Part #3 The end... Or is it the beginning?...

The end... or is it really the beginning?...

Now we come to the close of the plan of salvation best part is that it isn't a closing but a beginning. The beginning of eternity starts right here with the the death of our mortal bodies. Our body stays here on earth and our spirit goes to a place that is called the spirit world.

The Spirit World:

The spirit world is a place broken down for those who have and have not received Jesus Christ and the commandments of Heavenly Father in their life. One part of spirit world is spirit prison, and one part is spirit paradise. The best part about spirit world is that we continue to learn and grow 

6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
(1 Peter 4:6)

Heavenly Father loves us so much that we get more chances to accept Jesus Christ and his gospel and return home. Jesus Christ himself went and taught to those in spirit prison:

19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; (1 Peter 3:19)

For those who chose right while on this earth and chose to receive Jesus Christ through covenants or promises like baptism, and chose to use the atonement in their lives will help teach those in the spirit prison. No matter what all will receive the chance to learn and the opportunity to receive Jesus Christ in their lives.

Resurrection:

So is that it? Do we just chill here and learn forever? Nope we continue to learn and grow until Jesus Christ returns to the earth. When he comes again we will all be resurrected. Alma 40:23 says it best:

23 The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame.

How cool is that? We will be restored to a perfect form, all aches, pains, sickness, mental illness, deformities, etc. All will be restored to perfection. Who receives this wonderful gift of resurrection? No matter who you are or what you did we will all be resurrected, that is our gift given for choosing to come to this earth. That is part of our promise when Jesus Christ atoned and opened the door through his own resurrection. By grace we will all be resurrected and be brought forth to stand in the presence of Heavenly Father to be judged according to their works... 

The Judgement:

Revelations 20:12:

 12 And I saw the ^adead, small and great, ^bstand before God; and the ^cbooks were opened: and another book was opened, which isthe ^dbook of life: and the dead were ^ejudged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their ^fworks.


I know that Heavenly Father is a perfect judge and he has a perfect plan where we all will be judged perfectly. We will be judged according to how we lived in this mortal life and how we accepted the Atonement of Jesus Christ and his gospel in our lives. When it says according to their works, we believe that faith and works are important. Not that only works will save you but when you are truly converted to Jesus Christ and his gospel you automatically have good works."By their fruits ye shall know them," so it's by works which are brought by faith that we will be held accountable. 

Kingdoms of glory:

We know that God loves us so much he didn't just make one heaven for us to go to, he made three!!! Yup we believe in three heavens or degrees of glory. The Celestial kingdom, the Terrestrial Kingdom and Telestial Kingdom.






Celestial kingdom:

The Celestial kingdom is the greatest of all! It is compared to the glory of the Sun! That is where we live with our Heavenly Father for time and all eternity. Not just alone but with our families! We believe that families can truly be together forever! Those who inherit the Celestial kingdom are those who chose to use the Atonement in their lives and have chosen to make special promises with God like baptism. The Celestial Kingdom is where we all aim to be! It is beyond what anyone can image in greatness and wonder! I will do all in my power to go here! 





Terrestrial Kingdom:

This kingdom is lower than the Celestial Kingdom, it is comparable to the glory of the moon. This is for those who are good people and love and accept Jesus Christ but chose not to fully use his Atonement, those who also chose not to make those promises with God. It is still beautiful and wonderful but not quite as good as it could be! 


Telestial Kingdom:

The Telestial Kingdom is compared to the glory of the stars. It is still a glory but it is the lowest of the three and it is for those who don't repent and don't choose to follow the example of Jesus Christ.





I know that this was kind of brief and a lot of information but it is my favorite thing in the whole world to share. This plan gives me so much purpose and so much happiness! It shows to me the mercy our Heavenly Father has for us. He loves us so much he created a perfect plan to help us to return home. He sent his Son Jesus Christ to Atone for our sins and he gives us so many chances to repent and come unto him. I have experienced the pains of loss, I have felt the depression and stress if life and it it through this wonderful plan that I find peace and the desire to "keep moving forward." I invite you all to ask questions about Heavenly Father's plan for you and I invite you to pray and ask if it is true! I know with every part of me that this is true. I know my Heavenly Father knows me perfectly, I know that this is a small moment of time and there is so much to look forward to. Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope you will ask questions! Love you all and have a magical day!! 

 14 And the great God has had mercy on us, and made these things known unto us that we might not perish; yea, and he has made these things known unto us beforehand, because he loveth oursouls as well as he loveth our children; therefore, in his mercy he doth visit us by his angels, that the ^bplan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations. Alma 24:14

Part #2 The Atonement...

Part two of the Plan of Salvation consists to the very center of the plan of salvation. The event that allows us to repent and allows us to fulfill our purpose, "to prepare to live with God" thus fulfilling the purpose of our Heavenly Father, "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39) this event makes it all fit together into a truly perfect plan.

This event was discussed in the premortal, back when we lived with Heavenly Father before we came. When Heavenly Father created the plan of salvation he knew we would fall, he knew we would sin and make mistakes and he knew we would die. So he provided us a Savior. His only begotten son Jesus Christ who said yes to the job because of his love for us and his love for his father. 

This event is The atonement. The atonement is key because it satisfies those demands for justice upon those of us who make mistakes. I love the atonement with all my heart. When I decided to serve a mission I decided one of my goals was to understand the atonement more. Well my friends asked and received, I know I can never fully understand the atonement and I still have yet a long way to go, everyday I feel one step closer to understanding and closer to my Savior. 

So what is the Atonement? The atonement is the sacrifice given by Jesus Christ. The atonement does not just include his dying on the cross but also his suffering in the garden if Gethsemane, his sacrifice was sealed when we was resurrected and broke the bands of death. Let's first go to the garden I want to share three accounts in the gospels of this sometimes forgotten but oh so powerful moment. While Christ prayed in the garden that is where he experienced and took upon himself everything you and I have ever felt... 

Matthew:

38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. (Matthew 26:38-39)

42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

44 And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. (Matthew 26:42-44)

Mark

35 And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.

36 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.Mark 14:35-36)

Luke

41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. (Luke 22:41-44)

I think sometimes we forget the what happened in the garden of Gethsemane. That time in the garden was pivotal to the whole life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. It is said that he bled from every poor at the pain he felt. That is where the true atonement lies, not just in his death. The events of the garden, the death and the resurrection provided a perfect atonement whereby the demands of justice would be satisfied and the bands of death broken.

I think a lot of times I have forgotten that the Atonement was made for more than just sin, sometimes I forget that he does know it all, that he looked into each one of our eyes and into our lives and saw everything we would go through, he felt it all. He knows what it feels like to be in physical and mental pain, he knows the guilt when we have sinned, he knows the loss when someone passes on or leaves... He knows...

He pleads that we come to him, the thing is he made this infinite Atonement it's all there and it's all waiting for us, we just have to receive. Receive, now that is a cool word... Hey and it's an action word too... Like another that I am thinking of.... Oh yah, faith! Both action words when combined with repentance and submission make an awesome act of receiving. It is through faith that we desire to repent and submit to The Lord... Through repentance and submission we receive the blessings of the atonement. 

The atonement is there for us to receive and the more we put our faith into action the more we become like the savior. So I want you to ask yourself if you are using the atonement in your life as much as you should? Are you allowing it to truly change you and heal you? Are you following the example that our wonderful Savior set forth? Are you fulfilling your purpose to prepare to live with God again? 

I testify to you that it does bring healing for all situations. I have felt and seen it. No matter what you are going through right now, no matter how bad it hurts, no matter how guilty you feel. There is someone out there who knows your pain. He knows you perfectly and he knows the comfort you desire. So please turn to him and receive this precious gift, this gift that will lead you to eternal happiness and eternal peace. Receive the atonement of our savior Jesus Christ and I promise you that you will find the joy and peace you desire. 

To be continued...

What? Why? Who? Big questions... Answered! Part #1

Heavenly Father's plan of Salvation! 

This week I have been thinking a lot about Out Heavenly Fathers plan
for us. 
The plan of happiness, plan of redemption, the plan of salvation... etc...

This is what we as members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believe about life after death, this plan is what answers so many of life's BIG questions for us; where did we come from? Why are we here? Where are we going? Is there more after this life? I love this plan so much and I decided to make it a series...

 

Where did we come from??

Before any questions get answered we have to know that God is indeed our loving Heavenly Father. He created this plan so that we could in the end be happy. He knew that we needed this mortal experience in order to become like him and in order to reach our full potential.

16 The Spirit itself beareth ^awitness with our ^bspirit, that we arethe ^cchildren of God: 

 17 And if children, then heirs; ^aheirs of God, and joint-heirs withChrist; if so be that we ^bsuffer with him, that we may be alsoglorified together. (Romans 8:16-17)

We all lived with our Heavenly Father in the premortal before we even came to this earth. We lived there together as spirits with personality and agency. Okay what in the world is Agency? Well, Agency is a key part to our Heavenly Father's plan. It is his gift to us to be able to choose for ourselves. He will never allow that to be taken from us. That is why this plan is so wonderful! We got to choose for ourselves!!

"Wherefore, men are ^afree according to the ^bflesh; and ^callthings are ^dgiven them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to ^echoose ^fliberty and eternal ^glife, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be ^hmiserable like unto himself." (2 Nephi 2:27)

While we lived in the premortal life we desired to become like our Heavenly Father. He created this plan for us, he sent his son Jesus Christ to create a beautiful place called earth where we could live and gain the experience needed to return home again. When this beautiful earth was created we all watched and waited, eager to experience life, but first our Heavenly Father would send two of his children to get things going, Adam and Eve were the first of our brothers and sisters to venture out to this new world with this new body. We know the story, they came and God gave them commandments. One of which was broken when they chose to eat the forbidden fruit. All is not lost, in fact it is only beginning...

 

"Adam fell that men might be, men are that they might have joy." (2Nephi 2:25) 

 

Due to the fall of Adam and Eve we were able

to come to earth and to obtain mortal bodies. We all made the choice to follow this plan that is why we are here, we chose to come and gain bodies and gain the experiences that would make it possible to return home!

So here's another age old question:

why are we here? 
What is the purpose

of life?
 (Okay that was two).

Seriously though, life is tough, there

are trials and hard times, stress and depression, pain and death...

Why would a loving God let this all happen?

Well let me see if I can shed a little light to the darkness. First let us touch on our purpose:

"For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God;

yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their

labors." (Alma 34:32)

We are here to prepare to return home to our father in heaven, not just to return as we were before but as we have become through the experiences we could only live here in mortality. We are here to learn, grow, make mistakes, etc. hold on though cause "no unclean thing can dwell in the presence of God." Okay Sister Egbert how does that work? Well, Heavenly Father knew we would make mistakes, he knew we would commit sin. So he provided a Savior for us, someone to volunteer to come and take upon himself all the sins of mortal man,

someone to pay the price for justice.

That Savior is our own brother and the only begotten of out Heavenly Father; Jesus Christ. Before we even came to this earth he volunteered as the sacrifice for sin to satisfy the hungry demands for justice. He came and he suffered what we refer to as the Atonement. The Atonement doesn't just include his death on the cross but also his suffering in the garden of Gethsemane. 

To be continued....

 

I knew it... I am a princess!!!!!

I am a child of God....

We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ,

and in the Holy Ghost. (Article of Faith 1)

All my life I dreamed of being a princess. Ever since I was very small I dressed up in the most beautiful nightgowns with the most beautiful crowns of card board with my prince Phantom at me side (silly puppy), ready to fight the evil bad guys who always wanted to capture the beautiful princess (me). These games of fun and imagination only seem like a story in the head of a child, and guess what they are, BUT they are also all true. I am a princess, I am beautiful because I am a daughter of God... 

As I have been reading through the the Bible and the Book of Mormon, I have been struck recently to share my love for just about the most basic doctrine of the entire Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. In fact this is one of the very first things we as

missionaries share with people when we share our message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. That is that God is in fact our loving Heavenly Father. A beautiful simple truth that defines so much of what we are and what sets us apart from other religions.

Something that sets us as apart from other religions is that we believe that God is our loving Heavenly Father and that he wants us to be happy. We believe in what we call the Godhead. We do not believe that God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are one being but that they are three separate beings, but one in purpose.

When Jesus Christ was baptized in the river Jordan there was a separate voice from heaven that proclaimed "This is my beloved son in

whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17) The Holy Ghost descended separately as a

dove.

When Stephen was killed in Acts 7 he felt the Holy Ghost as he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ standing on his right right hand...

"55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand

of God,

56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God."(Acts 7:55-56)

In 1820 a young fourteen year old Joseph Smith knelt and prayed to

know what church to join he was visited by two separate personages.

God the father and his son Jesus Christ. He said:

"I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me..... When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness

and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other--This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" 

(Joseph Smith--History:16-17)

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, Two different people, two different

bodies, two different personalities but one in purpose. That purpose "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:29) Through that purpose they restored the church of Jesus Christ on the earth with the same priesthood power that the prophets and apostles of old had, the same power that Jesus Christ himself  was baptized and the same he used to preform miracles and his Atonement for us.

I know with all my heart that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and the

Holy Ghost are three separate beings with one eternal purpose. I know that when Jesus Christ offered up prayers of joy, sorrow, intersession, thanks, etc. it was to his loving Heavenly Father and not just to himself. I love this thought and the testimony in me that

I can have a relationship with three eternal beings they are truly my best friends.

As I have gone through life and had different experiences I have come closer to these divine friends. They have kept me going through all of the hardships and trials of life. It is through this knowledge that I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for us and there is so much more. Jesus Christ is central to this plan His infinite Atonement makes it possible for us to return home. There are many bad guys that will continue to try and tell us that we are nothing that we aren't princesses or princes, that you are not divine. As I grew up people tried to crush my childlike imagination but just like with my childhood games the bad guy never wins and the good king always wins in the end. 

We are all children of God and divine heirs to his kingdom, we are princes and princesses in a literal sense, we are all beautiful and loved by a dear father. I know that these things are true and that your Heavenly Father loves you. We are our fathers greatest creation, his greatest glory. I know that we are created for greatness so let us all do everything in our power to live in this royal name as a "child of God"... Let us live to be all our Heavenly Father expects of us. This is so special to me and I treasure this royal knowledge, God is my loving Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ is in fact his son and my big brother and the spirit the Holy Ghost is my companion to testify in my heart and mind that these things are true. 

16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the

children of God:

17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with

Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also

glorified together.  (Romans 8:16-17)

Love y'all and have a magical day!