Faith of our Fathers

Today is a great day!  For all those who do not know, today is PIONEER'S DAY!  It is a holiday that is not very well known outside our church, but it is a day that we remember our pioneer ancestors, and the legacy of faith that they left behind.  In the early days of the church, the members were facing great opposition due to mobs, and different problems.  So they acted on faith, and decided to make the long trek from Illinois to the Salt Lake Valley.  They were forced from their homes, but they trusted in God, and they were eventually provided with a wonderful refuge from their tribulations.  One of the Handcart companies that made this long trek was the Willie and Martin Handcart company.  This Handcart company got a late start on the journey, and as they were travelling through Wyoming, they were caught by a blizzard.  During this time, many of the pioneers suffered many hardships, including frostbite, starvation, and death.  My great great great great grandma was one of these pioneers.  Her name was Ann Jewell Rowley, and she suffered much during this time.  Her husband had recently passed away, and she was left to provide for her family by herself.  But through her remarkable faith, God provided for her needs.

In her own words she said " I was left a widow with 7 children under 12 years of age and the step-children of William's first marriage.  I was very grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the comfort it gave me.  I knew that our parting was only temporary and that viewed from the eternities, this was but a fleeting moment.  I also knew that no matter how fleeting a moment it was, I had to make the best of it.  I had a very real job to do.  The children had to be fed and clothed, but the big task and the one I must accomplish is to get us all to Zion.  I must be among the people of my faith and I must get the Temple work done for us.  There came a time, when there seemed to be no food at all.  Some of the men left to hunt buffalo.  Night was coming and there was no food for the evening meal.  I asked God's help as I always did.  I got on my knees, remembering 2 hard sea biscuits that were still in my trunk.  They had been left over from the sea voyage, they were not large, and were so hard they couldn't be broken.  Surely, that was not enough to feed 8 people;  but 5 loaves and 2 fishes were not enough to feed 5000 people either  but through a miracle Jesus had done it.  So with God's help, nothing is impossible.  I found the biscuits and put them in a Dutch Oven and covered them with water and asked for God's blessing.  Then I put the lid on the pan and set it on the coals.  When I took off the lid a little later, I found the pan filled with food.  I kneeled with my family and thanked god for his goodness.  That night my family had sufficient."

Ann Jewell Rowley

Whenever I read this story, I am amazed by the faith of my Grandmother.  I marvel that through her faith, she was blessed with the food necessary to feed her family.  It is so remarkable to me to know that the Lord does bless us with miracles in our lives if we simply have the faith to ask.  I know that God loves each and every one of us.  We may not have miracles like this in our lives, but God does bless us with miracles every day.  He helps us through our trials, and he provides for our needs.  Miracles can literally happen in our lives and in the lives of those around us, when we act in faith.  When I read this story of my Grandma, it inspires me to act more in faith.  I know that through the grace of God, we can overcome any opposition or problems we may face.  When we act in faith, God will bless us.  He loves each and every one of us.  I hope y'all have a great Pioneers day!

The Spirit of Prophecy

"29 And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lords' people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!"  (Num. 11:29)

GOD SPEAKS!  He loves each and everyone of us, and he wants to speak to each and every one of us as well.  This journey of life is difficult.  But we make it even more difficult when we put God's word out of our life.  We really have two options in life;  we can choose to do things with God, or we can choose to do them by ourselves.  I think there is really only one intelligent way to do things, and that is with God on our side.  God wants to give us give us guidance and direction, just like any loving parent does.  He knows who we are, and he knows the choices that we are making in our lives.  He knows both the positive and negative consequences that will come from every decision he makes.  So he speaks to us, and he guides us, if we are willing open our ears to him.  One man that I have talked to recently has expressed that he feels as if God is no longer speaking to him, but something that we have helped him realize is that he is speaking, and that he always speaks; but often times he speaks through his faithful servants, or the holy scriptures.  There are so many sources that we can go to, to hear God's word, and receive his guidance and direction in our lives.  But it is important to remember that whenever God speaks to us, he will speak to us through his Holy Spirit, which is the spirit of Love, Joy, Peace, and Faith (Galatians 5:22).

Now in reference to the scripture that I quoted above;  God speaks to his prophets, but the great thing is that we all can have that spirit of Prophecy within us.  There is only one man who is called to act as the Prophet and Leader of The Church of Jesus Christ, at one time, but we all can have the Spirit of Prophecy.  The Testimony of Jesus Christ truly is the Spirit of Prophecy (Revelation 19:10).  This testimony is something that we all should strive to gain while in this life.  This choice to believe and follow Christ is one of the greatest decisions that we need to make while in this life.  Our Father wants us to make this choice, because he knows that it is the only way that will enable us to return to live with him again (John 14:6).  If we seek him, we shall find him (Luke 11:9).  When we come to accept Christ into our lives, then that is what will bring true and everlasting peace into our lives, and which will bring true happiness into the lives of others as well.  Christ tells us how we gain this testimony when he talked with his disciple Peter "... Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 16:17).  Our Father in Heaven will testify of the divinity of his son to us, when we are willing and ready to listen.  Open your heart, and it shall be filled.  That is how I was able to gain my testimony, and I know that our loving Father in Heaven will testify the same to you as well. Make this day a GREAT one!

Constant Companionship

I LOVE my mission!!!!  I love serving the Lord as one of his missionaries.  It has truly been one of the best experiences of my life.  As missionaries we truly are representatives of Jesus Christ, and with this we are expected to be an example of Christ.  We have many standards that we are expected to live by that help us maintain the dignity of our calling.  All of our rules and standards are contained inside a book, which we call the Missionary Handbook.  These are standards that we are expected to live by as missionaries, but early on in my mission, a wise man once taught me that the missionary handbook is more then a book of rules to be applied as missionaries, but they are also guidelines that we can apply throughout our whole life.  As missionaries, we have a companion that we are supposed to stay with 24/7.  It teaches us in the Missionary Handbook

"Stay Together.  Never be alone.  It is extremely important that you stay with your companion at all times.  Staying together means staying with sight and hearing of each other... Never make exceptions to this standard for activities that seem innocent but take you away from each other... Situations that seem harmless at the beginning can quickly lead to serious problems." (Missionary Handbook, pgs. 30-31).

Obeying this standard has blessed me so much, and I love the opportunity that I have had to have each and everyone of my companions.  Each one has blessed me in numerous ways, and I love each and every one of them.

But the companion that I want to talk about today, is not a companion with a physical body.  Instead he has a spirit, but we still can feel his presence with us at all times.  This companion is the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Spirit of God.  This is the most important companion that we can ever have, because he can literally protect us from evil, if we always are striving to have him with us.  We should never do anything that would seperate us from each other.  These things can be as simple as watching something we shouldn't, or saying something we should not say.  We should never do anything that Christ himself should not do, because when we act unChristlike, then we cannot have God's spirit with us at all times.  These little things that may not seem like big problems, can easily lead to serious problems in the future.  The spirit is truly our most important companion, and when he is with us he truly can protect us from both physical and spiritual danger.  I know this is true, and as I have always worked to have the spirit with me, I have received strength to resist all temptation.  I love each and every one of my companions, but my favorite companion of all is truly the Spirit of the Almighty God.  I love the spirit of God!  HAVE A GREAT DAY!!!



Check out this post to learn more about this wonderful companion!

... And of the Spirit

God is not just good, he is REAL good!

Hello Internet world!  This is my blog post for the week, but this blog post is going to be a little bit different this time.  I love writing these blogs but the real purpose of this blog is to share the joy that I have experienced through Christ with others over the internet.  The great thing is that you can do the same as well.  I am so grateful to you for reading this blog, and I love to share my testimony of Christ with y'all.  My purpose in writing this is to help as many people as I can come closer to Christ.  One of the greatest ways that we can do this is by sharing Christ with others.  One of the biggest things that I have learned on my mission is that what you put out, is usually what you get in return.  This applies with so many things.  If you want to experience greater love in your life, then you must share and spread love with others first.  If you want to receive greater happiness into your life, then it is important to share happiness first.  Elder Jeffrey R. Holland once said "It came to me again that is we sow thistles, we don't really plan to get strawberries.  If we sow hate, we don't really expect to receive an abundance of love.  We get back in kind that which we sow" (Jeffrey R. Holland, The Justice and Mercy of God, Ensign Sept. 2013)  He said that if we put forth hate, we really will not get love in return.  The vice versa is just the same.  If we put forth love, we really will not get hate in return either.  Paul also said "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap". (Galatians 6:7).

So here is the deal.  In order for us to develop a rock solid relationship with our savior, then we must share him with others.  This can be done in many ways.  We can invite our friends to attend church, or we can share our testimony with them, or we can even just serve those in need.  But here is my challenge to each one of you.  Once you read this blog post, I challenge you to share this blog post, or any of the other ones, with at least one of your friends.  I am not asking you to do this, so I can get tons of followers and views of my blog, but I really am just inviting you to do this so that we can share the message of Christ with as many people as we can.  That is our purpose as Christians, is to share the name of Christ with those around us.  So I would invite and challenge each one of you to share this with at least one of your friends, and invite them to do the same as well.  It doesn't matter who they are; they can be people who may be struggling in life right now, or someone who maybe just needs an uplifting message.  This is truly missionary work, and it is very simple.  All you have to do is click share, and post this blog to someone elses facebook, or twitter, or whatever you use.  But I know it will bless your life.  Christ has blessed us with our faith so that we can share it with others who may be in need of more faith in their own lives.  A wise man once said that "God is not just good, he is REAL good.".  God wants to bless all of his children, and the only way that he can do that is through us.  So let's go out there and make a change, and all of this can be done one person at a time!

Check this out to see a man that has completely turned his life around through Christ!  YOU ARE AWESOME BRO. SCRIPTURES!!!

WE ARE FREE!!!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!!!!!!

Today is truly one of my favorite holidays, because it is the day where we get to celebrate our freedom!  For those who may be unfamiliar or unaware of why this day is so important; it is because it was the day when the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the United States of America.  It is the day that we commemorate our freedom from the Kingdom of Great Britain.  It is a very special holiday for american citizens, because it is the day that we celebrate our freedom.  Freedom is one of the greatest things that we have been blessed with living in the United States of America, and it is so special that we devote a whole holiday to it every single year.  Freedom is truly one of the greatest gifts from God!

We have many freedoms in our country.  We have the freedom of press, the freedom of speech, and the freedom of religion just to name a couple.  These are freedoms that we have been able to gain because there were men who were willing to fight for these freedoms.  I am so grateful to those men, and to the men who continue to fight to defend our freedoms right now.  But one of the greatest freedom's that we have, is something that is available to all; not just citizens of the United States.  This is freedom from sin, and it is a gift available to all.  Paul said "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." (Galatians 5:1).  When we sin, it brings us into bondage.  We become subject to Satan and we no longer have the ability to choose for ourselves.  We lose control, and we become slaves to the adversary.  Paul also said "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Sin and temptation binds us down, but God has prepared a way for us to escape, and that is through his son Jesus Christ.  When we come unto Christ, he frees us from all slavery and all bondage.  He has the power to free you from whatever bondage you may be facing.  If you have faith in him, and follow in his example, he will free you from sin.  This is my witness.  He lives, and he has power over all bondage and all captivity.  He can make you free, if you let him. I hope you all have a wonderful 4th of July!

... And of the Spirit

Last week, I talked about the necessity to be baptized by water.  I quoted a scripture which said "... Except

a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." (John 3:5).  We must be baptized by water, but that is only part of it.  We must also experience what is called a baptism by fire.  In the Book of Mormon it references this baptism when it says "...I know that if ye shall follow the Son ... 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..." (2 Nephi 31:13).  This baptism by Fire, or by the Holy Ghost, is what completes our baptism.  This baptism is necessary in order to receive a remission of your sins like it later says "... then cometh a remission of your sins by fire, and by the Holy Ghost." (2 Nephi 31:17).  Once we have been baptized, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, have the unique opportunity to receive what we call the Gift of the Holy Ghost.  This gift is to be able to always have God's spirit with us as long as we are living our lives righteously.  We can literally always have the spirit of God with us when we keep God's commandments.  It is a constant companion for all of those who have had their sins washed away through the blood of our savior Jesus Christ.  It truly is amazing!

The reason why the gift of the Holy Ghost is so important is because it guides and it directs us in our lives, so that we can return to live with our father again.  When we are baptized, and washed clean of our sins, we have to continue to live our lives the way Christ would live his.  Baptism is the gate to a path that leads to eternal life, baptism is not the end goal.  Once we are baptized, we have a life of devoted discipleship ahead of us.  We must have something to help strengthen us as we continue on this path of discipleship.  That strength comes from the Holy Ghost.  It is like if you were to plant a young tree in your yard.  When the first major storm comes, the winds will blow that tree, and cause it to bend and filthy itself in the mud around it.  In order to clean this tree, you must wash the leaves, but if all you did was wash the leaves, then when the next storm came, the tree would get muddy once again.  In order to help keep the tree clean from the mud, you must also strengthen the trunk.  This can be done by placing stakes in the ground and tying them to the trunk of the

tree.  Then when the storm comes, the tree will stay strong and will remain clean from the mud around it.  We are much like this tree.  We have been placed in a muddy world.  When storms or temptations come, we can often times bend to the pressure, and get mud on ourselves.  We can clean ourselves with baptism, but we also need something to strengthen us.  That strength truly comes from the Holy Ghost.  The Holy Ghost directs us away from danger, and helps give us strength to resist the storms of the world.  The Holy Ghost can and always will be there for us, as long as we are living our lives righteously.  I know that the Holy Ghost has truly strengthened me throughout the adversities of my life.  It truly is one of the greatest of all the gifts of God.  It is a gift that God wants to give to all of us, but we must keep his commandments in order to receive that gift.  God does love you, and he wants to help you.  Have a fantastic day!

To be Born of Water...

"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." (John 3:5).  The doctrine is very clear, we cannot enter into God's kingdom unless we enter into the waters of Baptism.  It is the doctrine taught by Christ himself.  But why is baptism so important?  Some people that I have talked to as a missionary have told me about their beliefs, and some have stated the belief that you don't need to have baptism in order to be saved, you just need to have faith in Christ, and accept him in your life.  I do not turn down others beliefs, or seek to put down what anyone believes.  Faith is essential in order to enter God's Kingdom, just like it says in the Book of Mormon "... we are made alive in Christ because of our faith..." (2 Nephi 25:25).  But there is more that is required then just to have a belief or faith in Christ, just like what Christ himself said "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." (Matt. 7:21).  Faith is the first step, but there is so much more expected of us, and that is where baptism comes in.

I have been thinking a lot about Baptism recently and why it is important.  One of the greatest moments that missionaries experience on their missions is to see someone make that choice to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by someone who holds the priesthood authority of God.  This is such a wonderful and joyous experience, because baptism is literally the gate that we enter, that puts us on the path that leads to eternal life.  Baptism is the beginning of a new life of devoted Christlike discipleship.  It is turning over a new leaf.  Just as when someone is physically born, their life begins here on earth.  Well when someone is born  through the waters of baptism, they are spiritually reborn.  It is incredible!  Baptism cleanses us, and it makes us clean.  But all these things are done through the blood of Jesus Christ.  It is not really the physical water that washes us clean, but it is truly the blood of Jesus Christ that cleanses us.  It is only through Jesus Christ that we can enter into the kingdom of God (2 Nephi 2:8).  When we choose to be baptized, we accept Christ as our savior, and we promise that we will follow Christ in all that we do.  That is what cleanses us and makes us free from our sins.  It is truly the Lord

Jesus Christ.  We have the opportunity as missionaries to see one of our friends that we have recently just met, enter into the waters of baptism this Saturday.  It is so exciting because we know that as he makes this choice to follow Christ, he will be washed clean of his sins, and he will be able to enter God's kingdom.  We all have this same opportunity.  I love this gospel, and I know that it is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that we can be enabled to live with God for all eternity.  I Love you all, and I hope you have a Great Day!

                             YOU ARE AWESOME!!!!

Fathers Day

Yep, My Dad's Iron Man

I love my Dad.  Today is Father's day, and it is a wonderful opportunity that we have to be able to remember and give thanks to those men who have acted as fathers, and as dads, in our lives.  It is a great responsibility that all men have to act as a fatherly figure in someone else's life.  I know that if it wasn't for my Dad, then I would not be the kind of person I am today.  I know the cliche thing to say on Father's day is to talk about all of the things that my Dad has taught me, and those things are important.  My Dad has taught me how to work, how to respect others, and how to serve others, but he has also taught me so much more. He has taught me how to follow the example of our savior Jesus Christ.  I have my Father's name.  My last name is Dewey, and in taking that name upon me at birth, I now am a representative of my Dad and my Family.  With that name comes a responsibility; a responsibility to act how my father would act.  That is truly what is expected out of me, because I am a "Dewey" boy.  I love this name and the responsibility that comes with bearing that name.  It is because of the wonderful examples of the men in my life, including those on my Mother's side, that I have been able to learn and grow.  I love the name that I have, and the men that I represent.

Their is another name that I bear as well, and that is the name of Jesus Christ.  I am a christian.  I have been reborn through Christ, and have taken Christ's name upon me with that birth.  I have become his representative, and I am now expected to act the way a good Christian person should act.  In a way, Christ has become a Father to me.  He has provided the example that I should follow.  He has given me life.  He has taught me, and he has always been there for me.  I also have another Father, who is my Father in Heaven, and he is truly the Father of my spirit.  I truly do have Gods countenance upon me (Alma 5:14), just as I have my earthly father's image upon me as well.  Each of us is truly a son or daughter of God (Psalms 82:6), and he loves each and every one of us no matter what.  This is such a great day to remember all of our Father's in life.  I know that I have a living Father here on earth, just as I do in my home above.  I know that they love me, and I know that they will always love me.  I love them, and I love everything that each one of them has done for me.  I do my best to live up to the example that is expected of me, and I strive to follow the example of my Father's each and every day.  I love you Dad!

Self Mastery

Christ has given us a very specific qualification for true Christlike discipleship.  He said in Matthew chapter 16 "... If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Matt. 16:24).  The path to true discipleship is the path that he walked.  If we truly want to call ourselves disciples of Jesus Christ, then we must be willing to go through some of the trials that Christ went through as well.  Some of us may have to endure physical abuse for the name of Christ, while others may have to endure the abuse verbally.  Some may have to feel the loneliness of being cast out by peers, while others may have to suffer shame for his name.  Whatever trial comes your way, remember that Christ has suffered it all, and in order for us to come to truly know our savior, we must at least be willing to suffer these "crosses" of the world as well.  Now the cross that I would like to talk about today, is our own Natural Man.  Our own carnal desires to do what is wrong, even when we know it is wrong.  To deny ourselves, is to truly master ourselves.

Self Mastery is something that I have been learning a lot about recently.  To master ourselves is to be able to control ourselves, and whatever desires we have.  It says in 1st Corinthians " And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things..." (1 Cor. 9:25).  Temperance is defined by being moderate in all things.  For us to truly have self mastery, then we have to have moderation in all of our desires and our appetites.  This is also explained in the Book of Mormon when the prophet Alma is speaking to his son Shiblon.  He encourages him to "...bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love..." (Alma 38:12).  To have self mastery is not to eliminate all of our passions from our lives, but it is to bridle them or control them.  Some people love to play the piano, and some people love to draw.  These passions are great, and they are gifts given to us by our loving Father in Heaven, but we must have control over these passions that we have.  We can use these blessings to bless others, but when we don"t bridle our passions, and when they start to dominate our lives, then these passions can become harmful.  We need to remember that our God gives us talents and blessings, so that we can bless others, and so that we can bring greater happiness into other peoples lives.

Self Mastery is also more then just having moderation in our passions and appetites, but it is also "... to deny ourselves of all ungodliness and every worldly lust, and keep [Jesus's] commandments." (JST Matt. 16:24).  We must bridle all of our passions, but we must also cleanse ourselves from everything which is unclean or goes against God's commandments.  This is not an easy task, but it is possible.  Christ has said "With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." (Matt. 19:26).  We can master ourselves, as we exercise our Faith in the Master of all.  He gives us the strength to resist all temptation.  He gives us the strength to overcome all adversity.  Through his grace we can become purified.  It is him and only him that can lift us above the world to dwell with our Loving Father in Heaven.  It is possible, and it is real.  I am not perfect, but I know that through Christ I can become perfected.  I know this is true.  Have a Fantastic Day!!!

Look Not Behind Thee

One of the shortest scriptures in the Holy Bible is in Luke 17:32.  Christ reminds us to " Remember Lot's wife.".  Now you may remember the story of Lot, and Sodom and Gomorrah.  In this story, the people of the city of Sodom and Gomorrah were extremely wicked, and God saw fit to destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof.  But Lot's family lived within the city of Sodom and Gommorah, and they were still a righteous people.  So God warned Lot and his family to depart from Sodom and Gomorrah, and to "look not behind thee" (Gen. 19:17).  Well, as Lot and his family were departing from the wicked city, Lot's wife decided, for whatever reason, to look back.  Immediately she was turned into a pillar of salt.  I have thought much about this story, and about the phrase "Look not behind thee".

God gave Lot and his family a very strict command, and the command was very clear.  Whenever we disobey God's commands, there are consequences, and in the instance of Lot's wife, the consequence was very sincere.  But what brings the consequence isn't necessarily dependant on our actions, but more dependant on our intentions.  When we are willingly and intentionally disobeying God, that is a lot more severe, then if we were accidentally to disobey one of God's commandments.  So God really looks upon our desires, and the intentions of our hearts.  We can assume that in the case of Lot's wife, she was more then just looking back, but she was desiring to go back.  She had the desire of returning to her old ways, and to return back to who she once was.

In a lot of ways, God is calling us to leave Sodom and Gomorrah ourselves.  He is asking us to leave our old sinful ways behind us, and to not look back.  He is asking us to not even think about looking back.  It is not easy, but it is very rewarding.  It takes faith, and it takes effort, but the reward is so great.  The reward is eternal life.  Christ will help us to leave our own "Sodom and Gomorrah's",  but we have to make the choice whether or not we will look forward with faith, or to look back in doubt.  We must look forward with faith, with a firm belief that what God has to offer us is so much greater then what the world has to offer.  When we do this, we will be given a strength, stronger then our own.  I know that Christ lives, and through him we can move forward and we can leave our old ways behind us.  I love my Savior, and I know that he is real.  I am a witness of these things, because I have experienced them in my own life.  I hope that we can all remember to always look to the future with faith.  Have a wonderful day!!!

If Planted it Will Grow!

As summer has been coming around, I have been seeing a lot more beautiful weather here in North Carolina.  With this beautiful weather comes beautiful scenery.  This is such a great time of year!  Here in North Carolina, there are a lot of different flowers and trees that bloom and grow, and make it a very scenic place.  I love to bike down the roads and just see all of the flowers blooming.  It is truly beautiful!  I have grown to appreciate the scenic things of life a lot more as I have grown older.  I have pondered much over the nature that our loving Father in Heaven has given us.  He is truly a wonderful artist.  But I have also thought about all of this on a much more spiritual basis.  God has given us life, and he gives us life everyday.  But what is Life?  Well life is often defined by growth.  So when we think of life in this way, it makes us think about the scriptures in a very different way.  Christ hath said "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3).  We were meant to Grow.  We were meant to become better and stronger.  That is what our Father in Heaven wants us to do.  He truly wants us to Grow.

This growth can come in many different kinds of ways.  Growth can come physically, mentally, emotionally, or even spiritually.  Our Father in Heaven wants us to grow in these things.  He wants us to become better, and he wants us to become stronger.  All this can be done through his son Jesus Christ, and through his everlasting sacrifice for each one of us.  This sacrifice is called the Atonement, and it's great power is described all over in the scriptures.  Often times, down here in the south, they call it the Grace of the Lord,  and that Grace is designed to help strengthen us and to help us grow.  In the book of Mosiah it says "...For the natural man is an enemy to God,... unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the Natural Man and becometh a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord..." (Mosiah 3:19).  The Atonement of Jesus Christ is meant to change us, and it is meant to help us grow.  It is there to help us put away our unrighteous desires, or to put off the Natural man, but it is also there to help us to become saints as well.  So in other words, the Grace of Christ the Lord, is there to help us change from bad to good, and from good to better.  It is there to help us grow.  That is why the Lord came to the earth.  He came so that we may gain eternal life, and so that we could come to know our Father in Heaven.  I know that Jesus Christ lives, and it is through him that you can change and that you can grow, and become what your Father in Heaven has planned for you.  You were meant to be something beautiful, and Christ is there to help.  When we come to him, we find out our potential, and we learn who we really are; Children of a loving Father in Heaven.  You were meant to be great, and you have the potential to do so, through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Prayer

If anyone knows anything about warfare, they know that communication is key.  I am serving as a missionary for my church in a city called Jacksonville, and right by Jacksonville there is one of the largest military Marine bases in the nation.  I do not know a whole lot about the Marines, and the Armed Forces, but I do know
that in order to win a war, there must be effective communication.  We ourselves are fighting a war each and every day.  That war is against Satan himself.  Satan is giving it everything that he has to lead us astray, and to destroy us.  He is fighting with all of his might, to lead us in path's that only lead to destruction.  We have to fight back.  If we just sit back, idly, then we shall be overtaken by the adversary, and be led down paths which only lead to darkness and misery.  Our adversary is strong, and he is powerful, and the only way that we can win this war against Satan is through effective communication.  That communication, which is prayer, is essential if we want to win this struggle that we face each and every day.

Prayer truly is a lifeline.  It sustains us, and strengthens us.  Through prayer, we can literally talk with our father in heaven and receive the aide that we need.  If we try to win this war against the adversary ourselves, then we will fail.  But when we unite ourselves with God through prayer, then Satan will have no power over us.  I have truly seen prayer work miracles in my life.  I have been in many tough situations.  Situations where I could not handle it on my own.  But as I called upon my Loving Father in Heaven, he has sent down his Grace and his Love, to accompany me. Sometimes we get upset when we are given hardships in life, or sometimes we get a little impatient when our prayers are not answered immediately.  This leads some to turn away from Prayer and to turn away from God, but that is the poorest decision one can make.  If you are in the middle of a war, and you are facing a tough situation, the worst thing that you could do is to decide not to call for aid.  Sometimes we think that we can handle it on our own, but we simply cannot.  Prayer does work, and prayer is real.  I know that God does answer each and every one of our prayers, and through our prayers the Lord will strengthen us against all temptation.  It is through our Faith that we can receive strength necessary to combat all evil.  This I absolutely know to be true.  I would invite each and every one of you to give prayer a try, because I know how much happiness it can bring into your life.  SEMPER FI!

Motherhood

Tomorrow is a wonderful day, because it is Mothers day!!!!  I love mothers day!  It
gives us a wonderful opportunity to share our love and thanks for all the wonderful people in our lives who have helped us along our way.  There are many women in my life who have helped shape me into the kind of person that I am today.  I have my grandmas, my aunts, my mother, and even close friends, that have helped me grow into the kind of man that I am today.  I am so very grateful to these wonderful ladies, and for their wonderful examples.  I am so very grateful for their love and their patience towards me, as I have learned and as I have grown.  Now because Mothers Day is so near, I would like to thank each one of them through this blog post.  You all are the best!

I know that mothers are absolutely essential to life.  If it wasn't for the Mother of All, Eve, then none of us would be here today. (Gen. 3:20)  It was through Eve, that life could come into this world.  Mothers give us life.  That is such a wonderful and powerful gift from God!  If it wasn't for that wonderful gift, then none of us could be here today.  It is a gift that should be honored and respected, and something that should not be treated lightly.  Each and every women in the world has a very important responsibility.  Even if you are not a mother right now, or even if you do not have the capability to be a mother, you still have the responsibility to fulfill that role as a mother to those that you love.  It was not just my Mom who raised me into the man that I am, but it was the combined effort of each and everyone of the women who has loved me and has been there in my life.  It is a great responsibility to be a mother, but it is also a great blessing.  I am so blessed to have the women that I have in my life today.

I would like to thank each and every one of the women who has helped me to grow, and to learn.  I know that it is through mothers, that we can learn to be more loving, and more caring, and more Christlike.  I have had many examples of righteous women in my life, and I am so grateful for each and every one of them.  They have blessed my life in numerous ways.  I know how important mothers are in our lives, and in our communities.  Mothers, we need you, and we need you to be great Christlike examples for your children and those around you.  I love each and every mother out there who is doing their best to help those they love grow, and learn in this crazy world.  I am so very grateful for my mother, and for all that she has done for me.  I love her so very much.  I hope you all can share your same love for your mothers as well.  I hope you have a great Mothers Day!

Forgiveness

I talked in a post earlier about true repentance.  Repentance is to change, and to become better, but if it were not for the heavenly virtue of forgiveness, repentance would mean nothing.  Forgiveness is real, and it is free to all who willingly ask for it.  The Lord has said "Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me." (Mosiah 26:30).  This, I absolutely know to be true.  If you repent and simply just ask,  the Lord will forgive, because he wants to forgive.

Forgiveness is incredible, and it is truly a miracle. If it wasn't for the Savior's ability and willingness to forgive then all hope would be lost.  But the Savior does love each and every one of us, and because of that he truly does want to forgive all of our trespasses against him.  It doesn't matter how many times we mess up or make a mistake, if we simply do what the savior asks of us, and go to God in prayer, we can obtain forgiveness.  The Savior forgives so freely based on our desires to change and become better.  I just love it, and I love that Christ loves us enough to forgive us, always.

Forgiveness is truly a Christlike attribute, and it would do us well to follow in that example that Christ has set.  The Lord has said "I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men." (D+C 64:10).  We have been commanded to forgive all men.  This is such an important commandment because the Lord has also said "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy" (Matt. 5:7).  The gift of mercy is free to all, but it is important to treat others the way we want to be treated.  When we extend the hand of mercy, then we are given that same hand in return.  We all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23),  that is why we need mercy, and that is exactly why we should extend mercy as well.  For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged (Matt. 7:2).  Forgiveness is real, and it is wonderful.  We need to learn to let people repent.  We need to learn to let things go.  We need to learn to forgive, when someone asks us for forgiveness.

"For behold, are we not all beggars?... And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins.  And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay;  he has poured out his spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy." (Mosiah 4:19-20).  The Lord will truly forgive each and every one of us.  Let us follow in that example.  This world will be a better place.  We can make a change in this world.  There will be greater joy in the family, and greater love in the home, when we truly learn to forgive.  It truly is a miracle, but we can make that miracle happen each and every day, if we let it.  Have a wonderful day!

By This Shall All Men Know

One thing that each and every one of us needs to feel, in our lives, is Love.  Love is incredible, and Love makes me so happy in my life.  There are a couple meanings of Love.  Some often associate it with romance, but true Christlike Love is very different.  To love as Christ loves, is to have a true and unfailing concern for

the well being of those around us.  So true Love is always unselfish.  If I were asked to describe the mission of Jesus Christ, I would describe it simply as Love.  I love how the scriptures define true Christlike Love.  In John it says "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."  (John 15:13)  This is how Christ showed his love or charity for us.  He layed down his life willingly, so that we could all live as well.  This is an enormous amount of Love, to be willing to sacrifice one's own life to save anothers.  There are many parents who have this kind of Love for their children.  They would rather sacrifice their own life on behalf of one of their own children.  This is true Charity.  This is how our Father in Heaven feels for each and every one of us.  I feel God's love for me each and every day. Whether or not you believe it, God will always love you, and that will never change!  Doesn't that just make you happy?!?

But what also brings me happiness is feeling the Love of others, and sharing my Love for those around me as well.  In order for us to have true Love for our God above, then we must have true Love for all of God's children.  In the scriptures, Christ taught

 "34 A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:34-35)

In order to truly Love our Father in Heaven, then we must always be striving to have that same abiding love for each and every one of his Children.  Each and every one of us have felt the Love of God in our lives, now it is our responsibility to share that Love with others.  You have the power to change the world, and it is through pure Christlike Love.  You have the power to change someones life, for the better, today!  All it takes is a little bit of Love.  YOU CAN DO IT!  There is someone that needs to feel God's love for them through you today.  As we share the Love and Light that we have been given in our lives, then that same Love and Light will grow ever brighter.  We all have the same responsibility to Love as Christ has Loved us.

I would Love to hear how this Love has made an impact on your life, as well as how you have been able to impact other peoples lives through your love.  I know that Jesus Christ loves each and every one of us.  I also know that you have a father above, that will always love you no matter what.  I hope you have a GREAT day

He Is Risen

During this Easter season,  I have been thinking a lot about what Easter is really all about.  We all love the easter bunny, and Easter egg hunts, and eating lots of candy, but have you ever thought of why Easter is so important.  I know I have, and I have thought a lot about the true meaning of Easter.  The reason that we have Easter is because of Jesus Christ.  We celebrate Easter in rememberance of the day when Christ was resurrected.  Easter is the day when we celebrate Christ's victory over death!  It is truly one of my favorite holidays.  But why is this so important?  Why is it so important that Christ was resurrected?  Well it was important that Christ, our Savior, conquered death, so that we could too.  That is what is so incredible about Easter is that through Jesus Christ, each and everyone of us can overcome death ourselves, and that is a gift from the savior!  Isn't it just incredible!  You will overcome death through Jesus Christ; that is his free gift to all.  Death is something that must come upon each one of us, but death is not the end.  In Christ, death has no sting.  Each and everyone of you will be resurrected as well, through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the holy messiah! This is explained so well by a prophet named Jacob.  He said 

"8 Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise" (2 Nephi 2:8)  

Christ was truly the first to be resurrected, but he will not be the last!  That gift is open to all!  Isn't it just amazing?!

He is Risen!

Along with each and every prophet that has been called to testify that Jesus Christ is our savior,  I would like to add my witness.  I know that he lives.  I absolutely know this.  My testimony of my Savior Jesus Christ has brought the most happiness and peace into my life, then anything else in the world.  Now I have not felt the wounds in his hands,  I have not had his hands layed upon my head, and I have not seen his presence,  but I still know, as a fact, that he lives.  He suffered for each one of us.  He knows each and everyone of us by name.  He is truly the Son of God.  I have not always had this testimony, but as I have served my Lord on my mission, I have come to know my savior in a very personal way.  I do not know much right now.  I am not a bible scholar.  I am not learned in many things, but the most important thing that I do know is that Jesus Christ lives.  Out of every thing I know, the one thing I know with the most sincerity of my heart is that my redeemer lives.  My Father in Heaven has testified this to my heart through his Holy Spirit, and God does not lie. (Enos 1:6)  Above everything else, that is what I want each and everyone of you to truly know, that Jesus Christ lives.  Because of Him, you will live as well. 

This is a great website to go to, to see other great videos about Easter and Christ!
 http://easter.mormon.org/

Unto One of the Least of These

As Christ taught his apostles, he taught them a very fundamental and eternal truth.  He said "And the king shall answer and say unto them, verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matt. 25:40)  This truth is also emphasized in the Book of Mormon when it says "And behold, I tell ye these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." (Mosiah 2:17)  This is so True!  When we are serving and loving our fellow man, that is truly how we serve and love our God.  As a missionary, really all we do is serve others.  I absolutely love it!  I wanted to write this blog post today to talk about service, and how serving others has brought me such great happiness.  I love what Christ said in the book of Matthew "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." (Matt. 16:25)  In this scripture Christ is asking us to lose ourselves for his work.  His work is to serve and to love those around us; to devote all of our time and talents to the service of our fellow man.  Those who lose themselves, and lose their lives in the service of others will surely gain eternal life, which is the greatest of all gifts from God. In this post, I would like to emphasize two kinds of service.  There was a prophet of God who taught "...I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath,... both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants" (Mosiah 4:26).  The two kinds of service that I would like to talk about are temporal and spiritual service.

So temporal service is often times what we immediately think about when we think about service.  It is giving of our physical substance.  God blesses us with a vast amount of blessings.  Some people are blessed with an abundance of money.  Some are blessed with an abundance of strength.  And others are blessed with an abundance of Love.  God gives us all of these blessings and many more, so that he can bless others through us.  That is how we make our blessings count.  God does not want us to be selfish, and to think of only ourselves.  He gives us so many blessings, so that we can bless all of those around us.  Then when we give of our abundance and give of our blessings, then we receive them back even greater.  Then when we receive them back even greater, then we can give even more to those around us.  Isn't it just an incredible pattern of life!  No matter who you are, God has blessed you.  He has given you talents and abilities, and with that he expects you to give back.  Whether it be through monetary donations, or just being there to talk with a friend in need.  There are literally millions of ways that you can serve your fellow man.  As a missionary, I love to do yard work for others.  I didn't like to do it a lot before my mission, but as I have been here, I have found the true joy that comes from that temporal kind of service.  It just makes my day to be able to put a smile on someone else's face through my service.  It is the best!

Well the other kind of service that I would like to talk about is spiritual service.  Just as we are blessed physically, we are also blessed spiritually.  There are many gifts that our father gives us which are commonly referred to as the gifts of the spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-10, D+C 46:11-26).  There are many spiritual gifts that our loving Father in Heaven gives us.  Among these are Faith, Knowledge, Wisdom, Love, Humility, and even a personal testimony.  All these are wonderful blessings that God gives us, but much like temporal blessings, God expects us to share our spiritual blessings with others as well.  We are the conduit through which God can pour out innumerable blessings upon others.  Spiritual service is truly my favorite service.  As a missionary all that I seek to do is to help others come unto Christ.  That is such a great spiritual service.  To do this, I teach others about Christ's gospel, I share my testimony, and I help others develop a stronger Faith in Christ.  This, I believe, is truly the most rewarding service.  The great thing is that the blessings that come from this spiritual service are open to all.  Even if you don't feel like you have a very strong faith, you can still share that faith, and it will later be added upon.  Each and everyone of us has the opportunity to spiritually serve all of those around us.  As we do this and bring others unto Christ, I know that we shall find a greater Joy and Happiness in this life.  The Lord truly said "15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! 16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!" (D+C 18:15-16)  Have a great day!

BE THE CHANGE!

YOU CAN CHANGE!  Change is one of the most wonderful things in the world.  That is one of the greatest gifts that God has given us: the ability to change.  Think about it.  No matter who you are, no matter what you have done. You can change!  That is just Awesome!  I think that ability to change is one of the greatest things that has brought happiness into my life.  Yes we make mistakes.  I sure have made a lot of them, but guess what, we all can change.  If you did something wrong, you can do better the next day.  If you made a mistake, you can change and try to fix it.  You can even change the color of your hair if you want.  Change is Amazing!  But the change that I would like to talk about today is the changing of our hearts.  It is coming unto Christ and being made into a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17).  This change is needed because we all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23).  When we sin, it dirties our soul.  God's house, and his kingdom is pure, and so when we are filthy, we cannot enter into God's kingdom (1 Nephi 10:21).  But the wonderful thing is that we can change!  We can be clean again!  We can be pure!  We can return to live with God again! (Isaiah 1:18, 3 Nephi 27:19)  This can be done through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Moroni 10:32).  Christ's grace is sufficient for us, to change us from a natural man to the saint that our loving father in heaven wants us to be (Mosiah 3:19).  Isn't it just incredible!

I have experienced a lot of change in my life, especially since I have been serving a mission for my Lord and Savior.  Sometimes that change is unexpected, and sometimes I don't always like or appreciate the change, but it is always needed.  The Lord changes me into the man he needs me to be, whether I like it or not.  But I do Love the change.  One of my favorite scriptures on this topic says "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." (1 Cor. 13:11).  This is one of the mighty changes that we should all experience in life.  Before my mission, I could act pretty childish at times, but now I am a representative of Jesus Christ, and I must act as such.  Christ has given me the ability to make this change, and I absolutely love it.  I am not the same person that I was a little over a year ago.  I have changed and I have become better, but the even greater thing is that I am still me.  Christ wants us to be our selves, but he wants us to be our best selves, and he gives us the ability to do so.  As I have experienced this change in myself, I have truly learned much about who Jesus Christ wants me to be.  He wants me to know him and be as he is, for this is life eternal (John 17:3).  That is what I am always striving to do better at each day, to be a more Christ like Christian.

An important part to that is repenting, and changing from our old sinful ways.  We all make mistakes, but through the blood of Jesus Christ, we can be forgiven.  Just as the prodigal son was able to return to his father, we can return to live with our father in heaven again, if we repent and come unto Christ.  You are not so far lost that the healing hands of Jesus Christ cannot reach you.  You can change and you can become better.  Your father in heaven trusts in you, and he is watching diligently.  He will run out to meet us when we are willing to come back.  None are denied the mercies of Jesus Christ.  He is pleading for you to make the change.  Repentance is not a punishment, but it is a relief.  It makes us free.  God loves you so much.  He wants to see you happy so very badly.  He will always be there with open arms when we are ready and willing to come back.  His love for you will never change.  I hope each one of you knows that you are still loved no matter what mistakes you have made in your life.  We all can Change!  You can be that Change!  Now go out and do it TODAY!!!

"Be Not Afraid, Only Believe"

One of my favorite stories from the New Testament, is the one of Jesus Christ, and the raising of Jairus's daughter (Mark 5:21-24, 35-43).  In this story, one of the ruler's of the synagogue named Jairus, approached the Savior, and pleaded with him on behalf of his daughter.  Jairus's daughter was on the verge of death, but Jairus knew that Christ had the power and authority to heal her.  Christ followed him, but as they were travelling, one came from Jairus's house to inform them that his daughter had already died.  Can you imagine the pain and sorrow that must have come over this loving father, when he heard of the death of his only daughter?  For all of you parents, I want you to imagine what it must have felt like to lose one of your own children.  Jairus had exercised the faith, he had called upon the lord, but because of other people in need (Mark 5:25-34), his daughter had died.  The scriptures do not tell us much of Jairus's reaction, but we can imagine that he must have had an enormous wave of emotion.  We can imagine that some fear, and some doubt may have creeped into Jairus's mind, but the Lord gave him a response.  In verse 36 the Lord says "...Be not afraid, only believe.".  Those simple words, are so powerful.  They continued to travel to Jairus's house, and Christ raised Jairus's daughter from the dead.  What an amazing miracle!  Much can be learned from this story, but what I wanted to focus on were the words that Christ spoke to Jairus at his point of despair, or his point of trial.  His words "Be not afraid, only believe.", brought hope.  We all face trials in our lives, and we all face adversity.  That is a part of life.  We will all face points where our faith may be tested or our hope may be tried.  These times are not desired but they are needed, because through the trials and the storms, then we can become stronger.  I wanted to write this post in order to share my thoughts about how we can find hope, and peace, and even happiness when we are surrounded by such trials.

Trials are never fun, and they are never easy.  They are meant to challenge us, but not break us.  When we face a trial, we really have two choices;  Will I turn to God, or will I turn away.  That is the question.  When faced with some trials,  we often times ask "Why would God let this happen to me?".  Well when faced with these trials, an important thing to remember is God does not cause evil and suffering to occur in the world.  God gives every man what is called free agency.  What this is, is man's ability to choose.  Man can either choose to do what's right, or he can choose to do what's wrong, and when some people choose to do what's wrong, it causes suffering in other peoples lives.  This is not God causing this to happen.  Some people then ask though, why does God allow these bad things to happen to good people?  That is a very difficult question to answer, because the answer is different for each and every circumstance, but one thing that we must always remember is that God loves us.  He will always love us.  He knows that our trials work much like a refiners fire. (Psalms 66:10-12)  Through our adversity and our afflictions, we can then become the men and women that God wants us to be.  We must trust in him, and trust that he will always love us.  When we trust in him, then he will raise us up.  (Mosiah 23:22)

So first off, when faced with trials, we must remember that God does love us, and that if we trust in him, and if we don't turn away from him, then he will raise us up through our trials.  We must endure our trials, but we also must endure them well.  The Prophet Joseph Smith, who was a prophet in the modern days, went through many trials in his life.  At one point, he was unjustly thrown in prison, along with a couple other men.  While in this jail they suffered many hardships.  At one point, in desperation, the Prophet Joseph crys out "O God, where art thou?" (D+C 121:1).  Have we not had the same moments in our lives?  Moments when we our selves felt lonely and lost?  Moments when we feel as to cry out "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46).  Well when we are facing these difficult times, we need to always remember that God loves his children.  We may not know the meaning of all things, (1 Nephi 11:17) but always remember that no matter what, God will always love you.  When the Prophet Joseph Smith cried out, he had his prayers answered in the form of a wonderful revelation.  In this revelation, he was taught many things, but one major thing that he was taught is that if we endure our trials well, we shall be exalted on high. (D+C 121:8).

So now the question is, how do we endure it well?  That is a question that has taken me many years to answer, but I have finally learned what it means to endure well.  In order to understand this, we must once again understand why God allows adversity into our lives.  It is too strengthen us.  So in order to Endure something well, we must allow ourselves to be strengthened.  We must allow ourselves to grow, and become better through our trials and struggles.  When we can learn to do that, that is when we can truly become exalted on high.  We can just endure our trials, but when all we do is endure, then we learn nothing from them.  In order to endure something well, we must be able to look at the trial facing us, and think about what we can learn from it.  In doing so, we can progress, and we can become stronger.  That is what God wants for us.  He does not like to see us hurt, or sad, but he loves to see us grow and progress.  He knows what he wants us to become, and he knows how we will get there.  Once again we must only trust in him.

This is something that has taken me many years to finally figure out, but I remember when I first read those words "Be not afraid, only believe.", it brought an enormous wave of peace into my life.  I cannot promise you, that if you have faith, you won't have any trials in your life, but I can promise you that if you do remember to have faith through your trials, you will be strengthened.  Trust in God and do not fear.  Christ is the shepherd and we are the sheep.  He will lead us beside the still waters (Psalms 23).  Knowing this in my life has not allowed me to have a smile on my face throughout all of the trials in my life, but my faith has enabled me to emerge from any trial with a wider smile.  Trials do not make me happy, but what I learn from them does bring me happiness.  Never turn away from your faith, and I promise you that the Lord will strengthen you.  Christ's words ring true for each and every one of us "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest"  (Matt. 11:28).  I know this is true.  I hope you all have a wonderful day.