Preparing for the second coming

I feel like this is going to be a hard post for me to write. I have so many thoughts and feelings I want to share but, I also know with this subject, I need to tread lightly and tiptoe around a few topics. I have been wanting to write this post for a few months. I'm just really good at procrastinating :) I'm not sure if it's the lord prompting me to write it or if I just want to write it because 80% of my conversations now days are about this topic.

First off, I just want to say that I am very blessed. The lord has been too good to me and has blessed me with more than I deserve. I have amazing parents. Both are really strong in the gospel and have set a wonderful example for me. I have married into a wonderful family that is also very strong in the gospel. Our family structure could not get any better.

The end of the world/Second coming is a sensitive subject for many reasons. The biggest two reasons I can think of are 1: that people are scared and 2: they are blind to the signs of the times so they think anyone who talks about it is completely crazy!

(Insert raising hand emoji) I am here to say that I am one of those so called 'crazy' ones that loves to talk about the second coming and believes it to be happening soon. And when I say soon, I mean SOON! 

I've always had a feeling that it would be in my lifetime. That just came as a natural fact for me. Whether I'm alive to witness it or not, it has to happen during this generation. 

The thing that really opened my eyes and made me realize that now really is the time to start preparing were these books...

True, these books aren't 'doctrine'. But, I can tell you I have felt the spirit very strongly as I have read them. I want to recommend them to everyone I meet. They are so eye opening! The patterns that each one have and that they coincide with each other is just remarkable.

In Joel 2: 28 it says...
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions."

I just recently came across this book, thanks to my dad, and seriously every time I'm reading stuff out of it I get sooo excited and just want to give the world a giant fist pump! This book is FILLED with doctrine. Quotes from prophets, scriptures, and facts of current earthquakes, plagues, wars that actually back up and coincide with the three books above.

Have I scared anyone yet?? hahaha....

When I say, that I talk about this stuff nonstop, I really do mean it. It's on my mind constantly. Al and I talk about it every chance we get. When I am at work, I talk to my dad about it all the time.This subject is something I am very passionate about. It seriously makes me giddy. The signs are happening all over. Things are going to change before we know it. So, why not talk about it?? Why not study it as much as possible? Why not get prepared?

We have been counseled for years about preparing,

"Our people for three-quarters of a century have been counseled and encouraged to make such preparation as will assure survival should a calamity come. We can set aside some water, basic food, medicine, and clothing to keep us warm. We ought to have a little money laid aside in case of a rainy day."-Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley , "If Ye Are Prepared Ye Shall Not Fear," November 2005

If we open our ears we will be able to hear the Prophets warning us over and over again. They want to help us. They want us to get prepared! They know what the future has in store for us and they are trying to help us as much as possible. We just need to LISTEN and then realize the time to start preparing is now.

I live in Cache Valley which is known to be a pretty safe community. But, a few weeks ago, I found it slightly comical about what happened to Nibley City's water. How many can say that the contaminated water wasn't a wake up call? It was for me and I don't even live in Nibley. Within the first few hours the local grocery stores were completely sold out of water!!  I am ashamed to say that if it were to have happened in Logan, I too would have had to been rushing to the grocery store after a couple days. My water storage is definitely not were it should be. It is amazing to see how communities are able to pull together to help each other out. But, what if Cache Valley was hit with a natural disaster like an earthquake. What if not only Nibley's water was contaminated, but what if it was the whole valley? Even then, what if it just wasn't the water and we also lost all food supply?  Things would get pretty chaotic pretty dang quickly. Nibley's water situation could possible be just a sliver on what could happen in the near future.

Take a look below at all these smart and handsome men. I've listed a few of their quotes because They obviously say things better than I could ever even try to say. Notice the dates as well. These quotes are all within the past 10 years, very recent and for our day! You cannot tell me that they aren't trying to get something through to us.

"If 9/11 was a wake-up call, then the earthquake and tsunami in Southeast Aisia was a kick out of bed. We need to pay attention to the Signs of the Times."-Elder Boyd K. Packer, Meeting of the Twelve and the Seventy, Jan. 11, 2005. (Quoated by H. Aldredge Gillespie, LDS Business College Address, Feb. 9, 2005)

"Are we prepared for the emergencies in our lives? Are our skills perfected? Do we live providently? Do we have our reserve supply on hand? Are we obedient to the commandments of God? Are we responsive to the teachings of prophets? Are we prepared to give of our substance to the poor, the needy? Are we square with the Lord?

We live in turbulent times. Often the future is unknown; therefore, it behooves us to prepare for uncertainties. When the time for decision arrives, the time for preparation is past."-Pres. Thomas S. Monson, Are We Prepared, First Presidency message Sept. 2014 Ensign. 

"All members of the Church throughout the world need to Accelerate their own preparation and try to influence the preparation of those around them."-Elder Oaks, April 2004 General Conference.

"The giant earthquake, and the tsunami it sent crashing into the coasts around the Indian Ocean, is just the beginning and a part of what is to come, terrible as it was. Fear shall come upon all people. But you and I know that the Lord has prepared places of safety to which he is eager to guide us... It will be our choice whether or not to move up or stay where we are. But the Lord will invite and guide us upward by the direction of the Holy Ghost..." Henry B. Eyring-Raise the Bar (BYU-Idaho Talk-January 2005.)

"We must both learn what these signs are and then identify them correctly when they occur. They can and will strengthen our faith in Christ and His prophets, if we know the scriptures. Just as in the days of Noah, a way is already prepared for the escape of the Lord's elect Latter-Day Saints, if they are in tune with His prophets." Elder H. Aldridge (Second Quorum of the Seventy) LDS Business College Devotional, February 8th, 2005

Okay, okay enough with all the doom and gloom, the signs of the end of the world, and all this scary talk. My main purpose why I wanted to share this post was to give people encouragement and hope.

I am the biggest worrier alive. I seriously think of all evil possibilities that could happen to me and my family daily.

But, lately, especially after reading those books, I have truly realized that the lord does have a plan for us. He knows our fears. He knows the things that are in our hearts. He will protect those that are doing what they are suppose to and that are preparing. I think it is so exciting that we live on the earth during this time.

Also, after doing research and studying, I have come to understand something very important. Not only do we need to be temporally prepared but, also Spiritually prepared. They coincide with one another. We NEED to be both temporally and spiritually ready. We can have years worth of food storage but it's only going to do so much if our heart is not in line with the Savior's plan. We need to be seeking that constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. I know he can help us with even the littlest things. Trust me, I over think EVERYTHING! So, I'm constantly asking, "Okay, is this the spirit telling me this, or... am I just making this up?" I pray daily that I will become better and better at discerning the Holy Ghost and be able to know when he's trying to talk to me. He wants to help all of us. He loves us more than we can comprehend! 

"For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have."-2 Nephi 28:30

One more quote for you:

"For nearly 6,000 years, God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the Second Coming of the Lord...God has saved for the final inning some of His strongest and most valiant children, who will help bear off the kingdom triumphantly. That is where YOU come in, for you are the generation that must be prepared to meet your God." President Ezra Taft Benson, March 4, 1979.

Like I was saying, I did not write this post to make people fear the future. Honestly, I'm trying to do the exact opposite. It's something we should look forward too! We should be preparing and anxiously waiting for the day to come. This is a time for celebration, not fear! We are preparing the world for one of the greatest events to take place, the return of our Savior and Redeemer.