Uplifting Music

I love music!  And I'm sure everyone can agree that there is uplifting music and not so uplifting music out there.  Music was once described by Addison as the "only sensual gratification in which mankind may indulge to excess without injury to their moral or religious feelings."  If only that were still true today, yet there is so much degrading music out there.  Music can make or break your mood; which is why it's best to listen to uplifting music.  Music that uplifts will enliven the soul and raise our spirits.  It can give us energy and motivation to keep going.  "Music can be used to exalt and inspire or to carry messages of degradation and destruction" (Priesthood Bulletin, August, 1973).

Some of the most uplifting music is spiritual music, music that invites the Spirit into our lives.  A lot of the music today "dulls the spiritual sensitivity of men" (Inspiring Music - Worthy Thoughts).  Having a dulled sensitivity causes us to be more prone to weakness and more apt to failure.  Even in small ways, like our thoughts.  We all have wandering thoughts, and we have been told from a young age to keep our thoughts controlled, but how?  President Boyd K. Packer shares a way how when he says, "It has to do with music."  He says to choose a favorite church hymn, one with uplifting lyrics, and to memorize it.  Then, when times where shady thoughts start to creep in, you can sing that hymn, and use it as a place for your thoughts to go.  "As the music begins and as the words form in your thoughts, the unworthy ones will slip shamefully away...If you can control your thoughts, you can overcome habits, even degrading personal habits.  If you can learn to master them you will have a happy life."  And Gladstone said, "Music is one of the most forceful instruments for governing the mind and spirit of man."

That is why we must keep ourselves surrounded by uplifting music!  Good music is to our advantage because it improves us and promotes good thoughts and character.  "Our people ought to be surrounded by good music of all kinds.  Parents ought to foster good music in the home and cultivate a desire to have their children learn the hymns of inspiration...including the music of worship.  To have such music as a part of one's life is a great blessing" (Boyd K. Packer).  Uplifting music truly is a blessing.  We could be especially angry but when we listen to inspiring music, it can soften our hearts and change our attitudes.  We must always surround ourselves with this kind of music!  Play it in your homes.  It will bring a spirit of peace into your homes that will dismiss unworthy thoughts, withhold angry words, and bring your family closer to each other and to our God above.

President J. Reuben Clark Jr. shares that, "We get nearer to the Lord through [uplifting] music than perhaps through any other thing except prayer."

Give, Said the Little Stream - Mormon Tabernacle Choir

To listen to more beautiful, spiritual, uplifting music, check out The Mormon Tabernacle Choir here or search Mormon Tabernacle Choir on YouTube.

What I Believe As a Mormon

I am a Mormon.  

What does that even mean?  It means I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I am a Christian.  I am a child of God, a God who loves me, and I love Him.  

I believe in my Savior Jesus Christ.  He is my Brother, Redeemer, Lord, and Friend.  He atoned for every single one of my sins, pains, and sorrows.  He atoned for every single person's sins, pains, and sorrows.  

"I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent; But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I; Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit-and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink - Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men." (D&C 19: 16-19)

[See also Luke 22:44 and Mosiah 3:7]

He has rescued us by satisfying the demands of justice, for without Him, we could not be saved.  He died for me, and for all, that we may live again.  He was resurrected and we will all be resurrected.  

"The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt.

Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but everything shall be restored to its perfect frame." (Alma 11:42-44)

"What a comfort to know that all who have been disadvantaged in life from birth defects, from mortal injuries, from disease, or from the natural deterioration of old age will be resurrected in "proper and perfect frame." -Dallin H. Oaks, "Resurrection"

I believe in that hope.  For death is not the end, it is only a transition from mortality to immortality.  All of our loved ones who have passed on before us-we will see again.  Families can be together forever, and so we need not be sad, but happy that we can spend eternity with our families and loved ones as long as we are faithful and righteous.  

I believe in God's Eternal Plan of Salvation and Happiness.  We lived with our Father before in the pre-existence, and God blessed us with a body to come down to Earth to learn and to be tested.  He blessed us with agency and accountability so that we could prove ourselves worthy to return to Him someday.  

"Lasting happiness and progression come from choosing to do what God wants us to do.  The key word is "choosing."" (http://mormon.org/beliefs/plan-of-salvation)

Again, He blessed us with a Savior so that we could be forgiven when we make mistakes.  Heavenly Father knew you would make mistakes in this life, we aren't perfect, no one is except Christ, but through Christ, we can be made perfect.  

"Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ..." (Moroni 10:32)

So when we die, we will go before God and be judged fairly, as Christ will be our advocate for He knows our hearts and intents better than anyone.  We will then receive our appropriate degree of glory in God's Kingdom and be rewarded for our faithfulness.

Not only do I believe all of these things, but I know them to be true.  I know it with an assurance that fills my heart and soul, and I know that if you were to ask if it were true, you will receive an answer for yourself.  

"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.  And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye many know the truth of all things." (Moroni 10: 4-5)

To read more about what I, and other Mormons, believe,  click on the "Basic Beliefs" tab above or visit: http://mormon.org/what-do-mormons-believe.

Blessings Found Every Day

We all get caught up in our day to day tasks that we can forget to notice and remember all the amazing things that are happening for us.  In High School, I use to keep a Blessing Journal, some call them Gratitude Journals.  Every day I would find at least 5 blessings from my day, whether it was something as simple as, "I woke up on time today" to something more specific like, "My sister asked me today if I wanted to go to the same college as her and be her roommate." Keeping that journal was such a wonderful blessing of its own in my life.  By reflecting on my day and finding the little blessings that happened, even the worst of days was shown to have been a good one.  God is always there blessing our lives, it can be hard to see and notice if we aren't paying attention.  Henry B. Eyring shares a beautiful quote about finding and writing the ways God has blessed you each day.

"As you start to write, you could ask yourself, "How did God bless me today?" 

If you do that long enough and with faith, you will find yourself remembering blessings. 

And sometimes, you will have gifts brought to your mind which you failed to notice 

during the day, but which you will then know were a touch of God's hand in your life."

-Henry B. Eyring, "Remembrance and Gratitude" (Oct. 1989)
Click here to view the complete talk.

God's hand is always there guiding our life.  When you reflect at the end of each day, you will come to notice how God is guiding your path and providing a way for you through big acts as well as by small and simple means.  People tend to reflect only on the big events that occur around them, but we need to remember, "that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass...the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes."(Alma 37: 6-7)  A small, simple act can make the world of a difference, especially in terms of someone's salvation.  As small things can build up one's salvation, they can also tear it down.

M. Russell Ballard shares in his talk "Small and Simple Things":
"A series of seemingly small but incorrect choices can
become those little soul-destroying termites that eat away at the
foundations of our testimony until, before we are aware,
we may be brought near to spiritual and moral destruction." (April 1990)

He shares a story about a couple that had always been strong in the church, but small, yet incorrect decisions added up and almost destroyed their marriage.  Seemingly harmless things like a little debt here and there, or a demanding work schedule; but, those seemingly simple, little things are "like weak fibers that form a yarn, then a strand, and finally a rope, these small things combined together can become too strong to be broken. We must ever be aware of the power that the small and simple things can have in building spirituality. At the same time, we must be aware that Satan will use small and simple things to lead us into despair and misery."

The small events and choices are what determine the direction of our lives. We can not neglect them or think of them as things of naught. The Lord will guide your way, but you also have to be willing to follow.  I know that by doing the small, simple things like reading our scriptures, praying with our families, obeying the commandments, and thanking our Father in Heaven for the many blessings in our lives, we can live a life of eternal joy and peace.