The Fall

How many of us have struggled when we have heard in this church that the fall of Adam and Eve was a good thing? I grew up in the southern United States, surrounded by many different people of different denominations, most of them strongly and devoutly Christian. I grew up hearing that Eve was awful and that because of her, bad things are on Earth. Because Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, bad things happen today, and people make bad choices.

I heard it so much, that I started to believe it. I questioned why the fall happened, why they made that choice, why God didn't stop them. Then, I studied (more than read) 2 Nephi 2. This chapter is beautiful and has some of my favorite scriptures in it. My favorite, and I believe the most simple scripture ever to be written, is 2 Nephi 2:25.

"Adam fell that men might be; and men

are that they might have joy."

How beautifully simple is this verse? It answers all of my questions I had in one statement. Why did the fall happen? Because if Adam and Eve had not eaten the fruit, we would not be here. They did that for US for ME and for YOU so that we could come to Earth and live, have experiences, and learn. Why did God let the fall happen? Because He wanted us to get bodies and come to Earth to learn and be tested. He wanted us to have real joy that can only be experienced when there is sorrow at some points in our lives. 

I hope this scripture is as simple to you as it was to me. I hope you feel the spirit testify of the beauty of God's plan and you feel the love that Adam and Eve had for God and for us. They did what they did because it would provide a life for us. They chose to live a harder life than they had in the garden so that we could live. I think that is beautiful. 

We Thank Thee, O God, For A Prophet

As many of you may know, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints announced today the calling of a new prophet. How sad it was to hear that our beloved Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson had passed away. But, the true beauty of this church set up by our Savior, Jesus Christ, is that we are never left without a prophet. We are never left without someone linked to God and Jesus Christ who can lead us and help us on Earth. Heavenly Father loves us so much, that He has yet again, called a new prophet to lead to us.

With the announcement of President Russell M. Nelson as the new prophet and President Dallin H. Oaks and President Henry B. Eyring as his counselors, I have felt love and peace. It feels great to know that the church is still in good hands. However, I also took a minute to ponder if I had received my own personal spiritual confirmation that these men are actually called of God. While pondering this, I decided to turn to my scriptures to do my daily reading. I am currently reading in the Book of Mormon in the book of 1 Nephi. I just stumbled on the beginning of "the Isaiah chapters," a set of chapters early in the Book of Mormon that every member of the church jokes about not ever being able to understand because of the imagery and deep symbolism of the book. I am no different. Most of the time, I just muscle through hoping for blessings of obedience in reading more than blessings from understanding. But today, a verse seemed to jump out of the page right at me. It was 1 Nephi 20:15 that says...

"Also, saith the Lord; I the Lord, yea, I have spoken; yea, 

I have called him to declare, I have brought him, 

and he shall make his way prosperous."

This, to me, was my personal spiritual confirmation that President Russell M. Nelson has been called of God and set apart as a prophet to lead us and guide us in the ways of the Lord. I know that we can have full confidence in him and his decisions and his teachings. He will not lead us astray. 

The doctrine found in this verse is deep and can bring the greatest comfort, especially at this time in the church. First, it tells us that God speaks. He is not silent. He does not and will not leave us in the dark. Second, He calls people to do His work. We are never going to have to run around confused, not knowing what to do to return to live with Him again. He calls people to be instruments in His hands and to be there for us. And finally, He prepares a way. Whatever Heavenly Fathers wants/needs to happen, He provides a way. We can always trust in Him and in His plan. 

So, my friends, I hope that you can find the comfort in this verse that I did. Trust Heavenly Father and this part of the plan playing out in front of us. Remember the legacy of President Thomas S. Monson, and be prepared and ready to follow President Nelson, the living prophet on the earth today. 

This is an exciting time for the church. I believe that there are many great things to come. 

I am not entirely sure how many people really look at this blog. It hasn't been updated in years. It only covered a snippet of my mission and then I had full intentions of getting it going again after my mission, but lets be honest, I can barely remember to keep a journal half of the time, let alone a blog.

However, I have been blessed with opportunity to be in a BYU religion class that requires us to share our thoughts and feelings we have while studying the scriptures. I am not very good at expressing my testimony and feelings out loud, but hopefully, I can express them decently in writing.

So, let's begin, shall we?

There is some beautiful doctrine taught in Moses chapter 1. In the first three verses, the attributes and characteristics of Heavenly Father are explained. We are told that He has a body like ours, He cares about the individual, He is glorious and almighty, He is eternal. Then, in verse four Heavenly Father is talking to Moses and says, "And behold, thou art my son..."

The beauty in the verse, pointed out to me by my professor that day, is that that one little phrase gave Moses his entire identity. And not only does it give Moses a divine identity, but it also gives ME a divine identity, and it gives YOU a divine identity.

In this one phrase, we are told that we can grow up to be just like our Heavenly Father. That is what He wants for us. He told us in the first three verses what our potential is.

Never think less of yourself. Never doubt your worth. You are a child of God and you can do great things. He is an example of who you have the potential to become.