Being a mini Christ

Everyone goes through hard times. There is always some sort of struggle in everyone's life, even if it's not very visible. Sometimes, things are much harder than other times.
I know I'm guilty of this, but when things get harder I'm always on my knees praying more, reading scriptures more, and trying to be everything I can to get the blessings to come.
What I forget is that when I am comforted and feel peace, I need to be going out to help other people who are struggling.
In II Corinthians Chapter 1, verse 4 is says, "Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
This brings me reassurance. It doesn't say He will comfort us after our tribulations, it says that He will comfort is in (during) our tribulations.

Sometimes it feels like eternities while we are in the midst of our trials. Sometimes they seem to disappear in the matter of an instance.
Do you ever wonder why God comforts us? Well, first of all He loves us. He loves us so much that He wants us to be happy and tries to guide us to the happiness He has planned out for us.
But He also comforts us so that we can help others.
He wants us to spread your comfort and happiness with others, and that's hard to do when you're in your own dismal state.
In a way, He is making a small extension of Himself within you by giving you the capability to help others.
That's pretty cool!

I have a personal experience with this. For a few weeks I had this constant anxiety and was feeling pretty alone. I felt like I was being abandoned by people that I cared about, and it was making me hurt deep down inside. It was like a constant ache in my body and it consumed most of my thoughts.

One day, I went to the temple while this thought was on my mind. It began with the usual pit in my stomach and an overwhelming feeling of loneliness grew inside of me. I closed my eyes and began to pray, even beg, for this to be taken away from me. I needed to be feel okay again, even if it was just for a moment.
Then, an overwhelming feeling of unconditional love washed over me like a wave. I had never felt such an increase of peace in one single moment. The thought then came to mind, "I will never abandon you"
And then I knew that I would be okay. People are going to fail you, but Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ can always be counted on. They are not going to leave you, even if everyone else does.
It was as if everything I had been depressed about disappeared, and I had a new light was shining within me.
This feeling of peace made me a happier person. I spent more time talking through other people's problems. I was able to listen to others without being consumed by my own thoughts. I felt more able to be with other people, instead of staying shut away in my room. My mind was cleared so I could see what things needed to be done around my apartment without grumbling. I became an encouragement to other people.
I'm happier than I have been in months. I'm not saying I don't struggle anymore, I do, but they are only brief moments. If I keep my main focus on helping other people, I know I'll be comforted so I can keep aiding His other children on earth, and that's what matters.

Don't forget to be awesome!

To be a "Y's" man is to be a wise man

I never thought I'd be the typical blogging Mormon, yet, here I am. I'm beginning my Sophomore year at BYU. It has already been a whirlwind of crazy adventures and learning opportunities. This year I am taking New Testament for my religion class. As part of it, we are required to write a reflection each week of something we have learned. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to put those writing/thoughts onto my blog. So, here ya go :) 

This week we celebrated Christmas as we studied the birth of Christ. I love the story of Christ’s birth, but more in particular, the story of Mary and Joseph.  The amount of faith that Mary had to have after being told that she would be in charge of the life of the Son of God, would be incomprehensible. Could you imagine being told as a very young virgin, that not only were you going to have a baby, but a baby that would be the redeemer of all mankind? The pressure would have overwhelmed me, as I would suspect it would for most of us. Luke 2:19 says, “But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.” Ponder in the footnotes means to study, pray, and meditate. What an example Mary is to us. When the impossible happened, she turned more unto the Lord for guidance. On the other account, Joseph would have had to have an incredibly compassionate heart to obey the Lord’s command and go to Mary. Put in his shoes, I would have so many doubts. How could this even be possible? I would like to testify that the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves. He will qualify us in whatever we are called to do. Whether that is be a Primary teacher, a Bishop, the parents of a disabled child, or even a student, he guide us with angels on our left and our right, as long as we put our faith in Him first.

My professor, Brother Griffin, made this really great analogy of the wise men. As students of BYU we are all “Y’s” men. For us, it is not enough for us to hear about God, we need to earnestly seek him as the wise men did. Like the wise men, we offer him gifts. Not expensive physical gifts as the wise men did, but expensive spiritual gifts of a broken heart and contrite spirit.  With the title of being a “Y’s” man, we are the wise men of today. What an amazing comparison!

In closure, I’d like to leave you with my favorite scripture from this week. Luke 2:52 says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” If you pay attention to this verse, he progressed in four different areas: wisdom, stature, God and man. In other words, he is expanding his mind (intelligence), body (physically), spiritually (God) and socially (family/friends). Is this not the areas we are to better ourselves in as well? What a perfect example for us to follow. If we are to become like Him, this verse gives us a basic outline of what we are to do.