You are cordially invited to

Come Unto Christ

Who: Everyone is invited who has a true desire to discover happiness and to receive it in this life and throughout eternity.

What: Feel the power of His redeeming love through obedience, even in small things. You will receive blessings beyond measure if you bring a repentant heart and a contrite spirit.

Where & When: You can seek Him through prayer at any place and at any time. He will come into your heart and grant you peace if you but seek Him.

Why: Find true happiness and peace secure in the knowledge that Jesus Christ is the light, the life and hope of the world. “Behold I say unto you, that as these things are true, and as the Lord God liveth, there is none other name given under heaven save it be this Jesus Christ, of which I have spoken, whereby man can be saved” (2 Nephi 25:20.)

I have sought Jesus Christ and the peace of heart following Him brings, my entire life. I invite you to take my invitation and receive Him into your own heart that you can have the happiness and joy He offers.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (or Mormons,) I worship the Savior and all that He teaches. If you have not yet found Him, I encourage you to contact the Missionaries and ask for a copy of the Book of Mormon. There is no truer book on earth wherein you can read the teachings of Jesus Christ.

In the Book of Mormon you will read how Jesus Christ was true to His promise to visit His “other sheep” (John 10:16,) and that those sheep were on the North American continent.

Jesus loves you and He is seeking you, even now.

He desires for you to come unto Him. If you will answer His call, He will bless you and comfort you.

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30.)

I testify that by following the path of Christ, striving to be like Him, and obeying His counsel, you can obtain true happiness in this life. I hope you will Come Unto Him—and be happy.

In 1 Nephi, chapter 19, Nephi discusses the life of the Savior, who would come far into the future. He talks about the Savior’s death and the persecutions the Jewish people would face as a result. The Book of Mormon Student Manual clarifies misunderstandings some people have concerning this subject:

“For centuries apostate Christianity used the crucifixion of Jesus as an excuse for persecuting the Jews. Occasionally people still say, “This long history of rejection is the punishment for what they did to Jesus.”

In his quoting of Zenos in 1 Nephi 19:13–19, Nephi gave us some important insights into the Jews and their tragic history. There is no indication that because they are “scourged by all people, because they crucify the God of Israel” (v. 13) this scourging is initiated by God….

…Anyone who thinks that persecution of the Jews or other minority groups is pleasing to God is in deep need of repentance (see 2 Nephi 29:5).”

Even in the United States of America, a nation founded on religious freedom, people have been, and continue to be persecuted for their religious beliefs. From its beginnings, some people have tried to make religious freedom apply only to their only religions. Since God planned the United States as a place where the restored gospel could flourish, Latter-day Saints often see this as Satan’s efforts to put an end to the spread of truth.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint has an Article of Faith that says that we give all others the right to worship as they see fit and ask the same privilege of ourselves. With this in mind, it’s not appropriate for any Latter-day Saint to harass or persecute another for his faith. Latter-day Saints are taught to show respect for the beliefs of others. While this doesn’t, of course, preclude missionary work, it does show an expectation of respectful missionary work, focused on what we teach, not on what others teach.

Hate crimes and persecution have no place in the Savior’s gospel of love. The Savior himself, on the cross, asked God to forgive those who crucified him. If He could do this, can we do any less? This is true of the Jewish people, as we see in 2 Nephi 29:5, and it is also true of all others who worship differently than we do. It is what God expects of all His children, regardless of their current faith.

“As I have loved you, love one another.”

For more on the whys of persecution, visit LDS.org and read “Why Did People Act This Way?”

I have come to the realization that I am not as young as I used to be. Now this is not a bad thing, far from it. I have grown in knowledge, experience and maturity over the years (I hope). I have earned every one of my 25½ years and wouldn't trade in a single one of them.

However, a not so fun part of growing older is that my body itself is not as forgiving as it used to be. Though I have never majorly abused the body God gave me (by intentionally harming myself, taking drugs, drinking etc…), I have not taken as good a care of it as I should have.

This neglect has been more pronounced in the years of my young adulthood. I have found myself being careless of my actions which have resulted in me injuring myself (like how I tore all the ligaments in my ankle and fractured my ankle bone a few weeks ago while playing on the trampoline with my 6-year-old brother), not eating as healthily as I should (which is compounded in not taking my needed vitamins), and not getting proper rest.

The last is actually my worst problem, and is something that many of my single adult friends have. There is just so much to do in a day that my activities take me late into the night. I am reminded of the poem,

"My candle burns at both ends
It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends -
It gives a lovely light."
Edna St. Vincent Millay, "A Few Figs from Thistles", 1920

The Lord understands why it is important for us to take care of our bodies. He knows that the heath of our bodies affects the workings of the Spirit. In Doctrine and Covenants 88 and 89 (the latter section is on the Word of Wisdom) the Lord addresses the proper care of our bodies,

"Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated." Doctrine and Covenants 88:124

We are commanded to be active (not idle). I believe the Lord means active physically, spiritually, and mentally. When we do so then our bodies and our spirits find the proper harmony needed to be one.

To be able to be active and not idle we need proper rest. This means early to bed and early to rise. It has been proven that the body needs a certain amount of sleep to properly function, but that not just any sleep will do. A person needs to get to sleep by 10:00 p.m. to get into the proper sleep cycle that rejuvenates.

This is not always easy to do, but it is possible. To follow the counsel of the Lord it takes maturity, and discipline. However when we do so, we are blessed beyond measure.

Last week, in my Singles ward, our Sacrament talks were given by two of our Stake High Counselors. One of the talks was on the power of prayer. During his talk he quoted part of hymn #142

"Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!
That calls me from a world of care
And bids me at my Father's throne
Make all my wants and wishes known.

In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief
And oft escaped the tempter's snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer!"
Hymn#142 Sweet Hour of Prayer,
Text: Attr. to William W. Walford,
Music: William B. Bradbury

After quoting these words our speaker mentioned that not, many years ago, when he was a young single adult, he was inspired by this hymn and attempted to have a sweet hour of prayer. He was sad to admit that he ran out of things to say after five minutes. How was it he asked that he could spend hours interacting with people every day, and yet he was hard pressed to give God more then five minutes?

How often does this happen to us today? Our lives are filled with so many busy things, whether it is school, work, dating, trying to find our place in this adult world, we should have so much to say to our Maker. Yet more often then not, our prayers don't even 50 seconds, let alone five minutes.

I think back to my own life, and the times I actually took to have my sweet hour of prayer, and I realize now that it was at those times that I felt the closest to my Father in Heaven. Nowadays I find that my life is so busy it is not always possible to spend as much time in prayer as I would like as often as I like. Yet, I can always make sure that no matter the length of my prayers that they are purposeful, powerful, and sincere.

Our speaker mentioned this fact along with a few helpful hints in how to do so:

- Think about what you are going to say before you start. Think about your day. Thank about your Blessings. Think about your desires and needs.

"The trouble with most of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the telephone and ordering groceries—we place our order and hang up. We need to meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for and then speak to the Lord as one man speaketh to another" (Gordon B. Hinckley, Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, 469)

- Remember whom you are talking to. God is the father of your spirit. He knows you, loves, you and cares about you.

"We are all children of God. He loves us and knows our needs, and He wants us to communicate with Him through prayer. We should pray to Him and no one else. The Lord Jesus Christ commanded, "Ye must always pray unto the Father in my name" (3 Nephi 18:19). As we make a habit of approaching God in prayer, we will come to know Him and draw ever nearer to Him. Our desires will become more like His. We will be able to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that He is ready to give if we will but ask in faith." Prayer, Gospel Library, Gospel Topics, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, www.lds.org

- Don't rush your prayer, or rush off after offering it. Take time to let God give an answer to your prayer. It doesn't have to be a long wait, just a purposeful one.

"Do you give Heavenly Father a chance to answer when you talk to him? Try listening before you jump up from your knees. You'll be more likely to recognize the guidance he wants you to receive." "The Way to Pray," Tambuli, Feb 1992

When God commanded Nephi to make plates on which to record the records of the people and the church, Nephi explained that he wrote only that which he considered sacred. However, he noted that many had little respect for that which is sacred.

For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels. 1 Nephi 19: 7

This parallels a serious problem we face in today’s society. Many people have come to lack respect for that which is sacred, even in their own beliefs or those of others. Today, God is often not treated with the respect He most certainly deserves.

Too many people take lightly their obligations to their Father in Heaven. They use his name, and that of His Son as mere profanity, or casual expression. They take credit for their own blessings, ignoring who the blessings came from. Some people devote their lives to convincing others that God isn’t real; that we don’t need God to exist or to live. Some say there is no power greater than themselves, a dangerous thought, certainly.

All of this mocks that which is sacred. God asks us again and again to show respect for sacred things, sacred moments, and sacred places. By doing so, by honoring those moments and places He has designated as sacred, we show respect for Him. We demonstrate the depth of our love for the Creator and for our Savior.

How can you show respect for that which is sacred? You can begin by showing respect for those things others consider sacred, even if they aren’t sacred to you. Then you can start to pay attention to what is sacred to you. What do you feel best shows your love and devotion to your Father in Heaven and to your Savior?

How do you dress when you visit His home? God doesn’t ask us to show up in expensive, prestigious finery. He does ask us to come in our best clothing—modest, respectful, and appropriate.

Once there, He asks us to behave respectfully. We enter quietly, speak quietly, and sit quietly. When church meetings are in progress, we listen carefully and apply the words to our own lives, so we can improve our ability to live the gospel.

At home, we can treat sacred things as sacred. This means treating our bodies with respect, honoring our responsibility as parents or spouses, keeping the covenants we’ve made with God, and living the gospel as best we can.

God gives us sacred spaces and moments to help us feel closer to Him. Honoring those sacred things is one way we thank Heavenly Father for the gift of sacred things.

And it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the record of my people. And upon the plates which I made I did engraven the record of my father, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and also many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them. –1 Nephi 19:1

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are a record-keeping people. From the earliest, days, they’ve been instructed to keep good records and even personal journals and family histories. In fact, on the very day the church was organized, Joseph Smith was commanded by revelation to keep a record of the church.

As individuals, members of the church are counseled to gather and verify their family histories, write a personal history, and keep a journal. These are to be handed down through the generations, giving members a connection to their ancestors. Because we believe family life is forever, these records can help us feel connected to the family we don’t remember knowing—sort of a family reunion.

Have you ever looked over your genealogy charts and seen nothing but names and dates? These are nice as curiosities, but it’s much nicer when you know who that person really is. For instance, I have a well-researched ancestor named Elizabeth Blossom. Because her father was a pilgrim, and her husbands and some of her sons were important, there is a great deal we know of her. I know all the places she lived, the names of her children, and that ten of her children died before she did. I know her Pilgrim father and brother were supposed to go on the Mayflower journey, but returned home when the boat they were on—the Speedwell—become unseaworthy. But I don’t know why they returned home. Nor do I know how nine-year-old Elizabeth felt leaving Holland to join the Pilgrims in a new land. I don’t know how she felt when her father died and her mother remarried only a few months later. Her family fled the Pilgrims and moved several more times due to religious divisions, but I don’t know if she left because she believed the pastors they followed, or if they left because the men did.

Imagine if Elizabeth had kept a journal. I’ve made her as real as my imagination can make her, but with a journal, I’d know. I’d know how she felt about moving to a new land across the ocean, just as I know how Nephi felt about a similar journey when he was also young.
The journals left behind by early church members show us the church in a way the statistics can’t. The testimonies, the stories, the trials, the blessings…they all bring our history to life. Your own journal can do the same for your descendants.

“From time immemorial the Lord has counseled us to be a record-keeping people. Abraham had a book of remembrance, and Adam had one. You may think of them as not being as highly educated as we are, but they were well-trained people. Adam spent much effort being the school teacher for his children. He and Eve taught their sons and daughters. He taught them the gospel in their home evenings, and he taught them reading and writing and arithmetic.

And they kept their books of remembrance. How else do you think Moses, many hundreds of years later, got the information? These records had been kept, and he referred to them and got the history of the world, which wasn’t in any library other than that. Can you see your responsibility?” -- Spencer W. Kimball, “President Kimball Speaks Out on Personal Journals,” Ensign, Dec 1980, 60

When Lehi’s family boarded the ship they’d made for crossing the ocean to a new home chosen for them by God, boredom might have been a challenge for them. Unlike Noah’s family, they didn’t have the large number of animals to care for.

9 And after we had been driven forth before the wind for the space of many days, behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves 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.

10 And I, Nephi, began to fear exceedingly lest the Lord should be angry with us, and smite us because of our iniquity, that we should be swallowed up in the depths of the sea; wherefore, I, Nephi, began to speak to them with much soberness; but behold they were angry with me, saying: We will not that our younger brother shall be a ruler over us. (1 Nephi 18)

It might seem that the singing and dancing were considered by Nephi to be immoral. Actually, however, it was what the singing and dancing did to them that was the problem. It appears the music was of a type to cause them to behave rudely and to chase away the spirit, so they no longer remembered God’s place in their lives.

The church has always celebrated music done properly. The pioneers, only allowed to bring essentials with them, brought musical instruments. In the evenings, instead of collapsing in exhaustion, they often danced. Brigham Young said, “If you wish to dance, dance; and you are just as much prepared for a prayer meeting after dancing as ever you were, if you are Saints.” (Journal of Discourses, 6:149, 148.)

By this, he pointed out that a true member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will choose music and dancing that is pleasing to God. When dancing is done properly and in the proper spirit, it won’t chase away the Spirit.

The church publishes a pamphlet for youth called For the Strength of Youth. This pamphlet advises:

“Dancing can be fun and can provide an opportunity to meet new people. However, it too can be misused. When dancing, avoid full body contact with your partner. Do not use positions or moves that are suggestive of sexual behavior. Plan and attend dances where dress, grooming, lighting, lyrics, and music contribute to a wholesome atmosphere where the Spirit of the Lord may be present.”

The church has often hosted musicals, dance festivals, and regular dances for youth. These types of events allow church members to enjoy dancing in a safe and appropriate environment. The music played at dances is carefully screened for appropriateness, and young people attending agree to a standard of behavior while in attendance.

Any church member who listens to music or participates in musical activity is advised to listen carefully to the words of the music. In addition, they’re counseled to notice how the music or dance makes them feel. If it inspires inappropriate thoughts, emotions, or behavior, it should be removed from the member’s life.

However, music can uplift and even build testimonies. Our sacred hymns have conversion power. While members are not expected to listen only to sacred music, they are expected to be certain the music doesn’t take away from the sacredness of their mortal life.
For more on music, watch free online a new video in which teenagers discuss the role of music in their lives.

Worthy Music, Worthy Thoughts