Room for the Restoration

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

This begins the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776.

When separated from our mother country, we created room for freedom of religion. We created a nation on which the people decide on how it is run. This is the kind of foundation our Father in Heaven needed to begin the Restoration of the gospel. 

I love the United States of America. I am not oppressed. I can worship my God how I want and attend The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am free to write and learn and to live. My voice matters. 

I know that my country was chosen as a place to restore the gospel because of these freedoms. I know that the first latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, truly saw God and His Son. I know that he translated the Book of Mormon and that it's doctrines and principles are true. I fully believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Savior and Redeemer of all mankind was spit on, mocked, and finally nailed to a cross where He died for us all. I know that after three days, He was resurrected and reunited with his body. I rejoice in the fact that He lives and that through His death, we can come unto Him and repent of our sins.

There is no other way to live with God again but to follow and become a disciple of Jesus Christ. You must come to Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. You must repent of your sins. You must surrender yourself to God and let Him help you become the best person you can be. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.