The Power of the Scriptures

Growing up one of my favorite hymns to sing in Primary was "Scripture Power". I can remember singing the song and every time the words "Scripture Power" were sung I would thrust my scripture case into the air. I loved the song as a child and I still love it as a young adult. If given the chance to sing "Scripture Power" again I would find myself still thrusting my scriptures into the air. But this song also teaches a very powerful lesson about how we can receive strength as we read our scriptures.

As I have admitted before I haven't always been the best at reading my scriptures. Often times I would read a verse or two from the Book of Mormon or from the Bible and just find myself wanting to quit. They didn't seem that exciting and they were also super long and written in a form of English I didn't understand too well.

But as I have gotten older I have come to see the importance of the scriptures more and more in my life. I have always had a deep love of history esp
ecially the history of warfare. I can remember my mom urging me to read the scriptures because they told the history of ancient people and their battles. I can remember that this intrigued me and for a time I sought out the passages where warfare took place. But the more I read into these chapters the more interested I became in learning more from the other chapters. I began reading the stories of prophets who boldly testified of the coming of Jesus Christ and taught how we could come unto Him.

As I read more about these prophets I began to see that their central message was to testify of Jesus Christ and that he was going to come to the world and redeem mankind. I learned this as I read about the prophets like Moses, Elijah, Alma, and Mosiah. Every single one of them testified of Christ and His coming. These prophets also were inspired to write these things down so we would know about Christ and all that He does for us. These writing are what make up the Bible and the Book of Mormon and they both act as witnesses of Christ.

The more I read the writings of these prophets the more I learned. From Alma, an ancient prophet in the Americas, I learned that Christ would come and suffer for the sins of man. So none of us would have to die or pay the full price for our sins. From Christ Himself I was able to learn that God loves all of His children and so He sent His Son to earth so we could live again. All of these are amazing messages that I would have no idea about if they hadn't been written down.

Since that time when I started reading from the scriptures I have learned many important lessons in my life and received peace that could only come from God. I truly have received power from the Scriptures. Power that has helped to enrich my life and make me happy and I know that this happiness can be found by anyone who takes the time just to open the scriptures.

Read from the scriptures. Learn about Christ's mortal ministry in the Bible and how He came to redeem mankind. Read the Book of Mormon and learn how Christ visited the people in the Americas and how they knew He was the Christ. Many lessons will be learned, your life will be blessed, and you will receive "Scripture Power". I can promise that in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

A Weekly Refresher

There are many blessings that our Heavenly Father wants to give us. As His children He wants us to be happy. So he want to bless us with peace and comfort. He wants to bless us with eternal families. Most importantly He wants to bless us with Eternal life. He wants us to live forever in His presence. The best part is that God has provided a way for us to get all of these blessings and it comes through His Son, Jesus Christ.

God has made a covenant with us that allows us to receive all of His blessings. But as part of that covenant we are required to do certain things. One of the most important covenants we make with God is that of being baptized. When we are baptized we promise God that we will keep His commandments, always remember Christ, and we promise to take upon ourselves the name of Christ. When we do this we are promised a remission of our sins and the Holy Ghost.

We are only asked to do these simple things and in return our Father in Heaven has promised us salvation through His Son. It isn't much that God asks of us for all of these things, but every week we mess up. We break a commandment, we forget about Christ, or we do something that just isn't very Christlike. At this point we have broken our covenant with God and are no longer clean from sin. It would seem at this point that we are lost and that there is no hope for us as humans to live with God. But there is a way that we can remain worthy of the blessings of God.

That way is the Sacrament. Every week as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints we have the importunity to partake bread and water in remembrance of Christ's Atoning sacrifice. When we do this we renew the covenant we make at baptism and become clean from sin.

It took me a long time to see how the Sacrament did this and why it was important to partake of it every week. It wasn't until I was a Priest in the Aaronic Priesthood that I first came to see what the Sacrament really is. When I became a Priest I was given the opportunity to bless the Sacrament on Sundays. Because of years of acting I made sure as I gave the Sacrament Prayer to take my time and to enunciate. People were always telling me thank you for the way I gave the Sacrament Prayers. They were thankful for the time they had to ponder on the words and let them sink in.

I didn't understand what these people meant and so I took a look at the Sacrament Prayer to see why it was so important. It said:

O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.

Moroni 4:3

As I pondered over the prayers I picked out several promises that we make to God when he partake of the Sacrament. First we remember Christ and His sacrifice. Second we promise to take upon ourselves the name of Christ. Third we promise to keep the commandments. It began to take form in my mind that this was the same promise that I had made when I was baptized and the cool thing was I was receiving the same promise in return from God. I was promised to be cleansed from sin and to receive the Holy Ghost. As I thought about this I thought about how it cool it was and how I could be baptized every week. Ever since then the Sacrament has been very important to me.

Our Heavenly Father wants to give us everything and He is willing to give us everything if we keep his commandments and the covenants that we make with Him. But because we mess up He has provided us with the Sacrament so we can seek to be perfect every week. It is one of the greatest blessings we can have. So I invite everyone to attend a Sacrament Meeting this week at their nearest LDS Chapel and partake of the Sacrament. Feel of the Spirit and learn for yourself and always remember God always keeps His promises.

The Blessings of a Modern Day Prophet

In the Old Testament and the Book of Mormon we read the writings of men called prophets. These were men who were mighty in faith and received revelation from God. These men were also given power from God. This power was called the priesthood. Because of this power prophets were able to heal, they could talk to God, and they were able to five counsel to God's children.

Stories about some of these prophets such as Noah, Moses, and Elijah are well known. Noah and Elijah boldly declared the words of God while Moses and Elijah performed great miracles. For a period of time though there were no prophets on the earth and many believed that there was no need for a prophet. But that is not so because it is said:

Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets
-Amos 3:7

Thus a prophet was needed and in the 1800s another prophet was called and his name was Joseph Smith. Joseph was given priesthood power from God and received revelation. Ever since that time there has been a prophet on the earth who has held the priesthood and received revelation. Today the prophet is Thomas S. Monson. Thomas S. Monson is a man dear to my heart and I would like to share an experience that helped me to know that President Monson was a prophet.

First off this experience I am about to share is one near and dear to my heart. Because it was only two years ago that I really didn't want to go on a mission. I had grown up hearing about how a mission was the most important thing that I could do. I had also heard that it was the greatest thing I could do for my life. I knew deep down inside that going on a mission would bring many blessings and that I would be able to help people to come unto Christ. But I didn't want to go. For one thing my testimony wasn't that strong and I realized that two years was a long time to be away from home.

So I pretty much decided that I wasn't going on a mission. I kept telling my friends that I was going to go to a year of college and then I would leave on a mission. But that was never in my plans. I was going to go off to college and never even think of going.

At first everything went according to plan. It seemed as if I was going to be able to enjoy a life without a mission. But that year something happened that would change my life for forever. An announcement was made that young men and young women could now serve as missionaries at younger ages. Most of my friends were ecstatic because of this change. I was not however. I just remembered feeling angry and I even called my mom up and told her that there was no way I was ever going to serve a mission.

Thomas S. Monson

It was a bad time for me as I felt alone. I can remember the next day watching what is called General Conference. I listened to tons of talks given by church leaders and I hardened my heart during the majority of the talks. I just kept wishing that they would stop talking about missionary work.

Near the end of the Conference President Monson got up to speak. For the first time that day I decided to straighten up and pay attention. Mostly because Monson always told stories and I love listening to stories. As he began to talk President Monson shared this story:

On one extremely cold Saturday night during the winter of 1983–84, Sister Monson and I drove several miles to the mountain valley of Midway, Utah, where we have a home. The temperature that night was minus 24 degrees Fahrenheit (–31°C), and we wanted to make certain all was well at our home there. We checked and found that it was fine, so we left to return to Salt Lake City. We barely made it the few miles to the highway before our car stopped working. We were completely stranded. I have seldom, if ever, been as cold as we were that night.

Reluctantly we began walking toward the nearest town, the cars whizzing past us. Finally one car stopped, and a young man offered to help. We eventually found that the diesel fuel in our gas tank had thickened because of the cold, making it impossible for us to drive the car. This kind young man drove us back to our Midway home. I attempted to reimburse him for his services, but he graciously declined. He indicated that he was a Boy Scout and wanted to do a good turn. I identified myself to him, and he expressed his appreciation for the privilege to be of help. Assuming that he was about missionary age, I asked him if he had plans to serve a mission. He indicated he was not certain just what he wanted to do.

On the following Monday morning, I wrote a letter to this young man and thanked him for his kindness. In the letter I encouraged him to serve a full-time mission. I enclosed a copy of one of my books and underscored the chapters on missionary service.

About a week later the young man’s mother telephoned and advised that her son was an outstanding young man but that because of certain influences in his life, his long-held desire to serve a mission had diminished. She indicated she and his father had fasted and prayed that his heart would be changed. They had placed his name on the prayer roll of the Provo Utah Temple. They hoped that somehow, in some way, his heart would be touched for good and he would return to his desire to fill a mission and to serve the Lord faithfully. The mother wanted me to know that she looked upon the events of that cold evening as an answer to their prayers in his behalf.
-Thomas S. Monson Consider the Blessings
As President Monson concluded his story I got the feeling that I needed to serve a mission. All my anger and all my fear about a mission melted away at that instant. I knew what I needed to do. When the talk was over I got up and I gave a call to my on to let her know of my decision.

Because of that talk my life has changed. I am now on a mission and I know that the counsel I received that morning from President Monson came from The Lord. I know it without a doubt. I know that President Monson is a prophet, that God inspired men in the past and that he continues to inspire men today.

I invite all to listen to Thomas S. Monson, to take note of how you feel and go ask God if he is a prophet. I know that if you try this that you can know that there is a prophet on the earth today.

A Pioneer Woman

I have a lot of pioneer heritage in my family. Many of my ancestors came across the plains and helped to settle the state of Utah. They made great efforts in helping to pave the way for future generations to receive the Gospel. Today though I would like to talk about a modern-day pioneer my Grandma McConkie.

My Grandma was born eighty years ago in Turku, Finland. Her father was killed in the Winter War when she was very young. So my Grandma grew up with only a mother. Times were sometimes tough for my Grandma's family. There were many times when my Grandma had to go out in the forest and search for mushrooms just so her family could eat.

Yet despite living through a World War, the loss of a father, and economic hardships my Grandma always remained positive no matter what her circumstances. She was quick to share silly stories, to crack a joke, or to use her throat as a bagpipe. She was always so happy. Most of that attitude came from her love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As a fun loving teenager my Grandma met two young Mormon missionaries. After hearing the message of the Restored Gospel my Grandma wanted to be baptized.When my Grandma turned of age she was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She was the only person in her family who was a member at that time. She was blazing a path that no one in her family had ever been on and at that point she was doing it alone.

Luckily for my Grandma she soon had company on her journey. Not too long after joining the church my Grandma met my Grandpa who was serving as a missionary in Finland and when my Grandpa returned to Utah at the completion of his mission my Grandma followed. It wasn't too much longer that my grandparents were married. Since then they have had three children, nine grandchildren, and three great grandchildren all of whom have been raised with the Gospel.

My Grandma and Grandpa

My Grandma was truly a pioneer. Her example, her courage, and her choice to do what she knew was right has helped to change many lives and has helped her posterity to receive the Gospel. At this time there are at least twenty people who have the Gospel in their lives because of my Grandma's choice. That choice will continue to affect people for many years down the road and help to change the face of the earth.

I am very thankful for my Grandma and the choices she made in her life. Because if it wasn't for her  I wouldn't be out on a mission. Because if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have the fullness of the Gospel in my life. Because if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have even been born. Her small choice made sixty years ago in Finland has affected me in so many ways and I will always be grateful for her. I will always love my Grandma.

I am so thankful for all the pioneers that have affected me in my life. For their choice to live the Gospel even when it was hard, even when it meant losing family members, and even when it meant moving thousands of miles. If it wasn't for them no one would have the Gospel. Remember our pioneer heritage and if you don't have one try to start your one. Our choice to follow the Gospel will bless many lives.

My Grandma