Prayer the Answer for Everything and Anything

So I was sitting in Lebanon today teaching a lady. When I showed up I had no idea what we were going to talk to her about. All of a sudden it came to me to ask her how her prayers have been going. She told me not to good. So we had a great discussion on prayer.

I have learned in my life that prayer plays a huge role. When we pray we are literally talking to our Heavenly Father. I know that God loves and cares about us and wants to hear from us. We should talk to Him in a loving and respectful way. He wants to hear about what we think and feel. We need to ask him for help and support. We should thank Him for all that we have because He has given everything to us.

There are a ton of benefits of prayer. I was just thinking of a few from the lesson. First it brings us comfort. When we are having hard times we can pray and ask God for support. As we do so He will send the Holy Ghost to comfort us and give us peace. Second it shows God our love. We can show God our love by obeying his commandments (John 14:15). Prayer is a commandment from God (3 Nephi 18:19). Besides showing love by keeping the commandments we can show God our love by thanking Him for all of our many blessings. The third reason to pray is to receive guidance. We can ask God anything in our prayers and he will answer them. The answer might not always come as we expect it to but I know it will come. God answers all of our prayers in His own due time. Some times we just have to be patient. Answers can come from feelings we receive (Galatians 5:22). They can come by our thoughts. God can also answer our prayers by something someone else does for us or says to us. We just have to open our eyes, be patient, and show our faith by following Christ's example. I know the answers will come. Just as today I was praying and pondering what to teach and the Holy Ghost gave me the answer to teach about prayer (Moroni 10:5).

I invite everyone to pray more often. I know that if you do you will feel God's love more in your life. You will find yourself growing closer to God and increasing your relationship with Him. I know that when you pray and remain faithful the answers will come. I know God will give you the knowledge, understanding, comfort, and guidance you seek. So start today you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. While you are at it take the time to pray and ponder to find out if the Book of Mormon is true. It will change your life, I guarantee it!

Why Prophets?

Lately we have been talking to a lot of people about prophets and the importance of following them. So I am on this prophet kick. I was studying about prophets the other day and came up with a cool way (I think) to relate the importance or role of a prophet to us today.

I was reading Preach My Gospel, which is a manual us missionaries use. In a section about prophets this line stood out to me, "the prophet acts as a steward to oversee the household of God here on Earth." As I pondered that I thought the prophet is kind of like our babysitter while we aren't living with God. How I see it when we are young and learning our parents get us babysitters to look out for us while we are gone. Well our purpose here on Earth is to learn and grow. God isn't here personally to direct us in all that we do so He sent us prophets to give us some extra guidance. Our parents give all the rules we need to live by to the babysitter. They expect us to listen to the babysitter and do what is right. God gives His commandments to the prophet and expects us to live by them. Now there are consequences for all action. If we are disobedient to the babysitter we probably aren't going to have a good time. Just as if we don't follow the prophet life isn't going to be as easy as it could. We might not agree or understand what the babysitter is asking us to do. So we can call our parents and ask them if it is right. Same thing with a prophet. We might not fully understand the counsel he gives but we can always get down on our knees and pray and ask God if that is truly what He wants us to do. Now the time will come when our parents are back. Just as the time will come when we go to meet God. Are parents will discipline us or reward us based upon our actions. If we failed to follow the babysitter we will probably get punish and have some privileges taken away. If we were good we will have more joy and comfort in their presence and they will probably reward us for our actions. The same with God if we failed to follow the prophets we will feel sorrow and receive our just reward. If we followed the prophets we will find great joy and peace in the world to come. God will reward us with Eternal Life to live with Him forever.

I know that prophets are here to lead and guide us. I know that as we follow the prophet we will get close to God and find greater peace and happiness. I know that God loves us and will reward us based upon how we followed Him and His servants in this life. I know if we are obedient we will receive Eternal Life to live with God for all eternity. This will bring us great joy and happiness. I know that wee all make mistakes and can be forgiven because God sent Jesus Christ to suffer and die for us. I know God loves us all and only tells us to do things that will truly bring us happiness. I recommend that everyone tries to learn about and follow the counsel of Thomas S. Monson. Living his teachings will bring you that joy. Go to new.lds.org to learn about him and his teachings. I promise as you do you will feel the spirit and as you live the teachings you will have great peace in your life. So go ahead and give it a try.

Thomas S. Monson = The Modern Day Moses

So Wednesday I was in Shelbyville (where all blog posts get messed up). That morning we were teaching a family about prophets. We watched a video of the Prophet Thomas S. Monson's testimony. You could feel the spirit in the room. I know that God sends the Holy Ghost to us to testify of truth. I know that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet because then Spirit has told me that. I know that every one can come to know he is a prophet just as we all know Moses is a prophet. Let’s compare the two.

Moses was a prophet called to lead the children of Israel to the promise land. Thomas S. Monson is a prophet called to lead the children of God to Eternal Life. Both of these men were called and chosen by God to be His spokesmen on Earth. (See John 15:16). Moses had the priesthood authority from God. Through the priesthood Moses was able to work great miracles such as parting the Red Sea. Thomas S. Monson has this same priesthood authority. He might not be out parting seas or anything but he can still use this authority to perform the miracles that God sees fit for His children to have. Moses taught the people and brought them God's word and commandments. Thomas S. Monson brings us God's word and will for us today. There are more similarities between the two. (To learn more about prophets and the priesthood check out these links: http://mormon.org/faq/#Prophets and http://mormon.org/faq/#Priesthood|question=/faq/purpose-of-priesthood/).

We all came to know Moses was a prophet by reading the Bible, living by the commandments he brought to us, and maybe by even praying and asking if he was God's servant. We can all come to know Thomas S. Monson is a prophet by listening to his words, applying these teachings into our lives and by praying and asking God if he truly is a prophet. I know that God will answer that prayer. God will let you know there is a prophet on the Earth today. To receive that answer we must be willing to follow the prophet and do God's will. So give it a try. Study the teachings of Thomas S. Monson and then ask God if he is a prophet. I know that as you do this you will find great blessings and peace in your life. (Go to new.lds.org and search Thomas S. Monson to read some of his teachings).

Forgiveness

So Saturday we were in Shelbyville, TN and I went to post my blog and the computer messed up. It is the second time that has happened to me there. I was pretty upset about it because I spent a lot of time on it. After I pondered on it for awhile I realized I just need to be forgiving. I have been thinking about forgiveness the past few days. I have realized what a great blessing God has given us in sending His son Jesus Christ to die for us. I know that because of Christ's sacrifice we can be forgiven of our sins. As I have studied I have come to see how much God loves us. God wants us to come to Him. He wants to forgive us. It is up to us to just take the time to seek his forgiveness. We can receive this forgiveness through repentance. To repent we need to feel truly sorry for the things that we have done. We need to promise God that we wont do those things any more. Then we must work our hardest to do the right things. I know that as we do this Christ will give us the strength to stay on the right path and through his sacrifice we will be forgiven. So I was thinking yesterday about how we have the tendency to judge others and situations with out having the whole story. I judged the Shelbyville library computers to be messed up but maybe I did something wrong. That is the great thing about God. He knows the whole story. He knows exactly what has happened and what needs to be done. At times we turn from God and do the wrong things. As we turn to him and prayer seeking forgiveness Christ will lead us back to our Heavenly Father. And God will welcome us back with open arms to be with him again. I suggest that we all take the time to draw nearer to God. That we not only seek forgiveness for ourselves but forgive others. I also think we should try to get the whole story before we try to pass judgment on the situation. I know that as we try to live the best life we can we will feel Gods love more. I know that reading the Book of Mormon will bring us closer to God. I recommend that everyone takes the time to try it. Go to http://www.mormon.org/ and click on missionary request to learn more.

Follow the Spirit

So yesterday we were in Lebanon, TN. We were teaching a lady who was excited about baptism. She had been reading the Book of Mormon and prayed about it. She said that she knew it was true. She told us that when life was crazy she would read and it would bring great peace to her soul. I know that that great peace she felt is the Holy Ghost. I know that God sends the Holy Ghost to us to comfort us and direct us in our lives. It is just up to us to follow the feelings that we receive. The feelings we receive from the Holy Ghost are feelings of love, joy, peace, and comfort. The apostle Paul taught about what he called the fruits of the spirit in Galatians chapter 5 mainly verses 22-23 (Galatians 5). As we talked with this lady she felt that being baptized wasn't the right thing. She began to fear and doubt her decision to follow Jesus Christ. I know that fear and doubt come from Satan. It is up to us to stand strong and act upon the knowledge that God gives us to do the right things. We just have to stand strong on what we know is right. I invite everyone to take the time to pray and ask God for truth and knowledge. I know that if you really seek it God will send you the Holy Ghost to Guide you (Moroni 10). After that meeting Elder Davis and I prayed where to go. We felt that we should go visit a lady in Lafayette, TN. We drove up there and had a nice meeting with her and her daughter. I know that God sent the Holy Ghost to lead us there. I know that God will lead us on the right path but it is up to us to listen. I know that God loves us and will lead us to truth we just have to study and pray.

God's Time is the Right Time

Yesterday (March 9) I was in the Shelbyville library and I typed up a sweet blog for the day. Well for some reason it didn't save or post right. Then my time ran out on the computer so I didn't get anything posted. I guess yesterday wasn't the right time for that post. So I am going to try again today.

I am starting to see in my life that God will provide us with all we need exactly when we need it the most. First we have to trust in God and continue in faith through all of the hard times. Yesterday I was a little upset that things didn't work out with my blog. Then we went to an appointment that didn't show up. So we decided to get some lunch. We went to Taco Bell and there was a member of the ward in there and he bought us some lunch. That nice gesture lifted my spirits and helped me through the day. It was great that God lead us were we needed to be so I could find a little joy in life. I will get on with the main story though.

So Monday I was in Murfreesboro, TN. I went to visit a family I worked with when I was there a little over a year ago. We were talking about God and how He sees the big picture and prepares that way for us to receive everything we need. We were talking about how God places people in our path for a certain reason. We talked about how we were able to come acrossed each other at the right time when God had prepared them to receive of His restored gospel. It was a time in their life when they were looking for something more for their family. At that time in their lives we were able to cross paths. Being a missionary I shared the message of the restored gospel with them. When the message was shared they knew it was true because they had an open heart and an open mind. (To have an open heart and mind you are willing to listen and think about the things that are being said. You take the time to study and pay attention to the feelings that come from the Holy Ghost. Then you sincerely pray and ask God what is right and you are willing to submit to God's will for you.) When this family found Jesus Christ restored gospel they found all of the joy and happiness that comes along with it. We talked about how God had prepared us to meet each other. God knew the time and place for us to meet so we both could learn from each other and create a great friendship. I am grateful that God blessed me with the opportunity to share His gospel with this family and see the joy that came into their lives from living it. I know that God prepares a way for all of us to receive the fullness of His gospel. I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was restored to the Earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that God prepared the way for the gospel to be restored at the time that was right for it to be brought back. I know that God loves each and everyone of us. I know that He will lead us to truth if we are just willing to listen and follow exactly what He tells us to do. I know that we have to be patient but that God will prepare the way for great things to come to pass. I strongly encourage everyone to take the time to learn more about the Book of Mormon and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I know that if you do you will find great joy in your life. To learn more go to www.mormon.org. Also to learn more about God's understanding check out these scriptures; Acts 17:26  1 Ne. 9:6 2 Ne. 2:24 2 Ne. 9:20 W of M 1:7

Recognizing the Signs

Today we were driving up to Altamont, TN. As we were driving up the "Mountain" road (It is really more of a big hill you drive up.) I remembered that it was recently closed. I was very grateful that it was reopened because if not our trip to church would have been a lot longer. Driving up this hill I remembered a few weeks prior when we were taking this same road that we noticed some large rocks by the road side. We joked that the mountain was falling apart. Well within the next few days there was a huge rock slide in that place that caused the road to be closed. As I pondered on this I realized that the small rocks were a sign of greater things to come. I realized that God works the same way. He gives us little warning signs that if we follow we will be blessed. If we don't follow these warning signs we could end up in a big mess. Like the huge rock slide. I know that God will send us the promptings to keep us away from danger but it is up to us to notice them and follow them. This leads me to the question. How do these signs from God come to us? They can come in many different ways. The first that comes to my mind is the Holy Ghost. The scripture 2 Nephi 32:5 explains that the Holy Ghost will show us all things we should do.  In 2 Nephi 32:3 it teaches us that the words of Christ (or the scriptures) will tell everything we should do. We can receive these signs from God as we pray. In Alma 26:22 we are taught that if we pray sincerely we will know the mysteries of God.  Prophets also show us God's will and if we follow the counsel they give us we will know the warning signs. We can learn about that from 3 Nephi 23:5. I know that prophets are key in God's church and His plan to bring us closer to Him. I know that there is a living prophet on the earth today. His name is Thomas S. Monson. Check out this link to hear his testimony and learn more; http://jesuschrist.lds.org/SonOfGod/eng/special-witnesses/video/president-thomas-s-monson

Noah and The Rain!

We are in Shelbyville, TN today and it is raining like crazy. This morning during my studies I saw a sweet picture of Noah loading the animals on to the ark. I thought of how hard of a job that would have been to deal with all of those animals in the rain. Then driving around in Shelbyville we noticed that there was an alpaca show going on today. I thought to myself that might be interesting but I'm not going to stand in the rain for that. Then I reflected back on Noah and how he did more than work with animals but he went around teaching the people about God and His commandments. Whether it was raining or the sun was shinning. I realized that in a way I am doing the same thing going around sharing the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. It doesn't matter what the weather is like the work must go on. I am not saying I am as good as Noah because he is definitely better than I am. What I am trying to say is the Noah knew what he had received from God is true. I like Noah know the message that I have been called to share is true. I know there is a prophet on the Earth today and that Jesus Christ has restored his true church to the Earth. To learn more check out http://www.mormon.org/. Sticking to the theme of Noah I thought of how hard it might have been for him to see all of these people he grew up with and worked side by side with go down in the flood because they wouldn't accept the truth. I know that sorrow comes when those you labor amongst fail to accept the truth you have to share. I know that if you take the time to read the Book of Mormon you will know it is true and have a desire to live by its teach. I know that as you do this you will see great blessings in your lives and feel the love of God. So I strongly encourage that you give it a try. Check out http://www.mormon.org/, order a free Book of Mormon, and read it, think about it, and then sincerely ask God if it is true. He will let you know and never lead you astray. I know you will receive an answer and be greatly blessed because of it. I hope you all have a good day and stay dry.

Breakfast and Bikes

Today we had a nice breakfast with Sister Hutchings. We were talking about seeing God's hand in our lives. We talked about how God is there to guide us in everything that we do we just need to have faith and look for it. She shared some experiences of being in the right place and the right time to receive help or something she needed or to be of an assistance to someone else. After that enjoyable breakfast we went and helped her clean of the garage. In the garage there was a lot of old run down bicycles. We loaded them up in to the van to take to a bike shop that would fix them up or use them for parts. As we were done with our job a lady who comes to the house to spend time with Sister Hutchings came over. Her name is Monica. When Monica was getting to leave she told sister Hutchings that her husband was looking for some bikes to get parts of and to fix for there kids. Sister Hutchings was like Monica you have come to the right place. So we got some bikes out of the van and loaded them up in Monica's car. After that sister Hutchings came up to us and said see Elders God puts us in the right place at the right time. It is so true. God sees the end from the beginning and he prepares away for us to receive exactly what we need. We just need to take the time to stop and recognize all of the great things God does for us. I suggest that we all take the time to pause and see God's hand in our lives and then take the time to thank Him for all he has done for us by praying to him.