God's Prophet Today

I have some really great news for you guys. We have a modern prophet today! He is called of God to declare His word to us.

No, no, no, wait. Didn't God stop calling prophets after Jesus Christ came? Aren't the days with prophets over? No. Why would they be over? Why would God call prophets for thousands of years and then all of a sudden stop calling them? If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then doesn't that mean His ways don't change? God has always given His children prophets to lead and guide them and tell them God's word. 

Each of God's prophets is unique and came from different circumstances. In the Bible, no two prophets were the same. Adam was the first man on earth, Noah was 600 years old when he was called to build an ark, Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his son as a test, Moses was raised with Egyptian royalty and was called to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, Samuel was chosen as a boy to be a prophet, Jonah was swallowed by a whale, and Daniel was thrown into a Lion's den. I will go ahead and let you all know right now that although each prophet is called of God, none of them are perfect. Only Jesus was perfect. Don't act so shocked. 

There have been many periods of time when there was no prophet on the Earth because of the people's unbelief but God loves us and always calls another prophet when the people are ready. You can find this pattern all throughout the Bible. The last time that this happened was when Jesus was born. The people rejected Him and His apostles and killed them. After this, the Earth didn't have any prophets for many years because of wickedness and because people simply weren't ready to have a prophet again. When the world was ready to once again have a prophet, one was called and Jesus Christ's church and authority was restored to the Earth after being lost and altered for so many centuries. This prophet was Joseph Smith. 

After Joseph Smith died, God continued to call prophets through revelation. The next prophet was Brigham Young. Then we had John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, Heber J. Grant, George Albert Smith, David O. McKay, Joseph Fielding Smith, Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Howard W. Hunter, Gordon B. Hinckley, and now Thomas S. Monson.

Today instead of wearing robes and crying repentance in cities, the prophet wears a suit and carries a brief case and speaks to the world about following Jesus Christ. Even though they live thousands of years apart, they were all called of God to bless His children and to do a specific work here on the earth. 

The way that a new prophet is called is inspired of God. These men were chosen before they were born to be one of God's prophets. "And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born"(Abraham 3:23).

President Monson was born in 1927 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1948 with a degree in business management and later received his MBA degree from Brigham Young University. He also served in the United States Navy near the close of World War II. He married his wife, Frances Beverly Johnson, in 1948 and they have three children. He also has had a distinguished career in publishing and printing. He is a past president of Printing Industry of Utah and a former member of the board of directors of Printing Industries of America. 


President Monson also has served faithfully in the Church his whole life. He served as president of the Church's Canadian Mission from 1959 to 1962. He also served as a Bishop of a ward in Salt Lake City. He was called to be an Apostle in 1963 and was later called to be a counselor to three prophets. In 2008, after President Gordon B. Hinckley's death, he became the next prophet of the Church. 

Each prophet is a humble man who has done his best to serve God. Every calling in the Church is voluntary and that includes the calling of the prophet. President Thomas S. Monson is not paid for his service and neither are the apostles, bishops, missionaries, or Sunday School teachers. A prophet is not voted for by the people. When a prophet dies, the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles becomes the next prophet. If Thomas S. Monson were to die today, President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles would become the next prophet. 

Although the process of "becoming" a prophet may seem simple, it is divinely inspired of God. No one will become a prophet unless he is called of God. Everyone who is called to be an Apostle of Prophet serves for the rest of his life. They are faithful, God-fearing men who do their best to serve God and His people. We are promised that if we follow the prophet, we will never go astray. Following the prophet is always right, even when it isn't generally accepted. Anyone who has picked up a Bible can attest that following the prophet has never been a popular decision. However, it has always been the correct decision that has led to peace and salvation. 

I love President Thomas S. Monson. He is a true disciple of Jesus Christ and he has spent his whole life trying to serve him in the best way possible. I know that heeding the words of God's current and past prophets will bless us and help us to know God's will. 

Go here to read President Monson's recent sermons from last month. 

"Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope, and our faith becometh unshaken, insomuch that we truly can command in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey us, or the mountains, or the waves of the sea"(Jacob 4:6).


Amen.

Repentance

The word "repentance" is intimidating. When I was younger I always thought of repentance as being in trouble and being reprimanded by my parents. However I have learned that repentance isn't something to be nervous about, it's a good thing! It's how we become better and draw closer to God.

None of us are perfect. We all do stupid things. We all have regrets. We all need to be better. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God"(Romans 3:23). None of us can return to live with God in our sinful state. It's a good thing our loving Heavenly Father provided a Savior for us! Because of Jesus Christ, we can be forgiven of our sins and return to live with God again!

As we learn more about Jesus Christ, we can increase our faith in Him. You can read my post about faith to learn more about that. When we have faith in Jesus Christ, we will want to follow Him. Our faith in Christ and our love for Him lead us to repent, or to change our thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors that are not in harmony with His will. As we repent, we improve ourselves and become more Christ-like. 

We can return to live with God the Father only through Christ's mercy, and we receive Christ's mercy only on conditions of repentance. It is only by grace that we are saved, but we are still expected to do our part in order to access that grace. 

So how do we repent? It's very simple. Actually it's as easy as ABC...and D. Here are the steps of repentance in their most basic form: 

A. Admit. We need to recognize and admit to ourselves that we have sinned. 

B. Be sorry. We need to feel remorse or godly sorrow. We shouldn't feel bad just because we may have gotten caught or have negative consequences. We should feel bad because we know what we did was wrong. This is true for any sin -- big or small.  

C. Confess. Next we confess our sins to God. We also confess very serious sins to God's authorized Church leaders, who can help us repent. We ask God in prayer to forgive us.  

D. Don't do it again. Finally we need to commit to not do that sin again. We also do all we can to correct the problems our actions may have caused; this is called restitution.  

And there you go! Now you have successfully repented of your sin(s). You may have noticed that for Confess I mentioned that you only need to confess to Church leaders if it's a serious sin like a crime or adultery. Repentance is between you and God and you have every right to go directly to God to ask for His forgiveness. You will know you are forgiven when you feel His love and peace come over you and you no longer have guilt.

Repentance brings a change in us. As we repent we can feel God's forgiveness and His peace enters our lives. We realize that we really our His children and that He loves us and is always waiting for us to repent and turn back to Him. Our guilt and sorrow are swept away. We feel the influence of His Spirit in greater abundance. And when we leave this life, we will be more prepared to live with our Heavenly Father and His Son.

We never need to feel like we aren't worthy of His love or can't go to Him because that will never be true. We can always go to our loving Father in Heaven for forgiveness, direction, and love. "And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!"(D&C 18:13) 

Even after we have accepted Christ and repented of our sins, we may fall short again. We should continually repent and try to correct these transgressions. That means repenting every day. I think most of us don't commit gross sins every day, but we all need God's help to become better. As we repent every day, we will find that our lives will change and improve. Our hearts and behavior will become more Christlike. We will find joy in repenting daily. 

I'm grateful for the opportunity that I have to repent. Repentance has allowed me to overcome some of my bad habits and helped me to feel relief from my guilt over past wrongs. Repentance allows us to be cleansed from sin and become even more like Jesus Christ. Repenting is awesome. 

The Prodigal Son

"Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more"(D&C 58:42).

Amen. 

"Mormonism is Insane" and Other Accusations

I recently received a comment on my Facebook post where I was sharing my blog when I got a great comment from someone we'll call "Dane." He said, "Mormonism is insane. It's not really Christianity either (which is crazy enough as is). But Mormonism is far and away completely bonkers. You believe that God was once a person and that he's from a planet called Kolob, and you believe that everyone will get to be a god when they die. Also, you believe that Jesus came to America to visit a Hebrew civilization here that there is no evidence for (and every bit of evidence against). It's completely and absolutely nuts; the only thing Mormonism does is show just how much you can delude people in mass numbers." 

Wow I've never heard that before (sarcasm). I'm just going to cover each of these topics one by one if that's alright.

1. "Mormonism is insane." 

I get it, you all think we're a bunch of weirdos. We are all VERY aware of what the world thinks of us. The Lord Himself said: "For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be an peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth"(Deuteronomy 14:2). God's people have never been very popular in the world. From the beginning the world has persecuted and killed them. They even thought Jesus was mad, called him "gluttonous" and a "winebibber," and killed Him. (Matthew 11:19)

I will let you all know that the Mormon church teaches its members that nothing is more important than family. Family is central to God's plan. We teach people to have good values, be honest, love one another, be self-sufficient, care for the poor and needy, etc. Next time there's a national disaster, check and see who some of the first responders are. American Red Cross, Mormons, and other religious organizations. Regardless of how "insane" people think we are, we do our best to follow Jesus Christ and love and serve everyone. 

2. "It's not really Christianity either." 

Oh Dane, if only you'd read my blog post found here. I explain why we are Christian but why some people think we're not. Our church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We worship Jesus Christ. Not Mormon or Joseph Smith or Satan or Mitt Romney.

3. "You believe that God was once a person... and you believe that everyone will get to be a god when they die." 

Correct.. mostly. The Bible teaches us many times about this concept: 

"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if it so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together"(Romans 8:16-18).

"Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ"(Galatians 4:7).

"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"(Revelation 3:21). 

God's plan for His children is for us to come to Earth in families to gain a body, be tried and tested, and return to live with Him again if we were faithful. If we follow Him and do our part, we can one day inherit all that the Father has. Essentially we can become as He is, a God. Not everyone will get to become gods because not everyone will follow Him and qualify. So we don't believe that everyone will get to be a god, only the faithful will as outlined in the scriptures.

This process is how God Himself became a God. He went through the same process we did on some other world. He overcame and was able to become a God. Lorenzo Snow, the fifth prophet of the Church today, said: "As man now is, God once was; as God is now man may be." This adds a whole new round of questions and for the answers to those I will direct you here.

4. "You believe... that [God is] from a planet called Kolob."

In case you haven't noticed, Mormons have two additional books of scripture besides The Book of Mormon. It's the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price. We just learned about additional scripture called The Book of Mormon and now I'm throwing more at you? Yes. I think if we can use more of anything in the world it's more of God's word. God loves us and likes to speak to us through more mediums than just the Bible. Get over it. Anyway, in the Pearl of Great Price is the book of Abraham. This Abraham is the same one in the Bible. This is where Kolob is mentioned. Abraham says:

"And I saw the stars, that they were very great, and that one of them was nearest unto the throne of God; and there were many great ones which were near unto it; 

"And the Lord said unto me: These are the governing ones; and the name of the great one is Kolob, because it is near unto me, for I am the Lord thy God: I have set this one to govern all those which belong to the same order as that upon which thou standest.

"And thus there shall be the reckoning of the time of one planet above another, until thou come nigh unto Kolob, which Kolob is after the reckoning of the Lord’s time; which Kolob is set nigh unto the throne of God, to govern all those planets which belong to the same order as that upon which thou standest"(Abraham 3:2,3,9).

And that's about all we know about it. Kolob is a planet that is nearest the throne of God and the time of Kolob is after the reckoning of the Lord's time. So we don't believe that God necessarily lives on Kolob, we just believe that it is a planet that is nearest to God. You can read the rest of that chapter in Abraham for further information.

5. "Also, you believe that Jesus came to America to visit a Hebrew civilization here that there is no evidence for (and every bit of evidence against)."

Yes we do believe that Jesus Christ came to visit the Americas after His resurrection and appearance to His apostles in Jerusalem.  Jesus told His disciples: "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd"(John 10:16). Jesus Christ Himself said that there are other people besides the ones in Jerusalem that He's going to visit. It's possible that the Americas were one of many other civilizations He appeared to. The account of His visit to the Americas can be found starting in 3 Nephi 11. 

As for evidence for the Book of Mormon. God of course doesn't give us evidence for everything He does because He expects us to have faith in Him. However, there is a bit of evidence for The Book of Mormon. For example, the idea of writing on metal plates was once ridiculed, but in recent years numerous examples of sacred writings on metal plates -- some hidden in stone boxes -- have been found. 

Linguists have noted Book of Mormon words and phrases that sound awkward in English but make perfect sense in Hebrew and related languages that would have been known by the people of the Book of Mormon -- languages young Joseph Smith did not know. 

In 1 Nephi 16:34, a man named Ishmael died, "and was buried in the place which was called Nahom." Cool. Where's Nahom? A group of Latter-Day Saint researchers found evidence linking a site in Yemen, on the southwest corner of the Arabian peninsula, to the name "Nahom." They located a stone altar that professional archaeologists dated to at least 700 BC. This altar contains an inscription confirming "Nahom" as an actual place that existed in the peninsula before the time of Lehi. Can you imagine Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdrey "writing" the Book of Mormon and Joseph says, "hmmm, let's have this guy Ishmael die. And we'll have them bury him in a place called 'Nahom'. Make the 'h' silent. Yeah, that sounds great. I bet they'll dig up evidence for that one day and we'll totally get them!"

Lastly, there are many small evidences found in the cultures and traditions of North and South American people. When Christopher Columbus came, the Native Americans thought he was a god because they had been told that a white god would come to visit them. Can it be possible this same "white god" they were thinking of was Jesus Christ who appeared to their ancestors 1400 years before? Many Latter-Day Saints have traveled to South America on vacation and learned that some of those people's ancient beliefs sound very familiar to our beliefs about the Plan of Salvation. 

Essentially, the Book of Mormon has been around for over 200 years and no one has been able to prove it's false. However, millions now can attest to its truthfulness. And that brings us to our last point made by our friend Dane. 

6. "It's completely and absolutely nuts; the only thing Mormonism does is show just how much you can delude people in mass numbers." 

In 2013 the Church had 282,945 convert baptisms. How do we "delude" people in mass numbers? Because it's true. There are thousands of missionaries that go out every day to teach people about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and The Book of Mormon. Missionaries don't force anyone to believe. All they do is teach them and ask them to pray to know if it's true. Those who receive an answer to their prayers are baptized into the Church. That means that 282,945 people last year received the answer from God that this is true. The promise is there: "Ask and ye shall receive." God says it over and over again. He's not kidding. Anyone can know if it's true if you are willing to experiment to see if it's true. I promise that anyone who reads the Book of Mormon and prays and asks God with faith and real intent will receive an answer. 

I know it is true and so does God and 15 million others with that number growing every day. If it wasn't true, this church wouldn't have survived. How could a silly 14 year old with a crazy book and a band of destitute followers ever survive and grow into a church with millions of followers and 88,000 young adults traveling the world to tell everyone that it's true? It could never happen unless this is God's work. And I testify that it is.

And there you have it. Six arguments against the church laid out for you. Now are you going to take my word for it or some other guy on the internet or are you going to ask God if it's true? Here's the Book of Mormon. Read it. Then pray and ask God. Once you receive your answer, let me know. (:

"And by the power of the Holy Ghost you shall know the truth of all things"(Moroni 10:5).

Amen.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ

An "atonement" is defined as "reparation for a wrong or injury"; "reparation or expiation for sin"; and "the reconciliation of God and humankind through Jesus Christ. The atonement was when Jesus Christ suffered for all of our sins, pains, and sorrows in the Garden of Gethsemane, died on the cross, and was resurrected on the third day.

When Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit and were cast out of the garden, they transgressed against God. Ever since then, men have sinned. We live in a fallen world where sin is all around us. "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us"(1 John 1:8). None of us can return to live with God in our fallen and sinful state. That is why our loving Heavenly Father provided a Savior for us. It is all part of His merciful plan.

Jesus Christ was sent to the Earth to do the will of the Father. He was the only perfect man to walk this earth. He served others and performed miracles and forgave sins and established His church. The most important thing He did was the Atonement. 

After the Last Supper, Jesus took His disciples with him to the garden of Gethsemane. There He left them and went a little bit off and prayed to the Father. Jesus knew what was going to happen. He knew that He was going to have to endure excruciating pain that would destroy any other mortal man. He prayed to Father "Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done"(Luke 22:42). Heavenly Father knew that it had to happen and so did Jesus. An angel was sent to strengthen Jesus as He underwent the first phase of the Atonement.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus suffered for the sins, pains, and sicknesses of every single person who had or would ever live upon the Earth. "And his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground"(Luke 22:44). No one can understand the pain He felt. No one can ever possibly understand the agony. I don't know how long it lasted, but in that moment He felt every single thing you or I have ever felt. 

One woman said it very well:

"We know that Jesus experienced the totality of mortal existence in Gethsemane. It's our faith that He experienced everything - absolutely everything. Sometimes we don't think through the implications of that belief. We talk in great generalities about the sins of all humankind, about the suffering of the entire human family. But we don't experience pain in generalities. We experience it individually. That means He knows what it felt like when your mother died of cancer -how it was for your mother, how it still is for you. He knows what it felt like to lose the student body election. He knows that moment when the brakes locked and the car started to skid. He experienced the slave ship sailing from Ghana toward Virginia. He experienced the gas chambers at Dachau. He experienced Napalm in Vietnam. He knows about drug addiction and alcoholism.

"Let me go further. There's nothing you have experienced as a [human] that He does not also know and recognize. His last recorded words to His disciples were, "And, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." (Matthew 28:20) He understands your pain when your five-year-old leaves for kindergarten, when a bully picks on your fifth grader, when someone gives your thirteen-year-old drugs. He knows the pain you live with when you come home to a quiet apartment where the only children are visitors, when your 50th wedding anniversary rolls around and your husband has been dead for two years. He knows all that. He's been there. He's been lower than all that"(Chieko N. Okazaki, Lighten Up, Preface, p.147).

After Jesus went through that, He came back to His apostles to find them sleeping. Shortly after He was betrayed by His disciple and friend, Judas. From there "He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvary's cross"(The Living Christ). I always wonder what He must've been thinking as He was betrayed and then mocked, whipped, beaten, and nailed to a cross by men whose sins and pains He just suffered for. 

Since Jesus was half God (His mother was mortal but His father is a God), only He could give up His life. If He wanted to, He could've hung on that cross forever and never died. While on the cross, He comforted His mother and asked the Father to "forgive them; for they know not what they do"(Luke 23:34). Then He gave up the ghost. 

 
Three days later, Jesus rose from the grave. "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept"(1 Corinthians 15:20). He was resurrected with a perfect body. He showed His resurrected body to those at Jerusalem, allowed them to touch Him. He also ate with them to demonstrate that He did, in fact, once again have a body of flesh and bones. 

Because Jesus rose from the grave, we will all live again. We will all be resurrected whether we be good or evil and receive perfect, immortal bodies. However, our actions will decide whether we get to live with God again. 



The Atonement did not eliminate our personal responsibility. We all have the gift of free agency. It's our choice to accept or reject the Jesus Christ's atonement. Don't get me wrong, we believe "that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do"(2 Nephi 25:23). But we need to do some work to access that grace. We need to have faith in Jesus Christ, repent of our sins, be baptized, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, keep the commandments, and endure to the end. Seems like a list. And now you're all thinking that I believe we're saved by works. Let me explain further.

Nothing we ever do can save us. It is only by grace that we are saved. BUT we are still expected to do our part in order to access that grace. Here's an analogy to help us out:
Say you were a little kid and you want to learn to play the piano. What do you do? You ask your parents to sign you up for piano lessons. They agree and sign you up for piano lessons. Every month, year after year, they pay the piano teacher so you can learn the piano. What do your parents expect you to do in return? Practice the piano. Is practicing the piano ever going to physically repay your parents for all the hundreds (and probably thousands) of dollars that they spent on lessons, books, music, and the piano itself? No. But that's all they ask of you in return. It's the same with Jesus Christ's Atonement. No amount of prayer, scripture study, or church attendance can ever physically repay Him for what He did. He does not expect us to pay Him back. All He asks is that we follow Him and keep His commandments as outlined in the scriptures and given by His authorized prophets. The amazing thing though is that even if you were to never accept Jesus Christ and follow Him, He would have still atoned for yours sins so that you could always have the choice. He's that loving and merciful. 

"He's not waiting for us to be perfect. Perfect people don't need a Savior. He came to save His people in their imperfections. He is the Lord of the living, and the living make mistakes. He's not embarrassed by us, angry at us, or shocked. He wants us in our brokenness, in our unhappiness, in our guilt and our grief"(Okazaki).

"And now, behold, I will testify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it
"For it is expedient that an atonement should be made; for according to the great plan of the Eternal God there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made"(Alma 34:8-9).

Amen.
 

Why Do Mormons Build Temples?

Currently there are 143 operating temples in the world. By the time the Church completes all the ones that are currently under construction there will be about 170. There are temples on every continent and in many countries. They dot the earth. 85% of Church members live within 200 miles of a temple. So why are Latter-Day Saints obsessed with building temples? Why do we need so many? And what do we do in them?

The Lord has always commanded His children to build temples. In the Book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to build the tabernacle. King Solomon was also instructed to build a temple. In the Book of Mormon the people worshiped in temples as well. Very soon after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was restored, Joseph Smith was commanded to build a temple. Temples have always been part of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. "And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name"(1 Kings 5:5).

The temples bless our families. Through ordinances performed in the temples, families can be united for eternity. In civil marriage ceremonies they say, "til death do you part" but in the temple we believe that marriage and family relationships will continue after the grave. We build a lot of temples so that members all over the world will have the opportunity to go to the temple to have their families "sealed" together.

In the temple we also make covenants with God. Covenants are two way promises. We agree to obey God and keep the commandments and He in return promises us blessings. When we are sealed to our families, we make a covenant with our spouse and God. These covenants help us to come closer to God and they bless us immensely. 

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God"(D&C 88:119). 

Temples not only bless our immediate family but they also bless our ancestors. In the temple, we believe in performing ordinances for our deceased ancestors. We do family history and look up the names of our ancestors who weren't baptized and we take their names to the temple and we are baptized, confirmed, and sealed in behalf of them. God loves all of His children and He wants all of us to return to live with Him. We know from the scriptures that "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God"(John 3:5). However, a lot of people have died without hearing about the gospel. God doesn't just send them straight to hell for never being told about Him. He gives everyone the opportunity to accept or reject Him, either while we are living or after we die. 

  Only worthy members of the LDS Church are allowed to enter the temples. Quite a few people get upset about that and believe that we are being judgmental or unfair. Well let's think about this for a moment. Have you ever been to the White House in Washington, D.C.? I have. It's beautiful. Can you just walk inside? No. Why not? Because it's the President of the United States and his family's home and important things happen in there so it has top security. Well how do you get inside? You have to fill out a form with your name, birth date, social security number, etc. and then it takes a few months for you to be able to enter on a guided tour on a time set by those in charge of it. I haven't really heard much complaint about it because everyone understand that if you try to go prancing inside without permission then you'll get tackled or shot and then sent to jail (unless you're a toddler).

A temple is a house of the Lord. It is His house so He sets the standard. Anyone can enter the temple if they are a member of the church over a certain age and are obeying the commandments. To enter the temple we need a temple recommend. To get one we have an interview with the leader of our congregation called the bishop or one of his two councilors. He asks us some questions set by the leaders of our Church in Salt Lake City to determine our worthiness. These questions relate to if we believe in God and Jesus Christ, if we keep the ten commandments, and if we live the law of tithing, keep the God-given health code called the Word of Wisdom, and obey the law of chastity. As long as we are found worthy and are able to answer these questions, we are given a nice little piece of paper that we bring to the temple to gain admittance. To be able to do baptisms and confirmations for the dead you need to be at least 12 years old and new members can go and do that as soon as they are baptized and receive a recommend. To go and make higher covenants with God such as being sealed to your family or spouse, you need to have been a member for at least a year, keeping the commandments as explained, and usually need to be at least 18 years old. Members will go to the temple to make covenants before serving a mission, before getting married, or when they feel they are ready.

Although the temple is closed to those who don't have temple recommends when it's in operation, there is a time when you can enter a Mormon temple without being a Mormon. After a temple's construction is completed, it is opened to the public for tours for about 2-4 weeks before its dedication. The dedication is when the prophet or one of his twelve apostles come bless the temple and dedicate it to God. After the dedication only members can enter but before that anyone can. 

There are many temples that will be completed soon that you can tour. The Phoenix, Arizona temple will be open October 10th - November 1st this year for tours. It will then be dedicated on November 16th. So if any of you are by Phoenix, head on over! The other temples currently under construction are in Cordoba, Argentina; Payson, Utah; Trujillo, Peru; Rome, Italy; Indianapolis, Indiana; Provo City Center, Utah; Tijuana, Mexico; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Hartford, Connecticut; Sapporo, Japan; Paris, France; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Meridian, Idaho. 

I love the temple. I love how much it has blessed me and my family. Whenever I go there I feel such comfort and peace. I know that temples are truly the houses of the Lord and that His spirit dwells there. Because of the temple, my family can be together forever, I can receive greater blessings from God, and I can go there to receive guidance and answers to prayers. Temples are an expression of God's love for us. 

"One of the blessings of the temple is the perspective that it provides. When we go to the house of the Lord, we leave all of our cares and problems at the door. And when we come back out, they're still there. We have to pick them back up and they haven't changed, but what has changed is us." -Elder D. Todd Christofferson

San Diego, California

Washington, D.C.

 

Aba, Nigeria

 

Seoul, Korea

 

Papeete, Tahiti

 

Adelaide, Australia

 

Campinas, Brazil

 

Buenos Aires, Argentina  

  

Cebu City, Philippines 

 

Fort Lauderdale, Florida  

 

Guadalajara, Mexico

 

Laie, Hawaii

 

Kyiv, Ukraine 

 

Tegucigalpa, Honduras 


"Each temple stands as a beacon to the world, an expression of our testimony that God, our Eternal Father, lives, and... that life beyond the grave is as real and as certain as is our life here on earth." -President Thomas S. Monson

Amen.   

Manner of Prayer

God has commanded us to pray to Him. Prayer is how we can communicate with Him and receive guidance. Jesus Christ said, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened"(Matthew 7:7-8).

2 Nephi 32:9 in The Book of Mormon reads: "But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul."

So how are we to pray to God? What is the manner of prayer? Jesus Himself gives a great example in Matthew 6 during his Sermon on the Mount. He first tells us not to be hypocritical about it. We need to pray sincerely, not just for show. There are times for public prayer but there are also many more times for private prayer. 

Next He says: "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do..." Imagine you're a dad and every time you did calls you to talk to you on the phone, they repeat the same phrase to you and then hang up. What kind of conversation is that? Prayer is a conversation with God, not a recited grocery list of requested blessings. The only time we recite memorized pray is when we perform ordinances such as taking the sacrament (communion) or baptism. 

Jesus then proceeds to offer a beautiful prayer as an example. This prayer wasn't meant for us to memorize and repeat, but to learn from and incorporate its principles into our own personal prayers. From His example I will give the steps of prayer:

1. Address God, our Heavenly Father. "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name." Jesus started by addressing OUR father. We don't pray to Jesus, we pray to Heavenly Father. Things we can say are "Dear Heavenly Father," "Dear God," "Our Father in Heaven,' etc.

2. Thank Him for blessings and acknowledge His hand in your life. "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." God has given us so many blessings and He expects us to be grateful. They don't have to be huge blessings. I thank God for my home, family, friends, the gospel, my job or schooling, and big or small things that happen. 

3. Ask Him for blessings, forgiveness, help, etc. "Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptations, but deliver us from evil:" God is willing to help and bless us but first we need to ask. I have asked for healing either for myself or others, forgiveness of my sins, more patience with others, to pass an important test, to be safe while driving in a storm, to feel comforted on a sad day, to know if the Book of Mormon is true, and many more things. We can ask for anything as long as it's a righteous desire.

4. Close in the name of Jesus Christ. "Therefore ye must pray always unto the Father in my name"(3 Nephi 18:19). We do this by saying, "In the name of Jesus Christ, amen," or something along those lines. We communicate with our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ. We say every prayer and perform every ordinance in Jesus Christ's name.

Praying can be weird or awkward at first, but as we continue to pray to God, we will feel His Spirit and He will bless us immensely. This quote explains very well the purpose of prayer:

"As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are His children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part. Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings" (BD: Prayer).

Prayer is a commandment from God. He is our Father and He wants us to communicate with Him. He loves us and is willing to guide and bless if we seek Him in humble prayer. We are to pray to Him always. Pray to him in the morning when you wake up; at every meal; before, during, and after you study the scriptures; at night before you go to sleep; when you are lonely or scared or sad; when you need help. He will listen to and answer every single prayer.

"Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever.
"Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day"(Alma 37:36-37).

Amen.

Where Do We Go After We Die?

What happens when we die? The scriptures tell us!

"Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection - Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life"(Alma 40:11).

Now you know. Don't you feel better? We are all taken home to God. Then what happens next? We all just go to heaven or hell? Wrong. It's much more exciting than that!

After we die, we will all go to the spirit world. The spirit world is like a waiting room. We wait there to be resurrected and judged. But while we are there, we're not just sitting around drinking pina coladas and napping on big, fluffy clouds and playing our harps. Those who didn't have the opportunity to accept the gospel while on earth will be able to learn about and accept the gospel while in the spirit world. What? Where in the world did we get this idea from? It's in the Bible! "For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit"(1 Peter 4:6). 

Jesus taught that "except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God"(John 3:5). We all need to be baptized. But some people live their whole lives without ever knowing that. The spirits of those who followed Christ and were baptized on earth teach those spirits who weren't baptized about the gospel of Jesus Christ in the spirit world. Those still living can then be baptized in behalf of those deceased persons in Holy Temples and the dead are given the choice to accept or reject the baptism. It doesn't change their religious affiliation or who they were, it just gives them an opportunity that might've been missed while they were on earth. Cool right? Again, the Bible teaches this principle in 1 Corinthians 15:29 when Paul was speaking to the people: "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead?" God is a just God and will make sure everyone has the chance to be baptized either in this life or the next. 

After this time of waiting is over and Christ has come to the earth again, we will all be resurrected. That is Jesus's free gift to everyone regardless of if they were good or bad. "The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame"(Alma 40:23). We will each have a glorified, perfected body and our spirit will never be separated from it again. 

We will then be judged by God for our works and the desires of our hearts. Everything will be taken into account. Jesus Christ will stand by our side and be our advocate and plead our case. "For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are prepared"(D&C 76:111).

And then do we go to heaven or hell? No again. If there was just a heaven and hell, where would be the cut off? I committed 300 sins so I go to hell but you only had 299 sins so you go to heaven? God is so much more loving and merciful than that. He has prepared places for us depending on how we lived here on earth. 

There are three kingdoms of glory: the Telestial, the Terrestrial, and the Celestial. The Telestial has the glory of the stars, the Terrestrial the moon, and the Celestial the sun. The Bible teaches this as well. 1 Corinthians 15:40-41 states: "There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory." And how are the glories of these three kingdoms different? I'm glad you asked!

The Telestial Kingdom is the lowest kingdom of glory. Its glory is compared to the stars. Those who continued in their sins and did not repent will receive their reward in this kingdom. They cannot live with their families forever or live with God or progress. It is a beautiful place but it is essentially hell. It isn't hell like we think of where they are tortured in fire forever, but it is hell because they have eternity to know that because they followed Satan instead of God they can't be with their families or with God. "And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell"(2 Nephi 12:11).

The next kingdom is the Terrestrial Kingdom which is like the glory of the moon. People who do not accept the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ but live honorable lives will receive a place in this kingdom. "These are they who are honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These are they who receive of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are they who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father"(D&C 76:75-77). They can't live with their families or God or progress any further, but they can still be visited by Christ and be happy.

The highest kingdom of glory is the Celestial Kingdom. This is where we want to go to. "They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given... Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall overcome all things"(D&C 76:51, 59, 60). This is where we can live with God and our families forever in eternal happiness. This is where we can progress and inherit all that the Father has and become like Him. This is the goal. This is why we are here. God wants us to follow Him so we can return as families and live together with Him forever.

After we die, we will go to the spirit world to wait for Christ's second coming and to prepare those who didn't hear the gospel. Then we will be resurrected, judged, and sent to one of the kingdoms of glory. God loves us and wants us to return to live with Him. He knows that not everyone will make it, but He has still provided other lower kingdoms of glory. No matter what we do, each of us will go to a kingdom of glory which is infinitely better than anywhere and anything on earth. We are all saved. But for us to reach the highest degree of glory, we need to follow Jesus Christ. We need to have faith, repent, be baptized by His proper priesthood authority, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and keep following Him until the end. And that is the purpose of life.

"The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 

"And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. 

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

(Romans 8:16-18)

Amen.