Things the Lord Hates and How to Avoid Them

You can read in the book of Proverbs chapter 6 verses 16 to 19 the seven things that the Lord hates, but today I want to tell you how you can avoid these terrible behaviors.

1. "A proud look":
Do you smile to people when you see them in the street? What do you do when you see someone homeless? Do you walk by other people and don't even look at them as if they were not there? This is something you can change easily. You just have to change the way you act to demonstrate the type of person you are. Sometimes you are immerse in your thoughts and you forget that there are other people around. A nice smile and a greeting can change the way others perceive who you are, and being kind can demonstrate what it means to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

2. "A lying tongue".
Just don't tell lies. Even if it is something small, you get used to it and then you don't realize that everything you say contains a tiny lie. This way of being is not good because one day you will be example to your children, and you will not be able to teach the principle of being honest to them because you are struggling with it. Remember that: "We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men;..."

3. "Hands that shed innocent blood".
These words can mean two things: to never take away the life of another person, and to not do anything against others that might cause them a terrible harm. Don't be a bad person, and by bad person I mean that it is not necessary to be mean to others. When we love one another we can live happier with ourselves.

4. "An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations".
When our minds and hearts are busy in the things of the Lord (that are: reading the scriptures, going to church, paying tithing, pondering, and fulfilling the commandments, among others) we do not have room for "wicked imaginations" or incorrect thoughts.

5. "feet that be swift in running to mischief,"
Instead of doing wrong things we can always choose the right, it is easier and it will bring a better feeling to your heart and mind. There is no need to do things the wrong way, but even though it is hard to step away from that which is attractive, our mind is stronger than our heart and we can always choose better thoughts to stop ourselves in our way to bad actions.

6. "A false withness that speaketh lies".
If we hear something about someone else that is none of our bussiness why should we share it? we have to stop gossiping about others, because that does not make us better persons!

7. "and he that soweth discord among brethren".
If there is someone we don't like we should never tell someone else to not like him or her too. Sometimes we have disagreements with others and things that lead to fights and missunderstandings, but this does not have to be a motive to put enemies against this person. As I always say: "Live and let live". It is important to accept that not everybody will be as we want them to be, and that we have to be tolerant and to love others. It is difficult to love those who seem our "enemies" but Jesus Christ always mentioned: "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;" (Matthew 5:44)

I want to finish this post by sharing my testimony, that if we choose to do what's right and better we will be happier and our path towards perfection and living with God again will be easier.
I share this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Queen Vashti, Mordecai and Esther. Examples of Courage.

While reading Esther from chapter one to eight I learned the importance of standing strong to defend my beliefs even when facing temptations of terrible situations.
Queen Vashti did not want to show up in front of the king and his friends because he only wanted to show her beauty to the people who were at his party. She defended her own dignity and her worthiness by not showing up in front of her drunk husband. This is something that does not happen very often or literally in our lives but it is important to point out that a woman is of great value and that nothing can make her feel less than that. From Queen Vashti I learn that I have to love myself and to avoid situations where people will not see me for who I am but for how I look. (Esther 1:10-13)
Mordecai was a man with great values and intelligence, he always stood out for what was right and he did a great job with the King, even though he had Haman against him. He defended his people and being very intelligent saved them from death.
Esther was a woman of courage. She helped Mordecai when she found out about the decree of the king to kill the Jews. Even though she knew that no one who were not invited to come unto the king could live, she was brave enough to stand in front of him and to ask him to not kill her people.
From these two amazing people I learn that I have to be brave enough to say no when I have to say no, to reject any offer that may affect my dignity and to have courage to defend my beliefs in any situation that might be presented in my life.
I would like to share with you this video of the courage it takes to defend what you believe. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2221439363001

The Miracles of The Lord Through Elijah

The prophet Elijah performed many miracles while living on Earth. These miracles help us understand how the sealing keys work.

 The sealing keys have a great power, they can bless and curse and only someone as wise as the Prophet can have them. This keys can bless just as Elijah helped the widow bringing back his son from death. They also bless as when the ravens brought him food and he was protected while hiding. Another blessing happened when it started raining after a lot of time. 

But these keys can also curse those who are not obedient or are unbelievers of the things of the Lord. We can read examples of this in 2 Kings 1:9-14 when the king wanted to know if we was going to live by asking Baal-zebub and not the prophet of the Lord. Elijah cursed the kings army by sending fire to them to be burned and then he prophesied that Ahaziah was going to die. 

In these days our Prophet Thomas S. Monson has these keys, and he can perform miracles the same way every Prophet has done. We need to be of those who follow the prophet and hear what he commands, because it is as if the Lord himself was talking to us directly.

These weekend we will have the opportunity to hear God's words through his prophets and apostles. Let us all be prepared with our minds and hearts to receive the commandments we have to live and fulfill to continue living happy and blessed by the Lord every day. 

References:

• 1 Kings 17:1
• 1 Kings 17:2–6
• 1 Kings 17:8–16
• 1 Kings 17:17–22
• 1 Kings 18: 31–38
• 1 Kings 18:41–45
• 1 Kings 21:17–19; 22:34–38
• 2 Kings 1:9–14