Do you struggle with a bad habit? Do you find yourself making the same mistakes over and over again? Do you feel inadequate to the challenges you face? Are you worried that your best won't be good enough?

You're not alone. A prophet in ancient America named Moroni had some of these same concerns. In reply to his worries, the Lord told him this:

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." ~Ether 12:27

If we humble ourselves before the Lord and put our faith in him, he will strengthen us and we will be able to overcome our weaknesses. Through his grace we are made strong.

To the Prophet Joseph Smith, Jr., the Lord revealed, "Learn of me, and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me. I am Jesus Christ; I came by the will of the Father, and I do his will." ~Doctrine and Covenants 19:23-24.

Let us heed these words. Let us learn of Christ and do our best to be like him.

Be strong in your faith. Be humble. Overcome.

(Image credit: Light of the World, by Brent Borup)

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells the parable of the virgins who await the bridegroom. The foolish virgins had no oil and asked at the very last moment to borrow some from those who had prepared in advance for the coming of the Lord. The foolish were shut out and the Lord declared that he did not know them.

Let us prepare our lamp this year with the oil of the gospel of Jesus Christ, building our testimony and spiritual strength in preparation for whatever may come. While we can be inspired by others who are wise, their wisdom cannot be transferred to us unless we do the work to become wise, to learn of Christ and fill our own vessels with the oil of truth and faith.

"Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." (Matthew 25:13 KJV)

We do not ever know when we will find ourselves in need of the strength we might gain by being wise and preparing now. That strength will assure that no matter what comes, the Lord will be with us as we go through the coming trials of life. Let us go forth into 2019 and prepare well.

In a recent talk given at the General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Sister Michelle D. Craig, First Counselor in the church's Young Women General Presidency, said this:

"The world often uses a feeling of discontent as an excuse for self-absorption, for turning our thoughts inward and backward and dwelling individually on who I am, who I am not, and what I want. Divine discontent motivates us to follow the example of the Savior, “who went about doing good.” As we walk the path of discipleship, we will receive spiritual nudges to reach out to others."

She was commenting on an article written by Elder Meal A. Maxwell, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, just over 22 years before in which he said, "It is left to each of us to balance contentment regarding what God has allotted to us in life with some divine discontent resulting from what we are in comparison to what we have the power to become. Discipleship creates this balance on the straight and narrow path."

Let us seek to follow the example of the Savior. Let us strive to become what we have the power to become in and only through Jesus Christ. God will answer our prayers and teach us how to use that divine spark of discontent to do whatever he asks in his service, finding the one he has sent us to rescue.

As we travel through life, we find many opportunities to step off of the path upon which we ought to stay in order to return to our Heavenly Father. His only begotten son Jesus Christ has shown us the way.

He has said:

Matthew 7:14 (KJV) "Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."

3 Nephi 15:9 (Book of Mormon) "Behold, I am the law, and the light. Look unto me, and endure to the end, and ye shall live; for unto him that endureth to the end will I give eternal life."

I took this photo last summer and every time I look at it, I see the end of the road far in the distance and think to myself that if I stay on the path, I will eventually reach my destination. I am eternally grateful for the scriptures and prophets and apostles who stand on either side of the path. If we rely in them daily, we will not loose our way as we journey toward the end of our mortal probation.

May we all stay on the path and do as Jesus has commanded. Look to him. Endure. And live!

And if we endure our tribulation, God shall wipe away all our tears.

Revelation 7 (KJV)
13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

To the remnants of the children of Israel, on a mountain near Jerusalem and amidst the ruins of destruction in the Americas, Jesus preached his gospel as found in the Bible in Matthew 7 and in the Book of Mormon in 3 Nephi 14. It is no surprise that his gospel is the same to all his people.

He taught that we should not judge unrighteously because the same measuring stick we use for another's worth will be used to measure our own. He taught that we should ask, seek and knock--that we should come unto God for all that we need and desire. He taught that the way to God is straight and narrow, meaning there are not many roads back to God, but only one.

He taught that we should beware of false prophets and that we would recognize them by their fruits. In other words our actions speak louder than words. Not everyone who claims to know the Lord will be known of him. Our bad acts speak louder than our good words.

Then Jesus concludes with this most powerful analogy. The wise and foolish man. Let us be wise. Let us make Christ our foundation, the rock upon which our lives are built.

3 Nephi 14
24 Therefore, whoso heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock—
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them not shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand—
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was the fall of it.
(Compare with Matthew 7.)

1 Peter 5 (KJV)
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

What does Peter mean? How can we be humble? How can we put away pride?

The answer to me can be found in our priorities. What or whom do we put first? Do we seek wealth or fame at the expense of those we love? Do we insist on being right rather than embracing others? Do we consider ourselves better than another? Do we seek to protect ourselves from those who would harm us, or do we seek to avenge those wrongs and return harm for harm?

Matthew 16:26
For what is a man profited, if he shall gain a part of the world, and lose a part of his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for a part of his soul?

Just a part? Do we justify a little sin? Do we exchange just a little part of our soul for a small crumb from the table of the world in a misguided quest to ease our way through life?

Something to ponder when next we're tempted to make just a small wrong choice.

I am reading Paul's words to the Corinthians in his second epistle to them and was impressed by these two verses this morning. As we take upon ourselves the name of Christ and keep his commandments and always remember him, making him the center of our lives, I believe these words from Paul take on greater meaning.

2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

2 Corinthians 6:16
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

A testimony of Christ can lead us to follow him, to become more like him, to become new in him. As we do so he may dwell in us, walk in us. He will be our God and we will be his people. What a glorious promise indeed.