Thankful

Thank you for bringing freedom loving people to this land.

"And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters." 1 Nephi 13:13

Thank you for supporting them in our country's founding war.

"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was ^awith them. And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them. And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together ^aagainst them to battle. And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity were ^adelivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations." 1 Nephi 13:16-19

Thank you for teaching the principles of government to our forefathers.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." The Declaration of Independence

Thank you for creating the constitution of the United States of America.

"According to the laws and ^aconstitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the ^brights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral ^aagency which I have given unto him, that every man may be ^baccountable for his own sins in the day of ^cjudgment. Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in ^abondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the ^aConstitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the ^bshedding of blood." Doctrine and Covenants 101: 77-80

Thank you for the freedom that I sometimes take for granted.

My country,' tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing;
land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims' pride, 
from every mountainside let freedom ring! 

Thank you for letting me vote for honest and wise leaders.

"I, the Lord God, make you ^afree, therefore ye are free indeed; and the law also maketh you free. Nevertheless, when the ^awicked ^brule the people mourn. Wherefore, ^ahonest men and wise men should be sought for diligently, and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold; otherwise whatsoever is less than these cometh of evil." Doctrine and Covenants 98:8-10

Thank you for letting me choose where I go to church.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." The First Amendment

Thank you for letting the restoration of your church take place here.
"Our Father in Heaven planned the coming forth of the Founding Fathers and their form of government as the necessary great prologue leading to the restoration of the gospel. Recall what our Savior Jesus Christ said nearly two thousand years ago when He visited this promised land: “For it is wisdom in the Father that they should be established in this land, and be set up as a free people by the power of the Father, that these things might come forth” (3 Ne. 21:4). America, the land of liberty, was to be the Lord’s latter-day base of operations for His restored church." Ezra Taft Benson

Thank you for a continuing to lead our country.

"Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be ^afree from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but ^bserve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things which we have written." Ether 2:12

Thank you for letting me make my own choices, even if they aren't always the right ones.

Therefore, ^acheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are ^bfree to ^cact for yourselves—to^dchoose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life." 2 Nephi 10:23

Thank you for freedom - when you created our country, but most of all when you created us.

"Wherefore, men are ^afree according to the ^bflesh; and ^call things are ^dgiven them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to ^echoose ^fliberty and eternal ^glife, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be ^hmiserable like unto himself." 2 Nephi 2:27

Jewel Making

D&C 101: 1-4 “Verily I say unto you, concerning your brethren who have been afflicted… I, the Lord, have suffered the ^aaffliction to come upon them… Yet I will own them, and they shall be ^amine in that day when I shall come to make up my jewels. Therefore, they must needs be ^achastened and tried, even as ^bAbraham, who was commanded to offer up his only son. For all those who will not ^aendure chastening, but ^bdeny me, cannot be sanctified.”

Zechariah 13:9 “And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will ^arefine them as silver is refined, and will ^btry them as gold is ^ctried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.”

D&C 136: 31 “My people must be ^atried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them, even the glory of Zion; and he that will not ^cbear chastisement is not worthy of my kingdom.”

Isa. 48: 10 “Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the ^afurnace of ^baffliction.” Alma 34: 29 “Therefore, if ye do not remember to be ^acharitable, ye are as dross, which the refiners do cast out, (it being of no worth) and is trodden under foot of men.”

Zech. 9: 16  “And the Lord their God shall ^asave them in that ^bday as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the ^cstones of a crown, lifted up as an ^eensign upon his land.”

Romans 8:16-18 “The Spirit itself beareth ^awitness with our ^bspirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; ^aheirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we ^bsuffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the ^asufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the ^bglory which shall be revealed ^cin us.”

Mosiah 5: 7 “And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are ^bchanged through faith on his name; therefore, ye are ^cborn of him and have become his ^dsons and his daughters.”

Mosiah 15: 10-13 “When his soul has been made an offering for ^bsin he shall see his seed… And who shall be his seed?  Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the ^aprophets, … and believed that the Lord would redeem his people… these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God. For these are they whose sins ^ahe has borne; these are they for whom he has died, to redeem them from their transgressions.”

D&C 132:19 “Exaltation and glory in all things, as hath been sealed upon their heads, which glory shall be a fulness and a continuation of the seeds forever and ever.”

Moses 1: 39 “For behold, this is my ^awork and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

God’s Glory is jewel making

Isa. 62:3 “Thou shalt also be a ^acrown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.

We are children of Christ, His followers and His jewels. When we are exalted, we will bring Him glory. If glory is a continuation of seeds forever and ever, then the highest glory we can give to our Savior is to be exalted.

Thank Goodness for Maps

I have been totally and completely reliant on maps.google.com since we moved to Arizona. I feel so much more confident about going someplace if I have checked google maps, printed out the directions, and checked the street view to see what side of the street it’s on:

I’m starting to recognize some streets, and memorize if they go north/south or east/west. I’m becoming more familiar with the different kinds of streetlights and road markings. Sometimes I feel like this is a different country because when you drive south towards Mexico, the signs change from miles to kilometers and meters:

I would not feel very comfortable going somewhere in this new city without checking a map, getting a little guidance first. Thank goodness for guidance in life’s journey too. Elder Nelson said,

“[God] provided a guide—a spiritual road map—to help us achieve success in our journey. We call that guide the standard works, so named because they—the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price—constitute the standard by which we should live. They serve as a standard of reference, as are standards of time, weights, and measures that are kept in national bureaus of standards.” (Living by Spiritual Guidance)

I am totally and completely reliant on my spiritual guides. Without them, I would often be lost. Thank goodness for maps in the scriptures. Elder Nelson calls these maps “the standard by which we should live.” Elder Bednar calls them “patterns:”

“A pattern is a plan, model, or standard that can be used as a guide for repetitively doing or making something. And the scriptures are full of spiritual patterns. Typically, a scriptural pattern is broader and more comprehensive than a connection. In the Doctrine and Covenants we find patterns for preaching the gospel, for avoiding deception, for constructing temples … and for a variety of other purposes.” (Elder Bednar – A Reservoir of Living Water)

The patterns and guides in the scriptures help and comfort me when I feel nervous or anxious or unsure. So do all the people who love me. I’m thankful for parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, friends, cousins and teachers for leading and guiding me. Most of all, I’m thankful that the Lord answers my prayers when I seek guidance.

“For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy ^aname’s sake lead me, and guide me.” (Psalm 31:3) 

This scripture reminds me of “I am a child of God…and so my needs are great. Help me to understand his words, before it grows to late. Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, help me find the way. Teach me all that I must do, to live with Him someday.”

“Be thou ^ahumble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.” (Doctrine and Covenants 112:10)

I know the Lord is extending his hand to us, to lead us and comfort us.

Love to everyone who reads this!