My parents were out for the week and we went to the temple today. While there, Mary and I had some of my ancestors sealed. We sealed my paternal grandfather, his parents, and both sets of his grandparents. We also sealed his wife and her parents.
I don’t have much to say that is insightful, but today feels like a good day.
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‘Jesus ad angers church groups’ by Daily Telegraph – RichardDawkins.net
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While preparing for a lesson in a couple of weeks, I was doing a bit of research into Nephi’s character. From what I can tell, 1 Ne 2:16 is the first place we find out about why Nephi became the sort of person he did:
I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.
According to this passage, Nephi seems to imply that his being young and his desire to learn God’s mysteries caused him to pray. He also seems to imply that those two things, along with his praying caused the Lord to visit him and soften his heart, which in turn caused him to believe everything his father had said.
In the next few verses, he tries sharing what he learned with his brothers. I don’t think it comes a surprise to anyone that Sam accepted what Nephi had to say, and Laman and Lemuel did not.
After his interaction with his brothers, Nephi went to his father. Right when Nephi returned to the tent, Lehi told him he and his brothers needed to go back to Jerusalem to get the brass plates. Nephi says the following:
I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.
I wonder how Nephi came to know this. Was it something he had known for a long time? Or perhaps this was one of the mysteries he mentioned earlier.
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The World’s First, Original & Infamous “Teddy Bear Muhammad”
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I’ve heard some people say that child molesters should receive a life sentence. A life sentence is currently the maximum sentence possible for someone who commits first degree murder.
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Seen in the New York Times:
In a more innocent age, new mothers generally considered their babies to be the greatest gift imaginable. Today, they are likely to want some sort of tangible bonus as well.
And here I had always assumed babies were tangible.
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Imagine a scenario where someone has been called to a position and has the qualities of the average man; s/he makes mistakes, possesses an ego, and can be self-interested and partisan ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù with the purpose of this calling being primarily for that individual’s personal and spiritual growth.
Now suppose the ordinances and decisions this person makes in their calling has a direct impact on other members of the congregation?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù they are in a position of oversight.
It’s already been stated that if there are personal or spiritual problems with the person conducting the ordinance, that the recipient of the ordinance will still receive the full effects of the ordinance ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù God will know and make things right. For example, being baptised by a child molester would not mean your baptism is null and void.
This implies that it is not the letter of the law that must be followed but merely the spirit of the law; an exacting procedure is not required but instead just recommended because God can pull up the slack.
If it is the case that strict adherence is not required, then why is it that such an emphasis is put on perfect obedience of rules both written and un-written in the LDS faith?
There is a perception by non-members that there are many rules to be followed by members and the faith is fairly ‘rule-ladened’ when compared to other faiths which are less rigid when it comes to adherence to their respective rules ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù lapsed Catholics, unobservant Jews, etc.
The other side of the argument being that the strict observance of ritual is an absolute requirement – i.e. temple work. If it *is* a requirement, it flies in the face of the ‘God will make it all correct’ argument and calls into question the concept of appointment to callings being for the called person’s personal and spiritual growth.
Any thoughts, on Our Thoughts, about this?
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While reading my scriptures tonight, I was reading about Nephi and his brothers building their ship to sail to the Americas. For example, see 1 Ne. 18:2
Now I, Nephi, did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the ship after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men.
But it was the next verse that stuck out to me. Not only for the insight it gives us into how Nephi was able to build the ship, but how we might apply it in our own lives.
I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.
What’s interesting here is that Nephi showed us to learn great things from the Lord, he went often into the mountain and prayed often. Perhaps if we want to learn great things, we too should pray often and go to the mountain ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù in other words attend the temple ?¢‚Ǩ‚Äù often.
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When we first moved to Calgary, it was a little overwhelming.?Ǭ† At first, as a family, we didn’t know how we were going to adapt to living in a bigger city.?Ǭ† Everything was so fast paced.?Ǭ† My wife and kids didn’t know anybody in our neighborhood.?Ǭ† It felt like quite the adventure.
?Ǭ†The Semi-trailer backed up to the front of our house and the moving company employees deployed the ramp.?Ǭ† Boxes started to move into the house.?Ǭ† My wife and I started directing the movers where to put what.?Ǭ† The kids were excited, running around in the back yard.?Ǭ†?Ǭ†
?Ǭ†That’s when we first met Kim, our next door neighbor.?Ǭ† She, and her two small girls came out the front door and cheerfully introduced themselves.?Ǭ† They were the only people in our cul-de-sac who did so.?Ǭ† What a wonderful family Kim has.?Ǭ† We met her husband Steve when he got home from work that evening.?Ǭ† They are two of the most friendly people we had ever met.?Ǭ† Always helpful.?Ǭ† Always a hello or goodbye.?Ǭ† You couldn’t ask for better neighbors.?Ǭ† They helped make our transition to Calgary a smoother one.
?Ǭ†Over the last few years, we have grown our frienship with Kim and Steve and their girls.?Ǭ† My daughter would often babysit for them if they needed a night together at the movies or dinner.?Ǭ† Our children would play together.?Ǭ† It was nice to have good friends nearby.
This evening, Steve knocked on our door and brought us some bad news.?Ǭ† He and Kim?Ǭ†were in a car accident this morning.?Ǭ† Kim passed away.?Ǭ†?Ǭ†?Ǭ†Its difficult to think that she is gone.?Ǭ† It’s one of those things that just hits you out of nowhere, unexpected.?Ǭ† My heart breaks when I think of those wonderful girls of hers who will have to grow up without their mother.?Ǭ† I can’t imagine what Steve must be going through.?Ǭ† I wish there was something I could do to make it better, but it’s just one of those hard lessons life teaches us.?Ǭ† She leaves behind two wonderful children, a good husband, a loving extended family and friends, and some very sad neighbors.?Ǭ† Thanks for making Calgary so friendly Kim.?Ǭ† We love you and will never forget you.
I know the gospel of Jesus Christ teaches about the afterlife, the resurrection, and that family ties extend beyond this earth life.?Ǭ† Somehow, that doesn’t offer me any comfort or relief from the cold hard reality Steve brought to our family tonight.
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