What is conversion? Why is it important?
I grew up as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I remember that I lived off of my parents testimony as a child and well into my adolescent years. Life was good.
Well, mostly good.
Around the age of 14, I remember that I struggled with a lot of things. One of them was my own testimony. I began to have many questions about the Church and the truthfulness of it. One question I had was, "Well, what makes the LDS Church correct and the Catholic Church good but incorrect? Isn't every church good?"
This went on for quite a while. I remember going to my bishop with some of these questions that I had and complaining about how I was struggling. He only gave me one piece of advice. Read the Book of Mormon.
Up to this point, I had participated in family scripture study and read from the Book of Mormon before, but I struggled with reading it on my own. I was committed. This time I was going to read it all the way through.
When I reached the end with the promise that Moroni gives to "ask if these things are not true," I decided to put it to the test. I got down on my knees and asked Heavenly Father whether or not the Book of Mormon was true. And guess what?
Nothing happened.
I wish I could tell you that I had this incredible and powerful experience where the Holy Ghost testified to me that the scriptures were true and that I received my testimony right then and there, but that's not what happened. Instead, I felt that I needed to press forward in faith.
That mostly happened.
I still went to church with my family, I still partook of the Sacrament each Sunday, and I still did the things that I felt like were right. This continued up until I was about 18 and my parents began discussing a mission for me. Outwardly, I told my parents exactly what they wanted to hear. I would on a mission and serve the Lord for 2 years. Inwardly, I secretly did not want to go. I was content with the way that things were and I didn't want to have make a huge lifestyle change.
That's not what God had planned for me.
In 2014-2015 I had a huge trial come up in my life. The biggest one in my life thus far. I was scared of the outcome and was worried, probably for selfish reasons. I remember kneeling down one day and praying to God more desperately than I have ever in my life. I told him that if he would help me through this trial, I would do whatever he wanted me to do. THIS TIME I know I got a distinct answer. I knew that God wanted me to prepare to serve a mission. I committed myself to do everything in my power to do just that.
This trial started in October of 2014 shortly after I graduated high school. I am happy to say that through a lot of help from my parents, working, and hard spiritual preparation, I was able to leave a year later to the best mission in the world: The Utah St. George Mission.
While on my mission, I still struggled with my testimony sometimes and had some unanswered questions about the Gospel. But in time, as I studied the Gospel and learned more about what we teach in the Church, it helped me to gain my own testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel.
Because of all of these experiences that I've had, I know without a doubt that this is the true Gospel. I have become completely converted through the help of my own experiences and the promptings of the Holy Ghost. If you are struggling with your testimony, and maybe feel like the heavens are closed or silent, remember that God loves you. He doesn't want you to be unhappy or confused but He does test you to make sure that you are faithful and will put your trust in Him. He wants what is best for you. So, keep pushing forward with faith!
When I reached the end with the promise that Moroni gives to "ask if these things are not true," I decided to put it to the test. I got down on my knees and asked Heavenly Father whether or not the Book of Mormon was true. And guess what?
Nothing happened.
I wish I could tell you that I had this incredible and powerful experience where the Holy Ghost testified to me that the scriptures were true and that I received my testimony right then and there, but that's not what happened. Instead, I felt that I needed to press forward in faith.
That mostly happened.
I still went to church with my family, I still partook of the Sacrament each Sunday, and I still did the things that I felt like were right. This continued up until I was about 18 and my parents began discussing a mission for me. Outwardly, I told my parents exactly what they wanted to hear. I would on a mission and serve the Lord for 2 years. Inwardly, I secretly did not want to go. I was content with the way that things were and I didn't want to have make a huge lifestyle change.
That's not what God had planned for me.
In 2014-2015 I had a huge trial come up in my life. The biggest one in my life thus far. I was scared of the outcome and was worried, probably for selfish reasons. I remember kneeling down one day and praying to God more desperately than I have ever in my life. I told him that if he would help me through this trial, I would do whatever he wanted me to do. THIS TIME I know I got a distinct answer. I knew that God wanted me to prepare to serve a mission. I committed myself to do everything in my power to do just that.
This trial started in October of 2014 shortly after I graduated high school. I am happy to say that through a lot of help from my parents, working, and hard spiritual preparation, I was able to leave a year later to the best mission in the world: The Utah St. George Mission.
While on my mission, I still struggled with my testimony sometimes and had some unanswered questions about the Gospel. But in time, as I studied the Gospel and learned more about what we teach in the Church, it helped me to gain my own testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel.
Because of all of these experiences that I've had, I know without a doubt that this is the true Gospel. I have become completely converted through the help of my own experiences and the promptings of the Holy Ghost. If you are struggling with your testimony, and maybe feel like the heavens are closed or silent, remember that God loves you. He doesn't want you to be unhappy or confused but He does test you to make sure that you are faithful and will put your trust in Him. He wants what is best for you. So, keep pushing forward with faith!
