3 Ways to Know What's True

When teaching Jesus Christ's gospel as a missionary, I soon get the question "how do you know if it's true."  I've come to expect this question and know so well what it can lead to, that I'm rather disappointed if it doesn't come up on it's own.  I've found that these are the three basic things that everyone should be doing to start finding the truth about God's plan and his relationship to us.

3 Ways to know spiritual truth

• Study the doctrine in the Holy Bible and Book of Mormon, as well as the words of modern prophets.
• Live the commandments, to see how they improve and bless your life. John 7:17
• Pray in faith and ask God in the name of Christ, if the message is true. James 1:5-6

What's happened as you've tried these three things?  Can you think of anything else that has helped you to confirm the truth about God's plan for us?

So much to do, so few missionaries to do it.

What examples can you share of where a small group accomplished a great deal with the Lord's help?

Great Blog Badges

This morning after studying in Ezra which was a great example of how important temples should be to us.  The Book of Ezra in the Old Testament accounts how the Jews returned to their homeland to rebuild the temple to the Lord that had previously been destroyed.

And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy, [Ezra 6:16]

In response, I felt like displaying how important the temple is to me and my family in some way on my blog to celebrate a bit.  I admit, going there myself and walking the grounds or serving inside is a better way to show my gratitude for the temple, but I won't be able to go to see the temple at least until Sunday afternoon.  I looked online for a picture of one of my favorite temples and found a great blog with a ton of temple blog badges ready made to put on a blog.  I know it's called "One Cute Blog Blinkies" and that a lot of the badges are just too cutesy for me, but I still found some that were sufficiently manly.  :D
The Washington DC temple has always stood out to me as one of the most beautiful.  I chose it to show on my blog today, and also found a great badge with a quote by President Gordon B Hinckley about books.  See if there's a badge you'd like, especially about the temple.

Doctrine and Covenants 1:37-38

Can anyone guess which language this is?  (Don't cheat and use something like Google Translate)
Here it is in English:

Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.
What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same. [D&C 1:37-38]

It's a great scripture that I sent to a gentleman and a Saint in Slovenia, who chose despite great opposition from family and friends to follow the voice of the prophets and be baptized into Christ's reestablished Church.

The Best We'll Take

God is our Loving Father in heaven.  In his timing, God plans to give us all that we will accept.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?  If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? [Matt 7:7-11]

He has the very best gifts in store for us, and invites us to seek them out so that we will appreciate them when we find them or he presents them to us.  Many have this view that he plans to condemn all but a select few.  The revelations to the prophet Joseph Smith deny this view:

And they who remain shall also be quickened; nevertheless, they shall return again to their own place, to enjoy that which they are willing to receive, because they were not willing to enjoy that which they might have received. For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift? Behold, he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift. [D&C 88:32-33]

God is our Loving Father in heaven and if we are condemned it is because we'd knowingly reject the gift he offers us and stop our own progress.

Christ's Church

Many people today try to argue that Jesus Christ did not establish a church and was merely a great philosopher.  As I help individuals on Mormon.org chat learn about the Lord's reestablished church, it then is often called into question whether he established a church to begin with.
First of all, we learn from the word Christ's apostles chose to use when they translated Christ's teachings to find out something about Christ's Church.  I've learned that in the New Testament, they described it with the word ekklesia.  According to Strong's Bible Concordance, the word ekklesia, means "a calling out, i.e. (concretely) a popular meeting, especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue, or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both):--assembly, church."
It is apparent from this definition, that ekklesia or church in the New Testament was the congregation, assembly or community itself, rather than an administration or building.  That community is lead by Christ [Eph 1:22] and he set up and organized leaders over it:

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; [Eph 4:11-14]

As stated in those verses, those leaders and the organization are there to help us become perfect.  It's a place to teach others [1 Cor 14:19] and care for the needy [1 Tim 5:16].  As long as we are imperfect and struggle with our weaknesses we will still need that organization Christ established to help us through it.
The Church of Christ, guided by his prophets and apostles, properly answers inquiries about the doctrine in a lawful assembly (Acts 19:39), or General Conference as we call it today. It offers strength and support to families and individuals.
Throughout the New Testament, and in his church today, there are many examples that the church is not exactly what many imagine the word church to mean.  Christ's church is a well-organized body of his followers.  I've been in places where the reestablished church was just a few Saints worshiping together in a home or office building.  Despite the circumstances, there was authority, and modern directions passed down from Jesus Christ through his modern Apostles, for administering his sacrament and uplifting one another.

God's Purpose Statement

Wrote this out by hand for a new member of the Church.  This is her favorite scripture, Moses 1:39.