"If ye love me, keep my commandments"

In Matthew 26 we learn about when Christ suffered for our sins and afflictions in the Garden of Gethsemane.  In verse 38 Christ says, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here and watch with me."  Christ suffered beyond comprehension and was in so much pain that he feared that he may not live.  He returned back to his disciples and found them sleeping, unaware of the agony that he was experiencing.  In verse 40 Christ says unto his apostles, "...What, could ye not watch with me one hour?"

Throughout my life I have read this verse in shock that his very own apostles, the ones who had stood by his side and watched him perform miracles, could fall asleep when he needed them the most.  The first time that this scripture became so much more personal was when I was on my mission.  I was in my training, I was fatigued, I was exhausted from trying to understand bits and pieces of a language that I didn't know, and I was so hot I was dripping sweat.  During the sacrament I felt my head begin to nod and my eyes begin to droop and then all of the sudden I was reminded of this scripture and I could instantly relate with these disciples.  I was wearing the name of Christ on my chest and had been representing and testifying  of him all week, but I let my natural man overcome me when Christ needed me to be focused on Him the most.

I am so grateful to know that God is merciful and that if we strive to "stay awake" and focus on Christ rather than letting our natural man take over, he will allow us to progress and become like him someday.

In John 14:15 Christ explains, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."  There is no better way to show him our love and loyalty than by giving up what we want, for what he knows we need.  I love this gospel, and I will forever cherish the knowledge that we have that through obedience to God and Christ's commandments, we can all be saved.

Hold to the Truth

I love in John 13:1-17 how it describes when Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.  They were hesitant to let him do it and I can only imagine that I would feel the same way.  Their feet were dirty from walking on dusty streets in sandals all day and rarely showering like we do today.  They respected him as their Lord and Master and didn't think that it was appropriate for him to do something so lowly as wash their feet but Christ insisted that they let him.  This was symbolic for his willingness to cleanse all of our sins no matter how shameful or dirty they may be.  I had never comprehended the depth of this story and was very touched by it.  As I served the people of Paraguay, I taught people every day that truly believed that the sins that they had committed were too great and there was no hope for them.  I as well, have found myself with a difficulty to forgive myself and struggle to accept that I am doing enough to be worthy of all that God has given me...But Christ is so good! His plan is so beautiful and he demonstrates here that he loves even the lowliest of us and will never loose hope in us.  The atonement is for saints, sinners, and everyone in between.  I am so grateful to have a knowledge of this doctrine and to be able to share it with so many and bring light, truth, and hope into their lives.

The bible dictionary states, "When a person speaks by the power of the Holy Ghost that same power carries a conviction of the truth unto the heart of the hearer."  I know that as we rely on the sacred power of the Holy Ghost, we will understand truth for ourselves, and we will be able to reach the hearts of so many others in a way that we wouldn't be able to do on our own.

With the recent results of the election, there is a lot of controversy and contention going around.  I love knowing that God is so mindful of us and always has our best interest in mind and we never have to doubt that.  As we rely on the Holy Ghost and the power that he gives us, we will be able to remain as a light upon a hill and help others hold on to truth and righteousness in an ever changing world.

You Strain at a Gnat but Swallow a Camel

In Matthew 23:24 Christ is talking and he explains how the Pharisees and the Sadducees would strain at a gnat but swallow a camel.  Dr. Griffin explained that the greek translation actually says that they strain for a gnat, which means that they strained everything they drank with a cloth to make sure that it was clean and didn't have any bugs in it.  They were so hypocritical and focused on the most meticulous laws and commandments, yet failed to keep the highest laws of God such as adultery.

It is easy to look at them and quickly point figures at how twisted their society was and how confused and wicked they were, but the reality is they aren't so different from us.  I think that at times it isn't so blatantly obvious but there are many ways that we do where we live a double standards and do all the right things when people are watching, but behind closed doors have a different set of values.  I am so grateful for a God that is just, and that knows the desires of our hearts.  Something that I am beginning to understand deeply is that it truly doesn't matter what others thing of us because God is the ultimate judge and he knows what is beneath the surface.  He loves us for who we are and who we were created to become.  There is no need to be hypocritical or try to make ourselves look righteous to others God knows the truth.

I am so grateful for a gospel that takes away the pride and comparison in life and lets us focus on better our own best, because at the end of the day we will be judged on what WE did with OUR life and not what our neighbor did with their life.