Category Archives: Religious

“But He that Shall Endure unto the End, the Same Shall be Saved”

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For almost the last year and a half, I’ve been reading the New Testament and I finally finished it today. I decided to read it because I had only read it once while I was in seminary during my freshman year of high school, almost 20 years ago. 8O

I wanted to read it in a year, but it took me a little longer than expected. Last year, I had a hard time keeping up with the reading. I don’t understand the Bible very well; it’s confusing and I don’t feel quite as spiritually fed as I do when I read The Book of Mormon. If you’re not LDS, then you may not understand where I’m coming from. (Heck, even if you’re LDS, you may not understand where I’m coming from. :lol: ) However, even without feeling particularly spiritually fed, I still wanted to read through the New Testament again because I knew it would be a rewarding experience as there are many great things to learn from this particular volume of scripture.

At the end of last year, thanks to my friend Leah Marie, I found a website (catered toward LDS members) that helps remind you of your daily scripture reading. Read the Scriptures allows you to set up schedules for all the standard works and articles in the Ensign. You can set this schedule to a chapter a day, to finish a volume within a particular amount of time, or to have it correspond with Sunday School and/or seminary reading schedules. It’s a fantastic tool and without it, I wouldn’t have stayed on task this year.

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. John 15:18, KJV

I’m glad I stuck with my goal and continued to read the New Testament. Even though it was hard and it took me longer than I expected, I learned a lot about perseverance and enduring to the end, and I became reacquainted with wonderful stories and scriptures that I had nearly forgotten (or forgotten that they came from the New Testament), including my favorite verse, John 15:18.

Thanks to my friend Rachel who shared this scripture on her blog, I now have another favorite verse from the New Testament:

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21:4, KJV

For the rest of the year, I’m going to read The Book of Mormon again. Then, next year, I’m going to start the dauntingly scary, albeit rewarding task of rereading the Old Testament.

Uplifted and Edified

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Before converting my blog to posts mostly about books and reading, I posted something about General Conference each time it was held because of how uplifted and edified I felt. I realize that not all my followers are members of my church–The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And, I don’t want to be over-bearing with my beliefs, so don’t feel obligated to read this post. However, please allow me but a moment to express how grateful I am for my religion, as it’s a huge part of who I am as a person.

I’m so grateful to live in a day with modern technology that allows me to listen to my religious leaders twice a year for an entire weekend. I absolutely love General Conference. I always feels so much peace and comfort as I listen to the messages and testimonies of the speakers. Whenever I listen to General Conference, my testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is strengthened tenfold and I feel ready and able to take on life for another six months.

These pick-me-ups twice a year are truly inspired. If I didn’t have the opportunity to listen to my leaders and hear their messages, I think I’d sink into great despair with all the horror in today’s world. I’m so grateful that I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I’m not alone in this world and that I can talk to my Heavenly Father and His son whenever I’m in need, whenever the adversary wants me to feel alone. I’m also so very grateful that I know that today’s calamities don’t happen because of a merciless God who doesn’t care for His children. Instead, they happen to strengthen us and to help us become better people as we learn to serve one another in our times of need.

I can only think of how depressing this world would be not knowing that there is a purpose to this life, not knowing that there is something beyond this life, not knowing that God and His son are real and love us, and not knowing that God wants us to return to Him someday. I love this Gospel and I love the knowledge and faith that I have. And, I hope and pray that I can continue to strengthen my testimony and stay true to the faith.

Amelia’s Blessing

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Today was Amelia’s blessing, our dear friends’ Ali and Tyler’s daughter.  The blessing was very nice.  There were a lot of nice things said and I could feel the Spirit during her blessing.

Amelia looked so pretty in her blessing dress. One of Ali and Tyler’s neighbors made it. It’s beautiful. Not only are there cute little flowers on the bodice, but the skirt also has these embroidered flowers and holes because it’s made from a specific type of fabric. And, of course, I can’t remember the name of the fabric right now. The bracelet Amelia is wearing was from Ali’s mom, who just passed away a little over a month ago. I think it’s beautiful and so fitting right now.

Amelia was also blessed with the afghan I crocheted for her. I’m really happy with how her afghan turned out. I love the ribbon woven through the eyelet round and I love the lace-like edging. (I even managed to tie the bow nicely.) I think it’s perfect for such a beautiful baby!

Today was a great day! Not only did we get to celebrate Amelia’s birth and listen to her beautiful blessing, we also got to eat good food and talk among friends, who are more like family than friends. Corey and I always feel so welcomed and a part of the Vigue’s family not only by Tyler and Ali, but by their families as well.

Random Ramblings

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I was called to new position in my ward on Sunday.  I’m the new Mia Maid adviser.  I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited to accept a calling before.  I’m looking forward to working with the girls in my ward and being a part of their activities, going to camp with them, etc. (I’m also happy to have a calling that requires me to go to all my meetings on Sunday; I need that extra little push to go to anything besides Sacrament meeting. :oops: ) I think this will be a great thing for me, and I hope I can influence the girls for the better.

*****

I found out this morning that I got an A in my English class! 8O At the beginning of the semester, I never fathomed I’d get an A in the class because of how particular my teacher is.  During the first half of the semester, I was extremely discouraged because it seemed impossible to get an A on any of my papers.  By the time I took the midterm, I decided I’d be lucky if I were to pull off a B or B+ in the class and that I needed to accept it.  But, on my last few papers, I received an A and I got an A- on my midterm.  I must have done well on my final to warrant an overall A in the class.  I’m so ecstatic! :D

On Friday, I found out I got an A in my Japanese class.  I didn’t do too well on my finals (82% on the written and 84% on the oral), but because I had been doing so well during the rest of the semester I ended up with an A, even before my teacher curved the scores on the finals! :D

The only grade I’m waiting to know about is for my Doctrine and Covenants class.  I’m pretty sure I got an A in that class too because my current score (if Blackboard is correct) is a 95%.  The cut off for an A in that class is 94%.  As long as Blackboard is accurate, then it looks like I’ll get a 4.0 GPA for this semester.  Not bad for my first semester back in ten years. ;)

*****

I feel like I’ve had a new found freedom in the last couple of weeks because I haven’t had any homework.  I’ve actually had time to spend with Corey, read, crochet, watch a little TV, etc.  It’s been really nice!

My freedom will dwindle a little bit tomorrow because my spring class starts, but I shouldn’t be nearly as busy as I was since I’m only taking one class.  I’m taking English 251, which is Fundamental Literary Interpretation and Criticism.  I’m really excited to take this class because it will involve reading, and I think my reading comprehension will be better by the end of the term.

I was surprised at how much my books were. 8O For this one class, it cost $150 and that’s only because I didn’t go through the bookstore.  Otherwise, it would’ve been almost $200.  I have two texts and one novel for this class.  It never ceases to amaze me how expensive textbooks are.