My Testimony

Well here it is!  My first assignment!  I am really excited about this one, because it is one of the most precious things that I have and I am excited to get to share it.  For this assignment I will be sharing my testimony and my goals in life.

First I'm going to start with my goals in life.
     1) Be the wife that my Husband needs and support him throughout life.  To listen to him, and to provide       him with the strength and comfort that I can give him.
     2) To teach my children in righteousness and to help them grow to their greatest potential.
     3) To be with all of my children together in the Temple one day.
     4) To be with all of my siblings and parents together in the Temple one day.
     5) To be in a musical (or an opera)
     6) To sing with Mormon Tabernacle Choir someday (while this may never be possible...it is still a goal!)
     7) To get my Bachelors Degree
     8) To get my Master's Degree
     9) To go to hair school
     10) To run a half marathon
     11) To have my own studio where the arts are taught.  This means finding an artist and a dancer to both be a part of my studio, to teach children about the joys and rewards of good art.
     12) To not judge others when I don't always know their situation, and even when I do, to not judge.
     13) To always remember to put Heavenly Father first, and that having integrity is much more important than anything else that could compromise it.  
     14) To accept life for what it is, and to find Joy in the Journey.

     My testimony is something that has seen me though the hardest times of my life.  It has been a source of strength and comfort knowing what I believe in during the times when there seemed like there was nothing believable.  It has been a constant reminder to me of a Heavenly Father who loves me and a Savior who has died for me, and both are waiting to fill me with their love whenever I may ask for it.
     I know that I am a child of God.  I know that I have been created in the image of a loving Heavenly Father who wants nothing more than for me to return to him someday.  I know that he has sent me to this earth to be tested and to go through trials that I may learn from them, and become better because of them.  I know that through his Plan of Salvation that I have been provided with a Savior to atone for the things that I cannot.  Without Heavenly Father's Plan of Salvation there would be no way for me to return to him, and live with him eternally.
     I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the World and that he as suffered for the sins of mankind so that justice can be fulfilled and mercy given.  I know that he is a kind Savior who did these things for me because he loves me, and all of God's children.  And I also know that at anytime when I am feeling hurt, or lost, or afraid, that he is patiently waiting with open arms to take away my pain, because that is what his atonement does.  It takes away the pains of life and lets us be whole again to reach the full potential that we can.  I also know that Jesus will come again one day, and it is my dearest hope that he will look at me and say "well done."  I want to live my life in such a way that he will be proud to call me his own.  I know that no matter what you have done, there is always a way to return.  That is what the Atonement has provided for us.  Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us so much that they do not desire for us to suffer, they want our happiness.  Through the process of repentance we can find this happiness that Heavenly Father so deeply desires that we obtain.
    I know that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God and that he has Restored God's only true church with the complete doctrine of Heavenly Fathers will.  I am blessed to be a member of this church that I know to be true and that I love so dearly.  I also know that we are lead by a living prophet today, Thomas S. Monson, I sustain him as a Prophet of God, and I support him in all that he does and asks.  I know that he is a prophet of God and that if I will follow his teachings, and the teachings of the Twelve Apostles, that I will never be led astray.
    I know the Book of Mormon is true.  And it has blessed my life significantly.  I know it is a place where truth, and answers, can be found.  It is a source of guidance and strength to me, and there is always something to learn about God's love for his children.  It tells true stories of true prophets of God, and I know that if it is read with the desire to learn and find what is righteous and true.  The answers and guidance will come, and truth will be found.
     I know that the Priesthood is the true power of God given to man.  I have seen the miracles that it has brought to pass, and of the strength it provides having it in my own home.  I know that the protection of Heaven comes through the Priesthood of God.  It is what sets this church apart from all others, and it a blessing and privilege to have it.  I have been a recipient of many Priesthood blessings, and I have seen the promises made in them come true.  I have received strength and comfort from the Lord through these blessings and I have further come to see his hand in my life because of them.  I know that Priesthood is what enables many righteous things to come to pass.
     I know that families were made to be forever.  Through the covenants we make in God's holy temples, families no longer are separated by death.  I know that my family is mine forever, I will never have to be without them, and I take comfort in that.  My amazing husband and I have been sealed for time and eternity, and our precious little boy has been sealed to us.  I know that this is the way it was meant to be.  Families are meant to be together and to support and sustain one another.
     I know that Temples are the House of the Lord.  We go there to make covenants with him, not to bind us to rules, but to free us from the chains of the world.  It is through doing God's will, and being obedient to his commandments that we are liberated and find true happiness.  The Temple is a great place of refuge for me in the storms of life, and it offers peace to my soul.  It is also where I can share my happiness of the gospel with those who have gone before me, but not yet received it.
    This is my testimony.  I know God lives, I know he loves me.  I know that Jesus has suffered all things for me and that families are forever.  I know that this is the true church, and I will follow it, and be proud to be a member of it for all the days of my life.  I am grateful for this opportunity that I have had to write my testimony and to be able to share it with those I love most.  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.