Temples -Templos

 

God has commanded us to build temples. In the temple we make covenants with God and receive greater knowledge and power. We can be married in the temple for time and all eternity. This means that a man and a woman are “sealed” together forever and that their family is eternal. When worthy adults have been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for at least one year, they can receive a temple recommend from their bishop and begin to attend the temple.

Because God loves all of His children and wants them to return to live with Him, He has provided an opportunity for all of His children to receive and accept the gospel and its ordinances. Many people die without a knowledge of the gospel. They have not received ordinances like baptism which are necessary to enter God’s kingdom. The gospel is shared with these people in the spirit world. Members of the church on earth can perform ordinances in the temple for those that are deceased and the deceased can choose in the spirit world if they accept these ordinances or not. For example, my grandmother may not have had the opportunity to hear the gospel during her life. I can go to the temple and be baptized in her behalf and she can choose to accept that ordinance or not from the spirit world. This allows me to serve my ancestors by performing ordinances in their behalf and it allows them the opportunity to receive and accept these ordinances and be prepared to enter God’s kingdom.

The temple has blessed me immeasurably during my life. I’ve been blessed to go to the temple and perform ordinances for the dead, including my own ancestors. Those are always special experiences. I have received my own ordinances in the temple. Those have strengthened and protected me and blessed me with greater knowledge and understanding of God’s plan for me. I have also received personal guidance, peace and comfort while at the temple.

While I was an intern in Washington, D.C., I traveled by metro and bus to get to the temple there. It was such a wonderful break from the hustle and stress of that busy city. I felt calm and rejuvenated when I attended the temple.

As a senior in college at Brigham Young University, I was offered a spot in a prestigious graduate school program. Surprisingly, I felt very unsettled about accepting that offer. While walking on the Provo temple grounds, I felt a strong impression to pursue graduate school at a different university. That decision has blessed my life in a myriad of ways ever since.

I have most recently attended the temple in Bountiful, Utah. My heart has been heavy and full of questions. Each time I have gone to the temple in Bountiful, I have felt an added measure of comfort. That comfort has helped me keep going, to be reassured that God is aware of me and has a plan for me.

I have felt peace in temples from Sacramento, California to Madrid, Spain and Tijuana, Mexico. The Santo Domingo temple in the Dominican Republic holds a special place in my heart. I love the temples in Arizona that I have attended-Mesa, Gila Valley, Snowflake and Gilbert. I love the temple I saw constructed and dedicated as a child in San Diego, California. My life has been blessed by The Hague temple in the Netherlands and by many others in Utah and throughout the world.

Will you attend the temple? If you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you can go to the temple grounds. If you are a member of the church and do not have a current temple recommend, you can work towards that goal. If you are a member of the church with a current recommend, you can attend the temple as often as you are able. I know that when we attend the temple, we will continue to learn about God and His plan. We will be blessed with peace, direction and happiness.

Templos

Dios nos ha mandado a edificar templos. En el templo hacemos convenios con Dios y recibimos mayor conocimiento y poder. Podemos casarnos en el templo por el tiempo y toda la eternidad. Eso significa que un hombre y una mujer estarán sellados para siempre y que su familia será eterna. Cuando los miembros adultos dignos hayan cumplido un año en la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días, podrán recibir una recomendación para el templo de su obispo y empezar a asistir al templo.

Porque Dios ama a todos sus hijos y quiere que vuelvan a vivir con Él,  Él ha dado la oportunidad a todos sus hijos de recibir y aceptar el evangelio y sus ordenanzas.  Muchas personas mueren sin conocer el evangelio. No han recibido las ordenanzas (como bautismo) que son necesarios para entrar en el reino de Dios. El evangelio se comparte con estas personas en el mundo de los espíritus. Miembros de la iglesia que están en la tierra pueden realizar las ordenanzas en el templo por los que han fallecido y los fallecidos pueden elegir en el mundo de los espíritus si aceptan o no estas ordenanzas. Por ejemplo, mi abuela quizás no tuvo la oportunidad de escuchar el evangelio durante su vida. Yo puedo ir al templo y ser bautizada por ella y ella puede elegir aceptar o no aceptar esa ordenanza en el mundo de los espíritus. Eso me permite servir a mis antepasados al realizar ordenanzas por ellos a su vez les da a ellos la oportunidad de recibir y aceptar estas ordenanzas y estar preparados para entrar el reino de Dios.

El templo me ha bendecido inmensamente durante me vida. He sido bendecida al ir al templo y realizar ordenanzas por los muertos, incluyendo a mis antepasados. Esas son siempre experiencias especiales. He recibido mis propias ordenanzas en el templo. Me han fortalecido y protegido y me han bendecido con mayor conocimiento y entendimiento del plan de Dios para mí. También he recibido dirección personal, paz y consuelo mientras estoy en el templo.

Cuando era pasante en Washington, D.C., tomaba el metro y el autobús para llegar al templo. Era un maravilloso descanso de la agitación y el estrés de la ciudad.  Me sentía en calma y rejuvenecida al entrar al templo.

Cuando era estudiante del último año en la universidad de Brigham Young, se me ofreció un puesto en un prestigioso programa de la escuela de graduados. Sorprendentemente, me sentí intranquila al aceptar la oferta.  Mientras caminaba por los jardines del templo de Provo, sentí una fuerte impresión a seguir con mi posgrado en otra universidad. Esa decisión ha bendecido mi vida de diversas formas desde aquel día.

Visité recientemente el templo de Bountiful, Utah. Mi corazón ha estado pesado y lleno de preguntas. Cada vez que asisto al templo en Bountiful, siento una medida adicional de consuelo. Este consuelo me ha ayudado a seguir adelante, de estar segura de que Dios me tiene pendiente y tiene un plan para mí.

 

He sentido paz en los templos desde Sacramento, California a Madrid, España y Tijuana, México. El templo de Santo Domingo en la República Dominicana tiene un lugar especial en mi corazón. Amo los templos que he visitado en Arizona: Mesa, Gila Valley, Snowflake y Gilbert. Amo el templo de San Diego, California el cual vi construir y dedicar cuando era una niña. Mi vida ha sido bendecida por el templo en la Haya en los Países Bajos y muchos otros en Utah y por todo el mundo.

¿Asistirá al templo? Si no es miembro de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días, puede visitar los jardines del templo. Si es miembro de la iglesia y no tiene una recomendación activa, puede trabajar para cumplir la meta de entrar al templo. Si es miembro de la iglesia y tiene recomendación activa, se puede asistir al templo tantas veces como le sea posible. Yo sé que cuando asistimos al templo, continuaremos aprendiendo de Dios y su plan. Seremos bendecidos con paz, dirección y felicidad.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Faith
The first part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is having faith in Christ. We believe He is the Son of God, that He is our Savior and Redeemer. When we have faith in Christ, we follow His teachings.

Repentance
Because of Jesus Christ, we have the opportunity to repent. When we have faith in Christ, we want to become more like Him and repent of those things that are not in line with His commandments. When we do something wrong we repent by asking God for forgiveness and righting our wrong as much as we are able to. We turn away from that sin and do not do it again. Because of Christ’s sacrifice for us, we can be completely forgiven of the wrongs we have done.

 

Baptism
When we have faith and repent, and are willing to follow God and keep His commandments, we are prepared to follow His commandment to be baptized. We should be baptized just as Christ was-by someone with the authority to baptize, at an age when we are accountable for our actions, and by immersion (being completely submersed in water). When we are baptized we are cleansed of all our sins. We promise God that we will always remember Him, that we are willing to take His name upon ourselves, and that we will keep His commandments. In return, God promises that we will always have His Spirit with us.

 

The Gift of the Holy Ghost
After we are baptized with water, those having authority, lay their hands on our head and we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Sometimes the Holy Ghost is referred to as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Ghost teaches us truth, warns us, comforts us and direct us. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost by those having authority to bestow it, the Holy Ghost can be with us always, our constant companion, as we are obedient and make good decisions.
 
Enduring to the End
After we have been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, we must endure to the end of this life. If we do so, we are promised eternal life with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We will continually have opportunities in this life to exercise faith and repent. We can remember and renew our promises that we made at baptism each week as we partake of the sacrament at church. The sacrament includes the bread and water that we take that symbolize Christ’s sacrifice. We are once again cleansed of our sins and remember and renew our promises to God. This and other blessings, continually give us the opportunity to be strengthened and to keep pressing forward. There will be many trials and many happy experiences to have in this life. If we can continue to have faith in Christ, repent, and hold fast to our promised that we have made with God, our happiness will be real in this life and our joy will be full in the next life when we live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had to have faith in Christ. They have helped me come to know Him better. I’m grateful that every day, every minute, I have the opportunity to repent, to be forgiven of wrongs and move forward clean and whole. I’m grateful I was baptized as Christ was baptized and that I am a member of His church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’m especially grateful for the chances I have had to see other be baptized. It is such a joyous occasion. The gift of the Holy Ghost has blessed my life immeasurably. It has warned me, guided and instructed me, protected me, consoled me, and helped me feel peace which passes all my understanding and happiness which exceeds all my expectations. I know that God has provided these things for us-faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost-to bless us. I know that we must endure and keep moving forward so that we can have true happiness in this life and be prepared so that one day we will live with God and Jesus Christ and experience a fullness of joy with them.

 *Dancing bachata along the way helps. ;)

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Faith
The first part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is having faith in Christ. We believe He is the Son of God, that He is our Savior and Redeemer. When we have faith in Christ, we follow His teachings.

Repentance
Because of Jesus Christ, we have the opportunity to repent. When we have faith in Christ, we want to become more like Him and repent of those things that are not in line with His commandments. When we do something wrong we repent by asking God for forgiveness and righting our wrong as much as we are able to. We turn away from that sin and do not do it again. Because of Christ’s sacrifice for us, we can be completely forgiven of the wrongs we have done.

 

Baptism
When we have faith and repent, and are willing to follow God and keep His commandments, we are prepared to follow His commandment to be baptized. We should be baptized just as Christ was-by someone with the authority to baptize, at an age when we are accountable for our actions, and by immersion (being completely submersed in water). When we are baptized we are cleansed of all our sins. We promise God that we will always remember Him, that we are willing to take His name upon ourselves, and that we will keep His commandments. In return, God promises that we will always have His Spirit with us.

 

The Gift of the Holy Ghost
After we are baptized with water, those having authority, lay their hands on our head and we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Sometimes the Holy Ghost is referred to as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Ghost teaches us truth, warns us, comforts us and direct us. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost by those having authority to bestow it, the Holy Ghost can be with us always, our constant companion, as we are obedient and make good decisions.
 
Enduring to the End
After we have been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, we must endure to the end of this life. If we do so, we are promised eternal life with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We will continually have opportunities in this life to exercise faith and repent. We can remember and renew our promises that we made at baptism each week as we partake of the sacrament at church. The sacrament includes the bread and water that we take that symbolize Christ’s sacrifice. We are once again cleansed of our sins and remember and renew our promises to God. This and other blessings, continually give us the opportunity to be strengthened and to keep pressing forward. There will be many trials and many happy experiences to have in this life. If we can continue to have faith in Christ, repent, and hold fast to our promised that we have made with God, our happiness will be real in this life and our joy will be full in the next life when we live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had to have faith in Christ. They have helped me come to know Him better. I’m grateful that every day, every minute, I have the opportunity to repent, to be forgiven of wrongs and move forward clean and whole. I’m grateful I was baptized as Christ was baptized and that I am a member of His church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’m especially grateful for the chances I have had to see other be baptized. It is such a joyous occasion. The gift of the Holy Ghost has blessed my life immeasurably. It has warned me, guided and instructed me, protected me, consoled me, and helped me feel peace which passes all my understanding and happiness which exceeds all my expectations. I know that God has provided these things for us-faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost-to bless us. I know that we must endure and keep moving forward so that we can have true happiness in this life and be prepared so that one day we will live with God and Jesus Christ and experience a fullness of joy with them.

 *Dancing bachata along the way helps. ;)

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Faith
The first part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is having faith in Christ. We believe He is the Son of God, that He is our Savior and Redeemer. When we have faith in Christ, we follow His teachings.

Repentance
Because of Jesus Christ, we have the opportunity to repent. When we have faith in Christ, we want to become more like Him and repent of those things that are not in line with His commandments. When we do something wrong we repent by asking God for forgiveness and righting our wrong as much as we are able to. We turn away from that sin and do not do it again. Because of Christ’s sacrifice for us, we can be completely forgiven of the wrongs we have done.

 

Baptism
When we have faith and repent, and are willing to follow God and keep His commandments, we are prepared to follow His commandment to be baptized. We should be baptized just as Christ was-by someone with the authority to baptize, at an age when we are accountable for our actions, and by immersion (being completely submersed in water). When we are baptized we are cleansed of all our sins. We promise God that we will always remember Him, that we are willing to take His name upon ourselves, and that we will keep His commandments. In return, God promises that we will always have His Spirit with us.

 

The Gift of the Holy Ghost
After we are baptized with water, those having authority, lay their hands on our head and we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Sometimes the Holy Ghost is referred to as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Ghost teaches us truth, warns us, comforts us and direct us. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost by those having authority to bestow it, the Holy Ghost can be with us always, our constant companion, as we are obedient and make good decisions.
 
Enduring to the End
After we have been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, we must endure to the end of this life. If we do so, we are promised eternal life with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. We will continually have opportunities in this life to exercise faith and repent. We can remember and renew our promises that we made at baptism each week as we partake of the sacrament at church. The sacrament includes the bread and water that we take that symbolize Christ’s sacrifice. We are once again cleansed of our sins and remember and renew our promises to God. This and other blessings, continually give us the opportunity to be strengthened and to keep pressing forward. There will be many trials and many happy experiences to have in this life. If we can continue to have faith in Christ, repent, and hold fast to our promised that we have made with God, our happiness will be real in this life and our joy will be full in the next life when we live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had to have faith in Christ. They have helped me come to know Him better. I’m grateful that every day, every minute, I have the opportunity to repent, to be forgiven of wrongs and move forward clean and whole. I’m grateful I was baptized as Christ was baptized and that I am a member of His church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’m especially grateful for the chances I have had to see other be baptized. It is such a joyous occasion. The gift of the Holy Ghost has blessed my life immeasurably. It has warned me, guided and instructed me, protected me, consoled me, and helped me feel peace which passes all my understanding and happiness which exceeds all my expectations. I know that God has provided these things for us-faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost-to bless us. I know that we must endure and keep moving forward so that we can have true happiness in this life and be prepared so that one day we will live with God and Jesus Christ and experience a fullness of joy with them.

 *Dancing bachata along the way helps. ;)

I Believe in Christ-What Does That Mean?

 

 

Who is Christ?

Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He was born to His mother, Mary, in a place called Bethlehem. During His life, He taught many people His Gospel, established His church and performed many miracles. The most important thing that Christ did was to sacrifice His life for each of us. His sacrifice is called the Atonement. It includes His suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane, His death on the cross and His resurrection when He rose from the dead to live again.  In the Garden of Gethsemane Christ suffered for all of our pains and afflictions and paid the price for our sins. Because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for us, because of His Atonement, we can all be forgiven of our sins and we can live again after this life. We can also overcome all things because of His Atonement. His Atonement is infinite. It is limitless.

What Does It Mean to Believe in Christ? 
 
If we believe something, we follow it. If we believe in Christ, we will follow Him. He taught that we must have faith in Him, repent of our sins, be baptized, receive the Holy Spirit and continue to be faithful throughout our lives. If we believe in Christ, we will be obedient to His teachings. If we do these things we can live forever with God after this life and we will experience true, lasting happiness and joy in this life and after this life. We will of course have challenges, sorrows, fears, etc. but we will know better how to face them and how to overcome them.  

What Does Believing in Christ Mean to Me? 

I believe in Christ and because of Him I know that I can be forgiven. I have been forgiven many, many times. That is a beautiful feeling. Such sweet relief, such peace. 

Because I believe in Christ, I know that I can live with my family after this life. I know that I will see them after death. This brings such comfort to me. 

Because I believe in Christ, I can be healed and experience the indescribable peace and comfort that come through Christ. I can also love other people like He loves them. 

Because I believe in Christ, I know and have felt that with Him I can do all things. ALL things. There are a lot of things that I am afraid of, that I am unsure of, and things that I don’t understand. There are a lot of things that trouble me and a lot of things that I fall short of. With Christ I can overcome all of these things. It may not be immediate and it may not be how I anticipate, but it will happen. His Atonement enables this. 

Because I believe in Christ, I can dream. With Him I can gain all of my dreams. Dreams come true because of Christ. 

Because I believe in Christ, I am happy, I am grateful and I am well. I know that all things that are unfair can and will be made right through Christ’s Atonement. There are challenges, myriads of them, but because I believe in Christ I know and feel peace that all challenges and everything will work out in the end. 

What Can Believing in Christ Mean in Your Life?

What believing in Christ can mean in your life is up to you. If you have faith in Him, His Atonement can begin to work more fully in your life. He is there to lead you, guide you and help you. He has always been there. He is always there. He always will be. Believe in Christ. And see what happens.

I believe in Christ

He stands supreme

From Him I’ll gain my fondest dream

And while I strive through grief and pain

His voice is heard, “Ye shall obtain!”

I believe in Christ

So come what may

With Him I’ll stand in that great day

When on this earth He comes again

To rule among the sons of men[1].

---

[1] “I Believe in Christ,” Bruce R. McConkie.

 

 

 

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What Happens to Us After This LIfe?

God’s Plan of Happiness for Us (Part 2)

What happens to us after this life? Where do we go? Will we see our families and others that we love again? God’s plan of happiness for us also answers these questions.

When we die our bodies are buried and our spirits go to a place called the spirit world. In the spirit world those people who did not obey or did not have the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ and His teachings will be taught those things. They will have the opportunity to accept those teachings in the spirit world. I am so grateful that there is an opportunity after this life for those that did not obey or did not hear about the gospel to hear it and accept it in the spirit world.

Our bodies and spirits will be reunited in what is called the resurrection. They will be restored to their perfect frame. Once we are resurrected we will be judged by God according to our actions, words and thoughts during this life. His judgement will be perfect-perfectly just and perfectly merciful.

According to God’s judgement we will go to one of three kingdoms-the celestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom or the telestial kingdom. Those who did not repent of their sins will live in the telestial kingdom. Those who lived good lives but did not accept the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ will go to the terrestrial kingdom. Those who accepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ and were faithful in keeping God’s commandments will live in the celestial kingdom. In the celestial kingdom we can live with God, Jesus Christ and our families forever.

I know that this is God’s plan and that it is a perfect plan. There is so much mercy in this plan and it is perfectly balanced with justice.

I look forward with great anticipation to the resurrection. What a glorious, amazing day that will be! My sister, Whitney, has lived and will continue to live with the handicap of Down Syndrome during her life. How wonderful it will be in that day of resurrection when her body and mind will be made perfect and restored with her great spirit. I cannot wait to talk with her and hug her on that day.

I take great comfort from the judgement. With God as our judge we can be assured that His judgement will be perfect for He perfectly know all of our thoughts, circumstances, motivations, influences, etc. And He loves us perfectly. With these things His judgement will perfectly balance justice and mercy.

Death is not the end. We will see our families and others that we love after this life. How grateful I am for that. It is truly comforting and inspiring.

I want to live in the celestial kingdom someday with my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and my family forever. I want to do all that I can now to be ready to live there. I want to live the gospel of Jesus Christ with all my heart, to keep the commandments and follow the example of Jesus Christ.

I know this is God’s plan and I know that it is perfect. We may sometimes feel that our lives do not fit in to this plan. I have felt that. I know though that it is the plan of happiness-it has brought us happiness before this life and can continue to bring us happiness during this life and after it if we will choose to follow God. How great is the plan of our God- the plan of happiness.

 

 

 

What Is The Purpose of Life?

God’s Plan of Happiness for Us (Part I)

To understand the purpose of life it is first important to understand where we came from.

We lived as spirit sons and daughters of God before this life. We lived with God and Jesus Christ and made the decision to come to earth to receive a physical body and experience mortal life. This was God’s plan for us.

God first sent Adam and Eve to the earth. They lived in the Garden of Eden. God told them not to partake of the forbidden fruit. If they did, they would be subject to physical death-they would die. They would also be subject to spiritual death-they could sin. Satan tempted Adam and Eve and they ate the fruit. Because they did this they were cast out of the Garden of Eden. They could now die and could also sin. However, Adam and Eve could also now have children and each of us had the opportunity to be born and come to earth. 

When we came to earth we passed through a veil of forgetfulness or in other words, we forgot our pre-earth life with God and Jesus Christ. This forgetfulness makes it necessary for us to walk by faith on earth.

Our purpose in this life is to have joy and to prepare to return to live with God forever. What a glorious purpose! Seriously, how exciting! To have joy and get ready to return to live with God! How do we do this? We must follow God and keep His commandments. Following God’s commandments not only brings us joy but also helps us become more like Him so that we can return to live with Him, Jesus Christ and our families after this life.

Because of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for us we can do and overcome all things, even death. His sacrifice is called the Atonement. It includes His suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane, His death on the cross and His resurrection when he rose from the dead to live again. As we turn to Christ, keep God’s commandments, and use His Atonement in our lives, we will be prepared to return to live with God and our joy will be eternal.

Knowing that this is my purpose on earth has given me such direction in my life as I make decisions, as I interact with others and as I face challenges and temptations. While joy is available to us in this life, there is also a great deal of sadness, hurt, loneliness, anger and so many other hard things. I know that each and every challenge that is presented to us in this life can help us grow and can be endured and overcome through Christ and His Atonement. I have felt this as I have overcome the sorrow that comes from losing a cousin to suicide, another cousin to cancer, an aunt to drug overdose, an uncle to cancer and the death of grandparents. Through Christ, that sorrow has been replaced with greater understanding and peace and comfort. I have been strengthened through Christ’s Atonement to do hard things, things that are scary and wildly intimidating to me again and again. I have felt forgiveness when I have done wrong and I have felt joy, so much joy, real joy.

I know that keeping the commandments will always bring us joy. Sometimes that joy is not immediate and lots of times other people may not understand why we choose to keep God’s commandments but I know we will never regret the choice to be obedient to Him.

Remember your purpose. Have joy and prepare to return to live with your Heavenly Father forever by keeping His commandments. Let this guide your future and the day to day decisions you make now. Will you do this? I know that if we do, we will see God again and that we can live with Him and Christ and our families forever after this life. 

Joseph Smith

There was a young 14 year old boy who lived in Palmyra, New York in 1820. His name was Joseph Smith. At that time there were many different churches in that area and Joseph wanted to know which of all of the churches was true so that he would know which he should join. He studied and went to the different churches. One day he was reading in the Bible, in James 1:5, “If any of ye lack wisdom, let him ask of God, which giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” He decided to ask God which church to join.

Joseph went to a grove of trees near his home and began to pray. In his own words he says, “I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me…when the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-‘This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!’

Joseph Smith saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. He asked them which of all the churches he should join. He was told that he should join none of them and that none of them had a fullness of the truth.  Just as God had called prophets during biblical times, (Moses, Abraham, Noah, etc.), Joseph Smith was later called by God to be a prophet and through him God restored His church on the earth again. We have that church today, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it is directed by a modern day prophet, Thomas S. Monson.

When I was 20 years old I wanted to know for myself that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. At the time I was going to college and attending a missionary preparation class. One of our assignments was to teach a friend about the restoration of the gospel through Joseph Smith. At that point in my life I had decided that I wanted to serve as a missionary for my church and I knew that while doing that I would be sharing the story of Joseph Smith a lot and asking people to pray to know if he was a prophet. How could I teach something and ask people to pray about something that I didn’t know for myself was true?
 
For quite some time I began to study all that I could about Joseph Smith. I read his personal history repeatedly. I studied the Book of Mormon diligently. And I prayed continuously to know if he was in fact a prophet. One morning I was up early and reading through his personal history again. I was specifically reading the section where he talks about having a vision of God and Jesus Christ and I was trying to memorize that part. As I said those words aloud, I had the greatest feeling of joy and surety overcome me. I knew that Joseph Smith had seen them, that he had had that vision. I knew that he was a prophet of God. I knew that through him the true church of Jesus Christ had been restored. It was the most glorious feeling! A feeling that I will never forget.

I know still that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that he had that vision. If you haven’t done so already, I would invite you to learn about Joseph Smith and pray to know if he was a prophet. If you have already done that, I would invite you to remember what you already know.

"Ask, and ye shall receive.”

 

What is the Book of Mormon and What Does It Mean in My Life?

The Book of Mormon is an ancient record that was written by prophets living in the Americas before, during and after the time of Christ (approximately 600 B.C. to 400 A.D.). Just as prophets in Jerusalem were teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people in that part of the world during that time, prophets in the Americas were teaching the gospel to the people there. Their words are recorded in the Book of Mormon.

The most important event which takes place in the Book of Mormon is when Christ appears to the people of the Americas after his death and resurrection. He teaches them His gospel and heals and blesses them.
 
The prophets who wrote in the Book of Mormon recorded their words on plates of gold. The last prophet to write, Moroni, hid these plates in the ground in a place called the Hill Cumorah. Hundreds of years later, a man named Joseph Smith would be called to be a prophet and would be directed by God to find the plates and translate them into the Book of Mormon which we now have. The Book of Mormon was first published in 1830. It has now been translated in over 100 languages.

The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. It can be used in companionship with the Holy Bible. Just as we are able to see better with two eyes than we are with one, the Book of Mormon helps us see and understand more clearly the gospel of Jesus Christ as it is taught in the Bible. Together, the Book of Mormon and the Bible testify of Christ and give us a powerful witness of Him and His teachings. The Book of Mormon also provides answers to many of life’s great questions as well as answers to our personal questions
 
Each of us can know for ourselves that the Book of Mormon is true if we will read it, ponder it, and then ask God with real intent if it is true. We will receive an answer of its truthfulness through the Spirit which helps us receive answers to our prayers through feelings of peace, happiness, and joy.

As I have read the Book of Mormon and prayed to know if it is a true book, if it is the word of God, I have come to know that it is true through the power of the Spirit. It has answered many of my personal questions and helped me to know and do many things in my life. As I read the Book of Mormon in Spanish, it helped me to learn Spanish. It helped me decide to keep attending a church class called seminary that I found difficult and frustrating. It has helped me know who to date, how to be a better family member, and has continuously helped me feel peace, hope and gratitude. I have learned from the pages of the Book of Mormon what happens to us after this life, how to have strength to endure trials and that after this life my handicapped sister will have a perfect body and mind. Most importantly, the Book of Mormon has taught me of Jesus Christ-His suffering, His mercy, His perfect empathy and that with Him I can do ALL things. What a glorious book!
 
I testify that the Book of Mormon is true and that it will help us grow closer to God than any other book.  I know that it will bring us peace, hope and understanding as we study it sincerely.
 
Will you read the Book of Mormon to know if it is true? If you already know that it is true, will you read it with a question you may have and pray to find the answer as you study the Book of Mormon? I know that if we study the Book of Mormon sincerely, ponder it, and ask God if it is true, we will receive a testimony that it is true and we will receive answers to the questions that we have through the Spirit. I know that we will also grow closer to God and Christ as we read and study this marvelous book. Happy reading.