Fatherhood: A Glimpse of the Divine

     Watch this video on Fathers and see how the role of our earthly father is synonymous to the role of our Heavenly Father, and how a noble father gives us a glimpse of the Divine.

     I loved this video a ton, because it really helped me to see the love that my Heavenly Father must really have for me. We truly are the children of our Heavenly Father. We are given this beautiful Earth that is our world. We have food and toys and things that we desire that make us happy. We are given trial and sorrow that help us grow. We can communicate through prayer and scripture study. He answers us with what we need. He truly is the perfect Father and wants us to ultimately be happy.

     I too love my earthly father immensely. I cherish every moment that I get to spend with him. He truly is everything I want to be, my role model, my inspiration, my example, and most importantly my best friend. I hope that I can be as great as him one day. He is an amazing man and quite frankly the best dad I ever had. Happy Father's Day! SURE LOVE YA!

Motherhood: A Divine Calling

     I just want to start off by saying, I LOVE MY MOM! Okay, now that I have that off my chest, I want you to watch this awesome video and reflect back on the women in your life who have loved, mentored, and mothered you. Think about the many things those women have done for you! Now WATCH!

     So, I have been told a couple of times in my life that often women do not particularly enjoy Mother's Day. Well, if this is you, then I am going to be speaking mostly to you in this post. As it has been explained to me, it is often the fact that women see how awesome other's mothers are and how much they lack in comparison that makes Mother's Day such a drag; or maybe, it is that the expectations of how Mother's Day should be spent are often not met. Whatever the case may be, put it aside for just one moment. You, by the simple fact of being a woman, have a divine nature that is so uniquely yours and for which heaven itself sends angels to watch over you and your little ones, so cherish that. You are doing God's work. Your motherhood is an eternal partnership with Him. In my humble opinion, and as the video explained, a mother is someone who loves, and mentors others. So, I would like to add that you do not have to have children to be a mother. Any woman could have children, but in my opinion, it takes someone who is willing to care for and nurture someone out of charity and love to be a mother. For those who decide to take that divine role upon themselves thank you! Our Father in Heaven has trusted you to work with Him in raising His sons and daughters. How great is your call and how lucky are you. I hope and pray you enjoy your divine calling and have a wonderful Mother's Day! :)

P.S. If I didn't already mention it before, I LOVE YOU MOM!!!

New Year (Don't Live in the Past)

     It's a new year and with that come the chance for a brand new start. Everyone and their dog sets new years resolutions, which are great! The only problem is that we keep them for about a week or 2 and then they seem to disappear. I have been on the search to find the cure to this for a little while now and I can't seem to find it. Let me suggest an idea I have that can maybe replace these failing new years resolutions. Take a look back on this past year (2012) and think of all the many wonderful things you have done for people (family, friends, coworkers, etc.) as well as many of the wonderful things people have done for you. Now think about some things you wish you would have done differently. Maybe it is spend more time with family, or maybe it is give more of your time to God, or it may have even been that you wish you would have let yourself enjoy life more. Whatever the case may be, there is at least one thing in this past year of your life that you wish you could make better, and for some reason it is always so hard to accept that we cannot change the past. Let me repeat that. YOU CANNOT CHANGE YOUR PAST, however, we can make some changes to our lives so that we will be happy with our future.
     Now here is my challenge. Look back on this past year, not to be back there again or to try to change it, but to make this next year even better. Find one thing that you would like to be better at and do it. When you fail, do it again. Don't give up because you missed one day of being home with your family, or because you forgot to say a prayer one night before bed. Keep working at it till this change becomes you, then find something else and work on that. I know that if we look back on our life, not with the desire to be back there or to change it, but to learn then we will be much happier in our life. Just remember, live in the present.

Happy New Year!!!

Christmas (The True Meaning)

     I had my second Christmas away from home this year and it was great! It wasn't great because I was happy to be away from home, it was great because I was able to share the message of The Savior with so many wonderful people. I did get to Skype my family which was a way fun perk, but that isn't what I want to focus on. I want to focus on what I learned. I learned that my parents know how to give good gifts (what I want). I learned that God knows how to give perfect gifts (what I need). I learned that God has given us the greatest gift that we could ever want, A Savior, to help us get back once again to live with our Heavenly Father. I learned that we have family to spend time with, to learn and grow from, and to share the many joys in life. Most importantly, I learned that the true meaning of Christmas is Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!!!

Christmas is Jesus Christ

     The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does a wonderful job of sharing what Christmas is truly about! Visit mormon.org/christmas and get a chance to see what the true meaning of Christmas is, or even get a free copy of the Holy Bible, or download free Christmas Music, and many other things. This website is awesome and is directed specifically to the why and what of Christmas. I hope you check it out! Feel free to share what Christmas is to you at the bottom as well.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

     I have been slacking in my blogging the past few weeks, so I hope to make up for it today! I have been thinking a lot about Christmas lately, probably because it is coming up pretty dang soon, and it will be my second one away from home in a row! I have really come to appreciate the true meaning or Christmas, which is the celebration of Christ's birth, while taking time to celebrate it away from the worldly aspect for a change. It is sad that it took this to really learn, but I am so blessed and happy to really know what it is all about. Being on a mission has helped me to learn about and to share the many gifts our Father in Heaven has given us on this Earth. One of my favorite scriptures is found in Matthew 7:7-11 (3 Nephi 14:7-11), because it tells me about how God knows exactly what we need and how He is willing to give it to us if we just ask. One of those blessings is our Savior, Jesus Christ. We are so blessed to be able to have a Heavenly Father who loves us so much that gave us His Son as a gift, and a Savior who was willing to give Himself as a way for us to return to life with Him and our Father in Heaven once again! It is such a blessing for me to be able to know this and I hope to share it with you. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!!!

Thanksgiving

     I have been thinking a lot this Thanksgiving of things I am grateful for. I would just like to give a small list of the things I am most thankful for. I hope y'all enjoy!

I am thankful for:

• My Family that loves and supports me in all that I do.
• My friends that help me be the best I can be.
• A roof over my head, food to eat, and a pillow to sleep on.
• Indoor plumbing.
• A car. (It sure beats a bike on a cold winter day.)
• Electricity.
• Email/Internet. (So I can speak with my family.)
• US Postal Service. (*I love to get mail!!!)
• Holidays. (Like this one, which gives my mom an excuse to send me packages.)
• The water. (As I love to swim sooooo much!)
• The soldiers out there fighting to maintain the freedoms I cherish.
• The time I have been able to spend on my mission and meet great people.
• The Earth and all the beauty that lies within.
• My Heavenly Father and the love that He has for me.
• The Savior, Jesus Christ, and His suffering for me, also His love for me and the relationship I have with Him.
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• The Bible and the Book of Mormon.
• Agency. (The freedom to make a choice.)
• The Gospel of Jesus Christ.
• The plan that Heavenly Father has for me.

That is just a small list of the many wonderful things I love, enjoy and am so grateful for in this life.

*If you feel so inclined you should write me a letter:

          Elder Blair Moser

          105 West Park Dr. Ste. 190

          Brentwood, TN 37027

Independence Day

     Today is the forth of July. It is a very special day for us as American Citizens. Two-hundred and thirty-six years ago our country adopted the Declaration of Independence which declared our independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Because of this we became a free nation. In the first sentence of the famous preamble it states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights." The men who created this declaration were truly inspired men. In the first sentence they tell us that our Creator gave us certain rights and that we were to be able to enjoy them. One of these rights was the freedom of religion.
     Thanks to the freedom of religion Christ was able to restore his church on the earth today through his prophet Joseph Smith. Only in a country that granted religious freedom, like the newly formed US, could this marvelous work be brought forth. I am truly grateful for the great blessing it is to live in this country, the United States of America, especially because of the great truths which were able to be restored to the earth.

 

     I also want to thank all those men and women who have given their lives in order to bring about this great privilege of having religious freedom, as well as, those who have given and are giving their lives to defend it.

God bless the USA!

Daddy!

     I am going to take another quick little break from my normal routine to devote this post to my dad. I love you dad so very much. You have been my biggest role model for ever and I look up to you for all things. I hope I can be as good a father as you one day! Thanks for all of the time you have spent with me throughout the years. I will always cherish those nights growing up, when you would spend time with just me, and we would go out to get an ice-cream cone or go check out the toys in the toy store (I bet you thought I didn't remember that). I loved those long car rides to various water polo games or whatever it may have been where I had the chance to just be with you and talk. Thanks for being my biggest fan and supporting me through all my sporting choices, even if I was not very good at some of them. I am so grateful to have you as my dad, because you are the best one out there and I love you so much. Thanks again for all that you do for me. Happy Father's Day, Dad!

I love you dad!

Mommy!

     So I have decided to take a quick little break from my normal routine and devote this post to my mom whom I love so very much. Like I said before, I love my mom so very much. Without her I would not have come into this world. I would not know how to tie my shoes. I would not know if there were snakes in the park. I would not know why Ben, my brother, had a crayon. I would not know how to do dishes. I would not know that sitting inside all day is not okay. I would not know how to make Macaroni and Cheese, and the list could go on forever. Yes, some of those were inside jokes that I have with my mom and others were just silly, but no matter what I still appreciate all those little things as well as the many other things I did not list. I am so grateful to have the best mom out there and I love her so dearly. Thanks for all that you do for me. Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

     I Love you so much, Mom!

Resurrection

     Why do we celebrate Easter? Easter to me is a time where I can remember the sacrifice that Jesus Christ did for me and especially His resurrection. Even though I try to remember Christ in all that I do and live my life in a way that shows I love Him, this time of year is especially special. We celebrate Easter to remember Christ's resurrection. Christ did die for us and suffer all of our pains so we could all be saved and now He lives. He conquered death so that we could all be saved from physical death.
     When our prophet, Gordon B Hinckley, was asked why in all of our buildings and elsewhere do we not have any crosses to denote our belief in Christ, he replied, "The cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of the living Christ.” He was then asked, “If you do not use the cross, what is the symbol of your religion?” He then replied "The lives of our people must become the only meaningful expression of our faith and, in fact, therefore, the symbol of our worship." (Apr. 1990 New Era, The Symbol of Christ.) I truly believe that the perfect symbol of faith in Christ is by the way you live your life. It is one thing to claim belief in Christ and another thing to live it.
     I love my Savior, Jesus Christ, and cannot imagine what my life would be like without Him in it. I am so grateful for His sacrifice for me of which I could not do myself. I know that because of Him I can return again to my Heavenly Father. I am so grateful that I can serve Him and teach people all over about Him and help them to build or strengthen their relationship with Him that they may have not had before. He lives and loves us still the same. He is my Redeemer, my Savior, Lord, and King. I know that my Redeemer lives!

Scourged and Crucified

     Continuing with my Easter theme on this "Good Friday", I am brought to the Savior being scourged and crucified. Jesus Christ had the power to stop everything that happened to Him at any time he very well pleased, but He knew that this sacrifice of Himself was essential for the rest of us. I can't emphasize this enough, Christ was so selfless that He gave His life for us. He loves us so much to suffer the pains of death. His life was made short in order for us to be saved.
     "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
     Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
     But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:3-5.)
     The Savior continued to suffer for our sins when He allowed Himself to be crucified. On the cross, He allowed Himself to die, and His body was then laid in a tomb. I love my Savior so very much and know that I could not make it through life without his redeeming power. I ask y'all to remember the Savior in your lives especially during this Easter season.

Suffering in Gethsemane

     How much do you appreciate Jesus Christ? Do you love Him as much as He loves you? Does your life show it? With Easter approaching, I though I would focus my next few posts on what the Savior, Jesus Christ, did for us the few days preceding His resurrection. These questions I asked are questions that I think are very important for us to think about each and every day, multiple times a day even. How we answer these questions will tell us how much we need to change in order for Christ's Atonement to have any real effect on us.
     Jesus Christ atoned for our sins. To atone means to suffer the penalty for sins, thereby removing the effects of sin from the repentant sinner and allowing him or her to be reconciled to God. We know that Jesus was the only one capable of doing this and because He did so, we are able to enjoy the benefits that come from it. His sacrifice is free to all who accept him as their Savior. All he asks of us is to have faith in Him, repent and try our best to live worthy lives. We do not need to ask him to be our Savior, because He has already suffered for us; we just have to accept Him and His suffering for us. One of my favorite scriptures in the Bible describes His suffering:
     "And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
     Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
     And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.
     And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground." (Luke 22:41-44.)

     I know that Jesus Christ suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane for me. I know that through him and his sacrifice I can be saved for the things I do wrong. I know that if each man was the only man to walk the Earth, Christ still would have done what He did. I love my Savior so much. I ask you to ponder those questions I asked before, and if Christ is not in your life as much as you would like I invite you to change that. Let Christ change your life forever.