A message for You....

   A passage of scripture that has changed my life is found in Matthew 9:9-13, which reads;

"And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him. And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

 I am going to explain why that scripture means so much to me.

How many of us have felt at times in our lives, that God couldn't possibly love me. Or have felt that because of our wrong or bad choices, God wouldn't want me anymore. Or maybe you have felt that you have gone to far, there is no way to turn back, and you have past the point of the forgiveness. I know that I have felt that way in the past. And if you have never felt that way, I am willing to bet that you know somebody who has, or does at this very moment.

Its because of those past feelings, that I find so much comfort, peace and solace in these verses of scriptures.

What I believe the Lord is trying to teach us in these verses, is that His atonement, His sacrifice, His gospel, His love is NOT for perfect people! He came to call the sinners to repentance! He is the physician, and he came to heal the sick. Because, "They that be whole, need not a physician."

So, for those of you who have felt the same as I have felt, you must understand that Jesus Christ came, lived, and gave his life for YOU. Don't ever feel as if you are past the point of forgiveness. Christ's whole mission was and still is, to make it possible for all of us sinners to repent, learn from our mistakes, and change so that we may be made clean through the sacrifice of his blood. If you feel like you are to bad, or to far gone for Christ to help you, then your missing the whole point! I recently heard a quote from our Mission President, Larry Gardner, that fits perfectly with this message. He stated, "Church shouldn't be a sanctuary for the saint, but rather a hospital for the sinner." In Luke 23:34, we learn that the Lord was able forgive the very people who crucified him, crying, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do." No matter what we have done, the the Lord will never forsake us. We can only forsake Him.

That brings me to the other point that I believe Christ was trying to make in these verses, that may not be so obvious. In those verses He states that, "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick... I am not come to call the righteous, but the sinners to repentance." Now, I don't believe that the Lord would want us to think that there are people righteous enough that they do not need Him. But what I think Jesus was trying to teach us is that we are all sinners, and all of us need to come unto Him and repent of our mistakes. We are all "sick", and we all need the healing power of the master physician, who is Jesus Christ. The only "whole" person there, was Christ himself.

I know with all of my heart that Jesus Christ is our saviour and redeemer, and that He suffered for each and every one of us, because he loves us. He lives today, and continues to look upon us with that same love and concern for all of God's children. What Christ did, was for each one of us. I know that if I could see into the eyes of each person reading this, that I would see the same truth repeated through each person, and that is that YOU, are a child of God... And he loves you. I leave this with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

The Christmas Tree

This Christmas Tree is one that you will find in between the two lanes at a Drag Racing Strip. It is actually a light system used at the starting point of a race. Its pretty simple really, When you pull up to the starting line, the first two lights will indicate when you are in the right starting position, and when the yellow lights come on and count down, you better be ready, because green comes next, and that means "GO"! True, it is a simple concept, but I have learned that there is a lot more to it than just that. With Top Fuel cars that push 7500+ horsepower, and have the ability to run 1/4 mile times in less than 4 seconds, the Christmas Tree becomes a very critical part of the race. In many of these high speed drag races, it is the drivers reaction time that wins him the victory. If a driver "jumps" the start, or crosses the starting line before the green light comes on, he is disqualified, and the win goes to the other driver. This is called a "Redlight", because of the red light that will signal that the driver broke the starting plane before the race/timer began. Drivers must spend lots of their time practicing their "launch" off the starting line, getting their reaction to the lights down as quick as they can without red-lighting. Its has always amazed me how races are often won, just because of that split second reaction to the Christmas Tree.

 I think that our lives are a lot like the Christmas Tree mentioned above. Our lives are also very short in comparison to eternity. We are often tempted to say, "Life is short, so I will do all that I can, and I will do what I want!" But just like the time spent at the starting line is so critical, so is the time that we are given on earth! It is this time that God has given us to prove ourselves. What we choose to do in this life will greatly affect our life hereafter. Just like that split second is so important to the race, our little choices we make in this short life are also so important.

   Every choice we make will have an eternal affect on the welfare of our souls. We must remember what Lehi teaches us in the Book of Mormon, "Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself. And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit;"

We have that privilege to choose for ourselves. It is my prayer that this Christmas season we will remember who to follow, and what choices will bring us nearer to our Heavenly Father. Amen