To "Always Remember Him"

In the Sacrament prayers we hear each week, the words "always remember Him" stand out to me.  As we covenant to do this, the Savior promises that we may always have His spirit to be with us.

When Christ appeared to the Nephites, He instituted the ordinance of the Sacrament, teaching that the Law of Moses was fulfilled in Him, and introducing the Law of the Gospel.  In 3 Nephi 2: 13, we read that the Savior "...did show himself unto them oft, and did break bread oft, and bless it, and give it unto them."  The Savior wanted the people to remember Him, and this was one of the ways He taught them to do it.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson said, "I wish to elaborate on three aspects of what it means to 'always remember him':  first, seeking to know and follow His will; second, recognizing and accepting our obligation to answer to Christ for every thought, word, and action; and third, living with faith and without fear so that we can always look to the Savior for the help we need."
                                                                                     --"To Always Remember Him", p. 49

I have listed some of the ways I can 'always remember Him':

• Diligently remember to pray personally morning and night, and to always have a prayer in my heart.
• Study and learn of Him.  (How can I remember someone I do not know?)
• Remember to keep my covenants, and to think of them more often.  Go to the temple more frequently.
• Practice patience and kindness.
• Love and serve others more willingly.
• Make the Sabbath a delight.
• Reflect more often on what the Savior did for me.
• Bear my testimony in appropriate ways whenever possible.
• Be honest always, and in ALL ways.
• Be joyful and happy - be encouraging to those around me.
• Seek for and pay attention to the promptings of the Spirit.
• For the rest of my life, be constantly and consistently working on developing Christlike attributes.  Always have an "attribute project" I am working on.

When I remember the Savior as I partake of the Sacrament, I should think not only of His suffering for me - His body broken and torn for me and His precious blood spilled for me - but I should think of His glorious resurrected body also.  He overcame all things, and invites me to "remember" Him as He is now:  King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Enduring to the End

I have always thought that enduring meant just getting through something, suffering patiently; waiting for it to be over with:  “If I can just get through this day, this week, this meeting, this class, this life…”

The implication is that once this “whatever” is over with, things will be better, calmer, without problems, perfect.

I have been pondering this week on a verse in the Book of Mormon:  2 Nephi 31: 16:

“And now, my beloved brethren, I know by this that unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved.” (Emphasis added)

I have always heard (paid attention) to the part about enduring to the end to be saved, but Nephi tells us HOW we need to do it, and WHAT enduring really means:  “…in following the example of the Son of the living God…”

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, in his Conference address in Oct. 2004, said that enduring is more than patiently suffering hardships throughout our lives.  He explained that “to endure to the end also means to continue in faithfulness to Christ until the end of our lives.”  It means we have “planted our lives firmly on gospel soil” staying faithful, serving, living Christlike lives, and keeping our covenants.  He said that “those who endure are balanced, consistent, humble, constantly improving, and without guile.”

 In other words, those who endure are actively carrying on, withstanding, persisting, and persevering – even rejoicing; NOT passively yielding to the trials and temptations, and tests of life.

If we follow the example of “the Son of the living God”, we will submit our will to that of the Father; we will be obedient, humble, and brave.  We will be kind and helpful to all around us, and serve without thought of recognition or reward.  We will be happy for the experiences of life.  We can say at the end, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:” (2 Timothy 4: 7)

Enduring IS becoming like Christ.

Introduction

   We have not done anything with our blog since we returned from our mission in 2011, so it is about time.  Instead of trying to add to that blog, we are going with a brand new one - and a fresh start.  Much has happened in our lives since 2011.  We have settled in St. George, Utah; we are here mainly because Ida's mother is here, but also because Ida has roots in this area, and it is "home".  Her ancestors were among the original pioneers sent to settle this area over 150 years ago.  We love the beauty of southern Utah - the red rocks and the mountains, the blue skies, the desert and the warm weather!
   Since we've been here, we have been involved IN church service (we are members of the Sunset 1st Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), IN temple attendance (the beautiful St. George temple is only minutes away), IN ICL through Dixie State University (Institute for Continued Learning), and IN discovering what lies at the end of every dirt road we can find!  
   In September of this year, Ida decided to go back to school to get her college degree, and is enrolled IN the Pathway Program through BYU-Idaho.
   So - this is us, Roland and Ida Chambers, and we are IN!