Music and Lyrics

Dear Reader, Heavenly Father answers prayers. I have seen it so many times and I still forget what that statement means. Today, I want to share five stories with you that illustrate how Heavenly Father is always listening. When I was young lad, I lost one of my favorite toys. At this point in my life I honestly have no idea what toy it was, but I loved it immensely. It was simple thing, but as I was tearing my room apart looking for it, my mom asked me if I had prayed to ask Heavenly Father for help. I was a stubborn child and didn't want to ask for help, so I kept searching before I finally gave in and knelt next to my bed. The prayer probably wasn't very long, but it was enough to let Heavenly Father show me His love. I kid you not, the toy was next to my knee when I opened my eyes. A similar thing happened to a young boy that I taught as a full-time missionary in Chile. His name was Matias and he loved to play ping pong. Actually, that was one of the reason my compa...

Dear Reader, The other day I had a shower thought that was quite profound. Upon pondering the thought throughout the week, it became clear that it was too good not to share with you. It is a principle that is sometimes hard to learn, but it is important none the less. The only enemies I have are the clock and myself .  That is the thought that started it all off. Then, as I started thinking of how to explain this to other people, the song posted above came to mind. "Me and God" reminded me that my shower thought was right, as long as I stand with God and work with him. For him, all things are possible. Therefore, I am my only enemy next to the time I have on earth. Now you might say, "Gus, why is the clock your enemy if God can alter the fabric of time to do his will?" I don't know how that works, but the clock is my only enemy because we have a set amount of time to live in this probationary period God has given us, so we have to use it wisely. ...

Dear Reader, Image Source: lds.org Today I want to write about a unique experience I had last week in our LDS Ward in Provo. We attend a family ward, which means that there are families and members of all ages. In a normal family ward, the number of young men (between 12 and 18 years of age) would be enough to help pass the sacrament and make sure that every one in the congregation has the opportunity to participate. In our ward, however, there are just a couple of young men in that age range, creating an opportunity for the older priesthood holders in our ward to participate in administering the sacrament. This past week I was asked to be one of those priesthood holders  to administer the sacrament to the congregation. The sacrament consists of eating the bread and drinking the water that has been blessed for those who take it. It is a symbol, just as the bread and wine Christ gave his disciples in the Bible . It allows those who have made covenants with Christ through Ba...

Dear Readers, You are important. If you are reading this, is it highly likely that you care about the future of America. I care about the future of America. That is why I care about the officials who run this country and, more importantly, who they are and what they stand for. In my mind, the best leaders are those who don't want to be in their position, but find themselves taking the role because of a lack of good leadership or because they feel it is the right thing to do. Admittedly, that determines my vote sometimes. However, the most ideal situation is when I find a candidate that I can actually support. This doesn't mean that I agree with them on everything. I have never found a candidate that meets that criteria. That is why I will be voting for Evan McMullin in November. Hearing him speak once was enough to catch my attention as a candidate for public office. However, I like to research further into candidates and their campaigns, like every citizen should. ...

Dear Reader, If you are a citizen of the United States of America or have lived here for more than about a year, you know at something about how the current atmosphere of this year's presidential election. Leaving all the affairs behind of the two-party system, this year we need options more than ever. We have them. I decided that if nothing is done, the country is going to have a miserable time.  Your vote counts. I don't care who you are or where you live. Your vote matters. It may not make a difference in final result of the electoral votes in your state, but your vote means more than that. Your vote is your voice. If you don't vote, you are using your voice to say that you are okay with the current state of the United States and its leaders. Your vote is your opinion of how you think the country should best be run and who should be doing it. We don't want either of the candidates in the two-party system running the affairs of the United States.  #Vot...

Dear Reader, Recently a friend of mine who works at the Missionary Training Center uploaded a picture to Facebook of all the name tags she has. Her tags were all related to work at the MTC whether as a missionary or as an employee in several different departments. I had to laugh because I have worked with her on several of the jobs or seen her while working those jobs. I also laughed because I have just as many name tags from the MTC. My affinity toward missionary culture started while I was really young, according to my parents. My dad was ward mission leader in the church congregation we attended while living in Boston. Due to his calling, we had regular contact with the elders. My mom fed them dinner regularly and as a result, I was constantly surrounded by missionaries who would wrestle with me, tease me and teach me. This connection with these young men was apparently a very important part of my life. According to my mother there was a dramatic change in my attitude when we...

Dear Reader, Ok, so this video was accurate over a week ago, but I hope you'll forgive me for not writing a blog post the night before our wedding. The wedding was fantastic and we had a great time with the family and friends who joined us. The first week of marriage has been quite an adventure as well, especially with school starting. Between classes and work, we have both been burning the candles at both ends just to get our belongings put away in our apartment. Although, we have been getting quite a few questions while in class or at work both before and after the sealing. I wanted to take a minute and answer those questions to the best of my ability. Where did you two meet? James, our now mutual cousin, set Lauren and I up on a blind date when I got home from my mission. James and I went to high school together and the day after I got home he asked if we could double the next Friday. Looking back now, I can accurately say that I met my wife within a week of being hom...