If you are interested in many different topics and perspectives, you have come to the right place! This blog consists of the writings of Rodric Johnson about many topics from religion to politics. He is also the creator of the book Moroni Saw Me.
By Rod Johnson
Rodric believes Moroni included special instruction for Modern times and wants to share his unique perspective the same way Moroni shared in The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
In life sometimes we can be refugees or outcasts due to persistent struggle. It is a strange way to look at things being that so many people are refugees seeking amnesty from one country or another. Individually as we seek amnesty from the trials of life, some of us seek amnesty in a drug or an alcoholic beverage finding it to be a trap worse than the thing originally causing a need for sanctuary!
Sweet as it can be, life Will have challenges, challenges potentially able to chase away the choicest chances of renewal and reward down paths that prove difficult to course correct. Notions arising that lead us to seek escape from life because of with what we are challenged overwhelms us to the point where we cannot be the hero of our own life story, warrants a reflective moment or more to reevaluate the purpose of life.
Why are we here? Where are we going? What is my true origin? Levels of discovery in these questions take us on emotional journeys and religious quests to find the centering answers that allow us the psychological steadfastness to endure and prevail. Short or long, easy or hard the journey to discovery is often where we find ourselves as we proceed to the eventual destination.
Journeying despite the factors of fraught littering the path has revealed personally who I am and who I want to be as I walk along the way outcast at times from life. What is that, pray, tell? I am a child of God. He has sent me here to Earth. He has given me a home with parents and siblings. Now I am a parent with children kind and dear to me.
I started a journey to Utah that led me down a path to see the destination God revealed to me as the stepping stones to a greater recognition of living--who I needed to be at that point. The stones are firm, but the water from which they provide me a dry crossing is cold because often do I fall in and have to start the trek across the waters anew. Feeling failure, a good instructor, God shows me, being outcast is sometimes the means of finding out with a vengeance that I am one of His chosen if I will have Him.
I, Refugee - The Hero of My Life Story. I want you to know reader, that I was at the lowest point of discouragement I could be and still call myself a Christian when we started this Utah journey. This is the first installment of being trapped in Utah.
Moroni Saw Me: Hope is the essence of faith in things that are true. Through the challenges of life, a young boy journeys for peace, acceptance, and joy. The story is about budding faith that grows into the thriving flowers of hope with the guided hand of the divine. Rodric, the boy, finds challenges that seem constant with the loss of a loved one or the challenge of standing alone.
Longing for a paternal relationship he never gets, Rodric finds his Father in God as he turns to Him for support. He goes through humorous experiences, daring adventures and near-fatal rendezvous all with the same goal in mind, hope in something more, which he finds! The boy grows into a man dealing with more love and loss and the realities of racism even in the face of religion. Finding faith alone is not enough urges him onward to discipleship as he suffers greatly to refine himself more to become like his Master Jesus Christ.
Experience the passion, the joy, the journey and the hope of one man under the prophetic eye of Moroni, an ancient American prophet who provided the guide that led Rodric to Christ. Hope is the driving force of the human condition to reach for greatness. Will it last? Yes! Reach with him!
I wasn't going to be public about this, but I changed my mind. When I went to the polls to vote for president, I received a strong impression to vote for Donald Trump. I did not do it. I do not think that I disliked any presidential candidate more than him. I did not like him as a person before he even considered running for president. He, and I must say it honestly, is a Jerk to me. HE IS A JERK!
There is no BUT in this. He is a jerk. I have no idea why I received a prompting to vote for him except I prayed that God would put the right person in the presidential office for the job. I agree with his moral stances on marriage and family--issues like abortion. I just don't like HIM!
I could not listen to that prompting. It might have been God trying to tell me not to judge the man for his past. It didn’t occur to me until I read on Facebook under one of my favorite authors views a responder who experienced the same thing I did. She was prompted to vote for Trump. I think she was able to follow through with it. I am so prejudiced against him because of his behavior. When he is sworn into office, I will do my best to speak honorably of him, but I had to get it out that I hate his behavior. I am ashamed that he will represent me--especially if he does not shelve his bad behavior.
Why I did not Like Trump
I did not like Trump because I think he is rude, that's it. I do not dislike Bill Clinton, who is also a womanizer. Bill is not rude, though. I say all this because I am going to repent and pray that God helps me to not harbor so much contempt for this man.
I care that he might be racist. I care. I have lived, worked and worshiped with racist people my entire life. I expect people to be that way now. I have behaved that way on occasion. I think I dislike Trump so much because inside I am just like him and not man enough to admit it, even though I might have just done that. We often hate in others the weaknesses that are evident in ourselves.
It is really myself I Hate?
I do not celebrate such thoughts. If I am a racist, I Know I am working to change through the atonement of Jesus Christ, who will help me. Because I am a Black person, I can get away with writing this or saying it. I know I can because I have in the past. I want to say I DO NOT speak of any race in derision in public or private. I do, though. I joked about being Black in Church on Sunday! In church! I did the same thing about White people—knowing that my categorical statements were just jokes. But there is some truth behind every joke, whether it is my truth or a societal truth. So, I reflect on whether I genuinely harbor racist feelings toward Whites and others or even other Blacks—it is possible.
I could not vote for Trump because I am like him, or what I assume him to be—a racist, misogynistic, jerk. If I am really that, then maybe I should cleanse my inner vessel more so that I can see Trump clear enough. I don’t want to dislike myself, so I project on a scapegoat other than THE SCAPEGOAT, Jesus.
Charity of the Believer
Now, I have to give Trump the same love as I give myself. Sometimes it is hard to want to live my life as a Christian. I do not abuse myself for fleeting thoughts or misplaced statements. Why should I insult Trump for misplaced words? I do my best to keep my opinions hidden from others so they will not dislike me. I don’t tell people who are ugly, stupid, nasty and such that they are those things because I care about how it makes them feel, even it I think it is true. Wrong.
I do say my thoughts sometimes. I put my foot in my mouth more than I care to admit. That is why I find myself smiling and making jokes so much. I am trying not to be taken seriously so that people will dismiss my words if I slip up.
My heart is still heavy because of what I did almost 20 years ago as a missionary in South Africa to another missionary who showed me a picture of his sister. I told him she was the ugliest woman I had ever seen. It was not right, and there is more to the story, but does that not sound like Donald Trump?
I have repented and begged that person’s forgiveness, but I have still not forgiven myself completely. That is why I cannot stand Donald Trump. He is just like me. Well, maybe not just like.
I never thought of prophets as perfect. The Book of Mormon even claims prophets are not perfect. I did not believe in Jesus as a God until I read the Book of Mormon since I had lost my faith as a young Christian--if I had faith at all back then. I suppose I had tradition and I accepted the things that were familiar to me.
Over and over, the prophets in the Book of Mormon claim that if there are mistakes in the record, they are errors of men. To me, that is an admission that there would be mistakes--that we should expect some! Joseph Smith, Mormon, Moroni and Nephi were all important men associated with the coming forth of the book to us. If they made mistakes how do they diminish God's role in revealing to them the truth? It does not change the fact, in my case, that I spoke to God about their work/writings and He told me that they are true, a true testament to the divinity of Jesus Christ.
God told me in answer to my prayers certain things. I care, but less what Joseph did before he became a prophet or how many wives he had.And?
It kills my spiritual high sometimes when people find out that I am a LDS Christian and they say, “Well, you know that they don't like Black people."
I want to say, "Really? I am so glad you told me that! I've been in this faith for more than twenty years, and I just could not tell! I just assumed they were nice to me because they were Christian, but know YOU let me know that they were pretending! Yeah, and all the Black Mormons had to be pretending a nice also since there are so many of them in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints now!"
Umm, yeah! The members of the church come in all the variety of humanity. I wish that I could say it and it be overwhelmingly accurate that because LDS claim to have the restored truth that it makes us better people. Who doesn't want to think their faith makes them the best? Humble people don't want to think that I suppose. If anything, our faith makes us more accountable before God since we claim to have a direct line to God through a prophet, but people are people. Israel had a direct line to God through prophets and look at what happened to then. They still worshiped false gods! People will be good or bad regardless of the religion. I hope that as Christians, we are more inclined to do good deeds rather. It has been my experience at the beginning of my walk with Christ that LDS earnestly endeavor to live the teachings of Christ. I have been a LDS Christian too long to assume someone will be nice to me just because we go to the same church. It is not the case. I have met people with racist ideas and notions. I have met rude people. I met these people in church!
So, do I believe that Mormons have been racist in the past and that some are still racist? Yes, I do believe that. Since when did being a disciple of Christ, mean that we are instantly perfect as a person, community or faith? It is not the church I am converted to per se, but the faith, the teachings of God through the imperfect people in the church.
People cannot accept that I asked God on many occasions about the church and His prophets and He tells me they are authorized to act and speak for Him. I trust God, so I accept the prophets as His official reps on the earth.
I still have my doubts and my issues about this or that doctrine or policy, which I speak about appropriately, but my purpose is to promote faith in others and challenge the things that make me doubt. I still have bouts with God about if He is there! I could see myself slip away from Him if I were to stop praying because then He becomes a distant memory and His revelations just the fanciful whimsy of my simple mind.
I choose not to indulge my doubts. I am sure President Thomas S Monson has issues that his family would confirm if they were inclined to do so. That would not change the fact that for me, God has told me Monson is a prophet. He, Monson, will have to repent of his sins just like I do, but he still represents the Lord officially as His spokesman.
Prophets can fall and lose their way just like any person, but they can also repent and be forgiven without losing their calling. They can also be wrong about something all the days of their lives and teach it as if it is right! That is the reason God gave us the Holy Ghost so that we can discern. That is why we have 15 prophets instead of just one. We as a people have to learn to trust our personal revelation. We must also learn to keep the commandments so that we are not being led astray because the devil can give revelations too!
We are never to trust the prophet in a way that we exclude prayer and due devotion to God ourselves. If we did, it would be Satan’s plan: to follow blindly in obedience.
Apologists have the wrong idea. I used to be one before I came to my senses. I received such a convincing jolt to my misunderstanding of my faith that I rebooted. I found out that I knew only these two things: that God is real and the Book of Mormon is true. This happened post-mission 12 or so years ago. Apologists rattled me to the core. I alarmed my wife and friends. They had warned me to stay away from it.
See, foolishly, I had stopped reading my scriptures much and praying with faith while I engaged in apologetics. I only wanted to debate with people about the LDS religion and its preeminence over all others. What rattled me was something that ended up being false anyway! I was just so far from my relationship with God my mind was weak. Doubt worked its way into my mind. Apologetics is great if it is tempered by sincere faith.
We do not NEED to prove the faith or make exceptions for it. I find it comforting that there are people willing to give intellectual explanations for things that are not clear. Those exercises on intellect should never replace sincere and abiding faith in Jesus Christ on a foundation of keeping the commandments He has provided.
Faith is to believe in the absence of proof, which comes with revelation after the trial of our faith. I can promise any of you who are struggling with your faith that read this blog that if you keep the commandments prayerfully, God will reveal the truth to you as many times as you need it.
He set it up this way so that we would seek Him. I know I would not pray as often if I had all the answers right now. What need would I have to talk to Him or develop an open communication with Him at all? It is hard! I have to put my remote down and stop entertaining myself to do that!
There is no proof of any religious belief other than personal revelation. God designed life that way so that we can have the freedom to pursue the gospel or reject it without condemnation if we lose sight of the truth.
For example, we know the law gravity exists, so if we jump off a building expecting it to go away, we will suffer the immediate consequences. It is not so with the gospel. If we choose to leave the gospel level of consciousness we espouse, Mormon, Baptist, Muslim, spiritualism, etc., we lose a little bit of our testimony at a time until it is all gone. We are not doomed to outer darkness but only to a lower kingdom which is still a part of heaven if we fail to repent. Atheists, in my estimation, still go to heaven! Devil worshipers still go to heaven!
I find comfort knowing I can still mess up and get a great reward. I have not seen God, so I do not qualify for outer darkness. But, oh boy for those who have seen Him and decided to reject Him afterward. There are few people with that reward. Nephi lets us know that the hell they will endure exists only for them, and the devil.
So, it is okay for you all to have your doubts. Just, doubt your doubts more than you doubt the things you know. Since many of us still have not seen God face to face, we can get away with more. However, since some of us have heard His voice, we need to think hard how we dismiss past spiritual experiences.
Mormonism is a culture, but the gospel is more than a culture, it is the truth, and I would give up all my heritage and cultures for that.
I know that telling the interpretation of the
dream before revealing the dream is not the way Joseph the 11th son of
Israel did it, but I felt that I wanted to get it out of the way before I started
talking about the dream and talking of dreams in general.
I believe that God communicates to us not only
by feelings in our hearts, impressions to our minds, or direct speech, but also
through dreams and vision. Since both dreams and visions are highly subjective
and colored by the culture in which we live, God provides an interpreter of
dreams.
The Gift of the Holy Ghost
The gift of the Holy Ghost is the privilege—given to people who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, been baptized, and been confirmed as members of the Church—to receive continual guidance and inspiration from the Holy Ghost.
How do I know my dream
was from God? Well, it is simple. I
have the Gift of the Holy Ghost and I can discern if something pertaining to me
is from God or just mental release of stored information, which is what dreams
normally are.
I am not a prophet, nor do I claim special
privilege that other people cannot have. I just know that the dream, or I will
write revelation has relevance to me and I am getting personal with my
Christianity and sharing it here.
I did meditate on it and inquired of God
if it was okay for me to share my dream. I felt it would be okay. One thing I
have learned when dealing with God is that He does not give me things if I
cannot keep most of what He gives to myself. ...unless He expressly wants what He
gives shared.
You know how crazy people would think I was if
I shared everything that God gave to me? I am referring to other Christians too, who
would think me insane--let alone the non-believers! If I say that God spoke to
me last night, and I have before, I get the raise brow and the knowing
nod.
If I say I felt like God was telling me
something, I get approval--almost like if it came down to it I could recant it
and say that I was mistaken about my impression without hurting my image or trying the faith of
another person. I have misinterpreted things I have received too, but that is a
different issue to be addressed.
God Always Does Things
with Purpose.
God would not just give me a dream, answer to
a prayer, or commandment without there being a purpose behind it in some way towards my benefit and salvation. Now, that goes for everyone on the planet
too.
Every revelation that is from God that
humanity has the honor to read or hear has come to us through necessity. Moses had his
visions so that he could lead and teach the Israelites after hundreds of years
of slavery to be a free people under God.
Joseph Smith had his visions to restore the
Church of Christ on the earth with its accompanying priesthood authority from
God. God waited on both men to be ready to receive His communications, as he
does for all of us--He waits until we can handle it.
What we choose to do with the information
after He gives it to us determines how much more He will give to us. The last
thing He will do is overload us or overwhelm us with knowledge.
He wants us to be able to gain understanding,
which is why I try unsuccessfully to live the Gospel perfectly. By that I mean,
I don't repent each time I make a mistake right away; otherwise, I pray too
much and ask for forgiveness to think I am going anywhere but Celestial Glory,
but that is another topic.
What is the Dream!
I know, I know...
There I was at the home of my stake president
with my wife and kids. For some reason we were there doing some type of
activity with our families that I did not pay attention to very well. My
wife and I were sitting in the same room with our stake president talking about some
particular issue while the president had one of his small children, struggling
with him to get the child to comply with some command. It looked like the child
was resisting him as he tried to finish dressing him.
As I sat there listening to the president
talk, he threw some mild profanity at the child. My wife then exclaimed an
affectionate reprimand, "Oh, my Bishop."
She may have only said those words in the
dream, but the president and I understood those three words to mean more. She
preached a sermon of loving forgiveness and warning to try to be better.
In the dream I understood her using the title
of bishop instead of president since he was also our bishop before he became
the stake president. It was a term of endearment so to speak. He understood the
reprimand and apologized for using the language and my wife and he moved on to
discuss, whatever it was. I don't remember from the dream.
The president still struggled with the child
who fought him on every angle. This same child spoke with us as an intelligent
person, but transformed between being a young child and an older one. He was
very obstinate, but not wicked as I could tell from the feelings that came off
of him.
The president let out a few strings of
expletives and I did not know how to receive him after that. I lowered my gaze
away from him as he spoke further. My wife again reprimanded him in the words,
"Oh, my Bishop!"
After speaking with us for some time, the
president asked me, "Rod, what do you think?" He referred to the
ongoing conversation we had of which I do not recall.
I reflected on his question for some time and
then said. "I don't know. I can't get passed what you did. I cannot even
make eye contact with you because I am so disappointed."
That was all I said, but since it was a dream,
it was not all I communicated. In those words I communicated that I was shocked
that he would speak to his child in such a crude manner and yet expect me not
to comment on it.
I communicated that I was ashamed and hurt by
the experience because I was expected to still view him as a Christian leader
to direct my spiritual paths. I communicated hurt and sheer shame!
He replied, "I understand and am glad
that you were honest with your feelings."
That was all he said, but what I understood
was him thanking me for being willing to point it out and be honest with him
instead of glossing it over and having a bad experience later. He admitted to
not being perfect and still struggling with life's issues though God had called
him to be in the position he held. He apologized sincerely and humbly sough my
forgiveness, which I gave.
I left his home with my wife and family
afterwards feeling satisfied with him, but aware also that he was VERY human
and in need of God's grace as much as anyone else.
That brings me back to:
I dreamed a dream that
caused me to think that I will soon be disappointed by a church leader who I
esteem highly and should be prepared for it.
The Lord gives
multiple interpretations of Dreams and visions
After I thought about it for a while, I put
myself in the position of the president and took all of that first impression
out of my mind. One of my children became the “me-character” in the dream but
my wife remained the same.
I wonder if my children see me the way I saw
the president. I wonder because they see all of me. They have seen me at my
lowest and at my best. I am their spiritual guide. The older they get, the more
imperfections they see in me.
My wife is my eternal companion and we are
both more prone to be tolerant of each other than other people would be
including our children who will eventually grow up and move away.
My wife and I forgive each other of each
infraction because we understand life a little more than our children in many
respects.
Maybe I was supposed to see it that way also.
I know that I cannot hide my imperfections from my children, but I should be
quick to apologize if I make a mistake and move to help the children learn from
my mistakes and move on.
So, I dreamed a dream that caused
me to think that I will soon disappoint one of my children and should
be prepared for it.
...prepared to ask forgiveness.
...prepared to let
my children understand that I am in as much need of the grace of
God as anyone.
One of the most depressing things that I recently learned is that one of the youths that I watched grow up and get married in the temple no longer believes in God.
Many people I know over the years that have left the church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for one reason or another. Most of them have left due to transgression--the ones that I know, which includes family members.
Leaving the church is one thing; but denying God...
It is different with this couple that I mention--it is different knowing that one if not both deny God. I did not grow up with these people. It is worse than that; I watched them mature and become beautiful young adults. I participated in ordinances with them and received edification from their testimonies.
It feels like I just discovered that my own child rejected God!
How does that affect me?
The Explanation
At one time, a brief time, I did not believe there was a god. I could not fathom there being one because of the lack of understanding I had of the Plan of Salvation at the time, but I did not know that I lacked knowledge then.
I thought of how cruel it would be for some supreme being, who could be some malevolent beast that watched in amusement while humanity suffered. I was afraid most of the time because I could not come to grips on what to think! I thought or believed many things depending on the mood or book I was reading.
I believed that there were intelligent beings who planted humanity here as a colony and forgot about us through some great cataclysm or maybe they monitored our progress for some unknown purpose for the future. I later saw an episode of Star Trek The Next Generation where that was the origin of all the humanoid species. I really am a Star Trek Geek! I loved that episode.
I then thought that there was nothing. Evolution happened on this planet and through natural selection, the Homo sapiens beat out all of the other humanoids believed to have inhabited this sphere. I read books and snippets on the web about how the different races evolved, first the Negro, then the Caucasoid and then the Mongoloid.
I trusted the sources of my information and believed that the Asian races were the best of humanity being the youngest form of human evolution. I thought of my own race as the legacy group that evolved from the apes. I am not going to go into the therapy that I had to have after that.
I was confused and believed almost anything, except in a god. That made no sense that some magical being existed. I would prefer a Superman or a Batman to that!
I know how I felt without God in my life. I felt free! I felt free to do anything and be anything! I was the master of my own life and I answered to no person, until...
...until I realized that there were other people out there who controlled my life and that I was the master of nothing
...until I started truly being affected by the racist human origins teachings I had read.
...until I started feeling alone and lost in a sea of philosophies!
Without God in my life, I was my own source of strength or lack thereof.
The Weird Jealousy
I capitulated and began to believe in a supreme manifestation. I sought out spiritualism. I finally settled on Islam, because, I NEEDED to worship something! I could not live without a god.
After a string of events and manifestations, I was converted back to Christianity and received an undeniable witness that God is alive and well and very much in control of this tiny planet.
One of my issues, my nagging problem was I could not make it without God. It became an issue with me needing God! I would feel like I am cheating life when I prayed to God and received answers to my prayers and divine help in a hard situation. I would dismiss many blessings as coincidence when I was without God in my life, but now, I could not.
I felt ashamed when I prayed over a test or to overcome a hard problem. I was ashamed because when I found God, He answered all, and I mean ALL of my prayers immediately!
Anything I prayed about, I received! I am not talking about getting answers that I can see the Hand of God in if I worked backwards. I would ask for money and I would get money. I asked for my car to start working once, and it started working.
I was ashamed! Other people did not need God like I did, I thought. They could excel with no prayers, which fortified in me that I was the weak legacy chain in human evolution. My ancestors were slaves because of a divine curse I was taught in my Protestant church. I thought little of that until I joined my current church and the priesthood ban was added to that teaching--along with the false teachings that we hedge around it to justify it having happened.
Presently...
The weird jealousy I had when I first converted to God came back! I actually started think again about how I could not live without a god.
I did not think that I was less of a person for that truth, but I did have familiar feelings of mourning. I felt betrayed by the missionaries who taught me for telling me to speak to God for the first time. I could not go back.
I know there is God and I could not un-know it! I could deny it. I could ignore it; but I know it.
I recall once wanting to go back to my without-God-in-my-life days and feeling angry that God was there answering my prayers! I tried, but I could not ignore the fact that He revealed Himself to me and an unmistakable way!
I was jealous of people who did not believe in God. They were in ignorant bliss. I longed for that! Life is some much simpler when there is no purpose to it.
I accept that this life is not all that there is, but sometimes it is so easy to wish that it was. I think of that couple that I saw married in the temple making those promises... I wonder if they ever believed in God.
I wonder that because I tried not to believe in Him. Now that I know He is there I need Him. He is the only One who can help me to continue living my life in a productive way following this life.
I still think sometimes, "What if it is all a great big lie!"
I then remember that no one forced me to talk to God. I went to Him seeking and He revealed Himself to me. I know that I can do things where I can make it so that I cannot feel His Holy Spirit. I can make it so that I cannot hear the answers to my prayers. Heck, if I stop praying I can make it so that I doubt ever having an intimate experience with Him.
I like myself with God in my life though. I hurt that my young friends are no longer believers. They seem happy though. They seem settled. They seem good. I can only pray that they may find Him some way.
I am confident that I will not let go of my faith in Jesus Christ and ever deny my Heavenly Father. I am confident!
I know that it is possible. Cain did it. Judas Iscariot did it. Millions do it. I pray that I will endure to the end. I expect to.
It has not always been easy to say that I am a Christian because I have not always considered myself one. Doubt has played a large part in questioning what I was supposed to believe as I grew up.
No one likes to be wrong. No one that I know likes to be wrong! I know I don't! I spoke to a coworker about my religious beliefs and it went well until he discovered what my religion is: I am a Mormon. We vibed on the things that were alike in our belief system, but he could not reconcile my faith with his, Adventist--though there was little difference in morality.
I saw opportunity to use our common ground to convince my coworker that I and my fellow Mormons are noble and great, but I did not do what I intended with our conversation. I spoke to him for several minutes before he passed judgement out of prejudice, and I know that my sincere explanations and invitations touched his soul. I could see the connection in his eyes until he discovered my Christian faith.
He may believe that my faith is jaded, but not by my actions or through differences in moral values. He did judge because he lacked full information. Now he knows he judges out of sheer desire. This can give him the opportunity to change.
I did not defend my faith very well I though initially because I did not say enough. I later decided by not saying too much more I did.
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Nephi describes the scene--the voice from heaven and the Holy Spirit's descent upon Christ in the form of a dove. Even the name of John was revealed to this prophet! In response to this revelation, Nephi states
"...I know that if ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.2 Nephi 31:13
Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Redeemer of mankind through the Atonement. He paid for our sins because he had none of his own for which to suffer. He had no reason to die, so he did not stay dead. He suffered for our sins so that we have no reason to stay dead either; so, we will live again.
God be thanked for Jesus Christ.
Related
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In life sometimes we can be refugees or outcasts due to persistent struggle. It is a strange way to look at things being that so many people are refugees seeking amnesty from one country or another. Individually as we seek amnesty from the trials of life, some of us seek amnesty in a drug or an alcoholic beverage finding it to be a trap worse than the thing originally causing a need for sanctuary!
