2 Nephi 25

Hello all! I apologize for making this post so late this week. March Madness, homework and socializing have gotten in the way this week. Aw, who am I kidding? Really it's just been March Madness and socializing.....anyway....Today I will be discussing chapter 25 in 2 Nephi. Throughout Second Nephi, Nephi and Jacob both quote the prophet Isaiah. Often times it is hard to understand the symbolism and the history that Isaiah describes. I know when I get to some of these chapters I think "alright, get through it as fast as possible and it will all be over soon." I don't recommend that kind of thinking. Verse 4 explains, "...the words of Isaiah...are plain unto all those that are filled with the spirit of prophecy." Luckily, we don't all have to be prophets in order to have this spirit. The Lord has blessed us with the ability to receive inspiration for ourselves and our families. This blessing comes with obedience to "the laws and ordinances of the gospel." If you feel stuck reading Isaiah, or any verse within the scriptures, pray, ponder, and wait for the Lord to reveal understanding to you. Moving on to verse 23 we read, "For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ..." and onto verse 26, "And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ..." I love these verses! I think this might be my new life motto. With all the missionaries now going into the mission field, I am so excited to hear about how how the gospel is growing throughout the world. For those (like me) not going on missions, it is still our job to "rejoice in Christ." Be an example to kids at school, coworkers, fellow athletes. I am so grateful for missionary work and for Latter-day Saints who are fantastic examples to others. We were each given the light of Christ and we just shine with it when we share our testimonies through word and deed.

2 Nephi 13

Good afternoon and happy Pi Day! Get it? March 14th, 3.14.....yeah. Here at BYU we are celebrating! Pi day shirts are being worn, games are being played, and I'm sure there will be lots of pie served at the Cannon Center tonight (woohoo!). Anyway, today I am focusing on 2 Nephi chapter 13. Mostly I want to focus on the last 11 verses or so. Verses 17 through 26 talk about how the daughters of Zion will be cursed because of their focus on jewelry, clothing and fine objects. In today's society, men and women are constantly bombarded by advertisements, commercials, movies and magazines that display people with supposed happy lives because of their fame and fortune or brand name jeans. It is important for all women and men to know that pure happiness does not come from a certain kind of perfume or pair of sunglasses. Your house doesn't have to be perfect. You are going to have a bad hair day sometimes. Your car might not be the most expensive one in the parking lot. Realize that it's okay! Elder Jeffrey R. Holland once said, "Fixation on the physical is spiritually destructive." Heavenly Father gave us the privilege to have responsibility of our bodies. They are on loan from Him to us, so of course we should take care of them. But our bodies are the homes for our precious spirit. With our bodies, we were also given the privilege to come to Earth to learn and grow and strive to be like the Savior. I love this quote from Sister Elaine S. Dalton (and it can apply to young men, too), " I wish every young woman assembled here tonight would know and understand that your beauty—your “shine”—does not lie in makeup, gooey cream, or the latest clothing or hairstyles. It lies in your personal purity. When you live the standards and qualify for the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost, you can have a powerful impact in the world. Your example, even the light in your eyes, will influence others who see your “shine,” and they will want to be like you. Where do you get this light? The Lord is the light, “and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.” A divine light comes into your eyes and countenances when you draw close to your Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ." It is hard to live in the world today. As President Packer once said, living in modern times is like living in the building full of pride found in Lehi's vision. We do not have to be of the world though. As Sister Dalton explained, our light does not come from sparkly clothes, but from the light of Christ that dwells within us. I am grateful that we have church leaders who emphasize this over and over again! Together as Saints in the Latter-days, we must stand together and make sure that everyone knows their worth. 

2 Nephi 9

Good afternoon! Sorry this is my first post this week. Things have been a bit crazy around here with midterms and such. I wanted to try something a little different today. Chapter 9 is kinda long and there is a lot I could write about it, and since I'd rather not write a novel on this chapter I am going to pick my top five favorite verses and then you guys can read them so you know why I love them so much!
5) 9:14- We were given the ability to remember our sins, but we can also remember the lessons learned from them. Treat this as a blessing, not a curse!
4) 9:51- What are your priorities in life? What are you spending your money on? How about your time and effort? It's okay to have to sort out things that are taking up room in your life! We aren't superheroes, and Heavenly Father knows that.
3) 9:42- Jesus Christ is always issuing an invitation to come unto Him.
2) 9:16- The word "still" implies that we are given chances over and over again to become like Christ.
1) 9:18- The righteous are promised blessings. These blessings will come, even if you have to be a little patient and wait til the next life to receive them.
        I hope you find inspiration and joy in this chapter as I have! There is a lot to get out of this chapter, so I definitely encourage you to read it. Happy Wednesday!

2 Nephi 6-7

Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you are relaxing a little bit and taking a breather from this week. I know I am! For my second post this week I want to touch on just a few verses in 2 Nephi chapters 6 and 7. The end of verse 7 reads, "...and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me." Part of verse 13 reads, "....And the people of the Lord shall not be ashamed. For the people of the Lord are they who wait for him; they still wait for the coming of the Messiah." Verse 7 in chapter 7 reads, "For the Lord God will help me, therefore shall I not be confounded. Therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed." So, I'm guessing you are sensing the pattern I found about not being ashamed. I think this is such a great principle for members to know, especially the youth and young adults. This is the time in our lives that we get to learn how to stand up for ourselves. We make more and more decisions without  our parents, we have to rely on our own testimonies, we are growing up all while the world is throwing evil at us left and right. I know it isn't always easy to declare your membership in the church. In high school there were times when I wondered if keeping my standards and living as a Latter-day Saint all the time was worth it. Believe me when I say it is! Heavenly Father has mansions in heaven prepared for those that endure to the end. I challenge you, but the youth especially, to say, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ" when you wake up or when you feel tempted to lower your standards or as you walk down the hallways at school because "it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16). Be a proud follower of Jesus Christ. I know some people think we are weird, but really, every person on Earth is their own kind of weird :) Remember, "I'm a Mormon. I know it. I live it. I love it." (Click on the link to watch a cute video)

2 Nephi 4

Hey guys! I have two exams to study for this week so the post today is gonna be relatively short. Today I am writing about 2 Nephi chapter 4. In this chapter, Lehi passes away after finishing his speech to his posterity. First I want to take a look at verse 5 where Lehi says, "...I cannot go down to my grave save I should leave a blessing upon you..." I love that Lehi knew the importance of a father's blessing. Here at BYU, I love seeing when young men exercise the Priesthood. I have had the opportunity to go to the Provo temple and be baptized by my Priesthood holding friends. I've witnessed blessings being given, home teaching lessons being taught on time, young men preparing for their missions and it is so amazing to see the power of God all around me. This next line in verse 20 is one of my new favorites: "My God hath been my support..." President Eyring said at General Conference that if we count our blessings every day, we will begin to easily see the hand of God in our lives. I appreciate that Nephi recorded how much Heavenly Father blessed and helped his family, even in times of trial in the wilderness. They were able to survive hunger and sickness because they relied on their Heavenly Father. For the rest of the chapter, Nephi prays. He prays out of gratitude, he prays for forgiveness, he prays out of joy and faith. I encourage you to read the rest of the chapter because there are some inspiring verses and one liners in there. As you go about the week, ask yourself when "God hath been (your) support." I testify that noticing and acknowledging the hand of God in your life will bless you and open your eyes to blessings you didn't even realize you had.

2 Nephi 2

Hellloo! The Sun is shining here in Provo and I am in a very good mood. That might also be because I'm eating peanut butter m&m's. Anyway, I hope  you are in a good mood as well. If not, maybe something in this post can change that. Today we are moving on to 2 Nephi chapter 2. This is probably one of the most influential chapters of the Book of Mormon in my life. I am also taking some of my thoughts from Brad Wilcox's talk His Grace is Sufficient . This talk is absolutely incredible. If there is one talk I could read in my whole life, this is it. If you have the time, read this talk before you read this post (just click on the underlined title of the talk). I cannot stress enough how good it is. So in 2 Nephi, Lehi is still speaking to his posterity, specifically to his son Jacob. I would like to start in the last line of verse 4, "And the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation in free." A while ago I wrote a little note next to the word "free" and wrote "with work." Since reading Brother Wilcox's talk, I have learned that through the grace of Jesus Christ, salvation really is free. We don't have to do anything to be resurrected. Christ suffered for us and as Brother Wilcox said, "Jesus filled the whole space. He paid our debt in full. He didn't pay it all except a few coins. He paid it all. It is finished." We don't have to work in order for this to be fulfilled. What we have to work for is change. Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, "The repenting sinner must suffer for his sins, but this suffering has a different purpose than punishment or payments. Its purpose is change." Going on to verse 7 we read, "Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered." A broken heart and a contrite spirit bring about this change Elder Oaks spoke of. In the middle of verse 8 we read, "...no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah..." Brother Wilcox said, "Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly." I'm serious when I say this quote gives me goose bumps. We must choose heaven. I feel like Brother Wilcox shares this whole topic so much better than I do, so I want to close with this quote by him, "...the older I get, and the more I understand this wonderful plan of redemption, the more I realize that in the final judgment it will not be the unrepentant sinner begging Jesus, “Let me stay.” No, he will probably be saying, “Get me out of here!” Knowing Christ’s character, I believe that if anyone is going to be begging on that occasion, it would probably be Jesus begging the unrepentant sinner, “Please, choose to stay. Please, use my Atonement—not just to be cleansed but to be changed so that you want to stay.” I am so grateful for the all-encompassing love that Christ has for you and I. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to make progress. Like our Earthly parents, they delight in our success, and are by our side when we fall.