I Stand All Amazed

I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me.
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified,
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died.

Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me
Enough to die for me!
Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

 I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine,
That he should extend his great love unto such as I,
Sufficient to own, to redeem, and to justify.

 I think of his hands pierced and bleeding to pay the debt!
Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?
No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat,
Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet.

I would like to add my testimony to that of this hymn (Hymns of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 193). I am SO AMAZED at the love my Savior continually offers me. I KNOW that He died for us and that He lives for us today. I am so grateful for His love and strength and support that I receive every single day. I know that as we turn to the Savior we can all experience that comfort that comes from knowing the love He has for you and from knowing all He has done for you.  

Healed

When I was 15 years old I was riding bikes with a friend on a warm sunny day after school. We were riding downhill pretty fast and I lost control of the bike and crashed head first into a pile of rocks. This is what I’m told anyway. I don’t actually have any memory of the day due to the force in which I hit my head . I was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries to my face and head and lacerations on my arms and legs. Upon arrival it was discovered that I needed stitches in four different places on my face and I had a broken my cheek bone. After having a CAT scan it was discovered that I would need plastic surgery to put my cheek bone back into alignment so it could properly heal. They told my parents that my face would carry come pretty heavy scars following the surgery and would always look a little deformed. They were also told it would be a very long healing process and that I would probably be out of school for quite a while.

 Somewhere among all the trauma my uncle came to the hospital from his work. When he arrived he immediately gave me a priesthood blessing. In the blessing I was blessed that I would recover fully and quickly, and I was blessed that I would not need surgery in order for that healing to occur. The next day when the doctors sent me to get another CAT scan they were dumbfounded at what they saw. My cheek bone was in perfect alignment. No surgery was necessary. I was released from the hospital later that day and my face was fully healed in two weeks. The scarring went from bright red to being hardly noticeable in just a few more weeks. When I returned to school people didn’t even believe I had been through the experience I had been because there were no outward signs.   

This is just one of the ways the power of the priesthood has affected my life. Priesthood Power is simply the power to act in God's name. Worthy male members of the LDS church can hold this Priesthood and use it to bless lives as our Savior would if He were on the earth. "In my name they shall do many wonderful works; In my name they shall cast out devils; In my name they shall heal

Christ bestowing the priesthood on the 12 apostles

the sick; In my name they shall open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf ;" (Doctrine and Covenants 84:66-69) This is a real and everlasting blessing given from our Heavenly Father. I know I was healed because of the power of the priesthood and the faith my parents and I had in that eternal power. I am so grateful for the priesthood in my life and that it has been restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. (See http://mormon.org/restoration)

Be the Lesser Part

I was reading in the Book of Mormon the other day and this verse really hit me: "And thus ended also the eighty and seventh year of the reign of the judges, the more part of the people remaining in their pride and wickedness, and the lesser part walking more circumspectly before God." (Helaman 16:10) You may wonder why this verse of all verses affected me but my immediate thought was: "Be the lesser part!"

 It is fairly easy to live a righteous, honest life if all those around you are also living in this way, but how much harder is it to live righteously when you are in the minority or "the lesser part"? Our beloved Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, gave a talk discussing this topic entitled "Dare to Stand Alone." In this address he states:

"As we go about living from day to day, it is almost inevitable that our faith will be challenged. We may at times find ourselves surrounded by others and yet standing in the minority or even standing alone concerning what is acceptable and what is not. Do we have the moral courage to stand firm for our beliefs, even if by so doing we must stand alone?"

That question really makes me think: "Do I have the moral courage to stand alone?" "Do I have the strength?" When I have pondered more on this topic the thought that has occurred to me over and over is that even when I feel like I am standing alone, I am never, ever alone. My Savior is always standing next to me, strengthening and uplifting me. This makes it possible for me to stand up for my beliefs even when I may appear to be standing alone. President Monson continues in his talk to give us ways that we can gain the courage necessary to stand alone: 

"In order for us to be strong and to withstand all the forces pulling us in the wrong direction or all the voices encouraging us to take the wrong path, we must have our own testimony. Whether you are 12 or 112—or anywhere in between—you can know for yourself that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true. Read the Book of Mormon. Ponder its teachings. Ask Heavenly Father if it is true. We have the promise that 'if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.' "

In order to stand alone we must know and believe in what we are standing for. I know that as we each take the time to develop our own testimony in the Savior and His Gospel we will develop that strength and moral courage to be "the lesser part" and stand tall WITH our Savior for what we know to be true.