Changing Myself In Christ

A while back a companion of mine had me watch a talk by Elder Holland that completely changed my life.

I will share with you a little background about me and how this talk helped me.

Before my mission I would often find things to doubt. For a really long time I had the hardest time understanding how the book of Mormon was true, how Joseph Smith saw heavenly father and Jesus Christ and how on earth could angels come and restore all of these things to him?? In my mind it just didn’t make sense.

 I became a missionary and was expected each day to bear my testimony of these things to people and I still had these moments where I was not even 100% sure if it was true myself!! How am I going to commit people to read this book that I had only read one time through myself!? I had a solid testimony that Jesus Christ is my Savior; I knew that the gospel had provided me peace and happiness in all phases of my growing up. But I didn’t understand the who, what, why and how of the gospel I guess you could say.

 I started to read from the Book of Mormon everyday it started to feel right. A few weeks ago as I was reading I had a really cool experience that I want to share.  I am reading the book of Mormon cover to cover , my desire is to gain a better knowledge of it and a stronger testimony of its truth, I have been told you can only help convert people as deep as you are converted , I am challenging myself to know even more that the book of Mormon is true, as I was reading in Nephi I found a scripture that as I read it I could just feel his heart ache, and for the first time ever I could feel that Nephi was a real man with real sorrows. He wasn’t just a character in this good book anymore.

1 Nephi 19:5-7

“ 5 And an account of my making these plates shall be given hereafter; and then, behold, I proceed according to that which I have spoken; and this I do that the more sacred things may be kept for the knowledge of my people.

 6 Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself.

7 For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels.”

 This scripture hit my heart with great power as I thought about Nephi and his concerns as he tried to preach the gospel, people denied him and tried to kill him, his own brothers tried to kill him and I really just felt this strong sense that “Sister Carlson, he’s not like harry potter, He is a real man. He was and is a prophet of God who had feelings, His heart was broken when people wouldn't accept the teachings of the Savior, His heart was broken as people rejected the Gospel” After that thought the scripture popped into my mind in 2 Nephi chapter 33:3 "

"3 But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth, and especially unto my people. For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them; and I cry unto my God in faith, and I know that he will hear my cry."

As I thought of those I love from home and here on my mission that have accepted the Gospel and forgotten their testimony, to those who have given up on their faith and to those who have yet to accept it, in this moment I could relate to Nephi, many nights my tears have soaked my pillow for the thought and feelings that those I love won’t accept Christ as their Savior and they push away His teachings.For those who don't want to try anymore and to those who seemed to have lost hope. 

The Book Of Mormon and the Gospel of Jesus Christ provides much hope in a world of deteriorating values, in a world where God is fading from the hearts of men. I realize more and more each day what men and women have sacrificed in times of old for us to understand the teachings of Jesus Christ, the sacrifices that were made for us to have the book of Mormon. The sacrifices were made, by people who loved a future generation they didn't even know. The sacrifice was made by a Savior who loves us, a savior that didn't want to spend eternity alone, therefore he sent him self into the world to atone for us. to pay the debt we couldn't pay, to free the bonds we couldn't free on our own. I want so badly for those i love to understand these teachings, to see the ways their lives will change as they read and apply the words to each day of their life.  

I want for those i love to allow the book of mormon to change their very creature as it has changed mine, to bring the hope, love and peace I have felt.

Each time I read from the pages of the book of Mormon my faith grows stronger, my understanding of my savior deepens, and my heart becomes more converted to my father in heaven and Brother Jesus Christ. Each day I read I learn more and more with all of my heart that the words of the book of Mormon are true. It hasn't come through a huge shaking, a yelling voice, or a giant sign, but it has been a gradual step by step development, each time I read I feel the spirit, I feel myself understanding what my calling in life is, and I find myself becoming a better woman through Christ. I can say with all of my heart that I KNOW THE BOOK OF MORMON IS TRUE.

There is a talk by Elder Holland that has changed my life and my view, that has helped me to become more converted and to understand the book of Mormon and its divinity more fully and I am going to share that talk! :)

"Safety for the Soul"

"I want it absolutely clear when I stand before the judgment bar of God that I declared to the world … that the Book of Mormon is true.

Prophecies regarding the last days often refer to large-scale calamities such as earthquakes or famines or floods. These in turn may be linked to widespread economic or political upheavals of one kind or another.

But there is one kind of latter-day destruction that has always sounded to me more personal than public, more individual than collective—a warning, perhaps more applicable inside the Church than outside it. The Savior warned that in the last days even those of the covenant, the very elect, could be deceived by the enemy of truth. ¹ If we think of this as a form of spiritual destruction, it may cast light on another latter-day prophecy. Think of the heart as the figurative center of our faith, the poetic location of our loyalties and our values; then consider Jesus’s declaration that in the last days “men’s hearts [shall fail] them.” ²

The encouraging thing, of course, is that our Father in Heaven knows all of these latter-day dangers, these troubles of the heart and soul, and has given counsel and protections regarding them.

In light of that, it has always been significant to me that the Book of Mormon, one of the Lord’s powerful keystones ³ in this counteroffensive against latter-day ills, begins with a great parable of life, an extended allegory of hope versus fear, of light versus darkness, of salvation versus destruction—an allegory of which Sister Ann M. Dibb spoke so movingly this morning.

In Lehi’s dream an already difficult journey gets more difficult when a mist of darkness arises, obscuring any view of the safe but narrow path hisfamily and others are to follow. It is imperative to note that this mist of darkness descends on all the travelers—the faithful and the determined ones (the elect, we might even say) as well as the weaker and ungrounded ones. The principal point of the story is that the successful travelers resist all distractions, including the lure of forbidden paths and jeering taunts from the vain and proud who have taken those paths. The record says that the protected “did press their way forward, continually [and, I might add, tenaciously] holding fast” to a rod of iron that runs unfailingly along the course of the true path. ⁴ However dark the night or the day, the rod marks the way of that solitary, redeeming trail.

“I beheld,” Nephi says later, “that the rod of iron … was the word of God, [leading] … to the tree of life; … a representation of the love of God.” Viewing this manifestation of God’s love, Nephi goes on to say:

“I looked and beheld the Redeemer of the world, … [who] went forth ministering unto the people. …

“… And I beheld multitudes of people who were sick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with devils and unclean spirits; … and they were healed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out.” ⁵

Love. Healing. Help. Hope. The power of Christ to counter all troubles in all times—including the end of times. That is the safe harbor God wants for us in personal or public days of despair. That is the message with which the Book of Mormon begins, and that is the message with which it ends, calling all to “come unto Christ, and be perfected in him.” ⁶ That phrase—taken from Moroni’s final lines of testimony, written 1,000 years after Lehi’s vision—is a dying man’s testimony of the only true way.

May I refer to a modern “last days” testimony? When Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum started for Carthage to face what they knew would be an imminent martyrdom, Hyrum read these words to comfort the heart of his brother:

“Thou hast been faithful; wherefore … thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.

“And now I, Moroni, bid farewell … until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ.” ⁷

A few short verses from the 12th chapter of Ether in the Book of Mormon. Before closing the book, Hyrum turned down the corner of the page from which he had read, marking it as part of the everlasting testimony for which these two brothers were about to die. I hold in my hand that book, the very copy from which Hyrum read, the same corner of the page turned down, still visible. Later, when actually incarcerated in the jail, Joseph the Prophet turned to the guards who held him captive and bore a powerful testimony of the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon. ⁸ Shortly thereafter pistol and ball would take the lives of these two testators.

As one of a thousand elements of my own testimony of the divinity of the Book of Mormon, I submit this as yet one more evidence of its truthfulness. In this their greatest—and last—hour of need, I ask you: would these men blaspheme before God by continuing to fix their lives, their honor, and their own search for eternal salvation on a book (and by implication a church and a ministry) they had fictitiously created out of whole cloth?

Never mind that their wives are about to be widows and their children fatherless. Never mind that their little band of followers will yet be “houseless, friendless and homeless” and that their children will leave footprints of blood across frozen rivers and an untamed prairie floor. ⁹Never mind that legions will die and other legions live declaring in the four quarters of this earth that they know the Book of Mormon and the Church which espouses it to be true. Disregard all of that, and tell me whether in this hour of death these two men would enter the presence of their Eternal Judge quoting from and finding solace in a book which, if notthe very word of God, would brand them as imposters and charlatans until the end of time? They would not do that! They were willing to die rather than deny the divine origin and the eternal truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.

For 179 years this book has been examined and attacked, denied and deconstructed, targeted and torn apart like perhaps no other book in modern religious history—perhaps like no other book in any religious history. And still it stands. Failed theories about its origins have been born and parroted and have died—from Ethan Smith to Solomon Spaulding to deranged paranoid to cunning genius. None of these frankly pathetic answers for this book has ever withstood examination because there is no other answer than the one Joseph gave as its young unlearned translator. In this I stand with my own great-grandfather, who said simply enough, “No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so.” ¹⁰

I testify that one cannot come to full faith in this latter-day work—and thereby find the fullest measure of peace and comfort in these, our times—until he or she embraces the divinity of the Book of Mormon and the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it testifies. If anyone is foolish enough or misled enough to reject 531 pages of a heretofore unknown text teeming with literary and Semitic complexity without honestly attempting to account for the origin of those pages—especially without accounting for their powerful witness of Jesus Christ and the profound spiritual impact that witness has had on what is now tens of millions of readers—if that is the case, then such a person, elect or otherwise, has been deceived; and if he or she leaves this Church, it must be done by crawling over or under or around the Book of Mormon to make that exit. In that sense the book is what Christ Himself was said to be: “a stone of stumbling, … a rock of offence,” ¹¹ a barrier in the path of one who wishes not to believe in this work. Witnesses, even witnesses who were for a time hostile to Joseph, testified to their death that they had seen an angel and had handled the plates. “They have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man,” they declared. “Wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true.” ¹²

Now, I did not sail with the brother of Jared in crossing an ocean, settling in a new world. I did not hear King Benjamin speak his angelically delivered sermon. I did not proselyte with Alma and Amulek nor witness the fiery death of innocent believers. I was not among the Nephite crowd who touched the wounds of the resurrected Lord, nor did I weep with Mormon and Moroni over the destruction of an entire civilization. But my testimony of this record and the peace it brings to the human heart is as binding and unequivocal as was theirs. Like them, “[I] give [my name] unto the world, to witness unto the world that which [I] have seen.” And like them, “[I] lie not, God bearing witness of it.” ¹³

I ask that my testimony of the Book of Mormon and all that it implies, given today under my own oath and office, be recorded by men on earth and angels in heaven. I hope I have a few years left in my “last days,” but whether I do or do not, I want it absolutely clear when I stand before the judgment bar of God that I declared to the world, in the most straightforward language I could summon, that the Book of Mormon is true, that it came forth the way Joseph said it came forth and was given to bring happiness and hope to the faithful in the travail of the latter days.

My witness echoes that of Nephi, who wrote part of the book in his “last days”:

“Hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, … and they teach all men that they should do good.

“And if they are not the words of Christ, judge ye—for Christ will show unto you, with power and great glory, that they are his words, at the last day.” ¹⁴

Brothers and sisters, God always provides safety for the soul, and with the Book of Mormon, He has again done that in our time. Remember this declaration by Jesus Himself: “Whoso treasureth up my word, shall not be deceived” ¹⁵ —and in the last days neither your heart nor your faith will fail you. Of this I earnestly testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Show References"

Happiness is for everyone!

''Happiness is a condition of the soul. This joyous state comes as a result of righteous living"

"

What would you think of a man who would chop up a beautiful grand piano to make firewood or use an expensive hand calculator to pry open a desk drawer? Such destructive use of valuable resources is unthinkable, yet there are so many in the world today who more tragically misuse the priceless resources of mind and body and spirit"

RICHARD G. SCOTT

"Many people try to find happiness and fulfillment in activities that are contrary to the Lord’s commandments. Ignoring God’s plan for them, they reject the only source of real happiness. They give in to the devil, who “seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself” (2 Nephi 2:27). Eventually they learn the truth of Alma’s warning to his son Corianton: “Wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10).

Others seek only to have fun in life. With this as their main goal, they allow temporary pleasure to distract them from lasting happiness. They rob themselves of the enduring joys of spiritual growth, service, and hard work.

As you seek to be happy, remember that the only way to real happiness is to live the gospel. You will find peaceful, eternal happiness as you strive to keep the commandments, pray for strength, repent of your sins, participate in wholesome activities, and give meaningful service. You will learn to have fun within the limits set by a loving Father in Heaven

Your happiness can be contagious. As others observe you, they may desire to know the source of your joy. Then they can also experience the happiness that comes through living the gospel of Jesus Christ."

True to the Faith

Happiness is something everyone desires. For the first time in a long time I am feeling true happiness. For the first time in a long time the void and burning sensation in my chest has faded away. Without even knowing it I was homesick for my heavenly father. I was thirsty to feel the spirit more fully in my life.

A few nights ago before we went to bed we were our kitchen looking through church magazines when my heart was full of this warmth, comfort and peace. I couldn't help but smile. The healing and hope I had been praying for overcame me and for the first time in a while I feel whole.

Where did this come from? I was so caught off guard by this sense of joy that had overcome my heart, there have been certain points through my mission where I have felt this but not as strongly, and after wards a little piece of that void would return. Piece by piece the savior was taking the parts of me that were broken and mending them, piece by piece My savior was putting me back together through His atonement He was making me whole.

"Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke and cannot fix is the very purpose of the atonement of Christ"

Boyd K Packer

That void that I felt was a thirst to grow closer to my Savior. This sense of peace has come from living as close as I can to my Savior. It wouldn't have been possible to find this happiness through the world. This is a happiness that comes from following the example Jesus Christ set up for us while He was here on the Earth. Obviously NO ONE is perfect and we make all make mistakes. BUT it is okay, you can start out fresh, you can be forgiven. :)

There is a sense of happiness that living the Gospel provides that cannot be explained. It's not something that comes over night, but through diligence, through reaaaally studying the words of Christ through the bible and book of Mormon and then APPLYING them into our everyday actions.

The commandments are happiness. Freedom comes through the commandments. They are the pathway to a truly joyful experience here on Earth. Heavenly Father is perfect. He would never ask of or expect us to do anything potentially harmful. Every law He provides is a protection.

We have such great reasons to be joyful! We are children of our Father in Heaven, Jesus Christ’s true church has been restored, the book of Mormon has the ability to help us change our very creature as we read and apply the words, and teaching to our everyday life. I am happy because I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior, my brother and my best friend. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is what makes me happy. Each day is a gift from our father in heaven.

There is a true joy that the Gospel brings that cannot be brought in any other way. I have found that joy, and I will never forget, or let go, I have found the peace I have searched for. It was all found in the services of my brothers and sisters, and in the service of my god.

 

FAITH.. it's what you DO.

 

 The sidewalks in the town where I live are very peculiar.... Once they are wet from the rain they become very... slippery... We were walking to visit someone with sister west and sister su yesterday, when sister west slipped a little. I quietly giggled to myself when all of the sudden my feet were sliding out of control, at first I caught myself, when my right foot slipped into my left foot, before I knew it I was flat on my back lying there, LAUGHING. As I sat up I quickly shot glances around to see who was watching... at first I thought I got away with just the three other sisters... Then I noticed the porch across the street was full of young guys, laughing equally... or maybe even harder than we were. At this moment in my life I wanted to just lay there and disappear into the ground... But I couldn't... So I stood up and continued on walking, or more so running to the front porch of whom we were about to visit. Although I felt embarrassed I continued on. Throughout the rest of the day I thought to myself... Had I stepped more cautiously after seeing sister west slip, had I walked on the grass instead, I felt as though all dignity had been lost.... FOREVER... okay maybe not forever. My ego would someday repair itself. You get the point I am sure.

  Anyways.... It’s not about the fall, what I could have done to prevent the fall, or who was watching, all that mattered was GETTING BACK UP. President Uchtdorf did an amazing talk at the priesthood session this year about getting back up. (YOU CAN DO IT NOW!)

  We all have that "If I would have...." "I should have..." "If only I didn't..." "How could I???" "What was I thinking..?" "I should have gone here 10 minutes later..." "Why didn't I follow that gut feeling?'' Moment in life. STOP RIGHT THERE. Don't think another should have, could have, or would have thought. You can't change your past however; you can change your future.

  Step into the future with a new brightness of hope. Remember how it feels to think should have, could have, would have.... Remember how that moment feels and move forward doing the best you can to avoid those thoughts in the future.

  How blessed are we to have a loving Father in Heaven that knew we would step off the path, slip and fall while on the path and occasionally feel like all is lost. He knew we would come to Earth and it would become hard to stay focused on His glory, therefore, He created this perfect totally flawless plan that would make it possible for all to make return to him some day as long as we exercised our freedom to choose for righteousness.

REPENTANCE IS REAL. To repent is to CHANGE. As we repent we receive a fresh view on life, ourselves, others and Our Heavenly Father. 

Although in that moment when I slipped and fell, I didn't want to face the porch of men, I didn't want to stand back up, It hurt my pride, my backside and maybe even ego... however, I stood up. If you fall off the horse, YOU GET BACK ON before fear has a moment to step in. Fear that it isn't possible, fear that it's too late, fear of not being enough. You are enough! It is never too late! IT IS POSSIBLE!

 Through Christ it is possible to stand back up. No matter what amount of pain, no matter how humiliated we feel, it is all possible. He overcame the world so that we wouldn't have to. He suffered so that we won’t be alone. He lives and He loves us all.

Looking Forward With Hope.

 

 Disney Movies can be so wise. I was watching Lion King a little over a year ago when Refikki said the wise phrase "The past can hurt, You can either learn from it, or run from it" The last option He failed to mention is "To live in it" I feel like to live in the past can be toxic to our future progression.

 Change is often difficult; it's one of those things that just come with life. The past may hold things such as: memories that are most cherished and held close to the heart, moments of joy, moments we regret, memories of a lost loved one, or friends that have come and gone through certain phases of our life. 

  In my short 22 years of life I have experienced a lot of different things. I have lost quite a few dear friends that I will forever cherish until I can meet them again on the other side, I have had friends come and go, and I have had friendships that I hope will last through the rest of time and eternity.

  We all make choices that we wished we had listened to the council of our parents, we all have regrets, and we can either let the consequences of those actions turn us bitter or better. Today as I was pondering how to live in faith for my future. The thought came to my mind "Don't let the past make you bitter, allow it to make you become better"

  How is it possible to live in Faith and Hope for the future when at times You have had many people from the past use you, walk on you, or make you feel like You could never measure up?

  That answer is so simple yet can be so hard to act on, that answer can only come through God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ.

34 O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.

2 Nephi 4:34

 Everything has their opposite, fear and doubt are opposed to faith and hope, where fear is faith cannot be, and where faith is fear cannot be either. It's just like as we turn on a light switch light chases away the darkness. Fear and faith simply cannot coexist. Fear is a choice. We choose how certain things from out past will dictate our future.

"4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

Ether 12:4

 Just as fear is a choice, to have faith and hope is a choice. I choose now to have Faith and Hope that all is in the hands of my savior, to have hope in the future that things will come together better than they have in the past.

"6 And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith."

Ether 12:6

 Faith is for that which is hoped for but not seen. We cannot see into the future and we cannot hope for the future if we constantly catch ourselves looking to the past. Heavenly Father is aware, He knows what is hard for us, and He created us and knows how to fix us when we are broken.

“When sore trials come upon us, it’s time to deepen our faith in God, to work hard, and to serve others. Then He will heal our broken hearts. He will bestow upon us personal peace and comfort. Those great gifts will not be destroyed, even by death.”

—Russell M. Nelson

When you feel as though you are alone, remember you are not.

"11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

 12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities."

Alma 7:11-12

Succor: help or relief for somebody or something in a difficult or unpleasant situation.

To Succor: help, relief, aid, support, assistance, rescue, and comfort.

 At times we find ourselves in unpleasant situations, Let Christ in and allow him to succor you, allow the healing to take place, move through the past, and welcome the future in hope. Move forward in faith knowing that things are okay, they are in the hands of the lord as long as we are doing our best to keep His commandments, to walk in His light, and to follow His words. He has promised to never leave us as we are doing what we are supposed to.

"10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."

Doctrine and Covenants 82:10

 He lives, He loves us, He answers our prayers, He is here to free us from captivity caused from life, caused from the lack of regard on others part, to rescue us from sin, to rescue us from pain, to free us from sorrow. Christ is the light, He is the way to inner peace, and He is the hand that can guide us to most joy.

 There is a happiness I have found through my Savior that I could never describe in words. I know that it has come through diligent study, and action upon what I study in the Book of Mormon and Holy Bible each and every day. There is healing when we are in the service of God, and our fellow brothers and sisters. There is a peace that cannot come in any other way except through our Savior Jesus Christ.

 

Let go and love.

Charity: The highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, not merely affection;

the pure love of Christ.

"46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.

  

48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.

" Moroni 7:46

"As we increasingly think and act like Him, the attributes of the natural man will slip away to be replaced by the heart and the mind of Christ."

-GENE R. COOK

Of the First Quorum of the Seventy

 As we pass through our life here on Earth we go through experiences, some that I am sure we wish we didn't have to endure. We meet people who are easy to love, and people who... well who aren't. we have experiences of joy, and pain, we have moments that we wish could last a life time, friendships that are meant to be only for a season, and friends that we will keep for all time and eternity.

We all have that friend that can stretch the truth, or that is there upon condition. We all have that friend who is there through the thick of it, the friend that when they promise to be there you know with out a doubt you can count on them, that they will keep there word to be there for you.

There was a scripture I found once while I was studying the pure love of our Savior, it reads:

"8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins."

1 Peter 4:8 The Joseph Smith translation reads "for charity PREVENTETH a multitude of sins"

"Charity preventeth a multitude of sins". With charity there would be no more deception or secret intentions. Integrity, virtue and honesty would over power all. No one would lie to cover their tracks, there would be no more jealousy. Our thoughts and actions towards others would be wholesome and kind. Our friendships would be built on solid foundations of trust. We would strive a little more to keep our word, for we wouldn't want to let another down, we wouldn't want others to lose trust in who we are because we would be full of perfect love as the Savior is. His love is with out end. No matter how many times we turn our back, walk away and leave him behind, he awaits us in the future with his arms extended and ready to take us by the hand.

"In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something."

-Dallin H Oaks

To become something... Being on mission has taught me many things, one of the greatest lessons i have learned is to be full of integrity and love toward my brothers and sisters. To become a true follower of Jesus Christ it's crucial to follow His example of honesty, integrity, virtue, and charity. Thoughts lead us to action. Pure thoughts make pure actions, thoughts of charity lead to acts of kindness. To become something more, its time to strive each day to be a little more, to be better, to let go of the natural man and become more as He, more like Jesus Christ.

If we constantly think negative thoughts toward others our actions will soon become in sync with those thoughts. We all have become hurt by the lack of regard by another person and as well as we need to love, we must let go and forgive. The atonement of our savior Jesus Christ is the greatest act of charity ever. He gave his life so that we could be forgiven. As well as we desire to be forgiven it is required the we to forgive.

"45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things."

Moroni 7:45

Charity is long-suffering, it is patient. Charity gives us the ability to over look the weaknesses of others, the ability to see the world through Christs eyes, rather than to see one in their weakness we can see them as what they will become, their divine qualities and potential. Through Christ we can be full of this kind of love, we can let go of anger, we can let go of envy, we can overcome fear, we can let faith step in, the Saviors Atonement can begin to work within us and we can move forward into a bright future full of hope, faith and love. Love for all men. 

I am learning to become something more. I am learning the steps to take to become a new woman through Christ. To change my character and become more like Him. To let go of doubt, and fear. To let go and to love.