If the Church was just lies...

After reading a rather negative article about the church written by an earlier member, several thoughts came to me and I would like to share them with you tonight.

Before I became a member and while I was taught by the missionaries I remember thinking: If all the things they have told me, were lies, if Joseph Smith was just a man, not called by God,  if the Book of Mormon was fiction, if the LDS church was only man made, it was still built on principles that would guide me to live a good life. 

There is a general falling away from christianity, our church not excluded. 

I understand that people have had negative experiences because of other members, leaders even, or not even, but most particularly, leaders. They are human. And indeed do human mistankes. Terrible ones sometimes. But the gospel of Jesus Christ is still a manual of how to become the best you. If I died and found out that all I knew were lies, I would still meet God confident knowing I did the best I could to live a righteous and good life. Not that I was perfect (Oh, my! That is far from the truth.) 

Others have their experiences, and I can't take that away from them. But the fact remains, for me, that living the gospel of Jesus Christ has given me some life strengthening and great experiences that cannot take away my faith. 

I cannot deny that God lives and that Jesus Christ is our savior. 

But even before I gained a testimony, I saw the good in living the gospel through the church.

Becoming a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has literally saved my life, several times. When I became a member, some people in my family were bummed that I would join the church. Little did they know of the way I lived my life at that time and how I planned to end it...

One of my favorite scriptures is as follows: 

"by the fruits ye shall know them" 

For me, the fruits of Joseph Smith and the book of Mormon, are good. 

My faith gives me peace in troubled times of life, it gives me strength when I am weak, 

it keeps me positive when all looks dark, it gives me faith in myself, knowing I am a beloved daughter of God, 

it helps me serve others, it helps me feel love for the people around me (regardless of how they live their lives or if they believe in God or not), 

it colors my life and the world and I would be lesser without it. 

Happy Sunday!