Marci Nelson

So today I read Luke 2: 1-19. Yes, this is the famous story of Jesus' birth. Have you ever read these verses? I mean, actually READ them? These verses contain some of the most beautiful verses in the entire standard works. "For behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy." "Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth, peace. Good will toward men." Joy, glory, peace, good tidings. Power words. These words are charged with positive energy. Don't they just make you want to sing? As much as I love this time of year, (which is a whole flippin' lot) I especially love the power that comes from knowing I have a Savior, Jesus Christ. And this power radiates all year round. 365 days a year. 52 weeks. 12 months. I was challenged to read these verses tonight (thanks, Mom!) and to think about what it means to me to have a Savior Jesus Christ. What are the good tidings of great joy that I have received because of Him? What good tidings have brought me great

Imagine a world where the sun is always shining, there is no temptation, weakness, or sin. The grass is always green, hair is always shiny, flowers never die, people never misbehave, no illness exists, and the sky is always blue. Imagine also a world where you never felt joy, you never laughed, you never sang or danced in the kitchen. There was no sweet – there was no color, there was no life. There was no righteousness, no growth, no children, no family. Oddly enough, these are the same world. When we chose God’s plan, we knew that this life would be difficult. Our whole purpose in coming to Earth is to be tried and tested. Yet, sometimes when life gets hard, we forget that we CHOSE this. There must needs be an opposition in all things. Proverbs 3:5-6 states: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all ways acknowledge Him and He will direct thy paths.” 1. Realize and understand your divine nature as a child of God. There is

Dear Heavenly Father, I need to know you're there. I believe that you are, but I need to KNOW. This was my plea tonight as I drove home from my parent's house. I just needed to feel the Spirit again - and feel surrounded by His love. I get to my apartment, and start scanning through Facebook. I hear the "ding" of a new text message. It's from my brother: "I just wanted to say that it was good to see you. I haven't seen you in a long time. You are awesome!" God is real everybody. He is our Father, and He loves us. And it isn't always in big ways that He manifests himself. Sometimes it's by small and simple things that God accomplishes His work. I KNOW God is there. The words to one of my favorite songs and a song sung at Conference this weekend comes to mind: "I know He lives! I will follow faithfully. My heart I give to Him. I know that my Savior loves me." I KNOW He lives.

A good friend once said to me, "Ya know, I am so grateful for my knowledge of the Plan of Salvation. Without it, I would feel pressured to get married RIGHT NOW or to serve a mission. But because I know my Savior lives and loves me, I know that He has a plan for me. And I don't have to feel jealous, because I know the Lord knows what He is doing." As I've pondered on my friend's perspective, I've had to consider my place in His Plan. I want to serve a mission, yet I'm still living at home with my parents. I want to get married, but I still think that boys have cooties. So what am I doing with my life? Am I even making a difference? Sometimes I like to victimize myself and think, "if only I had money, then I could make a difference". If I were under different circumstances, then my life would be better. If I didn't have to work, then I would have more time on my hands to do the things that really matter. Sometimes I get jealous of other

I LOVE Sundays. Why don't they come around more often? Today in sacrament meeting, I learned that it's just as important WHY you do something as it is to DO SOMETHING. Last Sunday I made a goal for myself to do one thing every day that shows the Lord I love Him. I love goals like this because 1) it is attainable! I can do one thing every day. 2) It's just for a week. It's not an overwhelming task. 3) I try to live my life for the Lord anyway; this just helps me make a conscious effort to do things for HIM. So this week was amazing, to say the least. I by no means was perfect and I most definitely am not getting translated any time soon. However, I could feel His love in more abundance this week, and I wasn't so overwhelmed with all the things I needed to get done. I just served Him and I was HAPPY! This week I served my family, attended the temple, did family history, prayed with real intent, and studied my scriptures more purposefully. I think at the end

Today brought back one of my favorite memories. Growing up, my mom always sang. She has a beautiful voice. One of my favorite things when I was little was when my mom would sing to me as I was falling asleep. She sang this song that I had to look up the title for, because I always referred to it as "The Angel Song". Though the proper title is "Angel Lullaby", I think my made-up title wasn't too far off from how I feel about my mom. I wish I could upload a link of my memory, but since that technology hasn't been invented yet, here's the lyrics: "You came from a land where all is light to a world half day and a world half night. To guide you by day, you have my love, To guard you by night, your friends above. So sleep, sleep, till the darkness ends, guarded by your angel friends. So sleep, sleep, till the darkness ends, guarded by your angel friends. There's one stands softly by your bed and another sits close with a hand on your head