November 3, 2010

SCRIPTURE OF THE WEEK:

11 And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel.
12 And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true. ­– Mosiah 4: 11-12

Dear Family and Friends,

Before you start thinking that I am a beautiful, spiritual, capable young woman, I thought I would let you know that this is Matt speaking… So Jac and I were talking earlier tonight about how she still needed to write this week’s blog, I told her that I would do it. And she actually thought that it was a good idea (I don’t have too many of those)! Maybe this will be something that we do in the future; that is, if I make the cuts… Wish me luck.

Last week, Jac shared a scripture that she mentioned describes her to a “T”. Well this week I share Mosiah 4:11-12, words spoken by someone I love. Benjamin is one of my favorite people in all of scripture because of his quiet, humble example. His actions did most of the talking. Yet, his words are as eloquent as any I’ve heard or read. He connected with the people he led, and he inspires me to be better. A bigger reason this scripture describes me, though, is that we really are “nothing” in many ways. When one truly comes to see how insignificant and weak they are, and if they come know God’s character and power, that person comes to see really what they are entitled to in life. Nothing! Everything we have, or will get, in this life is because God willed that we have it—merciful, loving, patient God. The last reason I love this scripture is because it outlines what I see as the steps of true conversion:

1. Awareness of one’s nothingness
2. Understanding that there is a being (God) who makes something out of nothing
3. Believing that we depend on Him for ALL our strength
4. Receiving hope, joy, and love where despair, sadness, and hatred used to be
5. Finding strength to maintain faith and remembrance of our dependence
6. Having the ability to always rejoice!

Now whether or not you believe that is up to you, but I know that this scripture speaks truth! All of it is truth.

MIRACLE OF THE WEEK:

Jac has been struggling a bit at work because of its difficulty and I’ve been a little worried about her. BUT, today she had a finalization for an adoption AND she went to the hospital to introduce another adoptive family to a baby who was recently born! She sent me picture texts of both babies and one text telling me how much she loves what she does! It is a hard work, but there is certainly a feeling that divine providence has its hand in it.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK:

What will you do to communicate to Heavenly Father that you are willing to follow what he tells you to do?

Have Faith. Have Hope. Live Like His Son. Help Others On Their Way. Be Consistent. Please, No Empty Chairs.

Love,

Matt