It is finished

So, this was my last week in New Testament class. I have loved learning about the Savior and His doings and teachings this semester. I feel like I've been able to understand a little bit more of who He is and why it's important to constantly be studying and applying His words. This week we talked about Jesus's scourging and crucifixion, and later His resurrection. One of my favorite things we talked about was when Jesus tarried with the disciples He met on the road to Emmaus. On the road, He quoted scriptures to them about Himself and yet, they didn't understand who He was until this special moment, recorded in Luke 24:30-31. It says: "And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight." Brother Griffin talked about how they probably noticed the marks on Jesus's hands and wrists as he tore the bread and gave it to them, and realized who they were with.
I love this because that is what the sacrament does for us. When we sit down and take the bread and water each week, pondering His suffering and sacrifice and triumph, our eyes are opened to His mercy, grace, and love and we come closer to Him each time as we feel the warmth of forgiveness. Even though Christ doesn't physically hand us the bread and water, it symbolizes everything He went through and we take it because He was able to finish His Father's will and complete the Atonement, thereby making it possible for all of us to repent and live again. I think the significance of the sacrament is sometimes lost on us, but learning this this week will help me to make that time on Sundays much more sacred and meaningful, because He really is giving it to us personally, we just have to take the time to prepare for it and accept His incredible gift.

I have suffered these things for all

This week in my New Testament class we studied the Savior's suffering in Gethsemane. I gained a new perspective as we talked about the experience Jesus had in that garden. First, we talked about the range of emotions that we go through when we sin. We experience guilt, shame, sorrow, pain, hopelessness, loneliness,  doubt, and many other things. Jesus not only felt all of these emotions multiplied to an incomprehensible amount, He also suffered, as it says in Alma 7, our weaknesses, sicknesses, temptation, and any other physical and mental pains that come through various trials in life. And, something I never connected before is in Doctrine & Covenants 19. It says "For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent." This implies That Jesus suffered other things too, that none of us have ever felt, and that we will only feel if we don't turn to Him and accept the gift of His Atonement by repenting.
Knowing that just deepens my gratitude for Him and His sacrifice for all of us. Because not only are we saved from suffering after we die, we can be succored and supported through every single thing we go through. Because He truly knows, better than anyone ever could, what it means to feel cut off from everything good. He was in constant communication with His father until He entered that garden, and going from so much light to so much darkness gives Him the ability to lift us through everything.
I am grateful for this time of year where we celebrate not only the birth of our Savior, but also the significance of the life that He led. This video sums up simply and beautifully why we are so blessed and why we should show our gratitude to Christ this season, and every day of our lives.

I will not leave you comfortless

We studied a couple of chapters in John this week that record some of Christ's words to His disciples as He walks to Gethsemane. One topic that really stood out to me from these passages was the Holy Ghost. We talked about how when we discuss the Holy Ghost we have questions like "will he ever get a body?" or "is he our brother too?" or other things like that. We don't have clear answers on many things, but one thing we do know is that the Holy Ghost is a gift to us. And really, that's the only thing that matters right now. And He is such a great gift because as this scripture tells us:

"But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me" (John 15:26) 

So whenever we need the Spirit in more abundance in our life, it is clear that the Holy Ghost will be with us when we are learning about our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, through prayer, through scripture study, through taking the sacrament. The Holy Ghost doesn't draw attention to Himself. His purpose is to bring us closer to the other members of the Godhead. 

I love that the name "Comforter" is used to describe the Holy Ghost, because there is truly no greater comfort than knowing of the reality and love of our Father and Jesus Christ. Whenever we feel insignificant, hopeless, in despair, uncertain, we can be lifted up by the Holy Ghost as we remember our Savior and His loving sacrifice for us, and that God wants us so much to return to Him with joy.

There is no replacement for the feelings of the Spirit. There are other temporary sources of happiness or comfort, but the Holy Ghost helps us feel the promises of eternity and He is there to help us along and to remind us of our infinite potential.

I will make thee ruler over many things

In New Testament class this week we studied Matthew 25 which contains some parables taught by Christ in answer to the question: what is a faithful and wise servant? One that stood out to me, even though I've heard it plenty of times is the parable of the talents. Often we think of this parable as just applying to talents, as in skills and abilities, but Brother Griffin suggested that the talents symbolize everything God has given us. All of us have different strengths, situations, and opportunities and those allow us to serve and grow here on Earth. Comparing ourselves to others, feeling down that we aren't as capable as people around us doesn't do any good because as this parable shows, our Heavenly Father intended for us to be different and he doesn't expect us all to produce the same things. He just wants us to do the best we can. The only thing that really matters is the level of our faith. When we have faith we are able to multiply His gifts and use them to bless others and increase our conversion. That is the only difference between the servant with the 10 talents and the 1 talent. One of them had faith and one had fear. 

Another notable thing is that the servants that had 10 and 5 talents given to them both had faith and were able to accomplish what their master wanted them to. He says to both of them the exact same thing: "Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord". That is what we can look forward to. If we do our part and rely on Christ's grace and mercy, we will be rewarded and have joy knowing we did what we could. This reminds me of a poem by Meade MacGuire that President Monson once quoted. It goes: 
“Father, where shall I work today?”

And my love flowed warm and free.
Then he pointed out a tiny spot
And said, “Tend that for me.”
I answered quickly, “Oh no, not that!
Why, no one would ever see,
No matter how well my work was done.
Not that little place for me.”
And the word he spoke, it was not stern; …
“Art thou working for them or for me?
Nazareth was a little place,
And so was Galilee.”

Even if we feel like we don't have many gifts or we aren't good enough, this shows that we can become much more than we think we can. That is the example and gift Christ gave to us. 

Render unto God the things that are God’s

I have learned that everything Christ says has multiple layers of significance. This is one reason it's so important to study the scriptures regularly, and prayerfully. Depending on where we are in life and what we specifically need, there is always something new and relevant for us to learn. An example of this is in Matthew 22. The Pharisees are trying to trick Jesus by asking him if it is lawful to give tribute to Caesar. He answers by showing them a coin and telling them to "render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s".
To take that a little deeper, in the scriptures we learn we are created in the image of God... not in the image of Caesar or some other random person. We are God's. And Jesus tells us in Matthew 22 that we should render ourselves unto Him. I looked up the definition of render. It has two meanings.
1. provide or give.
2. cause to be or become; make.

I love that second definition... we can actually become or be made into something much, much greater than we are now. And how do we do that? By providing our whole hearts, by giving up the things that aren't of God. This scripture reminded me of a chapter in the Book of Mormon that I always go to when I want to evaluate myself. Alma 5. Verse 14 in particular asks some poignant questions. "Have ye spiritually been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts?" Questions like these help us to see if we really are rendering ourselves unto God.

I know that it is possible for us to become like our Heavenly Father. Jesus showed us that. And we have many other examples of lives of service and consecration. One Brother Griffin mentioned is John R. Moyle. He walked 22 miles to the site of the Salt Lake Temple every week to help with the construction. Then he lost his leg. Then he made a new one and again walked 22 miles every week so that he could carve "Holiness to the Lord, the House of the Lord" on the temple walls. So yes, it is possible. It definitely isn't always the easy way, but it is the best way.

choose the good part

This week's New Testament lesson comes from Luke 10 when Jesus visits Mary and Martha. I admit I never really understood this story because it seems like Jesus scolds Martha for doing necessary chores. But Brother Griffin explained to us that Jesus only intervenes because Martha accuses Mary for not helping. He explained that the "good part" Mary chose was to not try and persuade Martha to come sit with her. The lesson of this is that we shouldn't try and mold people into something they aren't even if we perceive it as better. 

This reminded me of a time on my mission when my companion and I gave a zone training on personality types. We took a test and put up everyone's results. Not a single person had the same results. But all of us had been called on a mission. We all had certain areas, certain companions, and certain people we were teaching and that was for a reason. Like Brother Griffin said, we are all different instruments in an orchestra. If all of us were the same we wouldn't accomplish nearly as much as what we can with our different talents and strengths. That was a lesson I learned over and over again on my mission, and I continue to learn today. Sometimes when I was frustrated with myself for not being as (fill in the blank) as someone else, or when I was impatient with other people for not being as (fill in the blank) as they should be, it was important to remember we are all different. And as Brother Griffin said, different isn't always better or worse, sometimes it's just different. The important thing is we let people be themselves and contribute their own unique abilities to the Lord's work. 

This makes me think of the Apostles today. We have everything from lawyers, surgeons, businessmen, all with experience in different areas of the world. And they all work together to build up the church and serve. That is how God intended it to be. I am grateful for that reminder this week. Different is normal, embrace it! 

I will pay thee all

The insight I want to share from New Testament class this week is a lesson on forgiveness found in Matthew 18:23-35. This is the story of the master forgiving his servant of his debt, and of that same servant accusing a fellow servant of owing a debt. Knowing the context of this story makes it way more dramatic... Brother Griffin explained that 10,000 was just a substitution for a Greek word meaning myriad, or the biggest possible number, and he calculated out the math of how much debt the servant owed to his master... it ended up being billions of dollars, which would take him hundreds of thousands of years to pay off. So basically, an un-repayable debt. Yet, the master was immediately moved with compassion when the servant approached him and loosed him of it.
The wording implies that after the servant was forgiven he actively sought out his fellowservant and violently asked for his money to be repaid. When the servant uttered the exact same phrase his accuser had said earlier: "have patience and I will pay thee all" the servant did not show the same compassion, and instead threw him into prison.
When the lord heard of this, he approached the servant and asked him why he hadn't shown the same mercy that had been given to him. He then rebound him to his debt. The end of the story says "so likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses."
Brother Griffin pointed out that Christ has taken every single person's debt. The shame, the pressure, is all on Him. And when we hold a grudge, we are holding it against Christ because He has taken the responsibility for that person's wrongdoings. Looking at it that way really puts things in perspective. Christ has shielded us all from the brunt of other people's accusations. When we think of the mercy Christ has given us by forgiving us of all our wrongdoings, it should be easy for us to accept that He has done the same for everyone else as well. Instead of holding grudges, we should joyfully forgive, and show our love and appreciation for Christ's gift of mercy and grace. Without it we would all have a myriad of debts. Christ has spared us from that and we can never repay Him, but we can love and serve others. That is all He asks of us. There is not a number of times we need to forgive people (it's not 490) and if we make it a habit, we will have much happier, whole lives, with growth, progression, and meaningful relationships. Relationships bring so much joy into our lives, and Christ has shown us that even when people hurt us in some way, we can overcome it, and experience an increase in love. When we forgive others we not only build them up, we build ourselves up. I know that when I have chosen to let things go instead of seeking revenge, I have just felt free. All the leftover anger and other negative emotions just fade away.... That is the miracle of the Atonement.
cheers
Tamsyn

Great is thy faith

This week we learned about some of Jesus' "more difficult" miracles. One of these is found in Matthew 15:22-28. It goes as follows:
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

I admit, when I've read this before, I kind of wondered why Jesus seemed so harsh and uncaring. But, when we broke it down and studied it it made a lot more sense. 

In this story the woman asks Jesus three times for Him to help her daughter. His three responses are:

Silence

No

Yes

Brother Griffin pointed out that this is a pattern we experience in our lives daily as we pray. Sometimes silence is our answer. Sometimes we have to realize the timing is wrong. And sometimes, the answer is an absolute yes. How many times do we endure and remain faithful, seeking God's will when we pray? When we really want an answer we have to be patient, push past our doubts, and act on the answers we receive. Richard G Scott says "communication with our Father in Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in response to faith, obedience, and the proper use of agency."

This miracle is an example of Christ's faith in our ability to press forward and an example of someone that endured through doubt and discouragement and got the answer she needed. It is something we can apply to our prayers to strengthen our faith in Christ.

Go and do thou likewise

This week in New Testament we studied some of Christ's parables. I really enjoyed studying the story of the Good Samaritan, found in Luke 10:30-37. This is one of the most famous bible stories and I've heard it countless times so it was interesting to learn about it from a different perspective. The lesson we always pull from this story is that it's important to be kind to and serve those around us, even if they are different from us. This is a good lesson, but I found an even more significant meaning as we compared Christ to the Samaritan and us to the innkeeper, which is just one of many ways to interpret this story. 

Something I learned from this is that Christ is ALWAYS out looking for people to help. He searches for, prays for, heals, and encourages each one of his hurting and struggling friends. No doubt this brings Him great joy and He is an example to us in that way. We should be losing our lives in serving others by putting their needs to the front of our minds and searching for ways to lift them up. This lifestyle is contrary to the expectations of society today. We live in a world of competition, pride, and selfishness, but Christ always gives us opportunities to serve. Just like the Samaritan, He brings those He loves to our attention, asking us to use our gifts and talents to help them.

In the story, we aren't told how the innkeeper treats the victim. Does he offer his best care? Does he actively try to nurse him back to health? Does he offer friendship and support? Or does he do the minimum expected of him? The choice is ours. When we are given opportunities to serve, are we going to just bake the cookies and hand them off without much thought? Or are we going to offer emotional support and sincere prayers for those in our care? True disciples follow the whisperings of the Holy Ghost and not only better the lives of those around them, but they also become more converted through their selfless actions. In turn they are given more opportunities to bind up others' wounds and experience the Atonement. 

This reminds me of a conference talk given by President Uchtdorf, one of my favorites, from October 2014. It is called Living the Gospel Joyful. He says "When we treat God’s commandments and our part in building His kingdom like something to check off on a to-do list, we miss the heart of discipleship. We miss the growth that comes from joyfully living the commandments of our Father in Heaven." 

2 Nephi 2:25 says "Adam fell that men might be and men are that they might have joy." This parable, and this quote from a modern prophet tell us that joy comes from being a TRUE disciple. And I am so grateful that we are consistently given opportunities to emulate Christ, assist in His work, and be a disciple. We may fail sometimes, but we can change. We can grow and become someone He can trust with His precious souls that He so deeply wants us to help. 

Peace, be still

This week in New Testament we studied some of Christ's miracles. In Mark 4 we read about the tempest while Christ and His disciples are sailing. This account can parallel our lives in more than one way. We all face storms, external and internal on and off throughout our lives. This is part of mortality, and it's something we can't avoid. But, what we can avoid is being capsized and swept away. We can choose to keep the external storms from entering in and controlling us.
In this account as the storm gets worse, the disciples are getting worried, saying "Master, carest thou not that we perish?" Jesus was peacefully sleeping in the boat, obviously having no internal storm. When the disciples go to Him, He calmly rises and says "peace, be still" and immediately, the winds and waves cease. He then turns to his disciples and says "Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith?" Christ was in complete control of the situation, and He gave His disciples a valuable reminder about how important faith is in our daily lives.
There are a couple of things we can learn from this story. Most importantly, we need to remember to always invite Christ into our boat. He controls the wind and the sea, and there is no one more capable of getting us through a storm safely. Having Him there won't always stop the storms, but He will certainly make sure we are taken care of.
Also, are we going to let these storms rattle and weaken us or are we going to learn something from them? Christ is a great example of being in control and being calm in the face of adversity. We can follow that lead and ask for strength and direction to navigate ourselves into calmer waters.
I have a testimony that these storms, although they aren't always enjoyable, they are always an opportunity to grow and to trust in the Lord. I imagine life without storms and realize they are necessary for us to obtain a foundation and gain valuable skills and perspective. Heavenly Father has a divine plan for all of us, and these storms we have to face, both internal and external will help us get there.

blueprint for perfection

This week in New Testament we studied the "greatest general conference talk ever". Also known as the Sermon on the Mount, as recorded in Matthew 5. I'll admit, before the insights I received this week, this chapter always confused me a little bit, especially the beatitudes. I wondered why Christ was talking about these random groups of people and the blessings they would get from being humble or poor in spirit or meek or a peacemaker or whatever. But in class we learned that the beatitudes can be seen as a blueprint for perfection.
Before we got into the doctrine our teacher asked us to keep a prayer in our heart during the lesson and have the pure intent to learn how we specifically can become more Christlike. One of the biggest lessons I learned from that is the scriptures are eternally significant to each of God's children. It's amazing how billions of people can read the same verses of scripture, and each be comforted and strengthened in an individual way. This blueprint is very personal and yet, it applies to each of us, no matter where we are in life, or where we've been. It's beautiful.
So, the beatitudes can represent the repentance process in 8 steps.
1. recognize wrongs
2. feel sorrow
3. turn to God for help
4. seek His will and do it
5. accept others and self
6. have pure intent
7. dedicate life to bringing peace
8. remain faithful despite opposition
In each of these eight steps we make a kind of mini covenant with Christ. We give Him something, such as our shortcomings, our weaknesses, or our dedication, and in return He gives us amazing blessings. He promises the kingdom of Heaven, comfort, the Spirit, mercy, a witness of God... and this is never ending. This isn't a process we go through once or twice. It's a process that shapes us and refines us our whole lives, if we will let it.
After we learned about this process it was compared to a spiral staircase. We can go up, and down, and sit on the steps for a minute. Being a disciple of Christ is an upward climb. It takes endurance and patience, but it is so rewarding. We should always be looking where we want to go. But we can always reach down and take someone's hand and lead them higher. The main point of this is progression and change. Yes. We are all poor in Spirit. We are not even close to being perfect, but as we follow this blueprint we become more complete. One of my favorite quotes from this lesson is "don't hold your present hostage to your past". We are able to continue on this staircase because of the Atonement, and saying that we can't go any further is saying the Atonement isn't enough for us to overcome our past sins and weaknesses. We can ALWAYS climb upward because of Christ's ultimate gift, and inherit everything our Heavenly Father has in store for us. There is nothing to inspire greater hope than that!
cheers
Tamsyn

Finding a Christlike balance

This week in New Testament class we covered Christ's childhood and the beginning of His ministry. And as we discussed, there was one scripture that really stood out to me. One that I've probably read quite a few times and haven't even noticed. As we talked about this verse it just amazed me how much there is to learn from the scriptures. They truly are a map or guidebook for our lives and teach us the way to return to our Heavenly Father. So the verse I'm talking about is in Luke chapter 2, verse 52. It says: "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." So that's cool. But really, in 14 simple words this scripture gives us the recipe for how to have a perfect balance in our lives. I guess this was super meaningful to me because, coming home from a mission recently, it's been a bit difficult to refocus and rebalance and remember how to live normal life. So this scripture is awesome! It tells us the four areas that we should always be striving to increase in to become like Christ.
The first is intellectually ("increased in wisdom"). Hey, I've got that part down! I'm at school, trying to gain more knowledge that I'll use to benefit the rest of my life. But it's important not to let the other things fall by the wayside. We have been taught that the knowledge we gain in this life will help us here and will come with us to the next life, and Christ is a perfect example of that.
The next area is physically ("increased in stature"). Our spirits and our bodies are connected, and when we are taking care of our bodies... things just go better. All around. Christ was a carpenter. He was active. He was always walking around finding people to help. It's important for us to take care of our physical temples and show our Heavenly Father our appreciation for the marvelous gift that our bodies are.
Third is spiritually ("increased in favour with God"). Christ showed us that having a relationship with our Heavenly Father is essential for us to be happy and to succeed and progress in this life. We grow that relationship through sincere prayer, scripture study, church and temple attendance, service, and missionary work, among other things. Striving to better ourselves spiritually is a life long pursuit, marked by covenants that lead us on the path to eternal life. It's easy to slack on the little things, but not worth it. I think this area is the foundation for a balanced life.
Fourth is socially ("increased in favour with man"). We are all children of God, which means we all have something to learn from each other. The relationships we form and cultivate here on earth can bring us so much joy and help us through the trials and struggles we will inevitably face. Christ was friendly with everyone He met and focused completely on the individually. His ministry wasn't about being popular or having lots of followers, it was about showing His Father's love and showing people their potential. We can be His hands here by showing kindness and love to our fellowmen and being a light.
I'm so grateful for the insight I gained this week from this scripture. Finding a balance is difficult, but the principles here lay it out so simply, and I hope we can all implement it, and keep going on our way to becoming like Christ.
cheers
Tamsyn

Thy prayer is heard

For my New Testament class we have the chance to share some of our thoughts on what we learned about in class each week. And after only 3 classes, my understanding of the scriptures is growing so much! I was trying to decide what to share today because a lot of things stuck out to me as we studied the beginning of Christ's mortal life.
One of my favorite lightbulbs came when we talked about Zacharias. So he was a really important priest and had spent a lot of time serving God. He and his wife Elisabeth were getting up there in age and had never been blessed with a child, though they had definitely prayed for one. Despite that, Zacharias was faithful. Then one day while Zacharias is in the temple he is visited by an angel, which scares him a little bit, but this heavenly messenger tells him something pretty amazing. He says "Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John (Luke 1:13)". For some reason, I had never really understood the significance of that moment. Zacharias and Elisabeth had prayed years and years ago that they could be parents. And now, with Elisabeth past the age of having kids, no doubt they had left those prayers in the past and had just accepted the fact that having a child was not part of God's plan for them. I can't imagine the emotions Zacharias felt as he realized that God was aware of him all those years, and was just waiting for the right moment to bless him. That probably dispelled all the fear, uncertainty, and nervousness that comes with receiving big news... like you're having a baby! Now Zacharias knew for sure that God doesn't withhold blessings from us if we are faithful. He has something miraculous planned for each of us and sometimes we think we're being left out, or being kept in the dark, but we just have such a limited view of the plan. God can see it all. And His timing is perfect. Zacharias and Elisabeth would now have the privilege and responsibility of being the parents of John the Baptist... and that is pretty cool.
I love applying this principle into our lives today. We are constantly praying for guidance and help, and a lot of times it seems we're left alone to make big decisions, or what we want just isn't given to us. But, we really should never question if God is there. He is. He wants to bless us and answer our prayers, and we just have to continue faithful, trusting that there is something great in store for us. Living that way can quiet all our fears!
Cheers,
Tamsyn

Back to BYU

After a long absence, I am returning to the blogging world. I have been back at school for just over a week and it's been good! This semester I am taking a bunch of random classes that all somehow relate to my major such as French 102 (retaking because I don't remember much from over 18 months ago), 19th Century Europe. We are learning about the French Revolution at the moment, which apparently is part of the long 19th century. English 23943something, basically we're studying the legend of King Arthur for the whole class, which is pretty cool. By the end I'll probably be fluent in old/middle English. And Humanities 201 which is the old Western world. I just read some excerpts from the Iliad and the Odyssey today. And New Testament. I have a great teacher so I'm excited for that class. There is always something new to learn from the scriptures.
Right now my dilemma is figuring out what to do with my major. I really like it, but I don't know what direction I want to go with it. There are so many possibilities, but I guess I have some time to figure that out.
So those are my classes. It should be a good semester!