Hello friends and fellow saints,
I pray that your week was hopeful and uneventful. I pray that you are found well and that your lives, while disrupted, are as normal as can be expected. I know that Kayson Choate’s life was not normal this week. He returned home from a full-time mission in Texas. We are grateful that he is safe and back home amongst family and friends. He has sent me some thoughts that are included below. Also, everyone should know that Spencer Zavala has completed his full-time mission to El Salvador and Belize. We are grateful that he is safe and back home with his family and friends. We will hear some thoughts from Spencer another week.
I have thought this week about our prophet and his warning messages about being safe in these times of uncertainty and peril. The prophet was among the first to sound a warning about meeting in large groups. He asked us early-on to stay home, worship as a family, and stay safe. It is my belief that we should hearken to the prophet. Heed his words. I assume that many who lived in Jerusalem had heard the prophet’s warnings but lived their whole lives and passed on without seeing the destruction of their great city. Nevertheless, the great city was destroyed, and its inhabitants carried away into captivity. I see and hear from many who don’t want to follow the council and advice from our prophet. Heeding his voice is the right thing to do; It’s the only thing to do. When the prophet says, “Let’s meet together again.”, we will meet together again. Following the prophet keeps us safe from tempting the Lord. The Savior knew this well. When taken to the pinnacle of the temple, Satan tempted him to prove that God would protect him. The response from the Savior, is simple but, filled with admonition and forethought. “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” (Matt. 4:7)
I am grateful to you for your goodness, kindness and love unfeigned. You care for one another and you love one another. “By this ye shall know them.”
We are blessed today to hear from three of our ward members, Jovie Parker, Lisa Christensen and Kayson Choate. I am grateful for their willingness to share their thoughts and testimonies today. I pray that you will be inspired by their messages.
JOVIE PARKER
A testimony is the knowledge that Heavenly Father lives and loves each one of us, that Jesus Christ lived and died for us. Your testimony is special and unique to you. Sharing your testimony can help you grow your own and will help others grow theirs as well. Sharing your testimony can be a way to help spread the gospel.
I would like to share my testimony that I know that the Book of Mormon is the true book. Whenever I read my scriptures, I feel the spirit with me. I know that if I have any questions, I can open the Book of Mormon and I will find the answers I need, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.
LISA CHRISTENSEN
What is a testimony?
A testimony is a strong conviction and belief in the truthfulness of the gospel and all aspects of it. I like the quote by Jeffrey R. Holland which says
“The truth is that a testimony comes from the Holy Ghost, whose role it is to testify of God and his plan and goodnesses. When we have that testimony, we feel as if it were part of us, as if it were a part of our heart and bones. More readily than any other way, a testimony may be discerned by the life it makes us live.”
A testimony comes little by little as we come to know the truth for ourselves. A testimony is the knowledge that Heavenly Father lives and loves His children; that Jesus Christ lives, that He is the son of God, and that He carried out the infinite Atonement; that Joseph Smith is the prophet of God who was called to restore the gospel; that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the Savior’s true Church on the earth; and that the Church is led by a living prophet today.
A testimony takes nurturing and care to keep it alive. Sometimes events in life can help increase our testimony. I feel very blessed to have been raised by good parents and family who all helped me obtain my own testimony from a young age. When I was getting ready to go on a mission, I realized that many things I just accepted as true, but that I had not really prayed for myself to get a confirmation of their truthfulness. I knelt on my knees while in the MTC and sought for myself the confirmation of the reality of Joseph Smith being a prophet, of the truthfulness of the gospel, of the reality of the Atonement. I did get a confirmation through the Holy Ghost that these things are real and true.
Now as time goes on, I seek to remember the feelings and knowledge I have obtained over the years. I feel it is a constant effort to keep in touch with Heavenly Father and to make every effort to keep my testimony bright. I do know the gospel is true. I know Joseph Smith is a prophet. I do know my Savior atoned for my sins. I know we have a living prophet today. I do feel blessed to be a member of the only true church. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen
KAYSON CHOATE
Brothers and Sisters, it’s good to be back! I just want to share my testimony and some thoughts of mine as I’ve returned home from the Texas Dallas mission.
Serving a mission has hands down been the best experience of my life. My understanding of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ has grown immensely. I love Him, and I know that He is real. I’ve learned that no greater joy and fulfillment comes into my heart than when I draw near unto my Savior and I lose myself in His service. I have witnessed the hand of the Lord working mighty miracles as I’ve been on my mission. Time and time again, day in and day out, He always led my companions and I to right where we needed to be at just the right moment. I’ve learned that as we are prayerful and obedient to Him that He will send His Spirit to prompt us and give us direction.
I’ve come to love and appreciate Jesus Christ on a much deeper level. As I’ve studied His Atonement, my desire to serve Him has increased. I think about Him in agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, and on the cross at Calvary. The pain that He willingly suffered for us goes to show the love that He has for us. He did this in order for us to have a way to be clean from our sins, and to become more holy like He is. Then my heart turns to His glorious resurrection, which provides a way for each of us to become immortal and grants us the potential to receive eternal life. He is my Redeemer, my Brother, and my Advocate with my Heavenly Father. I love Him so much.
I love to teach others about the doctrine of Christ. Because of His great sacrifice, judgment is now turned to Him. So, if we do what He asks us to do, then we can fully access the power of His Atonement in our lives. He asks us to have faith in Him, repent of our sins, be baptized in His name by Priesthood authority, receive the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. We exercise faith in Christ through our desires and our actions. We do things such as pray to our Heavenly Father in His name, we study the scriptures and feast upon His words, we attend Church meetings, and we strive to keep His commandments. We repent by recognizing things we are doing in our life that are not what our Heavenly Father wants us to do, and then doing everything in our power to stop doing whatever that may be. We confess our sins to the Lord and more serious sins to a Priesthood leader. We ask for forgiveness and strength to be better. Repentance brings great joy and should always be looked at as a positive thing. When we are baptized and confirmed we enter into a covenant with God that we will keep His commandments and serve Him. He promises that as we do these things that He will forgive our sins and give us His Spirit to be with us. His Spirit will bring us comfort and guidance. It will teach us new things and bring things we have learned in the past back to our memory. Then we continue to endure in this mortal journey through keeping our covenants and making additional covenants in the holy temple. We continue to exercise faith and repent every single day, and we renew our covenants as we worthily partake of the sacrament each Sunday.
I know that this is the true gospel of Jesus Christ, and the way to have the most joy and peace in our lives. I’ve witnessed this firsthand in my own life and in the lives of many others! Temptations come and evil is all over this world, but when we live the way Christ asks us to, we can always have peace and hope.
I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior. I know that the covenants we make with Him, bind us to Him. The Gospel and Church of Jesus Christ have been restored on the earth. Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet of God. The Book of Mormon is absolutely true. Russell M. Nelson is a true prophet of God, and if we hear, hearken to, and heed his council, we will never be led astray. I love each of you and want you to know that I’m here willing to help if you need anything. I testify of these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Riverdale 7th Ward 
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