My Talk :)

Developing a Relationship with Christ

Good morning! First off I want to introduce myself a little. My name is Kaytlen Bennett. I'm from Roy, Utah. If you don't know where that is, it's up North by Ogden. I'm currently a Sophomore but I'm going to be a Junior next semester. I'm a theater major and hope to some day be a make up artist and a high school drama teacher. So that's a little bit about me.

I was asked to talk about developing a relationship with Christ. I got a lot of my information for this talk from a talk given by James E. Faust called “A Personal Relationship with the Savior.” In his talk his listed five things that help build a relationship with the Lord. They are: A daily communion involving prayer, a daily selfless service to another, a daily striving for an increased obedience and perfection in our lives, a daily acknowledgment of His divinity and a daily study of the scriptures. Don't worry I'll go into a little bit more detail with each of these.

The first thing James E Faust said to do was to have “a daily communion involving prayer.” President Spencer W. Kimball said, “There is a knowledge that our Father in Heaven wants each of us to have, and that is a personal knowledge that he hears and answers our prayers....We each have so much need for his help as we seek to learn gospel truths and then live them, as we seek his help in the major decisions of our lives, decisions involving schooling, marriage, employment, place of residence, raising our families, serving with each other in the work of the Lord, and seeking his forgiveness and continual guidance and protection in all we do. Our list of needs is long and real and heartfelt.” Alma 34:18-27 says... (Look Up). The Lord wants to hear from us just like our earthly parents or siblings back home want to hear from us. My mom is always wanting updates on my life down here in Cedar City or just to chat. I've recently come to enjoy my chats with my mom because when I talk with her things are put into perspective and I'm able to get things off my chest. So why is the Lord any different? He not only wants to know the things we need or but He also wants to share with us our joy, our sorrow, our triumphs, our defeats and even if we just need someone to talk to. He's there and all we need to do is pray and he'll hear us and be there for us. Doctrine and Covenants 75:11 says... (Look it up). The Lord is waiting for us to pray to Him. The more we pray to the Lord, the stronger our relationship will become and the closer we will grow to him.

Second, we need to give “a daily selfless service to another.” Now I doubt President Faust meant that each day we need to go out and do a HUGE service project every single day, but that each day we should find and search for simple ways to serve our fellow men. In the True to the Faith , it says... (Read pg. 162, last paragraph). I cannot count how many times that I've been down, depressed, or just having a low self esteem day and someone comes along and smiles or a friends comes up and gives me a hug or something simple like that. Doing service can be just that simple. Taking a split second to smile at someone who is down, giving a compliment, or anything that takes us out of thinking of ourselves and thinking of others. In Matthew 25:34-40 it says, (Look it up). By serving our fellow man not only are we serving our spirit brothers and sisters but we are in turn serving the Lord. So through serving others it strengthens our relationship with the Lord.

Third, we need to strive daily for an increased obedience and perfection in our lives. The Lord said in 3 Nephi 27:27 it says... (Look up). If we live each day with the goal to be like Christ then perfection is our goal. I remember when I was a little girl, my aunt gave me a bracelet that have the letters WWJD on it. I remember wearing that everyday until it was shred into pieces because I wore it 24/7. That along with a CTR ring have been the most influential pieces of jewelry I've ever owned because they stand as a reminder to stay true and choose the better path. I had the opportunity to work a lot with the primary in my home ward this summer because my mom was the chorister. So just about every week it seemed I was either in playing the piano for the children or being the back up chorister when she was sick. There is a song called “If the Savior Stood Beside Me” that was apart of this year's primary program and it also became one of my favorite songs. In the song it says, “If the Savior stood beside me, would I do the thing I do? Would I think of His commandments and try harder to be true? Would I follow his example? Would I live more righteously if I could see the Savior standing nigh?” To hear little children sing it and to see their faces light up at the thought of the Savior standing right beside them really touched my spirit and strengthened my testimony at a time where I needed to be reminded daily that I needed to be living as if the Savior was walking right beside me. I know perfection at times seems like an unachievable goal but I testify to you that it's not. I am a long ways away from being perfect but if I try to live each day with the goal of being perfect and rely on the Atonement to make up for the thing I can't do on my own, I know that one day I will reach that goal. And ultimately in our daily quest to be perfect we will rely on the Lord; therefore, strengthening our relationship with Him.

Third, a daily acknowledgment of His divinity. Mosiah 5:13 says... (Look Up). By serving the Lord we strengthen our relationship with Him. By serving Him we learn more about Him. Also I think to acknowledge His divinity is also to appreciate all that He has done for us and the beauty of his creation. In high school I had the opportunity to go to choir camp with my Chamber Choir. We were up at the Environmental Center, if any of you know where that is up around Eden. It's tradition that on out last night there we go on a midnight hike. My senior year, the night of the hike was totally clear and when we reached our destination of our hike it was like we were in space because the stars were so vibrant. On our way back down, my friend Derek and I lagged behind and started talking about how beautiful the stars were. Then he said something that I think about every time I stop and admire the world. He said something to the effects of, “Isn't it amazing that everything around us testifies of a God and His love for us?” That's stuck with me because always when I stop to think about everything around me, my testimony of the Lord grows.

Lastly, to develop a relationship with Christ we must learn of Him. What's better way to learn of Him, then to read our scriptures. By reading the words hand selected by His own hand for us, we can grow so much closer to Him. For me knowing that the Lord cares enough for me to send the scriptures to help me through this life testifies of His love for me. I know when I faithfully read my scriptures I fell so much closer to the Lord than when I don't.

In closing, I would say to you my brothers and sisters, take the time to develop and strengthen your relationship with Christ. Our lives are already filled with trials and struggles and I don't know about you but I would not want to do it all on my own. I don't want to face Satan and his angels as the seek to bring me down alone because I'm only so strong but with the Lord and His strength I have infinite and eternal strength. Through developing a relationship with Christ we allow ourselves the opportunity to have the Savior walk along side us. Brothers and sisters I know that there are time when it seems that the Lord has abandoned us. In the words given to Joseph Smith as he was sitting in the Liberty Jail, “My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.” The Lord will be with us, I know that to be true. I know that with a strong relationship with Christ I can overcome anything. I love this gospel and I'm grateful for the opportunity that I have to speak. I want to leave you with His words in Doctrine and Covenants 19:41, “Come unto me thy Savior.” I leave that with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.