The Light Will Always Find Away

A while back, Elder Kirchhoefer told me something that at the time I had no clue would make as great of an impact on me then it did. But knowing that even to this day I remember what it was and what spirit it brought forth is such an amazing blessing and just reminds me even more of what an amazing missionary he truly is. It was during a very difficult and dark time in my life earlier last summer when I was so sick that I was in and out of the hospital and on several different medications. So not only was I feeling weak physically but spiritually as well, so once I was getting better I met with him and Elder Saager so they could give me a blessing. But along with that blessing came an amazing lesson where Elder Kirchhoefer told me to always remember that darkness can never reside where there is light. But light can always break through in a time of darkness as long as you have faith in our Heavenly Father, sincerely pray to him and read your scriptures.

Having had such an insightful and inspiring thing stick in my head for so long like what he told me, has come in use several times these last few weeks. Within the last month or so, I've had several great opportunities to share the Gospel, the Plan of Salvation and the whole LDS Church. Which before was kind of a rare thing for me since I've never been one to be so opened with my opinions and personal beliefs, since that's never done much good for me in the past and has cost me a lot before.  But these random acts of courage and service have done me a lot of good and have helped strengthen me in ways I never even imagined. So from just telling random people where I work that I am a BYU-Idaho student to actually reading half of Alma 30 to my dad while also giving an in depth explanation of the Plan of Salvation is a very new, wonderful and even frightening. But I know that little by little and step by step I am on the path to not only bringing blessings into the lives of the people I'm sharing with, but my life as well. By praying about these people that I've just met and even the people that I love and care about along with sharing as much as I possibly can, I'm learning how to be the best missionary that I can be and to be more charitable and less shy. All of these encounters have given me hope and have made me truly realize that even in a time of darkness, where nothing seems to be getting better; light can and will always find it's way through if you want it to.

So to anybody who's a convert to this church or has inactive family members, there still is hope. I've learned this from difficult yet rewarding personal experience. Nothing will change unless you have the faith, hope and desire. Even though for a while I never expressed a great concern in my family not having an interest in my church, I've always dreamed of what it would be like to see my brothers go on missions. Or what it would be like to see my dad give a blessing or sit up front with the Bishop as part of the Bishopric and my mom running events in the Relief Society. I've always wished for someday to see that, but I never realized how much it really did matter to me until this time. But my dreams in the past have come true before, so I'm not giving up. I will always do everything in my power to make sure I never give up trying and never forget to show my family and friends the love that Heavenly Father can provide and the spirit that we can feel that can come from this truly restored church.

Alma 44 says But Alma said unto him: Thou hast had signs enough; will ye tempt your God? Will ye say, Show unto me a sign, when ye have the testimony of all these thy brethren, and also all the holy prophets? the scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth and all things which are upon the face of it, yea, and it's demotion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form, do witness that there is a Supreme Creator.

A Whole New Beginning

The month of December, like it is for most people is always incredibly hectic for me. Even before I got a job and started working on top of going to school. So sadly enough, this is the first post I've made since the very end of November. But now that I'm starting to learn how to handle the ropes of being an adult by dealing with both college courses and working part time, I'm going to be going back to writing a post every week like I originally intended!

Along with getting my first job ever, wrapping up my first semester of college and the holiday season, a lot has gone on in my life spiritually that has had a pretty big impact on me. All of which have managed to help me come up with some sort of idea for a New Year's Resolution. So I've managed to come up with a list of twenty or so things that I either want to achieve, start, stop or continue throughout the year of 2012. I know, I know. Completely cliche, going through with the whole New Year's resolution thing, but I honestly do believe that I will be able to achieve at least half of what I have put on that list. Even then, as long as you are trying you can never fail. Just because you did not accomplish something the first time does not make you a failure. When you give up and decide that it was never even worth your time, then that is when you've failed. So I have a lot of faith and as should everybody else that has decided to truly dedicate themselves to their resolutions, with Heavenly Father everything is possible. Just at times they may seem improbable. 

Several things that are really high lighted on my list of resolutions, I'll list on here just to give an idea of several of the things that I plan on working on throughout this year. 

The first one is to by this time next year, I'll either already be at college or preparing to leave for college for the spring semester of 2013. 

The second one is to work on my optimism and trying my absolute hardest to be a blessing in peoples lives instead of an annoying burden like people have told me that I am in the past. 

The third one is to pray and read my scriptures every single day, not just at night but in the morning as well. 

Then the fourth one I'll share is not as relevant with the first three, but I want to read at least five books throughout the year and actually finish them. 

But this year is the year that I will be able to start off right, this year is the first official year that I'll be having as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So there is so much in store for me if I play my cards right. Meaning if I follow the commandments, the general authority, read my scriptures daily, pray daily and always bring everything unto the Lord then everything will be just the way it's suppose to be. I'm happy to try out my resolutions and see what kind of a difference I can make in peoples lives. I know that in these last nine months since I've joined the church, I've grown and matured in so many ways, it's kind of scary at times to think about. But now that I've really sat back and realized how I've changed, I need to apply it in my life and become the person that I am inside on the outside as well. I need to become what I know I am overall and I know that I can do it if I just try, have faith and pray about it. Whenever I ask Heavenly Father for help on anything, he always steps up to the plate and does whatever it is that he can to make sure I am doing things right. My faith is strong, I just need to jump out of the nest in which is my comfort zone and see if I make it. 

I've had plenty of amazing people in my life that have taught me a lot, like Elder Saager, Elder Malietoa, Elder Kirchhoefer, Elder Jones, Elder Evans, Elder Geier, Elder Barney, the Read Family, the Coleman Family, the Jackson Family, my home teachers and just random friends I've made throughout the ward. 2012 is going to be my year and I promise that nothing but good will come from this. 

We Are Children Of The Covenant

This month I have really sat back and thought about what I am really thankful for. Which turned out to be a successful task that I took on. There are many things in my life that I am thankful for and I always will be. I'm thankful for this mortal life that Heavenly Father has blessed us with. Without this life, we would never be able to experience love, heartbreak, joy, depression, happiness, hugs, laughter, pain and fear. With all of these emotions and experiences, we'd never learn and grow. I'm also thankful for opportunities, like how I was given to opportunity to meet the missionaries, get baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. That is what I am most thankful for, especially since lately I have really been thinking about my baptism day. Which is what this post is mostly going to be about, baptism in general that is. I also sat back and realized that it's already coming up on the end of November and I couldn't help but sit there with my jaw on the ground for about five or ten minutes when that realization finally came through. Even I think it's sad that it took me that long to realize that this year is already practically over. But hey, apparently time really does fly when you're having fun; which is exactly what I've been doing this year. 

As happy as I am that I've made it nine months so far with only four months left to go until it's a year, I'm also sad that this year is almost over. Which is often normal for me since I am usually slightly depressed at the end of the year, but this year it's different. This year was the best year of my entire life, and I'll always cherish it, but what makes it all the better is this. When I look back on this time last year and I look at how my life was and remember how I was and how I acted... Back then I'd have never thought in a million years that I could say "This time next year, I'm going to be happy. I'm going to be a Latter-day Saint!" That was just not in the cards at the time, or at least I didn't think so. This time last year I was a nobody, a nobody with more potential then I could ever even imagine. Then to think of where I am today, and compare the two to each other, it's really rather amazing to see how quickly such drastic change can come along, and it gives me hope and reassures me that nothing is ever impossible. Just at times it seems improbable. But I am thankful for every bit of heartbreak, change, and relationships broken and made that were apart of this wonderful journey that lead to my baptism and confirmation. 

2 Nephi 31:12 says:

And also, the voice of the son came unto me, saying; He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do. 

Right now, in this time of my life my baptismal covenant is the most important thing in my life. Of course more great covenants will come into my life, but since this one came first and is the main foundation of my relationship with Heavenly Father; I plan on honoring and keeping it. 

Elder Robert D. Hales addressed the topic of Baptismal Covenants in his October 2000 General Conference talk and said: 

"At baptism we make a covenant with our Heavenly Father that we are willing to come unto His kingdome and keep His commandment s from that time forward, even though we still live in the world."

What really got me thinking about baptism was just this last Saturday when I attended my friend Cynthia's friend Syrena's baptism. As I was sitting there, watching the baptism happen I remembered the day of my baptism. Elder Saager and his new companion were there and I was glad that he got to make it since he originally started teaching Syrena the lessons but had to stop do to some issues that came up then he eventually was transferred from Del Cerro. But while watching her get baptized, I remembered my day. I looked over at Elder Saager who was sitting two seats away from me and I couldn't help but be overwhelmed with nostalgia. It was intense and I felt the spirit while watching her go under the water. Two people were called to stand up front as her witnesses, and I couldn't help but look over at Elder Saager again. Since he and Elder Malietoa were my witnesses and the last thing I saw before I went under the water was Elder Saager. At the very last second he and I made eye contact. He looked so peaceful but before I could make record of anything else, I closed my eyes and came back up. A brand new person with a whole new life right ahead of me. 

Like I said, that was the best day of my life. My dad and brother was there, and that day was the day I first met several people that have become very important in my life. Such as Jun Madrid and McKenna Michels. 

Very often I wish that I could go back and relive that day. I also often wish that I could go back and relive the days that I received the missionary lessons. But I'm glad that I am able to live with the wonderful memories and to have the relationship with our Heavenly Father that I have. I can easily say it's what I'm most thankful for. 

Cast Your Mind Upon The Night

In my short time since becoming a member of this amazing church, I have been blessed with having some of the most amazing people I've ever met being placed in my life. It really is true that Heavenly Father works miracles in our lives through the people that he places in them. Now, out of all the missionaries that are in my life and that I am close to, I have managed to speak of all of them in this blog but one. One Elder who I owe a great thanks to and have great appreciation for. Elder Kirchhoefer was Elder Saager's second companion after Elder Malietoa finished his mission and went home. Elder Kirchhoefer came into my life during a very scary time and managed to really help me out and see the brighter side of a lot of things, which is something that is very admirable of him. What makes me want to bring him up and share with you his awesomeness is this. He is the reason why I have stayed so strongly dedicated to this blog of mine, that has already brought forth so many blessings.

A week or so before this last general conference, Elder Kirchhoefer challenged me to write down some questions that I had that I needed answering. Then during the conference, I was to sit and listen to the spirit and see what I could hear. Taking on this challenge seemed absolutely perfect, considering the fact that it was only my second conference ever and I felt like I really needed to connect with our Heavenly Father. So during this General Conference was when I received the prompting to start this blog. I truly do believe that if it weren't for Elder Kirchhoefer placing this challenge before me, I would not have been listening well enough to hear His guidance and receive revelation. Thank you Elder Kirchhoefer for being such an important person in my life.

Now the second part of this post is not as relevant to the first part of this but it is just as important and worth sharing. Just last month, I realized something. This something turned out to be the initial key of my membership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To give a bit of a background that has actually been mentioned in the very first post on here. Now I was fortunate to set myself a firm foundation of my membership and dedication. Several nights before I went to this church for the first time, I prayed. I literally was crying out to Heavenly Father, asking him to help me find a way. I no longer wanted to feel as if I was dirt and that I was below rock bottom. Then that's when the journey officially began. I went to church, met my missionaries, received my first Book of Mormon then got baptized. I was hooked and in love, all in the form of a very strong and very spiritual high. That is where my all time favorite verse comes to play.
Doctrine & Covenants 6:22-23:
22 Verily Verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.
23 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?

The first time I ever heard this verse was when Elder Jones felt prompted to share it with me. It was during a meeting that we had, where the spirit was just so strong in, it was like we were in the very presence of our Heavenly Father Himself. Elder Jones asked me to read it out loud ans as I did, I felt as if I were not even in this world anymore. Moments like this, well I live for them and that's when a realization began. Several weeks passed and I kept thinking about that verse. It rang within my head and I could remember how strong the spirit was that day. It was good. Then October 17, 2011 I was invited to sit through an institute class that a very wonderful return missionary that is in my institute named Sean. He would be substituting and he invited both me and the Elders since I was with them when he went to ask them to come. Here is where what I said earlier in this post becomes important again, Heavenly Father works such great miracles in our lives just by the actions of people that have been placed in your life. Sean pointed out many great things that really got me thinking, and helped me and the class as a whole to set a spiritual goal for ourselves. It helped a lot to be honest.

Now during that class, Sean brought up Doctrine and Covenants 6:22-23 and in that very moment that it was being read out loud for the class to hear, Elder Jones looked over at me and I looked at him. We both had smiles on and our memories both went back to that day. At that point, I knew that that special night, as sad and as torn as I was, that it was the initial key. Lets call it the back bone to me being a member of this church and I never even realized it until this last month.

Now I can testify that this church is true. I can say all these wonderful things about our prophets, the scriptures and missionaries. But what makes what I include in my testimony and makes it as honest, true and sincere as it is, the fact that I have lived my testimony. I've felt the love of our most kind and gracious Heavenly Father, I've felt the peace and joy that comes with reading the Book of Mormon and all those are what make this church true and worth living for. If it weren't for that night, that night that I cried out to our Father in Heaven back when I didn't even know that he loved me as much as he really does, I would not be here where I am today.

Don't Be Afraid Of Death, Be Afraid Of An Unlived Life

I'm still really young. I've not had the opportunity to get out there, spread my wings and really experience what life could really be like. Granted, I've experienced and had to deal with a lot of things, people my age and in my ward have never had to deal with before. In my life, I've had to give things up, had things taken away from me and have had to sacrifice things normal children growing up never have to experience. But I never let that stop me from moving on, I never let that keep me from growing and smiling every single day. My past can really go to show that the heart truly is the strongest thing in the world. Mine has been ripped in half, stitched back together, lied to, stepped on, and over worked with unnecessary stress. But it still finds the power to beat every day, to love people unconditionally and never give up. Now, I don't want this to seem like a pity me message, I'm not complaining at all, I am very happy with my life and I think that if it weren't for everything that I've experienced, I wouldn't be as thankful for what I have and how capable of making changes I am right now.

This last weekend, my aunt Cindy and I left for a five day road trip to Arizona, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Nevada. Along the way, I was able to convince her to let us make several stops at several Temples [St. George and Mesa Temples] throughout the trip. Our first destination was to be in the far east-north corner of Arizona by the end of the first day, along the free way to get up there was going through Phoenix and Mesa Arizona. So we stopped by the Mesa Temple and walked through the visitors center. My aunt Cindy is not a member of the church but she has really supported me with my decision to become a member and dedicate my life to the Lord and His church. So we went in, looked around and got to talk to some Sisters about the plan of salvation display that they had set out for visitors, members and non members alike. The display talked a lot about family, and how we really never die; we just simply move onto the next step of the plan our Heavenly Father has set up for us. It actually really touched the both of us since just a few years ago, my family suffered a loss. The loss of my uncle, her husband, John. I knew that while watching the short videos that were apart of it that showed a family and going through the loss of a grandparent, that Cindy was thinking of John, I knew because I was too.

This really made me realize something and reminded me of something one of my institute teachers mentioned a while back. This life has been put out to look so negative and so bad, when in reality yes there are negative and bad things in it. But that does not make it all bad all together. Life can be a beautiful thing, in this life we have a body, we have love, happiness and opportunities to learn things we've never had the chance to learn before our mortal lives. So live it up! When we die, it's not the end, it's the beginning of a new chapter. But why waist that time that we have until that new chapter begins when we could be happy and experiencing life. During this road trip, we visited the Four Corners Monument, Mesa Verde, the Zion National Park and Vegas. During each stop, I was absolutely amazed at each places beauty and unique virtues, it was at times overwhelming. But that never stopped me from wanting to have each adventure that was in store for us at each location. It actually did the exact opposite and made me want to take everything that it had to offer in. With all these experiences, I actually decided to start a bucket list, even if it may seem silly or ridiculous it's something that I would really like to start. Number one of that list will be to have a Temple Road Trip, where I will visit each Temple in the United States in an RV or whatever I have. It doesn't really matter how, I just know that someday it will happen.

Already I am able to scratch the San Diego Temple, Mesa Arizona Temple and the St. George Utah temple off the list. Visiting these was one of the best things I've done since joining the church. The way that I felt every time that I stepped foot onto the grounds of each Temple made me feel so at peace it was ridiculous. But I loved being there, and I loved seeing how much my aunt enjoyed it as well. It definitely is something that I will remember for the rest of my life and I am so thankful for the opportunity to go and for the opportunities waiting for me in the future.

I know that this post doesn't have as much in common with the last several posts, but this idea and experience I just had really meant a lot. But I have a lot more in store for this blog. I just have to organize my thoughts out. 

Meet You On The Other Side!

This post will be a bit longer then the rest. Just letting you know ahead of time.

In your life, what are some things that you are really, truly thankful for? Some people may say that they are thankful for their car, their job or their shoe collection. This day in age is so based on the materialistic things in life, that we are not really focused on what is really important and what really matters. Just this Sunday, this question was presented to my Sunday school class and some of the answers surprised me. Only several people answered the question including myself, but what was said really impressed me. The spirit filled the room so strongly and I could tell that everybody was thinking of things that they were thankful for, even if they weren't going to speak up about it. Somebody said that they were thankful for the Temple, and having it be so close to where we live. Then somebody else said that they were thankful for the scriptures that we have to fill ourselves with knowledge of the Lord. Immediately I knew what it was that I was most thankful for in that very moment, it actually occurred to me before class even started and that question was asked. In the closing hymn of Sacrament, one of the verses of the song was "Thankful for the love of humans" or something along the lines of that. Everyday I am beyond thankful for the love that we can form between one another and receive from people that we are close to and care about, especially since right now we can not physically receive the love from out Heavenly Father. Through the bonds that He has allowed us to make in this mortal form, we learn how to love as He does and feel that love in return.

Heavenly Father loves us all, and wants us to be as happy as possible throughout our time on earth. He allows us to be happy and feel as if blessings and miracles are being worked in our lives when we choose to follow His commandments and live by His word. Every time we make a good decision when the option to make a bad was presented He shows us His love through placing happiness and blessings in our lives, even when we think he isn't. He works with us through the people that he places in our lives, which is where what I stated I was thankful for in class takes place. What really got me thinking of the love of other human beings and the relationships that we can form is when I was speaking to my friend Janae about my missionaries just this last week. I was telling her about how Malietoa messaged me several weeks ago to tell me that he was going to come back to America from Samoa to attend BYU. Along with those messages we exchanged a bit of heart to heart with each other, telling one another how much we missed the other and that we are forever brother and sister. So I shared some of this with her and she said something to me that really hit my heart. She told me that he really meant all those nice things he said to me. She went on a mission and knew what it was like to have friendships with the people that she converted to the church. She explained that every missionary has a very special connection with their convert and they always end up loving them and having a place for them in their heart. With certain people, she explained to me that she even felt as if she knew them in the premortal existence from the way the spirit filled the room. She could just tell. 

Since I've joined the church, I've often wondered about what she had just shared with me. I've often wondered if there were people in my life that I knew before we were sent down to earth to serve our missions of life. That was something that I had even had discussions with several friends beforehand and I was still kind of curious about. But everything was cleared up to me the Sunday prior to that Tuesday that Janae and I had spoken. That Sunday, the new Elder to the institute, Elder Barney gave a talk to kind of introduce himself to the ward as a whole and explain why he went on a mission. Towards the end of the talk he gave, he mentioned something about a dream this one person had. I'm not 100% sure I remember what he said correctly but this is what I took out of it. He spoke of this man who had a dream and in that dream he and his best friend were in the premortal existence and were about to receive their calls to serve their earth lives. One friend was going to be sent to a family in the united states that would raise him as a member of the church and the other friend was to be sent to a family in a third world country where he wouldn't have the Gospel. But right before they were sent down to their families the friend who would have the Gospel made a promise to come find him someday and through his mission he would. 

This all had me thinking so much, everything that happens happens for a reason. In my opinion there is no real coincidences. Certain people are missionaries to people for a reason, there is a reason why my friend Savannah and I became such close friends in what almost seemed instantly out of nowhere. There is a reason why Elder Malietoa and Elder Saager were my missionaries. There is a reason why we are in the places that we are in the times that we are. When we are meant to find someone and have someone in our lives, it is for a real good reason. I truly, honestly do believe that Elder Saager, Malietoa, Savannah and I knew each other before this life. I truly do believe that we knew what our lives on earth would be like and we made a deal, no a promise to find each other again someday. That promise was kept, and because they kept that promise I now have three of thee most amazing people I've ever met in my entire life, back in my life now. They were once strangers, forgotten because of the veil. But now they are loved ones of mine, forever and eternity all through the works of our Heavenly Father.. Coincidence? I think not. 

"Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration for our obedience, and the true altitude of our discipleship." -President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor of the first presidency. 

To Write What You Are On Your Arm

When I started this blog I had no idea at the time that this would be as important to me as it is now, but I am thankful every day for the blessings that have been placed in my life because of it. What really inspired me to get this going was when Ian S. Ardern Of the Seventy spoke in General Conference on the Saturday afternoon session and brought up the topic of our generations obsession with technology. While listening to him, I realized that I agreed with him completely. It's sad how absorbed some of us are with our specific gadgets and to see how many people have lost control is devastating to me, based on certain situations. I've seen for myself how destructive obsessions with today's continuous trend of video games, texting, twittering and being on tumblr and facebook can be. So that's when I had the idea to start this blog and break that trend and use our forces of technology for good.

Basically what Elder Ardern was saying, was that the obsessions that have been formed have not only taken affect on our lives in a temporal way, but in a spiritual manner as well. We've allowed these obsessions to take over and become more important then the real important things in life should be. When it comes to members of the church, if you are involved with a gadget as strongly as most of the people of this generation are, not only is it blocking you from having real relationships with people face to face, but with our Father in Heaven as well. How are we going to be expected to read our scriptures, pray, be involved in our church and institute activities and keep a true relationship with the Lord if we are too worried about our phones, games etc. etc. The points that he was making really had me thinking, which was when I received the prompting to start this blog. Fortunately enough, the confidence I gained to actually start it and get it going was enforced several times before I decided to start it since I had heard of the potential use of technology and the internet being used for missionary work by missionaries themselves. 

What's making this blog of mine start to mean more and more to me, is actually seeing what other similar acts have resulted in with different people and their situations/issues. I have a very wide set family with many different interests and demographics mixed within. So to see how one family member that is involved with the LGBT [Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans] organization makes a stand for their beliefs then to see another dealing with Discrimination acts and organizations on the campus of their own college is actually very inspiring to me. This country that we live in, is the most amazing country to be in if you really do want to take a stand, make a change and really work on inspiring others, giving them hope, do this all through the freedom we deserve and have earned and sharing the works of your imagination. So take advantage of that with nothing but positive intent, which is what I plan on doing with this and is also why I named my blog, Revelation Revolution: Through the Eyes of a Convert. 

Although the two examples I stated above are considered to be very important situations, I have to say that sharing the restoration of the one true gospel with the rest of the world is definitely in my eyes the most important. It's above all the others, because through the gospel and its teachings all these other problems can be solved. If we all had faith, lived our lives like how Jesus taught us to and prayed to our loving Heavenly Father above, we'd all see things so differently. There would be peace and perfection throughout the land and riots and acts such as the ones that are being reported through the news everyday would never be an issue. But since not everybody knows of the love that we can receive through the church, nothing is how it should be. In a way though, that's how it's suppose to be because if there were no troubles then how would we learn and how would we prove to be worthy enough to be reunited with our Heavenly Father someday? That gives us the chance, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to take things into our hands and bring His Children Home. Write what you are on your arm, never be afraid to take a stand. Make these changes, follow His commandments and blessings will be added unto you. 

With faith, anything is possible. 

Alma 32:21: And now as I said concerning faith-faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things, therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not see, which are true.