Where We Came From, Why We're Here, and Where We're Going

Those seem to be the big three existential questions in life, don't they? After all, if we don't have some grand purpose then what is the point? It's easy to feel lost and to question your own value if you don't know the answer to these questions. Life is hard, and it takes strength and courage to keep moving sometimes. Happily, there are answers. The first parts of this post lay out the Plan of Salvation, and the last part is why it's important to me. If you only read one part, the last part will probably be more interesting.

This is a fantastic talk from 1993 that lays out the Plan of Salvation beautifully. I'm not going to try to explain all the doctrine in my post, because I want to focus on what it means to me in my life. Take a listen to the talk or you can read it by clicking this link. The video is 20 minutes long, but it is just chalk full of some of the most beautiful truths that I know. This Plan of Happiness is the basis for Mormon doctrine.

For those of you who don't want to read/ listen to Elder Oaks' (a general authority of the church) talk, I'll lay out some basic details for you. Of course, we'll use a picture to aide this discussion. The Plan of Salvation is almost always taught with a diagram like this for some reason. :)

Here's how it works. We are all literal spirit children of God. We existed as spirit beings before we came to earth (Pre-Mortal Life), and we knew each other there. God wanted us to be able to progress and become even as He is, so he came up with a beautiful plan: a plan of happiness. The Earth was created for us. We are here (Earth Life) to progress, to grow, and to receive physical bodies. God knew that we would make mistakes. We would fall, and we could not return to our Heavenly Father's presence as imperfect beings. We needed a Savior. Our eldest brother, Jesus Christ offered himself as a perfect sacrifice to atone for our sins. Through Christ we are able to become pure and perfect once again. Satan also came up with a plan. It required us to give up our agency, so everyone would be able to return. Our Heavenly Father rejected Satan's plan (agency, or the ability to choose for ourselves, is really important to Him.), and Satan fell. There was a "war in heaven", and Satan took a portion of our spirit brothers and sisters with him. They refused Heavenly Father's plan (agency) and never received bodies. They do their best to make us miserable like them, though. 

We came to Earth and "the veil" was placed over us. We cannot remember our pre-mortal life because of this veil. We came here to tried and tested. To learn and to grow. To learn the Gospel. 

When we die, our spirits go to the Spirit World. In the Spirit world, we have a chance to teach and learn the Gospel. Those who did not have the opportunity to learn of Christ and the Gospel during their earth life will be given the opportunity there. 

One day, we will all be resurrected, just like Jesus was. Our bodies will be restored to us in a perfect state, and we will face Judgement Day. At our Judgement, we will be assigned a Kingdom of Glory. The Celestial Kingdom is our ultimate goal, as those who live there will live in the presence of our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ. Revelation through Joseph Smith has told us that all three kingdoms will be places of peace, joy, and happiness. Those who reject this Gospel and Jesus Christ, after having a full understanding of it, will be banished to Outer Darkness (typically comparable to Hell). 

Now, this is why it's important to me.

I know that I am a daughter of God. Literally. It's harder to think that you aren't important when you hold that in mind. I am His daughter, so He loves me. He cares about me. He cares about all the stupid things that happen in my life, and it's not because they are actually important in the grand scheme of things. He cares about them simply because I care about them. He loves me with a perfect love, and He wants nothing but the best for me. I trust Him.

In addition to that, I chose to come here. I wasn't just poofed into existence on this Earth. I made a choice, and I think I had a pretty good idea of what I was signing up for. I knew it would be hard, but I also knew the opportunities it would open up to me. Each of you also made that choice. We were faithful.

Being a woman is a part of my divine nature. Gender is eternal. This may not seem very significant to a lot of people, but it resonates with me for some reason. I guess it gives me confidence in my role as a woman, as a wife, and someday as a mother.

Families are eternal. I'll talk about this more in some future post, but this is really why this plan is so beautiful to me. When my parents were married in the temple they were sealed for time and eternity. My mom's death did not signal the end of their marriage. Because I was born to parents who were sealed, I am also sealed to them. They will always be my parents. My siblings will always be my siblings. The family unit does not end here. It continues. That is why temples are so important to the LDS church. My mom will always be my mom. Adeline (my sister who also passed away) will always be my sister, and someday we will be together again as a family. We will be together forever in a place of such beauty and happiness that we can't even begin to imagine it. When I married Spencer, we were sealed in the temple. He is mine forever and ever, and nothing could make me happier.