Gaining a Testimony

Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity of having my home teachers over for a lesson. For those of you who don't know, once somebody joins the LDS church, they get assigned a teaching companion to teach to others in the church, and people get assigned to teach them. 

Anyway, my home teachers were stressing the importance of having a testimony, and being willing and ready to share it at any moment. Before I joined the church, I had a vague idea of what a testimony was. I thought that testimony only meant to share my conversion to the gospel, or how I found faith in Jesus Christ. However, since joining the true church, I have come to realize that it means so much more.

Having a testimony means having proof or knowledge that something is true. The way that people can gain testimonies comes in many different forms. I know that I have gained my testimonies through the gift of the Holy Ghost. The day after I got baptized, I received the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is important to help guide and direct our lives, to comfort us in times of trouble, and to show validity of different things. These are just some of the roles that the Holy Ghost can have in people's lives. Before I got baptized, I was fervently seeking through the Book of Mormon, trying to determine for myself whether or not it was true. I would read it daily, and pray right afterwards. I would pray directly to God, asking if it was true. I needed to find out for myself if it was true or not. There was no way I was going to take somebody else's views on it.

With my background, I have been taught to question things, to thoroughly seek out answers. This is why I love science so much: there are many mysteries of the wonderful universe that God has created, and we can learn about them through science. So, during my investigation I would ask my LDS friends so many questions. I wanted to completely understand the doctrine before joining.

The more I read about the Book of Mormon, the more I realized the truth of it all. I mean, just looking at it and it's background, there is no way that a young boy with a third-grade education could have made that up on his own. No, not at all. It was inspired, and it was inspired of God. Just like how prophets of old received direct revelation, Joseph Smith received revelation and was able to translate the gold plates. It wasn't until that day I mentioned when I was talking with the elders, did I finally admit out loud that I knew the Book of Mormon was, and is, true. Reading through it, seeing how it directly ties in to the Bible, and how the doctrine is consistent, is amazing. That was how I first gained my testimony of the Book of Mormon.

I have gained testimonies about other things in my life as well. I have a testimony that President Thomas S. Monson is a Prophet of God, and that he receives direct revelations from God. I realized that during General Conference, back in October 2012 when I heard him speak for the first time. The Holy Spirit gave me such a strong witness of that fact. I will never forget the way I felt.

I also have a testimony concerning the power of the Priesthood on Earth. The Priesthood was re-established on Earth through people of old. The Aaronic Priesthood was re-established by John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, and later on the Melchizedek Priesthood was re-established by Peter, James and John to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. Through these various Priesthoods, the saving ordinances have been re-established and many blessings have flowed from the Priesthood. I have had such positive experiences with how the Priesthood has played a role in my life. It's thanks to the Priesthood that I was baptized, received the gift of the Holy Ghost, and received various blessings, for comfort and healing, at various stages of my recent conversion. And knowing of the joy and comfort of what the Priesthood has to offer to me in my life, is so wonderful. The Priesthood has, and will continue to, do many great and powerful things on this Earth.

I have a very strong testimony on the power of the Atonement. I have not had a spotless past, and there are some regrets that I have. However, none of it matters anymore, and this is all thanks to the power of the Atonement. Because Jesus Christ offered up Himself as a perfect sacrifice for all the sins of the world, I can repent and be pure again. Pure and perfectly clean. To give an example of this, let me quote my best friend, "A brand new book! It can be compared to text books, or scriptures. You use them, wisely or poorly, you make marks, highlight, and take notes in them. Then your book becomes old and tattered (scarred). You, naturally, desire to get a new one; a fresh start. So, you get a new book. And it's awesome! You now have a brand new fresh book! Yes, the marks in the old book still happened; and you learned a lot from them. But they no longer clutter your pages. Also, you can remark the really good things and add new insights that you couldn't before fit on that page!....You've been given a new book through Christ's infinite Atonement and baptism by Priesthood authority!" I think he does a better way at describing the power of Atonement than I ever could. But, he's also a writer, so he has that skill. :)

So, I would challenge those who read this blog to further strengthen their testimonies. Testimonies exist, and are strengthened through the Holy Spirit. They are essential truths that are important to our lives. Let me close out this section by sharing my testimony with you:

I would like to bear my testimony. I believe that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, that he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and spoke with them. I believe that Thomas S. Monson is our current Prophet today. I believe that the Book of Mormon is true, and that by reading and studying it along with the Bible, we can learn more essential truths. The reason why I believe, and know all of this is because I have had the Holy Spirit testify of this to me, personally, in my heart. That is me. That is what I believe, and I have been blessed by these truths in many ways.

6 month anniversary of joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

So, this is my first of many (hopefully) posts about my journey to where I am today, a happy and blessed member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Today marks my 6 month anniversary of joining the church and being confirmed.

A little bit about me: my name is Alicia and I'm from New Hampshire. I am currently living in Pennsylvania, going to school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, studying to become a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. I am almost done (5 weeks left) with my first year of medical school. I am hoping to become a pediatrician. 

I was raised in a very loving, devoted, Baptist family. I have always gone to one church, or another, and read through the Bible many times. I knew that I should live my life a certain way, but I had difficulties with it, in one regard or another. When I went off to undergraduate college, I really struggled with some personal choices, and started to separate myself from God. I was definitely going the wrong way, but I really didn't know what to do. I repented, and tried to change my life around. It didn't always go well, and I ended up making the same mistakes more than once.

Fast forward to this past summer: in July I moved to Erie to go to medical school. I started attending a local church, but would only go about every other week, because I was studying on Sundays. I had difficulty making friends, and starting hanging out with the popular students, going to bars, and such. I really started to do things that I knew I shouldn't be doing. I, by the grace of God, stopped doing what I was doing, and took a look at my life. I did not like where it was headed, and knew that I needed to make a change. I looked to the students who sat around me in class, and noticed a few that lived their lives in a good manner, and whom I wanted to emulate. I started studying with them.

One of them, Rob, invited me to go to his church. He is LDS. I initially said yes, but when I googled how long the church service was, and learned that it was 3 hours long, I backed out of going. But then I started looking into the doctrine of the LDS church, and I just started getting so many questions. I had never been taught about their doctrine, and it was so different from my Baptist background, that I began asking questions of Rob, when I would study with him. He answered them willingly, and completely, every single question. At times we even met with his other friends, Sam and Matt, and they helped me with all of my concerns.

I finally decided to go to church with them, but I made them promise me that they wouldn't leave my side (except for third hour where we are split up by gender), and that they would not introduce me to the missionaries. I was completely scared of the missionaries. I was taught at a young age that when guys in black pants, white shirts, and ties came to the door, to go hide. I never knew who they were growing up, but when I learned that they were LDS missionaries, I became fearful.

I went to church with my guy friends for two weeks, and continued to pepper them with question after question. I even started attending Institute with them (basically a Scriptures study class), and was amazed by the knowledge I was learning about the Old Testament.

After the second week of going with them to church, we headed back to my apartment, and they showed me the shortened version of the "Restoration of the Church" video from lds.org. I was touched in a way I had never been before, from watching it. At that point, I knew that I definitely wanted to know more. After the video ended, I told them, "I'm ready to meet with the missionaries." Matt got on the phone, and ended up calling my local missionaries. He told them that he had someone for them to teach right now. The missionaries thought that he was joking, because this never happens. Thankfully, they were not currently busy, and were living just down the street in my apartment complex.

I remember when I first met Elder Colvin and Elder O'Laughlin. There were these two guys, dressed in black pants, white shirts and ties. One had a huge grin on his face, Elder O'Laughlin, and the other one was more reserved, but spoke profoundly, Elder Colvin. They started teaching me about the Restoration of the Church, and I just loved every minute of it. They gave me their contact information and told me to contact them for when I wanted to have the next lesson, or if I was interested in getting baptized. Apparently I said that they would be hearing from me wicked soon, so we ended up setting up all my appointments, leading up to a baptism in October that day. That day was September 23, 2012.

I ended up meeting with Elder Colvin and Elder O'Laughlin many times a week. I was probably in contact with them daily, asking questions about one thing or another. Plus, they were very helpful with me in how to deal with my parents. My parents are very dear and loving towards me. However, they do not agree with the doctrine behind this church, and haven't supported me in my decisions. I needed guidance, frequently, in how to deal with one situation or another. That's where Elder Colvin and Elder O'Laughlin came in, and for their help, I am eternally grateful.

I remember one day, I was out in a park with the elders, and we were working on an email to send to my parents. (I had been reading the Book of Mormon daily and praying about it since when I started asking questions of Rob). Elder Colvin suggested that my next line be: I believe that the Book of Mormon is true. After he said that, I paused and thought. At that moment, I realized the truth of it all. It finally clicked. I happily wrote down that sentence, and continued to bear my testimony to my parents.

I had the awesome opportunity of watching the October General Conference with these two special elders.

 This is us outside during a break from one of the sessions during General Conference in October. Pictured from left to right is: Elder Colvin, me, and Elder O'Laughlin. For the Sunday session we went to the church to watch conference. Before President Thomas Monson spoke, Elder Colvin leaned over and asked, "Are you ready to hear the Prophet of God talk?" I honestly don't remember what I said. During President Monson's talk, I felt the Spirit washing over me stronger than I had ever felt before. I had received my own special testimony that President Monson is a Prophet of God.

A few weeks later, on October 20, 2012, I was driving in my car to church. It was a very special and important day. It was the day of my baptism. On my drive to the church, I looked in the sky, and I saw a beautiful rainbow. (Rainbows have always been a favorite symbol for me, and I love how God used it as a sign of His covenant with Noah). When I saw the rainbow, I felt this peace and happiness. It was Heavenly Father's way of letting me know that I was doing the right thing. I got baptized that day. I had about 60 people, friends of mine from school, and the church, come to see me get baptized. It was incredible. I have never felt so happy, so blessed, or so clean, than when I came out of the baptismal fount after Elder O'Laughlin had dunked me. It was the best day of my life:

 Elder Allred, me, and Elder O'Laughlin.

Rob, Matt, me and Sam, day of my baptism, my wonderful teachers.

Elder Low, Elder Allred, Elder Glover, me, Elder King, Elder Reese, and Elder O'Laughlin (all the Erie Missionaries).

Since then, life has not been easy, but it has definitely been blessed. I hope to be able to share some of my experiences and some of the blessings that Heavenly Father has bestowed onto me with others in this blog. I have been a member of the church for 6 months now, and I have loved every minute of it.