The Christmas Gift.

I LOVE Christmas. Its such a fun time of year! I love the lights, I love the snow, I love the songs, and most of all I love the GIFTS

There is one thing I do not enjoy about Christmas. Growing up, every year on Christmas day I found my self crying. The reasons would change year to year. One year it would be I didn't get what I wanted. the next it would be I wanted what my brother got. One year I was determined not to cry, but after sledding with my family and getting run over by my brothers I found myself crying yet again. Year after Year on Christmas day I would find myself in tears. And every year my family would point it out. "You always cry on Christmas!" "Its like a new tradition!" 

Well I didn't like this. I wanted this tradition to end. I was NOT going to cry next Christmas. I had made up my mind. I remember the day well.

Christmas day, 7:00 am and most of the presents had already been unwrapped. I was completely satisfied with all of my gifts. This year it was legos, as it was most years. I as thrilled with all that I had received. There were no complaints to be made! And the best part was knowing that somewhere in our house, I had one last present hidden away. The hidden present was part of the Walters family tradition. The hidden present was always the biggest, the best, and the most exciting present of all, and the excitement and suspense of following clue after clue to find it made it even better. The thoughts were playing through the back of my mind all morning. What would it be? how big was it? how long until we got to go searching? All of this added to my joy that I had not as yet cried this Christmas! It had been the best Christmas of my life! 

I remember some one mentioning the smell of something melting. We all gathered around the tree inspecting the ornaments and lights to see what was the cause of the melting plastic smell. Then suddenly my Dad's eyes got wide and he rushed over to the oven, which had just been per heating for Christmas lunch. My Dad then pulled out a crisp burnt Christmas package, the edges singed and the wrapping paper black. And there in the middle of the gift was the name to who it belonged. 

TO: REID 

The tears could not be stopped. All the joy and gladness from a few moments before was washed away. My great gift had been ruined, as well as was my Christmas. I had cried yet again.

  There have been years since then and I still to this day think I have cried at each occasion. The tears flow for different reasons now. Tears of joy, tears from the joy of others. Tears from hearing the sweet voices of my parents and family. Each year I tell myself this year will be the one where I break the tradition. And each year I find myself  wiping my eyes. And each year I am brought back to that year Christmas went wrong, all because my gift was ruined. I'm sure I am not the only one who has experienced sadness from having a gift, or surprise be ruined. I'm sure others have felt the same devastation as their gift was stolen, lost, or broken. Even some may have had their gifts taken away, and the feeling is undeniably horrible at the loss of a gift. 

I want to now talk about a GIFT that was given to each one of us, that can never be taken away. A GIFT that can not be broken, bought, or burnt. Ruined, robbed, or replaced. The GIFT that I am referring to is the GIFT of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

In the Little town of Bethlehem, some 2000 years ago, a baby was born in a stable. This baby whose beginnings were extremely humble would grow up, and one day hang and die on a cross for each of us. His suffering in the garden, his death on the cross, and his rising on the third day makes for each of us, the greatest GIFT we can ever receive. The GIFT of eternal life.(Romans 6:23)

I know that through the atonement of our Savior, we can all live with our Heavenly Father again. I know that He died for me, and that his GIFT is already given. It cannot and will not be taken away. Our Heavenly Father loves us, and as we seek Jesus Christ in our lives, especially during this Christmas season, I promise that you will feel his personal love for you. He is the TRUE meaning of Christmas. 

"Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit. Enemies are forgiven, friends remembered, and God obeyed. The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world’s busy life and become more interested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable and it becomes the Spirit of Christ."

-Thomas S. Monson

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2010-12-0140-the-greatest-gift?lang=eng

The Companionship of the Holy Ghost

 

 I have a lot of crazy stories and I figure that I may as well share some.
(These stories are real, the names are changed.)


This one time....

Waul and Beid were driving down the highway. They lived in the middle of no where so these drives were often long and tiring. They made these long trips 2 or 3 times a week. On this particular day they had gotten up extra early that morning to play sports. They then got ready for the day, traveled the long drive to the next town for a meeting and then they started their drive back home. Beid was really tired and had been sitting in the passenger seat trying his best to stay awake. He could have easily been sleeping the whole time seeing as he wasn't the driver, But he didn't want to be unfair to Waul, so he did his best to keep his eyes open. They drove around a bend and ahead of them was a long stretch of highway. Beid was about to close his eyes again, when he noticed they were drifting slowly into on coming traffic. He quickly grabbed a hold of the wheel and steered them gently back into their lane just in time for a semi-truck to go whizzing by. Bied looked at Waul who had fallen asleep but was now gripping the wheel tightly with both hands and staring wide eyed, and jaw dropped at the road in front them.

 

They were both pretty lucky that day and they made sure it never happened again. Waul made sure he never fell asleep again while driving and Beid did the same. How tragic it would have been for Waul if he had been alone.

This is exactly why we have the 'gift of the Holy Ghost', a blessing that our loving Heavenly Father promises to all those who "Repent, and be baptized... in the name of Jesus Christ..." Acts 2:38

When we are baptized we promise with God that we will keep the commandments and follow Jesus Christ. He then promises us that we can have the Holy Ghost as a constant companion, meaning it can always be with us to guide us and warn us of danger.

Just as Waul would have been hurt really badly if Beid hadn't been there to help him, we too can suffer both physical and spiritual harm if we don't have the Holy Ghost there to protect us. We need to be worthy of its presence in our lives and we need to follow the promptings it gives to us. If we do this we will be blessed.

I know and testify that the Holy ghost is real. That it helps each of us everyday. With out him we are left to our selves and we don't have his constant guidance and protection. May each of us work to be worthy of such a companion as the Holy Ghost.


 "13 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel."

3 Nephi 31:13
 

The Book of Mormon

If you know me at all you will know I'm not the biggest book worm on the block. I'll read when I have to or when I'm interested in a good book, but I would way much rather be out there having the adventures instead of reading about them. But there is this one book I just can't seem to put down. I've read it several times through now, and I plan on reading it several more times, in fact I plan on never stopping! This book is amazing. It makes me want to be a better person. Its got adventure, its got mystery, it even has a bit of romance! It is a history book, it is life changing, it is the Book of Mormon.

The Book of Mormon is scripture written over 2000 years ago. Prophets of old living on the American continents were commanded by God to write their history and He promised them "that he would preserve these things for a wise purpose in him, that he might show forth his power unto future generations." Alma 37:18

We have this scripture on the earth today as a witness that Jesus Christs is the savior of this world. This record testifies that he did live, and that he was resurrected. The Prophet that finished this record before it was buried in the earth well over a thousand years ago gave a promise as his final testimony. 

Moroni 10:3-5

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

 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.

The same promise is given to everyone in the introduction to the Book of Mormon itself.

 "We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost.

Those who gain this divine witness from the Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is His revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the Second Coming of the Messiah."


I know that the message of the Book of Mormon is true. I have done as Moroni asks, and I have read and studied these words, I have prayed on my knees to my Heavenly Father and I have felt his spirit speak peace to my soul. I felt that feeling the whole time I read! That is why I still continue to read it!

This book gives me hope. It strengthens my faith. I now know that God really is my father. I know that Christ lived and died for me. I know this because the spirit told me as I prayed and asked the Lord. And I know that you can have the same experience. It takes faith, it takes time, but the result is so worth it. There is no greater blessing than having the spirit present in your life.

So no matter who you are I invite you to read the Book of Mormon. It is a true book. It WILL change your life for the better, and you Will feel of its power and truthfulness as you experience the feelings of the Spirit as you read and study its pages.

I say these things are true and do so in the name of Jesus Christ amen.

 for a free copy of the Book of Mormon please visit:

 http://mormon.org/free-book-of-mormon

The Restoration

res·to·ra·tion  [res-tuh-rey-shuhn]  

noun

1. the act of restoring; renewal, revival, or reestablishment.

2. the state or fact of being restored.

3. a return of something to a former, original, normal, or unimpaired condition.

4. restitution of something taken away or lost.

Christ came to earth for many reasons. He came to earth to live a sinless life. To  established His Church, to teach His gospel, and preform many miracles. He came to earth and chose twelve righteous men to assist Him in His ministry. He gave them the priesthood authority to teach in His name and to preform sacred saving ordinances, like baptism.

Christ suffered in the garden and ultimately died on the cross for the sins of the entire world. For everyone on the earth or who would ever be on the earth. Through His suffering, death and resurrection, the Savior made it possible for us to be forgiven. If we have faith in Him, repent of our mistakes, and keep His commandments we can receive forgiveness of our sins and we can be filled with peace and joy.

Christ taught His apostles after His resurrection to teach this to everyone. Though the authority Jesus gave them they were able to do this and were able to preform the ordinances necessary to enter into God's kingdom. His apostles were later killed and the priesthood that Christ gave them was taken off of the earth. With out the authority or the inspired leaders of the church, Christ's Church and gospel was lost.

Many of the truths taught by Christ and His Apostles still remained, but with out the divine leadership, the church was reformed and change through time. Many important principals were lost or forgotten. Christ's church was no more. Without priesthood authority, Christ's gospel could not be returned to its original form. A restoration was needed.

Watch this:

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2009-02-04-the-message-of-the-restoration?lang=eng

I add my testimony to that of Elder Perry's. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ is on the earth again. I know that God still speaks to a Prophet today, and that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only way to experience true joy and lasting happiness in this life and in the life to come. I know these things are true, and you can know as well. I invite you to do as Joseph Smith did, that is to ask God if Christ's church is on the earth and I know that God will give you an answer.

Watch This:

http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2013-06-002-origin?lang=eng

Better Than We Are

"Different as we are in circumstances and experiences, we share a desire to become better than we are."

-Henry B. Eyring-

My Mom and My Dad are two of the most Christ like people I know. I'm of course biased in this statement but I'm sure most of you would agree, They are the best!!! My parents have taught me so much, and none of it was learned by any other way but through example.

My Mom

Shes the mother of 8 crazy kids. Her skills and patience and are most definitely God given. He has blessed her her whole life and it is amazing she didn't strangle any of us with growing up, the way we acted! She has that perfect touch, she knows how to make us feel loved. She gardens, she cooks, she cleans like crazy! You may know her as that flower lady! She pays attention to every little detail and in everything she does she does it with all the love and tender care she can muster. My mother taught me love. She taught me patience.

My Dad

My Dad is my hero! This man raised 6 boys. Enough said! He climbs mountains, he teaches the youth of today, he writes books, cuts hair, continues to climb more mountains, and much much more. My Dad has always been a calm, patient man. My Dad never stops trying to improving himself. He knows he is not perfect, but hes pretty darn close! He's an Idaho farm boy, and he is strong both physically and spiritually! He has been a leader his whole life. My Dad taught me diligence. My Dad taught me obedience.

Love, Obedience, Humility, Diligence, Knowledge, Virtue, Hope, Charity

These are the attributes of Christ. Christ's life was an example for all of us to follow. He lived a perfect life. He set the standard and He ask each of us to follow Him. My parents were followers of Christ, you can tell from how they live. They are trying to be like Jesus. And they loved me enough to teach me the same things the exact same way that Jesus did. Through example, and through love.

I love my parents so much, and I am so grateful for all that they have done for me. They have taught me the important principles, and attributes that I want in my own life, so that I can be an example and light to others. So that I can be like Christ.

As we become more like Christ we are able to fulfill that desire with in all of us. We are able to become better than we are.



I’m trying to be like Jesus;
I’m following in his ways.
I’m trying to love as he did, in all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice,
But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers,

“Love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought,
For these are the things Jesus taught.”

-Children's hymn-

Prayer and Faith

The power of prayer is a real thing! It is a force in this world that we can not understand. We have a loving Heavenly Father who listens to every plea from our hearts. He hears every cry for help. He hears every heart felt prayer! Its amazing! And I testify that He does answer those prayers. I have numerous accounts in my life where my prayers have been answered. I won't share all of them with you, that would be a lot of writing for me and a lot of reading for you, and since I don't want your eyes to burn from staring at this screen too long, I'll just share a few. 

The first is very very simple. I wish I could say this happened to me as a child, but no it actually happened just a few nights ago. I awoke in the middle of the night to the furnace kicking on in the corner of our basement bed room. I heard a hissing sound followed by a constant clicking. In my drowsy mid-sleep state the only things my mind could make of the noises were "Is it propane? and is the clicking the lighter trying to light it? Why hasn't it lit yet? Oh no! The room is filling with gas and its gunna blow up!" 

"Dear Heavenly Father, Please let us be safe."

The words no sooner entered my mind when the hissing and clicking  lit and turned into that warm heating hum of the furnace. My prayer, although probably not necessary and like I said before rather childish, was answered instantly. Immediately my soul was comforted that my life was no longer in danger. Fear left my body and I offered up another quick prayer of thanks and gratitude before slipping back sleep.   

Simple, yet true. Prayers are heard and answered.

Another time, earlier on my mission I had a prayer answered more powerfully. I had just been transferred to a new area. I was in a new place with a new companion. I remember on our first day before we left our apartment, we knelt in prayer and called upon the powers of Heaven. We prayed that the Lord would, according to our faith, place some one in our path. Some one who needed the gospel and someone the Lord had prepared. We ended our prayer and we left the apartment that day filled with faith and hope. I knew that the Lord had heard that prayer, and now it was up to us to go find that person that the Lord had in mind. We went about our days work. We had planned to visit an investigator at his apartment building. Upon arriving my companion who was fairly new to the mission couldn't remember exactly which room was our investigators. He finally made up his mind that it was this one door and so we knocked. About 5 seconds later my companion realized that it was the wrong door, he was about to turn and leave when the door opened. 

There stood a young man, about 20 years old, long hair, big earrings and other facial piercings, and a confused look on his face. My companion was thinking how to explain that we were at he wrong door when it hit us both very strongly, we were at the RIGHT door. He shook hands with the man and started talking to him. He had just moved there the day before from Salt Lake city, and he had heard of Mormons before but never knew anything about them. We asked if we could come back and share a message with him, he agreed and closed the door. We walked over to the next door down, the door we had meant to go to, knocked, and waited. There was no answer, and after some discussion we decided that the Lord had a different plan for us. We went back to the first door and knocked again. We went in and taught him about eh restoration, and we gave him a Book of Mormon and invited him to read it. He seemed enlightened by our visit and was very eager to read the book.

God had prepared some one for the gospel that day. Through our prayer and our faith we were able to be instruments in the Lord's hands. If we hadn't prayed, and if we hadn't had the faith and hope that we would find someone, I don't think my companion would have been confused as to which door to knock on, and even if we had, if we weren't looking for someone to teach we would have explained that we had knocked on the wrong door, gone to the next and found no one home and would have went on our way, leaving one of God's prepared children alone and perhaps maybe even his prayers would have been unanswered. 

Like I said before, god hears our prayers. Our prayers and our faith can bring the power of Heaven into our lives and into the lives of others. That power works only upon our asking, and our faith. But if we are humble enough to ask the Father, I promise you that he will answer. In his own way, and in his own time, but he answers. 

"For he did cry from the morning, even until the going down of the sun, exhorting the people to believe in God... ...saying unto them that by faith all things are fulfilled."

Ether 12:3

"For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them..." 

Ether 12:12

You have ability to call down the power of Heaven into your life. I testify that all we have to do is be humble and willing, faithful and believing, and we will see miracles in our lives! 

Listen and Obey: A Word of Caution

I'm going to share a story from my life and compare it to the gospel.

Here it goes....

One particularly cold winter night, in the frozen plains of Southern Alberta the place that I call home, some friends and I set out on a journey. Our quest was simple. Find the biggest hill in town with snow on it and slide down it. So off we went. We drove down by the river bottom and gazed over the landscape before us. There were hills all around, but our eyes settled on a specific group. "The Dump". These hills were obviously used for land waste, but also used for dirt biking in the summer time. there were plenty of steep hills around and I knew them well. My friends and I would ride up and down the hills on our mountain bikes when we were younger. The hills looked a little different now covered in a thick layer of white snow, in fact they looked even bigger. These were the ones! 

We parked the car and started our long walk towards the hills. You couldn't access them from the roads, and so we trudged through the snow and brush. We passed a few small hills here and there, still searching for the one we would descend. As we continued our walk through the night we came to a frozen pond.

There was the first red flag.

"Stop!" the thought flashed in my mind but quickly followed by my own rebuttal "Don't be a wuss. Its frozen solid!" I looked at my friends, smiled, and stated our friendship motto out loud. 

"Punk ain't dead. You only live once!"

and without hesitation I was on my stomach, crossing the cold pond surface. I had learned that Polar bears would crawl on their belly across frozen lakes and not fall through, if a polar bear can do it so can I! I was about half way across before the others began to follow. As we all got to the other side and stood up to continue on I thought to myself  "See! I knew the ice wouldn't break!"

We climbed a few more gentle hills and eventually found ourselves staring down what must have been the biggest hill in the dump. The bottom looked a long, long ways away. A chill of excitement went through me, and then another feeling came shortly after that.

"Don't go down the hill"

  "But it looks like so much fun! I have too!"

"No, don't do it."

I pushed the thought from my mind and with that I sat down on my sled, which was nothing more than a thin piece of plastic that resembled the lid of a garbage can. I inched my way closer to the edge, and with a glance back at my friends worried faces I pushed off and yelled...

"PUNK AIN'T DEAD!"

It was fun! It was fast! too fast. and cold and hard. The snow on the hill wasn't snow at all, it was ice! I slid faster and faster, more and more out of control, I was no longer facing forwards towards the bottom of the hill. I hit something, a bump and it bucked me off the sled (The thing had broken to pieces anyways) and I tumbled over and over until I hit the bottom. 

I stood up after a little while. I could hear the cheers from my friends above. I smiled, but that quickly faded as I felt a throbbing in my head, and I looked down and saw drops of bright red blood on the white floor beneath me. I reached up to where the pain was coming from and felt the heat and the stinky fluid of the blood. I shouted to my friends.

"Stop! Don't come down!"

They didn't listen of course. They came down going much slower than I did, making sure to stay in control and to drag their feet the whole way down. They helped pick up my shattered sled and we made our way back to the car.

At the Hospital.

I was fine in the end, just a few minor scrapes and a huge head ache but I learned my lesson. Actually the lesson I learned on the icy hill and the adventure of "Danger Sledding" was actually taught to me and learned long before that night. I have learned in church and through my own scripture study this important message.

Elder Boyd K. Packer President of the Quorum of the twelve Apostles said in his talk titled 'Personal Revelation: The Gift, The Test, The Promise'

"[The] voice of the Spirit speaks gently, prompting you what to do or what to say, or it may caution or warn you. Ignore or disobey these promptings, and the Spirit will leave you. It is your choice..."

I chose to disregard the warnings and cautions that the Spirit gave to me, and because I acted against those feelings, I in the end was hurt, whereas it could have been avoided. This taught me that God is mindful of us. He knows what we are doing and He knows the course our actions will take. He loves us enough to let us make our own choices, but he also loves us enough to warn us of danger. Those spiritual promptings that I felt that night would have saved me a trip to the hospital and a major head ache. I chose to ignore my Heavenly Fathers protection because I thought I knew better. I didn't trust God, and I should have! I ignored the revelation that God was giving me, that there was danger ahead.

 I chose to ignore the Lords warning. I lacked the faith that i needed to see that there really was danger in what I thought was fun. If I would have seen what He could see I would have listened. So how can we see how He sees?

Elder packer goes on to say " The flow of revelation depends on your faith. You exercise faith by causing, or by making, your mind accept or believe as truth that which you cannot, by reason alone, prove for certainty...

...As you test gospel principles by believing without knowing, the Spirit will begin to teach you. Gradually your faith will be replaced with knowledge.

You will be able to discern, or to see, with spiritual eyes.

Be believing and your faith will be constantly replenished, your knowledge of the truth increased, and your testimony of the Redeemer, of the Resurrection, of the Restoration will be as “a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life.” You may then receive guidance on practical decisions in everyday life."

I invite all of you to follow Elder Packer's advice and "Be believing." Have the faith to follow the Lord even if you can't see. Trust the Lord. He loves us, and cares about us. As we exercise our faith in Him and follow his promptings He will bless us more with his spirit, to guide and direct us for good.

I know that this is true, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Free From Bondage

So this one night I was just minding my own business playing my guitar if i remember correctly. Then i hear a knock at the door, I get up, answer the door to find three of my friends standing out side. They suspiciously ask to come in, and i let them. i no sooner find my self being circled by them. One of them shouts "NOW!" and they all start running around me. I'm extremely confused and in the commotion i notice that while they are running they are holding something in their hands, and some how it was attached to me. suddenly I realize what is happening. Its duct tape! and they are wrapping me up! I try to run, but my legs are already wrapped tightly together. They make their way up my body. My arms are now strapped to my side and my hands cuffed together. I'm pushed onto the floor, there is no escaping now! They wrap more and more around me. One of them even decided to torment me by giving my face a duct tape wax job. and all awhile i'm wondering to myself  "WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?!?!!!" It was terrible. I was MAD! Furious! And if you know me at all, that is NOT me! But this was too much! I couldn't move, no matter what I said the teasing and tying never stopped, and the whole time I am thinking "Why? Do I really deserve this?" 

Needless to say it was not one of my finest moments. I was hurt. I was mad. I was embarrassed that I could be over powered by three girls! Ashamed. Defeated. Diminished. 

     In life when some one gives into temptation, or decides to disobey our Father in Heaven he gives his will over to the devil. The devil himself is not a kind man, but oh boy is he clever. He is so good at what he does. When you disobey you usually don't even realize that you are doing just that. Satan makes up all these excuses for you and sometimes we do not see the error of our ways. Satan makes us feel like what we want to do is okay. He gives us fake confidence. He lies to us daily, and sadly most of us get fooled. We stumble and fall into his ways, into paths of darkness. And all we want is to get out! Never do we really want to be in those paths, but we find ourselves stuck there. Ever wonder why? Why we can just free ourselves and return to the Lord? Why is it so hard to turn back? 

In the scriptures we read accounts of how the Adversary works. Through His prophets the Lord warns us of Satan's evil ways;  

And behold I say unto you all that this was a snare of the adversary, which he has laid to catch this people, that he might bring you into subjection unto him, that he might encircle you about with his chains, that he might chain you down to everlasting destruction, according to the power of his captivity. (Alma12:6)

also in 3 Nephi 1:13

 13 O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.

Satan has no desire to please us or grant us eternal bliss. His idea is to trap us in our sins, so that he can make us as miserable as he is! What a punk. What an evil man, full of lies and false pretenses. He leads us to believe that sin is like freedom. That God's commandments hold us back from having fun, and being free. But where does Satan's plan end? With happiness? Freedom? No, it ends in eternal misery and endless woe.

When I was bound by the duct tape in my own living room, I was mad. "they had no right!" I thought. "This is my house, this is so unfair." But I let them in, and somewhere along the line I must have offended them or provoked them to want to do that to me. I have since forgiven them obviously and its a funny story that we talk about, but it relates to the gospel. When we are bound we are NOT happy. We have no freedom, we have no release. We are in bondage to those that have bound us. I can promise you that Satan has no greater desire than to have us be subjected to him. Do not listen to his enticing words and messages that he send to us on a daily basis in this world. Temptation is real. There is evil in this world. Everyday we must choose to seek for that which is good, and resist the temptations to do wrong. If we give in to those unrighteous desires we will soon find ourselves wrapped in the chains of hell. and most often it is too late. We are too far gone, and we can no longer free ourselves. 

That is when the Savior comes in. God knew that we would not all be perfect and that we would often fall into the traps of Satan, and that we would need some one to free us from his bonds. So he sent Christ into this world for that purpose.  Christ suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane for the sins of the world. Everyone that sins (which is all of us!) has been recognized by the Savior and he has suffered our pains. That part has already been done. So now it is up to us to let that sacrifice release us from the chains that hold us back. This process is simple. It is living the gospel of Christ which requires us to have faith in Christ, repent of our sins, be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost and endure to the end. 

45 O, my beloved brethren, turn away from your sins; shake off the chains of him that would bind you fast; come unto that God who is the rock of your salvation. (2 Nephi 9:45)

Turning to the Lord is our ONLY source of escape. Simply having faith in him will alone help you a thousand times more than doing it on your own! A million times more! we can not do this alone!

in the Book of Mormon, we read of two men that have taken upon themselves the duty of teaching this gospel of Christ to a very wicked people. The wicked men take these two missionaries and they bond them with strong cords and cast them into prison. In prison the wicked men come day after day to beat upon these two righteous men. They are weak, they are hungry, they are naked, and they are helpless. They remain in prison and in bonds for days, until they call upon God for deliverance. 

"...How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were bound..."(Alma14:26)

If we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ we will have the power necessary to brake the bands of sin. We will have the power to overcome the temptations of the world, and we will be truly free from grief and misery, and the path way to peace and joy will be opened unto us. It all starts with faith. and if we act upon that faith and continue to obey God's commands, we will receive the blessings of Heaven!  

No one likes to be in chains. No one likes to be wrapped in duct tape. choose to follow God and you will have no need to fear! 

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

LDS.ORG

Prayer

What is a prayer?

Prayers are the connecting power between us and our Father in Heaven. 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 (Matt. 7:7–11). Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.

We pray because God is our Father. Because this is so, He hears our pleas and He blesses us according to His will, but he does require us to act before he can do so. This to me is one of the greatest gifts God has given me. He gives me his time. I can speak with him and I KNOW that he is listening to me. I know that he cares about me enough to answer those heart-felt prayers. He lends me his ear when no one else will hear me. What loving father would hear his child's cry for help, and simply ignore it. God can not do that. He WILL give us help if we ask.

3 Nephi 27:29

Therefore, ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for he that asketh, receiveth; and unto him that knocketh, it shall be opened.

http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/3-ne/27.29?lang=eng#28

An important part of prayer is this "The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant..."We must be living worth of the blessings God has in store for us. Kind of how in order for Santa Claus to bring us presents, we have to be on the 'nice list'. But how do we get on the Lord's 'Nice list'? the Bible dictionary goes on to say; "We pray in Christ’s name when our mind is the mind of Christ, and our wishes the wishes of Christ—when His words abide in us (John 15:7). We then ask for things it is possible for God to grant. Many prayers remain unanswered because they are not in Christ’s name at all; they in no way represent His mind but spring out of the selfishness of man’s heart." 

If we follow the advice found in 1 John 3:22 we can have the promise of the Lord that he will answer our prayers.

1 John 3:22
22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

I know that if we do these things, if we try our best to 'keep his commandments' we will be worthy if those blessings. If we humble ourselves and make our will the same as the Lords, if we give ourselves up to him, He will be able to mold us and bless us.
Prayer is a true power. We are not far from the Lord when we are on bended knee. He Is willing to answer every question that we ask, him but are you willing to do what ever he asks of you? If so I would invite all of you to knee in prayer and ask God if He loves you. I know that he WILL answer.
In this I testify, in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

A message I wish to say

I wasn't always this way. I wasn't that guy who would talk to anyone about beliefs and religion. Everyone probably knew I was a 'Mormon', but i did my best not to go around spreading that knowledge. I'm not ashamed of it, and that is not what I'm trying to say. No I just want to point out that I wasn't always this open. 

But I wish I was.

I'm a missionary now. This is what I do everyday all day. I actually go out of my way now to share me beliefs. its quite the change. I'm more open to telling people what I believe and I'm more aggressive on sharing this information with others. See what I have learned and experienced through life has changed me. My beliefs have made me a better person. I want to share what i know with others so they can improve their lives as well. Why I didn't do a better job of that before I don't know.

But I wish I had. 

The knowledge and message that has changed my life is this; God is my Father in Heaven. Jesus Christ is my savior and redeemer. He has saved me from all the mistakes that I have made, and from all the mistakes I'll continue to make for the rest of my life! Knowing this simple fact brings me all the motivation I need to do better. If God really is my Father, then just think of the possibilities that leaves for me. Think of what I can achieve. Think of what I can become! Think of what I can do knowing that Jesus Christ has suffered and died for me. I can start over. My sins can be forgiven. I can feel peace and joy in the place of guilt and shame, if I rely on his merits to save me from those feelings! That was his purpose in providing that sacrifice! If I choose to accept him and that sacrifice, I can be forgiven, if I follow his instructions. I sometimes don't always follow.

But I wish I would.

The Lord promises us so much if we do our best to follow his commands. The Savior himself said "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." 

(http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/john/15.10?lang=eng#9)

He promises us that we will abide in His love. Can you imagine that? What it would feel like? Look at this picture of the Savior. Can you feel his love for you? How does it make you feel? That feeling to me is more precious than any other thing in this world! I'd give anything to feel that feeling. That is why I am here. Because I HAVE felt that feeling. And I feel it everyday. That is why I am out sharing this gospel, this love with others. So they can feel this way. That is why I wish with all my heart that I would have sooner! I apologize to all of those who I know that I haven't shared this knowledge with. I did you wrong by keeping this all to myself. I can't express to you how sorry I truly am.

But I wish I could.

Please know that I believe this with all my heart. That God wants each and everyone of us to feel this love. It is the reason he sent His son here to this earth. It is the reason why His Spirit prompts us each day to be good. He wants us to be happy and this is the only way to have eternal happiness. Through His Son's sacrifice, and through following his instructions. I invite you to ask God himself if this is not true. Kneel down and pray to your father in Heaven and I know he will hear your prayer. He loves you. He cares about you. He knows you.

I didn't take the time before my mission much to share this with others. I didn't get to help some one else by helping them get to know God better.

But I wish you will.

I know these things are true, and I say them in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen