Science and God:The two work together

As a science student, I have been amazed at the fact that some people tend to use science as a means to disprove the existence of God. I am left wondering, what do they believe in if they don't believe in God, or even a god?

It seems many people look at only the evidence that man can produce. Yet we should be looking at everything God has given us. As it says in the Book of Mormon in Alma 30:44 "The scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator."

I say this not just for those in the field of science, as I plan to be in, but also for those who are having a hard time finding their faith. Take a look around you, my brothers and sisters. As Alma said, the earth itself witnesses that God is there. Let's take a look one of the oldest books in existence, the Bible. From the beginning of time the existence of God was taught.

  People may say that the story of Adam and Eve is just that, a story; I have faith that it is a true account. The world may say God doesn't exist; I believe in the scriptures and in an almighty, all powerful God. I believe He will reveal all things in His own way on His own timetable. To doubt the power of God is to doubt the accounts of the scriptures, and doubt that we will be held responsible for anything we do in this life.

Events in the scriptures, like the parting of the Red Sea during Moses' time, turning water into wine by Christ, and even the moving of mountains by the brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon (Ether 12:30), become mere fairy tales if we have not faith to believe. For as Christ said "Repent all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me, and be baptized in my name, and have faith in me, that ye may be saved." (Moroni 7:34, emphasis added)
If God created the earth, that would mean He created science as well. It has been my experience that whenever men try to interpret something God did or said, there are many interpretations. It is left to us to have the faith to turn and ask God what is truth.

For Christ says in the Bible, "And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." (Matt. 21:22, emphasis added)

I leave with you my testimony that God is our Heavenly Father. That He and His son, Jesus Christ, live today and care about us.

God Will Make a Man Out of You

One of my favorite Disney movies is Mulan. Every time I think of that movie, I am reminded of the song sung in the "boot camp", "Be a Man".  There are three lines in the song I would like to point out. They are the lines "Mister, I'll make a man out of you", "Somehow I'll make a man out of you", and "How could I make a man out of you".

In this song Shang's "faith" in making Mulan a strong fighter in order to go to war slowly weakened and dissolved. At first he said he'd do it. As time went on and she just wasn't getting it, his faith weakened. It was no longer an absolute, but rather just a "it's needs to happen...somehow". He was beginning to give up. At the end he was sending her away as he asked the question, "how could I make a man out of you".

In this day and age it isn't much different. We have others who try to shape us and teach us and help us along our way; and it seems we just don't progress. Those teachers we are trying to learn from start to give up hope and "abandon the project". What are we to do? With no teachers and no help how can we progress? How can we become who we need to be to accomplish our goals and the design that God has for us?

A part of the glorious message of the gospel is the fact that we are never alone nor abandoned. It may be that no other human being is standing with us, around us, or anywhere near us. No matter what the situation might be we are not alone when we stand for the right, when we are doing our best, when we are living the commandments of our Father in Heaven, He stands by our side. He becomes our teacher. And though others may give up on us, He never will. You are His child, and He loves you more than you could understand.

Am I a Christian?

With many people saying that Mormons are not christian, I am sure that this is a question that has come across many members minds. I also think it might be a question that comes across of members of other religions. With the world the way it is I suggest that everyone ask this question of their self. Am I a Christian?

To answer that question I believe we need to figure a few things out first. One) What does it mean to be a christian? Two) In the end who is going to be the final judge?

First to answer what is means to be a christian. Lets first take a look at what the word is implying. Christian implies that we are followers of Christ and His teachings. If I am a follower of Christ and His teachings what does that mean? It means that:

1) I am going to Follow the example Christ set. (John 10:14 "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine." If we are Christ sheep we are going to follow him.

2) It also implies that we are going to seek to understand all that he has taught us. John 5:39-40 "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life." The scripture testify of Christ and His mission. They will not bring us eternal life, but they will guide us to Christ who will give us eternal life. He cannot give to those who do not come.

Finally 3) We are going to live our lives according to our beliefs. We seek Christ through the scriptures (Old Testament, New Testament, and Book of Mormon) and what the spirit tells us. We must always be looking for the promptings of the Holy Ghost to help us get on and stay on the correct path. How do we know the spirit well "...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." (Galatians 5:22-21)

And to finish off we must remember that it is not our place to judge. "Judge not that ye be not judged." (Matt. 7:1 and 3 Nephi 14:1) Who are we to say who is Christian or not. We cannot see that hearts of intents of others. We cannot be a perfect judge. "...God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel." Romans 2:16 "...names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of all." (Doctrine and Covenants 76:68, emphasis added)

Now that we know what is means to be Christians and who is to judge all, we need to change our question. It should no longer matter what I think who a christian is or even anyone else in this imperfect world. Instead we should follow the example of  Elder Neil L. Andersen, Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and ask ourselves the question, "What thinks Christ of me?"

It is only the opinion of Christ that matters in the end. All else is naught to the judgement of Christ, HE who paid the price of the worlds sins. Corinthians. 6:20 "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s."

Gods Love for Us

As it is the week of Valentine's day, I thought I would write up a quick blog on the love God shows us day by day. I wasn't sure of what I wanted to say or how I wanted to proceed. I thought I would just share this poem I wrote on God's love in my life. Some of you may have heard me share it, but most of you probably haven't so I hope you enjoy.

God's Love for Me

By Elder Tanner Smith

O Heavenly Father,

How can I know thy love?

I live in a world,

That says there's no heaven above.

I am sure grateful that,

I have the Truth.

I'm glad I had a mother,

Who's taught me in my youth.

Now in my later years,

I am really grateful for,

Love my father showed my mother, 

I couldn't ask more.

A loving family,

 An army by my side.

10 sibling have I,

their influence I could never hide.

More than a thousand miles away,

I stand alone,

But strength and courage I take,

From letters from home.

Although I use to wonder,

Where thy love was in my life,

Through struggles and challenges I now understand,

The love you've shown through out my life.

Through family and friends,

Through blood and kin,

I see the influence,

Thy love has been.

To all those who feel that God doesn't care, I want you to know that he does. I want you to know that he has sent me here to show that He cares for you more than any other being in the Universe. He Is Our Father in Heaven. 

A Grave Mistake: Growth from Challenges

In your life time, can you think of an action you took or something you did, that, although it seemed harmless at the time, you wish you could go back and change, redo, or not do at all?  I can think of many mistakes I have made in my short life time of 19 years, just small little things that seemed harmless, but have had an effect that lasted much longer than I thought. Although I wish I could take some of them back, or change how I did something, I realize that I would not have learned the lessons I needed to learn. If I did not learn my lesson, I probably would not even want to change my actions.

I want say that the only actions I would change or not take are those that affect those who I care for the most. But every action I take has an effect on those around me. The words I use affect people. The tone I use affects people. The attitude I have affects people. Actions I take affect people.

I like how someone once illustrated the affect we have on people. They compared it to magnets. For those who do not know how a magnet works, I will give a synopsis. A magnet works by generating a magnetic field. The magnetic field is generated by the alignment of the molecules in the magnet and the movement of the electrons around those molecules. The way that compares to us is to picture yourself as a molecule in the magnet. If just one molecule moves out of place and is no longer in line with the other molecules, the whole system is disrupted.

It works the same in life. We affect people around us just like molecules in a magnet. If we tweak ourselves, other are affect by that change.  We can help others change for the good or for the bad. We as human beings make mistakes. Sometimes we hurt others without meaning it. We can be the cause of disrupting the alignment of many lives by the way we live our lives. Albeit, this is not an absolute. People still have their agency as to how they will react to situations; the way we live our lives presents choices to others that may lead down the wrong road.

The beautiful part of this life is that people, both young and old, both male and female, can change and make choices for themselves, "for with God all things are possible." (Mark 10:27) Jesus Christ our Savior and Redeemer have Atoned for our sins, for our mistakes. He has "bought [us] with a price..." (1 Cor 6:20) We are his. "And he said unto the children of men: Follow thou me." (2 Nephi 31:10)

All He asks of us is to follow his example. For "...unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved." (2 Nephi 31:16) The only grave mistake we can make in this life is not trusting in Christ and His atonement. For if we turn to Him and humble ourselves, we can only grow closer to Him.


‎"We cannot control what others choose to do, and so we cannot force our children to heaven, but we can determine what we will do. And we can decide that we will do all we can to bring down the powers of heaven into that family we want so much to have forever." 
Elder Henry B. Eyring