Believe – Love – Do

“May I suggest that discipleship begins with three simple words: Believe, Love, and Do.” -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

What do we BELIEVE?

We believe In God the Eternal Father and in Jesus Christ and in the Holy Ghost. We believe that each person will be held accountable for his or her choices here in mortality. We believe that there is salvation through Christ’s Atonement for all who are willing follow Christ and obey the laws and ordinances necessary for salvation. We believe in faith, repentance, baptism, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We believe in the restoration of the priesthood. We believe that through this restoration the priesthood power is here on earth to perform saving ordinances, preach the restored gospel, heal the ill and broken, by the laying on of hands of worthy priesthood holders. We believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored here on earth; we have a living prophet who is the literal mouthpiece of Christ and is here to lead and guide us through the storms of mortality and help us discern truth from the philosophies of man. We believe in spiritual gifts–that we can strengthen and develop them through the nurturing guidance of the Holy Ghost. We believe that the Book of Mormon stands with the Bible as a witness of Jesus Christ and His redeeming power, His infinite Atonement, the plan of salvation, and many other pure and precious truths. We believe that God is eternal–he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. We believe all that he has revealed, and that he has the power, knowledge, and capacity to reveal unlimited truths as we we are spiritually ready to receive and obey them.  We believe in the gathering of Israel, and we believe that President Russell M. Nelson has been tutored by the Lord in leading this work. We believe that we have been called to actively engage in gathering Israel. We believe that Christ himself will come to Earth again and will personally reign and direct the finishing of the His work. We believe that the New Jerusalem will be built on the American continent.  We believe in the right to worship how, when and where we feel, and we believe others have that same right. We believe in following the law, and where possible, fight hard for liberties in a civil manner. We believe in being honest, true, chaste and virtuous. We believe in all good things; we seek after goodness from all facets of life. We believe life’s struggles are experiences that will ultimately work for our good, and we believe that this life is but a small part of eternity but that the specifics to this life are important and essential to returning home to our Heavenly Father. We believe that we have a divine purpose one that we were prepared for before we came to earth. We believe that we can remember who we are by following the Lord and seeking His will daily; he will guide us. We believe that God is in the details of our lives, the big moments and the minuscule. We believe he hears our prayers and answers them, even when the answer is not what we desire at the moment. We believe that God has a grander picture of our lives then we could ever understand and we trust him to take the lead in our lives. We believe that he he loves ALL of his children from every continent, every race, every age, EQUALLY, and he is not a respecter of persons. We believe that the Holy Ghost will warn us of danger if we will but listen. We believe the Holy Ghost to be a direct link to our communication with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and that he will bring peace and comfort to our hearts.

That’s just a grain of sand on the beach of all We believe.

The thing about truth is that it exists beyond belief. It is true even if nobody believes it. -Dieter F. Uchtdorf

What do we DO?

The list of things that we have been called to do is just as lengthy. The reason isn’t because we have to, it’s because we want to. As we believe in life, love, God and eternity we are suddenly driven to action. It’s through the small and simple daily acts that greatness is achieved. Action is what puts our beliefs into play, they can’t take hold of our lives if we don’t put them into practice. Through our actions we also are able to bring the blessing to others through our own example and through sharing what we believe and our source of joy and peace. We pray, we listen, we respond and obey. We read the scriptures, and follow Christ and the prophets and apostles.  We are honest, good, and kind. We serve at home, church and in our communities. We sacrifice for the Lord whatever is necessary, our time, tithing, and our talents. We comfort those in need of comfort, mourn with those who mourn, lift those in need of help, give to the poor, needy, fatherless, and widow. We educate spiritually and temporarily, so that we can provide for our own families and those that the Lord needs us to. We stand tall for purity, virtue, freedoms, and truth.

“God will use you, if you are willing. He will magnify your righteous desires and turn the compassionate actions you sow into a bountiful harvest of goodness.” -Dieter F. Uchtdorf (2017)

Whom do we LOVE?

We love our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. We love our families, friends, neighbors, strangers, and enemies. We love everyone without exception. 

“The scriptures give guidance for our most important relationships. The Savior taught that the first commandment was to “love the Lord thy God.” And the second is to “love thy neighbour as thyself.”

The Savior additionally explained that everyone is our neighbor. The Book of Mormon makes it clear that there must be no -ites, tribes, or classes. We must be united and equal before God.” -Quentin L. Cook (2018)

This was super fun to make my own list of WHAT I BELIEVE, WHAT I DO, and WHO I LOVE. This is a great exercise for personal study and journaling, family home evening, or for a lesson.

I will conclude with Dieter F. Uchtdorf’s testimony about Believe, Love, Do!

“Of course, we must do more than merely have an intellectual understanding of the gospel for it to have this healing influence in our lives. We must incorporate it into our lives–make it a part of who we are and what we do.

May I suggest that discipleship begins with three simple words:

Believe, love, and do.

Believing God leads to faith in Him and developing trust in His word. Faith causes our hearts to grow in our love for God and others. As that love grows, we are inspired to emulate the Savior as we continue our own great journey on the path of discipleship.

“But,” you say, “that seems a bit simplistic. Life’s problems, certainly my problems, are far too complex for such a simple prescription. You can’t cure Weltschmerz with three simple words: Believe, love, do.”

It is not the aphorism that cures. It is the love of God that rescues, restores, and revives.

God knows you. You are His child. He loves you.

Even when you think that you are not lovable, He reaches out to you.

This very day–every day–He reaches out to you, desiring to heal you, to lift you up, and to replace the emptiness in your heart with an abiding joy. He desires to sweep away any darkness that clouds your life and fill it with the sacred and brilliant light of His unending glory.

I have experienced this for myself.

And it is my witness as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ that all who come unto God–all who truly believe, love, and do–can experience the same.” -Dieter F. Uchtdorf (2018)

Full talk:https://www.lds.org/study/ensign/2018/11/saturday-afternoon-session/believe-love-do?lang=eng

-Sherri Jorgensen