One of my favorite Bible stories is centered on faith in Jesus Christ. It is the woman with an issue of blood. In Mark 5 it tells us that she had seen many doctors but after twelve years of suffering with this illness not one doctor had been able to heal her.
Christ walked past her and she said, "If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole." She reached out and "touched his garment."
Her healing was immediate: "...and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague."
Christ, feeling that power had been used to heal, turned and asked, "Who touched my clothes?" The woman, "fearing and trembling," came forward and told Him what had happened and what she had done.
Christ's response is one that we all desire to hear in one form or another: "Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague." (Mark 5:25-34)
This woman's faith, of such simplicity and yet such strength, allowed her to be healed - something that no one and nothing else had been able to accomplish.
Yet, at times our faith is tried. We seek help and see only sorrow. We try to fight and feel only despair and fear. At these times we often cry to the Lord, "Lord, I believe!" (Mark 9:24) We ask why the help is not coming, why the darkness seems so deep, why we can't find our way or even find Him. We have faith; we believe. And yet we cannot see God's hand anywhere.
At these times, let us cry not only, "Lord, I believe," but also, "Help thou mine unbelief."
The Lord desires to bless us. And He will. He desires to answer our prayers. And He will. But it must be in His time and in His way.
As we turn to the Lord in all things, no matter how small or insignificant we may feel the matter is, the Lord will bless us with additional knowledge and understanding. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland states, "When those [fear-filled and doubtful] moments come and issues surface, the resolution of which is not immediately forthcoming, hold fast to what you already know and stand strong until additional knowledge comes." And it will. (Lord, I Believe, General Conference April 2013)
God "will not leave [us] comfortless." (John 14:18) He will be with us as we are worthy of the companionship of the Holy Spirit.
As we plead with the Lord and say, "...if thou canst do any thing have compassion on [me]," the Lord's response is and will always be, "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him [or her] that believeth." (Mark 9:22-24)
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Friday, December 27, 2013
A Change of Heart
I remember a time only a year or so ago. I was in college, I was working to provide for myself, and I was trying to stay on top of all my paper work, reading, and writing. I was taking a class on The Book of Mormon and my teacher gave each of us the assignment to read from The Book of Mormon for at least 30 minutes every day.
At first I really struggled to do so. Thirty minutes out of my already insanely busy day? I didn't know if I would have the time.
There came a point when I realized that if I wanted to keep my grade in that class, I needed to begin reading. As I read, I marked off what I had studied, I filled out the study guides and I participated in class. Then I found myself loving what I was reading. I had read The Book of Mormon before, but this time was different. I began reading because I wanted to. I began reading because there was a difference in my day when I read - I was more patient, things didn't bother me as much, I wasn't as stressed and I could cope with the things I needed to.
I was becoming converted because I was reading the scriptures with a purpose - that of feeling the Spirit help me throughout the day.
Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles said, "Conversion is an enlarging, a deepening, and a broadening of the undergirding base of testimony." Conversion is something that must start with a basic testimony. Once we have a testimony - a basic belief that something is true or faith in something - we can then build upon that to become converted - to have a mighty change of heart and be more fully committed to living Christ-like lives. (Elder David A. Bednar, Converted Unto the Lord, General Conference, October 2012)
As we become converted to the Lord, we will have a greater desire to become like Christ and we will have a stronger desire and motivation to serve Him "with all [our] heart, might, mind, and strength." (Doctrine and Covenants 4)
We will also gain "...a change in [our] beliefs, heart, and life to accept and conform to the will of God and...a conscious commitment to become a disciple of Christ." (Elder David A. Bednar, Converted Unto the Lord, General Conference, October 2012)
However, conversion takes work. God expects us to work to achieve things and He will not simply hand our conversion to us on a silver platter.
Sister Cheryl C. Lant, the Primary General President, said, "There is only one way to become personally converted. It is through a witness of the Spirit as we study these very scriptures that testify of Jesus Christ. It comes as we pray and as we fast. It comes only when we have a deep desire to know the truth."
Elder Bednar adds to this and states that, "[True conversion] is the result of revelation from God, accompanied by individual repentance, obedience, and diligence."
We can become converted as we turn our lives over more fully to the Lord and as we strive ever more diligently to become like Him.
May the Lord bless us in our endeavors to become converted to Him and to His Gospel.
At first I really struggled to do so. Thirty minutes out of my already insanely busy day? I didn't know if I would have the time.
There came a point when I realized that if I wanted to keep my grade in that class, I needed to begin reading. As I read, I marked off what I had studied, I filled out the study guides and I participated in class. Then I found myself loving what I was reading. I had read The Book of Mormon before, but this time was different. I began reading because I wanted to. I began reading because there was a difference in my day when I read - I was more patient, things didn't bother me as much, I wasn't as stressed and I could cope with the things I needed to.
I was becoming converted because I was reading the scriptures with a purpose - that of feeling the Spirit help me throughout the day.
Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles said, "Conversion is an enlarging, a deepening, and a broadening of the undergirding base of testimony." Conversion is something that must start with a basic testimony. Once we have a testimony - a basic belief that something is true or faith in something - we can then build upon that to become converted - to have a mighty change of heart and be more fully committed to living Christ-like lives. (Elder David A. Bednar, Converted Unto the Lord, General Conference, October 2012)
As we become converted to the Lord, we will have a greater desire to become like Christ and we will have a stronger desire and motivation to serve Him "with all [our] heart, might, mind, and strength." (Doctrine and Covenants 4)
We will also gain "...a change in [our] beliefs, heart, and life to accept and conform to the will of God and...a conscious commitment to become a disciple of Christ." (Elder David A. Bednar, Converted Unto the Lord, General Conference, October 2012)
However, conversion takes work. God expects us to work to achieve things and He will not simply hand our conversion to us on a silver platter.
Sister Cheryl C. Lant, the Primary General President, said, "There is only one way to become personally converted. It is through a witness of the Spirit as we study these very scriptures that testify of Jesus Christ. It comes as we pray and as we fast. It comes only when we have a deep desire to know the truth."
Elder Bednar adds to this and states that, "[True conversion] is the result of revelation from God, accompanied by individual repentance, obedience, and diligence."
We can become converted as we turn our lives over more fully to the Lord and as we strive ever more diligently to become like Him.
May the Lord bless us in our endeavors to become converted to Him and to His Gospel.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
The Greatest Gift and Blessing
At this time of the year we celebrate one of the greatest gifts that God has given us: the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Christ was to come to earth as a baby, grow and learn from earthly parents, and then establish His church, call 12 Apostles, perform miracles, then suffer and die for us so that we might have the opportunity to repent and return to the live in the presence of God.
When Christ suffered for us, He took upon Himself not only our sins and mistakes, but also our pains, our sicknesses, our suffering, our guilt, our embarrassment, our fear and all of our weaknesses. It was so much that He "bled] from every pore, and...suffer[ed] both body and spirit - and would that [He] might not drink the bitter cup..." (Doctrine and Covenants 19:18). Yet Christ suffered so that we could repent.
One reason that He suffered all these things was so that He would be obedient to the Father's commandments.
However, there was another reason that He took upon Himself all of our pains and our transgressions and sins.
In Alma chapter 7, verses 11-13, it says that Christ would "go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind..."
Then the prophet Alma says, "...and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."
Christ suffered everything that we would ever go through so that He would know how to help us, how to lift us up, how to strengthen us because He had already been there. If no one else on earth knows how you feel, Christ does because He went through it. He was there. He struggled with exactly the same thing you and I do. He knows how we feel.
"God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son..." (John 3:16) And Christ so loved us that He suffered for us, He gave His life for us, and He extends His hand toward us that we may receive mercy if we will repent.
What a blessing it is to know that Christ lived and died for us. And what an even greater blessing to know that He lives now!
"And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!" (Doctrine and Covenants 76:22)
Christ was to come to earth as a baby, grow and learn from earthly parents, and then establish His church, call 12 Apostles, perform miracles, then suffer and die for us so that we might have the opportunity to repent and return to the live in the presence of God.
When Christ suffered for us, He took upon Himself not only our sins and mistakes, but also our pains, our sicknesses, our suffering, our guilt, our embarrassment, our fear and all of our weaknesses. It was so much that He "bled] from every pore, and...suffer[ed] both body and spirit - and would that [He] might not drink the bitter cup..." (Doctrine and Covenants 19:18). Yet Christ suffered so that we could repent.
One reason that He suffered all these things was so that He would be obedient to the Father's commandments.
However, there was another reason that He took upon Himself all of our pains and our transgressions and sins.
In Alma chapter 7, verses 11-13, it says that Christ would "go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind..."
Then the prophet Alma says, "...and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."
Christ suffered everything that we would ever go through so that He would know how to help us, how to lift us up, how to strengthen us because He had already been there. If no one else on earth knows how you feel, Christ does because He went through it. He was there. He struggled with exactly the same thing you and I do. He knows how we feel.
"God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son..." (John 3:16) And Christ so loved us that He suffered for us, He gave His life for us, and He extends His hand toward us that we may receive mercy if we will repent.
What a blessing it is to know that Christ lived and died for us. And what an even greater blessing to know that He lives now!
"And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!" (Doctrine and Covenants 76:22)
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
"And my soul hungered"
"And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in might prayer and supplication for mine own soul..." (Enos 1:4)
"And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore...[pouring] out [her] soul before the Lord." (1 Samuel 1:10,15)
"...I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God...exerting all my powers to [do so]..." (Joseph Smith-History 1:15,16)
Prayer has played a pivotal role throughout the scriptures. That is not surprising, considering that it is a commandment to call on the name of the Lord in prayer. In 2 Nephi, chapter 9 verses 8 and 9, we are told that the Spirit of the Lord teaches us to pray. Verse 9 states, "But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ..."
The prophet Alma teaches his sons to, "...cry unto God for all thy support...Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good..." (Alma 37:36,37)
The Lord has promised that if we will call on Him in the name of Christ, we will receive our righteous desires in His will and in His way: "Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." (Matthew 7:7)
Bishop Dean M. Davies, second counselor in the Presiding Bishopric said, "Prayer is one of the most basic and important foundational building blocks of our faith and character. Through prayer we are able to express our gratitude, love, and devotion to God. Through prayer we can submit our will to His and in return receive the strength to conform our lives to His teachings."
In the Bible Dictionary it says, "As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are His children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part...Prayer is..an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings."
God wants us to speak to Him. He has given us prayer in order for us to communicate with Him on a daily basis-in fact, more than just once a day!
The three quotes from the books of Enos, Samuel, and Joseph Smith-History (at the top of the page), are about three people who desired answers. They wanted peace of mind and a greater understanding of what the Lord wanted them to do. Enos desired forgiveness of his sins and for the blessings of the Lord to rest upon his family, his friends and even his enemies. Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, asked the Lord for a child and promised that the child would be given to Him to serve Him all its life. Joseph Smith sought an answer to an age-old dilemma: which church is true? Each of these faith-filled people sought the Lord in prayer and found Him. They found the answers that they so desperately desired.
One of my favorite lines in the book of Enos is "...I cried unto him in mighty prayer..."
Mighty prayer. I have thought a lot about what mighty prayer is. 'Might' or 'mighty' are synonyms for 'great' and 'powerful'. Mighty prayer is when we have a great desire for the things we are asking God for, whether that be help and strength to face trials and afflictions, relief from grief or pain, help for a family member or friend struggling with difficult decisions or disease, or anything else our heart yearns for.
"The Lord is in the details of our lives." He wants us to be happy and He has given us prayer so that we can obtain many of the blessings that He so greatly desires to give to us.
Prayer is real. It is how we communicate with God. It is how we express love, gratitude and devotion. It is 'an appointed way for obtaining the highest of blessings.'
God desires to bless us. He desires our happiness in this life and our eternal life in the world to come. Allow Him to bless you as you pray.
No matter how quickly the world seems to have fallen down, or no matter how happy life is right now, the Lord is there to comfort, strengthen and bless us. He is there so that we are never alone.
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) The Lord wants to give us peace. Through prayer, we can find the peace that Christ spoke of.
"And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore...[pouring] out [her] soul before the Lord." (1 Samuel 1:10,15)
"...I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God...exerting all my powers to [do so]..." (Joseph Smith-History 1:15,16)
Prayer has played a pivotal role throughout the scriptures. That is not surprising, considering that it is a commandment to call on the name of the Lord in prayer. In 2 Nephi, chapter 9 verses 8 and 9, we are told that the Spirit of the Lord teaches us to pray. Verse 9 states, "But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ..."
The prophet Alma teaches his sons to, "...cry unto God for all thy support...Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good..." (Alma 37:36,37)
The Lord has promised that if we will call on Him in the name of Christ, we will receive our righteous desires in His will and in His way: "Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." (Matthew 7:7)
Bishop Dean M. Davies, second counselor in the Presiding Bishopric said, "Prayer is one of the most basic and important foundational building blocks of our faith and character. Through prayer we are able to express our gratitude, love, and devotion to God. Through prayer we can submit our will to His and in return receive the strength to conform our lives to His teachings."
In the Bible Dictionary it says, "As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are His children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part...Prayer is..an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings."
God wants us to speak to Him. He has given us prayer in order for us to communicate with Him on a daily basis-in fact, more than just once a day!
The three quotes from the books of Enos, Samuel, and Joseph Smith-History (at the top of the page), are about three people who desired answers. They wanted peace of mind and a greater understanding of what the Lord wanted them to do. Enos desired forgiveness of his sins and for the blessings of the Lord to rest upon his family, his friends and even his enemies. Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, asked the Lord for a child and promised that the child would be given to Him to serve Him all its life. Joseph Smith sought an answer to an age-old dilemma: which church is true? Each of these faith-filled people sought the Lord in prayer and found Him. They found the answers that they so desperately desired.
One of my favorite lines in the book of Enos is "...I cried unto him in mighty prayer..."
Mighty prayer. I have thought a lot about what mighty prayer is. 'Might' or 'mighty' are synonyms for 'great' and 'powerful'. Mighty prayer is when we have a great desire for the things we are asking God for, whether that be help and strength to face trials and afflictions, relief from grief or pain, help for a family member or friend struggling with difficult decisions or disease, or anything else our heart yearns for.
"The Lord is in the details of our lives." He wants us to be happy and He has given us prayer so that we can obtain many of the blessings that He so greatly desires to give to us.
Prayer is real. It is how we communicate with God. It is how we express love, gratitude and devotion. It is 'an appointed way for obtaining the highest of blessings.'
God desires to bless us. He desires our happiness in this life and our eternal life in the world to come. Allow Him to bless you as you pray.
No matter how quickly the world seems to have fallen down, or no matter how happy life is right now, the Lord is there to comfort, strengthen and bless us. He is there so that we are never alone.
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) The Lord wants to give us peace. Through prayer, we can find the peace that Christ spoke of.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
For Thy Experience
What kinds of things have you been asked to sacrifice during your life?
For most of us the sacrifices we have been asked to make are small in the long-run. Most of us are not asked to forsake our families, our homes, and our livelihoods. Most of us are not asked to sacrifice millions of dollars. But there are some that have been asked to do that.
In the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, there have been many people who have sought to do the will of the Lord and have been asked to sacrifice everything that they have in order to build their testimonies and their faith in Christ. Some of these are the pioneers. The Mormon pioneers left everything behind in order to follow the prophet of God just like the Israelites left Egypt to follow Moses. The Israelites also followed Joshua into foreign lands because the Lord commanded them to. They were obedient. They did the things that they were asked to because they trusted the Lord and knew that He would bless them for their efforts and their strict obedience.
Just like the Mormon pioneers, we have pioneers around us everyday. They are people who understand the command of the Lord to 'trust in [Him] with all [their] heart...' (Proverbs 3:5) They are people who move forward with the faith and trust that the Lord will never lead them astray but will guide them in the paths of righteousness and in the way that they are supposed to go.
The sacrifices that the Lord asks us to make are for our good and our benefit. He loves us and will never ask us to sacrifice things that will not teach us and help us to learn and grow. In the Doctrine and Covenants 122:7,9 the Lord says, "all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good...therefore, fear not...for God shall be with you forever and ever."
A favorite Old Testament scripture of mine is 1 Samuel 17:47. It says, "...the battle is the Lord's..."
The Lord will fight our battles for us as we are obedient and seek to do His will in all things. He will make our sacrifices worth it.
For most of us the sacrifices we have been asked to make are small in the long-run. Most of us are not asked to forsake our families, our homes, and our livelihoods. Most of us are not asked to sacrifice millions of dollars. But there are some that have been asked to do that.
In the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, there have been many people who have sought to do the will of the Lord and have been asked to sacrifice everything that they have in order to build their testimonies and their faith in Christ. Some of these are the pioneers. The Mormon pioneers left everything behind in order to follow the prophet of God just like the Israelites left Egypt to follow Moses. The Israelites also followed Joshua into foreign lands because the Lord commanded them to. They were obedient. They did the things that they were asked to because they trusted the Lord and knew that He would bless them for their efforts and their strict obedience.
Just like the Mormon pioneers, we have pioneers around us everyday. They are people who understand the command of the Lord to 'trust in [Him] with all [their] heart...' (Proverbs 3:5) They are people who move forward with the faith and trust that the Lord will never lead them astray but will guide them in the paths of righteousness and in the way that they are supposed to go.
The sacrifices that the Lord asks us to make are for our good and our benefit. He loves us and will never ask us to sacrifice things that will not teach us and help us to learn and grow. In the Doctrine and Covenants 122:7,9 the Lord says, "all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good...therefore, fear not...for God shall be with you forever and ever."
A favorite Old Testament scripture of mine is 1 Samuel 17:47. It says, "...the battle is the Lord's..."
The Lord will fight our battles for us as we are obedient and seek to do His will in all things. He will make our sacrifices worth it.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Faith, Hope and Football
Something that has come up repeatedly in the past few days is hope and faith. In a talk given by Elder Neal A. Maxwell, he says, "Ultimate hope is...tied to Jesus and the blessings of the great Atonement...” (2 Ne. 31:20). (Neal A. Maxwell, Hope Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ Jan. 1999)
Hope is an assurance that the Lord will help us in the ways that we need. We have hope when we trust in God's promises and believe that He will "prepare a way that [we] may accomplish the thing which He commandeth [us]." (1 Nephi 3:7)Hope is tied very tightly to faith.
One of my favorite scriptures on faith is Hebrews 11:1 which says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
For you football lovers, this was an explanation of faith that made a lot of sense to me: There were three football players on a team. One of them was small and skinny. He really really really wanted to be state champ-he had a hope or desire for that to happen. But he didn't have the build or the ability to build muscle in the way that was needed for him to eventually become state champ. He didn't have the evidence that it could happen.
The second young man was very strong, very built and was a great football player simply by nature. He had the evidence that he could become state champ if he wanted to and if he worked at it. But he didn't care about being state champ and he didn't work to become it. He lacked hope.
This third football player, however, had both the evidence and the hope that he could become state champion. He was strong, fast, able, and he wanted to be state champion. He worked for it. He had both parts that are necessary for faith: a hope and desire for it to happen, and an evidence or assurance that it could and would.
Without hope, faith is non-existent. They are intertwined inseparably. We must hope or desire that God will answer our prayers before we can have faith that He will.
In the Book of Mormon in Alma 32, verse 27, the prophet Alma says, "But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words."
This desire that Alma talks about is hope. If we can no more than HOPE that the Book of Mormon is true, that God lives, that He speaks to men on the earth today, 'let this desire work in you'. Try it out. 'Experiment upon the word'. Pray about it. The Lord has promised us that if we ask, He will answer; if we knock, He will open.
Let what faith you have be turned to the Lord. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we can learn to hope more fully. We can strengthen our faith and our belief in the ability of Christ to cleanse us from our sins, our mistakes, and our weaknesses. And as we exercise what faith we have, the Lord will bless us with more faith and more understanding. He will fill our hearts with the love that He has for each of His children. He desires us to believe in Him and to one day return to live with Him.
My challenge to you today is to 'experiment upon the word'. Read the testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the 1st chapter of the Book of Mormon. Pray about it. Ask God if it is true. He will answer you if you are patient and truly seeking for an answer to guide and direct you.
Hope is an assurance that the Lord will help us in the ways that we need. We have hope when we trust in God's promises and believe that He will "prepare a way that [we] may accomplish the thing which He commandeth [us]." (1 Nephi 3:7)Hope is tied very tightly to faith.
One of my favorite scriptures on faith is Hebrews 11:1 which says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
For you football lovers, this was an explanation of faith that made a lot of sense to me: There were three football players on a team. One of them was small and skinny. He really really really wanted to be state champ-he had a hope or desire for that to happen. But he didn't have the build or the ability to build muscle in the way that was needed for him to eventually become state champ. He didn't have the evidence that it could happen.
The second young man was very strong, very built and was a great football player simply by nature. He had the evidence that he could become state champ if he wanted to and if he worked at it. But he didn't care about being state champ and he didn't work to become it. He lacked hope.
This third football player, however, had both the evidence and the hope that he could become state champion. He was strong, fast, able, and he wanted to be state champion. He worked for it. He had both parts that are necessary for faith: a hope and desire for it to happen, and an evidence or assurance that it could and would.
Without hope, faith is non-existent. They are intertwined inseparably. We must hope or desire that God will answer our prayers before we can have faith that He will.
In the Book of Mormon in Alma 32, verse 27, the prophet Alma says, "But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words."
This desire that Alma talks about is hope. If we can no more than HOPE that the Book of Mormon is true, that God lives, that He speaks to men on the earth today, 'let this desire work in you'. Try it out. 'Experiment upon the word'. Pray about it. The Lord has promised us that if we ask, He will answer; if we knock, He will open.
Let what faith you have be turned to the Lord. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we can learn to hope more fully. We can strengthen our faith and our belief in the ability of Christ to cleanse us from our sins, our mistakes, and our weaknesses. And as we exercise what faith we have, the Lord will bless us with more faith and more understanding. He will fill our hearts with the love that He has for each of His children. He desires us to believe in Him and to one day return to live with Him.
My challenge to you today is to 'experiment upon the word'. Read the testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the 1st chapter of the Book of Mormon. Pray about it. Ask God if it is true. He will answer you if you are patient and truly seeking for an answer to guide and direct you.
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