I had an interesting thought recently. That thought was, do I want to be like Jesus Christ? What makes me want to be like Jesus Christ? Why do I want to be like Jesus Christ? What about Him makes me want to be like Him? Do others want to be like Christ? Do I know the attributes of Christ well enough to be confident I want to be like Him? Do others know Him well enough to want to be like Him?
We hear so often in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that we’re working to become like Jesus Christ. We have a children’s song (near and dear to my own heart) titled, “I’m trying to be like Jesus.”
Why?
When we say we want to eventually be like Him, do we know what He was/is like?
Recently I was playing pickup basketball at a church. It was relatively competitive. Those who know me well know how seriously I take basketball. There was one girl playing that wasn’t super competitive. She’d come the past few weeks and she somewhat lowered the level of basketball that was able to be played.
We were all, of course, nice to her. But some showed their frurstration in the level of basketball, I might have been one of them.
This last time I played I decided I was going to have this girl on my team. I decided, not only was I going to have this person on my team but I was going to pass to her, encourage her, cheer for her, and we were still going to win. The level of competition was such that, despite it being “somewhat” competitive, those were all realistic goals.
After the first game this girl came up to me and meekly asked if there was anything she could do better. So I gave her some pointers –
“If you’re open, shoot. Don’t pass back to us if you’re open,” and some general guidance on defense. She showed marked improvement and I was happy to have her on my team, especially over some athletic guys who could be ball hogs.
Every couple games she would ask me if there was anything she could do better and I continued to give some advice.
At the end of playing I told her how awesome she did that day and her response so, so warmed my heart, “thanks to you.” Such a simple statement.
And in that moment I remembered something. It didn’t matter if we won. It didn’t matter that the game was competitive. Nothing mattered. Except that this person had a fun time, felt welcome, felt loved. Being compassionate and caring was vastly more important than any game of basketball, despite how competive and riled up I can get during competition. I needed that reminder.
I come home from basketball often and feel good, happy. I usually tell Beth stories about what happened. It’s usually about some play I made, how the games went, how many we won and lost.
After that night I came home and told her, “sometimes I need to be reminded how good it feels to be kind to someone.”
Why do I want to be like Jesus? What is it about Him that makes me want to be like Him? What are His traits that I aspire towards?
The answer is in that story.
I felt better after that session of pickup basketball than I had in the last 10 combined. Her gratitude, and seeing someone feel welcome and have fun, was worth 10 game winning shots.
Jesus Christ is all the love. All the caring. All the compassion. All the service. All the joy.
Why do I want to be like Jesus? Because loving others provides the greatest reward I have personally felt in this life. Nothing in this life compares to feelings of love, and the feeling of doing something right.
This is in no way meant as a pat on my back for being a nice person. Jesus Christ is always a nice person, and He only asks that we be like Him in return. How interesting is that, consider it for a moment. Jesus Christ is perfectly selfless and loving to the point that all that He asks of us in return is to be perfectly selfless and loving to others. Is there any purer love than that? He makes this request not for Himself, but for us, all of us. He wants us to be like Him so that others can be happy. All He gets out of it is our joy.
How amazing is that.
I hope I can more and more every day, “try to be like Jesus.”
I had a dream last night. In it I was going down a stream. I had the feeling of leaving civilization for the wilderness. I came to a cliff. I climbed to the top and on the precipice there was a small and shabby tent erected. I went inside and there was an old prophet. I spoke with him.
A new prophet came. The new prophet was well dressed and well-kept, not like the old prophet living in a tiny tent on the edge of a cliff. The new prophet was respected, and I knew he came from a comfortable home. He was well regarded by society and lived comfortably in the world. He was told he had to take the place of the old prophet and live there in the wilderness, in a tent.
When I woke up from this dream, I had a feeling it was important, but I couldn’t figure out why.
What was this dream telling me?
I write down all my dreams. But this one felt important.
Was Russell M. Nelson the new prophet? Was he of the world? Was he flawed? What was the dream telling me?
As I meditated in the morning, I continued to ponder this question. On my drive into the office, I prayed to know if there was something I was supposed to glean from this dream. I asked specifically that if there was something important that I was supposed to learn to please allow my reading for the day to guide my mind to understanding.
I’m in Mosiah chapter 3 and Doctrine and Covenants section 133 respectively in my daily scripture study. A few hours later I was reading verse 71, exactly where I’d left off the day prior, of section 133, which reads:
“Behold, and lo, there are none to deliver you; for ye obeyed not my voice when I called to you out of the heavens; ye believed not my servants, and when they were sent unto you ye received them not.”
Alongside D&C I’m reading a commentary. The commentary for verse 71 said:
Why Are the Prophets Rejected?
President Spencer W. Kimball commented:
“Various excuses have been used over the centuries to dismiss these divine messengers. There has been denial because the prophet came from an obscure place. ‘Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?’ (John 1:46.) Jesus was also met with the question, ‘Is not this the carpenter’s son?’ (Matt. 13:55.) By one means or another, the swiftest method of rejection of the holy prophets has been to find a pretext, however false or absurd, to dismiss the man so that his message could also be dismissed. Prophets who were not glib, but slow of speech, were esteemed as naught.…
“We wonder how often hearers first rejected the prophets because they despised them, and finally despised the prophets even more because they had rejected them. Even so, why else is the record of rejection so complete? The cares of the world are so many and so entangling, even very good people are diverted from following the truth because they care too much for the things of the world.…
“Sometimes people let their hearts get so set upon things and the honors of this world that they cannot learn the lessons they most need to learn. Simple truths are often rejected in favor of the much less-demanding philosophies of men, and this is another cause for the rejection of the prophets.
“But while there are various excuses for rejection, there’s a certain cause for this sad record. It must not be passed over: the cares of the world, the honors of the world, and looking beyond the mark are all determined by a persuasive few who presume to speak for all.…
“The holy prophets have not only refused to follow erroneous human trends, but have pointed out these errors. No wonder the response to the prophets has not always been one of indifference. So often the prophets have been rejected because they first rejected the wrong ways of their own society.
“These excuses for rejection of the prophets are poor excuses. The trouble with using obscurity as a test of validity is that God has so often chosen to bring forth his work out of obscurity. He has even said it would be so. (See D&C 1:30.) Christianity did not go from Rome to Galilee; it was the other way around. In our day the routing is from Palmyra to Paris, not the reverse. Just because something is in our midst does not mean that we have been in the midst of it. We can daily drive by a museum or an art gallery but know nothing of what is inside.
“The trouble with rejection because of personal familiarity with the prophets is that the prophets are always somebody’s son or somebody’s neighbor. They are chosen from among the people, not transported from another planet, dramatic as that would be!…
“Of course, rejection of the holy prophets comes because the hearts of people are hardened, as people are shaped by their society. Yet even when the hardening is swift, it can also be subtle. Who, for instance, a scant twenty years ago would have foreseen the massive use of abortion in society today? Like all the diseased doctrines of the devil, the practice is pleasing unto the carnal mind.
“Prophets have a way of jarring the carnal mind. Too often the holy prophets are wrongly perceived as harsh and as anxious to make a record in order to say, ‘I told you so.’ Those prophets I have known are the most loving of men. It is because of their love and integrity that they cannot modify the Lord’s message merely to make people feel comfortable. They are too kind to be so cruel. I am so grateful that prophets do not crave popularity.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1978, pp. 115–16; or Ensign, May 1978, pp. 76–77.)
It wasn’t until the very end of that statement from Spencer W. Kimball that it hit me, and I remembered – I asked for guidance in what I read today to help with my dream. I dreamed of prophets, now I was reading a long commentary from a prophet about why prophets are rejected.
I thought back on my dream. I had correctly believed that Russell M. Nelson was the “new prophet.” What I incorrectly interpreted was that Russell M. Nelson was “of the world” or wrong in some way. My dream gave me a feeling that he was flawed. That he was attached to the comfortable home and respectful world he lived in.
After reading that comment from Spencer W. Kimball, I realized there was no flaw in Russell M. Nelson.
The attacks on prophets are starting to escalate in our current society. See the recent backlash against Jeffrey R. Holland as an example.
The eternal and correct view of prophets on gender, marriage, and the importance of the family is under attack. Prophets will not deny truth. They will continue to speak truth even as they are rejected by the world.
Nobody embodies a “loving man” more than Jeffrey R. Holland. If you’ve ever watched one of his tear-filled and tear-jerking General Conference addresses, you know that the man emanates love for us, for followers of Jesus Christ and for all of God’s children.
“Those prophets I have known are the most loving of men. It is because of their love and integrity that they cannot modify the Lord’s message merely to make people feel comfortable.”
No statement has ever fit Jeffrey R. Holland more accurately.
I started making connections between my dream and what it was trying to tell me, so I went back and re-read where I was at in Mosiah 3:18, 19 (the verses I read before D&C that day). It reads:
18 “For behold he judgeth, and his judgment is just; and the infant perisheth not that dieth in his infancy; but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.
19 “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”
“And the infant perisheth not that dieth in infancy.”
“but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children.”
“For the natural man is an enemy to God.”
“And becometh as a child.”
“even as a child doth submit to his father.”
“Who, for instance, a scant twenty years ago would have foreseen the massive use of abortion in society today? Like all the diseased doctrines of the devil, the practice is pleasing unto the carnal mind. Prophets have a way of jarring the carnal mind.”
I think my dream was reminding me what I already know to be true. We are in the time where our society has fully rejected the prophets. The attack on them is going to increase. Russell M. Nelson has been a respected heart surgeon, kind, gentle, grandfatherly figure. I believe we are quickly approaching the time that he will be cast into the wilderness and hated by a world that has always hated prophets. I believe this is what my dream was telling me.
Those of us with faith in Jesus Christ and His anointed servants must keep firm in our faith in Him, and in His servants. Don’t be shaken by the attacks on His chosen servants. If you do, your faith in Him (Jesus Christ) can be shaken next. Trust in whom He has chosen. Follow them as you follow Him. The Lord’s prophets will not lead us astray. Russell M. Nelson is the Lord’s anointed and he is our prophet. As the world turns on Jesus Christ’s prophet, we must support and protect him from a world that will hate what he and our Lord stand for.
For more on this topic, I read this blog post that elaborates on the dangers of choosing what we do and do not want to believe from prophets. Click the image below to read the post:
I posted War or Cheesecake Factory two weeks ago about an experience where tone made all the difference. I’d like to share two more examples when tone benefited me with my neighbors.
When my below neighbor got angry with me about a supposed leak that flooded her unit it wasn’t the first time I’d been yelled at by a neighbor about a leak. In fact, the last time I was threatened to be sued. Let me explain.
I had a great relationship with my below neighbors before they sold their place to the current tenant. It was a grandparently relationship. The older gentleman would come over and help with my toilet, etc. We would drop off a card and cookies to them on holidays.
One day they came to me and told they had black mold, and worse, it was my fault. The details don’t matter but basically there was a leak (supposedly) coming from me, they had found it, and they were upset. I communicated with them throughout to help however I could.
This man that had come to feel like a grandpa came up one evening and told me, basically, that there might be a lawsuit with my name on it and he didn’t want me to be caught off guard.
My response you ask?
“Oh, ok,” in a cheery, not at all concerned tone.
This was a combination of meek demeanor and ignorance. It was hours later, sitting on the couch, before it hit me. Oh! They just threatened to sue me.
I don’t know if they ever truly intended to sue me. What I do know is I never heard another word about it. I can only think my ignorance and kind reception at threat of lawsuit dissuaded them from taking that course of action. They fixed the issue on their end and we moved on like that conversation never happened. That neighbor came over multiple times in the future to help with household items, we dropped off cookies and cards multiple other times. Life moved on.
One more neighbor interaction story.
When this current neighbor moved in, my very first interaction was with her and her mom. They were moving stuff in and I introduced myself. I remember her mom jokingly saying, “now my daughter is deaf so you’ll have to yell when you speak to her.”
I don’t think this neighbor is really deaf. Maybe hard of hearing or something like that, she can definitely hear. I think her mom was playfully warning me about her daughter’s music tastes.
As soon as this neighbor moved in the music started. I’m talking, floor shaking, bass moving, beats jumping, party going, music. There weren’t many parties, but many days that sounded like parties. This music could be at any time of the day. Most often around midnight followed by 5 in the morning.
I think the main problem was that her speakers may have been right under our bedroom. Beth was pregnant and sleeping some nights on the couch. I was sleeping on the floor in the nursery some nights. We kept hoping it would stop. It never stopped.
One morning at 6:30am while the party was rocking, I’d had enough. Beth was pregnant and wasn’t sleeping. I constantly fought the urge to go down and yell and freak out. I finally realized I had to talk to the neighbor.
I knocked on her door at 6:30. She creaked the door open, looked at me confused like, “why are you here at 6:30am??” I wanted to say to that face, “why is this music playing at 6:00am?” Instead I said, again, in the kindest, softest (over the music), most meek way I could, “Hey… I just wanted to let you know we can hear the music.”
“What?!”
“Yeah… it kind of feels like our floor is shaking right under our bed. We’ve been having a really difficult time sleeping and you know Beth is pregnant and, just wanted to make sure you knew.”
“It’s not even that loud.”
I looked at her dumbfounded. She could barely hear me through the door with the music on behind her.
“Yeah well we can hear it, again, just wanted to let you know. If you were able to turn it down a little that would help us a whole lot.”
She looked at me annoyed, and I can’t remember what she said. I do remember walking away thinking, now what? Are we going to have to move? We can’t live like this. Clearly she wasn’t going to turn down the music.
We never heard the music again. Literally not one more time.
I think back on that often. We could have had a disastrous start to a neighbor relationship. Our life could have been living hell the past year. If I went down without sleep, angry, and accused her of maliciously keeping my pregnant wife up, who knows what would have happened. I can’t imagine anything good coming from that.
Instead we built rapport. I explained the issue as calm and kind as I could, and hoped for the best. The best came. When that leak happened (see other post), we’d already established a level of respect.
I don’t write this to be like – I’m a great neighbor, check me out. I just want to emphasize that tone and word choice can go a long way. The way we say things makes a big difference. Our mindset when we confront someone is important. If you attack, they attack back, and now we’re at war. Nobody wants war.
When you’re frustrated with someone, take one second and enter their shoes. Why did they frustrate you? Was it malicious? Was it intentional? Is there a chance they are having a bad day too? If we all take a moment to consider the feelings of others, it would change this world. I hope we can all take a moment and show kindness and compassion for those around us. Our country needs it.
One of my favorite scriptures of all time is 2 Nephi 25:26 which reads:
And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophesies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”
A common criticism that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints receives from other sects of Christianity, often Protestant groups, is that the Church teaches works as a form of salvation taking precedence over faith.
As I read the Book of Mormon with this criticism in mind, I’m struck by how clearly the Book of Mormon teaches this principle – that faith in Jesus Christ is the most important thing. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is (as far as I know, open to correction) the only church with an explanation on how faith in Jesus Christ alone can result in being saved.
Saved, or immortality, is different from Eternal life and salvation. All of God’s children who choose to be saved, will be saved, for He loves us all. You can be saved by simply having faith in Jesus Christ, no works needed. To attain all that the Father has to give, eternal life and salvation in His Kingdom for eternity, you must follow Him, and do what He asks of you. For without works faith is dead (James 2:26).
Sometimes I think the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would be benefitted immensely by reading verses 26 and 27 of 2 Nephi chapter 25 every single day. I think if we each did this, it would help us to re-orient ourselves and never lose sight of what is most important – faith in the Lord, or Savior, Jesus Christ.
The below scripture is what I am referring to in the title of this post. This scripture is as important to latter-day saints today as it was to the ancient Jews:
Wherefore, we speak concerning the law that our children may know the deadness of the law; and they, by knowing the deadness of the law, may look forward unto that life which is in Christ, and know for what end the law was given. And after the law is fulfilled in Christ, that they need not harden their hearts against him when the law ought to be done away.”
I believe this scripture to be extremely important to latter-day saints. The ancient Jews lost sight of Jesus Christ. They looked to the law for salvation.
I bear my testimony that I do not believe the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has lost sight of Jesus Christ. His name is the name of our church, His prophet has implored us to use His name, our leaders preach of Jesus Christ, prophesy of Jesus Christ, teach of Jesus Christ, emphasize Jesus Christ. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints points us to Jesus Christ.
It is we, the members, I think, that need to read verse 27 often. What is the law without Jesus Christ? I fear that sometimes church members become focused on the wrong things. Temple attendance for temple attendance’s sake. Church service because it’s their duty. Serving in church callings to keep up appearance as a faithful latter-day saint. Partaking of the sacrament in a rote, mindless manner, not considering what it really means.
I know I am at fault when it comes to some of the things I’ve just listed. Sometimes I lose sight of Jesus Christ. Sometimes I lose sight of what this is all really about.
I’ve been back in church activity for 5 years now. My first couple years of returned church activity were so Christ focused. They were Christ focused because it was all I had. He was all I had. He was my strength, and He was everything. I felt His forgiveness so potently because I’d so recently experienced it with such power. As my church activity has steadied and become consistent, I’ve found myself relying on church activities, social events, friendships, and making my appearance as a faithful member. These things aren’t necessarily bad, but they can be. If they distract from Jesus Christ, they distract from the point. If I get distracted from Jesus Christ, I am missing the mark.
What is the law without faith in He who the law points to?
I think we could all benefit from a consistent study of verse 2 Nephi 25:27.
Why do we do what we do? Is it for love? Is it to serve Jesus Christ? Is it to remember Jesus Christ, worship Jesus Christ, thank Jesus Christ?
When is the last time you thought about all your sins and what Jesus Christ did for you at Gethsemane and on the cross? For me, it’s been far too long since I’ve been brought to tears considering that event. I’m glad I’m writing this because in doing exactly that, remembering what He’s done for me, and feeling it in my heart, tears are inevitable.
Remember why we go to church, the temple, and serve. It’s for Him. Not because we have to but because we want to. Not because it will get us into heaven but because we love Him. Salvation is through Jesus Christ. If we go to the temple 5 days a week without Him in mind, we are wasting our time.
Without Jesus Christ, all of it: temple worship, baptism, sacrament, service; it’s all for naught. All these things point to Him. Without Him as our focus all the items listed above are dead works.
This is the misconception of other faiths, that we go to the temple to substitute for Jesus Christ. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. We go to the temple because of Jesus Christ.
I think every once in a while, it’s important we re-center our focus and remember what it’s all about.
I hope and pray that we continue to steadfastly talk of Christ, rejoice in Christ, preach of Christ, prophesy of Christ, and bring others unto Christ, that we always remember to what source we may look for a remission of our sins.
My favorite calling I’ve ever had was Ward Mission Leader. For those who don’t know, I basically helped the full-time missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in any way I could. Getting to be around missionaries has been one of the greatest blessings in my life. There’s something powerful about being around young men and women that have sacrificed two years in the prime of their life to serve and share about Jesus Christ.
I’ve always loved stories of faith; stories of miracles that occur when full faith and devotion is given to something important. I want to share one of my favorite stories from my time as Ward Mission Leader.
Missionaries do a lot of amazing things; a lot more than just baptize. Simply teaching others about Christ is important. Serving and loving others is important. Being a representative of Jesus Christ is important.
That said, the reason missionaries devote two full years to a mission is the hope to share with someone the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, have it touch that person’s heart, see that person change their life for Christ, and ultimately that person making the decision to be baptized. Like I said, many amazing things can happen before a baptism. But, the decision to be baptized and the blessings that come after are the ultimate goal.
It was for that reason that I decided to set a high bar on a goal as my time as Ward Mission Leader was coming to an end. I was marrying Beth on 6/1/19. At that point I would change wards, the building and group I’d been going to since returning to church, and no longer have the calling of Ward Mission Leader. My greatest hope was that the missionary efforts we had developed as a ward could be continued after I left.
I set a goal in May for there to be three baptisms in the ward in the month of June. For some perspective, in the previous year our ward had two baptisms.
I started fasting and praying. I announced in a stake missionary correlation meeting that the Scottsdale YSA Ward would have 3 baptisms in June.
“That’s awesome! You have three people on date to be baptized?” I was asked.
My response, “No, we don’t have anybody on date.”
The goal was set nonetheless. I had faith that if the missionaries and myself fasted and prayed our hearts out, and did our part, a miracle would happen.
As the month of May progressed things started happening. There were some individuals the missionaries had been meeting with and teaching about the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. There were two in particular that had been meeting with the missionaries regularly.
As we continued to pray with this singular focus in our hearts, one of those individuals committed to being baptized on 6/29. This was amazing!
There was a second person who wanted to be baptized but there was something getting in the way. It was a frustration of mine at the time because that person was worthy to be baptized but a technical requirement wasn’t met. Her living situation caused a problem. Again, fully worthy, but unable to get baptized until her living situation was changed.
On 5/25 it was time to call in faith reinforcements. Up to that point it had been the missionaries, Beth, a couple others, and myself committing our faith to this goal.
I wrote this as a reminder for myself on 5/25:
“I sent a text to ward missionary committee asking them to join fast for miracle three baptisms in June. It was kind of hard to send the text. There were moments that I wondered if I should send it and if sending it was right, if I was saying the right thing. I ended up being somewhat bold saying, “The missionaries and a few of us have been praying for something very specific: 3 individuals to be baptized into the Scottsdale ward in June. There’s a lot of faith in this as when we started there wasn’t a single person on date to be baptized. There is now one person who plans to be baptized on June 29th. The missionaries and I are going to fast and pray for these three individuals to be led to us and for our ward to act when the opportunity comes. I invite each of you, if you’d like, to join us in fasting and praying for this tomorrow. I know that there are three people out there that need the gospel of Jesus Christ and are ready to be baptized. With faith, God will lead these people to us if we are ready to act, and if it’s His will and His plan. Thanks everybody! Love each of you.” Four minutes after sending the text, the missionaries texted me and said that the individual whose living situation was in the way had that issue resolved and just set their date to be baptized for June 8th. So much joy.
What was hard about sending that text was I wasn’t sure if what I was asking for was right. I always wanted to ask things of God only if it was His will. While I know God’s children coming closer to Him is His greatest joy, I worried that my intentions weren’t perfectly aligned with his. That was the doubt that came before I sent the text. I decided to send the text because I wanted to faith away my doubts. That is why I was bold. That is why the immediate text from the missionaries brought me instantly to the most profound joy, followed by tears.
It was a miracle.
I won’t go into details about how the miracle for this person took place. What I will say is this. It was a major frustration for me for some time that this person couldn’t be baptized despite having a sincere desire to do so, and being worthy to do so. A sequence of events took place that led to there being no issue with the baptism taking place. I was so grateful that a worthy individual could enter the waters of baptism and align themselves with Jesus Christ.
Another note to myself that I wrote that day so I wouldn’t forget:
Thinking back on (the issue), I was pretty worked up about it but somehow just moved on. I came to a feeling of peace about it that I didn’t even know was happening. But then it worked itself out, or God worked it out, and I look back and realize He spoke peace to my soul. I can almost hear Him, “Peace, my son. Don’t you know my hand is in these things? Don’t you know I will care for my children? Have faith.”
For those anticipating the miracle third baptism in June- it didn’t happen. In fact, the second one was delayed to July 13th. I think that’s wonderful. I think of it as God’s way of reminding me that my faith is far from perfect. I set an arbitrary goal of June and to keep me humble He had the second baptism occur in July and the third didn’t happen. I’m far from truly aligned with His will. We’re far from being able to work all miracles. But God does watch. He does hear. He does care. In that ward, we had two baptisms the previous 12 months. In the 35 days after I left my favorite calling ever, the ward that saved my life, baptized two new members.
One of those members was recently sealed in the temple.
The first person I had the pleasure of seeing baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while I was Ward Mission Leader got married in the temple 5 months after his baptism.
Casper’s Baptism
Beth and I had the greatest pleasure of hosting 3 former missionaries in our home so we could all go to the wedding together. I remember sitting in the temple, waiting for the sealing. Waiting for Casper and Ashlee, two people that had greatly impacted and strengthened my faith, to be sealed to each other for time and all eternity. I was sitting and thinking.
Elder Dotson, one of the missionaries who had the honor of teaching Casper the Gospel, came and sat by me. He told me, “This is why we baptize people. Baptisms and endowments and all the covenants made are important. But this is what it’s all about. Two people getting sealed in the temple. Starting a family that will be together for eternity. This is why we do what we do. This is what it’s all about.”
I wish everyone could know the joy I’ve felt helping someone find what I’ve found. I wish I could share the joy of seeing two people sealed together for eternity. A love never to be separated. It’s the great plan of our loving Heavenly Father and what we’re here to do. Develop faith. Obtain and nurture an eternal family. Return to Him.
I’m so grateful for His Plan and the small part I get to play in it. There is no greater joy.
No Coincidences 