Becoming Like Him

Our Heavenly Father's whole focus is on who we are becoming in this life. He does care about where we end up, but only by becoming are we able to dwell with Him. 

We have been given the gift of agency, and through this gift we are able to follow our Savior.

President Henry B. Eyring said it very well here.

All It Takes

By Fourth Nephi, all of the Nephites and Lamanites are converted to the Church of Christ.  It took a great deal of time, effort, and teaching for their conversions to come to pass. Once converted, though, the Nephites and the Lamanites had become truly united. Because of their righteousness, their was no contention in the land, only love. The 16th verse reads, "and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God."  To me, that seems like quite a strong statement--which tells us just how righteous and united this group of people was at that time.

However, in the 201st year after the birth of Christ, after the passing of the second generation, there became a small group who became prideful and placing importance on the fine things of the world.  After hardly any time at all, more and more people became more and more unrighteous, as they sought to get gain and actively denied Christ. Not long after this, all groups were wicked except for the disciples of Jesus Christ.

If we are not careful, a relatively small transgression can easily become a large one. It's much like a slippery slope--the first few steps we are fine, but before we know it we experience a loss of control. We must adhere closely to the commandments of the Lord, as they are there to protect us. We truly become free and the happiest people when we follow the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our Advocate

If you ever read the 17th chapter of 3 Nephi, you will be able to experience the personal experiences that the Savior has with the people, and that He can have with each of us.

In this chapter, you can see that Christ seeks to spend individual time with the people, not to help Himself, but to help the people. The same can be said about us today; the Savior wants to spend time with us individually, but we must first seek Him! Also in this chapter, the people when they became saddened by Christ's leaving, He says to them, "my bowels are filled with compassion towards you." This illustrates the care and concern that He has for the Lord's children.

This, to me, is an especially great testimony builder--knowing that our older brother, Jesus Christ, is our advocate. In everything. This is one thing that I know without a doubt.

Come Unto Christ

It's amazing and a serious testimony builder to know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is so personal and so individual. In Chapter 11 of 3 Nephi, Christ comes to the multitude and tells them, one by one, to feel of the prints of the nails in His hands and in His feet. This is how He invites us to come unto Him in his gospel. We must experience for ourselves the gospel and His Atonement to truly understand it. And, because of His great love for us, He wants us to spend that individualized, one on one time with Him so that we might know of a surety that He is our Savior.

I know for myself that only when I applied the Atonement in my own life did I really begin to understand and appreciate His sacrifice for me and feel this deep gratitude like I have never before felt. Never before have I known so clearly that He loves me individually and has sacrificed His life for ME.

Can't Forget

Something that I think is so easy for us as humans is to find a way that our needs and wants can be met and then move on with our lives. It's the "natural man" inside of us--the selfish side of our nature. When we ask the Lord for something, it's imperative that we thank Him for His help. Most of the time, we couldn't have done it ourself. Such example is given in Helaman 13:22-23.

I don't like to admit it, but I find myself often in this roller coaster. And as soon as I catch myself not properly expressing my gratitude, I do my best to be better. I notice myself gradually getting better, but it has absolutely taken time to get here. The thought comes to mind: how would we feel if somebody only came to us when we needed something? That person probably forgets the effort of the other person and begins to focus on only their needs.

It's a mistake too easily made--we can't forget all that the Lord does for us and all that He provides for us. Because we'd be nothing without it.

Unwearyingness. It's a real word.

The word "unwearyingness" caught my attention in Helaman 10:4. In this verse, the Lord is speaking to Nephi and He tells Nephi that He noticed that the word had been declared with unwearyingness, that Nephi had not feared his opponents the Nephites, and that he had sought the Lord's will, and to keep His commandments. 
This verse made me think of things that I do with unwearyingness (defined as never slackening). And these things, are they truly making me happy? Are they what the Lord would have me be spending such time and effort on? Am I seeking His will in my life?

Nephi declared the word with unwearyingness and he was blessed for that. 
We must keep the Lord's commandments and we too will be blessed. 

My new challenge to myself is to strive to align my will more with the Lord's in prayer. I don't expect change overnight, but I do know that the closer and closer I get the more I will be doing what I need to be doing. Because I know that when we follow the Lord, we are kept safe and brought even closer to Him.

You're Taken Care Of

Practically all day on Tuesday I felt the approval of the Lord. It was a lot of things, but mostly comforting, and really motivating. I had one thought running through my head on repeat all day: “when you’re on my side, you’re taken care of.” Much of that day, actually, had been spent taking care of my boyfriend who had gotten the flu. Much of that day, thankfully, was spent focusing outward and not on my own needs and interests. It was heartbreaking that he had the flu, but it was an excellent opportunity.  There were so many tiny little tender mercies that came my way that day, and mostly all while I was serving Stanley.

That night I had gone to my Book of Mormon class and I felt, through the scriptures, a confirmation of the feelings I have had that day. We made it to Alma 43, when the Lamanites come to the Nephites in war. The strategy of the Nephites at this point is purely to defend themselves; to defend their land, their wives, children, and their liberty.  Though they had a smaller army, they had protection and defense against the large Lamanite army—which spared their lives and all else that they were fighting for. The same goes with us today. As we are on the Lord’s side, we have a layer of protection and defense against the ill things of the world, which only strengthens us.