Take a leap of faith.

I had the opportunity to go to my friend's farewell today, and he did a great job!! He and his brothers also sang a beautiful a cappella arrangement of "I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go" and it gave me goosebumps!!

He gave his talk on the importance of the Holy Ghost, and the importance of living worthily to have the Spirit as a companion. He based his talk off of President Henry B. Eyring's talk entitled "The Holy Ghost Is Your Companion". He said that the Holy Ghost gives us the power to discern truth from falsehood, and that the truth that matters most is verified only by revelation from God. The Holy Ghost also gives us hope and comfort; we are able to know of things that we otherwise might not see or feel. We need the Holy Ghost so that he can give us guidance and direction.

I know that this is so true!! Sometimes I've felt like I should say something or send something to a friend and I didn't know why, but I would later find that what I said or sent them was something that they really needed at that time. So grateful for the Holy Ghost and so grateful for the opportunities that I have had to be the answer to someone's prayers. <3

The speaker after my friend was a man in his ward. He based his talk off of Elder James B. Martino's talk entitled "Turn to Him and Answers Will Come". He talked about Lehi's dream. He said something very intriguing. He said that our parents led us to the iron rod. And then he said that missionaries lead the lost and wandering to the rod. I thought that was very cool; I've never thought about that before, but that's what the missionaries are doing.

He said that to continue holding on to the rod, and staying on the right path, we need to:

• be converted to the Gospel (and to Jesus Christ. That's my two cents)
• continue in obedience. We need to follow the commandments. Remember when you've felt the Spirit. He said that a lack of spiritual habits seems to make you forget those times that you've felt the Spirit. He said don't give up. Never give up.
• Trials! I thought this one was interesting. Our trials are a great teacher. They give us experience and are for our good. It's never occurred to me that trials help us stay on the path–so long as you turn to Christ. If you let your trial take over your life, then it can lead you astray. So long as you turn to Christ, and Heavenly Father, your trial will help you grow.

His talk gave me a few insights into Lehi's dream, and staying on the path, that I'd never thought of before.

After my friend's farewell, I went back to my home ward. I pretty much missed Sunday School, but in Relief Society, Sister Nelson talked about adversity!!! I was like, "HEY! I had a trial this week!" It's still a trial, but man, was this lesson a blessing! 

We talked about how everyone has trials, and we always have trials. We are here on earth to have trials. Trials help us grow. When we remember that our Heavenly Father has helped us through our trials, that helps us be positive–we've been through them before, and He has always brought us through them, so He will bring us through this one. The Savior is also with us, and we are never alone. He is always there to help us. You just need to turn to Him and ask. 

We then talked about how the world is becoming more and more dangerous. But we don't have to fear because we have the Gospel, and we have the Savior. He will never leave us. He will come when the time is right. We need to remember that the Lord knows what He is doing. He will always be in front, beside, and behind us. "Doubt not, fear not."

Then we talked about things that can help us not fear the tribulations of the last days:

Faith and hope:

-They can dispel fear.

-Faith and fear cannot exist at the same time.

One of the ways to dispel fear is to stop fearing and just do it. Trust in the Lord. Take a leap of faith, and just step into the darkness. He will not let you fall.

In our trials, there is always a lesson to be learned; you just have to find it. The Lord is watching out for us. Our trials are for our good; they are to make us better. Some things we can only learn through our trials (as I posted yesterday). Our Heavenly Father is molding us for something more–He knows who we can become. 

And because today is Valentine's Day, I want to say something about that. :)

I am single this year (not that that's a significant change from any other year). And this is to all of my other single friends (and also to those who already are in a relationship). You have to love yourself first! You are the person who is going to be with you forever–even when no one is around. You're sort of stuck with yourself. So learn to love yourself. Figure yourself out first. That's what I'm doing right now. I am learning about myself. I've had to take some leaps of faith–I am still a shy person, so it's been difficult sometimes, discovering things about myself, but on the whole it's been fun. :) I'm grateful for my Savior, and my Heavenly Father, who love me unconditionally. I'm grateful for my friends and family–they love me, even on my bad days. They're always there for me, and I know that I can turn to them whenever I need them. This year has been great so far, but hopefully it will be even better than I imagine it will. :)