draw through a single point on a piece of paper? The answer is infinite. For a moment, suppose that single point represents the Bible and that hundreds of those straight lines drawn through that point represent different interpretations of the Bible and that each of those interpretations represents a different church."

"What happens, however, if on that piece of paper there is a second point representing the Book of Mormon? How many straight lines could you draw between these two reference points: the Bible and the Book of Mormon? Only one. Only one interpretation of Christ’s doctrines survives the testimony of these two witnesses."

This is my attempt to recreate the picture they showed...  Don't laugh at it... I'm already feeling a little OCD about the top part! :)

-----

Okay...
     Do we believe in The Bible? Obviously yes.
One of our Articles of Faith states
"We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God."
(AofF 8... to read the others, click here.)

     So does that make us Christian?
Absolutely. 
     A Christian is anyone who believes in Jesus Christ, and that He is the redeemer of our sins. I don't know how anyone can argue that we are not Christians... our church is named after Christ!

     Now... I am not a convert to the church. I was born into the gospel. I do have a strong testimony of the Book of Mormon. I see miracles happen in our church every day. I know that this is the true gospel restored to the earth, because I feel the Spirit when I learn about the scriptures, and when I go to church.
     I've had the opportunity to go to pretty much all of the Church history sites in the U.S. When I was in Palmyra, New York, which is where the First Vision occurred, I gained a deeper gratitude for this book, and for all that Joseph Smith sacrificed to give it to us.
     When I was in Nauvoo,  Illinois, one of the cities that the early saints settled, it was peaceful. It felt like taking a step back in time, and I gained a deeper gratitude there too. A gratitude to those early saints who gave all that they could to have the gospel.

     I know that the Church is true, and that the Book of Mormon is true, because I have felt things. I just know it in my heart, and I could never deny it.


Please click here to learn about the Book of Mormon in greater depth.
To request a free copy of this amazing book, please click here. 


Moroni 10:4 - And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 - And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

Did one of my posts leave a lasting impression on you? I'd love to hear about it! Comment below! 

Want to read about the layout of my blog? Click here.

Hope Ya Know, We Had a Hard Time

  The following video was from a talk given by Elder Quentin L. Cook. I was babysitting some boys in my neighborhood a couple weeks ago, and noticed that there were dozens of conference talks downloaded on their computer. I started listening to some of them after the kids had gone to bed.
     This video on YouTube caught my eye, because I remembered that I had heard the title somewhere... but I couldn't remember where. Then I remembered after watching it... I listened to it while babysitting. It really is a great talk. To read the full address, click here.




     This is like... my third post that focuses on trials. It takes me a lot of research and time to write these posts, but it seems like every time I'm looking for videos or other media... many, many of them are about trials.
     So why is this?
     Well... I think that trials are something that everyone can relate to. No matter how you live your life, how rich or poor you are, or what health you are in... it doesn't matter. You WILL experience great adversity in your life.
   
     One of the greatest questions that people ask in life is... why do good people suffer so much?
     This is a hard question to answer in a way that satisfies the asker, but if they were to go through a hard trial, they would understand.
     Trials make us turn to God.

     I'm not going to type it out in this post, but President Monson wrote an amazing article for the Washington Post on the ten-year anniversary of 9/11.
     PLEASE click here to read it. It is SO good. and it's not even that long.

     But if you don't... he basically points out that in this time of tragedy, a huge percentage of Americans rediscovered the need for God in their lives. He talks about a "surge of faith" that followed 9/11.
     He then talks about how the "renewal of faith has waned in the years that have followed."

     You see... when things were terrible, people felt like they couldn't do it on their own, so they turned to the Lord for grace. People often forget though, the wonderful lessons that they learn through these trials, and the mercy that they felt.

     Trials teach us lessons, and bring us closer to Christ. Always. That is why people suffer.

     Something to remember though, is that your trials will not last forever. Sometimes it feels like it, but remember what we learn in D&C 121...


Joseph Smith is a prisoner in Liberty Jail at the time, while many saints are suffering greatly in Nauvoo. 


He asks in verse one, "O God, where art thou?" And then continues...

2- How long shall thy hand be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?

 3- Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?

 4- O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devil, and the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol—stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.

 5- Let thine anger be kindled against our enemies; and, in the fury of thine heart, with thy sword avenge us of our wrongs.

 6- Remember thy suffering saints, O our God; and thy servants will rejoice in thy name forever.

And what is his answer?

 7- My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;

 8- And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.

 9- Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands.

 10- Thou art not yet as Job; thy friends do not contend against thee, neither charge thee with transgression, as they did Job.

     For some reason, I've always liked the part of verse ten that says "Thou art not yet as Job;" You might know the story of Job. He is the ultimate example of staying strong through trials. He lost his family, his property, his health, and more... but through it all, he praised God.

     "Thou are not yet as Job" reminds me that there is always someone going through a trial harder, or just as hard, as mine. It could always be worse.

     And never forget... the Savior atoned for your sins. He has truly been through everything that you will go through. He ALWAYS knows how you feel.     

     And when you are in the heavens, and say, "Hope ya know, we had a hard time..." He will understand. 

Brother Joseph

     In school once, we had to think about what famous person we would first want to talk to if we died. I can't really remember who I chose at the time, (For some reason I think it was Amelia Earhart...?) But now... I'd choose Joseph Smith. In a heartbeat. I'd love to talk to him and thank him from the bottom of my heart for everything that he did for me and for our church.
 
     I've always known that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I've never doubted the fact that he had a vision, and that he translated the Book of Mormon with divine help.
     As I've gotten older, I've gained a new love and respect for our prophet Joseph Smith.

     One of my favorite sections in the Docterine and Covenants is section 135. It was written by John Taylor, and it was the first section written after Joseph and Hyrum were martyred.

Here are a few of my favorite verses in this section... (And I know that this looks like a lot of words.... if you want, just read the highlighted parts.)

-------------------------------------
D&C 135:3-  Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it. In the short space of twenty years, he has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing it on two continents; has sent the fulness of the everlasting gospel, which it contained, to the four quarters of the earth; has brought forth the revelations and commandments which compose this book of Doctrine and Covenants, and many other wise documents and instructions for the benefit of the children of men; gathered many thousands of the Latter-day Saints, founded a great city, and left a fame and name that cannot be slain. He lived great, and he died great in the eyes of God and his people; and like most of the Lord’s anointed in ancient times, has sealed his mission and his works with his own blood; and so has his brother Hyrum. In life they were not divided, and in death they were not separated!


6- Hyrum Smith was forty-four years old in February, 1844, and Joseph Smith was thirty-eight in December, 1843; and henceforward their names will be classed among the martyrs of religion; and the reader in every nation will be reminded that the Book of Mormon, and this book of Doctrine and Covenants of the church, cost the best blood of the nineteenth century to bring them forth for the salvation of a ruined world; and that if the fire can scathe a green tree for the glory of God, how easy it will burn up the dry trees to purify the vineyard of corruption. They lived for glory; they died for glory; and glory is their eternal reward. From age to age shall their names go down to posterity as gems for the sanctified.

7- They were innocent of any crime, as they had often been proved before, and were only confined in jail by the conspiracy of traitors and wicked men; and their innocent blood on the floor of Carthage jail is a broad seal affixed to “Mormonism” that cannot be rejected by any court on earth, and their innocent blood on the escutcheon of the State of Illinois, with the broken faith of the State as pledged by the governor, is a witness to the truth of the everlasting gospel that all the world cannot impeach; and their innocent blood on the banner of liberty, and on the magna charta of the United States, is an ambassador for the religion of Jesus Christ, that will touch the hearts of honest men among all nations; and their innocent blood, with the innocent blood of all the martyrs under the ^aaltar that John saw, will cry unto the Lord of Hosts till he avenges that blood on the earth. Amen.


-----------------------


     Wow.... Our prophet Joseph Smith died so that I can have the gospel... So that you can have the gospel, too... He was persecuted by people his whole life, but endured it well. He had an amazing eternal perspective and trusted in God. Always.
     When I was at youth conference, we watched the Joseph Smith movie, and then sang Praise To The Man. It was a very spiritual experience for me, and my testimony of Joseph Smith grew a mile that night. 
     One thing that is very evident to me when I watch movies, look at pictures, and read about Joseph Smith, is that he was such a kind and loved man. Everybody loved "Brother Joseph". He was always preaching, doing service, playing with the kids, and smiling. He always put the gospel and its teachings first, even though many people hated him for it. 


     It is a very noble thing to die for your religion. Nowadays, you may be persecuted for being a member of this church, but most likely not as much as the saints in Joseph's day were. 
     Living in the United States in 2011, we have laws that protect people of different religions. Because of this, you will probably never be asked to die for your religion. 

I think that it may be just as noble to live for it.  

     This is the video that we watched while I was at youth conference. It is about an hour long, but SO worth watching. Maybe you could watch it for family home evening. Maybe you could wait till everyone else is in bed, enlarge it on your screen, and pop some popcorn. 


Either way, if you find time, you will not regret watching it. It will definitely bring the spirit to your day and increase your testimony. (Just have tissues handy... I bawled the first time I watched this... and I am not a cryer.)





Video can be found at this site.

Praise to the Man is now my favorite hymn... it has such powerful words...

1. Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!
Jesus anointed that Prophet and Seer.
Blessed to open the last dispensation,
Kings shall extol him, and nations revere.

[Chorus]
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

2. Praise to his mem’ry, he died as a martyr;
Honored and blest be his ever great name!
Long shall his blood, which was shed by assassins,
Plead unto heav’n while the earth lauds his fame.

3. Great is his glory and endless his priesthood.
Ever and ever the keys he will hold.
Faithful and true, he will enter his kingdom,
Crowned in the midst of the prophets of old.

4. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven;
Earth must atone for the blood of that man.
Wake up the world for the conflict of justice.
Millions shall know “Brother Joseph” again.