Because of Him

This last Sunday we celebrated Easter! I hope it was an enjoyable one for everyone. 

So why do we celebrate Easter? What is it all about? Why is it so important? 

It's all because of Him.

He was born to bring hope into this world. He was born to be a perfect example of how we should live our lives. He was born to be our Saviour. And that is exactly what He did and who He was. He is the Son of God.

But like so many prophets before Him, despite all of the miracles He performed, all of the lives He blessed, people didn't believe Him and they crucified Him.

But before that He did the most important thing that He came here to do.  He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane, He felt all of our sins and mistakes, all of our physical pains, all of our sorrows and sadness. He performed the Atonement.

Included in the Atonement, the final part of it, He was resurrected! His body and His spirit reunited, never to be separated again. And because He did that for us, we can be resurrected too.

Because of Him we can live again, "the grave hath no victory", and we can be with our families again. 

Because of Jesus Christ we can be with our families forever!

#BecauseofHim

The 10 Marriage Commandments

Families can be together forever! Husbands and wives when sealed together in the temple can be with each other for eternity not just 'until death do you part.' Forever!

But obviously who wants to be with their spouse forever if you can't even get along in this life... :(

That's where the 10 Marriage Commandments come in.  If you are having problems in your marriage [or even if you aren't and you just want to have an even better one] this is what you need to do [I strongly encourage you to read the entire article HERE] :

                                                                                                       lds.org

1. Thou shalt show respect

2. Thou shalt be affectionate

3. Thou shalt communicate

4. Thou shalt forgive

5. Thou shalt be kind

6. Thou shalt be appreciative

7. Thou shalt be loyal

8. Thou shalt find balance

9. Thou shalt be honest

10. Thou shalt make decisions together

I'm not married yet but I do know that when I am it is going to take a lot of work everyday. When you get married you make a commitment to the other person and promise that you are going to love them forever. Things will be hard. No marriage is ever perfect but with Heavenly Father in your life it can be pretty close. He can make up the difference. I want to add one more commandment to this. 

11. Thou shalt kneel in prayer together every night.

When you pray together as husband and wife, your relationship with Heavenly Father strengthens and naturally your relationship with your spouse will strengthen as well.  I promise.  In Alma 26:12 it says "Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things..."

So when you are feeling lost, remember the 10 Marriage Commandments and pray! Heavenly Father will help you find your way.

You are all amazing sons and daughters of God. No matter who you are or what you've been through HEAVENLY FATHER LOVES YOU!! Don't ever forget it!

Thank you to Heather Hale for this great article!

"A Scripture a Day Keeps Satan Away"

On my mission I have had the great privilege to meet a truly amazing person. Her name is Nicki Wilkes and she is the best member missionary out there and does so much for the Sister missionaries here at the Visitors' Centre at the London Temple.
About a month ago she told us about her scripture journal and in the front of it it says

"A scripture a day keeps Satan away."

Clever, right?! So now all the Visitor Centre Sister have one and what we do is just write down one scripture that stood out to us for the day. It's super simple but it's amazing and something I will definitely keep doing after my mission.  So if you are looking for something fun to keep you reading your scriptures, here it is! I'm already on my third page :D

 Love you Nicki!

General Conference

Here is a link to General Conference where you can see the Prophet speak and give us guidance. It was AMAZING!

Strengthening Families: Central to God's Plan

"God has established families to bring happiness to His children, allow them to learn correct principles in a loving atmosphere, and prepare them for eternal life." Preach My Gospel page 32

 Families are central to God's Plan and one of the main things that this church focuses on is strengthening family relationships because we know that home should be a place of "refuge and safety."
I love the website Strengthening Families because it gives some uplifting thoughts about families and some tips on what you can do to strengthen your family.
And there's even a link to talk to the missionaries!

What are you grateful for?

When we are continually acknowledging the things that we are grateful for, we will have great joy. This great article1,000 Things to Be Thankful For about how we can be grateful for even the simplest things.

Make Your Home a Holy Place

What are you willing to do to have the spirit in your home? We can ALL do something that can strengthen our family relationships.
In the short film, Through Small Things, 3 siblings are challenged to think of things they can do to change their homes for the better.