Seek The Lord Often

As I was studying the words of King Benjamin today in chapter 5 of Mosiah in The Book of Mormon, a particular footnote caught my attention. It was the footnote to the word "covenant" in verse 5. Here is the whole fifth verse.  5 And we are willing to enter into a covenant with our God to do his will, and to be obedient to his commandments in all things that he shall command us, all the remainder of our days, that we may not bring upon ourselves a never-ending torment, as has been spoken by the angel, that we may not drink out of the cup of the wrath of God. As I read this verse, I thought of the covenants I have made. Some of those covenants are pretty substantial. They're big, and I feel it is almost impossible to fully live up to them. I'm not perfect and that's hard to accept sometimes. When I read the footnote for the word "covenant," I received a lot of comfort and hope. The footnote leads to a scripture in 2 Chronicles 15, verse 12. It reads:

Mental illness, depression especially, is like Devil's snare. The more you fight it, the harder it squeezes. Sometimes you have to let it pass, as painful as it is, without fighting it. For when you fight, it becomes even harder to get out. But, don't we always want to fight? If we are diagnosed with cancer, are we just going to curl up in a ball and give in? No. But, we are going to come to terms with the illness and its ramifications. We are not going to fight the fact that we HAVE cancer. Anyway, I may not be making any sense, but what I know is that I had a manic episode. I had several bouts with depression. I've felt hopelessly confused and trapped in my own life at times, and now I don't. Why? I'm not one hundred percent sure. Here are some things I DO know. 1. Through all those lonely, confusing, mind bending times, I never stopped praying and reading the scriptures.There were times when the more I read, the guiltier I felt. I realized how much I had b

I was reading a talk this morning byElder L. Whitney Clayton of the 70. He shared a story of a little girl named Sailor who lost her family in a plane crash. She survived the crash, but was left without shoes in the 38 degree weather. She chose to bravely press on through the wicked cold and go to a light that she saw in the distance. I love the following excerpt from the talk: "Gradually, as she made her way through the night toward the light, it grew brighter. Still, there must have been times when she could not see it. Perhaps it went out of view when she was in a ravine or behind trees or bushes, but she pressed on. Whenever she could see the light, Sailor had evidence that she was on the right path. She did not yet know precisely what that light was, but she kept walking toward it based on what she knew, trusting and hoping that she would see it again if she kept moving in the right direction. By so doing, she may have saved her life. Our lives can be like that too. There

2 Nephi 22:2/Isaiah 12:2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation. Psalm 36:7 "How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings." D&C 10:65 For, behold, I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if they will not harden their hearts; I love these scriptures. What beautiful imagery to think that we are under the shadow of God's wings if we put our trust in him. We live in a scary world. We face scary things both from within and from without. We are natural men and we struggle under the effects of a fallen world. Our Heavenly Father knew we would often walk in the dark, and because of that he provided his Son, the Light of the World. Sometimes we may feel that even though his wings are around us, we are in the dark. I have felt that myself. In these times, I hav

Here are some of the hymns that have been going through my mind today. This one isn't in the LDS hymn book, but it has a really awesome message. It is called "He Knows Me Better." Lyrics: Feels like I've only got  a piece of the picture  I'm trying to figure out  just where I fit here  There is one who sees  all I'm meant to be  In a world of voices  that say they have the answer  I escape the noises  and close my eyes  and I turn  to the one who sees  all the pieces put together  He knows me better  Sometimes I can't see past  what's on the surface  He helps me understand  the depth of my purpose  Gives me faith to hold  as my path unfolds  He knows everyone  of us  is learning as we go  His love is the compass  that guides us  Another one that I love is, "Lord, I would Follow Thee." I love the part that talks about loving our brother because "in the quiet heart is h

Section: D&C 77 Principles and Doctrines: o Doctrine: The spiritual is in the likeness of the temporal. Our spirits look like our bodies. The same holds true for animals (vs. 2). Application of one truth from this section to my life: It is comforting to know that my spirit and body look the same. It encourages me to know that my family will easily recognize me on the other side. It also motivates me to keep my body healthy so me Spirit can look good and stay healthy as well. Section: D&C 79 Principles and Doctrines: o Doctrine: The comforter teaches the truth and the way we should go (vs. 2). Application of one truth from this section to my life: I am so grateful that I have a member of the Godhead as my constant companion to help me out when life gets difficult. I want to live my life in such a way as to always be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost. I want to radiate the Spirit of Christ to others. Section: D&C 80 Principles and Doct