The Faith of Jesus Christ

I love General Conference weekend. It’s a wonderful opportunity to snuggle with the family and listen to the messages. We eat plenty of popcorn and other treats while we relax. It’s hard to pinpoint my favorite talk because I enjoy all of them. Each of the talks has something for me. Even through the television broadcast, I can feel the strong testimonies of those speaking and the Spirit fills my home.

At the last conference, I believe, Elder Wirthlin struggled a bit with keeping steady during his talk. Russell M. Nelson stood up behind him and gave him the extra support he needed to finish his talk. That simple gesture brought tears to my eyes and communicated the great love and respect the brethren have for each other.

One of the talks that especially struck me during this conference was Jeffrey R. Holland's talk on the atonement. Though there was some chattering going on at my house, the Spirit enveloped us as he spoke about the Savior’s last days of mortality.

I listened to his talk through tears because I felt completely wrapped in the Spirit. He recounted the time in the Garden of Gethsemane. Honestly, I have absolutely no idea how the Savior physically endured such sorrow and agony. I know how painful it is to lose someone I love to death or, worse, lose them to sin. I cannot imagine the depth of the pain he suffered, or how he did it.

I don’t know that I’ll ever fully comprehend His sacrifice for me. I have thought about it over the years as I’ve struggled through my own trials. Knowing that He experienced all the feelings that I have has helped me. One thing I’ve never considered, though, until Elder Holland's talk was His faith.

Since Jesus communicated regularly with Heavenly Father and lead a perfect life in which He was entitled to the constant companionship of the Father, I never thought about what it must have felt like when the Father withdrew as Jesus hung on the cross and uttered, “ . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? “ (Matthew 27:46). During that period of time, Jesus had to rely on His own faith that though He couldn’t feel the Father’s presence, He was still there. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

Isn’t that how it is for us? I have felt Heavenly Father’s influence more strongly at certain times of my life. I have experienced undeniable answers to prayers, but as time passes and memory dims, I have to rely on my faith that He’s still there, that He still hears and answers prayers, that He is real.

During that critical time on the cross, Jesus did, in fact, experience what it is like to be mortal without that constant connection to Heavenly Father. Not only does the Savior know every emotion that we can have, He also knows what it’s like to experience mortality without the direct influence of Heavenly Father.

Jesus has experienced the range of emotions that we have. He knows what it’s like to feel the Spirit depart—just like we do when we break a commandment. He understands each of us because he’s experienced it, including relying on faith. That’s why the atonement works and why we must allow it to work in our own lives. He is the Redeemer of the world.

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My Choice to Stay Home

After I had my first child, I told an old college roommate that I planned to stay home and take care of him. She replied, “How totally boring. You’re just going to stay home? I can’t imagine being stuck like that.”

Now, ten children later, I do not regret that decision. In fact, I have never regretted choosing to stay home with my children. People wonder how we can afford to raise so many children on one income. The answer is simple. Heavenly Father has blessed us to be able to do so. For me, staying home with my children has always been about exercising faith—not just about being able to financially do so, but also that my staying home will benefit my children.

I vividly remember struggling financially early in my married life. I’d graduated with a bachelor’s degree and it seemed like the answer was for me to go to work. Yet, my husband and I had made the commitment to keep me home. Faith preceded the miracle. Once we put our faith in Heavenly Father and then had a trial of that faith, he blessed us. And he’s continued to bless us in so many ways.

Over the years, I’ve received comments about the decision to stay home. My grandfather, who raised me, told me on several different occasions that I was wasting my life raising a bunch of kids. He said, “If I’d known you were going to waste your education raising kids I would never have encouraged you to go to college.” I don’t see my education as wasted at all. In fact, I believe my education has made me a better mother.

I have a solid testimony of following the counsel to stay home and raise my children. I shudder to think how my youngest son would be doing if I were not home with him reading to him, talking to him, playing with him, and encouraging him to strengthen his muscles. It’s a fact that no one cares more about my children than my husband and I do. It’s also a fact that no one can better serve my children, especially my youngest son, than I can as I stay home.

It is a privilege and honor for me to be a wife and mother. I have never wanted anything else. Perhaps, it’s because I felt cheated as a child since my parents died when I was so young. Maybe it’s because I always wanted a big family like the Brady Bunch when I was growing up. Whatever the reason, I am so thankful each and every day that Heavenly Father has blessed me with a large family and that he has blessed me with the opportunity to be able to stay home and raise them.

I do not judge those who make a different decision than I have. Everybody has to make their own decision when it comes to staying home. Not everyone is in a position to do so and it’s not my place to stand in judgment of anyone’s decision because I have not walked in anyone else’s shoes. I do believe wholeheartedly that if moms have the desire to stay home and are willing to put their faith in Heavenly Father, he will provide a way. I’ve learned in my life that Heavenly Father always provides a way to accomplish a righteous desire and staying home to raise a family is certainly a righteous desire.

I love being a mother. I love watching the kids play together. I love seeing their first steps, hearing their first words, and listening to them when they first begin to read. I love the choking hugs and sloppy kisses. I love to eat (well, maybe not all the time) sandwiches made by my 5-year-old. I love to listen to them interact with each other and play games together. While I don’t enjoy the fighting, whining, or complaining, I love to see them realize they’ve done something wrong and apologize for it. I love to hear them bear their testimonies and explain points of the gospel. I love to watch them develop their talents and share those talents with others. I love to see them serve each other and those around them.

Of course, being a mom isn’t all sunshine and roses and I’ve certainly experienced some hard times, but all in all, I don’t regret my decision to be a mom or to stay home with my kids. It may not be easy, but it is definitely worth it. I have no doubt that our families will bring us the greatest joy.

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No Murmuring

Nephi was commanded by the Lord to build a ship. Though he didn’t know how, he willingly worked to build the boat. After Nephi constructed the ship, amid his brothers’ mocking and ridicule, the family boarded it to make their journey across the ocean. While at sea, some of the family members made “merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness, yea even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness” (1 Nephi 18:9).

When Nephi attempted to speak to his family in soberness they became angry with him. So angry that Laman and Lemuel took Nephi and bound him with cords. They bound him so tightly it caused his wrists and ankles to swell. Once Nephi was bound, the liahona stopped working and a great storm developed insomuch that it beat back the ship for three days.

Nephi witnessed all of this, but was powerless because he was bound. Yet, he said, “Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions” (1 Nephi 18:16). This statement illustrates the character of the prophet Nephi.

As I read this account, I realized how applicable that statement is to my own life. How have I reacted to afflictions? Have I kept my faith in God?

When one of my daughters was born, we had to return to the hospital the day after we brought her home because she had a fever. While we drove to the ER I desperately prayed that she’d be okay and we’d be able to go right back home. As soon as the ER doctors heard she had a fever we were rushed back to a room and she was immediately hooked up to an IV. An ER doctor asked permission to give her a spinal tap because he believed she had meningitis. During the procedure, I prayed the doctor would be able to find what he needed. He didn’t. He couldn’t extract any fluid.

I prayed she wouldn’t have to stay in the hospital. She did.

I prayed the doctors would know what was wrong. They didn’t.

I prayed she wouldn’t need any more antibiotics. She did.

I prayed the nurses could find a vein for her IV so she wouldn’t need a pick line in her neck. They couldn’t.

When the doctor came to tell us she’d have to be life-flighted to another hospital, I felt broken. I was afraid to pray because up to that point, the opposite of what I prayed for seemed to be what happened. I didn’t know what to do. I felt like I had a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

The pediatrician who had unsuccessfully tried to do a second spinal tap on her asked for permission to try a third time. He told us that if we could extract enough spinal fluid and it was clear we could rule out meningitis and we wouldn’t have to fly her to the other hospital. I was at a crossroads. I knew, deep down, that Heavenly Father answered prayers and couldn’t understand why he didn’t seem to hear mine. I had to decide if I was going to murmur because of my afflictions or put my faith in prayer.

I decided to pray. Moments after we finished kneeling on the hospital room floor, the doctor entered with a big smile. He’d extracted three vials worth of fluid and it was clear. She did not have to be air-lifted and the next day we discovered she had a urinary tract infection and could be treated with a simple antibiotic by mouth.

Unfortunately, I have murmured at other times. I’ve complained, usually about insignificant things, about things that don’t matter. I need to be like Nephi. I want to be like Nephi. I want to have that complete faith that when afflictions arise, and they most certainly will, I will, “ . . . look unto my God, and . . . praise him all the day long; and . . . not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions” (1 Nephi 18:16).

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David and Goliath

I remember hearing the story of David and Goliath even when I was a kid attending other churches. It seemed like the ultimate underdog-defeats-giant-and-comes-out-the-victor story that shows even the smallest of us has a chance.

While that’s true, the real lesson is quite different. The Philistines intended to overtake the Israelites. They’d been at war, as has been the cycle for the children of Israel. The Philistines presented a great warrior who was not only large, he was fierce and determined to subject the Israelites to Philistine rule once and for all. Goliath of Gath declared, “ . . . choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us. . . . I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man that we may fight together” (1 Samuel 17:8-10).

Goliath boasted of his own strength and relied upon himself. He was sure that no man could kill him. When he saw a young David, he was even more sure of himself. What he didn’t realize was that what David lacked in physical strength and stature, he more than made up for in his faith in God. David relied solely upon the Lord to help him defeat Goliath. David said, “ . . . who is this uncircumcised Philistine , that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26).

Goliath stood ready with his armor, sword, and spear while David had a slingshot and some stones he’d found. David told Goliath, “ . . . I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand . . .” (1 Samuel 17:45-46). David had faith in the power of the Lord and with one small stone he killed Goliath.

Was it the force of the stone that killed the giant? I doubt it. I believe it was David’s complete faith and obedience to the Lord that destroyed Goliath. Surely, Goliath’s physical strength would’ve overpowered a young boy such as David, but the Lord chose to allow David to slay Goliath. The Lord rarely strikes people down, but rather allows natural events to fulfill his purposes.

What can we learn from this story? We all have goliaths in our own lives. One person’s “goliath” may not be another person’s, but we all have things that seem insurmountable at the time. When my son was diagnosed with Down syndrome, I felt as if it was a goliath in my life. I wasn’t sure how I could deal with it along with raising all of my other children. But, I learned that with the Lord’s help nothing is impossible. Yes, my son still has Down syndrome, but I have no doubt at all that the Lord will bless me to deal with whatever comes from his diagnosis and to be the best mother I can be to him and that he will bless my son to accomplish whatever mission he has to accomplish here on earth.

No matter what we encounter, if we rely on the Lord, he will steady and strengthen us, even when the odds don’t look like they’re in our favor. When my sister-in-law faced lung cancer, she may have seen it as a goliath in her life. Though she didn’t beat the cancer in this life, cancer didn’t beat her in the next. She never lost her testimony and fully relied on the Lord until the day she passed away.

May we all face our own goliaths with the faith of David and make sure that we slay that which stands in our way or eternal exaltation.

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Change is Constant

Nothing is as constant as change.

Throughout our lives, we encounter change. It’s a natural part of mortality. Some of these changes we embrace and others we’d prefer to avoid. Sometimes, we can choose the changes and other times we cannot. But, we can always choose how we will react to the changes in our lives.

Some people felt sorry for me after I gave birth to my son with Down syndrome because they thought his birth would change my life in negative ways. More than likely, they thought that if they were in my situation, they’d feel that his birth and subsequent life would have a negative impact on their own lives. One comment I received was that the idea of life-long care for a child would be too much. That’s never bothered me. Honestly, when my son was born I was so thankful he was alive and didn’t have any health problems that nothing else mattered. Perhaps, he will need to live with me for the duration of his time in mortality. If that’s the case, I’m fine with that. Perhaps, he will be able to live on his own but with close supervision. That’s okay, too. As he matures, we may need to move to another area that will offer him more opportunities. Again, I can deal with that. I am confident that Heavenly Father will provide a way for my son to thrive in mortality as long as I’m willing to accept those changes that may be required in my own life. I can’t change the fact that my son has an extra chromosome, but I can absolutely choose how I will react to it. In truth, my son is such a wonderful part of my family, it isn’t really a trial or challenge to have him.

When my sister-in-law was diagnosed with lung cancer, I was amazed at how she chose to react to the life-altering news. She had such faith and trust in Heavenly Father. She was never bitter and never asked why she’d been given that trial. She accepted it and lived the rest of her life with grace and faith. After her death, her husband came to visit our family. He told us that he missed her, but he wasn’t angry. He wished she was still with him, but he didn’t feel bad that she died because he knew, and still knows, he’ll be with her again someday. Her long illness and death certainly brought a drastic change to her family, but her husband and children all turned to God and put their faith in His plan.

I was so excited to give birth to my first child. I’d anticipated his birth for nine months and I was thrilled to be a mother for the first time. Though I was happy about having this new baby in my life, I did have to adjust to caring for him. Since
I was nursing him, I had to feed him every few hours around the clock, something I’d never done before. Suddenly, I had a child that depended on me for his very existence. My husband helped a great deal, but try as he might, he couldn’t lactate. Only I could provide sustenance for my new baby and some nights, it was hard to be so exhausted and still feed him.

Though some of the changes in our lives such as marriage, birth of a child, going off to college, or serving a mission may be positive, they can still require an adjustment period. Whenever things change, even if they’re for the good, it can be hard to adjust to those changes. Staying close to Heavenly Father through prayer, and putting our faith and trust in Him, will help us accept and adjust to changes more easily. As we seek to have His peace in our lives, we will be able to deal with the constant changes.

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Hope and Endurance

To continue with the 13th Article of Faith, “ . . . indeed we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things and hope to be able to endure all things . . .”

Hope is as crucial a part of the gospel as are faith and charity. “And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works” (Alma 7:24). Faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, gives us hope. None of us will escape tragedy. No matter how faithfully we live our lives, we will still experience trials and tribulations. We cannot pick and choose our trials, only how we will react to them. It’s through our faith and hope that we can endure our trials

Imagine losing a loved one and having no hope of reuniting with him or her after this life. I know of two women who lost their husbands. One woman had hope of seeing her husband again. She continued to live her life, finding joy and serving the Lord. The other woman had no hope of ever seeing her husband again. She drifted aimlessly and succumbed to depression. After a few years, she died of a broken heart. Without hope of a life after death, it would be impossible to face losing those we love.
If we choose to endure our trials with faith and hope, we will receive all that the Father has.

“Wherefore, ye must press forward with steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2nd Nephi 31:20).

This part of the 13th Article of Faith is especially poignant when we consider the environment in which the early saints lived. Amidst unbelievable persecution, the early saints still believed and still had hope. Joseph Smith, who first penned the Articles of Faith, endured many trials, beginning with the reaction to his sacred experience in the grove when God, the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ appeared to him. Joseph Smith was tarred, feathered, beaten, arrested on false charges, and finally murdered. He is a shining example of one who suffered so much, yet clung to hope, and never forsook his faith.

Of course, the ultimate example of suffering and endurance is the Savior. He was the Son of God. He did not have to suffer or endure anything, yet he chose to do so. He deserved respect and reverence, but received ridicule and scorn instead. People spit in his face, mocked his claim of divinity, and finally hung him on a cross. The Savior endured his trials with grace. He loved those that belittled him. He laid down his life for the very people that crucified him.

Having hope allows us to deal with our trials and endure to the end.

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Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

The 4th Article of Faith states, “We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

The most basic, fundamental belief we have is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith is what motivates us to do what we do. Faith is what changes us and transforms us.

When I was a young girl, I did not have religion in my life, Yet, I had this simple faith that God was real and he heard my prayers. After my mother died, I used to plead in my prayers that my grandparents would live for a long time so I wouldn’t be left again. Both of my grandparents lived to their mid-late eighties and died long after I was married with my own family. I remember just feeling that if I prayed about something Heavenly Father would hear me.

Over the years, my faith has been tested. One of my daughters was born with an infection. The doctors thought it was meningitis which, at her age, would’ve been fatal. I prayed and prayed for her and it seemed as though whatever I prayed for wasn’t answered. In fact, it seemed like the opposite occurred. I remember feeling completely broken, thinking that for some reason Heavenly Father wasn’t answering my prayers. Yet, at the moment when I most needed a confirmation of my faith, I received it. From this experience I learned I must trust in Heavenly Father and that he knows more than I do. In the end, my daughter was fine and has suffered no ill effects from her infection, but the refining of the experience strengthened my faith and taught me that, sometimes, we do have to have our faith tested.

In order for our faith to grow we must feed it. One of my favorite Primary songs is Faith. In this song we sing about how faith is like a seed. Faith is often compared to a mustard seed, the tiniest of seeds. Yet, when it’s properly fed and nourished it grows into an enormous plant.

We must continually feed and nourish our faith. We do this by attending our meetings, serving in our callings, magnifying those callings, saying our prayers, attending the temple, and doing all in our power to keep the commandments that we understand. Each time we pay our tithing we are exhibiting our faith and it is growing. Every time we do our visiting teaching or home teaching we are showing our faith and allowing it to grow. Sometimes, our faith grows most when our prayers are not answered the way we want them to be answered.

My niece lost her mother, my sister-in-law, to cancer last year. Of course, we all prayed that her mother would be healed, but that didn’t happen. Not long ago, this niece bore such a sweet and strong testimony and I marveled at her incredible faith to endure such a trial.

Faith is the foremost principle of the gospel. When we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, everything else will fall into place.

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Faith in Jesus Christ

To better serve as a full-time or member missionary it’s important to have a basic understanding of the fundamental principles of the gospel.

The first principle of the gospel is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are often accused of not being Christians even though the name Jesus Christ is included in the title. The reason some claim we are not Christians is because of our belief that Lucifer and Jesus are brothers.

Other religions do not believe in the pre-existence where we all enjoyed relationships as brothers and sisters, and children to heavenly parents before mortality. We believe that we were all created as spirits before we were born. We learned and grew spiritually while in the pre-existence and for a time we lived in harmony and peace.

We believe that before Adam was placed on this earth we had a war in heaven. Lucifer, a spirit brother also known as Satan, presented a plan which included forcing all of mankind to keep the commandments while they sojourned in mortality. He promised not a soul would be lost because everyone would be compelled to live the gospel and in so doing would return to live with God after they left mortality.

Jesus, on the other hand, presented a plan that allowed each of us to make our own choices while on earth and to live the gospel at our own discretion. It would be up to each individual to make his own choices and then to live with the consequences of those choices. We would not be forced nor compelled. Only those who chose of their own free will to keep the commandments would be able to return to live in God’s presence after mortality.

Lucifer’s plan was rejected in favor of Jesus’ plan. Lucifer, or Satan, and his spirit followers were cast out of heaven and will never be allowed the opportunity to receive a mortal body.

Jesus and Satan are spirit brothers just like the rest of us. We all share the same Heavenly Father who created our spirits. It is only through faith on the Lord Jesus Christ that we may return to live with Heavenly Father again some day, “ . . . for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

It is this faith that drives us to live the gospel as we seek to replace our natural tendencies with spiritual ones. It is this faith that motivates us to make righteous choices even when they are difficult. It is this faith that induces us to sacrifice our time and selfish desires to serve God and share the gospel. It is this faith that refines us and perfects us as we live in mortality.

The most important thing we can teach others is to have faith in Jesus Christ. It is our message to invite everyone, everywhere to come unto Christ.

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