My mind has been quite preoccupied with all the thoughts and conversations I seem to have every day. I love this time in my mission where I can take all the knowledge that I've learned throughout life and have it be attacked and challenged every minute of the day. That's just being on a mission I guess... right now it just seems to be at a higher level because there are so many people at this university who are willing to talk about anything. My studies have never been so focused and fulfilling because I'm being questioned on all perspectives and avenues of my faith. How can I back it up without my own study, pondering and prayer. Well I can say that every time I have had a doubt or a question that I didn't know an answer to I have been directed to an answer in one way or another.
A couple days ago I was just sitting in the car thinking about an argument that someone brought up the other day. I didn't know how to respond at the time and then BOOM the answer came into my mind that made way too much sense. It's a little bit of deep doctrine so I don't want to go into right now ha. I'm just grateful that the spirit can testify of truth into my MIND and my HEART. It takes both for me and I feel like I can testify, now more than ever, that this church: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is what it claims to be. I sense the feeling of boldness coming into my fingertips right now....so go ahead and check out if you're not into it... but if you're down for the ride... it's comin' your way.
I feel like the church claims a lot of things but I have a couple that come to mind right now. "This is Lord's Kingdom once again established on the earth." Pretty bold right... It is! It's very bold to say that this is the one and only authorized church on the earth that has a modern day prophet who has the same power and authority as did Moses. We claim that we have modern day revelation and the windows of heaven are open to communicate with God after the "long night of apostasy" and now we are no longer "wondering from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, running to and fro to seeking the word of the Lord, and not able to find it" I have been blessed to come to the knowledge of the truth because I knew where to find it. That's it. I know where truth is.... finally. I know where it comes from: God. Man does not create truth but he can certainly explore it. Even if we discover evidences that may seem to contradict the foundational beliefs of this church I would say one of two things to the objection. One: The truth or logic is flawed. Two: The evidence or "truth" that have been found is incomplete and will someday coincide with the objective truth which is absolute and unchanging regardless of your perspective. A couple hundred years ago everyone knew that the earth was flat. Did that "truth" really make it true? Our receptiveness to the light and knowledge of God does not affect the reality of its existence. I testify that "This is the away; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God." That is truth. Your perspective does not affect it.
Let's look at the dear Book of Mormon for an example. This is one of the most attacked and examined book regarding it's origins and fruits of truth for the past couple hundred of years. If we are on the search to know if this book is true or not then we should probably first define truth. I realize that "truth" has been the great conversation throughout philosophical history... and is still being debated today... but I have heard a definition of truth that I really like and seems to apply: "It is true if it is what it claims to be." Simple enough. So let's look at the claims of the Book of Mormon. I believe it comes down to three main things (not in any particular order)
1: It is God's word (scripture)
2: It is another Testament of Jesus Christ
3: You will get closer to God by reading, pondering, praying and living by it's teachings.
Those are the claims. If I were on this pursuit of truth I would look to see of those claims would be fulfilled. I invite everyone to try for themselves to see this. Even if you've tried it before... It took me a long time to know too. I could go on for a while about why and how that is but I've already rambled way too much today.I want to testify that the Book of Mormon truly is the word of God, that it testifies of Christ, and that you will get closer to God by abiding by it's teachings.
Well I'll just step down from my soap box for a second. I wasn't planning on writing any of that. I did write in my journal every day ha. Thanks for the accountability.
Flesh and Blood,
Elder Trent Jay Merrill
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