Here is my quick update and message!
I have been home for almost a month now! The more steps I take down the path that the Lord has prepared for me, the more I can see what He wants me to do and how He wants me to do it. Things become more clear as we continue to do what the Lord asks of us! We have so many blessings, even more than we can count. And now, we can look to D&C 82:3 which mentions, "For of him unto whom much is given much is required." We each have so many blessings and so, we have many challenges. I think it's important to note that by our Heavenly Father's design, we have been placed here on earth to go through these very challenging times which means that in the pre-mortal life, we gained our Heavenly Father's trust to help the work of the Lord go forth at this moment. He chose those who He knew can lead nations and groups in times such as this. And He chose those members of these nations and groups to be stewards of their own responsibilities. Those responsibilities take many forms even at the youth level. Because choices we make now affect our very future. Sacrifices are, at many times, necessary for the well-being of our families now, or our future families. It makes it difficult to have the expectation that we would be different or be better when the time comes to take on such a great responsibility such as being a father or mother of a family. It is important to keep in mind that each individual is the sum of everything that they have seen, heard, said, and done. And so, we cannot expect to be better than we really are when what we have done is not in harmony with who we want to become. We attend church, fulfill our callings, read our scriptures, say our prayers, minister to others, teach, expound, exhort, fast, walk in the path of righteousness, and love our Heavenly Father so that we can do all of that in the time to come and so that our posterity may take on that same example of being a follower of Christ. We build habits now in order to allow them to be part of our nature later. I share this with each of you now because of the situations that we are all in. What goes on now impacts each person differently. That is because we have different paths prepared. I want all of you to know that Heavenly Father loves each of you! He is well aware of everything going on and He wants everyone to know that it will be alright. Whatever challenge or opposition we may face, it is important to remember the scripture, D&C 122:8 which says, "The Son of Man hath descended below them all." I love that scripture because it helps me to understand that there is a mountain that can only be measured by eternity between my problems and the depth that our Savior had to go to in order to understand and help each of us. My message to all of you at this time is to hold on! There are many that maybe aren't suffering through what is going on now, but in contrast, there are many who are struggling to see the light at the end of this. And keep in mind what Joseph Smith has said- "Everything that has a beginning must have an end." Thus, all our problems, worries, afflictions and trials will have an end. What we can achieve is greater than we can now comprehend, and that is the wonderful gift of eternal life which will bring eternal happiness.
This is my testimony that God lives. He is our Eternal Father. The feelings of love and peace that we receive through the Holy Ghost are things never to be forgotten. Those are signs that He does live and that He does love us. Listen carefully and you will hear the sweet whisperings of the Spirit testifying to you that God is there. For that is how I know that my Heavenly Father and Savior love me. That is how I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. All things have an order and a law. All things were created, and so, there must be a creator. Nothing can create itself. I testify of the power of the Atonement. It has played a significant role in my life and I have watched it play a significant role in the lives of others. The sweet people who I came in contact with are some of my most favorite people! I respect them so much for doing things that I never could. The faith they have is an inspiration. I will never forget the faith shown forth from investigators battling cancer, others going through divorce, some struggling with addictions, many with disabilities both physically and mentally, and sometimes people with all of those problems. And perhaps one that stands out to me the most was the example of two investigators that I had in my second area just before I was transferred. The sister was blind and she lived a very rough life. For many years she has had the same routine each day. Each day except for Sunday, her husband was gone early in the morning at about 9:00am until late that night after 12:00am. He would either leave food out for her to eat or a friend would come assist her. Each of those days she spent too much time alone with no one. She would wake up and sit at the edge of the bed until it was time for her to go back to sleep. She knew how to function a disc player that they had but it just didn't work very well. She knew one path in their apartment which was to the bathroom and back. Her husband was nearly blind so he didn't have a car. If there was anyone out there who needed the gospel and the love of the Savior the most, it was them. The sister had already grown up with a rough childhood and she knew the meaning of suffering better than anyone else I came in contact with. As bad enough as everything was, they lived in a very small, two room, one bathroom, apartment which was very overdue for cleaning. It was a joy and heartbreak to receive this reference from their friend. I'm only glad that we were able to visit with them for a time before the husband decided that the gospel wasn't what he wanted for himself or his wife. In the end, we can only hope that they at least felt the love of God and that He had a couple of representatives to manifest that love to them. Even if the husband only accepted us for a short time, their faith that they showed to learn and progress was a greater example than words can describe. I leave my testimony here that the love of God stretches out to all who will receive it. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church here today. Priesthood power has been restored to bless the lives of others. Scriptures have come forth by the hand of the Lord through His appointed servants. We have prophets and apostles that direct the work here on earth according to the Lord's will. Families can be together forever and they are the central purpose in the plan of salvation.
I testify of these things, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.
-Blake Markham
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