Wow, I am so thrilled to start this blog. I hope that it can encourage and inspire people to Look to Heavenly Father and Live their life always striving to become closer to Him... to align their plan to His plan!
I've now been a missionary for 8 months and the more I learn, the more I realize that there is never an end to the learning! I am closer to my Savior Jesus Christ than I have ever been before, which makes me want to be that much closer! I am finding that there is no end, it is a continual progression! "Testimony is an earned legacy, not an inherited one." -anonymous
I am trying each day to "earn" my testimony and each day and it is growing! And because of that growth, it strengthens my desire to share the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ! I desire that all of His children can partake of the endless blessings that come from LIVING His gospel!
What is a testimony?
- “A testimony of the gospel is a personal witness borne to our souls by the Holy Ghost that certain facts of eternal significance are true and that we know them to be true."-Dallin H. Oaks
How do I "earn" a testimony?
-Live it! Through prayer, study, and obedience we can gain/earn a testimony by the power of the Holy Ghost. Maybe it is bold to say that we must earn a testimony, but I know through my own experience, it has been earned!


The prophet Alma from the Book of Mormon does a perfect job of explaining how to gain/earn our faith and testimonies like unto a seed.
Alma 32:
27 But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.

28 Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.

29 Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, Yea; nevertheless it hath not grown up to a perfect knowledge.

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37 And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say: Let us nourish it with great care, that it may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit.

38 But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.

39 Now, this is not because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable; but it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof.

41 But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life.

42 And because of your diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst.

43 Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.

During my times of doubt, which we All have at some point or another, I've been brought back to this scripture. I have found much comfort and strength from these wise words. I realize that I need to nourish my testimony each day. We are never on a plateau with our testimonies, we are either increasing or decreasing.. so make each day an ongoing incline. The gospel of Jesus Christ is unchanging, we are the changing part variable in the equation. If your foundation is sandy, begin to build it upon your rock, Your Savior Jesus Christ.. even if all you have is a desire! I know that when we choose to come unto Christ, our desire changes from desire and turns into faith, and that faith becomes a surety of hope for the storms to come.
So Look to God and Live with a surety of hope! He loves You!