Seek The Lord Often

Today we had our final New Testament class of the semester. It was an awesome experience to learn about the life of the Savior in depth. As we came to the final verses in the four gospels, I found some interesting occurrences that coordinated with foreshadowing verses in the beginning of Christ's ministry. It seems as if the gospel writers are showing how Christ came full circle. How he, like one of his disciples, "fought a good fight and finished his course." Only his fight was one against death and the very jaws of hell. He came, he experienced it all, and he conquered. He did it for us. Here are some about Christ's birth and death: Luke 2:7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. Mark 15:46 And he bought fine linen and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto

Last week in my New Testament we talked about Christ's suffering for our sins, sorrows and sicknesses in Gethsemane. The subject seemed especially relevant since final projects and tests are starting to pile up. Last week was a very hectic one for me and I was under some pressure. It was comforting to know that Jesus Christ felt perfectly every stressful situation I have gone through, am going through, or will ever go through. Jesus Christ was perfect, but that's not to see he didn't feel at least somewhat apprehensive when he was nearing the time of his ultimate suffering and sacrifice. Brother Griffin made an interesting point when we read Mark 14:32-36 . He pointed out that since Christ was perfect he had never felt the intense guilt and sorrow for sin. He had never even committed a little  sin, let alone feel the collective remorse and bitterness of conscience of the vilest sins of the entire human race. Jesus feels sobered by the immense task of the Atonement that

This last week in my New Testament class we studied the end of Jesus Christ's life and his suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane. In John 17, he gives the great intercessory prayer. There was one particular verse that really stood out to me. Part of verse 24 reads: "Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am..." Christ is likely speaking of  us being with him in his kingdom someday, but when I read it I thought of something more immediate. I thought of the suffering Christ was undergoing in the Garden of Gethsemane and how it is possible he asked for us, his brothers and sisters, to be with him. I love the picture by Carl Bloch that depicts Christ suffering with an angel at his side. It is beautiful to think of all who were relying on and pulling for Jesus in his infinitely important and vital role. I can only imagine how it was for us watching down from the heavens as he suffered for each one of us individually. How must we have fe

This week I'm going to jump into Christ's parable of the talents in Matthew 25. "And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey" (Matt. 25:15) . In the parable of the talents, Christ teaches us some very powerful lessons. He teaches us that we are not all given the same number of talents. God is a just God. Isn't he? Aren't we all equal in his eyes? Why is it that he seems to give some more talents than others? There are a few things I would like to highlight from this scripture. First, the word talent can have many different meanings and applications, but in this post I am going to focus on the Greek word "talenton" which means "weight." Now if we read the scripture, it makes a lot more sense. Heavenly Father gives us weights or responsibilities according to our ability to handle them. At the end of the parable, when the Lord re

This week I am going to combine a scripture from last week with something that Brother Griffin said this week. The scripture is found in Matthew 22. In verse 42, Jesus poses the question, “What think ye of Christ?” This question motivates our actions, for how we act depends on how we view Christ. Who is Christ to you? Is he merely a man? ( C.S. Lewis andTad R. Callister ). Is he a prophet? Or do you view him as your savior? What is his character? What emotions do you feel when you think of him? Do you fear him? Do you feel his mercy? What causes you to feel the way you do about him? I have struggled a lot of my life to feel Christ’s love. I have often seen him as a “hard man” ( Matthew 25:24 ) and felt that if I made a mistake I was not worthy to enter into his kingdom. I saw only the justice side and not the mercy. Stephen E. Robinson, in his book “Believing Christ” talks about how we need to believe that Christ can save us in instead of just believing in him. We need to be

I've been very uplifted this semester as I've had the chance to study the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ in the New Testament. I've felt peace as I've learned from his teachings, example and parables. He invites us to follow him. He leads us. He is truly the good shepherd. I was very touched by the scriptures about Jesus as the Good Shepherd in John 10 . Jesus Christ will never force us to follow him. He is a shepherd. He does not simply herd his sheep. He leads us. Like any good shepherd, he knows his sheep by name and they know him. They follow him because they recognize his voice. No one enters his fold but through him and through making covenants with him. He is the door of the sheepfold. Those who wish to have them as their leader promise to live as he did and invite others to enjoy the same kind of life. He has laid down his life for his sheep and he loves them. He provides protection from the gloom, confusion and evil influences of the world. If being part

We often have challenges that only the Great Healer can fix. Those challenges can be physical or spiritual. Many times we want to tell the Lord when or how we want to be healed. We must remember that the healing takes place in the Lord’s time and in his own way. In Isaiah 55:9, the Lord reminds us, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your way, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Today I wish to focus on the “how” of the healing by referring to one of Christ’s miracles in the New Testament. John 9 recounts the story of Jesus healing a blind man. My professor, Brother Griffin, gave some interesting insight into the “how” of the miracle. Jesus passed by a man who had been blind from birth. He spit on the ground and made clay and anointed the eyes of the blind man. Brother Griffin had us imagine what it must have felt like to be the blind man and hear someone spit right next to you and then shove mud in your eyes. I would personally be a litt

"This is my beloved Son." Many Christians and students of the Bible have heard this phrase numerous times. Every time Heavenly Father presents his son, Jesus Christ, he says these words. We hear the phrase repeated so often in scripture and in discussions, but have we ever stopped to understand its meaning and implication? Heavenly Father didn't just say, "This is my son, Jesus." He emphasized that he was "beloved," meaning he was "greatly loved" or "dear to his heart." Our Father in Heaven taught us something very important. He reminded us how critical it is to let our loved ones know how much we love them in front of others. We may often feel it is prideful or embarrassing to tell people how much we love our family members. It is so easy to forget to express love. President Monson said , " Often we assume that they must  know how much we love them. But we should never assume; we should let them know." Jesus Christ cl

This last week in my New Testament class, we went over the parable of the Good Samaritan. My teacher, Brother Griffin, reminded us that Joseph Smith said that one of the keys to understanding a parable is to see what question or concern brought it on. In this case, a lawyer asked Jesus what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus pointed him to the law of Moses which says to love the Lord and love your neighbor. To this, the man asked, " And who is my neighbour ?" I would like to briefly explore this question. Who is my neighbor? Many of us have likely asked this question. If loving our neighbor is a commandment to inherit eternal life, who do we need to love to get in to heaven? Jesus gave us some insight when he said, " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. " How can we obtain this love for all, even our enemies? Moroni, a prophet of God, gives us thi

This is an essay I wrote in the Winter 2014 Semester for my Western Humanities class. I felt like I needed to share it. It is a bit long, but I assure you it's worth your time. Also, take some time to watch the quick video at the end. Jacob Hansen Professor Julie Ransom IHUM 201 Connection to Major 10 April 2014 The Cave of Mental Illness A mere seven months ago I had a different perception of reality. I found myself, as psychologist Kay Jamison puts it, “ enmeshed totally in the blackest caves of the mind ” (68). I, like Jamison, suffer from bipolar disorder. I was diagnosed about twenty months into my mission. Though I was in this cave, during the manic episode I experienced I felt more creative and energetic than I ever had. I felt little need to sleep and could think and make connections very quickly. I understood the world differently than others, and, so I thought, at a higher level. It was as if I had discovered a new revolutionary way of living and I was conf

As I was doing some research for a project in my New Testament class, I came across an article that talks about perfectionism. It reminded me of the battle I have had throughout my life. I used to struggle immensely with perfectionism. I used to think my imperfections were sins and that I was required to become perfect simply by trying harder. Christ was there to help me, but he needed me to do all the work. I definitely tried to be perfect for others and not for Heavenly Father. I tried to be perfect for my teachers and for my mission president. I wanted them to think I was intelligent and capable. I failed to realize that falling short is inevitable and that it is part of living in a fallen world. I strived so hard on my mission to please my mission president; so much so that I sometimes lost sight of why I was really doing the missionary work. I lost the love part and just did things out of fear that I would never measure up. I remember that one of my companions reminde

To open up my New Testament class today, we sang "Master the Tempest is Raging" a Capella. The harmonies were beautiful and the message and spirit of the hymn overtook me. There is something about music that touches the soul. The First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is very adamant about the power of music to inspire, protect and convert. Sometimes the Holy Ghost can just fill us with so much joy and excitement that we can't help but sing and smile. I have felt the Holy Ghost lift me more times than I can count.  When I contemplate the beauties of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I think of President Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk in October 2007 entitled " Have we Not Reason to Rejoice ." Sometimes I am saddened by what I see on campus at BYU. Instead of seeing joy and excitement on the faces of students, I often see worry, pain and discouragement. Brigham Young University certainly provides a rigorous education and inspi

I would like to expound on a few miracles of Christ in the second chapter of John that illustrate how he can take us as the dirty sinners we are and make us clean. The first account I wish to address is that of Jesus turning water to wine at a wedding in Cana. The water that Jesus turned to wine was “after the manner of the purifying of the Jews.” In other words, it was dirty bath water. Brother Griffin reminded us of the symbolism in this. He talked of how Christ took the bitter cup (dirty bath water) and made it sweet (wine). This reminds me of the song entitled “ Savior, Redeemer of my Soul .” Here is the first verse: 1. Savior, Redeemer of my soul, Whose mighty hand hath made me whole, Whose wondrous pow'r hath raised me up    And filled with sweet my bitter cup!    What tongue my gratitude can tell,   O gracious God of Israel I love the part that says “and filled with sweet my bitter cup.” Our bodies may represent t

I am in the library trying to do homework, but I've been having a hard time focusing. This beautiful piece of music popped into my mind. The soloist is Shane Warby, who was the computer technician at Canyon View Junior High when I attended. This song is in our hymn book, but it is seldom sung. The message is magnificent. Never forget the power of music to ward off discouragement, depression and temptation. The scriptures teach this very fact. Doctrine and Covenants 10:5 5 Pray always that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work. Doctrine and Covenants 25:12 12 For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads. The next time you feel lost, seek your Father in Heaven through prayer or even through song. He will help you. He has helped me. Lyrics 1. Does

I loved the quote that Brother Griffin shared in class on Thursday (9/11) from President Henry B. Eyring that says, “ I cannot promise academic success or perfect families. Nor can I tell you the way in which He will honor His promise of adding blessings upon you. But I can promise you that if you will go to Him in prayer and ask what He would have you do next, promising that you will put His kingdom first, He will answer your prayer and He will keep His promise to add upon your head blessings, enough and to spare. Those apparent prison walls of “not enough time” will begin to recede, even as you are called to do more. ” (“Education for Real Life”October 2002) This quote really hit me because I have been struggling to manage my time well. I feel like I don’t have a lot to do but that I still manage to drag my assignments out until the last minute and I end up feeling rushed. After I heard this quote and after the Regional Conference on Sunday with Elder Nelson and Elder Scott,

As an assignment for my New Testament class this semester, I have been asked to share what I learn with others. I thought about how the Brethren have encouraged us to share goodness and I decided to start a blog about what I have learned both in my New Testament class and just life in general. I know that Jesus Christ lives and that he loves me and each of his children. His atonement has lifted me more times than I can count. I am especially grateful for the gift of prayer and for inspired priesthood leaders who have helped me get to know my Savior better. I hope that those who read this blog can come a little closer to Christ and truly become his friend. He loves us and we are never out of his reach. I hope you can also share His goodness and the good news of his gospel plan with others.