James Taylor had some good Advice

As you may have noticed from the title of this post, I may or may not be writing a few things about my good friend James Taylor. Actually, more like using some words from his song.

I know I have posted a blog or two about prayer before, but I feel like it has been something on my mind lately and that I have really strengthend my testimony of it.

Prayer. What is it? Prayer is personal communication with our Father in Heaven. Not only is it us talking to Him, but He communicates with us as well, through the Holy Ghost. We have to be listening and paying attention to what God is telling us. Sometimes our answers don't come right away or in the way that we expected. But they do come. And Heavenly Father is always there listening.

Let me tell you how prayer has helped me recently... Last week, I was having a tough go. I had a really bad cold, and it gave me time to think about some things. I thought about how my personal prayers hadn't been as meaningful lately as they should be. And because of that, I felt that my relationship with my Heavenly Father had become somewhat distant. I mean, I still prayed every morning and night, but more to just say that I did it. I wanted that to change. I wanted to feel closer to God. So I started praying more often and in a way that made it feel like I was actually having a heart to heart conversation with Him. I've started talking and praying to my Father like He's my best friend, because that's what He needs to be. I tell my best friend everything, so why not let Him be my best friend. And I tell you, ever since then, I have felt our relationship getting stronger and I feel His love for me more. That all happened like 9 days ago! It's amazing how quick and how powerful prayer can be.

There's a song by James Taylor called, "You've Got a Friend." Relating it back to prayer, we have a friend in Heavenly Father. I've changed a word or two, but it's important to remember that we can always call on Him...

You just call out my name, and you know where ever I am
I'll come running to hear you again.
Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you have to do is call and I'll be there,
you've got a friend.

So, just call on God's name, He'll be there for you. I promise. And in the words of Turboman, I always keep my promises because I want to keep my friends.

First Place: Gold Medal: Eternal Life

So...you're done with the game. Now what? What happens after we die?

Well, our bodies and our spirits are separated. Our physical bodies are buried in the ground and our spirits go to what's known as the spirit world...where we wait. We wait for the "awards ceremony." We wait to found out how well we did in the "game."

When Jesus Christ comes again, we will be resurrected (our bodies and our spirits will be reunited, never to be separated again) and we will be judged. We will be judged according to our works and the desires of our hearts. Because Christ overcame the obstacle of physical death, we will also. Our bodies will take on their perfect form (Alma 11:42-45).



My sisters and me



After we are judged we will be placed into one of three kingdoms of glory. The highest, the celestial kingdom, is the gold medal. That was our goal for coming here to earth, we wanted the grand prize! ETERNAL LIFE! Living in the presence of our Heavenly Father, our Savior, and living with our families FOREVER! Who wouldn't want that?! We can have this gift of eternal life as we follow the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that you can do it. I miss my family like crazy, and I love them to death, no matter how weird they might be. I'm so grateful that I have the opportunity to be with them forever.

To find out more about how your family can be together forever...check this site out http://mormon.org/family/

M.V.P.

Game time. Are you ready? You're about to walk onto the field for the championship game. Yeah. You're excited, anxious, and nervous at the same time. Adrenaline is running through your blood, because you have the risk of getting injured, losing, etc. Everything is on the line. So why do what you're about to do? Because it's the only way you'll have a chance for winning right? You can't win if you never play.

artwork by Greg Olsen

And so it is with life. In making the decision to come to earth, we knew it wasn't going to be easy. We knew we were going to face challenges, be tested and tried, slip and fall. But we also knew we were going to get back up again, that even though we would experience hardships and disappointments, we would also experience triumphs and victories. We realized that we had to come to earth to prove to God that we could do what He wanted us to do. "And thus we see, that there was a time granted unto man to repent, yea, a probationary time, a time to repent and serve God." (Alma 42:4) so that we could have eternal life, so that we could win. We also knew that we couldn't win on our own, we needed an MVP. We needed our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:23-24) Only through Him, are we guaranteed to win, if we accept Him and follow His teachings.

To go into a game, you need the proper equipment. I mean, you wouldn't run out onto the football field with swim trunks and flip-flops. You need a helmet, shoulder pads, football cleats, etc. In life, we have been equipped with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with the scriptures and living prophets. All have been given to us to help us endure to the end, no matter how exhausted, how frustrated we may feel at times. We must not give up. We must keep going to reach our end goal, eternal life. It wasn't made to be easy, but Jesus Christ is here to help us.

There was a point on my mission just a couple months ago where I just felt worn out. I was physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually drained. I didn't know if I could do it anymore, if I could have the patience to endure. So I prayed, because it's what the scriptures told me to do, and what a really good friend of mine told me to do. I prayed for the strength to continue. I still pray for it everyday, because it's the only way I can do it. The Lord is my strength. He is our strength. He has given us the means to receive eternal life. He overcame spiritual death by suffering the penalty of our sins and He overcame physical death through His resurrection. It's only through Jesus Christ that we can be cleansed from sin and live again.