Genesis 1

Friday, September 13, 2013


In this chapter, we learn about the creation of the earth. While this is not mentioned in this chapter, I'd like to clarify a few things. Everything was created spiritually before it was created physically. With that being said, it makes sense that we once lived with our Heavenly Father before we came to live here on earth. Our Heavenly Father created a plan for us called The Plan of Salvation, or The Plan of Happiness. In this plan, we were given the option to either come down to earth or not to. Those who chose not to come down to earth did not trust Heavenly Father enough and were cast out of Heaven. Those of us who did trust our Father were sent here to earth so that we can learn and grow and become more like Him. If we live our lives righteously and follow His commandments, we may one day return to live with Him. 
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (verse 1). In the creation of all of this "God created two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also" (verse 16) Something that comes to mind each time I read this verse is that He's with us, just as these great lights are also always with us. There is never a day when we cannot see the sun, or a night where we cannot see the moon or the starts. They are always there, just as He is. And those nights when we cannot see the stars or the moon for a moment, I think, is just like when we cannot feel His presence. They are there, though, even if we cannot see them. As long as we trust that He is still there even if we cannot feel His presence, that feeling will return. We just have to rely on faith. 
When reading the parts of these verses "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness... So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them," (verses 26-27). We were all created in God's image. So if we all look like Him, why do we call each other ugly? Why are we so conscious about our appearance and whether or not we are wearing the right brand of clothes? These things don't matter to God. He thinks we are all beautiful and that's all that really matters.

Moses 1

Friday, September 15, 2013


In this chapter Moses gets to see God face-to-face. Moses finds that God's presence is overwhelming and if he had not been transformed in such a way, being in God's presence would have killed him. This is very significant because later, when Satan is claiming to be His Only Begotten Son, Moses can stand in his resence without having to be transformed. 
There were a few verses I found that I would like to point out as being significant to me. The first of which is from verse 3. It states "...Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this endless?" He is literally telling us that He is with us always and He will never leave us. I find this incredibly comforting to know that there is always someone by my side to support and uplift me in all ways. 
He tells us that "man is nothing," (verse 10). Which is why we really need to depend and put our full trust in Him. He's there for us, and as hard as this may be to imagine, He loves us more than our parents and families ever could. 
In verse 15, it says "Blessed be the name of my God, for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else where they glory, for it is darkness unto me? And I can judge between thee and God, for God said unto me: Worship God, for him only shalt thou serve." Moses is speaking to Satan basically saying he knows Satan is not God and he knows that what Satan says is not true. We are also told that God told Moses to only worship Him, not the Son. So since Satan is saying to worship the Son, who he is posing as, Moses knows that Satan's words are false. 
Lastly, in verse 24, "Moses lifted up his eyes unto heaven, being filled with the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of the Father and the Son," it states that the Holy Ghost is testifying that there is a Father and a Son. Throughout the scriptures, we learn that the Spirit testifies of the truth of ALL things. Not just some, but of ALL. And since it is testifying of a Father and a Son, we know that exist.  

Abraham 3

Thursday, September 12, 2013


While reading through this chapter, I saw a part of a verse that is particularly meaningful. In verse 18, it says "They existed before, they shall have no end, they shall exist after, for they are... eternal." While when you look above it's talking about the stars, I think we can very easily view ourselves in this. We were made spiritually before we were made physically on this earth. If we live worthily, Heavenly Father has promised us the gift of eternal life and the opportunity to live with Him. I feel like this verse is also talking about us and eternal life. 
Following this, in verse 19, He says "I am the Lord thy God. I am more intelligent than they all." My first reaction to this statement was whoa, He's being really boastful here. But it's true, He is more intelligent than all of us. That is why it is so important that we trust Him and look to Him for guidance. Sometimes we get frustrated because we do not want to wait for Him to help us - we want it to happen right then or we want to make our own decisions. An Elder once told me that it is when we make our own decisions we become accountable before God. He sees the big picture, not just the small moments we see. Because of this, He knows what's best for us. And since He is a merciful God, He will help and guide us as He sees fit. 
The last verse I'd like to point out is verse 25, which clearly states that this life on earth is a time of testing. If we succeed and live worthily and follow His commandments, we have the opportunity to live with Him again.

Abraham 1

Wednesday, September 11, 2013


First off, I would like to bring up the fact that the first time it was confirmed to me that the Book of Mormon is true, I had never once opened the Book. I have been told and will assume this to be true, that my sincere desire alone was enough to find this answer. With that being said, I cannot think of a time where the Holy Ghost has testified the truth to me as I was reading. Until last night. As I read through the first page of the Book of Abraham, I felt a burning sensation in my chest unlike any I have ever felt. Scripture tells us that this is the Holy Ghost testifying of the truth. I know what I have read is true, and the Spirit confirms this. 
In verse 3, we learn that the Priesthood has been on this earth since the beginning of life - passed down to us from Adam. 
One verse that really caught my attention was verse 8, which states "Now at this time it was custom of the priest of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to offer up upon the after which was built in the land of Chalden, for the offering unto these strange gods, men, women, and children." The first thing that rushed through my mind is that our Heavenly Father is a kind and merciful God and would never ask us to do something like this. Life is the gift He gave us so that we could learn and eventually return to live with Him one day. It makes me wonder why people would ever think that any god would ever want such a sacrifice as this. 
Verse 11 specifies who three of the sacrifices were - three young virgins, one was of royal blood. They were sacrificed because they would not bow down and worship any other god. It is incredible to think that three young virgins would give their lives for something they know to be true and did not deny Heavenly Father as being the true God. 

2 Nephi 17

Monday, September 2, 2013


In studying this section from the Book of Mormon tonight, for the first time in awhile, I've had to turn to the seminary guide for help to understand what exactly it was I was reading and why it is significant. 
While reading in the seminary guide, there was one section that particularly stuck out to me. If we look at verse 14, it says "Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign - Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son, and shall give his name Immanuel." Now I'm sure most of us would just jump to the conclusion that Isaiah was prophesying of the coming of Christ. But in this manual, I learned that the prophesies from Isaiah often have duel meanings. One such example would be this one. In the manual, it says that "'God is with us' was meant to reassure King Ahaz that if he turned to the Lord, then God would help him." I think this statement is extremely significant because each time we read through the scriptures, this same idea is reiterated time and time again. If we turn to the Lord, He will help us. While it may not be in the way or the time frame we want, we can know that He's always there and will always help us. 
One thing I've noticed is that He is especially there for us in times of trial. When we really need to be picked back up again, there He is. And that's something we can count on all of the time. 
If we look a little bit higher up, in verse 9, one statement that is made is "If ye will not believe surely ye shall not be established." I think in a way, this verse talks about our lives and goals in general. We could use the word "established" in such a way to where it states that we are establishing our faith. Jesus Christ is supposed to be our rock, or foundation. Something that is permanent and is not wavering. There is a scripture that talks about how we do not want our faith to be wavering because if it is, then we do not have a solid foundation and can be swayed in whichever way society persuades us to go. It is for that reason we need to make sure we are establishing our faith on something firm and steady. Christ is our rock and He is there to guide us. We just need to look to Him. 
Something that was discussed in church yesterday is how sometimes our Heavenly Father will not listen to us if we do not listen to Him. I don't exactly agree with this statement, as I know our Heavenly Father always hears us. But I do think that He won't help us if we aren't willing to listen. After all, how can we? The perfect example of what happens when we ignore Heavenly Father is demonstrated in this chapter. Because two of the kingdoms (specifically) had no faith and ignored our Heavenly Father, they were destroyed. 
If we don't have faith in our Heavenly Father, we can also be destroyed spiritually. So let us make sure we are doing everything we can each day to strengthen our relationship with our Heavenly Father. 

I would like to encourage each of you to watch this video as a follow-up to this post. 

http://show2.me/en/v/does-god-exist-1?eu=z6cfZ0ZlZ0   

2 Nephi 4

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

I always find the stories in 2nd Nephi to be even more significant. While reading through the section, the one thing that really just seemed to stick out to me was verse 16, which says "Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard." Now, obviously Nephi has seen far more things than any of us would ever expect to see. But I think each of us can still completely relate to what this verse is saying. I think most of us can say that when we read scriptures, when we truly read, we can feel our souls leaping in delight and want. When we read, we naturally ponder what we read and ask ourselves, "How can I apply this to my life?" To learn, we need to ponder these things in our hearts and through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord will testify of the truths of these things and reveal new truths to us.  

I know how hard it was for Laman and Lemuel to see their father die. They wanted their father to be with them forever. And then, don't we all. I think the one event in my life that made me realize how badly it hurts to lose someone was when I lost my grandfather at Christmas. It was the hardest thing I think that ever happened to me. Now at the time, I was not aware that God was acting in my life. Quite frankly, for the longest time, I wanted God out of my life, or at least as far away as possible. Before my grandfather died, I made it my mission to search and find God. There is a scripture from 3rd Nephi chapter 27 verse 29, which states "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."  And I feel that I did that to the very best of my ability. I tried to find that answer I needed. For the first few weeks after Thanksgiving, I read my Bible every night trying to reestablish the relationship with Heavenly Father I had severed a few years back. And yet, it just could not seem to do that. My relationship was gone, it seemed and I couldn't get it back. I told my parents I didn't want to work Sundays anymore and that the money wasn't important. I told them that if I didn't get my Sundays off, I would quit my job so that I could go to church. Thankfully, my manager was kind enough to give me my Sundays off. I went to church and was still searching and searching and I never found what I was looking for. As the weeks went by, my newly established habits dissipated. I stopped going to church and reading the Bible. A few more weeks went by and the next thing I knew, my grandfather was dead. Now like Laman and Lemuel, I did not look to God for help. Honestly, I didn't know He could help and I don't think I would have wanted His help at the time, anyway. Like Laman and Lemuel, I should've turned to God for the help I needed. He's always there to help and guide us. We just need to open our eyes and hearts a bit more to see that. 

Nephi goes on to talk about how hard it is to rejoice when we are burdened with sins. But our Heavenly Father has given us a way through the Atonement of Jesus Christ to rid ourselves of these sins. This is called repentance. It is absolutely essential to the Plan of Salvation, or the Plan of Happiness. When we have sins, we are definitely not happy. Nephi also states this to be true in his writing. When we have sinned, we need to take the initiative and the time to go and truly repent for what we have done wrong. The Lord will forgive you. And even if the person you hurt doesn't, know that the Lord's forgiveness is all you need. He will help you. That is His promise. Nephi says in verses 20 and 21, "My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions… He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh." Nephi just flat out tells us that God will support us and He will love us forever. And we can feel God's love for us. One of the easiest ways to feel His love is just to go and ask Him, "do you love me?". I promise you He will send you an answer that is a yes. And if for some reason He doesn't, it's because He knows you already know He loves you unconditionally. One time an Elder had me go and pray and ask God if He loves me. And the answer is yes. He loves each and every one of us. He will never forget us. We are His children and He loves us so, so, so much.  

"Oh Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever."

1 Nephi 17

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

I just have to start off saying that I absolutely love this part from verse 3, "And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them." All God asks us to do is keep His commandments, which are pretty easy, and He will bless us and provide us with the strength we need to get through trials. I can definitely testify that He has helped me through many trials and He has given me plenty of times to strengthen my faith in Him. I have found thus far that the more we trust Him, the more blessings we receive. When Nephi and his family began to strengthen their faith in the Lord, they received plenty of blessings, like good food.

"And we did sojourn for the space of many years, yea, even eight years in the wilderness." Nephi and his family journeyed through the wilderness for eight years! Most of us have trials and all that last just a short while. Definitely not normally eight years. I think this says so much for the faith of Nephi and his family. When they were in the wilderness, they often had to rely on the Lord to help them find food they could eat. I can only imagine how much faith that took. And yet they did it.

When Nephi and his family finally made it to their destination, the Lord called Nephi and told him that he needed to build a ship that would carry them across the waters. Nephi asked where the tools were and then said okay. This is probably a far-fetched analogy, but I think we can completely relate our lives to this particular event. Nephi and his family are just like you and I. Generally, we are not asked to build a ship, but to build our faith and testimony. Like Nephi, we need Heavenly Father's help. The tools He provides us are our scriptures, the Spirit and missionaries. Once a ship has been built and we deem it steady, we normally go out on the water. I think in this case the water can be viewed as the world. So really, we are taking our testimony out into the world to test it. Out at sea, a ship is always trying to stay above the water. Like us, we are always trying to stay above temptation. Where Nephi is going is the land the Lord promised him. After this life, assuming we lead good and righteous lives in accordance with the gospel, we will receive the land, or rather kingdom, that Heavenly Father has promised us. "Wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led." We need to listen to the Lord and follow His commandments if we want Him to keep His promise.

Continuing the analogy above, verse 18 says "And thus my brethren did complain against me, and were desirous that they might not labor, for they did not believe that I could build a ship; neither would they believe that I was instructed of the Lord." This reminds me of all of the people who try to tear apart our testimonies not believing that the Lord said that this is the one true church. People complain about the Mormon faith and unfortunately, all too often, they have heard only misconceptions. Nonetheless, they still try to prove they are right, much like Nephi's brothers try to do in this verse.

After many events, at the end of the chapter, Nephi's brothers say "We know of a surety that the Lord is with thee, for we know that it is the power of the Lord that has shaken us. And they fell down before me, and were about to worship me, but I would not suffer them, saying: I am thy brother, yea, even thy younger brother; wherefore, worship the Lord thy God, and honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God shall give thee." Heavenly Father, though, more than likely will not give us an event like this. But truly, we don't need it. We have our testimony. In Alma 32:21, we are told that to have faith is to trust in things that are not seen that are true. We know that God is the one true God. We know He's there and He loves us. While we do not normally receive dramatic events, we don't need them. After all, we have our faith, scriptures and testimonies, and that is plenty.

Hold on to your testimony and be not swayed by others who claim it to be false. You know it's true and Heavenly Father knows it's true, and that's enough. "Stand ye in holy places and be not moved until the day of the Lord come" and stick to your testimony.