Lord of The Rings and the New Testament

So, great things happen if you keep a light and yet serious “relationship” with your teachers… I had an AWESOME Spanish professor this semester. It was an online class, and we meet virtually twice a week to ask questions and listen to lectures. On the final week we had quite the interesting conversation. It started with his dog whose name is “Frodo” and I commented on how “Epic” I thought it was.. Then we talked about how we are all (Me, Dillon, and his roommates) in love with the Lord of the Rings series. Then he mentioned that Tolkien was a Catholic and wrote the Lord of the Rings as somewhat of a parallel to the New Testament. Here was a crappy copy of our conversation.

He (Sr. Swenson asked me about each character and who I thought it was in the New Testament)

Gandalf the white; we believe to be a representation of the resurrected Christ

hobbits are pride and Frodo is charity

hobbits are us trying to overcome everything this life

Samwise the Holy Ghost a close companion but who will leave you when you lose your way but will come back when you are ready for him

Legolas James    Gimbly- John

The white city  the temple?

What about Lord Elrond?

Gollum is regret, or consequence

Elrond writings of the prophets or the law of moses

Éowyn then she might just have to be a doctrine she could be diligence

i love the prophesies from the bible, Book of Mormon and the latter days... the way God comes about doing things is just so incredible

and he IS God so He will choose great ways to come about it but (: still

I have a testimony of My Heavenly Father, and that He works in mysterious ways. I know the prophesies of our Father will happen on His own time and in ways He wants... Many of His prophesies have happened already. and THESE are the LAST days. i know that He is pleased with me and i am ready to be His hands in this world, to be the one to further His message.

 i love you guys and hope you can all feel what i feel in my heart right now!

Courtney

Time flies when you're Living life

Wow… one wholes semester down, ii am so sorry that I having posted anything.. But I have done a lot.

Semester began and semester went, I can’t tell you how many times I have thought about writing, but each time it was while I was laying in bed about to fall asleep.

As you all know I have a job. I work at Chick-fil-A. Because of this job I have made the decision not to come home during the summer and the fall. So I will be living in Idaho all year round. It was a hard decision to make, but after much conversation with my parents, and My Heavenly Father, I have made the decision to stay up here. No that does not mean I am not coming back to visit, in fact I am setting aside some time to come down 2 weeks before thanksgiving for my roommates wedding, and another time for Christmas, and hopefully another time sooner than November.

This semester has had a lot of learning. And I know it wasn't in my classes. Yes I learned some things, but nothing too important. I learned more about myself more than ever.

My New Testament teacher gave the class a challenge, for one hour a day we were to read scripture and write in our journals. I was doing great for about a week, and then kinda fell out of habit. I didn't stop completely!! But I didn't do an hour a day every day. Then I found this book, “Return” By Robert D. Hales. I love this book, it is so inspiring so instructive and so spiritually uplifting, in this book it talks about our “Decades of Decision” and how with each choice we must try to “return with honor”. It talks about Preparing for priesthood, Daughters of God, Preparing for the Temple, Temple Marriage, and so on. I am re reading this book, and this time I am making notes.

I am Courtney Newbold, I am a second semester freshman soon to be sophomore at Brigham Young University of Idaho, I am...18? years old, and I do have to think about that, sometimes I forget that I am so young, because I feel so old and my friends are all so much older than me. I have a testimony of Jesus Christ, I have a burning testimony of His gospel. I know that everyday I am trying my very best to be more like him.

  

I am dedicating this blog as well as my Facebook to be in a way, be my “spiritual journal”.

I don’t know if you watched the “World Wide Missionary Broadcast”, but I did. And after watching I had the burning desire to do what I can in my everyday life. Though I am not serving a full-time, set apart mission, I am dedicating my life, starting now, to be a missionary, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, every day. That broadcast did so much for me, and yet again confirmed to me that what I am doing in my life is right, that He is very much pleased with me and my works.

**To clear up some rumors**, I am not engaged, I am not married and no I am not eloping. Every day I am praying and Dillon is praying about what our next step is. We openly talk about marriage because, that is inevitable. We are going to be married, but no not this year. I do know that this semester I have been praying, and fasting and really turning to the Lord much this semester, and I have received for myself that going to the temple my next step. I have begun temple preparation studies, not in a class, but through what the church has posted about temples, and preparing to go. That doesn't mean I will be receiving those blessings of the temple today, tomorrow or this year. It just means that right now in my life I am preparing myself to receive those blessings soon (I don’t know how soon, but you can never start preparation too soon).

Now, I love you guys. I love you with all of my heart. And I want you to know just how important this gospel is to me.

Hello, my name is Courtney Newbold, I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and some people call us Mormons. I stand as a witness of God and His son EVERY SINGLE day of my life. This gospel has done so much for me and so much more when I continue to apply it. I pray Morning and Night, feeling so close to my Savior so close to my Father, every day I study for at least a half an hour scriptures of this gospel. I have a great testimony of prayer. Heavenly Father is always there. Seriously. ALWAYS. When you are feeling, sad, mad, angry, alone, stressed, happy, joyful, grateful, He is there to take your heavy burdens and make them light, take your happy and grateful feelings and make them grater. I have learned and have gained a great testimony of the Atonement, our Savior suffered on a cross, but before that he took upon Himself the sins and afflictions of the world. Key word, afflictions, everyone who suffers, anyone who is alone, sad, hearbroken, stressed and overwhelmed the atonement fixes that. Christ is there for all of us and for all reasons. I have a testimony that turning to Him will fix all things. I know that Christ was resurrected and so will we, we will be resurrected and have perfect bodies, like His. I know that we are all brothers and sisters in this world, because God is our Father, we all have the potential to be like him! it is what we do and how we take advantage of the talents and blessings He gives us that will determine whether we have reached that potential. I love my Father in Heaven, I love my Family who has taught me about Him, and I am grateful for temples. Temples are here on this earth for us to be in the House of our Lord and Savior, it is a way for us to receive blessings that is waiting to give us, and a way for families to be Sealed together, a way to connect families for eternity. Infinity is a great way to explain the purpose of temples, because it connects past generations for infinity, and future generations for infinity. I am SO grateful to have this gospel and a current temple recommend so that I can do this work and create my own family (in the future) and connect other families, for infinity! This gospel brings so much hope and joy into my life and I am going to share it. (:
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen

So, thank you for taking the time to read this, and letting me share my testimony with you! I love you and hope that I can to all that I can to be an example to at least one of you! Please feel free to come back and comment and share your testimony/ thoughts in comments below (: