Take a deep breath. Exhale. Now another deeper breath. Exhale slowly. Open your imagination.
The sun is creeping up the sky in the early morning hours and you find yourself in a lush green forest full of wild flowers, exotic animals, crystal clear springs, and hundred-foot redwoods. You see that it's springtime as new life can be seen everywhere, and then it suddenly changes to fall and the leaves change into a myriad of autumn hues.
You find your way out of the forest and onto a sparkling white beach that tucks its edge into the vast ocean where the waves are crashing and the water reflects the brilliant blue of the sky above. Then you turn and see a majestic mountain that extends confidently up towards the sky. Maybe you see it capped with white blankets of snow, or maybe it's covered in rich green foliage. For those of you who aren't afraid of heights, imagine you are now at the peak of this mountain looking down the other side into a beautiful valley full of blossoming wild flowers and still sapphire lakes. Perhaps you can see a pastel rainbow stretching itself over the lake.
And then things grow dim as night comes on and you lay down to watch the sun set beyond the mountain and the stars become visible, freckling the night sky. And you just lie there watching the stars and maybe trying to find a few constellations.
Now open your eyes.
Did you feel any sense of awe for all of God's amazing creations? Are they not the most incredible things in the world? The answer is no, they are not. They are not, and they cannot be because you exist. Because you are the most incredible creation of God. Neither the deepest ocean nor the bluest sky can hold a candle to the fire that you represent, not even in your Telestial form.
I first thought of this early on in the semester as I was sitting in church. I was looking out the window as snow began to fall (I know, I have a hard time focusing sometimes). But I love it when the snow falls. I sort of think of it as my own miracle because I can stand in it and feel so sure that I know what the sound of silence is. In one of my old apartments I used to walk home at night in the snow and the street lamps would reflect off the snow and the snow just glittered. I called it 'poor man's diamonds', and I thought it was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen.
But on that Sunday, as I looked out the window and saw my little miracle, I realized something. The snow and stars may glitter like diamonds and the veins in the mountains may carry gold, but your veins flow with blood, and that's priced far above diamonds, and for those of you who don't believe that, you need to more than anyone else.
Furthermore, your souls are priced even higher than that blood. They are priced at the blood of the Savior. While I feel awe at the natural wonders of the world, I feel so much more at the thought of what Christ did for me, and for all of you. He suffered in a way we cannot imagine. He could retain His life in His tortured body long after our souls would have fled the pain and escaped to death. And while His strength to do that and His love to do that for me amazes me, there is such beauty in remembering what happened after that: He came back. He came back and He completed His work that we might all have a chance to become as He is.
That is Christ's message to us. To learn how we may become as Him. Kathleen Hughes spoke of the story of the woman at the well and Christ's message to her about living water. That living water, which we can drink of and never thirst again, will be a well of water within us. It nourishes, sustains and heals us. You can receive of this blessing with the Holy Ghost as the communicator, but until you drink of it, the knowledge of the blessing can do nothing for you. It is Christ's healing power.
There are so many monsters in this world; war, divorce, cancer, depression. Some of them are out of our control, and some of them are not, but no matter what the problems are that discourage our joy, Christ has given His promise to come unto all who are heavy laden. Please don't believe you are some kind of exception and sacrifice this wonderful gift. Paraphrasing some of what Hughes said: "We are never left to our own resources, we are never abandoned. If we listen in trust, we will be raised, healed, and we can love life. A well spring is a flowing well that offers continuous refreshment. Those who drink deeply become whole and will become a fountain to others.
Morgan was a friend of mine from my previous congregation. We were never really tight, just friends in the congregation, but from the first moments of knowing him, I knew he was the kind of person who sought to be a fountain to others. Many would have jokingly referred to him as a 'menace to society,' as he was nearing thirty and still single. But he had such a passion for life about him. he taught the Sunday School class, and teaching was what he truly loved to do. But come talent show time, he was crazier than anyone. He could make anyone smile in one sentence or less, and was interested in everyone. Just over a week ago, Morgan died. From hearing the details of his car accident, and his condition afterwards, I pray he was not conscious for any of it. He did survive, however and was life-lighted to a hospital. His family came in tears and in prayer. This family had already lost a father and another son. How could something like this happen again? Morgan laid there for over thirty hours on life support. As a close friend of the family, Neil A. Maxwell came and gave Morgan a blessing in which Morgan was blessed with a releasing of his spirit. Friday morning at 9:15am, life support was shut down, and Morgan peacefully drifted away from this world.
Troy called me Friday night, knowing that I had lived in that congregation before and that I would know Morgan. He told me about the accident and that Morgan, if he survived at all, would be a vegetable. I was so surprised. I didn't even know how to react to such a thing. The first thoughts that came to my mind were, "His spirit is too great to be caged in a body that could do nothing. Heavenly Father, if that is all he has a chance at, release him from mortality." I felt a little guilty when I thought that. I had no right to wish this family's son away from them, but I didn't want to imagine Morgan any other way than the way he was. Shortly after I got off the phone with Troy, I called Megan who is currently in that congregation. She told me Morgan had passed that morning, and as we talked, I told her, "I'm not sorry for him; I'm sorry for the world that will miss out on him." Megan and I agreed that Morgan would be God's newest powerhouse addition to the missionary work on the other side of the veil. Morgan had the gift of being a fountain to others, and he had that gift because he had drunk from the living water of Christ's gospel and sought to share it with others. His wonderful attitude gave him the power to nourish those around him.
Again paraphrasing from Hughes, "Your inner spring can strengthen others. That spring is a gift of Christ. Christ said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you...let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Turmoil is raging in the economy, in families...these are 'perilous times' as Gordon B. Hinckley would say, but the living water still offers joy and peace. Righteousness can give us confidence. "Be still, and know that I am God." In the midst of chaos, pause and listen for the Spirit, as did the early saints. There is cause for concern but greater reason to be at peace. The woman at the well looked at Christ and heard His voice. She recognized Him when the others rejected Him. We can know Him. Let in His healing power as a well of everlasting life. Drink from the well of His living water, and find peace. This is my testimony of Christ and His gospel.
The sun is creeping up the sky in the early morning hours and you find yourself in a lush green forest full of wild flowers, exotic animals, crystal clear springs, and hundred-foot redwoods. You see that it's springtime as new life can be seen everywhere, and then it suddenly changes to fall and the leaves change into a myriad of autumn hues.
You find your way out of the forest and onto a sparkling white beach that tucks its edge into the vast ocean where the waves are crashing and the water reflects the brilliant blue of the sky above. Then you turn and see a majestic mountain that extends confidently up towards the sky. Maybe you see it capped with white blankets of snow, or maybe it's covered in rich green foliage. For those of you who aren't afraid of heights, imagine you are now at the peak of this mountain looking down the other side into a beautiful valley full of blossoming wild flowers and still sapphire lakes. Perhaps you can see a pastel rainbow stretching itself over the lake.
And then things grow dim as night comes on and you lay down to watch the sun set beyond the mountain and the stars become visible, freckling the night sky. And you just lie there watching the stars and maybe trying to find a few constellations.
Now open your eyes.
Did you feel any sense of awe for all of God's amazing creations? Are they not the most incredible things in the world? The answer is no, they are not. They are not, and they cannot be because you exist. Because you are the most incredible creation of God. Neither the deepest ocean nor the bluest sky can hold a candle to the fire that you represent, not even in your Telestial form.
I first thought of this early on in the semester as I was sitting in church. I was looking out the window as snow began to fall (I know, I have a hard time focusing sometimes). But I love it when the snow falls. I sort of think of it as my own miracle because I can stand in it and feel so sure that I know what the sound of silence is. In one of my old apartments I used to walk home at night in the snow and the street lamps would reflect off the snow and the snow just glittered. I called it 'poor man's diamonds', and I thought it was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen.
But on that Sunday, as I looked out the window and saw my little miracle, I realized something. The snow and stars may glitter like diamonds and the veins in the mountains may carry gold, but your veins flow with blood, and that's priced far above diamonds, and for those of you who don't believe that, you need to more than anyone else.
Furthermore, your souls are priced even higher than that blood. They are priced at the blood of the Savior. While I feel awe at the natural wonders of the world, I feel so much more at the thought of what Christ did for me, and for all of you. He suffered in a way we cannot imagine. He could retain His life in His tortured body long after our souls would have fled the pain and escaped to death. And while His strength to do that and His love to do that for me amazes me, there is such beauty in remembering what happened after that: He came back. He came back and He completed His work that we might all have a chance to become as He is.
That is Christ's message to us. To learn how we may become as Him. Kathleen Hughes spoke of the story of the woman at the well and Christ's message to her about living water. That living water, which we can drink of and never thirst again, will be a well of water within us. It nourishes, sustains and heals us. You can receive of this blessing with the Holy Ghost as the communicator, but until you drink of it, the knowledge of the blessing can do nothing for you. It is Christ's healing power.
There are so many monsters in this world; war, divorce, cancer, depression. Some of them are out of our control, and some of them are not, but no matter what the problems are that discourage our joy, Christ has given His promise to come unto all who are heavy laden. Please don't believe you are some kind of exception and sacrifice this wonderful gift. Paraphrasing some of what Hughes said: "We are never left to our own resources, we are never abandoned. If we listen in trust, we will be raised, healed, and we can love life. A well spring is a flowing well that offers continuous refreshment. Those who drink deeply become whole and will become a fountain to others.
Morgan was a friend of mine from my previous congregation. We were never really tight, just friends in the congregation, but from the first moments of knowing him, I knew he was the kind of person who sought to be a fountain to others. Many would have jokingly referred to him as a 'menace to society,' as he was nearing thirty and still single. But he had such a passion for life about him. he taught the Sunday School class, and teaching was what he truly loved to do. But come talent show time, he was crazier than anyone. He could make anyone smile in one sentence or less, and was interested in everyone. Just over a week ago, Morgan died. From hearing the details of his car accident, and his condition afterwards, I pray he was not conscious for any of it. He did survive, however and was life-lighted to a hospital. His family came in tears and in prayer. This family had already lost a father and another son. How could something like this happen again? Morgan laid there for over thirty hours on life support. As a close friend of the family, Neil A. Maxwell came and gave Morgan a blessing in which Morgan was blessed with a releasing of his spirit. Friday morning at 9:15am, life support was shut down, and Morgan peacefully drifted away from this world.
Troy called me Friday night, knowing that I had lived in that congregation before and that I would know Morgan. He told me about the accident and that Morgan, if he survived at all, would be a vegetable. I was so surprised. I didn't even know how to react to such a thing. The first thoughts that came to my mind were, "His spirit is too great to be caged in a body that could do nothing. Heavenly Father, if that is all he has a chance at, release him from mortality." I felt a little guilty when I thought that. I had no right to wish this family's son away from them, but I didn't want to imagine Morgan any other way than the way he was. Shortly after I got off the phone with Troy, I called Megan who is currently in that congregation. She told me Morgan had passed that morning, and as we talked, I told her, "I'm not sorry for him; I'm sorry for the world that will miss out on him." Megan and I agreed that Morgan would be God's newest powerhouse addition to the missionary work on the other side of the veil. Morgan had the gift of being a fountain to others, and he had that gift because he had drunk from the living water of Christ's gospel and sought to share it with others. His wonderful attitude gave him the power to nourish those around him.
Again paraphrasing from Hughes, "Your inner spring can strengthen others. That spring is a gift of Christ. Christ said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you...let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Turmoil is raging in the economy, in families...these are 'perilous times' as Gordon B. Hinckley would say, but the living water still offers joy and peace. Righteousness can give us confidence. "Be still, and know that I am God." In the midst of chaos, pause and listen for the Spirit, as did the early saints. There is cause for concern but greater reason to be at peace. The woman at the well looked at Christ and heard His voice. She recognized Him when the others rejected Him. We can know Him. Let in His healing power as a well of everlasting life. Drink from the well of His living water, and find peace. This is my testimony of Christ and His gospel.
