The Promptings of the Holy Ghost Help Me Endure

This year has been quite the roller coaster! Not only have we experienced this crazy pandemic and unrest in the world, but we have had an especially hard year with some unexpected family challenges. It’s hard to watch our loved ones suffer and in turn we suffer right there with them! Through these and other challenges, there have been times I have felt utter despair and with Satan’s lies, of no worth. Through it all, I choose to believe in this plan of happiness and in our Savior and his redeeming love. I have been grateful to notice the tender mercies along the way. I have had many promptings of the Holy Ghost on what to say, and the exact moments to act. I choose to believe in the blessings of the priesthood and the comfort and reassurance that those blessings leave. I recently received a priesthood blessing and as I would silently ask a question during the blessing, those questions were immediately answered. This happened several times throughout the blessing with answers to my silent pleadings with the Lord. It’s as if he were right there speaking to me through his worthy priesthood holder. I choose to believe because I don’t know how I would navigate through this challenging life without the promptings of the Holy Ghost to help me endure and overcome the lies of the adversary.

~Jennifer Taylor

Seeing the Hand of the Lord in Your Life

Last November I was counseled through a Priesthood blessing to increase the amount of time studying the scriptures. I pondered the blessing for a few weeks and then decided on my plan of action. I’m so grateful for that blessing! As I read and studied the scriptures for a few additional minutes each day there were so many teachings that seemed to jump off the page, things that I hadn’t noticed before. As I look back on difficulty of these past several months it is the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon that has helped me to keep going. I have also found great peace in General Conference talks.

A few years ago I read in a book that President Eyring wrote in his journal about how he had seen the hand of the Lord in his life that day. I wasn’t much of a journal writer at the time but I decided that I could at least write a few lines as President Eyring suggested. Since then I have tried to write in my journal about how I had seen the hand of the Lord that day. As I began to record these experiences I became so much more aware of the blessings and the tender mercies me and my family were receiving on a daily basis. There have been days lately when it’s been difficult to come up with something to write about since most days aren’t real exciting and they all seem to run together. When this happens and I get down or discouraged I go back and read some of the entries from my journal. I am reminded of the many blessings the Lord has given me and how grateful I am for those experiences. It helps me to put one foot in front of the other and to move forward.

I Choose to Believe that the Lord speaks to us through the scriptures and the words of our modern day prophets and apostles. These words have brought so much peace and strength to my soul and I’m so grateful for the wonderful blessings that have come to me by studying the scriptures.

~Shauna Weidman