Monday, June 29, 2015

My advocate to the Father.

www.lds.org






 At the throne I intercede;
For thee ever do I plead.
I have loved thee as thy friend,
With a love that cannot end.
Be obedient, I implore,
Prayerful, watchful evermore,
And be constant unto me,
That thy Savior I may be.
"Joseph L. Townsend, 1849-1942"

As I sang this hymn before taking the sacrament yesterday, these words came to my soul at a depth I had never felt.  It is written as if Christ were speaking directly to us but I guess I had never paid much attention.  This is the last verse of the hymn and it is absolutely beautiful.

How comforting is it to know that the only man that was ever perfect constantly pleads at the throne of the Father for our cause?  It is the source of all my joy.  He pleads against the constant law of justice that looms over every one of us from the sins we commit knowingly and unknowingly.  I am grateful that Jesus Christ pleads at that throne for me, for my family, for those I love, for all who live or lived or will live.

His love cannot end.  It does not say will not end, as in a commitment for the future, it is cannot, he has already performed the actions that constitute a love that already exists and cannot be retrospectively dissolved.

The ending phrases is Christ imploring, begging someone earnestly or desperately to do something, to be obedient, prayerful, and watchful.  This sounds as if Christ is fully invested in our cause and the ultimate decision is ours if we will accept his love and advocacy or reject it.  Through obedience to his commandments we accept that divine offer.

I am reminded of the scirpture in the Book of Mormon, Mosiah 4:30 which says, "But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not awatch yourselves, and your bthoughts, and your cwords, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and dcontinue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not."

I want to come unto Christ today and that is my goal, to come unto him.

Monday, August 4, 2014

Peace

Peace is a gift from God.  It is possible through the atonement of Jesus Christ.  I think of the words of Jesus Christ when he said, My peace I give unto you.  He did that through his suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane and then overcoming death in the glorious resurrection.  His triumph brings peace to my soul.  I am thankful fro a savior who gives peace as a gift of his love.  In this world where there are so many worries, anxieties, and disappointment, his peace can calm the storm in any soul, just as he calmed the raging sea, he can calm all our troubles if we just trust in him.  We trust in him by living our lives the way he would have us live and by making sacred covenants with our Heavenly Father.


I testify that peace in this life is a true blessing from God.  It brings a measure of happiness that is in not attainable in any other way.

Monday, July 28, 2014

My Hope

This verse gives me great hope in life.  I know that Jesus Christ lives and that he did perform the atonement.  In the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon.  The great missionary Amulek teaches this same truth.  He said, "For it is expedient that an atonement should be made; for according to the great plan of the Eternal God there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made. Alma 34:9"  Amulek understood the need of our Savior.  I testify that we need a Savior as well. I testify that Jesus Christ is that savior that made an atonement for us; to make up the difference for when we fall short.  To soften us when we become hardened to the influence of the Holy Ghost. 
 
I testify that Christ lives and that he is the way and the life.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Hi.  I am becoming increasingly aware of the need for daily sustenance for my Spirit and decided to start this blog.  I am a father of 1 daughter and have the most wonderful wife in the world.  I could not be happier in my life.  The only way I have been able to obtain this happiness is through the Savior, my Lord, Jesus Christ.  The purpose of this blog is to record my experiences in life that show Gods hand.  Just as the Israelites received daily sustenance from God in the form of manna.  My goal is to examine the manna i receive on a daily basis.  A video by Elder Christopherson influenced this blog. 
 
I hope we can all learn from the teaching of this apostle of the Lord.