Good Things To Come

Let Us Be Men

Multiplicity of Blessings

D&C 104:42
"And inasmuch as he is faithful in keeping my commandments, which I have given him, I will multiply blessings upon him and his seed after him, even a multiplicity of blessings.

I feel like we are always telling our children to listen... follow the rules... obey. I often say to them, don't you realize that if you follow the rules and obey everyone will be happy and that you will get so many things that you want? Then of course I get frustrated because I think they don't understand because they are just not getting it. Well, I can only imagine what Our Father in Heaven thinks of me at times. I am sure he is saying to me, don't you understand that if you follow & obey my commandments you will be happy and I will bless you with all you need. He must get frustrated and think, that Brittney she obviously doesn't understand.
While I was reading this chapter in the D&C it was amazing to me how many verses said these words, (vs 35)..."and inasmuch as he is faithful I will multiply my blessings upon him." (vs 38)..." And inasmuch as he is faithful I will multiply a multiplicity of blessings upon him." (vs 46) ..."And I will multiply blessings upon the house of my servant Joseph Smith Jr. inasmuch as he is faithful, even a multiplicity of blessings.
How do we be faithful? I think that it is amazing that our counter attack to Satan and his temptations are "the primary answers" Pray, Read your Scriptures, Keep the Commandments, Keep your Covenants, Go to the Temple, Follow the Prophet....etc. By doing these things we are building our Faith and preparing ourselves to receive those multiplicity of blessings.
I think that as we read and study the scriptures we gain the blessings of knowledge and the spirit. As we pray we humbly plead with the Father to help us and bless us and we know that He will answer. When we take a moment and we recognize all that He has done for us our faith increases and we know that our Father in Heaven loves us.
We may all have a little rebellion in us if we get up and start the day without prayer and scripture study. It is as if we are saying, "that is okay, I know that you could bless me and that the day would go easier, but I want to do it all by myself today."
For me I look at my stewardship that I have with my husband to raises these children in truth and light, and I need nothing more than a multiplicity of His blessings to help me along the way. I am not perfect and recognize that I need to do better. I do know that I do not need to do this work alone, because all in all it is His greatest work and that He is always there. I know that I need my days to go easier, to have the spirit with me always, and receive that multiplicity of blessings daily.
I know that He will give that multiplicity of blessings to us all if we do our part and if we are faithful.
Love you all!

The Love of God

"Don't get discouraged if you stumble at times. Don't feel downcast or despair if you don't feel worthy to be a disciple of Christ at all times. The first step to walking in righteousness is simply to try. We must try to believe. Try to learn of God: read the scriptures; study the words of His latter-day prophets; choose to listen to the Father, and do the things He asks of us. Try and keep on trying until that which seems difficult becomes possible-and that which seems only possible becomes habit and a real part of you." President Uchtdorf, 2009 Oct. General Conference

Life isn't easy. It is challenging, stressful, discouraging and just hard sometimes. We are going to have difficult times and trials, but because we have the knowledge of the gospel and of the plan of happiness we don't have to let the hard times get us down. Just try. Try to have faith. Try to choose the right. It's that simple. I know that when I am living the way that my Heavenly Father wants I am happier, and that he blesses me with the things and experiences that I need. Life isn't about being perfect. We will never reach that in this life. We aren't expected to. It is about trying, believing, and knowing that when we do all we can, He will step in and be there. I know this is true. I love reading the words of our living Prophet and Apostles. They will lead and guide us in righteousness. I know my Savior lives. He atoned for my sins, your sins and everyone who has ever lived. It truly is a miraculous gift. We are so blessed to know, and to share with others how to obtain happiness in this life.

Alisha

Coming unto Christ through the scriptures

So I spoke on Sunday about this topic and since this blog is called SOTW I thought that it might be something worth putting up here. As most of you know I'm not the best writer so I'm a little nervous about putting my talk up here but I feel that I should.

In the true to the faith book under the scriptures it says, “When Holy men of God write or speak by the power of the Holy Ghost, their words “shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation.” (D&C 68:4)

From a young age I have known the scriptures to be true but for some reason I have never been a really dedicated scripture studier. I would set goals and keep them and then would eventually slack off again and let things of the world distract me. I would often hear others comment in church saying, “oh that reminds me of this scripture” and they would go on to quote it. I never understood why that never happened to me. I thought I was doing all the right things but maybe I just wasn’t spiritual enough. But then one day I realized why I didn’t have those thoughts come to me. It was simply because I wasn’t studying and feasting upon the scriptures. Just reading whenever I found time to wasn’t going to cut it and I needed to make some changes.

In order to have the spiritual experiences I wanted, I needed to realize the reason why we should study the scriptures. The principle purpose is to testify of Christ, helping us come unto Him, and receive eternal life. It also builds faith, fortifies against temptation. If we desire to avoid evils of this world we must feed our minds with the truth and righteousness found in the scriptures. We will grow closer to God and to each other as we read and ponder the scriptures together.

I found a couple of different steps that have helped me on my way to better scripture study.

1. Cut out distractions

2. Make it a priority or to put God first

3. Pray before studying

4. Have a scripture study journal

Most of these steps are pretty simple and don’t require a whole lot of effort other than just trying and experimenting to see what works.

Cutting out distractions for me included cutting out the T.V. I was amazed at the difference it had on my family and I after just a few days of no T.V. and dedicated scripture time. My days run smoother and I am able to spend quality time with my family. By cutting out distractions I was able to easily make scripture study a priority in my life. Ezra Taft Benson said, “When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives. Our love of the Lord will govern the claims for our affection, the demands on our time, the interests we pursue, and the order of our priorities.”

God commands us to read the scriptures and so I try and have it be one of the first things I do each day. When I make the time to do it first I feel the strength that it gives me and helps me to put on my armor for the day to withstand Satan’s distractions and temptations. I know that for most of us it isn’t always the easiest thing to do but I have discovered that I can get up early or I can set aside time after breakfast to pull out my scriptures and I can be an example to my son and show him that it is something that is important to do.

Praying before studying invites the spirit that helps me to receive inspiration clearly. In D&C 8:2 it says “Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.” This leads into the last step of having a scripture study journal. When I have thoughts or impressions come to me I know that as I am a busy mom if I don’t write it down right away I probably won’t remember what it was. I also find that I am able to remember more of what I study if I write things down. I love how I can go back and look at what I wrote about a certain verse and yet still find something new to learn from it.

I’m still not perfect at studying and feasting upon the words of Christ but I know as I do these steps they help me strive to be like Christ. I love how just by doing the small and simple things like studying the scriptures enhances all aspects of my life. I know I am a better mom, wife, daughter, and friend when I am learning and applying the teachings of the scriptures. I know that studying the scriptures helps me fight temptations and helps fortify my home.

I have seen the power of studying together as a family, as a couple, and in my own personal study. My family has recently started a SOTW blog and we are all able to post about different things we read and share our testimonies about it. It has been such a strength in my life to see us all grow in the gospel together. I feel so blessed to have the scriptures and the modern day scripture to help me come unto Christ.

Things Which Are Sacred

Alma 37:14-16

14 "And now remember, my son, that God has entrusted you with these things, which are sacred, which he has kept sacred, and also which he will keep and preserve for a wise purpose in him, that he may show forth his power unto future generations.

15 And now behold, I tell you by the spirit of prophecy, that if ye transgress the commandments of God, behold, these things which are sacred shall be taken away from you by the power of God, and ye shall be delivered up unto Satan, that he may sift you as chaff before the wind.

16 But if ye keep the commandments of God, and do with these things which are sacred according to that which the Lord doth command you (for you must appeal unto the Lord for all things whatsoever ye must do with them) behold, no power of earth or hell can take them from you, for God is powerful to the fulfilling of all his words."

I know Alma is talking about the scriptures in these versus, but I think the principles can be applied to other 'things which are sacred'. A few things come to mind... First, I think of the Priesthood. 'God has entrusted you with these things, which are sacred'. If we transgress the commandments of God and give into temptations then His Priesthood will be taken away from us and we will be delivered up unto Satan. BUT, if we work hard to honor the Priesthood and to live worthily, according to that which the Lord doth command, for we must appeal to Him for ALL things whatsoever we must do with the Priesthood, then NO POWER OF EARTH OR HELL CAN TAKE IT AWAY FROM US! Can you imagine the power and goodness that would come about if, as holders of the Holy Priesthood of God, we all stood a little taller and worked a little harder to honor that Priesthood and to stay clean and close to the Spirit!

Second, I think of our Marriage Covenants. Again, 'God has entrusted you with these things, which are sacred, which he has kept sacred, and also which he will keep and preserve for a wise purpose in him, that he may show forth his power unto future generations.' This is an ETERNAL issue! The message is the same, if we transgress the commandments and set aside our covenants, even for just a moment, to indulge in sin or to allow the world to come between us, 'these things which are sacred shall be taken away from you by the power of God, and ye shall be delivered up unto Satan, that he may sift you as chaff before the wind.' BUT, the promise is also the same... if ye keep the commandments of God, and do with these things which are sacred according to that which the Lord doth command you (for you must appeal unto the Lord for all things whatsoever ye must do with them) behold, no power of earth or hell can take them from you, for God is powerful to the fulfilling of all his words." Third, I think of our children. Once again, 'God has entrusted you with these things, which are sacred'. In this case I really like the teaching of 'appealing unto the Lord for ALL things whatsoever ye must do with them'. These children are not ours. We are not the all-mighty parents who dictate and decide. In fact, they are our brothers and sisters. Who's to say that they are not our OLDER brothers and sister, spiritually. We know that we have been together in the pre-mortal world for a long time. We know that, though we were all good and we all chose to follow Jesus Christ, some were more valiant than others in that pre-mortal life. I have a hunch that Kaciann, Alexis, Colton and little Tegan were my spiritual superiors before we came here. I have a feeling that I looked to them for leadership and testimony, as they were more spiritually advanced than me prior to coming here. Maybe I dreamed of being like them someday. Maybe they were my heroes. Maybe they sat down with me and gave me a pep talk before coming here, encouraging me to find the light and hold on to it with all I have. Pumping me up to live close to the Lord and to teach them the important things, even the things which are sacred. I am so thankful to be able to appeal to the Lord and receive direction and guidance in raising His children. I am grateful for the promise that, through the making and keeping of sacred temple covenants, 'no power of earth or hell can take them away from me'.

I love you all.

Gunnar C.