I apologize for the long delay between posts. It as been a sequence of busy weeks leading up to Easter between birthdays, speech and debate and MUN. I hope this post makes up for the wait. I feel that it is one of the more uplifting ones I have written.
Enjoy!
About a week ago, on a Friday night I had an interesting conversation with some of my friends from speech. We talked about our beliefs and our thoughts about life. During this conversation everyone was civil, nobody argued about who was right, everyone had a chance to speak about their beliefs.
For me it was a great missionary moment. I was able to talk about the church to people who knew a little about my beliefs, and clear up some misconceptions about the church. I also learned a lot about my friends.
The thing that was most important to me about that conversation was the respect and love we gave to each other.
It takes courage to listen to someone else's beliefs without a whit of criticism. It takes a respect for the other person to willing to listen with an open mind about whatever they believe. I'm glad we were able to speak openly as a group.
I want to talk about having love for others.
Love is not agreeing with everything another person says, nor is it just a bond between family members. Love is accepting others whether or not you agree with them.
When we love another person, we respect their ideas and their ideals. Our respect comes without judgment, though we may not always agree with what they believe or say.
In Matthew 22: 37-39 we read "Thou shalt love the lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."
Christ taught us to love one another, and what better way to show it than to give respect. In that hotel room where we all had varying beliefs about the world and religion and man. I was impressed by the respect in that room, and am glad to be able to be able to call those there my friends.
Show everyone you know that you love them by respecting their idea's and beliefs. I have found few better ways to show love than by proving it in this way.
I would like to tell you about three friends of mine. When I see friend 1, instantly we start talking back and forth. As a consequence we are extremely close. When I see friend 2, instantly he starts talking, but I don't know him that well so I don't speak up much. However he keeps trying to get to know me. When I see friend 3 we say hello and talk when necessary. It's really awkward cause he will try to start a conversation, but I usually am not paying attention, so I won't respond
When studying your scriptures and praying you have a "conversation" with your Heavenly Father. Studying your scriptures is like Him talking to you giving you advice. You praying is you responding to him. I would like you to think how often do I pray or study my scriptures? Are you like friend 3 and I talking awkwardly and only when necessary? Or are you getting his side of the conversation and not responding as much as you should like friend 2? Or are you and Him going back and forth constantly studying and praying like friend 1? Take a moment to think about which one you are.
If you are like friend 3, I encourage you to begin to have your conversation with the Lord. Study your scriptures and pray each morning and evening at the least. I guarantee that by doing this your relationship with your Heavenly Father will increase significantly.
If you are like friend 2 you are half way there, do not stop short. If you are ignoring either of the two parts of the conversation with your Heavenly Father I encourage you to begin to do that task and continue the task you were doing previously. There is no other way to have a conversation with the Lord without both studying and praying. They are essential and go hand in hand. As you do this your relationship with your Heavenly Father will grow.
If you are like friend 1 you are doing tremendously and I encourage you to continue your great work. As you continue to confide in the Lord you will find you growing closer to him.
I would like to bear my testimony that if you pray and study your scriptures you will be blessed. I know that the Lord always has an outstretched hand to us and if we reach out we will once again be with him.
I was sitting on a bus the other day silently studying my scriptures. It was very difficult to focus between the sound of the motor, heater, people laughing, arguing, or talking. Since I was trying to focus on reading I didn’t really hear anything. i sort of set up a wall between myself and the world However four words breached through my defences. My friend whom is a proclaimed atheist yelled at my friend who is in my teachers quorum “Jeez I hate Mormons!” Shocked I looked up. My LDS friend had been bothering her so I let it go. However its not just my atheist friend. Consistently throughout my day I hear the word Mormon used derogatorily towards other LDS and myself. In instances such as “ooh you’re Mormon” or “Why are you Mormon?” I would like to show to all thoses people who call LDS people “Mormon” this excerpt from Ask the Missionaries!.They can help you! by Elder Russell M. Nelson.
"Some of you may wonder about the name Mormon. It is a nickname for us. It is not our real name, though we are widely known as Mormons. The term is derived from a book of sacred scripture known as the Book of Mormon.
The true name of the Church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the reestablished original Church of Jesus Christ. When He walked upon the earth, He organized His Church. He called Apostles, Seventies, and other leaders to whom He gave priesthood authority to act in His name. After Christ and His Apostles passed away, men changed the ordinances and doctrine. The original Church and the priesthood were lost. After the Dark Ages, and under the direction of Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ brought back His Church. Now it lives again, restored and functioning under His divine direction."
Often as LDS we have to defend our faith. In The Cost- and blessings-of discipleship by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland it says…
"With admiration and encouragement for everyone who will need to remain steadfast in these latter days, I say to all and especially the youth of the Church that if you haven’t already, you will one day find yourself called upon to defend your faith or perhaps even endure some personal abuse simply because you are a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Such moments will require both courage and courtesy on your part.
For example, a sister missionary recently wrote to me: “My companion and I saw a man sitting on a bench in the town square eating his lunch. As we drew near, he looked up and saw our missionary name tags. With a terrible look in his eye, he jumped up and raised his hand to hit me. I ducked just in time, only to have him spit his food all over me and start swearing the most horrible things at us. We walked away saying nothing. I tried to wipe the food off of my face, only to feel a clump of mashed potato hit me in the back of the head. Sometimes it is hard being a missionary because right then I wanted to go back, grab that little man, and say, ‘EXCUSE ME!’ But I didn’t.”...
And therein lies a message for every young man and young woman in this Church. You may wonder if it is worth it to take a courageous moral stand in high school or to go on a mission only to have your most cherished beliefs reviled or to strive against much in society that sometimes ridicules a life of religious devotion. Yes, it is worth it, because the alternative is to have our “houses” left unto us “desolate”—desolate individuals, desolate families, desolate neighborhoods, and desolate nations."
I know that defending our faith can be difficult however we cannot simply sit by watching our faith be slandered. However these situations often lead to missionary opportunities and conversion. I would like to bear my testimony that this church is true and that it should be defended
