And we have lift off....IM HOME!

Hello again my blogging buddies. Anybody ready for the holidays? If you said yes, Congratulations! Your what we call an over achiever! Hah! Well, I have given much thought to my next blog. Seeing as I am not a full time missionary anymore its harder for me to have time to write these. But I feel it is a privilege as well as a duty. Here is something to think about. Why does the center of the universe always have to revolve around "us" during the holidays? I know year after year we all hear the same basic thing, focus on the true meaning of Christmas, which is Christ. In no way am I throwing that out the window, but adding to it! How about this year we ponder upon a new thought! How about we look at each individual around us as if the center of the universe revolved around them. I'm not just saying be kind. I'm not just saying help them. I'm saying act toward them as if your eternal salvation rests on it. Be their guardian angel. Be their motivational speaker. Be their shoulder to cry on, or wink to make them smile. I send my thanks to my God for all he has given me. May blessings from heaven be yours this special season! HALLELUJAH!!

A song about prayer.

I found a song that really has helped me understand how God hears our prayers.
I know that we can always talk to our Father in Heaven.

"Every word" By Stephanie Mabey
There are days I get so lost
And so caught up inside the crowd
I try to lift my voice but I keep getting drowned out
By the noise
And all the sound
But somehow

(chorus)
He hears, every word, that I say
He knows, just how I feel
And I can pray for answers
I can turn to him for peace
Or just to be heard
And He hears every word

There are times I lose my way
And start to wander off alone
Even when I make mistakes
I'm never on my own
And when i need to find
The way back home

(chorus)
He hears, every word, that I say
He knows, just how I feel
And I can pray for answers
I can turn to him for peace
Or just to be heard
And He hears every word

Not one of us
Can fall far enough
To be out of reach
Of His love
He hears every word

(chorus)
He hears, every word, that I say
He knows, just how I feel
And I can pray for answers
I can turn to him for peace
Or just to be heard
And He hears every word

I testify that he does hear every word. I urge you to pray even if you don't see the point. Let Him know how you are doing. He is waiting to hear from us!


Positive Music And Downloads - various artists | EFY 2010 Accompaniment Tracks Here is a link to a website you can hear the song on. Its Number 5 or 6. I love you all very much and hope this little tune brings some peace, at last.

Good ole New York

Living in NY for 2 years I get why people made those I love(heart)NY shirts
This place is so amazing. I'm Grateful for every second I have spent here. I owe everything to Heavenly Father. He sent me here to do missionary work.
Down here I have a picture of Canandaigua Lake. As one of the finger lakes, it was
carved out of the earth by an enormous ice glacier. Then because of how much it rains in NY the hole filled up to create a beautiful lake. Canandaigua is Indian for "the chosen spot." I wonder if the Indians who named it "the chosen spot" knew that one day, just up the road, Joseph Smith would be visited by God the Father, and His Son Jesus Christ. Hmm.. just a thought. I have been in this area for the last 6 months of my mission and it could not have ended any better. Its been such a blessing to testify about the rich spiritual history of this area.
Many people have asked me if I'm still going to do my blog after I get home. The answer is Yes. Every member a missionary right? It will still be my life, and may change the title later on. But I'm going to share my testimony with as many people who will read it. I thank you all so very much for following my blog. As some of you may or may not know. Missionaries on Blog is a fairy new thing. I'm grateful to help out all that I can. The Chruch is true everyone. We are ready and waiting to answer your questions about our faith.

This is a link to my Mormon.org profile. http://mormon.org/me/1K16-eng/DannyCook
Have a wonderful day and enjoy the nice weather while its still here!

To be... or not to be..

I hope that I can express even an ounce of my feeling with you all today. You know how lately I have been doing many posts that talk about dealing with tough times and trials? Well this time Im the one who is needing some comforting words. I have been informed about a few people in my life that have recently passed away. Now, remember we are all Gods children and he wants what is best for us. Today I wanted to explain how I feel about people who I love that leave this life. I know that after we pass on that we are "taken home, to that God who gave them life." (Alma40:11) In John3:13 he preaches, "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven..." In the Book of Mormon I find many places where people pass on. As I now read about the Great Plan that God has for us, I see that these people felt peace as they knew the plan. I KNOW my dear brothers and sisters that once we pass from this state (earth) to the next it is not the end. Sure people may claim there is no God and it all ends at death. But, what is the point of creating such strong bonds with our loved ones if it is to end at death! I was informed about a close friend of mine who passed away in his sleep while serving a full time mission for the only true and living church on the earth. As I said before, I'm trying to give you just an ounce of what I feel. Once A person passes from this life they go to the Spirit World. There they are taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The SAME gospel of Jesus Christ that I explained in my posts a while ago. I have said it before, my mission is ending soon. Too soon. I want it perfectly clear you you my brothers and sisters that I proclaimed the Great Plan Of Salvation with all the energy I could. This is my testimony once again. God LIVES, he loves each of his children. We were created in his image to one day return to him. As my dear loved ones have passed on I pray that their families will be comforted. Please. If you want to learn more about this plan please contact me. Or any member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. We have answers to the vague and unclear questions. Seriously, why continue to live in a confused state.... you don't have to. We are here for you. The next time you look into the great cosmos of the universe, ask your self. Am I to be... or not to be..

"In the Gospel grammar, death is not an exclamation point, but merely a comma." Niel A. Maxwell

Satisfaction, Guaranteed.

So Life often brings up this phrase,"Satisfaction,Guaranteed." Lets break it down. Satisfaction is a fulfillment of a need or desire. A Guarantee is anything that assures a certain outcome. We usually see this label on food or products that involve emotion. Which is everything. So why do people put such a label? How can they be so certain that your need will be fulfilled 100%? Well.
They cant. In my opinion it is put on things to give us the reassuring feeling that it will be OK. I will be SATISFIED! What if "life" as we know it came with this idea. That we have this guaranteed feeling that were going to love life and be 100% satisfied with our own life? If you had to rate your satisfaction level with your life what would you give it? 30%? 60%? 80%? Christ lived a life that was 100% Satisfaction,Guaranteed. He fulfilled our need and desire of a savior. He was positive that he could do what his Father asked of Him. We too can live life with 100% Satisfaction,Guaranteed. But how? How could I ever be satisfied with my unholy impure little self? We all sin and fall short. But there IS a way. These scriptures from Mosiah, in the Book Of Mormon, Ch:4 explain exactly what I'm talking about. V.2" And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth.
And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men.
3 And it came to pass that after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience, because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who should come, according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto them." If your wanting your life to be Satisfaction,Guaranteed. Do what these people have done. I promise you as you do you will be filled with the same joy. Hey, maybe even feel Peace, at last.

The LDS mission.

Hello hello my friends. I have been wanting to share with you an experience that was life changing to me. That experience has been my mission. Its sad to admit but my days as a full time representative of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are numbered. I can hardly believe it's coming to an end. Ok ok enough with the fluff stuff, now i'll get to the story. I have been blessed to serve here in western NY. The point of this post I want to get across is how grateful I am for the time I've had here. Life is an interesting thing. I think we all can agree on that. I owe all that I have learned, all that I have felt and all that I am to the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm constantly making "course corrections", as Elder Uchdorf said, in my life. I challenge you to do something. Stop for a moment, and ponder all that you have around you. I mean ALL. Think about all the experiences YOU have had and what they have done to shape you. I testify that it is all because of Jesus Christ. He created all things. He gives us hope, or an inner spiritual drive that makes us do what we do. A concern I have with the world today is people just don't see what is right in front of their face. Now, I'm not getting all "political" on you but being a missionary it seems like everyone I talk to is raging about how crummy the country is. Regardless, I choose everyday when I wake up that im going to be happy. The key word in the last sentence is choose. As I said before I am grateful for my mission and what it has given me. I dont mean to ramble. No body likes to read rambles. I hope you take my challenge to heart. I love you. Even if I don't know you. And God loves you, And he DOES know you. I can't stress that simple truth enough. My dear brothers and sisters Peace at last is the title of my blog. Quit searching for peace and let it find you. The Mormon.org web page can forward crazy spirit-filled missionaries just like me to teach you or your friends about all this stuff. this WONDERFUL GOSPEL STUFF.

Never Alone

Ever felt alone? Maybe like there is NO ONE who knows what your going through?
Here are a few comforting words from Helen Parker.

"Sometimes, Oh Lord, when I cannot pray,
I sit very still, with nothing to say.
But never-the-less, I know you are there;
You know that I'm troubled with things on my mind.

And you know I've been weak, so often unkind,
But your Spirit is with me,
Right here in this home;
And I know that I'm never walking alone."


I'm grateful to have the knowledge that Christ is always with us.
Notice the picture...
The lady who drew it is named Liz Lemon Swindle. When she drew it she kept looking in to his eyes. She thought to herself, "who is he looking for?" One day she realized. Maybe he is looking for me? Jesus Christ will never stop looking for us. No matter how far off the path we have wandered. He will always be looking for us to pick us up and carry us home. I hope this post helped you out a little bit.
I pray that we can realize that we never walk this life alone. "God sent his only begotten son....."

Finally, we Endure to the End!

The last part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is called "endure to the end." Lets go through a quick review "just for fun." The first was Faith, then repentance, then Baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Good. I'm glad you didn't forget them. The last part of it is this thing called "endure to the end." So lets lay down a Scripture so you know I'm not just making this up. Matthew 24:13 states, "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Here is another awesome one from 2nd Nephi Ch31:20 in the Book of Mormon. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life. You see I'm not making this up. It's in the scriptures. So, How do we endure to the end? Well, after we make the covenant of baptism and get the gift of the Holy Ghost we continue to live the commandments our very best till the end. Heavenly Father knows the desires of our hearts and knows when we are doing our best. He is just sitting there waiting to bless us, all we gotta do is do our best. If were not 100% perfect after we make this convenat it's still ok. Just start over with faith in Christ. Then move on to Repentence, and strive to live the BEST you can. Christ will fill in our short comings if we come unto him. This scripture in Moroni Ch10:32 is exactly what I mean. "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God." I know this to be true. I add my testimony once again that the Gospel Of Jesus Christ can really truly bring us Peace, at last. I strongly urge you to get in contact with your local missionaries. For you living in Canandaigua NY, I am that local missionary. Were here to help and to serve. Peace is there at your finger tips. Visit Mormon.org and get the missionaries. If your a member, Send this to your nonmember friends and keep enduring to the end! I love you all, my dear brothers and sisters.

Baptism, and the Reception of the Holy Ghost

The greatest part that comes after repentance is the feeling of forgiveness. I have talked with countless people who have gone through this great process and have all felt the lift of forgiveness. Is that all though? Nope. After one repents they then are ready to be baptized. This picture is of Christ being baptized. A few of my favorite scriptures regarding baptism are John 3:5 "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." I love it because it's so blunt, like me! Another one of my favorites is found in the Book of Mormon. Its 2nd Nephi 31:5 "And now, if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!" The funny thing about this verse is I didn't add the exclamation point at the end, its meant to be read that way.
This picture is of an amazing guy named Ross getting baptized. What a wonderful event to see someone enter into the waters of baptism to be washed clean, then after receive the Holy Ghost! The Holy Ghost is given to those who repent and are baptized.
It is a special gift given from Heavenly Father. What the gift does, is it literally guides us in thought and spiritual revelation. Here comes another one of my analogies. Think if you were in a dark room and you knew that there were dangerous things in the room. Spiders, snakes, land mines ext. Would you rather cross the room with a huge flash light in your hand? Or wander through the darkness hoping not to die.... Well the answer seems simple. As it is with life, we are all wandering through a dark and dangerous room(life) we need this help called the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Here is a link to read more up on it!http://mormon.org/searchResults?theme=blue&query=holy+ghost Thanks for reading my Blog. Your awesome. WATCH OUT FOR THOSE LAND MINES!

After Faith Comes Repentance.

The second principle of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is repentance. Now, I want to make something very clear. Repentance is not a "bad" thing. In fact it's a wonderful beautiful thing that everyone HAS to go through. Repentance simply means to turn or to change. Since Christ is the only one who lived a perfect life we all must repent.
For me repentance is a gift. I am truly grateful for the chance I have to repent. Most people think that repenting brings shame or embarrassment. This is false. Repentance sets you free. It makes all the wrongs right again. You might say to yourself, OK OK I get it now. But how do I repent? Great question, here's how.
The steps are basic. First, you must recognise that you have done something wrong.
Admit to yourself that you just plain messed up. Second, you must stop whatever it is that is not in line with God's commandments.This is means to forsake your sin.
Third you must confess. Pray sincerely to your Father in Heaven and plead with him to forgive you. Forth you must make restitution. This means to fix the wrong that was done. For instance, if you stole something you must pay it back. If you hurt someones feelings, tell them your sorry and you love them. Fifth and finally you must forsake. Which means to simply never do it again. Make a promise with your Father in Heaven that you wont do that any more. These are (in my interpretation) the 5 steps of repentance.
I never said it was easy. Although I know that true repentance brings us forgiveness, peace, comfort, and joy! Did we forget the title of my blog? Peace at last..
I tell you my friends, repentance works. As crazy and as imperfect I am, repentance is a wonderful thing that we should not fret. Our Father in Heaven smiles when we his children choose to turn toward him and live his commandments, otherwise known as repentance.

The Actual Gospel of Jesus Christ

I have talked a lot about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have mentioned what is does for our lives. Now I will tell you what it actually is! The first part of the Gospel is "faith." Faith is talked A LOT about in the scriptures,and for good reason. We need to learn it over and over so we understand what it is and how we gain it. Faith for me has been JUST like how Alma Ch.32 puts it. Verse 28 Alma says "Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me." I love this description because it is so simple to grasp. Me, not being the brightest bulb out there understands that both seeds and faith grow over time. Both seeds and faith need to be nourished and taken care of. If not, they will wither and die. Our faith will grow each day as we pray to our Father in Heaven and read the scriptures. This picture of Jesus Christ by Simon Dewey reminds me of who we are to have faith in. Christ is the ultimate example of faith. When Christ healed people he made sure they had faith for Him to heal them. In the other picture(right,by Walter Rane) Christ is healing a blind man. In Mark 8:23 It reads,"And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought." Christ asked the man if he saw anything. Then Christ gave the man his sight. The man must have had faith in Christ to be able to be healed. As we also must have faith in Christ. I urge you with all the strength that my fingertips can type to keep building your faith in Christ. Christ will never cease to have faith in you. Remember, this is only the first part Gospel.

What Will Matter?

This is a sweet poem given to me by my father. I hope you catch the point of it.
By the way I LOVE this. That is why I want to share it with you.

"-Ready or not, someday it will all come to an end. There will be no more sunrises,no minuets,hours, or days. All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten will pass to someone else. Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance. It will not matter what you own or what you were owed. Your grudges,resentments,frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear. So too, your hopes,ambitions,plans and to-do lists will expire. The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away. It wont matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end. It wont matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant. Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant. So what will matter?
How will the value of your days be measured? What will matter is not what you bought but what you built, not what you got but what you gave. What will matter is not your success but your significance. What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.What will matter is every act of integrity,compassion, courage or sacrifice that enriched,empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example. What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone. What will matter is not your memories but the memories that live in those who loved you. What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what. Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident. It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice. Choose to live a life that matters."
(Michael Josephson,"What Will Matter?",L.A.:Josephson Institute of Ethics,2003.)

Never Ending Happiness

Happiness....it seems that easy doesn't it? Then why do we let the little things in life bother us? In my life happiness seems to come like waves in the ocean. Some come in big waves, some small. Waves are a tricky thing. If you catch it right it can push you all the way to shore. But if you don't catch it right you waste a lot of energy and your left out there feeling rejected. Some times after happy times come hard times.Just like when the wave is retracting back into the ocean, it can be powerful and pull you away. I look at the brighter side of life. That brighter side is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Being optimistic is only half of it. When we bring the Savior into our lives everything seems to be OK. When we don't have the Savior in our lives we tend to be worried a lot or be discouraged easily. Happiness is there at your fingertips.Happiness wants to find you. Would you say it's safe to say you've been looking for more happiness? Well, my fellow blogger, it's found you. All you do is open your eyes and notice it! Just today my friends and I, Elder Westley and Elder Anderson, went out for a morning run. It was pouring outside, but that didn't stop us. We charged out into the rain for our routine morning run. We had a great time despite we were all soaked. My friends, I know that true, never ending happiness is yours by living the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel makes life worth living right. We only have one chance at life. Wouldn't you want to live it right?
Visit the NEW Mormon.org to locate the missionaries in your area to share this message of happiness. Find the link to Mormon.org in the section on the right.

Pageant!

The Hill Cumorah Pageant has been so exciting! I have been a few times now with people I'm teaching and its been really really exciting! Meeting the cast and talking
with people from all over the world really gives you an idea of how big of a deal this thing is.


Every night I meet people from all over the world! Last night I bumped into some people from my home town,Mesa AZ! One thing I LOVE about the Pageant is that all the scenes really happened! In the course of my mission i've read the Book Of Mormon a few times. To actually see these events be portrayed live is such a great experience. If you ever read a book and saw the movie you know what I'm talking about. I try to look past the dramatic angle and look more towards the spiritual side. Like when Nephi is filled with the power of God and his older brothers fall to the ground. Yes, its a cool scene because they fall on the ground. But I look at it as, WOW, the lord will protect us in the very moment we need it if we are true and faithful. Or when the angel Moroni shows the boy Joseph Smith the plates. I think, WOW Joseph must have felt like a kid in a candy store! That is SO amazing that IT REALLY happened here on this very hill. Pageant is a wonderful show filled with thrilling special effects and super legit costumes!.. At the same time is is a reenactment of miracles that really happened and they gave give us strength today. I love the Pageant and what it does for the community. Here are a few of my friends I brought to the Pageant; Lynn, Steph, Frankie, and little Daimen
Like I said, have been To Pageant a few times now and it gets better and better every night!
If you ever have the opprotunity to "Come Feel The Excitement" take it! Pageant is great for the entire family. Thats what its really about...bringing people unto Christ and families.

Why I Believe the Church is True

I have given this post much thought. These are the thoughts that have been swirling and stewing in my head for a while now. I was raised in the LDS(Mormon) church and have had a wonderful family to help, nurture and tender me. I grew up in a Mormon community and went to school with people of my same religion. I guess you could say I grew up in a "controlled" environment. I am grateful for that blessing. There have been times while growing up where I grew spiritually and planted seeds for my testimony to one day blossom all on its own. I remember one scout trip I had that we all wandered off in our own section of the wilderness and read the scriptures and prayed. I still to this day remember the vividness of the personal growth I had. I remember reading and visualizing actually being there in the scene. I wrote a letter to my parents expressing gratitude and love. I prayed as Enos,a book of Mormon hero, prayed while he was in the forrest hunting. I poured out my whole soul to God.
I remember returning from the scout camp not only tired, sun burnt and smelly, but I felt a literal growth in my testimony of the truthfulness of the church. Many other instances happened as I aged through the teenage years. Then I find myself preparing to be a full time ambassador of the Savior, Jesus Christ.
Upon arriving here in New York I was excited as any new missionary could be. To say nothing of having the privilege of serving in the birthplace of the restoration of Christ's church. I began teaching people about this wonderful gospel and seeing the light of Christ come alive in the people my companions and I would teach. This very thing has given me even more strength in my testimony of the church. I stand today with an unshakable, undeniable wittiness that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints is in fact the very Church that Christ himself established while on the earth. I testify that I have come to know the Church is true. I believe in angels and miracles that are seen and unseen. God loves his children and wants more than anything for us to return to him. This testimony I leave with you in peace. The savior said "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."(John14:27)I have truly found peace in my life that can last.

A True Apostle of God, Jeffrey R. Holland

I thought it would be a good idea to share some thoughts of a modern day apostle.


I would like to also add my testimony. I too know that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God. Jesus Christ stands at the head of His church. I know that by Him and through Him we can become cleansed from sin. He is the only one who can "unlock the gate of heaven and let us in."(Hynm #194 There is a Green Hill Far Away) I know He is there, and He loves each of us. I know that when we reach for Him, He reaches back and pulls us from any trouble or pain. If Peace is what we want in life, let us reflect on the Saviors words,"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."(John14:27)

I would like to introduce you all to one of my friends! Her name is Melissa Baxter.
I asked her to share her feelings of her story and this is what she wrote...

"My conversion story is something I do enjoy to recount. I feel very blessed by the journey I have taken and continue to grow in joy and love for our Heavenly Father and our savior Jesus Christ because really, this is just the beginning!
My journey began with a desire. A desire to walk with the Lord, to ensure my son knew God, to learn more about God and Jesus, and to follow Their ways.
This desire grew within me each day. As a result, I acted upon that desire by going to a church. I also began to really feast on the words in the Bible. At first, it was wonderful, I felt my heart changing in good ways and I was growing spiritually.
However, after going to the church for several months, I still felt like a stranger. I would stay after the service and let my son play with the other children, and hope for an opportunity to talk to the other parents. I managed a bit of small talk with some church goers, but for the most part I remained an outsider to the regulars. I felt discouraged and somewhat confused. If these were followers of Christ, why weren’t they being more Christ-like?
I remember several occasions praying to God and asking him to help me find a church that would feel like a family. I’m not sure of an exact time frame, but not too long after those prayers, there was a knock on my door. And I answered it.
I was greeted by two missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints who wanted to share a message about Jesus. At that moment the most amazing thing happened: I let them come in and share their message.
It was amazing to me because my brain was not involved in that decision, my response to let them in was purely reflexive. I am 100% certain God heard my prayer. That He was listening intently and he answered my prayer with those two missionaries. I also believe the reason I let them in was by the power and influence of the Holy Ghost.

Now when I first started learning about the church, I was pretty skeptical. However, I kept an open mind because I didn’t know the first thing about The Church of Jesus of Ladder Day Saints. I turned to the Bible quite often as a source of either confirmation or denial of what the missionaries were teaching me.
When I read Luke 6:43-45:
“43For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bringeth forth good fruit. 44For every tree is known by its own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble gather they grapes. 45A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”
Those verses resonated within me with such force. I felt I was being told, “These people are the fruit of the church, look at them.”
And so I did. My experiences with the people of this church have been absolutely wonderful. I tell you sincerely, each and every person I have met and come to know within this church, I deeply care for and love.
What’s more, I know those sentiments and feelings are reciprocated just as sincerely as my own. In my heart and mind, that is one of the greatest testaments to this church. The people are the fruits and they are good. I am so grateful to have them as a part of my life.
Of course, with every conversion story, we need to talk about The Book of Mormon. To be honest, when I first started to read it I didn’t believe it too be true. I thought, “There’s no way.” I just couldn’t understand why God would give us MORE to read…as if the Bible wasn’t already enough. The other thing I didn’t do as I was reading, which the Elder’s had asked me to do, was to pray about it. Looking back, I don’t think I wanted to know because I wasn’t fully ready to accept the truth. However, as I continued to read and I continued to learn I felt something change. I noticed how amazingly, light, free, and happy I felt after each meeting with the Elder’s. I noticed my understanding increase and felt the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon with every turn of the page. Finally, I was ready to know straight from the source, God Himself, if these things were true. Was this book truly His word, were these real people, was this the true church of Christ? For this, I turned to a Book of Mormon prophet
And when ye shall receive these things, I exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things. (Moroni 10:4-5)
I did just that. When we put our preconceived notions aside and completely rely on God’s perfect knowledge alone, then and only then will we receive His answer clearly without mistake. I received my answer from on High, an emphatic and resounding YES! It is true. I know it is true. Not because some mortal man dressed in a nice suit told me. Not because everyone I’ve met is so wonderful and lovely. Not because I have been persuaded by kind words. But because I went straight to the source, the one source I know I can count on to lead me in straight paths. Our one true and living God, our Heavenly Father told me: yes this is the true church, yes the Book of Mormon is My word, yes this is your prayer answered. Unmistakable was the burning of bright truth felt within my heart and soul.
I had a date set for my baptism. Another hitch in the road came up; my best friend was not so keen on me becoming Mormon. You see, I had voiced myself when I thought this church wasn’t quite right, and I voiced my confusion to her very openly…so when I started to have a change of heart she thought that was not wise on my part. I tried to tell her all the things I have just discussed, but to no avail. These answers weren’t good enough for her. So, I decided to ease her mind I would pray one more time on the matter before I got baptized. And to my dismay I got a distinct impression telling me I was not ready. I cried, I fasted, and I spoke to others about it (namely my Elders). In the end, the eve of my baptism, I decided to postpone. I was still certain everything I had learned and experienced was true. What was I missing? I pondered this is my mind for quite some time. I then gave in to what my friend was telling me, that the church was wrong. I would miss church meetings here and there. I stopped reading the Book of Mormon. I started to feel confused all over again. I was still having missionaries come over. But I was beginning to slip from their grasp.
I started looking for answers on the Internet. Trying to find unbiased information about Mormonism is NOT easy let me tell you. Unfortunately all this just made me more confused. Which way should I go? I felt compelled to continue going to church and seeing the missionaries. But why? I began to examine the start of my “adventure”. I remembered the feelings and experiences I had had. I wondered if they were true feelings and experiences, or if I was misremembering. I began praying long and hard to help guide me to an answer. One problem; my faith had been a bit damaged. Result; a clear answer could not be heard or determined. Except one day something struck me: when I had been having these feelings and experiences I was listening intently, I was reading the Book of Mormon, and I was actively engaged in what I was learning. I decided very prayerfully that I was going to follow all the church had taught me, I would read the Book of Mormon every day, and I would listen to what the Spirit would have me do.
As I began again, so to speak, to my amazement the feelings of light and joy and peace and love came flooding back into my life. I felt the Holy Ghost’s presence once again. I prayed once again to know what I should do. Again, I heard the voice crystal clear: Yes, this is the true church of Christ, yes the teachings are true, yes I will always be here to guide you through difficult decisions, and yes you are now ready to be baptized. Oh what relief! When I think of this journey of coming to the truth, that is what I feel relief. Because the more I think of certain things that have happened throughout my life, I know this is what I have been searching for. What relief and comfort my heart has been filled with as I share my story. No one, not even the missionaries can make you believe. The beauty of this church is they have made known again what was lost: every person on this planet can have a deeply meaningful and true relationship with God and Jesus. They can speak to us and give us direction and revelation. What’s more is they speak to and give direction to the WHOLE body of Christ (meaning the whole church-worldwide) through a prophet on the earth today. There is no guess work in that! The key is in Moroni’s advice. You have to have full faith and REAL intent. Then you too can know the truth. God is our Father, Jesus is our Savior, and they love each and every living soul and want them to come home. There is a straight and narrow path which leads to that home. The question is, are you willing to go straight to the source to find for yourself what that true path is? I pray that you are.
Love,
Melissa Baxter"
This is a picture of Melissa and I and her son Wyatt in the grove at winter time.

Where Can I Turn For Peace?

I would like to share a small section of one of my favorite hymns. The hymn is called "Where can I turn for peace." This song has given me alot to wonder about. It has been a source of true peace in my life. I hope as you read, and listen you too feel peace come into your life and calm your troubled heart.

"Where can I turn for peace? Where is my solace
When other sources cease to make me whole
When with a wounded heart, anger, or malice,
I draw myself apart, Searching my soul? …
He answers privately, Reaches my reaching
In my Gethsemane, Savior and Friend.
Gentle the peace he finds for my beseeching.
Constant he is and kind, Love without end.”

Toe the line with day to day conflict

Have you had some conflict latley? From my prospective, we all face issues that at times seem to bring us down. The entire purpose of this post today is to help us understand how to "toe the line" with these conflicts.

In high school I wrestled.

At the beginning of each match you stand across from your opponent to "toe the line." Then, the referee blows the whistle and the match begins. As each person devises a plan to take down their opponent, complications often arise. The loud muffled roar from the crowd. The fatigue that sets in after a while. The whole point of a take down is to eventually win the match, thus defeating your opponent. Remember it all starts when you "toe the line." That is the first step when overcoming conflicts in your life. Something I do to help deal with things i'm struggling with is write them down. I then devise how i'm going to attack each one. For instance, recently in my life I have moved a lot. Not of my own choosing, but simply following instructions from my leaders. I figured out all of the things that bugged me as I moved over and over. I then turned those things into things I love about moving and focused on those. You see its not about pushing the delete button on those things that are hard or bother us. Its simply figuring out how to learn to love them. I believe it all starts when you "toe the line" As we make mental lists in our heads of things that bother us or conflicts we face, it only makes it worse. Attitude is everything.

The photo to the left is a friend who I wrestled with since 7th grade. He has one of the biggest hearts in the world.

He always pushed me to do better and was there when times got tough. He is now currently serving a mission in Cambodia. He knew what it meant to "toe the line" and face adversity.

<><><>FACING ADVERSITY<><><>

The adversary wants us to feel like were never good enough. Our day to day opponent is the adversary.

If you ever feel like this guy, im sorry. It's not fun to be depressed, when you feel like the whole world is crashing down on you.

Its all up to you!

With the right additude you can feel like this guy! Or this guy!

So remember when hit with adversity or conflict just "toe the line" and you'll be fine.

The Heavens Open.

Today has been an excellent one. I have pondered the thought of the first vision. The first vision is when the boy Joseph Smith knelt down and uttered a prayer to God. To which he later wrote,
" I saw a pillar of light, exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me; When the light rested upon me I saw two personages whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other-- This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"

I have felt such an appreciation for this event! It was the mark of a new generation of saints. Living within minuets of the location this event took place, I have had the chance to go there often. I add my personal witness of the first vision. I know it to be true. As I have shared this message with countless people in New York I have seen the light and happiness that comes into their lives. As well, I receive more light and happiness! Without a doubt the heavens seem to open as I "seek out the righteous, where'er they may be!"

As God has done throughout history, he once again reached out to his children and called a prophet to guide and direct his people through divine revelation. The first vision was just the first of many miracles to follow and bless us, the children of our Heavenly Father. After all is said and done, in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, I know this message can bring us peace, at last.

Doubt not, Fear not

At times of our lives doubt and fear can seem to creep onto our ship(lives). I am so grateful for the Savior to be on my ship(life) to calm the winds and the seas when they seem treacherous.

A few scriptures come to mind when thinking about this. It has given me much comfort in my life as well as hope.



"Look unto me in every Thought; doubt not, fear not."

Doctrine and Covenants 6:36



" For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

2 Timothy 1:7

LDS.org - Ensign Article - The Love of God

This talk can provide saftey and direction in life!
Read it and then tell me what stuck out to you!


LDS.org - Ensign Article - The Love of God

Does God have a plan for you?

Have you ever looked at a beautiful sunset and wondered how God does it? God has a plan for each of his children. He knows us and wants what is best for us. He sent his son Jesus Christ to die for each of us. That by him (Christ) and through him, we may return again to God. I suggest you take time to see what God has done in your life. I want to help spread the great truth that God is there for us and he loves more than we can imagine. Please comment an example of Gods love in your life.


To find out more about Gods plan for you Email me: dcook@myldsmail.net

Searching for Peace?

Now I believe that at some point in our lives we all search for the greatest source of happiness and peace. If you happen to still be on that search, I might just be able to help. I truly know how to find and have the GREATEST peace and happiness one can get out of life. My purpose is to help people come to the knowledge of their savior. Then I urge you to act upon it. This is known as faith. It is faith in Jesus Christ that we must have to gain true peace and happiness.

"Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world. " Helaman 5: 47