This last Wednesday, we had a multi-stake fireside at the Institute of Religion. Elizabeth Rose from the General Relief Society Board was our guest speaker, and I just thought I'd share my notes. If they're not terribly coherent, I apologize. (Also, I was taking these notes on my iPod, so there may be a few... mistakes in grammar/spelling/etc.)
Glass vs crystal: add one more ingredient to obtain crystal. While both are created by intense pressure and heat, crystal is more durable than glass. It shines more than glass. Also, the closer it gets to the light, the more it will shine.
We are surrounded by darkness, but we don't have to dwell in it. God's light is real and available to all, however we cannot wait for someone else to turn on that light.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan for us to become who it is that God wants us to be. It is a steady succession. Until we become that beautiful flawless state. (Oaks)
1. Pray. (Uchtdorf) flying. When he pressure is greater under he wing than over, that creates lift. When he force pushing us upward is greater than that which brings us down, we will ascend.
2. Scripture study. 1 Nephi 8 vision of the tree of life. Chapter 11 Nephi goes and asks what his father saw. First he believed, then he pondered, then he prayed. At that time he angel came to him. Then Nephi was able to see the lamb of God and had the wisdom of Lehi's dream opened unto him. We can come to that fountain of liking waters through the holy scriptures. The Book of Mormon only has 6 chapters that do not talk about Jesus Christ. Who gets a gift and does not unwrap it? He gospel of Jesus Christ and, in turn, the BoM are gifts given to us.
3. Service. Service gives our lives purpose. Unless we serve others, we really don't have a purpose.
4. Obedience. If we keep the commandments we will prosper in he land, receive truth and light until he is glorified in he truth and light. Beware. Be found doing good things. Don't pick and choose the commandments that we obey
5. Repent. Turn around and put our faces towards God. Rely on His merits to save. The Savior comes down to the pit to lift us onto the ladder to escape the pit.
6. Covenants and ordinances. The covenants we make help us to understand our duty to him. No member of our church can make a serious mistake without first being warned by he Holy Ghost.
(Read Daughters of my Kingdom) the endowment brings us out if darkness and into light.
These are the things that will fill our lives with light, but it has to be a steady effort. Be anxiously engage and be light within will grow brighter and brighter. Full our minds entirely of good and there will be no room for the bad ( talked about a little boy that was afraid of monsters under the bed, so he stuffed all of his stuffed animals under his bed, saying that if he filled the space with all the good things, there would be no room for the bad.)
7. Share your light by administering to others and your light will continue to grow. Ways to share: visiting teaching. Charity (gives, patience, having hope, being resistant towards taking offense, etc.). Share the gospel with each other. Missions (including every member a missionary). Within your own family you can share the light of Christ.
D&C 50:24
Every morning when you wake up, Turn on the Light!!! Crystals can fill a room with rainbows when even a small amount of light shines through them.
My LAST Relief Society Lesson in the Wu Chuan 2nd Branch. (I think I managed to get rid of all the typos...)
The Holy Temple —A Beacon
to the World
Thomas S. Monson
April 2011 Sunday
Morning Session of General Conference
Matt 16:19
And I will agive
unto thee the bkeys
of the ckingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou
shalt dbind
on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth
shall be loosed in heaven.
D&C 128:9
It may seem to some to be a very bold
doctrine that we talk of—a power which records or binds on earth and binds in
heaven. Nevertheless, in all ages of the world, whenever the Lord has given a adispensation
of the priesthood to any man by actual revelation, or any set of men, this power
has always been given. Hence, whatsoever those men did in bauthority, in the name of
the Lord, and did it truly and faithfully, and kept a proper and faithful
record of the same, it became a law on earth and in heaven, and could not be
annulled, according to the decrees of the great cJehovah.
This is a faithful saying. Who can hear it?
Why do you think that temples are important?
The all-important
and crowning blessings of membership in the Church are those blessings which we
receive in the temples of God.
What are some of the blessings that we
receive by going to the temple?
Elder Robert D.
Hales said, “The ordinances and covenants of the temple are theprotection for us in our trials and
tribulationsin
our day and for what we will face in the future. Temples are the greatest
university of learning known to man,giving us knowledge and
wisdom about the creation of the world.Washings and anointingstell us who we are. Endowment
instructions give guidanceas
to how we should conduct our lives here in mortality.”
Some degree of sacrifice has ever been
associated with temple building and with temple attendance. Countless are those who have labored and
struggled in order to obtain for themselves and for their families the
blessings which are found in the temples of God.
My brothers and
sisters, temples are more than stone and mortar. They are filled with faith and
fasting. They are built of trials and testimonies. They are sanctified by
sacrifice and service.
What are some examples of sacrifice that you
can think of?
The first temple to
be built in this dispensation was the temple at Kirtland, Ohio. The Saints at
the time were impoverished, and yet the Lord had commanded that a temple be
built, so build it they did. Wrote Elder Heber C. Kimball of the experience,
“The Lord only knows the scenes of poverty, tribulation and distress which we
passed through to accomplish it.” And then, after all that had been
painstakingly completed, the Saints were forced to leave Ohio and their beloved
temple. They eventually found refuge —although it would be temporary— on the
banks of the Mississippi River in the state of Illinois. They named their
settlement Nauvoo, and willing to give their all once again and with their
faith intact, they erected another temple to their God. Persecutions raged,
however, and with the Nauvoo Temple barely completed, they were driven from
their homes once again, seeking refuge in a desert.
The struggle and the
sacrifice began once again as they labored for 40 years to erect the Salt Lake
Temple…
One of the temples
currently under construction is in Manaus, Brazil. Many years ago I read of a
group of over a hundred members who left Manaus, located in the heart of the
Amazon rain forest, to travel to what was then the closest temple, located in
São Paulo, Brazil—nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) from Manaus. Those faithful
Saints journeyed by boat for four days on the Amazon River and its tributaries.
After completing this journey by water, they boarded buses for another three
days of travel—over bumpy roads, with very little to eat, and with nowhere
comfortable to sleep. After seven days and nights, they arrived at the temple
in São Paulo, where ordinances eternal in nature were performed. Of course
their return journey was just as difficult. However, they had received the
ordinances and blessings of the temple, and although their purses were empty,
they themselves were filled with the spirit of the temple and with gratitude for the blessings
they had received. Now, many years later, our members in Manaus are rejoicing
as they watch their own temple take shape on the banks of the Rio Negro.
Temples bring joy to our faithful members wherever they are built.
Why are so many
willing to give so much in order to receive the blessings of the temple? Those
who understand the eternal blessings which come from the temple know that no
sacrifice is too great, no price too heavy, no struggle too difficult in order
to receive those blessings. There are never too many miles to travel, too many
obstacles to overcome, or too much discomfort to endure. They understand that
the saving ordinances received in the temple that permit us to someday return
to our Heavenly Father in an eternal family relationship and to be endowed with
blessings and power from on high are worth every sacrifice and every effort.
If you have been to
the temple for yourselves and if you live within a relatively close proximity
to a temple, your sacrifice could be setting aside the time in your busy lives
to visit the temple regularly. There is much to be done in our temples in
behalf of those who wait beyond the veil. As we do the work for them, we will know
that we have accomplished what they cannot do for themselves. President Joseph
F. Smith, in a mighty declaration stated, “Through our efforts in their behalf
their chains of bondage will fall from them, and the darkness surrounding them
will clear away, that light may shine upon them and they shall hear in the
spirit world of their work that has been done for them by their children here,
and will rejoice with you in your performance of these duties.” My brothers and
sisters, the work is ours to do.
If you have not yet
been to the temple or if you have
been but currently do not qualify for a recommend, there is no more important
goal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to the temple. Your
sacrifice may be bringing your life into compliance with what is required to
receive a recommend, perhaps by forsaking long-held habits which disqualify
you. It may be having the faith and the discipline to pay your tithing.
Whatever it is, qualify to enter the temple of God. Secure a temple recommend
and regard it as a precious possession, for such it is.
Until you have
entered the house of the Lord and have received all the blessings which await
you there, you have not obtained everything the Church has to offer. The
all-important and crowning blessings or membership in the Church are those
blessings which we receive in the temples of God.
… Do nothing which
will keep you from entering [the temple’s] doors and partaking of the sacred
and eternal blessings there.
Great personal preparation is required for us to receive the
spiritual benefit of standing in holy places. Holy places and sacred space are
also distinguished by the sacrifice they require. Elder M. Russell Ballard has
taught that “the word sacrifice means literally ‘to make sacred,’ or
‘to render sacred’” (“The Law of Sacrifice,” Ensign, Oct. 1998,
8; Liahona, Mar. 2002, 13). The
words sacred and sacrifice come from the same root. One may
not have the sacred without first sacrificing something for it. There can be no
sacredness without personal sacrifice. Sacrifice sanctifies the sacred.
… To you parents, …
may I share with you some sage advice from President Spencer W. Kimball. Said
he: “It would be a fine thing if… parents would have in every bedroom in their
house a picture of the temple so [their children] from the time [they are]
infant[s] could look at the picture every day [until] it becomes a part of
[their lives]. When [they reach] the age that [they need] to make [the] very
important decision [concerning going to the temple], it will have already been
made.”
Ask for experiences, ideas on how to be
prepared to enter the temple either for the first time or for each reoccurring
visit
The world can be a
challenging and difficult place in which to live. We are often surrounded by
that which would drag us down. As you and I go to the holy houses of God, as we
remember the covenants we make within, we will be more able to bear every trial
and to overcome each temptation. In this sacred sanctuary we will find peace;
we will be renewed and fortified.
“The temples, with “Holiness to the Lord” inscribed on them,
are among the most sacred of all places on the earth. They stand as evidence of
God’s love to all His children, past and present. The blessings of the temple
are intertwined and inseparable from significant sacrifice. The ordinances
performed therein provide access to the full expression of the Savior’s atoning
sacrifice. This alone would qualify the temple as holy and sacred. However,
personal sacrifice is also required. We sacrifice time in search for our
ancestors and time to attend to our temple responsibilities. We also strive to
live the highest standards of personal worthiness, which qualify us to enter
the sacred space of this most holy place. In holy places and in sacred space we
find spiritual refuge, renewal, hope, and peace. Are these not worth every
necessary personal sacrifice? My brethren and sisters, may each of us revere
and respect the holy and sacred in our lives. May we teach our children
likewise. Let us all stand in holy and sacred places of spiritual peace.” Elder Dennis B. Neuenschwander
What does the temple mean to you?
I express my undying
gratitude to my Heavenly Father for… all of our temples, wherever they are.
Each one stands as a beacon to the world, an expression of our testimony that
God, our Eternal Father, lives, that He desires to bless us and, indeed, to
bless His sons and daughters of all generations. Each of our temples is an
expression of our testimony that life beyond the grave is as real and as
certain as is our life here on earth. I so testify.
My brothers and
sisters, may we make whatever sacrifices are necessary to attend the temple and
to have the spirit of the temple in our hearts and in our homes. May we follow
in the footsteps of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who made the ultimate
sacrifice for us, that we might have eternal live and exaltation in our
Heavenly Father’s kingdom.
D&C 128:19,
22-23
19 Now, what do we hear in the gospel which
we have received? A voice of agladness!
A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of btruth
out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living
and the dead; glad tidings of great cjoy. How
beautiful upon the mountains are the dfeet
of those that bring glad tidings of good things, and that say unto Zion:
Behold, thy God reigneth! As the edews of
Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon them!
22 Brethren,
shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. aCourage,
brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be
exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into bsinging.
Let the cdead
speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the dKing
Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us
to eredeem them out of their fprison;
for the prisoners shall go free.
23 Let the amountains shout for
joy, and all ye valleys cry aloud; and all ye seas and dry lands tell the
wonders of your Eternal King! And ye rivers, and brooks, and rills, flow down
with gladness. Let the woods and all the trees of the field praise the Lord;
and ye solid brocks
weep for joy! And let the sun, moon, and the cmorning
stars sing together, and let all the sons of God shout for joy! And let the
eternal creations declare his name forever and ever! And again I say, how
glorious is the voice we hear from heaven, proclaiming in our ears, glory, and
salvation, and honor, and dimmortality, and eternal life; kingdoms,
principalities, and powers!
(111) 3 Nephi 19:24 “And it came to pass that when Jesus had
thus prayed unto the Father, he came unto his disciples, and behold, they did
still continue, without ceasing, to pray unto him; and they did not multiply
many words, for it was given unto them what they should pray, and they were
filled with desire.” When we have the
Holy Ghost, we can know the things for which we should pray, which are right.
(112) 3 Nephi 22:14 “In righteousness shalt thou be
established; thou shalt be far from oppression for thou shalt not fear, and
from terror for it shall not come near thee.” When you are established in
righteousness, you have no cause or reason to fear. Isn’t that a wonderful
thing? I think this is something that I, especially, need to remember more
often. If you feel fear, it is perhaps time to evaluate your standing with the
Lord, and decide if you are “established in righteousness,” or if, perhaps, you
may have wavered a little.
(113) 3 Nephi 27:24 “Write the works of this people, which
shall be, even as hath been written, of that which hath been.” It is important
for us to write down all the manifestations from the Father that we witness. It
is also important that we keep a record of our own works.
(114) Mormon 4:2 “And it came to pass that the armies of the
Nephites were driven back again to the land of Desolation. And while they were
yet weary, a fresh army of the Lamanites did come upon them; and they had a
sore battle, insomuch that the Lamanites did take possession of the city
Desolation, and did slay many of the Nephites, and did take many prisoners.”
Remember that the Nephites no longer had the Spirit with them. I believe that the
Spirit will help to strengthen us and help to keep us from being defeated by
our enemies.
(115) Ether 2:25 “And behold, I prepare you against these
things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the
waves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods which
shall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may
have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea.” It’s nice to
know that the Lord will prepare us to overcome every challenge that we face.
That is a pretty empowering thought, actually. I think we should also notice
that the word “if” is not present anywhere in this verse. There is no “IF there
are waves” or “IF the floods come.” They will
come, but the Lord will have already prepared a way for us to cross through
them.
(116) Ether 3:26 “For he said unto him in times before, that
if he would believe in him that he could show unto him all things –it should be
shown unto him; therefore the Lord could not withhold anything from him, for he
knew that the Lord could show him all things.” We should remember that this
promise applies to us as well. If we believe in him, he can show us all things.
We just need to have that believe and the faith to have our eyes (and hearts)
opened.
(117) Ether 12:19 “And there were many whose faith was so
exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within
the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with
an eye of faith, and they were glad.” I think the last three words of this
verse are my favorite: “they were glad.” Our faith helps us to feel glad.
(118) Moroni 7:3 “Wherefore, I would speak unto you that are
of the church, that are the peaceable followers of Christ, and that have
obtained a sufficient hope by which ye can enter into the rest of the Lord,
from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven.” Note the word
“sufficient.” We don’t need to have a perfect amount of hope; we just need to have
enough.
(119) Moroni 10:31 “And awake, and arise from the dust, O
Jerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of Zion; and
strengthen they stakes and enlarge they borders forever, that thou mayest no
more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath made
unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled.” Confounded means to be angry
or annoyed. When we make and keep sacred covenants, our ability to remain happy
increases and we are actually guarded against unhappiness.
(95) Helaman 5:47 “Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world.” When we have faith in Christ, we can have peace.
(96) Helaman 10:4 “Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments.” How often do we think about our own lives instead of thinking about God’s will for our lives?”
(97) Helaman 10:5 “And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless the forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will.” There are some pretty amazing promises given to us here if we seek God’s will with “unwearyingness,” suck as being blessed FOREVER and being mighty in all things.
(98) Helaman 12:1 “And thus we can behold how false, and also the unsteadiness of the hearts of the children of men; yea, we can see that the Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him.” This is something that I have seen in my own life, especially here in Taiwan. It is amazing the blessings you can see when you do put all your trust in God, and when you are looking for those blessings.
(99) Helaman 12:15 “ And thus, according to his word the earth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the sun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.” I think that similarly we can say that it is the world that moves and not the Son. It is pretty easy to see the shift in values of the world throughout history, yet what the Lord expects of us and what he wants for us stays the same. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not move away from us, but sometimes we move away from him.
(100) Helaman 15:6 “Yea, I say unto you, that the more part of them are… striving with unwearied diligence that they may bring the remainder of their brethren to the knowledge of the truth.” What I learned from this is that we should never tire of being persistently righteous.
(101) Helaman 15:9 “And ye know also that they have buried their weapons of war, and they fear to take them up lest by any means they should sin, yea, he can see that they fear to sin –for behold they will suffer themselves that they be trodden down and slain by their enemies, and will not lift their swords against them, and this because of their faith in Christ.” I think that this (burying our “weapons of war… [for] fear to take them up lest by any means [we] should sin”) is a very important principle for us to apply to our own lives. I feel like we can also see how faith in Christ makes us afraid to sin and gives us more desire to live righteously.
(102) 3 Nephi 4:33 “And their hearts were swollen with joy, unto the gushing out of many tears, because of the great goodness of God in delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; and they knew it was because of their repentance and their humility that they had been delivered from an everlasting destruction.” Can you imagine so much joy and gratitude? Maybe you have experienced it before, but I hope that it is something that all of us will be able to have in our lives.
(103) 3 Nephi 6:14 “And thus there became a great inequality in all the land, insomuch that the church began to be broken up; yea, insomuch that in the thirtieth year the church was broken up in all the land save it were among a few of the Lamanites who were converted unto the true faith; and they would not depart from it, for they were firm, and steadfast, and immovable, willing with all diligence to keep the commandments of the Lord.” This is how we need to be (firm, steadfast, and immovable in our faith in Christ), especially as the world would have us depart from our conversion.
(104) 3 Nephi 7:19-20 “And in the name of Jesus did he cast out devils and unclean spirits; and even his brother did he raise from the dead, after he had been stoned and suffered death by the people. And the people saw it, and did witness of it, and were angry with him because of his power, and he did also do many more miracles, in the sight of the people, in the name of Jesus.” Can you imagine being angry with someone for performing a miracle? I think the devil would have to have complete hold over a person’s heart for them to be so hard.
(105) 3 Nephi 11:7 “Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name —hear ye him.” To glorify is to reveal or make clearer the glory of God. What is God’s glory? It is his work, which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. I feel like there is a great deal that we can learn from this verse.
(106) 3 Nephi 11:11 “And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.” Glorified or revealed the work of the Father. Work=purpose?
(107) 3 Nephi 15:19 “But, verily, I say unto you that the Father hath commanded me, and I tell it unto you, that ye were separated from among them because of their iniquity; therefore it is because of their iniquity that they know not of you.” This makes me wonder how many things are kept form us because of our iniquity?
(108) 3 Nephi 16:2 “For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them.” One of the brothers in the high council in the Taichung North Stake gave a talk in our branch. His talk was about scripture study and coming to know the Lord. It was a very powerful talk, and even though the majority of it was given in Chinese, it still put me in tears. Anyway, something he said really struck me, something which I feel, is relevant to this verse: though none of us have actually seen God the Father or his son Jesus Christ, by studying the scriptures constantly, we can hear God’s voice. That is what he said, and I think it is true. So while we have not yet seen God the Father or Jesus Christ with our physical eyes, through the scriptures they can and will manifest themselves to us and we will hear his voice and see the marks in his hands, his feet, and sides.
(109) 3 Nephi 18:10 “And when the Disciples had done this, Jesus said unto them: Blessed are ye for this thing which ye have done, for this is fulfilling my commandments, and this doth witness unto the Father that ye are willing to do that which I have command you.” Part of the purpose of the sacrament is to show that we are willing to keep all the commandments and to do everything that God has asked us to do.
(110) 3 Nephi 18:12 “And I give unto you a commandment that ye shall do these things. And if ye shall always do these things blessed are ye, for ye are built upon my rock. “ We will also be blessed for parting of the sacrament.
(85) Alma 60:16 “Yea, if we had gone forth against them in the strength of the Lord, we should have dispersed our enemies, for it would have been done, according to the fulfilling of his word.” We must be totally devoted to living God’s will if we are to succeed against Satan and his forces.
(86) Alma 61:13 “But behold he doth not command us that we shall subject ourselves to our enemies, but that we should put our trust in him, and he will deliver us.” I love how this is repeated so many times in the Book of Mormon. As we put our trust in God, he shall deliver us of all evil as long as we do our part and work towards our own deliverance. We can’t just sit idly by waiting for our troubles to go away. Part of trusting is doing or acting upon our trust.
(87) Alma 62:49-51 “But notwithstanding their riches, or their strength, or their prosperity, they were not lifted up in the pride of their eyes; neither were they slow to remember the Lord their God; but they did humble themselves exceedingly before him. Yea, they did remember how great things the Lord had done for them, that he had delivered them from death, and from bonds, and from prisons, and from all manner of afflictions and he had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies. And they did pray unto the Lord their God continually, insomuch that the Lord did bless them, according to his word, so that they did wax strong and prosper in the land.” When we are humble and remember all the things that the Lord has done for us, we too will be blessed and delivered from our afflictions.
(88) Helaman 1:18 “And it came to pass that because of so much contention and so much difficulty in the government, that they had not kept sufficient guards in the land of Zarahemla; for they had supposed that the Lamanites durst not come into the heart of their lands to attack that great city Zarahemla.” We cannot suppose that Satan will never go for that part which used to be the strongest, or that he will never go for our hearts. Whatever happens, we cannot let our guard down.
(89) Helaman 1:28 “But when Moronihah had discovered this [that the Lamanites had come into the center of the land and were taking possession of many cities], he immediately sent forth Lehi with an army round about to head them before they should come to the land Bountiful.” I like how it says he immediately sent an army to defend the land Bountiful. Instead of waiting for the enemy/Satan to arrive at our threshold, the moment we are warned or become aware of the threat of danger we should send out our armies and our defenses. Luckily God has provided us with many means by which we can learn of the things that Satan will and does try to attack.
(90) Helaman 3:25 “And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure.” Have you ever been astonished beyond measure by the number of blessings you have received? Or even just astonished to receive a certain blessing? I know I have been, especially as I have been living in Taiwan.
(91) Helaman 3:27 “Thus we see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name.” I have witnessed this of myself many times. I think that this is something that everyone needs to try to gain a testimony of, and perhaps several times. It is sometimes easy to forget.
(92) Helaman 3:35 “Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God.” I feel that this verse contains the ingredients for joy, namely: fasting, frequent prayer, humility, and faith in Christ. I think also that this is one of the most beautiful verses in the Book of Mormon. “Joy and consolation.” What does it mean to be consoled? Consolation is to receive comfort after a loss or disappointment. God and Christ recognize that there will be losses and disappointments in our lives, but because of Christ and because of faith in him, those losses can be made up to us. We can find comfort and joy through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is through the Atonement that we are also able to become pure and holy. For all of this to come to pass, we must “[yield our] hearts unto God,” or comply with the desires of God. We must give our hearts to Him and keep his commandments (all of them) completely.
(93) Helaman 5:6 “Behold, my sons, I desire that ye should remember to keep the commandments of God; and I would that ye should declare unto the people these words. Behold, I have given unto you the names of our first parents who came out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I have done that when you remember your names ye may remember them; and when ye remember them ye may remember their works; and when re remember their works ye may know how that it is said, and also written, that they were good.” We that have been baptized have been given or take upon us the name of Christ. When we remember our name, then, we should remember him and His works, and try to live up to that name. We should do all that we can to be good as He was and is good.
(94) Helaman 5:42 “And it came to pass that they did all begin to cry unto the voice of him who had shaken the earth; yea, they did cry even until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.” I love this. I love that when we pray, our faith in Christ can be increased. I also am reminded, in regards to the cloud of darkness, of Joseph Smith when he was in the Sacred Grove. It was through the power of prayer that the cloud of darkness was lifted from him, and it is the same thing here. I think that it is important, though, to remember that a cloud of darkness doesn’t have to be caused by sin. Joseph was not sinning when he knelt to pray. Sometimes darkness is caused by evil trying to obscure our view of the light. It is important that we don’t allow that to keep us from praying. We should always pray.
I've been slowly typing all of my notes up onto my computer, but it's taking a while. Even after spending a good 40 minutes on this, I'm still way behind.
(74) Alma 41:2 “I say unto thee, my son, that the plan of restoration is requisite with the justice of God; for it is requisite that all things should be restored to their proper order. Behold, it is requisite and just, according to the power and resurrection of Christ, that the soul of man should be restored to its body, and that every part of the body should be restored to itself.” The Church, in a way, can be seen as being resurrected. For a time, it was no longer on the earth (dead), but it has now been “restored to [its] proper order,” or “resurrected.”
(75) Alma 43:50 “And they began to stand against the Lamanites with power; and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them…”When we pray to the Lord for strength against or freedom from temptation and the devil, He will help us as long as we have been living our lives in accordance with His will.
(76) Alma 46:18 “And he said: Surely God shall not suffer that we, who are despised because we take upon us the name of Christ, shall be trodden down and destroyed, until we bring it upon us by our own transgressions.” Isn’t this comforting to know? The only way we can be destroyed is if we bring it upon ourselves.
(77) Alma 47:3-6, 18 “And now it came to pass that the king was wroth because of their disobedience; therefore he gave Amalickiah the command of that part of his army which was obedient unto his commands, and commanded him that he should go forth and compel them to arms. Now behold, this was the desire of Amalickiah; for he being a very subtle man to do evil therefore he laid the plan in his heart to dethrone the king of the Lamanites. And now he had got the command of those parts of the Lamanites who were in favor of the king; and he sought to gain favor of those who were not obedient; therefore he went forward tot eh place which was called Onidah, for thither had all the Lamites fled; for they discovered the army coming, and, supposing that they were coming to destroy them, therefore they fled to Onidah, to the place of arms. And they had appointed a man to be a king and a leader of them, being fixed in their minds with a determined resolution that they would not be subjected to go against the Nephites… And it came to pass that Amalickiah caused that one of his servants should administer poison by degrees to Lehonti, that he died.” Notice that there is no neutral ground between good and evil. In verse 6, these Lamanites did not want to fight the Nephites, but they would not join them, either. I suspect that if they had joined the Nephites, they would have been offered some protection. Instead, their newly appointed king was “poison[ed] by degrees” and died.
(78) Alma 48:7 “Now it came to pass that while Amalickiah had thus been obtaining power by fraud and deceit, Moroni, on the other hand, had been preparing the minds of the people to be faithful unto the Lord their God.” The devil tries to tempt us into claiming a false power whereas when we rely on God, it is then that we are given true power, as long as we live righteously and only use that power to act in His name.
(79) Alma 56:8-9 “But I would not suffer them that they should break this covenant which they had made, supposing that God would strengthen us, insomuch that we should not suffer more because of the fulfilling the oath which they had taken. But behold, here is one thing in which we may have great joy…” God will not make us to suffer for keeping our covenants. IN stead, he will find ways to strengthen and protect us. It is in keeping our covenants and the oaths that we make to God that we find great joy.
(80) Alma 56:46 “For as I had ever called them my sons (for they were all of them very young) even so they said unto me: Father, behold our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we should fall, then let us go forth;” I really like this reminder that God does not and will not set us up for failure. If he asks us to do something and we go forward in faith and righteousness, we will succeed.
(81) Alma 56:47 “Now they had never fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.” My mother has tried to teach me this, too.
(82) Alma 57:21 “Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith was it done unto them; and I did remember the words which they had said unto me that their mothers had taught them.” It is good to remember that with faith and complete obedience we can be preserved.
(83) Alma 58:35 “Behold, we do not know but what ye are unsuccessful, and ye have drawn away the forces into that quarter of the land; if so, we do not desire to murmur.” I learned two things from this: sometimes you just really don’t know why things are happening, and, secondly, it is not murmuring to ask for help.
(84) Alma 59:9 “And now as Moroni had supposed that there should be men sent to the city of Nephihah, to the assistance of the people to maintain that city, and knowing that it was easier to keep the city from falling into the hands of the Lamanites than to retake it from them, he supposed that they would easily maintain that city.” It is easier to remain on the straight and narrow than to fight your way through to get back on it after you’ve strayed.
It's been way too long since I last updated this "segment" on my blog. I am way behind! Hopefully I can get caught up and it won't take me very long. Here are just a few thoughts that I've already managed to type up.
(66) Alma 34:4 “Yea, even that ye would have so much faith as even to plant the word in your hearts. That ye may try the experiment of its goodness.” Remember that another name for Christ is “the Word.” Therefore, it is Christ what we need to plant in our hearts. Is there anything in this world that has more goodness than the word of Christ?
(67) Alma 34:26 “But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.” Another definition of wilderness is a position of disfavor, so when things are seemingly not going in our favor, or when we have fallen out of favor with God, we should cry unto him in prayer.
(68) Alma 34:35 “For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you; and this is the final state of the wicked.” I think this makes it pretty clear why “deathbed repentance” is such a bad idea. When you procrastinate repenting, you do lose the Lord’s Spirit, and so you will also lose the desire to repent and to make peace with God. Once that desire is fully gone, you will already belong to the devil.
(69) Alma 37:8 “And now, it has hitherto been wisdom in God that these things should be preserved; for behold, they have enlarged the memory of this people, yea, and convinced many of the error of their ways, and brought them to the knowledge of their God unto the salvation of their souls.” Reading the scriptures and the word of God enlarges our capacity to remember many things.
(70-72) Alma 37:41-42 “Nevertheless, because those miracles were worked by small means it did show unto them marvelous works. They were slothful, and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence and then those marvelous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey, therefore, they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgressions.” Before now, I had never thought of not being faithful as being slothful. What does it mean to be slothful, anyway? Some dictionaries define it as being “disinclined to work,” which to me suggests that being faithful requires real work. So, when we cease to exercise faith and diligence, we are no longer able to grow and progress in our own journeys back to the Lord. Not only is our progression stunted when we become slothful, but our spirits are also afflicted with “hunger and thirst” when we transgress the laws of God.
(73) Alma 40:3 “Now, I unfold unto you a mystery; nevertheless, there are many mysteries which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself. But I show unto you one which I have inquired diligently of God that I might know…” I’ve noticed something of a trend where people ask a lot of “speculative doctrinal questions” and I think it is just silly and a waste of time to ask and spend any time or energy about questions to which no one except God has the answers to. It is important to note that God has given us all the answers and information we need, pertaining to our salvation and bringing souls of others unto Christ, he has given us enough information that, if we were to spend all our times and energies understanding this information, this true doctrine, and implementing that knowledge and wisdom with action, then we would find immortality and eternal life right there before us, ours for the taking. We should therefore seek after those things which God has revealed and, when needful, ask for guidance in understanding those things which maybe haven’t personally revealed themselves in our hearts.
Yesterday President Baclayon rented a bus for our branch to take a trip up to Taipei to go to the temple. When I say the "branch," though, it basically ended up being the ILP teachers, the Listons, and President Baclayon himself. Small crowd (but then, that's half the branch right there!). I have been looking forward to this trip ever since our first Sunday here in Taiwan when we found out about it.
a building in/on the way to Taipei (I slept for most of the bus ride there, and this is as we were about to get off the freeway, so I think we were in Taipei by then)
A river. I know, thrilling.
More buildings we sped past
Taipei 101 in the distance
Jessica, me, and Jenny in front of the Taipei Taiwan Temple after the session
It was a really good session at the temple, but the temple is TINY! It is smaller than any other temple I have every been in, and I have been in a few of the smaller temples! They do have clothing rental, but Jessica and I brought our own clothes with us, so we didn't have to worry about that. We were supposed to go to the 1:30 session, but there weren't any men there for it, so we had to wait until the 2:00 session. The endowment room only holds 30 people and two temple workers. The session itself was pretty full, though. By the time it started, there were only 3 empty seats! Weird part: there were actually more men then women, and I don't think I've ever been in a session where that was the case. Of course it was all in Chinese, so we got to wear the cool translator head-sets. All of the temple workers that I came into contact with could speak English, and that was fantastic for me. We met the temple Matron and President Horner, too. They seem to be like the nicest people ever! I can't wait to go back and spend another day at the Taipei Taiwan temple. It is such a blessing to me to be a part of a religion that is the same world-wide. Everything about being in the temple was familiar to me. There have been no major surprises in our little English speaking branch (other than the investigator that came last week and had a bottle of beer in his bag, but we all loved him anyway; I even saw him again today, and he looked much more with it, but I think he attended one of the Chinese wards this week.
What my first sighting of the temple looked like, but taken after as we were waiting for the bus to come get us again
A cool-looking building
Another neat building
After the temple, the bus dropped us off at Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world. President Baclayon, Jenny, and I went around the block to eat dinner at Chili's (hey, sometimes you just really need something familiar to eat!), and then we spent some time hunting down Coldstone. I tell you what. Best. Ice cream. Ever! (Well, best ice cream since I got here.)
Taipei 101. Can't even see the top!
Veronica, Heather, Kylie, Christina (Sara behind Christina where you can't see her), Jessica Stoker, Jenny, and Kaylee waiting for the bus outside of 101
While we were waiting, this guy was walking around with his camera crew talking to people. Then I saw them (the guy and his crew) notice us, and they kind of huddled up and started talking. I was pretty sure they were trying to muster up their courage to come talk to us. Sure enough, a few minutes later they came up and asked Veronica where she was from, then he asked her if she had NT$100. He wanted to do a magic trick for us. I kind of loved him! I want to be his best friend (because he speaks English and can do cool tricks!) Kylie got a video of the whole thing, but I can't get it to load to Blogger. I'll try to put it on Youtube tomorrow and I'll stick a link or embed it here on my blog when I do. For now, it is off to sleep!
Next and final question before I do anything incredibly weird. For those of you that have had experience with this ambien fun stuff. You wanna share some fun stories?
Jessica came over and started talking to me and I don't know what I did. I thought I'd just looked her normal, you know, trying to decide If the ambien hit enough that I could go to bed, She have me this weird look and not real sure why.. Maybe it has something to do with the weird faces I keep giving the screen. It's really hard to type, though, when your left eye is deciding to focus at a different distance than your right eye
Man this stuff. Pair it with the right bedtime toons, and you've got an experience you won't remember but night like to, especially that whole trying to finish up a blog post thing that normally only takes 3o seconds and this one took closer to... 30 minutes.
(50) Alma 13:20 "Behold, the scriptures are before you; if ye will wrest [to distort meaning] it shall be to your own destruction."
(51) Alma 15:8 "And Alma said: If thou believest in the redemption of Christ thou canst be healed."We discussed in Sunday School a little bit what it means to be healed a few weeks ago. Sometimes when we are afflicted with something, even though we have faith in Christ and the Atonement, our affliction doesn't go away. This doesn't mean that we won't be healed, we just have to remember that it is in the Lord's time, but also it was brought up that gaining a full understanding of our tribulation might be another form of healing. When we understand why it is that we might suffer with something, and maintain an eternal perspective as well as live worthy of the Lord's Spirit, our burdens can be made light or alleviated, or, in other words, we become healed.
(52) Alma 17:10 "And it came to pass that the Lord did visit them with his Spirit, and said unto them: be comforted. And they were comforted." I just think that this is one of the most beautiful verses in the Book of Mormon!
(53) Alma 17:11 "And the Lord said unto them also: Go forth among the Lamanites thy brethren, and establish my word; yet ye shall be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them in me, and I will make an instrument of thee in my hands unto the salvation of many souls." I like this verse, too. To me, the Lord is saying, "I want you to go and do this thing, but it is not going to be easy. In fact, it is going to be really hard. But if you do your best and if you are patient, I will reward you with success."
(54) Alma 23:7 "For they became a righteous people; they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion, that they did not fight against God any more, neither against any of their brethren." I sometimes wonder what our "weapons of rebellion" are. I think these can range from very small things to very large things, and some weapons may be more obvious than others. I also believe, however, that we can somewhat measure the extent of our conversion by how much we "fight against God... [and our] brethren."
(55) Alma 23:17 "And it came to pass that they called their names Anti-Nephi-Lehies, and they were called by this name and were no more called Lamanites." I have always wondered about the whole "anti" part of the name the people chose. Typically when we see this word, it is used as a term that opposes something, so we might think "against Nephi-Lehi." Yet, when I looked it up in my dictionary, I noticed that it defined "anti" as also meaning "reversing or undo," which leads me to think of the term "Anti-Nephi-Lehies" as the "repentant Nephi-Lehies," or those who were once opposed to the truth but have now reversed their ways and returned.
(56) Alma 25:16 "Now they id not suppose that salvation came by the law of Moses; but the law of Moses did serve to strengthen their faith in Christ" I think that this still applies to us today; when we obey the laws and commandments, our faith in Christ is strengthened.
(57) Alma 26:27 "Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to turn back, behold, the Lord comforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success." This verse has a lot of meaning to me, especially lately as I've been trying to get everything in order for my upcoming adventure in Taiwan. It was very hard for me to wait as long as I did to hear back as to whether or not I was going to go. It was hard some days for me to not lose hope and just assume that things would fall through and that I wouldn't be accepted (especially when I first heard back and was told that, to be given a second chance, there was more work that I needed to do; ask Dad, I was distressed that night!), But, through the power of prayer and fasting and going to the temple, I, too, felt the comfort of the Lord. "Bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success."
(58) Alma 29:5 "Yea, and I know that good and evil have come before all men; he that knoweth not good from evil is blameless..." I am glad that we are not held accountable for the things that we have not learned!
(59 & 60) Alma 30:44 "But Alma said unto him: Thou hast had signs enough;" This I think is true. We have all had enough signs in our lives to testify to us the existence of a loving Heavenly Father. However, God will never force us to recognize His hand in anything. "Will ye say, Show unto me a sign, when ye have the testimony of all these thy brethren, and also all the holy prophets? The scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, event eh earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator." To me, I see the solar system as a great witness that there is a God and also as a type. Earth orbits the sun, and the sun exercises a hold on each of the planets while the planets, to a somewhat lesser degree, in turn have an influence on each other.
(61) Alma 30:47 "But behold, it is better that thy soul should be lost than that thou shouldst be the means of brining many souls down to destruction, by thy lying and by thy flattering words..." I think it is important to remember that Alma used to be a lot like Korihor. Remember that he, too, sought to lead others astray when he was younger. I think that by remembering this, we can get a feel for how deep his repentance was and we can get a better sense for how much Alma had changed since then.
(62) Alma 30:55 "But Alma said unto him: If this curse should be taken from thee thou wouldst again lead away the hearts of this people; therefore, it shall be unto thee even as the Lord will." Korihor never showed any willingness to repent. If he had, I think that the curse probably would have been removed. Instead, even though he wanted to be rid of his curse, he was unwilling to change that which needed to be changed. He was too prideful to allow the Lord to save him. I hope that I am never so prideful and unwilling to change that I throw away the chance to be healed of my "curses!"
(63) Alma 32:12 "I say unto you, it is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humble, and that ye may learn wisdom;" We learn wisdom when we are humble.
(64) Alma 32:22 "And now, behold, I say unto you, and I would that ye should remember, that God is merciful unto all who believe on his name" Notice that it does not say here that God is only merciful to those that are perfect. Thank goodness for that!
(65) Alma 32:27 "But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words." I like this. If all you can do is to want to believe in something and to try to believe in it, then that is enough. By nourishing this desire, eventually you will believe, and that believe will turn into something more. It is out of a desire to believe that our faith grows.
(40) Alma 5:14 "Have ye received his image in your countenances?" Did you know that "countenance" can also be defined as "support," not only the definition that we traditionally associate with this scripture? I like the effect that has on this verse, too. Have you received his image in your support? Do you do those things which allow the Lord to support you?
(41) Alma 7:23 "always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive."I noticed that this doesn't say to only give thanks for the things that we received that we wanted/asked for. Sometimes we "receive" or are given things and opportunities that we didn't really want, yet we should still be thankful and express our gratitude for these things, too.
(42) Alma 7:27 "And now, may the peace of God rest upon you, and upon your houses and lands, and upon your flocks and herds, and all that you possess, your women and your children, according to your faith and good works, from this time forth and forever." If we have faith and do good works, we will be blessed with peace.
(43) Alma 9:11 "Yea, and if it had not been for his matchless power, and his mercy, and his long-suffering towards us, we should unavoidably have been cut off from the face of the earth long before this period of time, and perhaps been consigned to a state of endless misery and woe." This is one of those verses that I feel is important to relate to us as individuals and make more personal. When we do so, we are reminded of God's matchless love for us (individually) and how merciful He is.
(44) Alma 9:17 "And at some period of time they will be brought to believe in his word, and to know of the incorrectness of the traditions of their fathers; and many of them will be saved, for the Lord will be merciful unto all who call on his name." I think this is a beautiful thing to remember that God is merciful to those who turn to him and rely on him.
(45) Alma 9:29 "Now behold, this is the voice of the angel, crying unto the people." This actually reminded me of the talk that Elder Holland gave this past General Conference when he said,
My brethren and sisters among the general officers of the Church will be uneasy with [this] description, but that is how I seem them- mortal messengers with angelic messages...Now, these mortal angels who come to this pulpit have, each in his or her own way, sounded “the trump of God.” Every sermon given is always, by definition, both a testimony of love and a warning, even as nature herself will testify with love and a warning in the last days.
(46) Alma 10:6 "Nevertheless, I did harden my heart, for I was called many times and I would not hear." This caused me to wonder how many times each of us (me, specifically) have been called yet refused to hear or to listen to the council of the Lord.
(47) Alma 10:11 "For behold, he hath blessed mine house, he hath blessed me, and my women, and my children, and my father and my kinsfolk; yea, even all my kindred hath he blessed, and the blessing of the Lord hath rested upon us according to the words which he spake." When we listen to the prophet of God and take his words into our very homes and implement those words, we are blessed, and our families are blessed with us.
(48) Alma 10:23 "But it is by the prayers of the righteous that ye are spared; now therefore, if ye will cast out the righteous from among you then will not the Lord stay his hand, but in his fierce anger he will come out against you." We often only think about this in context of a population (like Sodom and Gamora), however, if we as individuals were to "cast out" our own righteousness, if we were to cease to do good or to keep the commandments, then we individually would be ripe for destruction. Just because you may be surrounded by other people that are good, that doesn't mean that you are safe from the judgement of God. I think an entire population could be righteous but for one person, and that one person could and probably would experience the fierce anger of the Lord if they refused to repent.
(49) Alma 12:13 "Then if our hearts have been hardened, yea, if we have hardened our hearts against the word..." Do you remember how Jesus is the Word? If we read this verse with that in mind, then it takes on a deeper meaning. "If we have hardened our hearts against Jesus Christ, insomuch that he has not been found in us, then will our state be awful, for then we shall be condemned." See also verse 11, because I think this is also applicable to that verse. (Verse 11 says, "And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries..."
I missed last week (couldn't get the internet to connect from my house on Sunday, and then I went to San Fransisco and wasn't exactly spending much time on the computer), so this is for two weeks' time.
(18) Jacob 5:73 This is the parable of the olive trees, specifically the part where they are grafting in the wild tree with the "tame one:" "they did keep the root and the top thereof equal, according to the strength thereof." We should not branch out further than that which our roots can support. Or, in other words, do not force yourself to take on more than that which you have strength to bear.
(19) Jacob 6:5 "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would... cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you." I thought it interesting that one of the definitions of "cleave" is to "become emotionally attached to" something.
(20) Enos 1:3 "... the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart." This one I just linked to Mosiah 2:41 which says, "I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to theend they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."
(21) Omni 1:21 "Yeah, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him" I remember learning that your soul is your body and spirit combined, so to offer up your whole soul would be to offer up all that you physically and spiritually have.
(22) Mosiah 2:14 contains the description of what is, to me, a nearly perfect form of government. I'm not going to type it up here, but feel free toread it yourselfand see what you think!
(23) Mosiah 2:33 talks about everlasting punishment. I think that part of the reason this punishment is everlasting is because we can never pay back all of our blessings. As stated in a previous verse, we are indebted to our Heavenly Father from the very beginning, from the time that we are given our bodies until the end of time we are indebted to him. There is nothing that we can ever do to pay back this great debt, save that we serve Him. Yet even after doing this, we are blessed with even more, and so our debt becomes greater, thus bringing about an endless debt.
(24) Mosiah 3:15 "And many signs, and wonders, and types, and shadows he showed unto them, concerning his coming" Look at the dictionary definition of this word (a person or thing symbolizing or exemplifying the ideal or defining characteristics of something; a symbol or an emblem). Do you think that the people all noticed all the types that they were given? For example, do you think that the Israelites noticed when Moses and some of the things he did was given as a type? Do we notice the types in our own lives? For if God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then it stands to reason that the Lord still shows us many signs, wonders, shadows, and types to this day.
(25) Mosiah 3:19 "For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father." What exactly is a saint? I think this verse gives us some pretty good defining characteristics of sainthood. Read back over it again.
This week, I finished 2 Nephi fairly early on, and so we also get a few of my thoughts on Jacob. (For my own reference, my notes are now going to be numbered in accordance with the way they are numbered in my kindle, just so that it makes it easier for me to find where I've left off from the week before. I will still include the scripture reference.)
#9. 2 Nephi 30:5 "And the gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; wherefore, they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers." I think part of the restoration of all things is also restoring the descendants of Lehi as well as the Jews to the knowledge which their forefathers previously had.
#10. 2 Nephi 31:16 "...unless a man shall endure to the end, in following the example of the Son of the living God, he cannot be saved." I am pretty sure that this is a no-brainer, but unless we actually follow the Savior's example, we are not really enduring to the end.
#11 2 Nephi 31:20 "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope..." What do you think it means to have a perfect brightness of hope? I suppose that part of enduring to the end is to have this kind of hope. I also think that, for hope to be perfect, it cannot be false or misplaced.
#12 Jacob 2:13 talks about riches and pride. Pride comes when we have more, have done more, or perceive ourselves as being more than another individual. The sin didn't come from getting riches; the sin came from seeking riches because of pride and a desire for being more than someone else.
#13. Jacob 2:19 "seek [riches] for the intent to do good" It is OK to seek riches as long as you first seek the Kingdom of God and as long as your intent is to better the lives of others and to do good, not for the benefit of yourself (your pride) only.
#14 Jacob 3:1 "Look unto God with firmness" The dictionary defines this as being solid and unyielding. If we are looking to God with firmness, then there is nothing that can distract us from him.
#15 Jacob 4:5 This verse discusses the account of Abraham and his sacrifice in the wilderness. Sacrifice brings us closer to God by giving us some sort of understanding of God's love. While we do not offer up animal sacrifices anymore, we are still commanded to sacrifice our time and all that we have to the Lord to bring us closer to Christ.
#16 Jacob 4:10 "seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand." I think it is OK to tell the Lord what we hope for, but it is more important that we inquire after His will.
#17 Jacob 4:14 "blindness came by looking beyond the mark..." What do you think this means and how does it apply to us? How does a person look beyond the mark?
11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and aafflictions and btemptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will ctake upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.
12 And he will take upon him adeath, that he may bloose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to csuccor his people according to their infirmities.
13 Now the Spirit aknoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the bflesh that he might ctake upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.
I like that he first mentions that Jesus will suffer our pains, infirmities, and illnesses, before he mentions that He will also suffer for our sins. While I do believe that Jesus suffering for our sins is a very important part of the Atonement, I think that far too often we overlook the fact that He also suffered our weaknesses, our pains, our illnesses, our infirmities, too. We do not suffer anything by ourselves, save that Jesus suffered it first, with us. I find comfort in that. Hopefully you guys do, too.
15 Yea, I say unto you come and fear not, and lay aside every sin, which easily doth abeset you...
First, according to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary, "beset" means "trouble or harass." Second, I really like that Alma says "come and fear not." Don't be afraid to set your sins, those things which maybe you are troubled about but are not sure you want to give up, don't be afraid to set them aside. It's OK (and good!) to not do things the way the World does them.
23 And now I would that ye should be ahumble, and be bsubmissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive.
24 And see that ye have afaith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works.
This is a good road-map of what we need to do to stay on the Strait and Narrow. I believe that to be submissive means to give your will over to the will of the Father without argument. If you entreat someone to do something, you ask them very politely and seriously to do it. (That's Google's definition.) Some sources also say that being easy to be entreated means to be agreeable, and teachable (which goes along with being humble?) I also like that God wants ask to ask for those things which we stand in need of, and not just the spiritual things. He wants to take care of us in all ways possible, like a good Father does. And if we have faith, hope, and charity, we can do little wrong. I like that.
As far as Alma 10 goes, I've always wondered where the story is of Aminadi (Amulek's great something) "who interpreted the writing which was upon the wall of the temple, which was written by the finger of God." I'd love to read about that.
Sorry for two churchy posts in a row. Actually, I'm not really sorry. I just hope that you don't feel like I'm going all over-kill on the religion.
I had the opportunity to teach in Relief Society today, something that I haven't done for three months, but something that I've been thinking about since my last lesson. I think it was last Fast Sunday when I finally decided what I was going to teach on. Sacrament meeting was just starting, and the brother giving the invocation mentioned the phrase "a broken heart and a contrite spirit," and it just stuck with me. I thought, "That's it. That's what I need to teach on!" It took me 2 weeks of pretty heavy thinking (worst weeks EVER at work, actually) to really get the lesson down, and even then, it didn't turn out anything like I expected it to. I'm not even sure what I expected, exactly, but this was not it.
Anyway, what follows is, more or less, my lesson. This is, actually, how it started*, but I ended up moving a few things around, cutting a few scriptures out (due to time constraints. I'm still kind of annoyed that I had to cut anything out, but at least I was forewarned**), and, of course, none of the comments I received via participation are included here (had some really good comments, even if I did have to pull teeth to get anyone to comment).
• What does it mean to have a broken heart? (To suffer extreme sorrow.)
• What does the wordcontritemean? (Repentant.)
Write these definitions on the chalkboard.
Read
D&C 59:8 Thou shalt offer aasacrificeunto the Lord thy God inbrighteousness, even that of a broken heart and accontritespirit.
19 And behold, I have given you the law and the commandments of my Father, that ye shall believe in me, and that ye shall repent of your sins, and come unto me with a abroken heart and a contrite spirit. Behold, ye have the commandments before you, and the blaw is fulfilled.
18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and asaveth such as be bof a contrite spirit.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Psalms 51:17
What does it mean to sacrifice?
To sacrifice is to give up something valuable or precious, often with the intent of accomplishing a greater purpose or goal. Sacrifice has always been a part of the gospel ofJesus Christ. It is a reminder of the great atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ for all who have lived or will live on earth. Before the ministry of Christ, animal sacrifices were offered for this purpose. After theAtonementof Christ, followers of Jesus Christ—by His direction—began to offer instead a "broken heart and contrite spirit" (3 Nephi 9:20),
• Why does Christ want us to have a broken heart and a contrite spirit?
As in all things, the Savior’s life offers us the perfect example: though Jesus of Nazareth was utterly without sin, He walked through life with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, as manifested by His submission to the will of the Father. “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). To His disciples He said, “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29). And when the time came to pay the ultimate sacrifice entailed in the Atonement, Christ shrank not to partake of the bitter cup but submitted completely to His Father’s will.
The Savior’s perfect submission to the Eternal Father is the very essence of a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Christ’s example teaches us that a broken heart is an eternal attribute of godliness. When our hearts are broken, we are completely open to the Spirit of God and recognize our dependence on Him for all that we have and all that we are. The sacrifice so entailed is a sacrifice of pride in all its forms. Like malleable clay in the hands of a skilled potter, the brokenhearted can be molded and shaped in the hands of the Master. (Bruce D. Porter)
President Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) defined a broken heart and a contrite spirit this way: “Godly sorrow … is a deep realization that our actions have offended our Father and our God. It is the sharp and keen awareness that our behavior caused the Savior, He who knew no sin, even the greatest of all, to endure agony and suffering. Our sins caused him to bleed at every pore. This very real mental and spiritual anguish is what the scriptures refer to as having ‘a broken heart and a contrite spirit.’ ”
When we sin and desire forgiveness, a broken heart and a contrite spirit mean to experience “godly sorrow [that] worketh repentance” (2 Corinthians 7:10). This comes when our desire to be cleansed from sin is so consuming that our hearts ache with sorrow and we yearn to feel at peace with our Father in Heaven. Those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit are willing to do anything and everything that God asks of them, without resistance or resentment. We cease doing things our way and learn to do them God’s way instead. In such a condition of submissiveness, the Atonement can take effect and true repentance can occur. The penitent will then experience the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost, which will fill them with peace of conscience and the joy of reconciliation with God. In a wondrous union of divine attributes, the same God who teaches us to walk with a broken heart invites us to rejoice and to be of good cheer. (Bruce D. Porter)
President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985), who gave such comprehensive teachings on repentance and forgiveness, said that personal suffering is a very important part of repentance. “One has not begun to repent until he has suffered intensely for his sins. … If a person hasn’t suffered,” he said, “he hasn’t repented.”2
Why is it necessary for us to suffer on the way to repentance for serious transgressions? We tend to think of the results of repentance as simply cleansing us from sin, but that is an incomplete view of the matter. A person who sins is like a tree that bends easily in the wind. On a windy and rainy day, the tree bends so deeply against the ground that the leaves become soiled with mud, like sin. If we focus only on cleaning the leaves, the weakness in the tree that allowed it to bend and soil its leaves may remain. Similarly, a person who is merely sorry to be soiled by sin will sin again in the next high wind. The susceptibility to repetition continues until the tree has been strengthened.
When a person has gone through the process that results in what the scriptures call “a broken heart and a contrite spirit,” the Savior does more than cleanse that person from sin. He gives him or her new strength. That strengthening is essential for us to realize the purpose of the cleansing, which is to return to our Heavenly Father. To be admitted to His presence, we must be more than clean. We must also be changed from a morally weak person who has sinned into a strong person with the spiritual stature to dwell in the presence of God. We must, as the scripture says, become “a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord” (Mosiah 3:19). This is what the scripture means in its explanation that a person who has repented of his sins will forsake them. Forsaking sins is more than resolving not to repeat them. Forsaking involves a fundamental change in the individual. (Dallin H. Oaks)
When we have received a forgiveness of sins, a broken heart serves as a divine shield against temptation. Nephi prayed, “May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite!” (2 Nephi 4:32). King Benjamin taught his people that if they would walk in the depths of humility, they might ever rejoice, “be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of … sins” (Mosiah 4:12). When we yield our hearts to the Lord, the attractions of the world simply lose their luster.
There is yet another dimension of a broken heart—namely, our deep gratitude for Christ’s suffering on our behalf. In Gethsemane, the Savior “descended below all things” (D&C 88:6) as He bore the burden of sin for every human being. At Golgotha, He “poured out his soul unto death” (Isaiah 53:12), and His great heart literally broke with an all-encompassing love for the children of God. When we remember the Savior and His suffering, our hearts too will break in gratitude for the Anointed One.
As we make the sacrifice to Him of all that we have and all that we are, the Lord will fill our hearts with peace. He will “bind up the brokenhearted” (Isaiah 61:1) and grace our lives with the love of God, “sweet above all that is sweet, … and pure above all that is pure” (Alma 32:42). (Bruce D. Porter)
Repentance is a continuing process needed by all because “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Repentance is possible, and then forgiveness is certain.
President Kimball said: “Sometimes … when a repentant one looks back and sees the ugliness, the loathsomeness of the transgression, he is almost overwhelmed and wonders, ‘Can the Lord ever forgive me? Can I ever forgive myself?’ But when one reaches the depths of despondency and feels the hopelessness of his position, and when he cries out to God for mercy in helplessness but in faith, there comes a still, small, but penetrating voice whispering to his soul, ‘Thy sins are forgiven thee.’”4
When this happens, we have the fulfillment of the precious promise that God will take away the guilt from our hearts through the merits of His Son (seeAlma 24:10). How comforting the promise inIsaiah 1:18that “though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” How glorious God’s own promise that “he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more” (D&C 58:42).
*By "started" I mean: this is how I had my lesson planned to go when I got to church this morning. It ended as a color-coded.... thing with notes arrows and lines all over the place, but I think you can still get the gist of things in what I've posted here, anyway. P.S. I hope you realize that not a single phrase^ in my lesson is something I came up with. Everything I used was found on lds.org, with quite a bit of it pulled from a talk by Elder Porter of the 70 and Elder Oaks of the 12. I also pulled a few things out of an Aaronic Priesthood manual (found online, of course).
^Actually, this is not quite true. I did add in the question "What does it mean to sacrifice?" all by myself. My idea. Also, the title of this post? That was me, too.
**in the night. Seriously. I was having all kinds of hinky^^ dreams last night, and in the midst of one of them, I dreamed I was at church, in Relief Society, waiting to give my lesson, but the Stake Relief Society President decided that she wanted to "take a few minutes" and ended up teaching an entire lesson, not even leaving room for testimonies at the end, and I just kept wondering when she was going to stop talking so that I could get to teaching. Luckily this isn't quite what happened to me, but it was one of the councilors in the SRP, and I was wondering when she was going to get to the point, just spit it out already and let me teach! Yes, I am impatient.
^^If you don't know what "hinky" means, then you need to go watch some more NCIS.
