The Girl.

There once was a girl. She was young, and still had a lot to learn from God, her family, and the world. The girl was unhappy. She had been taught from a young age what was right. But she was head strong and arrogant. She thought she knew what was better, however her ways brought her unhappiness and lonliness. Her parents spoke of an easier way, a way paved before her by a man named Jesus Christ. The girl scoffed. She knew only of this man. She had yet to know him.



In her early teenage years the girl became very sick. It was a time of darkness, and the girl longed for the darkness to be replaced with light. But she was lost and didn't know how to find her way through her abyss. Eventually, her illness placed her in the hospital. It was a time of uncertianty; a time of distress; a time of fear. The girl looked and looked for relief, yet found none. Time passed. The illness raged on, and the girl's hope began to fade. She was in and out of the hospital, and various treatment programs, different medications and procedures. Yet it still seemed as if nothing could be done.

The girl took another trip to the hospital. As she was packing to leave, somthing inside of her told her to take a copy of a book. She had tried to read the book before, but it had done very little for her. The book had always been a part of her life, and had often times caused her frustration and resentment. But for whatever reason, the girl grabbed a copy of the book, and put it in her bag with little or no intention of actually reading it.

The stay in the hospital was long and lonely for the girl. One night without really thinking about it, she pulled the book out of her bag. She began to read.

 "And the people of Ammon departed out of the land of Jershon, and came over into the land of Melek, and gave place in the land of Jerson for the armies of the Nephites...And Alma and Ammon, and their bretheren, and also the two sons of Alma returned to the land of Zarahemla, after having been instruments in the hands of God of bringing many of the Zoramites to repentance...Therefore I command you, my son Helaman, that ye be diligent in fulfilling all my words, and that ye be dilligent in keeping the commandments of God as they are written...And now my son, I have told you this that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn of me that there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ..."

For the first time in a long time, the girl began to feel something different than the darkness that had consumed her. It was warm; it was good; it was full; it was hope. The girl didn't understand everything that she read. She didn't know who Alma was. She didn't know where Zaramela was, or who this son was they were talking about. What the girl did know was that the book, The Book of Mormon, had changed her heart a little bit. She grabbed a highlighter, and began to mark everything she read that made her feel good. She read and she read, and by the time she was tired, she had eight pages of solid yellow.

That night changed the girl. She couldn't explain why, or how but it had an impact on the rest of her life. More time passed. The girl began to recover, and looking back on her life she would recognize now what she failed to realize then. Her physical health improved drastically as her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ grew. This revelation would continue to amaze the girl.

A few years after that night in the hospital the girl finished reading the Book of Mormon. She wanted to pray to get her answer that it was true. One day, she was alone at home, and knelt down in her living room and began to talk to the Lord. She told him that she knew that the Book of Mormon was true, and asked for a witness from the Holy Ghost. She waited. Nothing came. She waited a little longer. Still, nothing changed. This bothered the girl. Often times she would think to herself, "I know the Book of Mormon is true. Why can I not feel an answer?" But the girl continued to press forward in her newly developed faith in Christ, and the transformation of her life continued.

The girl never missed a day of reading in her scriptures. She clung to the word of God, and tried to live by its teachings. She grew up, moved away from home, and started college. She thought back with gratitude on those dark days of her youth,  because they had led her to her savior. One night, after a long day of studying for psychology, biology, and Math 108, the girl knelt down to say her prayers. The memory of the day she had knelt down in her living room came into her mind. Still a little discouraged from her lack of answer, she prayed again. Suddenly a new thought came to her mind. The reason she never got a definitive answer that day so long ago was because she already knew the Book of Mormon was true. Peace, light, and warmth filled her soul. She knew that this feeling came from God, and that she had gotten her answer. The girl continued to press forward in her strengthened faith in Christ.

The girl chose to serve a mission, and is currently serving in Red Lodge, Montana. She loves the Lord. She loves her mission. She knows that Christ's church has been restored. Jesus Christ saved her life.

The Book of Mormon changed my life. It can changes yours as well.