“God is mindful of your problems.”

“Your trials will only make you stronger.”

“Blessings will come.”

These remarks have provided comfort to many in their most trying moments. But what if these words that once brought us peace and comfort no longer seem to work?

In the Book of Mark, we read the story of Jesus and His disciples crossing the sea in a ship. A storm and fierce winds raged, so strong that His disciples feared for their lives. They woke the Savior and asked, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” Jesus then arose and calmed the storm.

In this story, I can’t help but wonder if the disciples’ reaction to the storm would have been any different if Jesus had been awake with them. Would the winds have been any less strong? No. Would the storm have been any less fierce? No. But perhaps, it would have been more comforting knowing that Jesus Christ was awake with them—ever watchful and aware of their situation.

During these times when trials are raging and rocking our ships from all directions, do you sometimes feel that the Lord is with you in the ship but is sound asleep? Do you sometimes echo the disciples’ cry for help, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?”

When you feel overwhelmed by problems, simply knowing that Jesus Christ is the Savior and that He lives can sometimes feel not enough. We can have the knowledge that He exists but how can we feel that He is awake with us as we travel through the raging storms of life? How can we feel that He is present and aware of the trials that we are going through?

We can follow the frequent counsel from the Lord’s prophets to build and strengthen our relationship with the Savior. It may seem an abstract concept to build a relationship with someone we can’t physically see, touch, or feel, but if we apply some practical approaches that help us build and strengthen our relationships with loved ones here on Earth, it is possible to have a personal connection and relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ.

First, spend time with Him. This may seem like an odd suggestion but hear me out first. One of my most humbling experiences spending time with the Savior was when I read the accounts of His life in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I call it ‘walking a mile in His shoes’. When I read how He healed a man with palsy, caused a blind man to see, raised Lazarus and Jairus’ daughter from the dead, fed five thousand people, healed a woman with an issue of blood, forgave an adulterous woman, built a strong relationship with His apostles and disciples, and many other accounts of His mortal life, I came to a deeper understanding of His character traits.

I learned that He forgives those who are repentant, that He can make something more of what little we can offer, that little children are precious in His eyes, that He can lovingly but firmly chasten those that choose to disobey Him, that He can teach and transform sinners to declare His gospel like that woman in Samaria, that He cares deeply for His mortal parents, that His love for us is so vast and unconditional that He willingly suffered persecution, endured unspeakable agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, and died on the cross so we can be forgiven of our sins and receive the comfort and help that we need during our trials.

That’s right. His sacrifice wasn’t solely about saving us from sin but also so He could experience our sadness, disappointments, loss, failure, and all forms of brokenness and trials that we may experience. He did this so He would know how to help us and make us whole.

I wasn’t there two thousand years ago when all these events happened, but reading these accounts took me on a journey with Jesus Christ and helped me understand Him more not only as a Savior and Healer but also as a brother and friend.

Because of this personal experience, I learned to talk to Him just like I would talk to a very close friend—no barriers, no judgments involved, no concern that He would love me less or see me differently, and no fear that He would punish me for not trying hard enough to become perfect.

Spending time with the Savior through the scriptures and daily personal prayer helped my relationship with Him to become more real and personal, just like the precious relationships that I have with my family and loved ones.

Second, recognize how He shows His love to you personally. Just as with any other relationships that we have, we must recognize our preferred ways in which we express love to and receive love from other people. Many people call it their ‘love language’.

If we take the time to ponder the ways that He answers our questions, comforts us through our trials, and increases our understanding, we will recognize that He does all these things in ways that we feel most loved.

I have learned through the years that ‘words of affirmation’ is the love language that I appreciate the most. As I recounted many experiences when I felt the Savior’s outpouring of love for me, I realized that it’s always been through words of affirmation coming from my family, spouse, friends, strangers, poets, authors, ancient and latter-day prophets, quotes on social media, stories in the scriptures that I can relate to, lyrics of songs, and distinct thoughts that come to my mind when I need answers, comfort, and guidance.

He shows me love in so many other ways but because He knows me personally, many times He shows me love in the way that I receive love best. This has proven to me time and time again that I have a personal and meaningful relationship with Him.

These two steps have helped me build and strengthen my relationship with my Savior, Jesus Christ. It was not easy. It required consistent, often repetitive, efforts to spend time with the Savior, getting to know Him better through the scriptures and my personal experiences, conversing with Him in prayer and meditation, and recognizing how He’s giving me love and guidance .

Because of my relationship with Him, I always feel that He is awake with me in the ship while I sail through the storms in my life. I feel that He is ever-present, knowing what fierce winds and big waves are rocking my ship from left to right. I no longer wonder if he cares not that I perish because my faith is no longer dependent on the outcome that I am hoping to receive. My faith is fully dependent on the knowledge that He can calm the wind and the sea if He wills it.

This doesn’t mean that I don’t feel overwhelmed by the many trials of life. I still feel disappointment, sadness, even restlessness when things seem to be out of control. Who doesn’t? However, knowing that the Savior is truly aware of my trials eases my worries and gives me comfort and peace.

You too can receive this personal witness by building a personal relationship with the Savior Jesus Christ.

If you would like to learn about Heavenly Father, read this article.

The post What To Do When You Feel Overwhelmed By Problems appeared first on morefaith.ph.

In the scriptures, we are taught that we are literal spirit sons and daughters of Heavenly Father and that we lived with Him before we were born. We can’t remember the relationship that we had with Him but being on Earth means we trusted Him and His Plan of Happiness.

Before being born, we knew that we would experience challenges and hardships but we agreed to come to Earth anyway because we knew that His plan was the only way for us to progress and achieve lasting happiness. There is no greater testimony than this—that we trusted and loved our Heavenly Father. We knew Him and had a special relationship with Him and we can still have that familiarity and relationship now as we get to know Him as our Father.

In the Bible, the Apostle John wrote the grandest expression of Heavenly Father’s love for us saying,

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Heavenly Father knew that we would need direction so He sent His Son to become our example on how we can live a life that is pleasing to Him. He knew that we would experience disappointments, heartbreaks, regret, despair, sadness, discouragement, and many other experiences that would tax our courage and test our faith so He sent His Son to bear all of these so He could know exactly how to comfort us. He knew that we would fall short and make mistakes, that’s why He sent His Son—so we can repent and be forgiven of our sins.

How great a sacrifice it was for the Father to send His Only Begotten Son to Earth knowing that He would suffer, be crucified and die on the cross for the sins of the world. And yet Heavenly Father did, so that all of us may live again. He did it because He loves us. He loves you.

This Bible verse also gives us a glimpse of the nature of God—that He is a distinct and separate being from His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost, and yet they are united in purpose, which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

In Doctrine and Covenants, we also learn that “[t]he Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as [our bodies]” but unlike us, He is a glorified, exalted, and perfected being. And He provided a way for us to progress in this life until we receive the greatest gift of all—a glorious, exalted existence, inheriting all that He has.

Because He is all-powerful and perfect, we might feel hesitant to reach out to Him. But when we do, we will realize that heaven is not so distant after all. His love for us is so vast, so encompassing, that no matter how broken or flawed we think we are, His love is simply there.

As we try to get to know Him as our Father, we will learn of His love, and in turn, increase our capacity to love not only Him but also the people around us. We will feel an increased desire to follow Him and become like Him. We may not remember the details of when we lived in His presence, but our spirits will slowly remember what it felt like.

To learn more about Heavenly Father and how you can build your relationship with Him or if you’d like to share your personal stories and experiences with us, please contact us and we would be happy to have a chat with you.

The post How Well Do You Know Heavenly Father? appeared first on morefaith.ph.

You read that right. It can be a blessing. So if you’re experiencing that crisis now, don’t panic. It may be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel but here are some blessings that can help put all the hardships in a better perspective.

Self-discovery and growth. This is a time when everything can seem uncertain. You’re anxious about the future. You feel left behind. You might feel like nothing ever changes no matter what you do. You might struggle to function or feel motivated at all. And the biggest dilemma is, you don’t know what to do with your life. You feel completely lost.

It would be a stretch to say that it’s normal, but know that feeling lost can be the very thing you need to find yourself again.

Feeling lost makes you wonder what it is that you want to become, what makes you feel fulfilled and happy, what breathes life into your day, and what fuels your passion. In searching for answers to these questions, you can start to discover and learn new things, find new hobbies, and get out of your comfort zone. This will look different for everyone. You might pick up your once long-held passion for reading that was buried after landing your first job, listen to podcasts, spend more time with family, connect more with friends and people you care about, go on trips, enjoy the calmness of a quiet afternoon, and many other things that you pushed aside in the non-stop hustle of new adulthood.

Now, you can take a step back and spend time rediscovering yourself, rekindling your intellectual curiosity, strengthening the foundation of your values, finding a greater sense of purpose, and gaining wisdom and resilience that only difficult times can teach.

This is not to say that self-discovery and growth can take away the angst and confusion of a quarter-life crisis, but they do help you put things into perspective—that what you’re going through is something you can pull yourself out of. And if you look hard enough, you’ll realize that the experience is a refining one—one that can teach you resilience and perseverance.

And self-discovery does not stop after you’re through with the crisis. It’s an ongoing process of life, that will stay with you, even as your realities and circumstances evolve.

A clearer sense of direction. One of the reasons people go through a quarter-life crisis is the many options available to them. Having too many options can sometimes stagnate your progress because you delay making a choice. Why? Because every option seems good and something you want to explore. And then you feel overwhelmed and that’s where the confusion sets in. You start to wonder what you want to do with your life. Having too many options and no idea what to do can paralyze your potential to make a choice.

Going through a quarter-life crisis forces you to simplify and analyze the pros and cons of your options, determine what’s reasonable within the parameters of your current realities and obligations, choose what you think is best for you and your current circumstance, and decide on the goals that will allow you to grow.

It becomes a wake-up call reminding you that for you to reach a meaningful destination, you should know where you want to go.

One of the truths that can jumpstart your pursuit for direction is knowing who you are and where you came from.

All mankind before being born on this Earth lived with God the Father where we were taught the commandments and principles that will lead to happiness. All of us are spirit sons and daughters of a loving Heavenly Father who loves us unconditionally. Part of His plan is for us to come to Earth to receive physical bodies and have the agency to choose for ourselves so we can learn how to make correct choices. We set out on this mortal journey with the goal to eventually return to our Heavenly Father’s presence.

Knowing who you are and where you came from can help you feel at peace that as long your eyes are set upon the ultimate goal of going back to your heavenly home, your Heavenly Father will guide you in whichever direction you choose.

A closer relationship with the Savior. Amidst the uncertainties that mostly give you chronic unease and anxiety, there is one truth that can give you refuge—Christ’s love. A love that is constant and sure.

In the Book of Matthew, the Lord Jesus Christ offered a profound invitation, saying,

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

Isn’t this one of the grandest expressions of love?

As you go through this crisis, you can rely on the Savior for comfort and reassurance that He understands your troubled soul, He hears your silent petitions for peace, and He feels your anguish when you plead for your burdens to be made light. As you pour your heart in prayer and rely upon His mercy, He will bless you with the wisdom you need to move forward. In Him, your weary and confused soul can find rest and clarity.

The wisdom that you need and the answers that you seek can often be found in the scriptures—both scriptures of old such as the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and counsels of the living prophets in these latter days. As you search the scriptures, the Lord will enlighten your mind and understanding as to things that will help you find a clearer direction for your life.

You’ll also get to know the Savior more through His teachings, miracles, and most of all, His ultimate sacrifice so that all mankind may live. As you come to know the Savior through the scriptures, you’ll find a greater appreciation of His life and His atoning sacrifice. You’ll come to know the true nature of the Lord, and in turn, develop a desire to become like Him.

The crisis will still be hard and confusing even after recognizing these blessings, but you will feel the power and peace of walking side by side with the Savior, knowing that you never have to face your crisis alone.

The post 3 Blessings From Quarter-life Crisis That People Don’t Talk About appeared first on morefaith.ph.

Healing requires time. If healing seems impossible and your brokenness feels beyond repair, please know that your feelings are valid. Acknowledge the pain. Cry it out. Shout it out if you must. Feel it. Your healing doesn’t have a deadline so don’t rush it. It may take a while and that’s okay. But taking your time to heal doesn’t mean sitting idly feeling sorry for yourself. Of course, there will be days when you just want to stay in bed and be alone but remember that healing requires so much more than the mere passing of time. Take time to feel your feelings but don’t expect time alone to heal your wounds.

Healing requires forgiveness. Forgiveness can mean many things when it comes to healing, it can mean forgiving others or forgiving yourself. In the scriptures, we are commanded to forgive all men, but it doesn’t say you must ‘forgive immediately.’ Sometimes, it is difficult to forgive at the height of your emotions and that’s okay. Often, finding the strength to let go of resentment and bitterness requires processing your emotions, calming yourself down, and looking at the situation through a different lens. All these steps require time. But know that when God commanded us to forgive all men, He knows very well that it is one of the key steps to healing, that forgiveness can bring us peace and widen our ability to feel hope.

It may feel impossible to forgive but through the Savior and His Atonement, it is possible. Cast your burden to the Lord with a humble recognition of your human limitations, that you need His grace as you try to find in yourself the same grace that will allow you to forgive yourself or others.

It won’t be easy. It may take a few tries and questioning if you’re ready to let all the pain go, but when you do you’ll feel lighter, with a limitless capacity to grow and develop into the person you want to become.

Healing requires the love and help of the Master Healer. No matter what you’re going through, healing can sometimes feel like a greater task than you are capable of. You might even feel like you can’t bear it and plead to Heavenly Father to remove the bitter cup from you as Jesus Christ did. The Father responded to His Begotten Son’s pleading by sending an angel to strengthen Him, and He will send help to you: the One who is the Master of Healing, the One who walked the streets of Jerusalem, healing the sick, opening the eyes of the blind to see, causing the lame to walk, and the dead to rise, the One who not only carried the sins of the world but also mankind’s despair, discouragement, and all forms of brokenness, including yours.

Through Christ, your broken heart can be healed, the same way the people in the scriptures were healed. He may not take away your bitter cup, but He will help you to bear it because He knows perfectly how it feels to be broken. His love is sufficient to sustain you as you pick up your broken pieces and slowly build yourself up again. Through the Atonement, you can be assured that He understands the depths of your sadness and hopelessness. You can find comfort that if you come to Him, you can be made whole again.

And when your heart is healed, you will realize that you are stronger, not in spite of but because of having experienced what it is like to be broken. You will feel a deeper capacity to love, empathize, forgive, and comfort those going through their healing journey. You will recognize the many lessons that only brokenness can bring.

The post To My Friends Who Feel Broken: You Can Feel Whole Again appeared first on morefaith.ph.

Is there truth to this interpretation?

Before we answer this question, we need to determine what kind of fear we are feeling. There are two kinds of fear—godly fear and worldly fear.

In the scriptures, we are taught to fear God. This godly fear as explained by Elder Bednar is “a deep feeling of reverence, respect, and awe for the Lord Jesus Christ”. It is not really “fear” then, as we tend to think of it. It is a feeling that persuades us to seek knowledge and understanding about the commandments of God so we can obey them. It is also with this veneration that we seek to intently learn the fullness of God’s glory and power. This kind of fear increases faith and deep devotion to Him.

The other kind of fear, which we are counseled to avoid, is the fear that is not of God. This kind of fear which Satan loves to exploit, makes us doubt who we are and who we can become. It is the fear that we are not enough, that our past mistakes define us, that we don’t deserve to be loved or forgiven, that we are so flawed we are beyond the reach of the power of the Atonement, that we are not capable of building and keeping a family of our own, that we will likely fail or be rejected, that we cannot progress further, that we do not matter, and all other thoughts that are NOT true.

Many of us might be thinking, “But I feel it, how come it is not true?” Yes, these feelings are real, but it does not mean that they are true. It also does not mean that we have little faith. It means that we are human and we are subject to these feelings because of our mortal state. These feelings could be one of the challenges that we have to endure in order to fully understand who we are and what our souls are worth in the eyes of God. They could be a path that we need to take so we can know how to succor and strengthen those who are walking the same path. They could prompt defining moments of our faith in which God shows us that we will not stumble if He is the rock we build our faith upon.

These feelings can mean many things, but one thing is for sure, feelings of fear DO NOT define our faith. What we do about them does.

So what do we do when we fear?

In one of the Apostle Paul’s letters to Timothy he wrote that, “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”. When this truth is clear to us and we face moments of fear, we can turn from it by turning to the Lord. Turning to Him comes in many forms. It could be through prayer, reading the scriptures, seeking counsel from a bishop, singing a hymn, performing acts of service, not giving in to the spirit of contention, and more.

As we turn to the Lord, we will be better able to recognize that we are always enough, that we can become the best version of ourselves and reach our full potential, and that we matter to Him. We can come to know the truths of His gospel and the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ that can mend broken things and smooth every flaw. We will be able to see things as they really are, and see through the lens of a loving Father that we can grow and bloom amidst our afflictions, that we can forgive and be forgiven, that death is not the end but the beginning of another journey, and that God will always love us and walk with us every step of the way as we progress in this life.

We are taught that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the antidote to fear. It sounds simple but faith requires work, dedication, and life-long nurturing. For us to dispel fear, we must build our faith first by hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ and then seeking confirmation by the power of the Holy Spirit that it is true. Other crucial elements of building our faith are repentance, making and keeping covenants, and losing ourselves in the service of God.

Life will not be free of fear. Some of our fears will come from bitter experiences, others will tax our courage and test our resilience, but let’s not let these feelings define our faith. Let our experiences make our faith more deeply rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we do not let fear overcome our faith, it should be enough reason to not question if we have little faith.

The Lord loves us. Even if our faith is the size of a mustard seed, what He sees is what it can become—a strong and towering tree. What matters to Him is that we nurture the seed so that it can become what it is destined to become.

The post Does fear mean we have little faith? appeared first on morefaith.ph.

With the recent corona virus pandemic that has already infected thousands of individuals and affected families, communities, and nations across the world, some of us might be wondering if we’re going to survive this crisis. It is uncertain when the spread of the corona virus will slow down, as confirmed cases continue to rise exponentially. But we can be certain that God is aware of us and He has long been preparing us to cope with this unique challenge.

At the beginning of 2019, the Church introduced the new home-centered, church-supported approach to gospel learning. This new approach has been designed to strengthen family relationships and testimonies and help make the home a place of reverent learning about the Lord Jesus Christ and His gospel.

Looking back when it was first introduced, it seemed hard to accomplish but we have seen families make adjustments for their homes to be more conducive to gospel learning, noticed individuals become more careful with the language they use at home, felt stronger family bonds, and seen our homes become places of greater reverence, worship, and refuge.

A little over a year after this new approach was introduced, we have been counseled to do Sunday worship at home because of the corona virus pandemic. Coincidence? The answer is a resounding no. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell emphasized, “coincidence is not an appropriate word to describe the workings of an omniscient God. He does not do things by ‘coincidence’ but … by ‘divine design.’” The Lord has instructed our living prophet to implement these changes to prepare us for this trying time.

We have also been counseled to store food that will sustain us for 3 days up to a year. In the Old Testament, Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream to mean they needed to store food to prepare for the famine. We, too, have been counseled to make preparations for critical times in our lives such as natural disasters, unemployment, pandemic, and other unexpected circumstances.

There have been community quarantines and/or city lock downs in many cities around the world. This could mean a decrease in food supply and other goods necessary for survival. This is a time when food storage has become very beneficial, not only to us and our families, but also to those people whom God will put in our paths to feed and succor.

There will no doubt be many opportunities to extend a hand and become a blessing to others—widowers, those who do not have priesthood holders at home, those living in a part-member family, or even a stranger that we might be prompted to assist in any way.

As we face this pandemic, we can be comforted that the Lord is in the details of our lives. He knows our circumstances and needs. He hears our silent petitions. He can feel our fears. Through President Nelson, He wants to assure us that this crisis “will pass in due time.” He has promised to sustain us and provide the spiritual nourishment, peace, hope, and light to each of us who will continue to seek and hear Him.

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The next scene is only to be expected—people turn their heads to see whose child it is.

Some of us might look just out of curiosity, while some might intentionally do so to signal the mothers to quickly calm their kids down. But whatever our reason for looking, LDS mothers have one plea: DON’T LOOK.

Don’t look as if they are not already trying their best to control the situation. Don’t look thinking that they have not disciplined or taught their kids enough. Don’t look as if they are the culprit of irreverence at church. Don’t look as if they are doing something wrong. Don’t look because they are probably already discouraged and wondering if all these things are true.

In reality, they probably have prepared for Sunday long before many others do. They probably have reflected on things that they could improve on in advance, knowing that their kids will not permit a quiet moment of reflection at church. They probably have kneeled and prayed for patience for another rough day at church, and for understanding from the ward members when their kids get out of hand. They probably have pled throughout the week for Heavenly Father to grant them even just a few quiet moments of sacred reverence at church.

Mothers with young ones, just like any of us, also want to have a reverent and fortifying spiritual experience at church. During sacrament meeting, they also want to participate in this sacred ordinance and ponder its significant just as much as we do. Their desire to learn from the speakers might be just as deep as ours. They, too, want to sit reverently and feel the Spirit of the Lord.

So the next time we are tempted to look, let’s do our best to restrain ourselves. Our rule should be to look only when we are willing to leave our seats and help them out. If we are willing, we can even look around before sacrament meeting starts and evaluate which mothers might possibly need some help. A mother whose husband is helping to bless or pass the sacrament could be a good candidate. A single mother who is taking care of her kids alone, a bishop’s wife who has toddlers, or even a grandmother who brought her grandkids to church might need an extra hand.

There are many ways that we can make our Sunday attendance at church more meaningful. One of which is simply not to look when a child starts to scream, or to look and extend a hand to those mothers who might need some help.

Lastly, it is important to note that reverence does not necessarily equal silence. “A reverent attitude toward God includes honoring Him, expressing gratitude to Him, and obeying His commandments.” Although silence adds to the desired reverence we want to feel at church, we must never feel that our Sunday experience is ruined because of a screaming child. The Savior Himself has nothing but love and gratitude for these little ones at church who are still learning.

Ultimately, our Sunday experience largely depends on our spiritual preparedness to feel the Spirit, receive revelation, and remember the Savior.

The post Don’t Look: LDS Mothers’ Plea When Their Kids Cry At Church appeared first on morefaith.ph.

Life constantly confronts us with choices we have to make. Some are big choices that define a milestone in our lives, while the more common are the seemingly small choices that we make every day. Choices like the scoop of ice cream, few episodes, and a few minutes of social media browsing, that may appear so small that we do not give it much thought and consideration. But from these small choices often come habits that are hard to break.

On our journey of Christlike discipleship, there will be many seemingly small choices like these that could break our faith. Snoozing our alarm on a Sunday morning could be the reason we miss sacrament meeting.  Watching one inappropriate media could lead to pornographic addiction. Swearing a little could lead to using profane language more often. Not praying one night could turn into many nights without prayer.

These small choices that we think cannot destroy the foundations of our testimony might be already eating away at our faith slowly, even without our awareness. Sometimes, all it takes is just one look, one taste, one experience to lead us ever so slowly away from the Savior. The idea of “just one more or just a little more”, can trap us until we have dug a pit so deep for ourselves that we can no longer get back out without help.

Another trap that we get into sometimes that increases our chances of making small incorrect choices is living on the edge. Living on the edge happens when we try to walk the boundary between righteousness and wickedness, assuming that we will always be alright as long as we don’t cross the line. But when we do this, the adversary intensifies his work, enticing us to move just one inch closer to the edge and then one more inch. The next thing we know, we may have already put our souls at risk of a tragic fall.

So what do we do when we find ourselves farther from God than we intended to go? The Savior, through His infinite Atonement, made sure that there is always a way back. And there is no other way than the way He provided for us. So how do we start?

First, we must have a desire in our hearts to follow Christ and repent of our sins. In the words of the prophet Alma, exercising even just “a particle of faith” is enough, “even if [we] can no more than desire to believe,” the Lord encourages us to cling to this desire and let His Atonement mend our brokenness.

Second, we must resolve to change the things that we can change. One of the most powerful counsels we have been given is to “avoid, not only evil, but even the appearance of evil.” This means that we must, by all means, avoid every circumstance that could possibly tempt us to make even a small choice that would start us on a journey of despair and misery.

Third, we must commit to take upon ourselves His name again and follow His commandments. It is important to note that for us to be made whole again, we must take every step to mend our brokenness, and then let God take it from there. Our daily actions should be a living testimony that we are willing to follow the Savior as He bids us to come follow Him.

As we strive to come back to His fold, He will magnify our desires to become part of His flock once again. As we make the seemingly small choices every day in our lives, we must always look back at the lessons we have learned: that trying to take a small detour from the Lord’s way can take us farther away from the Lord than we ever originally intended. May the Lord bless us all as we make these small choices and may we never intentionally move even an inch away from Him again.

The post How Can Small Choices Lead Us Farther From God Than We Intended? appeared first on morefaith.ph.

He respects women, regardless of their nationality and religious beliefs

In the New Testament, Jesus Christ was publicly criticized for mingling with those whom society considered “low class.” He called fishermen as his apostles, ate with publicans, and interacted with the sinners. He treated all those He met with respect, including women. Jesus’ encounter with a Samaritan woman in John 4 proved that He really was no respecter of persons.

On one occasion, Jesus passed through Samaria on His way to Galilee. Feeling fatigued because of His long journey, He sat by Jacob’s well where He met a woman of Samaria who came “to draw water.” Jesus struck up a conversation with her and even asked her for a drink. This seemingly casual conversation caught the woman by surprise. For in those days, “the Jews ha[d] no dealings with the Samaritans (John 4:9)” because the Jews considered the Samaritans “more unclean than a Gentile of any other nationality.”¹

Imagine what the woman may have felt when Jesus initiated a conversation with her and deemed her worthy enough to talk to. At first, she must have felt apprehension that soon enough turned into awe and finally to joy when Jesus introduced Himself to her as the Christ.

By talking with the Samaritan woman, Jesus Christ defied the norms of His time. When the disciples came back from getting meat and found Jesus talking with the woman, John wrote that they “marvelled.” However, Jesus Christ really didn’t care much about what His disciples thought – much less what the world thought of His actions. He cared more about the woman and what she was feeling and what He could do to help her. Jesus Christ did not look at the woman in terms of the world’s standard, based on her gender, nationality, or religious background. He saw her as a daughter of Heavenly Father and as His own sister. This shows that Jesus Christ has great respect for women, especially for His mother Mary.

He takes care of women

Jesus Christ’s relationship with His mother, Mary, also shows how He takes care of women. On two occasions, He was concerned for Mary’s welfare and acted to help her.

The first instance happened at a wedding feast recorded in John 2 where Mary was one of the people in charge. At some point, the supply of wine ran out, leaving the guests unsatisfied. So, she sought the help of her son, Jesus Christ, and the Savior performed His first public miracle – He turned water into wine. This miraculous wine impressed the governor of the feast so much that he asked the bridegroom why they had “kept the good wine until now (John 2:10).”

The second instance was when Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross at Calvary. Even though He was suffering, He still thought of His mother who He would be leaving behind. Seeing His disciple John standing beside her, He told His mother, “Woman, behold thy son (John 19:26).” Then to John, He said, “Behold thy mother (John 19:27).” Because of Jesus’ words, from then on, John took care of Mary. What a display of love and respect in the highest form! Even the excruciating task of atoning for our sins did not prevent Jesus from being concerned for the welfare of His beloved mother. His concern was not limited only to His own mother but also extended to other mothers as well, such as the widow of Nain.

He comforts women

The widow of Nain was facing emotional and financial ruin when Jesus Christ went out of His way to help her. During Jesus’ time, women were uneducated and all their rights to property were connected to the men in their lives – their father, husband, or sons.

In the case of the widow of Nain, because her husband had already died, she was completely dependent on her son for her means of living. However, with her son also gone, all of her possessions would be under the jurisdiction of her nearest male relative. Because the widow of Nain was in this dangerous situation, possibly of life and death, it is no wonder that Jesus Christ immediately stepped in to help.

According to Brigham Young University (BYU) Associate Professor Keith J. Wilson, the travel from Capernaum to Nain was a long, difficult uphill climb that “would have taken at least one or two days.” The reason being Capernaum’s location which is 600 feet (183 m) below sea level and Nain’s location which is  700 feet (213 m) above sea level and 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Capernaum. This long journey implies a certain amount of sacrifice by Jesus Christ and His disciples, including rising very early in the morning and traveling through the night until it wasn’t possible to walk anymore. However, Jesus arrived in Nain just in time to intercept the burial procession and raise the widow’s son from death. He was able to comfort the mother and give her hope that all was well, and that God had not forgotten her.

He forgives women

Another great example of Jesus Christ’s high regard for women occurred when the Pharisees and the Sadducees brought to Him a woman whom they said was “caught in the very act [of adultery] (John 8:4).” In an attempt to provoke the Romans, challenge His authority and His knowledge of the Law of Moses, they asked Him whether the woman should be stoned to death or not. He neither reply with a yes or a no but simply said: “He that is without a sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her (John 8:7).” Convicted by their conscience, everyone left Jesus and the woman alone. When Jesus Christ lifted Himself up and saw no one, He asked the woman the whereabouts of her accusers. The woman answered and said that they were now gone. Then Jesus said some of His most famous words of reassurance and counsel to the woman, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more (John 8:11).”

Out of all the people there that day, Jesus Christ had a perfect knowledge of the woman’s sin, but He chose not to condemn her. Instead, He forgave her. To show his sincerity, Jesus Christ even stooped down to the woman’s level on the ground. His act of forgiveness included lifting the woman up from where she was at that time and helping her toward the right path – the one free from sin and filled with happiness.

During His lifetime, Jesus Christ showed by His words and deeds just how much He revered women – He respects, He cares, He comforts, and forgives them, just as much as He does for men. Now, as our Resurrected Lord I feel that He is doing the same for all women out there. I testify that He understands perfectly the pressure, discrimination, and persecution we experienced due to our gender. He extends to us His arms to lift us up and guide us home to our Father in Heaven where we will be the happiest. I hope and pray that we will grab His arms and hold on tight, never letting go. For truly, He is the Champion of women.

¹James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, 172.

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Why is Jesus’ name important?

The announcement of Jesus’ birth was anything but ordinary (Matthew 1:18). An angel named Gabriel appeared to Mary to inform her that she would bear the Only Begotten Son of the Father. Despite being a virgin, she conceived a child through the Holy Spirit. This unborn child would play a significant role for all humankind, the angel promised. But, the prophecy did not stop there. The angel told Mary to name the child as Jesus (Matthew 1:21).

Have you ever wondered why, of all the things he could have told Mary, the angel focused on the child’s name? The angel could have told her seemingly more important details, such as what food the child should eat, what clothes to wear, what education and training the child should receive to prepare him for his future role.  However, he chose to dwell on the name of the child – as if knowing the name was enough, as if everything depended on it.

Angel Gabriel did not insist on naming the child Jesus out of personal preference. It was a directive from Heavenly Father (Doctrine and Covenants 18:23). This name would eventually become a significant part of the Savior’s being and would be known as the only name whereby salvation can come (Mosiah 3:17). There is no doubt that the name chosen by Heavenly Father and used by the Savior, Jesus, contains power in the most real sense.

What is the meaning of Jesus’ name?

Did you know, though, that the name Jesus is not unique to the Savior’s time? A number of people have had the same name. Said to be the Greek form of Joshua or Jeshu, the name means “Savior” or “God is help.” It was a beautiful name with a beautiful meaning, a name most fitting for the prophesied Savior of the world.

The Savior is not only known by His birth name, Jesus. He has various titles of which the most popular is Christ, meaning “the anointed” or “Messiah.” The title Christ is almost always put after the name Jesus, making the Savior known to many as Jesus Christ. This is a perfect combination of a name and a title describing accurately the role of the Savior.

When is it appropriate to use Jesus’ name?

The respect and reverence we have for our brother, Jesus Christ, should extend to His name. We should use the Savior’s name in appropriate places and situations only. We must refrain from using it in vain (Exodus 20:7). Here are some examples where we can use the name of Jesus Christ correctly:

• Saying a Prayer

End your prayers in the name of Jesus Christ. He is our mediator with the Father. If we use His name, He will deliver our messages to the Father.

• Performing Sacred Ordinances

In order for all sacred ordinances to be valid, Jesus’ name should be used by one holding the proper authority. These sacred ordinances include, but are not limited to, baptism, marriage, and blessing of the sacrament.

• Sharing the Gospel

Full-time missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are set apart and given the authority to preach the gospel in Jesus’ name for a certain period of time. However, the power to use Jesus’ name in sharing the gospel is not only limited to missionaries. You can also share the gospel in Jesus’ name through your inspiring words and testimonies.

The use of Jesus Christ’s name is not prohibited. You can use it as often as you need to. But, you should exercise correct judgment when doing so. The use of Jesus Christ’s name should bring you closer to Him. It should give you access to His power. Do not use it out of habit so that it loses its sacredness. You should also encourage others to give respect to Jesus’ name. Where and when appropriate, you can also counsel the people around you about the misuse of the Savior’s name.

How to Access the Power of Jesus through His Name?

Just as knowing that a smartphone exists will not be of any help to you if you don’t know how to use it, you will also not be able to access the power of Jesus Christ just by knowing His name. Knowing Jesus’ name and saying it here and there is different from having access to the power of His name. There are certain requirements that you need in order for Jesus’ name to have an effect on your life. Here are some of them:

• You need to call upon His name sincerely

Your desire and intention matter when speaking the name of the Savior. You will also receive your desired answer depending on your faith.

• You need to have Christ-like qualities

First, you need to be humble enough to recognize and accept Jesus Christ in your life. Then you need to use His name “by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned, by kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile (Doctrine and Covenants 121:41-42).” You don’t have to be perfect but you must be trying to follow Jesus Christ through your words and actions.

• You should be willing to take upon you the name of Jesus Christ

Having full access to Jesus Christ’s power means being willing to take His name. This means that you must make Jesus Christ a significant part – or better, the focus of your life. You should honor His name and keep its good reputation by acting according to the commandments of God. Taking the name of Jesus Christ means living as the Savior did.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not making a fuss out of a small thing by emphasizing the appropriate use of Jesus Christ’ name in its organization. The Church is going back to the basics, to its core and foundation – Jesus Christ. Without Jesus Christ’s name, the church loses its meaning. Therefore, it is necessary to make changes, such as updating the name of the website, applications, and social media accounts to show that its focus is on Jesus Christ.

You can gain so much from doing the same thing in your life. Make the necessary changes even if it means getting rid of an established habit, perhaps distancing yourself from family members or friends who do not share the same beliefs and drag you down spiritually, and being born again in the name of Jesus Christ through baptism. As you focus on Jesus Christ and willingly and sincerely take upon you His name, you will feel the influence of His infinite power in your life.

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