Trust in God
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Holy Week
For many, the week leading up to Easter holds great significance. It begins with Palm Sunday and ends with the day Jesus Christ rose from the dead, which is now called Easter. Holy Week is a good time for us to ponder and reflect on our belief in and reliance on Jesus Christ. How does knowing that He died for us affect us? How does knowing that He lives for us affect us? How does this knowledge influence our day-to-day decisions? Jesus was born of a mortal mother, which made Him human, and of Heavenly Father, which made Him a God. He was born in humble circumstances in a place…
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Jesus is The Healer
When I was young, I had an incomplete understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and repentance. I believed that repentance was for big sins and the Atonement of Jesus Christ was for people who were stealing, robbing banks, committing murder, and other things that I was not doing. When leaders suggested daily repentance, I couldn’t wrap my head around that concept. Were people actually doing that much lying, stealing, and killing? What about people like me? I believed that Jesus had suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane and then hung on the cross where He died. And I absolutely believed He rose on the third day. That all made…
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Jesus is The Light of The World
Light dispels darkness. In a dark room, if you flip on the light, it chases all the darkness away. Light illuminates a path and shows us where to go. Light is warm and inviting. Similarly, Jesus is The Light. He chases all the darkness away and shows us what path to follow back to our Heavenly Father. Through Him, we can see truth and right and overcome darkness. We can feel His warmth when we feel His Light. Satan is dark. He is cold. He lives in the shadows and encourages us to stay in the dark. The only way to combat Satan and his influence is to shine a…
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Jesus is The Good Shepherd
A shepherd watches over, protects, and guides his herd. He stays with them, even when there might be danger. He knows each sheep and when one wanders, he is willing to go out and call that one back to the flock. Modern-day shepherds camp with the sheep. They move them to better grazing and watch over them constantly. If a coyote, wolf, or a bear threaten the herd, the shepherd is there to protect the sheep, especially the lambs. Shepherds care about each sheep and will make sure all are fed and nourished appropriately. If any are sick or injured, the shepherd will take extra care to help the sheep…
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The Lamb of God
My brother-in-law owns a large herd of sheep. He has been a sheep herder throughout his life. Lambing happens in the spring when all the babies are born, and those baby lambs are adorable. They soon learn who their shepherd is and they willingly follow and submit their will to the shepherd. We read in John 1:29, “ . . .Behold, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John the Baptist is referring to Jesus as the Lamb of God. He could have called him a number of other names including, the Messiah, the King, the Lord, but instead he chose to refer to Him…
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Perfectionism vs Being Perfected in Christ
We read in the scriptures about being perfect. Matthew 5:48 “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. 3 Nephi 12:48 “Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect.” We’ve come to define “perfect” as being flawless, without mistakes, or without any blemishes. Because of this definition we have fallen into traps when we think about perfection and can misunderstand this doctrine. Have you ever thought, “I’m not righteous enough?” Or, “I will never be able to keep all the commandments perfectly?” Or, “I keep making mistakes and failing so I shouldn’t attend the temple?” “I’ll never be as…
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What Does It Mean To Worship God?
In Alma, chapter 32, Alma begins teaching a group of poor Zoramites who’d been cast out from the synagogues because of “the coarseness of their apparel.” These people were distraught, believing they had nowhere to worship, so they appealed to Alma. “. .. Behold, what shall these my brethren do, for they are despised of all men because of their poverty, yea, and more especially by our priests: for they have cast us out of our synagogues . . .because of our exceeding poverty; and we have no place to worship our God; and behold, what shall we do? (verse 5).” The people believed that they could only worship in…
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Doctrines and Principles for Our Lives
There is so much to learn in section 19 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Doctrines and principles contained in this section are of great importance to our salvation. It was specifically for Martin Harris but we can apply much of it to ourselves. An important message contained in this revelation is that God is in the details of our lives. He knows us and He loves us. Jesus is All We Need Doctrine and Covenants 19:1, reads, “I am Alpha and Omega, Christ the Lord; yea, even I am he, the beginning and the end, the Redeemer of the world.” Jesus is the beginning and the end. We start with Him and we end…
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Be of Good Cheer and Do Not Fear
In Doctrine and Covenants 68:6, it reads, “Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I, the Lord, am with you, and will stand by you . . .” I’ve spent a lot of my life in fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of getting a disease, fear of having a car accident, fear of one of my kids getting hurt, fear of things happening in the world, fear of losing people I love to death. My fear began when I was a child. I lost my father when I was four years old. It was December 19 and I’d been Christmas shopping with my mom and grandma.…
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Holy Week
What Does It Mean To Worship God?
Doctrines and Principles for Our Lives
