BUS 110-Ashley Alexander

This week, I have learned about following the example of Jesus Christ by being involved in service, showing love for one another and sharing truths. One scripture that was particularly meaningful was Matthew 20:26-28. In this passage, Jesus teaches us that there is no greater glory than humbly serving others. While the world views status or success as the key to greatness, Jesus teaches us the opposite; He views true greatness as being humble, caring for others and helping them. My classmates' posts were beneficial to me as well because they helped me realize that even the smallest acts of kindness can have a positive impact on someone's life. I have also been reflecting upon Luke 10:25-28 about loving God and loving your neighbors. The simplicity of the gospel was pleasing to me because Christ so simply illustrated the most important things: We are to love God above all else and treat everyone around us with love and kindness. This has caused me to reflect on how charity is su...

The most important thing that I took away from this week's Scripture studies was regarding Christ's message on change, forgiveness, humility and discipleship. What struck me was that repentance is not simply making corrections; it is an ongoing process of changing our lives so that we reflect Christ more each day. As I studied Matthew 14-18, Mark 6-9, Luke 9 and John 6-10, I began to see that repentance is about being humbled enough to realize what changes are needed, then allowing the Savior to assist you in those changes. Matthew 18:3 states: "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." To me, this verse shows how little children are both humble and open to learning, and they quickly forgive others. In order to repent, one has to be humble enough to acknowledge areas needing improvement and allow Christ to assist you in making those improvements. Often times, however, pride gets in the way of doing so, wheth...

One of the key principles that resonated with me during this past week is found in Matthew 6:33- "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." When I was little in children's church, (that's what they called it, I grew up Pentecostal) I heard this for the first time at church, through music. And though it didn't make sense to me then, it has stuck with me throughout the years and now, as an adult, is very relevant to how I attempt to live my life each day. When I am busy with work, school, or family, it's simple to let other priorities take precedence over putting God first. However, this last week helped remind me of what the Savior teaches. By putting God first in our lives, the remainder of our priorities will seem easier to manage. Christ taught many lessons on the mount in addition to teaching us specific actions. He also taught us about becoming certain people. To have a heart that is meek, p...

One thing that kept running through my mind this past week was when Jesus was tempted in Matthew 4 and Luke 4. Jesus had fasted for 40 days and then he was tempted. What I kept thinking about was how Jesus not only taught us about how to deal with temptations, but more importantly, He actually dealt with them himself. To me, this is important, as life can be overwhelming at times. As a mom of four; a full-time employee; while I am completing school, I know I have days (or weeks) where I may feel overwhelmed. I recently experienced one of those days. On this day, everything seemed to come due at the same time. All of my children needed me at some point during the day. I had multiple work deadlines coming due and I truly felt like I was "losing" everywhere I looked. By the end of that long day, I was both very frustrated and quite physically exhausted. My first instinct, as many people do, was simply to go at it head on and hope for the best. But a few hours later, once things ...

I learned something really beautiful about who God is from Hosea 11:8–9 . The Lord talks about His people who have turned away from Him many times. But He doesn't get mad or give up. Instead, He says that His " heart is turned within " and His " repentings are kindled together ." That feels so personal to me. This proves that God's love stays with us even when we fail. When we do something wrong, his kindness doesn't go away. It stays, waits, and keeps trying to reach out to us. I got a better understanding of the Atonement after reading this. Christ doesn't just forget about us. He loves us even as we work to improve. Instead of waiting for us to be perfect, he works with us while we are still flawed. This helps me remember that I can always go back to God because He never leaves His children. His love gives me hope and makes me want to teach the truth with more kindness, just like He treats me with kindness.

This week, as I studied the Old Testament, the reminders in Jeremiah and Lamentations to turn to the Lord when things get too much helped me. The people in these chapters had made decisions that caused real pain and had real effects on their lives. The Lord still told them to come back to Him, and He promised that His kindness would be there for them. Lamentations 3:22–23 really remained with me because it says that the Lord's blessings "are new every morning." It made me think of a song from my childhood as soon as I read it. As a child, I remember singing a song in church called "New Every Morning." The words always made me feel better. Reading this verse in the Scriptures made me feel hopeful again, as if the Lord were gently telling me that every day is a new chance to start over. The Lord is telling us to come back. "I can fix this." When I turn to Him, I have felt that peace many times in my own life. I'm thankful that I can start ov...