Blessing #5: A Knowledge of My Savior

Jesus Christ is, in every literal way, our Savior and Redeemer. There is no description adequate for all that He has done for us and all He will forever do for us, but we know that He lived a perfect earthly life, took upon Himself every pain and affliction of mortality, and suffered the crucifixion for us. For every single one of Heavenly Father's children.

It is a common belief that Jesus Christ has not appeared again on the Earth since just after His crucifixion, when He appeared in Jerusalem after being resurrected. I know with all my heart, however, that these people that He appeared to are not the only ones to have this sacred experience. 

In John 10:16, in the Bible, we read of Jesus Christ mentioning the people of the Americas, His "other sheep." When He again departed from Jerusalem, He went to minister to those people, an experience we read about in the Book of 3rd Nephi, in the Book of Mormon. It is in this beautiful account where we can become much more acquainted with the love that the Savior has for us as individuals, and we can better understand exactly how He ministers to us.

Mark Mabry, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, illustrates the Savior's visit to the Americas with this slideshow:

Reflections of Christ: Another Testament

I strongly encourage you to watch this short video. And I want you all to know that I know that the accounts we have of Jesus Christ in the scriptures are all true. I know that this knowledge has immensely blessed my life, as I have felt of His infinite love for me, personally. 

There truly is a Savior of the world, and He will always be whatever we need Him to be for us. Will we be what He needs us to be for Him?

Blessing #4: A Loving Heavenly Father

Of all the little elements making up my testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ- there is one not-so-little piece that I am confident will never, ever falter. Other beliefs that I have may waver, and I may have weaknesses in my certainty of parts of the gospel, but this I will always know: I am a daughter of God, and He LOVES me.
There is simply too much evidence to deny it. To name a few...

1. We know about Him
    And we didn't make it up, either. Our loving God sent us here to Earth, and He didn't send us to be here alone. We have access to the paths that will lead us to a testimony of His existence and love, and if we watch for it, we can see how His hand influences our lives every day. We have had dispensations of prophets on the Earth all throughout history,and we are in the midst of one of those dispensations today, with President Thomas S. Monson as our living prophet. We have the Book of Mormon, in addition to the Bible, to guide us through this mortal existence so that we can know how to return to live with God, sealed to our earthly families in a beautiful plan of progression, for eternity.

2. He sent us His Son
    I believe that the greatest source of peace that we have access to is in feeling the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ. His love is so infinite, and His mercy is so great, there is just no mortal feeling that can compare. Heavenly Father sacrificed Him for us, in a perfect plan for our redemption.

3. He offers us perfect examples of how to live
    And I don't just mean the prophets, or even the Savior. Heavenly Father Himself is a perfect example of, among other things, parenting. Ever noticed? As parents (or future parents), we should always keep the line of communication from our children to us wide open, and what better example of that do we have than God's. He has made it possible for us to pray to Him anytime, anywhere, always. Even if it is just a prayer in our hearts, we can use that to ask Him for blessings, for protection, for help. And even though He knows exactly what the very best way to live our lives would be, He allows us to find the way ourselves. His counsel is there, His advice is wide open for our use. We just have to ask, and to look. Never has there been record of Him shoving His advice, discipline or doctrine down our throats. 
   Want to know how to be a good parent? Look to how Heavenly Father has loved us unconditionally, looked upon us in sweet mercy, and promised to always, always forgive our trespasses.

...And that's just a few. But you get the idea, yeah?
     

Blessing #3: Divine Potential

Over the last several months, as I’ve been preparing to accept the call to serve a full-time, 18-month mission, I’ve seen many blessings- some miracles- but I’ve also had many moments of inadequacy. Moments where I just don’t feel like I’d ever be able to reach my potential as a missionary, so shoot, why even go?

Moments similar to this are all too common in all of our lives. Feelings of doubt, of worthlessness, creep into our thoughts and are often very difficult to dispel. People will try all sorts of crazy nonsense to try to get rid of that frame of mind. Yoga, acupuncture, reading self-help books, meditating, exercising, vacationing, gambling and more. What I’ve found, though, is that the very best, sure-fire way to a cured self-confidence is found in the Gospel.

Today, in my Book of Mormon class, my professor talked to us about Samuel the Lamanite, a man that was called of God to prophecy to wicked people of the coming of Christ back in about 6 BC. This Lamanite had no pomp and circumstance given to him in the record of his teachings. He was not the prophet at the time, there is no lineage given of him, nor is there any record of what he did later in his life. As described in scripture, he was the simplest, most generic of human beings. And yet, his was some of the most profound prophesying we have record of.

Samuel the Lamanite is one of the best theologians we have. He discusses deep, sacred doctrines, brings the great knowledge of the existence of the Savior to many people, and provides us with the most specific prophecies we read about in the Book of Mormon. Though he was a simple man, as he showed determination to fulfill a calling of the Lord in preaching to the people, he was strengthened, protected, and blessed richly with success. We can learn so much from this incredible man's example, as I did during my class today.

Of course, this is not the only time the Lord has lent a hand to pick me up. I remember a time in high school, when I would often look in the mirror and feel a little disheartened. Not exactly dissatisfied or self-conscious, just not terribly pleased with the reflection I was seeing. 

As I sat thinking about it one night, a beautiful thought occurred to me, and I decided to experiment upon it right away. The thought was this: What am I thinking of when I look in the mirror?

I had my answer as soon as I turned the corner and looked in the bathroom mirror. I had, in my mind, pictures of athletes, of school-mates, of celebrities, of the great success-story stars that I hear and read about daily. I felt Heavenly Father gently tell me that I was not intended to become any of those things. He had something a little different and much more specific to me in mind. 

After thinking hard and praying to know what it was He was intending, the answer became clear. I returned to my reflection and looked, this time, for a righteous mother. A hard-working missionary. A good friend. A loyal wife. 

As I looked into the mirror, I felt my will slowly conform a bit more to the will of my Father, and I couldn't help but feel peace, and satisfaction. I know that I am moving in the right direction, and I will never feel poorly about my personal image again. So long, of course, as I maintain this understanding.

I know that the Lord has a plan for each of us. I know that with all my heart, and I can't imagine trying to go through life without that knowledge. As we strive to learn what His plan is, and work hard to move in that direction, we will be so very blessed. It will become impossible to deny His hand in our lives, and we will know to whom we can turn for confidence, strength, and unwavering love.

Blessing #2: Women of God

There are so many blessings available to us as women in this church, and no one describes it in a more accessible, clear way, than Elder Maxwell did in 1978 with his talk, "The Women of God." My Book of Mormon professor out here at school recommended that we read it, and I extend that as a challenge to anyone that may read this post. It. Is. AWESOME.
There are women out there that look at the roles men play in the priesthood and feel envious, or neglected. To those women in our church that have strong testimonies of God's Great Plan of Happiness and the divinity of the role of women in the world, this is never a concern, however, it does come up occasionally. 
We as women have the beautiful opportunity to bear, nurture, and love God's choice spirits like no one else on Earth ever could. Elder Maxwell says:

"We salute you, sisters, for the joy that is yours as you rejoice in a baby’s first smile and as you listen with eager ear to a child’s first day at school which bespeaks a special selflessness. Women, more quickly than others, will understand the possible dangers when the word self is militantly placed before other words like fulfillment. You rock a sobbing child without wondering if today’s world is passing you by, because you know you hold tomorrow tightly in your arms."

In this, Maxwell explains that a mother has the capacity to understand selflessness in the way she cares for and rejoices with her children. I know, with all my heart, that this is true. I feel a special connection to my future children now as I try so hard to live my life in a way that I would want them to emulate. I know that there is power, and incomprehensible blessings that will effect the eternities in being a mother. I look forward to the day when my preparation and diligence will be rewarded with every difficulty, challenge, and joy of motherhood.