We are Never Alone

At times in life we may feel like we are alone. That no one is there for us or that no one can help us. This is common for a lot of people throughout the world. We all have struggled at some point in our lives with something that seems like we can never get through. We should know that the Lord is going to be with us at all times though. In Romans 8:16 it states "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." What parent would really want to leave their child alone and uncared for?

In each of our lives we will come to point where we will feel alone. There can be many situations for this such as divorce, death, or can even be leaving home at a younger age for school, etc. For some of us this can be the time when are knocked down and feel that we do not have the strength to pick ourselves back up. Donna Hollenbeck talks of her struggle in her talk "With Faith in God, I Am Never Alone" in the February 2012 Ensign. This is one of the things she said, "Today, although I would still prefer to be married, I have come to enjoy the quiet. I listen to the ocean waves and watch the sunset. I literally stop and smell the roses. I listen and act according to the guidance of the Spirit. I am not afraid to be alone because I am not alone as long as I believe in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I see the Spirit of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in most everything I do." We can see by her faith in our Father in Heaven and the relationship that she was able to build with him that she knows without a doubt that she is not and never will be alone.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf gives a great quote about our Heavenly Fathers love for us in his talk “The Love of God” Liahona and Ensign, Nov. 2009

"He loves us because He is filled with an infinite measure of holy, pure, and indescribable love. We are important to God not because of our résumé but because we are His children. He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward, sorrowful, or broken. God’s love is so great that He loves even the proud, the selfish, the arrogant, and the wicked.

“What this means is that, regardless of our current state, there is hope for us. No matter our distress, no matter our sorrow, no matter our mistakes, our infinitely compassionate Heavenly Father desires that we draw near to Him so that He can draw near to us."

I know that we will always have someone to be with us no matter what. Our Father in Heaven loves us way to much to let us suffer and be alone. The more you communicate with Him and open your heart the more you will see the changes and the ability that He has to help you in your time of need.

Enduring it Well

No matter who we are in this life we are going to go through a struggle. We have no idea what kind of trials and struggles that we will go through but we know they are ahead of us. For all of us the out comes of each will be different. The way that we handle each trial can be the biggest influence on how the out come is. If we let the trial run us into the ground the the out come is usually not so good. If we can take the trial and push through it and endure it then we can come out with our head held high and stronger.

 Our Heavenly Father has a plan for each one of us. Sometimes that plan doesn't seem quite fair, or it seems to hard to bare at times. We know that if we can put our trust in our Heavenly Father and his Son that we can achieve anything and get through anything, with their help. Bishop Keith B. McMullin, Second Counsler in the Presiding Bishopric, gives a great quote in the May 2010 Ensign talk labeled "Our Path of Duty."

"For those who eschew evil and live good lives, who strive for a brighter day and keep the commandments of God, things can get better and better even in the face of tragedy. The Savior showed us the way. From Gethsemane, the cross, and the tomb, He rose triumphant, bringing life and hope to us all. He bids us, 'Come, follow me' (Luke 18:22)."President Thomas S. Monson has counseled: 'If we are to walk with head held high, we must make our contribution to life. If we are to fulfill our destiny and return to live with our Father in Heaven, we must keep His commandments and pattern our lives after the Savior. By so doing, we will not only achieve our goal of eternal life, but we will also leave the world richer and better than it would have been had we not lived and performed our duties' (Thomas S. Monson, used with permission)."

We can see how Bishop Keith put enduring into perspective. I love how is says, "strive for a brighter day as well as keep the commandments of God." It doesn't only say keep the commandments, but hope that things will get better. The Saviour put the path before us to follow. All we have to do is try our best and do all we can and then he will help us with the rest.

Our Best Friend, The Holy Ghost

The Holy Ghost. There is so much that we can say about the Holy Ghost but I'm going to stick to a few topics today! We know that after we are baptized by immersion that we need to have the gift of the Holy Ghost given to us by someone holding the proper authority from God. The confirmation of the Holy Ghost is what completes the baptism. We see an example of this in Acts 19: 3-6

           

       3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto ^aJohn’s baptism 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of ^arepentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.  5 When they heard this, they were ^abaptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.  6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with ^atongues, and prophesied.

We see that Paul, an Apostle of the Lord, held the authority to act in God's name and he conferred the gift of the Holy Ghost unto them.  Those who receive the gift of the Holy Ghost and remain worthy will enjoy His companionship throughout their lives. The Holy Ghost testifies of Christ and helps us recognize the truth. He provides spiritual strength and helps us do what our Heavenly Father would want us to. The Holy Ghost can comfort us when we are weak and in a tuff patch in life. I love how even Christ told us about this in John 14: 16 that says, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another ^aComforter, that he may ^babide with you for ever." So we know that we can have this second comforter to be with us and to help us in times of need. I know that as we strive to do what is right and to come closer to our Father in heaven and his son Jesus Christ that we will have the Holy Ghost to be with us at all times. To lead us to the things he would have us do and to protect us from the harms of the world. May we all live worthy to have him abide with us.