This is Your Special Year

This is your special year
To prepare, ponder, and search
For when that special day is here
You'll be a member of God's church

Prepare your heart with pure goals
Ponder as you read in God's word
Search for good works in every role
And know this... every prayer is heard

For, at eight, you may receive
The Holy Ghost and membership
There is so much, then to achieve
With a moral compass and fellowship

There's talents to be discovered
That are given for you to share
Which, in time will be uncovered....
And you've friends and family to help you get  there!

Verse 1] This is your special year To prepare, ponder, and search For when that special day is here You'll be a member of God's church Prepare your heart with pure goals Ponder as you reed in God's word Search for good works in every role And know this... every prayer is heard [Pre-Chorus] For, at eight, you may receive The Holy Ghost and membership There is so much, then to achieve With a moral compass and fellowship [Chorus] Special year, special year God is guiding you here Special year, special year He is drawing you near Prepare your heart Keep your goals pure Special year, special year His promise is sure [Verse 2] There's talents to be discovered That are given for you to share Which, in time will be uncovered.... And you've friends and family to help you get there! [Bridge] Ponder, and search Read in God's word Every prayer is heard Every prayer is heard [Chorus] Special year, special year God is guiding you here Special year, special year He is drawing you near Prepare your heart Keep your goals pure Special year, special year His promise is sure

"Special Year Turning 8 #baptism," marking the LDS milestone where children are baptized by immersion upon turning 8. In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, age 8 is viewed as the age of accountability per Doctrine and Covenants 68:27, initiating formal covenants.

27 And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.

28 And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord.

Clean Hands and A Pure Heart

During His three day ministry,
Our Savior of the world
Called and authorized disciples,
In His doctrines they were schooled.
He healed the sick, and blessed children,
As He prayed for His people.
He then succinctly summarized
Principles of His gospel.

“Unto Me, come,” the Savior taught.
Come and make sacred covenants.
And, renunciate all your sins,
Unto baptismal ord'nance.
In His own time and His own way
And according to His will.
We can come to know Him,
As those in the land of Bountiful.

Once repentant, we are baptized,
Our hearts turn towards our God.
And the Holy Ghost prepares us
To stand Holy without spot.
Through Christ's merits, mercy and grace,
Our commitment does not drift.
He's our Light, which does guide us,
Our faith in Him, His gift.

There is purpose in our journey,
We walk in newness of life.
When we yield our hearts unto God,
We obtain the mind of Christ.
Where once carnal, we're cleansed and healed.
As with fire we're refined.
And the Holy Ghost sanctifies,
While the soul is purified.

When we've no more disposition
To do that which is evil-
Our hands are clean and we reach out.
We become His Disciple.
We should avoid and overcome.
And, repent, be cleansed from sin.
The Lord helps us do and be good
And change our hearts from within.

With clean hands and with a pure heart,
We ascend unto the hills
Where the sick and poor are now fed.
And there's faith, which God instills
May we offer our Lord pure hearts,
With clean hands as we were meant.
May we apply the atonement.
And, do as we are now sent.

He raised the dead.
He healed the sick.
He cleansed leprosy.
He knows my heart.
He knows my hands.
And, I know He loves me.

He prayed for them.
And blessed children.
And, He called "Come and see".
He knew their heart.
They saw His hands
And, they wrote words for me.

[Verse 1] During His three day ministry Our Savior of the world Called and authorized disciples In His doctrines they were schooled He healed the sick And blessed the children As He prayed for His people Then He spoke the simple order [Pre-Chorus] “Unto Me, come,” the Savior taught Come and make sacred covenants Renunciate all your sins Unto baptismal ord'nance In His own time And His own way And according to His will We can come to know Him [Chorus] Come and see Come and see He knows my heart Come and see Come and see His grace makes me clean (come and see) [Verse 2] Once repentant, we are baptized Our hearts turn towards our God And the Holy Ghost prepares us To stand holy without spot Through Christ's merits Mercy and grace Our commitment does not drift He's our Light He guides us [Pre-Chorus] There is purpose in our journey We walk in newness of life When we yield our hearts unto God We obtain the mind of Christ Where once carnal We're cleansed and healed As with fire we're refined And the Holy Ghost sanctifies While the soul is purified [Chorus] Come and see Come and see He knows my heart Come and see Come and see His grace makes me clean (come and see) [Bridge] When we've no more disposition To do that which is evil Our hands are clean And we reach out We become His disciple We should avoid and overcome Repent, be cleansed from sin The Lord helps us do and be good [Final Chorus] Come and see Come and see He knows my hands Come and see Come and see I know He loves me (come and see) He raised the dead He healed the sick He cleansed leprosy He knows my heart He knows my hands And I know He loves me

David A. Bednar,
“Clean Hands and a Pure Heart,”
Ensign, Nov 2007, 80–83

renunciate- to formally reject or give up (something), especially as an expression of a religious belief:"those who are willing to renunciate violence can follow a different path."

We Must Be Born Again

May we sing to thee, Thy spiritually reborn?
Prepared and immersed, bless us and adorn.
We want to be more transparently clean.
Baptism transformed us to a new sheen

We want to show faith, and make use of priesthood
Till saturated, continually good.
Blessed as new creatures, from this mighty change,
Help thoughts and desires be pure, rearranged.

May we absorb truths, keep covenants that protect.
Seek line upon line, precept on precept.
Help us stay renewed, with motives refined.
Imperceptibly, with Thee more aligned.

May might, mind, and strength help us take on Christ’s name.
When we do much good, we're never the same.
Complete burial, total immersion.
When we are reborn, it's by conversion.

We speak from the soul with renewed energy,
To all in the land, the bond and the free.
Culminate our steps to change and transform.
Born to preach of Christ, we'll cry and forewarn.

Dear Father shed forth to all who now are true,
More gratitude for the Holy Ghost, too.
Help us feel it warn, when we are amiss.
We want to stay clean and sealed with promise.


[Verse 1] May we sing to thee Thy spiritually reborn Prepared and immersed Bless us and adorn We want to be more Transparently clean Baptism transformed us To a new sheen [Pre-Chorus] Blessed as new creatures From this mighty change Help thoughts and desires Be pure, rearranged May we absorb truths Keep covenants that protect Seek line upon line Precept on precept [Chorus] Spiritually reborn Spiritually reborn Make us clean and new Spiritually reborn Take on Christ's name Take on Christ's name We will never be the same Spiritually reborn [Verse 2] We want to show faith And make use of priesthood Till saturated Continually good Help us stay renewed With motives refined Imperceptibly With Thee more aligned [Pre-Chorus] May might, mind, and strength Help us take on Christ's name When we do much good We're never the same Complete burial Total immersion When we are reborn It's by conversion [Chorus] Spiritually reborn Spiritually reborn Make us clean and new Spiritually reborn Take on Christ's name Take on Christ's name We will never be the same Spiritually reborn [Bridge] We speak from the soul With renewed energy To all in the land The bond and the free Born to preach of Christ We'll cry and forewarn Dear Father shed forth To all who now are true [Final Chorus] Spiritually reborn Spiritually reborn Make us clean and new Spiritually reborn More gratitude For the Holy Ghost, too Help us feel it warn When we are amiss We want to stay clean And sealed with promise

19–22, David A. Bednar, May 2007,
“Ye Must Be Born Again, ” Ensign

I Followed the Savior

I followed the Savior
Down into the water
And entered His gate where
A path's lit to our Father

For then straight away
From having been cleansed
I received on that day
A guide which witnessed...

Spiritually given-
There is no other way
Nor name under heaven
By which a man might be saved

Stay repentant and clean
Speak oft with the angels
Have hope as your read
And pray for what enables

[Verse 1] I followed the Savior Down into the water And entered His gate where A path's lit to our Father For then straight away From having been cleansed I received on that day A guide which witnessed... [Pre-Chorus] Spiritually given- There is no other way Nor name under heaven By which a man might be saved [Chorus] There is no other way There is no other way Stay repentant and clean (Stay repentant and clean) Speak oft with the angels Have hope as you read And pray for what enables (Pray for what enables) [Verse 2] Let the old dust fall Let the wide road fade I was small, He called And the dark one gave way Hands in the cold stream Heart in His care I woke like a new dream Breathing holy air [Pre-Chorus] Spiritually given- There is no other way Nor name under heaven By which a man might be saved [Chorus] There is no other way There is no other way Stay repentant and clean (Stay repentant and clean) Speak oft with the angels Have hope as you read And pray for what enables (Pray for what enables) [Bridge] If my steps grow thin If my voice runs low Still I lean back in On the mercy I know [Final Chorus] There is no other way There is no other way Stay repentant and clean (Stay repentant and clean) Speak oft with the angels Have hope as you read And pray for what enables (Pray for what enables)

2 Nephi 31:20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

Spir (Breathe) Spiritually Born Again

 

Spir is Latin for breathe

Verse 1]

May we sing to thee Thy spiritually reborn Prepared and immersed Bless us and adorn We want to be more transparently clean Baptism transformed us To a new sheen [Pre-Chorus] We want to show faith And make use of priesthood Till saturated Continually good Blessed as new creatures From this mighty change Help thoughts and desires be pure Rearranged [Chorus] Spir spiritually reborn We take on Christ’s name (Spir spiritually reborn) Never the same We speak from the soul With renewed energy (Spir spiritually reborn) Set us free [Verse 2] May we absorb truths Keep covenants that protect Seek line upon line Precept on precept Help us stay renewed With motives refined Imperceptibly With Thee more aligned [Pre-Chorus] May might, mind, and strength Help us take on Christ’s name When we do much good We're never the same Complete burial Total immersion When we are reborn It's by conversion [Chorus] Spir spiritually reborn We take on Christ’s name (Spir spiritually reborn) Never the same We speak from the soul With renewed energy (Spir spiritually reborn) Set us free [Bridge] To all in the land To the bond and the free Culminate our steps To change and transform Born to preach of Christ We'll cry and forewarn Dear Father shed forth To all who now are true [Final Chorus] More gratitude For the Holy Ghost, too (Spir spiritually reborn) Keep us true Help us feel it warn When we are amiss We want to stay clean And sealed with promis

The Mathematics of Faith

 

Faith plus repentance

Minus selfishness

Equals baptism

And the Holy Ghost's witness

We're clean. Christ IS upon us!

Duncan Rand Mackie's baptism

A special Saturday!

S-L-I-P!

Excited, I step into the unknown!

Eager to bury the old for the new!

But, at the last second, there my feet go!

And I am taught of humility, too!

Baptism

Love warms my heart.
I am washed clean!
I've a fresh start.
New life is in me!

Baptism!

You've Only Just Begun

You've only just begun
A life of cleanliness
Salvation can be won
Through daily repentance

Yanked From the Stream of Life

Yanked from the stream of life
Into a cesspool of woe
I turned to Jesus Christ
What cleansing, I came to know!

Turning completely around is a 360 degree change.
There's actually a book that talks about making a full circle in your life for radical change.

Close Your Eyes

Close your eyes and remember
How it feels to be clean
Rekindle that warm ember
That helps you live life's dream

Fall Back in Submission

Fall back. Submit
Into the waters of Christ
Be taught, repent,
And receive a holy light

Like a child treading waters
Fall back into the saving arms
Of our Heavenly Father
Feel protected and safe from harm

Completely enveloped
Trust in His wisdom and care
Faith is more developed
As you gain pure light to share

"When i attended EFY last year there was a lesson taught on the sacrament, it taught me a greater appreciation of the healing power of the sacrament. The fact that in being baptized we must fall backwards into the water is instructive. In partaking of these emblems every week we must do it in a submission of our will to God, which allows us to be healed and forgiven. I learned that every time we partake of this ordinance we are completely enveloped in the waters of Christ or the love of God it acts as a cleansing, purifying, and sanctifying medicine. Every time i have renewed my covenants since that lesson i have pondered and thought on that baptismal covenant, that i was submitting my will to the Father, and that i was being fully enveloped in the presence of my savior Jesus Christ. Elder Oaks is on target, we must do everything possible to uphold the divine gift of the sacrament, we must not allow ourselves to be swept away in the weekly routine of sacrament participation." Anthony H 3 Dec 2011 https://www.lds.org/youth/article/how-to-prepare-for-the-sacrament?lang=eng

Baptism is the Entrance Gate

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Baptism is the entrance gate
For our walk with Jesus Christ
Treasures of knowledge await
For purpose and peace in life

Here we find forgiveness for sin
And sweet hope.  We are uplifted
Such that second chances begin
There is room for those who've drifted

Faith is to hope for things unseen
And to desire what is right
Come and follow our Lord and seek
His words of eternal life

It Feels So Good

It feels so good to be washed clean
As one baptized with Christ's light seen.
It feels so right to serve and grow
To repent oft, to seek and know.

Reborn in Pure Water

Reborn in pure water...
As one cleansed and prepared,
I feel it an honor
To share what's been declared.

The gospel is true
Our Savior does live
We've His works to do
His message to give


 

The Moment

The moment I realized

That the Church is true

I wanted to be baptized

As a witness, too

The Gospel is the Good News

The gospel is the good news
The path for hope and change
Freely given you can choose
The gate where "welcome" hangs

Welcome to a Floodgate of Incredible Love!

Welcome to a floodgate
Of incredible love
Inspired through the grace
Of our Father, above

I went to a wonderful baptism. What a privilege!  I wrote the first two lines and my husband the second.  Very romantic!  As soon as we were leaving a flood warning came and two hours later we are still hearing the thunder rumbling through the Henderson hillsides.  We went out to eat and were soaked even though we parked near the door.  Loved it!  Love the reminder of being washed clean...

Come to Know with Certainty what the Godhead Means to YOU

Come to know with certainty

What the Godhead means to you

Each in perfect unity

Has a separate function, too

Our Heavenly Father stands supreme

And cares for us as a tender parent

Through the gift of His Son, much is seen

His mercy and compassion becomes apparent

Through our Lord's ministry and example

We can come to know who our Savior is

Through His atonement we can sample

Worth, for He suffered and paid for each

This truth is confirmed by the Holy Ghost

As in our hearts and minds we are taught

Through the spirit's warmth, this heavenly host

Testifies of all light that is sought

Come unto the Father, through the gift of the Son

By way of the Holy Ghost, love is felt

Through the baptismal gate, the journey is begun

Back to Heaven, where with the Godhead we dwelt

1. “We baptize ‘in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.’ In doing so we are bringing people to the Father through the ministry and Atonement of His Son, with the guidance of the Holy Ghost. We must keep it uppermost in our minds always as we undertake our missions.” —Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve

2. Role of the Godhead Is Paramount in Missionaries’ Teachings

     By R. Scott Lloyd, Church News staff writer
   • 9 JULY 2013
   http://www.lds.org/church/news/role-of-the-godhead-is-paramount-in-missionaries-teachings?lang=eng

Funny Baptism

Funny Baptism

Today's the day you'll be baptized
But did you ever wonder
That everyone would be surprised
If dad just held you under

My husbands attempt at humor...