Beliefs

Monday, March 28, 2016

Hallelujah!!

Hey Ya'll!!

Hope this past Easter week has been full of new-found hope, sacred remembrance, and joyful celebration of the Savior's life, example, willing sacrifice and resurrection. I feel so beyond blessed to have the knowledge I have and to be able to share it with people everyday!! I hope that I can more fully remember and think of the Savior everyday. He lives!!

Yesterday, it was cold, windy, and raining. It rains sideways here hahaa but I have never felt so much joy as I stood on freezing cold doorsteps in the rain proclaiming the teachings of Jesus Christ to those that accepted us as well as those who rejected us. We've all been given the great gift of agency, the freedom to choose. The freedom to accept or reject. But if we did not open our mouths, we would be denying people the opportunity to choose! We limit their agency! We limit them from choosing the blessings that come from living the commandments and making sacred promises with our Father in Heaven.

Something I've been studying a lot recently because of Easter coming up, is the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how each of us can be "reconciled to God" through the Savior's sacrifice. I LOVE Jacob 4:11, "Wherefore, beloved brethren, be reconciled unto him through the atonement of Christ, his Only Begotten Son , and ye may obtain a resurrection , according to the power of the resurrection which is in Christ, and be presented as the first-fruits of Christ unto God, having faith, and obtained a good hope of glory in him before he manifesteth himself in the flesh." And Romans 5:10-11, "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement."

I always thought that being reconciled to God, being restored to harmony with Him, was only reserved for after this life. Yes, we cannot be completely in His presence here on earth, but because of the Savior's Atonement, all of us can have a personal relationship with EACH member of the Godhead- The Holy Ghost, Jesus Christ, and God, the Father. Because we can't be in the presence of God or Christ while in this life, They have sent another member of the Godhead to dwell with us. The companionship of the Holy Ghost is a gift that we receive at baptism and must work at every single day to have. But THAT is how we will recognize the Savior and our Father. They will be more familiar to us because it is by the Holy Ghost that we can come to know them. And we can only have the Holy Ghost if we apply the Atonement daily and continue in increasing our faith, repenting and changing our heart, and striving to take the name of Christ upon us each day by serving those around us. It is then that we can qualify for the constant companionship of the Spirit.

I love you all!! Thank you for your prayers and support. I wouldn't be able to do this without your constant prayers or without the enabling power of the Atonement.

xoxo
Sister Boyce

Monday, March 21, 2016

History's Greatest Event

Hi Family!!

My heart is filled with gratitude and hope this week as we prepare for and celebrate the greatest event in History- the sacrifice of the Savior, Jesus Christ.

HOPE is the great message of the Easter season. As I was studying hope this week from the scriptures and from Preach My Gospel, I found in the Topical Guide that under Hope it said to "see also Expectation, Faith, and Trust." I came to the understanding that our hope, if it is IN Jesus Christ, helps us to have greater faith in Him. If our hope is ON Jesus Christ, we trust in Him and turn our hearts towards Him. And from Moroni 7:41, "And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise." Hope THROUGH Jesus Christ, helps us to set the expectation that we will one day live with God again if we apply Christ's sacrifice and continue to the end of our life in faith and repentance.

As we approach the greatest event in history, may we do so with an open heart filled with gratitude. May we strive to follow Him. To become more like Him. Ultimately, that is what the Savior meant when he said "Follow thou me." That is how we can show our gratitude for the greatest sacrifice ever made. He suffered for our sins, our sorrows, and our pains. He did so willingly and triumphantly overcame through His Resurrection on the third day. We will forever be indebted to Him!

Because of Him, we have reason to rejoice each day!  "Praise ye the Lord!" Hallelujah!!

FollowHim.mormon.org
https://www.lds.org/ensign/1972/04/the-greatest-week-in-history?lang=eng

xoxo
Sister Boyce

Monday, March 14, 2016

"I am so thankful for the Savior! I cannot imagine my life without Him."

Hi everyone!!

Quick update, the three new investigators we found last week are doing great! Their names are Naveah, Elizabeth, and Denisa. They all have such strong spirits and a strong desire to find truth for themselves. That is what we do as missionaries, help people to find truth and light that comes directly from our Savior. You don't ever have to be stuck in darkness or wonder the big life questions. All the answers can be found as we search for the truth that comes directly from God. How I love being a missionary!!

As we have talked to people this week and in letters to family and friends, my testimony of God's plan for each of His children has been magnified ten fold. What a blessing it is to know that even if we can't see the whole picture or how the puzzle of our life all fits together, God DOES. What a huge blessing! We can turn to Him in prayer and ask for His help to see, to understand what His plan is for each of us. He will speak peace to our mind and our heart through the Holy Ghost as we humbly ask Him to help us to see His plan.

The Easter message is out! And it is powerful! I am so thankful for the Savior. He is our Redeemer. Because of Him and His infinite and all encompassing sacrifice for each of us, none of our mistakes are eternal. His Atonement covers all. Through Him we can find true joy and peace. Not the kind of happiness or peace that the world offers, but the kind that heaven can offer. It is divine. In Corinthians, it talks of the significance of what the Savior did. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1 Cor. 15:22). I am so thankful for the Savior! I will forever be indebted to Him. His sacrifice makes it so each of us can find new life through Him! I know that He lives! and I cannot deny it! He is our Savior, our Redeemer, our Eldest Brother, and our friend. What a privileged to be able to represent Him! One that I am not worthy of on my own. But He makes up the difference. I cannot imagine my life without Him.

FollowHim.mormon.org

As you watch the video, think about what the Savior means to you.

xoxo
Sister Boyce

Monday, March 7, 2016

"Remember Him always!"

HI FROM FILER!!

This week has been NUTS!! Gahh so much good happened and my heart is continually filled with gratitude and joy. I LOVE being a missionary and I will forever cherish this time. It is extremely short but I am so grateful for this opportunity.

Recently people have been asking me what I do for fun here. Well folks, 16 hour days filled with teaching people and testifying of Christ is what we as missionaries do for fun. Helping other people every day come closer to Christ is what brings true joy. We have part of one day set aside as our preparation time- Mondays from 10AM to 6PM. We use it to shop, wash the car, clean the house, and email so that the rest of our week can be 100% focused on and devoted to serving the Lord. If we have some extra time, we spend it balling it up at one of the church buildings with some other missionaries. :)

This past Monday, we went to Bishop Tews' house!! They've got a double-decker basement (wut.) with a full size basketball court (HOLLER). We played basketball and volleyball and pool! Sister Tews is the sweetest. We ended our day with the best homemade brownies I think I've ever had. Yes, I'm still obsessed with food so that needed to go in there hahaa

As far as friends go, this was my last district in Filer. Our district became family. (attached in next email)

Friday we had our Zone Training, which is the monthly training with the surrounding districts. This month's focus is on finding those that have been prepared to hear the message of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. It starts with faith in our Father in Heaven that those that are ready to hear and accept our message will be put in our path. And between Saturday and Sunday, we found THREE new investigators!! That's as many as we found in the last six weeks combined!! And two of the three have said that once they understand for themselves through prayer, study, experience, and keeping God's commandments, they will be baptized! Christ was batized to set the example for each one of us. That is our first step in becoming more like the Savior. Baptism is the gate by which we enter to the path that leads to eternal life- living with God. None of us are perfect, and our mistakes are not eternal BECAUSE we have a Savior that has paid the price for our sins. We can be made clean through Him as we more fully align our will with God's and follow the example of our Savior.

Remember Him always. He makes it possible to find joy in this life and in the life to come. Praying for yall:)

xoxo
Sister Boyce