Thoughts For a New Year...

I have been thinking a lot lately about the love the Lord has for us, and His desire to bless our lives and show us His love.  At times, we all struggle to feel His presence and His peace.  This can happen for many reasons.  Perhaps we may be struggling with temptation, frustration, or even discouragement.  How wonderful it is to know, then, that the Lord can help us overcome all of those obstacles, if we let Him.

I'm reading in Alma right now, and learned an important principle... After having persecuted the Church, Zeezrom has a change of heart and desires to repent.  Alma goes to visit him, and offers him counsel.  "And Alma said: If thou believest in the redemption of Christ, thou canst be healed" (Alma 15:8).  The Lord has power to heal all wounds; those inflicted by other people or circumstances, as well as those brought about as a consequence of our own actions.  I have gained a testimony of that, particularly in this past year.  I know that if we exercise faith in the Atonement of the Lord, we will feel His peace.

As I work to develop my faith in Him, I am able to recognize His love more fully, and am more prepared to heed His invitation.  "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your heart, might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God" (Moroni 10:32).

One of the places I have come to know and love the Lord more fully is in the temple. As I have prepared to worship there, and am diligent in doing so, I really do come to know Him. Through that experience, I have gained a testimony that His grace is sufficient for me. It is enough not only to save us from our sins, but from our discouragements as well. As I am able to recognize His hand in my life in that way, I find it impossible to deny His power! 
 
I love the Lord!  I am grateful for the blessings He extends to me on a daily basis.  The past year has been the most difficult AND most wonderful I've had so far.  And I love the peace that comes from knowing that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me, and who gave His Son for my sake.  As I look to this new year, I do so with an increased desire to come to know Him, and a heart full of peace and hope.
 
In fact, a la my cousin Lindsey, I have selected "hope" as my word of the year for 2010.  It's a word that I will try to focus on throughout the year...  Here's what it means and why I picked it:
 

hope:

1. the feeling that events will turn out for the best.

2. a person or thing in which expectations are centered.

3. To wish for something with confident expectation of its fulfillment.

4. To have confidence; place trust.

5. the desire and search for a future good, difficult but not impossible to attain with God's help.