God Lives

There are many people who wonder...Does God really exist? Does He really have a hand in my life? I know for myself that He does. I know this because of heartfelt prayer, study, and searching and He has manifested the truth and validity of Himself to me time and time again.

The only way to truly know if He is there is to read of Him and pray to Him. I have done this and each time that I do my faith in Him grows. This is the ONLY way that we can build a strong enough foundation to have a lasting testimony of our God. Once we have showed and proved our faith in Him through following His commandments, He allows us to witness or experience something miraculous.

In my life, these miracles have been blessings from God reminding me that He IS there and He is all powerful. These experiences were and are designed to strengthen faith in Him. These experiences do not define faith, rather, they REfine it, making it stronger and more steadfast.

Such an experience occurred the other day to some of the great people that my companion and I go see. Let's say that their names are Zak and Sara. They were watching a comedian on Zak's Smartphone and some of the comedian's jokes began to be a little sacrilegious. They then got much worse. Zak and Sara got more and more uncomfortable the worse the jokes got. At the start of another terrible joke the comedian said, "Ya know what? I don't think that God exists." Just before he could deliver the punchline the phone shut off! It had been completely charged and there was nothing "wrong" with the phone at all. God doesn't exist? I beg to differ. He knows all things and His hand is in all things.

Zak and Sara already had faith in God and what He can do but through this experience He let them know of His limitless reach. "I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith" (Ether 12:6). Faith precedes the miracle. But when that miracle comes, you better pay attention!

A Fresh Start

So Fresh...Prince.

Many of you have probably seen the TV show, "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air".  I love it! It is Will Smith at his finest (I don't care if he won an Oscar for "Ali"...this is his finest work!). It is all about a respectable and well-established family from California who take in a somewhat troubled young man named Will (Will Smith) to teach him how to be accountable and such. He gets into all sorts of crazy antics with Carlton, Jazzy Jeff, G (the family's butler, Geoffery), Uncle Phil, and many others. Good morals are taught and laughs are had by all. The show is all about a "fresh" guy getting a "fresh" start. Doesn't that sound nice?

We all need a "fresh" start like Will at times! God knows this and that is why he sent His Son to take care of us. Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and one of His divine purposes is to give us a clean start. He does this through forgiving and cleansing us of our sins, giving us peace, comforting us when we are down, etc. He has made this possible through the Atonement. His Atonement is broken down into three distinct parts/events and it is beautifully described in the Book of Mormon in Alma chapter 7. 1) He "[went] forth suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind...he [took] upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people" (Alma 7:11) while in the Garden of Gethsemane. 2) "And [took] upon him death" (Alma 7:12) as He died for us on the cross. 3) He "[loosed] the bands of death which bind his people" (Alma 7:12) and rose again on the third day thus, making it possible for all of us to be resurrected as well.

The Atonement is infinite, beautiful, perfect, and sometimes overwhelming. I often ask questions like these: How was Christ able to do so much for everyone? Why did Christ go through all of that pain and suffering for someone as insignificant as myself? Even though I do not know everything, I know enough. I know that  our Heavenly Father loves us more than we can imagine. His love for you and me is indescribable and incomprehensible. It is through this love that we are able to have lasting joy, relief, and peace. I know that He sent His Only Begotten Son to show this divine love to us. "Beloved, let us love one another for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him" (1 John 4:7-9). Through the love of Christ we can receive a fresh start.

I promise you that as you honor God and His commandments and you repent you will be able to obtain Forgiveness. You will feel this love. No matter what we have done in our lives we are able to make it right and return to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's loving arms which is a feeling of undeniable warmth, comfort, peace, and truth (Galatians 5:22-23). Just like the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, we all can get a "fresh" start.

Spiritual and Basketball Responsibilities

(Lyrics to "Responsibility" by the band MXPX)

Responsibility? What's that?

Responsibility? Not quite yet.

Responsibility? What's that?

I don't want to think about it; we'd be better off without it.

We are all accountable for things in this thing called life. We are accountable at work, at home, and at play. At the root of all of our accountability is our God-given agency. We are free to do whatsoever we will with what we have in our lives. We must be responsible with the agency that we have been given or else we will be throwing away this great gift. Many people take this gift for granted. Sadly, MXPX had it all wrong! We need to embrace this gift of agency and responsibility and realize that we would NOT be "better off without it". In fact...it is critical on our path to happiness!

The only thing that is truly ours in this life is our right to choose. Our possessions/riches are not our own. Not even our bodies are not our own. "Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). We must recognize that what we have been given is God's and that we must use our agency to come closer to Him.

We all are naturally good at things. Some are very smart. Some are crafty. Some are artsy. Some are athletic. Some are...you catch my drift. These talents come from God. He has given all of us spiritual gifts to bless our lives and the lives of those around us. We all have our own individual roles in our lives. We need to find what that role is and then do our absolute best to magnify our responsibilities.

Here is a basketball example:

Derrick Rose

Kobe Bryant

Kevin Durant

Each team needs to have players who are good at certain aspects of the game so that the team can have success. Each team should have a starting line-up with a point guard, a shooting guard, a small forward, a power forward, and a center. Each team needs someone at each position to maximize their role and strive to do their best. There are certain players that are exceptional at doing that. As a fan of the game and the NBA I believe that the following players would be best at finding and making the most of their gifts. Point Guard: Derrick Rose. Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant. Small Forward: Kevin Durant. Power Forward: Kevin Love. Center: Dwight Howard. Sixth Man: Jimmer Fredette (the Jazz better draft him with the twelfth pick...). All of these players recognize their gifts that they have been given and they know that they are accountable for them. They all maximize their talent and (with that recognition) would make a great team. Can you imagine a team with Derrick Rose leading the offense, driving the lane and finding an open Kobe Bryant to hit a clutch jumper? Or Kevin Love throwing a deep outlet pass to a sprinting Kevin Durant for a fast-break play? Or Dwight Howard getting an offensive rebound and then throwing it down with authority for a dunk? Or Jimmer Fredette coming off of the bench and torching up the scoreboard with fancy footwork and deep, deep, deep threes? WOW! That would be great! But it would only be possible if they all came together and maximized their gifts.

Kevin Love

Dwight Howard

Jimmer Fredette

This principle is true with spiritual gifts as well. We all have special gifts and talents that are given to us by God. Moroni explains what some of these gifts are in Moroni 10:9-18. But I would like to focus on some of the more "underappreciated" gifts of the Spirit. Elder Marvin J. Ashton spoke of such gifts if the 1987 November Ensign article, "There Are Many Gifts". He said, "Let us review some of these less-conspicuous gifts: the gift of asking; the gift of listening; the gift of hearing and using a still, small voice; the gift of being able to weep; the gift of avoiding contention; the gift of being agreeable; the gift of avoiding vain repetition; the gift of seeking that which is righteous; the gift of not passing judgment; the gift of looking to God for guidance; the gift of being a disciple; the gift of caring for others; the gift of being able to ponder; the gift of offering prayer; the gift of bearing a mighty testimony; and the gift of receiving the Holy Ghost. We must remember that to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God. It is our right and responsibility to accept our gifts and to share them. God’s gifts and powers are available to all of us." I am certain that we ALL can pin-point that we have one or many of these gifts. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all recognized and magnified these gifts that we all have and work together in the service of God?

We MUST do our best to share what we have been given. Joseph F. Smith said, "Every son and every daughter of God has received some talent, and each will be held to strict account to the use or misuse to which it is put." We need to use, share, and exhibit our talents so that we can help our friends and acquaintances bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man (Moses 1:39). To do so would be to maximize our agency and responsibility. Responsibility? What's that? Well, MXPX, it is our door to immortality and eternal life.

Family

Those who know me know how much I love and care about my family. They mean everything to me. My parents are wonderul examples and my brothers and sisters are my best friends. I have learned so many things from them. As I look to the examples that my family members set I am given a guiding light which if I follow I will be led to goodness, happiness, and peace.

My Mom and Dad (Dave and DeAnn) with my niece Scarlett

Amazing brothers and sisters (L to R: Alicia, Scott, Laurel, me, Michelle, Brett)

I know that families make up the most important social unit that we are given by God. He places us in families so that we can learn (to love, to be kind, to be patient, etc.), grow (physically, spiritually, emotionally, etc.), and to become more like Him. Our loving Heavenly Father has provided our families with scriptures that we can study together and learn from with each other. There is a story in the Book of Mormon that describes what we must do to succeed in this life and feel the love of God. This story is referred to as "Lehi's Dream" or "Lehi's Vision" and is found in the eighth chapter of the first book of Nephi. Within this dream or vision Lehi (a prophet and father) finds a rod of iron (representation of the Word of God - scriptures) that leads directly to a tree with fruit (representation of the love of God) above the whiteness and pureness of anything that we can imagine. When one eats of this fruit one becomes happy. Lehi partakes of the fruit and immediately desires that his family partakes of it also. The account is written from Lehi's perspective and it states, "And as I partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceedingly great joy; wherefore, I began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also; for I knew that it was desirable above all other fruit. And as I cast my eyes round about, that perhaps I might discover my family also...I beheld your mother Sariah, and Sam, and Nephi; and they stood as if they knew not whither they should go...I beckoned unto them; and I also did say unto them with a loud voice that they should come unto me, and partake of the fruit, which was desirable above all other fruit. And it came to pass that they did come unto me and partake of the fruit also" (1 Nephi 8: 12-16). The full text can be found here.

An artist's depiction of Lehi's vision of the Tree of Life

What I love about this vision is that it clearly shows us the great importance of families and also the great bond that is found within them. Whenever I find something new, exciting, and fun I immediately want to share it with my family. This is especially true with something that is as spiritual and uplifting as the love of God. As described in the Book of Mormon and the other standard works the only way to truly feel the love of God is to obey His commandments and hearken to His words found in the scriptures. When Lehi partook of the fruit and tasted the love of God for himself he immediately thought of his family. He wanted them to feel the love of God in their lives as he had. He searched for them so that he could help them in their path as they held fast to the iron rod. Only when they stuck together and were obedient could they partake of the love of God together.

The fullness of Christ's gospel found only in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints helps us along the pathway to righteousness and the love of God. In 1995 under the direction of President Gordon B. Hinckley he and the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles wrote something called, "The Family: A Proclamation to the World".

As I read "The Family" I receive feelings from the Holy Ghost that families can last forever. I know in my heart that these words are from God and that they have been given to us through prophets. His prophets give us direction so that we may have pure happiness in our relationships. I know that as we abide by God's commandments we will have joy in these relationships. As we keep an eternal perspective on things we are blessed with clarity and peace.

I am excited to have a future family of my own. I do not know what my future wife's name will be. I do not know what she will look like. I do not know how many children we will have. BUT I do know that I plan to be married in a temple of God. I do know that my family will be together forever as long as we follow the commandments and honor our covenants.

This is why I hold my family so dear to my heart! I trust them and love them. They are good friends as well as blood relatives. This is the way that God wants our family relationships to be. He knows that we have the potential to stay together for all of eternity and that this life is the best time to make these relationships last. Be kind to your parents. Thank them for all that they do! Be an example and be a friend to your siblilngs. Love your spouse and hold your children in high esteem. If you are not married yet (LIKE ME) then prepare yourself (spiritually and emotionally) for marriage.

Twice a year we have the opportunity to hear from our living Apostles and prophets. Many of them focused on eternal families and marriages. Elder Richard G. Scott gave a touching talk called "The Eternal Blessings of Marriage" that was especially amazing. I advise you to read it and give it thought (as well as all of the other amazing talks!).

I hope to follow the great examples of my family members and carry their traits into my own fatherhood. I know that it is what God would have me do.