This week we went to Manzano.
Which is a tourist attraction up in the mountains. It was seriously gorgeous,
and I was beyond excited to be back in the mountains, fresh air, miles to
explore. We decided to ¨hike¨ through the partially frozen river.
Walking along the thin ice, my
mind flashed back to our special capacitación that we had with Presidente Ávila
last week, and everything he talked to us about concerning the Plan of
Salvation, agency, and our ultimate potential and purpose in life. (I´ll come
back to the ice in a minute)
He talked about the importance
of knowing WHO we are. He talked about Romans 8:16-17:
¨The spirit itself beareth
witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God;
And if children, then heirs;
heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ...¨
Now with that being said, he
talked about the necessity of a greater understanding of the plan of salvation.
It would have been so easy for the Lord to just give us freely of that
reward... in fact, Satan´s plan consisted of exactly that. Take away agency,
and there could be no failure.
BUT, agency, and our
responsibility to choose is one of the greatest gifts and privileges that our
Heavenly Father has given us.
From the beginning we´ve made
decisions as to what course our lives would take, and who we would choose to
align ourselves with.
Presidente talked about the
great responsibility that the Lord places on each of us to choose and use our
agency correctly... He likened it to a highway road that splits into two. We
have to know where we´re going, how we´re traveling, and how fast.. so that we
can make decisions wisely. If you´re traveling too fast, not in control, or
lose sight of where it is you´re going, which path will be ¨yours¨, you won´t
have time arriving at the split to make the correct decision.
There is an obvious divide
between the great ones, followers of Christ, and the wicked ones who choose to
align themselves with the opposing team... in the end, there exists no ¨middle
ground¨.
As humans, we have the tendency
to ¨walk the line¨... to see just how far we can push our limits... to walk
where the ice cracks, but maybe just not far enough to be fatal... but the
Lord´s way, the safe and sure way, is to stay as FAR AWAY as possible. But he
knows that we won´t be perfect, and so He hasn´t left us alone.
He has provided us with THE
PLAN. Presidente Ávila told us ¨This plan is not a ¨plan B¨ or a default.
Everything that has happened from the beginning has been part of the perfect
and eternal design. It is THE plan.¨ We know that we lived with Him before, we
know that now, it is our whole purpose and plan to make it back to Him again.
Therefore, we know our ¨destination¨.
It´s in that between here and
there that sometimes gets tricky. However, speed limits, rules, and regulations
all exist for a reason, and for our eternal benefit. Contrary to what we often
hear, ¨There exists NO ¨happiness¨outside of the gospel. But the choice is ours
to decide where we stand.
The decision to put on ¨The
WHOLE armor of God¨ (utilizing for our benefit the ¨warning signs¨the
¨rules¨and the protection He offers through His everlasting gospel) is ours.
That´s our offensive, and ultimately what gives us the upper hand.
As part of His eternal plan, the
Lord provided us with a Savior, Jesus Christ. He is our ¨great captain¨and our
only hope. Our source of strength. His choice and resulting sacrifice is the
determining factor of our possibility of success or failure.
2 Nephi 25:23: ¨...For we know
that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.¨
There again, the choice is ours.
We do all that lies within our power, acting as our own agents. Then, there
comes another choice: to accept and apply the atonement of Jesus Christ, with
all of it´s saving grace and redeeming power, and allow it to work in our
lives. We must understand that without Him, we are NOTHING.
In the end, we are each on our
own course in life. We have our ¨trajectory¨set our for us, we know the eternal
destination, and we know that a loving Heavenly Father, and His selfless Son,
have provided us with the necessary ¨guides¨ to help us to have the success He
wants for us.
Whether we are cruising along at
faster speeds on the highway, or pacing ourselves, running. or walking
cautiously along the frozen river, choosing wisely where our next step will
take us... The choice is ours...
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
¨Know ye not that they which run
in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may
obtain.
And every man that striveth for
the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible
crown; but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as
uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air.¨
In this great ¨race¨, may we run
with the ¨finish line¨ in mind, always. May we run, and not just run, but with
the intention of succeeding. For the incorruptible and glorious prize of life
eternal. Triumphant through the mercy and grace of our loving Savior. May we
run so that one day we may stand before God and proudly say, like Paul:
¨I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the
faith.¨
So that we may stand tall,
knowing who we are and whose we are. That we
knew whose side we were fighting
for, and that we rest assured knowing we have done our part to inherit all that
he has waiting for those who are faithful.
I love you all so much!
xoxoxo Your Hermana C
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*looks a bit like UTAH from where I stand....??
dad and brothers this made me miss shooting. lots.
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intercambios in Tunuyán... interrupted by a nasty flu bug. I was the only survivor.
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* Familia Contador. They were one of the first families that we reactivated in Tunuyán. When we first showed up, she told us they wanted NOTHINGto do with the church.. after our lesson they came to church the next week.
between my time there and now, their 3 kids have been baptized, he´s the first counselor in the branch presidency, she´s the RS president, AND they went throught the temple last month to get sealed.
She hugged me probaby 7 times in 3 minutes. it was such a sweet reunion.
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*Just a little stoked to to be in nature!
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*best district
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