Human Kindness

This morning, I have been pondering the things that are going on in the world, and the signs and wonders that signify these being the final days of spiritual preparation for the people in every land

and nation.
Despite the many souls with caring hearts who seek out opportunities to help their fellow man, sadly, there is a growing absence of simple, plain old human kindness. And because of this absence, the world continues to sink further and further into despair as man focuses inward instead of outward. For some, unless there is something to be gained, his fellow man is of no use, while the treasured few look upon the plights of others with charity, which is the pure love of Christ, and they spring into action to help. We see the evidence of those precious souls in the humanitarian aid given to the victims of hurricanes, fires, earthquakes, and other natural disasters occurring here and around the world.

But those are the big things. What about the small everyday things? What about differing opinions and views on current events and controversial subjects? What about differing religious beliefs? Just because we don't agree doesn't mean we can't still be kind to one another. We are always going to see others who believe differently, but they believe what they believe, just as you believe what you believe. We just need to know that the Savior will be the judge of all things and it is not our place, thank goodness! I don't know about you, but I DO NOT want that job!

There are also going to be those who choose to live in a way that we don't agree with - and if you are a parent, sometimes these choices will break our hearts because they go against all we have taught them (Believe me, I've been there in a major way,) but again, the Lord will be their judge. Our job is to love, NOT CONDONE OR ACCEPT THEIR ACTIONS AS RIGHT, but love them, be their guide, and shower them with kindness, as far as they will allow.

I'm going to sound like a broken record here, but what about simple discussions on social media? These days, unkindness at the electronic keyboard abounds over various things, including subjects relating to God and religious beliefs and teachings. Whenever this happens, no matter who is right or which opinion is most right, the harsh words, accusations and judgements drive the spirit of the Lord away quicker than we can blink. Because of this, in many cases, instead of using social media as a weapon of the Lord, it becomes a tool of Satan. And that tool is growing sharper by the day.

I love this life, and I love the knowledge of my place in this world. We all have a purpose, and we have all been gifted with the light of Christ. When we are mean, cruel, vindictive, angry, and allow those - as well as other emotions - to drive us to spew words of harshness and dole out unkind acts, we smother that light a little at a time until one day, there is only a tiny wisp of a spark left, and if we don't bring in good material to kindle it, it will go out.
I pray that we will all let kindness reign in our minds and hearts, in our words and deeds, that the light of Christ within us will illuminate the straight and narrow path ahead of us that leads back to the Father of us all.

Feeling Joyful

This morning, I have been pondering how much I have felt the love of my Heavenly Father. I have been the recipient of some truly glorious spiritual experiences lately - experiences that are hard to put into words. Because of this, I find myself praising my Father throughout the day every day, and even that doesn't truly convey what I feel.

Because of my Lord, I have been blessed with many "Ammon" moments, and lately those moments have increased in intensity. I glory in my God unto boasting of Him because of the many miracles He has performed in my life. Because He rescued me so long ago, and because His Son atoned for my wretchedness, I am able to still be here, whole of spirit, and able to sing His praises and share His word. Sometimes I am filled with so much joy, the tears just come in a rush. I am awed that He would rescue ME - a soul so rebellious and proud - and bestow upon me so much mercy and grace that even during these times of trial, I am warmed and comforted by the surety of His love.

Like Ammon in The Book of Mormon, my heart cries, "Blessed be the name of our God; let us sing to his praise, yea, let us give thanks to his holy name, for he doth work righteousness forever. I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God.

"Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things;" (Alma 26: 8, 11-12)

I am so thankful!

Achieving Holiness

This is now, without a doubt, my new favorite quote, because it says it all and there is nothing else I

can add. I KNOW that it is true.
But the key to achieving this level of holiness is WANTING it enough to do it - which means living each day as if you have already reached it.

Being Thankful in Everything

I've been reading a little message this morning that really resonates with me, not just now at this moment, but always. The message was about the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot in Hebrew.) During this holy day, the Israelites would leave their homes and go camp out in huts they created out of

branches. There, they would remember their journey to the Promised Land and give thanks for what God had given them. Sukkot is a feast of thanksgiving. Like all Jewish holidays, the Feast of Tabernacles was a vitally important holy day because of how much the people had been blessed, and the Israelites never forgot their liberation from Egypt.

It is so important to take time throughout each day to remember what God has carried each of us through in our lives. We need to remember our own individual journeys and the blessings He has - and continues to - rain down upon us, even in these trying times, and never take them for granted. Just as we appreciate receiving gratitude from our children, Heavenly Father appreciates our gratitude to Him.
Sometimes my heart is so full of gratitude for what God and His Son have done for me, it's hard to even form the words, but even then, I know that They know what is in my heart.
May we all have grateful hearts and continually remember how blessed we are.

Worth Refining

With each passing day, our value to the Lord increases. This is a time of harvesting, and each and

every soul walking this earth is precious to Him, particularly those who have strayed away from Him and are lost. Many of these lost souls are searching for the truth, just waiting to be found, while others have no desire to be found but would rather stay in their personal lands of oblivion. For the former, the Savior places opportunities in their path to return to Him. To the latter, He sorrows because those same opportunities are rejected by them. Many times, the excuse given is, "If God is really there, so many people would not be suffering." Or, "God has never done anything for me. I have trial after trial, and where is He? Definitely not here."
Sadly, people who think this way are too spiritually blind and deaf to realize what God is really doing. Their hearts are refrigerated as well. They don't recognize the work He is performing in them. They can't see how important we really are to our Heavenly Father.
It is time to clean the dirty lenses of our glasses, unstop our ears, and thaw our hearts so that we can better see and hear and feel the important work being performed inside us.
That work is in preparation for things to come.

Armor Up!

WE ARE UNDER SPIRITUAL WARFARE!

I cannot stress enough how vital it is that we stand strong against the adversary. He has - and continues to - devise so many wicked ways of swaying, influencing, and breaking down the mind, heart, and will of our Heavenly Father's children that if we do not stand ready, armed to the teeth with a firm unshakable testimony of the Savior and His gospel, we will fall in the battle. Our armor must be strong strong and impenetrable, because if Satan can find one crack in which to enter, he will, dragging his hosts of evil minions with him, and they will hammer and chip away at us piece by piece until they break us.

However, just as Satan and his dark angels stand ready, so does the Savior, and with Him the powerful hosts of heaven. They stand ready, anxious to do battle for us, to shield and protect us, but we must do our part by continually strengthening our own armor with our daily prayers, scripture study, and continuous repentance, abstaining from all evil, and looking to our Lord in all things, so that our armor truly does become impenetrable.
Remember, with Christ, we can do all things :-)

Believing Christ

I learned long ago that there is a big difference between believing in Christ and believing Christ. Followers of the Christian faith in general believe in Christ. After all, His teachings are what our beliefs are based on.

But how many of us actually believe Christ?
How many of us believe His words and His promises?

Yes, we have been taught that He is our Savior and Redeemer, that He came into the world to be the perfect example for us to emulate, to pave the way for us to return to our Heavenly Father, to atone for our sins, to give His life for us, and to pay the price we could not pay. We have indeed been taught these things.

We also have His sure words and promises in exchange for our obedience and devotion:

"I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." ~John 14:6

“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.” ~Rev. 3:21

"I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." `Matt. 28:20

And many, many, many more promises!

Do we believe His promises to us? Do we believe Him when He said that if we will only look to Him and love the Father above all else, He will bear our burdens when they become too heavy, comfort us when we need comfort, shelter us during the emotional storms that rage, and help us through the turbulent times of earth life?

Sadly, many have become so weakened by life and an absence of spiritual nourishment, they grow to lean on man more than the Lord, thus their belief of the Savior's word falls by the wayside while their confidence in the philosophy of man strengthens. This is definitely not the time for that to happen.

We have got to do more that just believe IN Christ, we must BELIEVE Christ. We must believe that He can and will do what He says He will. For the obedient, His promises are sure.
He has never broken a promise, and He never will.