The Wondrous Gift is Given

Okay, I have repented. I solemnly promise that I will post weekly from now on, unless some dire circumstance comes up. It's Christmas season!! And there are so many songs that inspire me and build my faith! I love hearing songs about Jesus everywhere I go!  Like this one:

O little town of Bethlehem,

How still we see thee lie.

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by;

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting Light.

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary,

And, gathered all above

While mortals sleep, the angels keep

Their watch of wond'ring love.

O morning stars, together

Proclaim the holy birth,

And praises sing to God the King,

And peace to men on earth.

How silently, how silently

The wondrous gift is giv'n!

So God imparts to human hearts

The blessings of his heav'n.

No ear may hear his coming;

But in this world of sin,

Where meek souls will receive him, still

The dear Christ enters in.

LDS Hymns, No. 208 O Little Town of Bethlehem 

 

Isn't that awesome? It's a "wondrous gift"--a perfect gift--we get to enjoy year after year! We get to unwrap it again and again each day as we strive to follow the example Jesus Christ set while He was on the earth.

My companion, Sister Tauoa, says, "It's sad that most of the world only thinks of Jesus Christ around this time of year....we should remember Him every day!"  I agree. The Spirit of Christmas should continue January....February....March through November. Hey, even BlueBell, the best Ice Cream in the South, has "Christmas Cookies in July" flavor! If an ice cream company can do it, we can! ;)

So, what's your favorite Christmas song about the Savior? Why?

The Journey

Imagine my elation when one of my lifelong favorite and less well-known hymns was sung in LDS General Conference last month.  I remember flipping through the hymn book as a teenager and stumbling across "Does the Journey Seem Long?" and reading the words for the first time. The words spoke peace, hope, and courage to my heart.

Does the Journey Seem Long?
Does the journey seem long,

The path rugged and steep?

Are there briars and thorns on the way?

Do sharp stones cut your feet 

As you struggle to rise

to the heights thru the heat of the day?

Is your heart faint and sad,

Your soul weary within,

As you toil 'neath your burden of care?

Does the load heavy seem

You are forced now to life?

Is there no one your burden to share?

Let your heart be not faint

Now the journey's begun;

There is One who still beckons to you.

So look upward in joy

and take hold of His hand;

He will lead you to heights that are new--

A land holy and pure,

Where all trouble doth end,

And your life shall be free from all sin,

Where no tears shall be shed,

For no sorrows remain.

Take his hand and with him enter in. 

Text: Joseph Fielding Smith Music: George D. Pyper

This week especially, I hope you and I remember to "look upward in joy and take hold of His hand" as He leads us to new heights.  

It's Up to Me to Be the Change

A song of my faith....is by JOSH GROBAN??

Yes, it is.

This is on his Christmas CD, but it definitely applies to our holiday tomorrow. We often seem to turn our hearts to thank our Heavenly Father for all He gives us once a year. As our beloved Prophet Thomas S. Monson said, "To express gratitude is gracious and honorable, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live with gratitude in our hearts is to touch heaven." My faith is living with gratitude in my heart for the many blessings He gives me each day.

Happy Thanksgiving! Count your blessings, and count them once again. I know I will be. :)

Thankful  by Josh Groban  (I recommend looking this up on YouTube.)

Some days we forget to look around us
Some days we can't see the joy that surrounds us
so caught up inside yourselves
we take when we should give

So for tonight we pray for what we know can be
and on this day we hope for what we still can't see
it's up to us to be the change
and even though we all can still do more
there's so much to be thankful for

Look beyond ourselves
there's so much sorrow
it's way too late to say
i'll cry tomorrow
each of us must find our truth
it's so long overdue

Even with our differences
there is a place we're all connected
each of us can find each other's love

So for tonight we pray for what we know can be
and on this day we hope for what we still can't see
it's up to us to be the change
and even though this world needs so much more
there's so much to be thankful for

Do You Love Me?

In General Conference and yesterday at a missionary training meeting, I learned about the importance of showing our Savior how much we love Him.

In Elder Holland's memorable talk, "The First Great Commandment," Elder Holland recounts the history of the apostles who returned to fishing after the Savior left the earth, and His appearance to them on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus taught them that they were to continue to feed His sheep if they truly did love Him. Elder Holland stated, "So we have neighbors to bless, children to protect, the poor to lift up, and the truth to defend. We have wrongs to make right, truths to share, and good to do. In short, we have a life of devoted discipleship to give in demonstrating our love of the the Lord. We can't quit and we can't go back. After an encounter with the living Son of the living God, nothing is ever again to be as it was before. The Crucifixion, Atonement, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ mark the beginning of a Christian life, not the end of it."

Like many others, this talk really struck me. The Natural Man wants to be comfortable, to return to the known and familiar, and to be lazy. It's obvious that I can't succumb to the natural man as a missionary, but neither can we as disciples of Jesus Christ!

One of the shortest, simplest, and yet most powerful hymns in our LDS Hymn Book is "Love One Another." Watch and listen to this beautiful arrangement sung at a Priesthood session of General Conference last week.

As I Have Loved You

Love One Another

This New Commandment

Love One Another

By this Shall Men Know

Ye Are My Disciples

If ye Have Love

One to Another.

"Love One Another," LDS Hymns, No. 308

Come, Listen to a Prophet's Voice

Sorry, I've been slacking on sharing the hymns and music of my faith and testimony. General Conference begins in TWO days, and I am so excited! This morning, Sister Hill were studying the commandment, "Follow the Prophet." We read and discussed how truth is always the same, even though the world may change, and that God has always called and ordained prophets to lead His people on the earth. Jesus Christ organized His church with apostles and prophets, who direct the church by revelation.

In these latter-days, The Lord called a prophet once again to lead His Church.  The President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a living prophet. I know this is true.

We must have faith in our prophet and follow His teachings. If we do, we will be blessed. "Those who listen to and follow the counsel of living prophets and apostles will not go astray. The teachings of living prophets provide an anchor of eternal truth in a world of shifting values and help us avoid misery and sorrow. The confusion and strife of the world will not overwhelm us, and we can enjoy the assurance of being in harmony with God’s will" (Preach My Gospel, 75).

What an incredible promise!!  Click here to find out when and where to watch General Conference.

Come, Listen to a Prophet's Voice

"Come, listen to a Prophet's voice, And hear the word of God.

And in the way of truth rejoice, and sing for joy aloud.

We've found the way the prophets went who lived in days of yore.

Another prophet now is sent, this knowledge to restore.

"The gloom of sullen darkness spread Thru earth’s extended space

Is banished by our living Head, And God has shown his face.

Thru erring schemes in days now past The world has gone astray;

Yet Saints of God have found at last The straight and narrow way.

"’Tis not in man they put their trust Nor on his arm rely.

Full well assured, all are accursed Who Jesus Christ deny.

The Savior to his people saith, “Let all my words obey,

And signs shall follow living faith, Down to the latest day.”

"Then heed the words of truth and light That flow from fountains pure.

Yea, keep His law with all thy might Till thine election’s sure,

Till thou shalt hear the holy voice Assure eternal reign,

While joy and cheer attend thy choice, As one who shall obtain."

LDS Hymns, "Come Listen to a Prophet's Voice," No. 21

Be Still

"Be still, and know that I am God." -Psalm 46:10

"Therefore, let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God." -Doctrine and Covenants 101:16

Sometimes we just have to Be Still. We must stop and listen to the quiet, gentle voice of the Holy Ghost teaching us, directing us, or comforting us. (Pictures are of Reelfoot Lake here in Kentucky!)

Be Still, My Soul

"Be Still, my soul: The Lord is on thy side;

With patience bear thy cross of grief or pain.

Leave to thy God to order and provide;

In ev'ry change he faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: Thy best, thy heav'nly Friend

Thru thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

"Be Still my soul: Thy God doth undertake

To guide the future as he has the past.

Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;

All now mysterious shall be bright at last.

Be still, my soul: The waves and winds still know

His voice who ruled them while he dwelt below.

"Be Still, my soul: The hour is hast'ning on

When we shall be forever with the Lord.

When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,

Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.

Be still, my soul: When change and tears are past,

All safe and blessed we shall meet at last."

-Katherina von Chlegel

LDS Hymns, No. 124

Faith is...

Faith is knowing the sun will rise, lighting each new day.
Faith is knowing the Lord will hear my prayers each time I pray.
Faith is like a little seed:
If planted, it will grow.
Faith is a swelling within my heart.
When I do right, I know.

Faith is knowing I lived with God before my mortal birth.
Faith is knowing I can return when my life ends on earth.
Faith is trust in God above;
In Christ, who showed the way.
Faith is strengthened; I feel it grow
Whenever I obey.

LDS Children's Songbook

Faith is the first principle of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To me it so complex, yet so simple. In the Book of Mormon, Faith is defined in this way: "Faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore, if ye have faith, ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true."

I am constantly working on my faith. In the same chapter I just quoted, Alma challenges readers to try an experiment with faith. Plant a little "seed" of faith in your heart: a simple desire to believe. As you see the results of that, it will begin to:

• enlarge your soul 
• enlighten your understanding 
• be delicious to you (Alma 32:38.) 

As you continue to nurture your seed, it will grow into a tree that will produce good fruit. Regardless of where you are in your life, you can always increase your faith. I work towards the day when I have faith to move mountains. (See also: Jacob 4:6, Mormon 8:24)