skalenfehl

1 Ne 15:8 Have ye inquired of the Lord? Matt 7:7 Ask and it shall be given you; Seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you. "What is wanted?"

In my experience, just having the mind of God with you is all the connection you need once you have cleansed the inward vessel. Theophanies and visitations are not necessary for daily communication when He speaks to your mind. Perhaps I can distill it somewhat. If you have received the gift of the Holy Ghost, having been baptized with fire and are a new creature, I suggest your next step is to seek your calling and election until it is made sure. Joseph Smith continually emphasized this admonishing the saints to "go on to perfection." When it is time and in His own due time, He will come suddenly to His temple (you). It is a very solitary journey, and not easy. You will learn what it truly means to have a broken heart and a contrite spirit. You must walk your own valley of the shadow of death. The endowment ceremony is your biggest clue. It is a type and a shadow of the journey you take as you journey in your lone and dreary wilderness and make your way to the veil to converse with the Lord as the brother of Jared. You won't find any discourses today on such matters. You have to dig into either the Book of Mormon (it's all laid out there) or study Joseph Smith's teachings. His work wasn't done, but he left us plenty of material to use.

I just started it. Best 700 pages for $18 and change! Loved this part in the intro:

Salvation is simply being rescued from sin and death. It is having the that gulf bridged, which separated Lazarus from the rich man in Christ's parable. We can be saved in any of three kingdoms whose glory differ from that of the stars, the moon and the sun. Exaltation is to follow in Christ's footsteps, who did nothing other than what He saw His Father do, thus being exalted to the Father's throne, and His Father being exalted to a higher throne and so on.

One could not be saved if one did not believe. If I don't believe in a God or in Jesus Christ, surely I would never need to exercise faith in someone that doesn't exist. But if I investigate the matter and begin to learn about Him and why I need to believe in Him, it becomes necessary for me to change my ways. This is called repentance, or rather "turning to Him." It is a turning from whatever strange path we are on to a path of light. God is light. But there's more. Jesus Christ declared that unless a man is born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven. That sounds an awful lot like being hedged up. Even damned. By being baptized in water, I am exercising faith that there is a Jesus Christ in heaven who wants me to be cleansed of my own worldly ways. It seems to me like work. But ok, I will experiment upon the word. I will do this with all my heart and hope and pray that there is a loving God who wants me to come home. I have been baptized. And because of the desires of my heart; because I have experienced a mighty change of heart, Jesus Christ baptizes me with fire and with the Holy Ghost, exactly the way Christ was baptized with fire when He chose to obey His Father in heaven. The Holy Ghost descended upon Him as a dove. And my only labors to receive this gift were to change my old ways and be baptized. And the journey continues.

The difference is asking God what His will is concerning you and how you become an instrument in His hands for others. You have to have knowledge from God that what you are doing is according to His will. It's precise. We just went in a circle.

Throughout our scriptures, the Lord has declared salvation to be a gift. It is the heavenly gift.

All of Lectures on Faith. It was structured purposefully to teach how faith leads to knowledge. But one must first understand precisely in who one exercises faith in order to produce the intended result. I suppose you could skip Lecture Two, but then you might end up working harder and not smarter in the long run. Nephi emphasizes in ch. 32 concisely what LoF analyses and examines meticulously. In short, we must understand what it means to pray and not faint; understand the manner in which God has appointed to come unto Christ. Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost. They speak the words of Christ. Feast upon the words of Christ. The Holy Ghost will tell you what to do (pray that your performance will be consecrated for the welfare of your soul). Pray and not faint. Or in other words:

How knoweth a man the Master whom he has not served? A man is saved no faster than he gains knowledge. I suggest starting with Lectures on Faith. Keep the Book of Mormon your constant companion. Refer to 2 Nephi 32 often.

I work in a production facility so my work is extremely repetitive and I'm efficient at it. I suppose you could compare it to washing dishes all day. Anyway, we are all allowed to listen to our mp3 players (excluding forklift operators, etc) while we work. It passes the time. I used to listen to music, then I got bored of it. I have not skimmed through anything. I've listened to all standard works multiple times. In the last couple years, I've probably listened to the Book of Mormon at least 50 times in both English and Spanish. When I get home, I spend my free time pondering what I've listened to, researching reference materials, reading books and commentaries by authors such as Gileadi, Nibley, etc. My mind has been opened to up to many wonderful and powerful insights. I have truly feasted on the words of Christ and have been filled with the Spirit. I don't watch TV or spend my free time doing much else. I've read the Book of Mormon almost 100 times in my life and I've finally begun to understand the things that Isaiah taught, etc. I plan to spend more time studying Isaiah, Ezekiel, Paul, etc. Oh, and Joseph Smith. People might say the Old Testament and some of the doctrines, which I study are not relevant, but I tell you they are more relevant than ever. They point to us. They are all telling us exactly where we're headed.

If I see something or someone too many times in one session, I've spent too much time of Facebook.

My short answer: Sinning is knowingly choosing to disobey God (lying, stealing, all manner of ungodliness). Nephi, though he had been redeemed from the fall (brought back into God's presence), "sinned" still, or at least that's how he expressed it (2 Nephi 4:18-19). But once one has been sanctified and justified, receiving the Holy Ghost, going on to perfection, receiving his calling and election, or in other words, receiving the Holy Spirit of Promise, and is privileged to receive the Second Comforter, does so because he has been cleansed ever whit from his iniquities (3 Nephi 8:1). I'll let you ponder the difference between sin and iniquity. Anyway, at this point, being just, one can still trespass, which carries its own connotation. Joseph Smith, like Nephi, though having parted the veil and walked with God, was still susceptible to making wrong/poor choices. Losing the 116 pages is one example. The Lord told Joseph that if he was not wary, he would fall (D&C 3:9). The bottom line is, once the Lord has proven you and through the process I mentioned, the veil no longer exists between you and heaven, having received the promise of everlasting life, unless you literally deny God, your trespasses are forgiven, though not without chastisement and correction. Joseph still made poor choices as he was still human and fallible. My two cents.

Glanced through the site and the FB page. Bleh. Mundane. Fell flat for me. As for the Beatles...yeah, they lived in a "yellow submarine," (bong) and in a "sea of green" (marijuana) and strawberry fields forever (endless red needle marks in everyone's arms) with Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (LSD), etc....magical imagery indeed. How's all that for snarky?

I would first obtain mine errand from the Lord, include my own proceedings, ministry, revelations, etc. I'd include prophecies from prior prophets (Isaiah, etc) that were allowed/commanded to be preserved that I am not ordained to divulge. I would chronicle relevant history and whatever admonitions I am prompted to include before sealing it up. That's about it. I would leave out whatever the Lord commanded me to leave out, probably because the Lord wants to try the faith of said future people.

I think a lot of what is found at lds.org, etc is periphery. It's not bad at all, just a whole lot of extensions of what the church is about. In my humble and earnest opinion, read the Book of Mormon. This is the keystone of our faith and who and what we are about. It was so important to the Lord that the Book of Mormon come forth, that He had Joseph Smith translate and publish the record before restoring the fullness of the gospel, for the very fullness is contained in the book. I am also impatient and I have found that listening to the Book of Mormon on mp3 at work allows me to get through it in three days. I can get through all the scriptures in about three to four weeks (Bible, Book of Mormon, D&C, PoGP) and then start over. This repetitive pattern of reading over and over again has opened up my mind to the deeper layers found in the scriptures. If you prayerfully study the Book of Mormon in this manner, I am confident that you will not only begin to understand what we believe, but you will also be filled with the Holy Spirit as you do so. Just the first two books (1st and 2nd Nephi) are enough to teach you because Nephi's own life can be viewed as an allegory to the path that each of us must take to come unto Christ. LDS members will be able to relate Nephi's life as "Adam" who is cast out from his home in Eden, goes into the wilderness and after having been true and faithful is brought back into God's presence. Nephi's inclusion of Isaiah is very specific and purposeful. The many other prophets/kings/judges are chronicled to give us more examples of the doctrines that we believe in while weaving some of the deeper mysteries of God. Jesus Christ's visit to this people also gives us important information concerning their relevance as part of the House of Israel. The wars, contentions and secret combinations (conspiracies) teach us, the readers, what to avoid in our lives as we struggle in our own world to live in a society where Satan is constantly battling for control. Read the Book of Mormon. You truly cannot read it enough times. Trust me. :)

This is worth sharing.

Imitation Game.

Revan, without going into a lengthy discourse, I will simply say that there have been periods in my life (trials) where I have felt nothing but emptiness (feeling dead inside). There have also been times when I have felt the Spirit so strongly as if to consume me with fire and to make my bones quake. Your circumstances are not unique. We all go through painful periods. As you try to overcome your weaknesses, which cause you to sin, realize that you cannot do it alone. We are not meant to carry our burden alone. We were given weaknesses as a great iron ball on purpose by our Creator as a gift. You may fight against it for a long time. But your trial is not so much to fight against it day in and day out to carry it with you as it is to know that only Jesus Christ can lift it for you, if you plead with Him to do so. This is a period of humbling yourself and crying out to God and putting all your sins and desires and weaknesses and everything you are on the alter. Then He makes you into a new creature. When you experience that mighty change of heart, you will know it. Keep pushing forward and know that only Christ lifts our burdens. Only Christ baptizes with fire.

The Bible is filled with symbolism, allegory, types and shadows. Christ's words were often multi-layered with meaning. I believe Christ referred to revelation and not Peter, when he referred to "this rock." Christ used Peter's name (Cephas/stone), to represent the manner in which Christ's church functions. It has always been this way since Adam's day. As for the gates of hell not prevailing, I believe Christ is not referring to temporary setbacks. Jacob 5 is clear evidence that the Lord is in charge and that pruning, dunging, digging, hewing, burning, etc is a part of growth when decay is an inevitable part of the process. When Christ established His church, He did it to usher in the times of the Gentiles. Peter and the others were to go out into the world. The tribes of Israel were scattered, the Jews about to be destroyed and also scattered and the process for the fullness of the gospel to be established was to be a long, painful pruning and gathering process.

I don't necessarily feel sympathy for someone who opposes. I do, however, feel sympathy for those who have been unjustly treated, who as a result of their treatment vote in opposition. I personally know people who have been unjustly treated by their local/area leaders, but because we are insulated from the general authorities who refer us back to our local authorities, their can be no proper redress. These are exceptions, however, and not the rule. But they DO exist.

I seldom have, although one gal who lived in my town before I moved, who was formally a temple endowed, sealed to her husband, now divorced, living LGBT lifestyle, and I have chatted on rare occasions about church. People have their agency. The strongest testimony you can bear is to live your own life in harmony with the gospel. Let your own light so shine so that people can see what they might be missing. Never judge. Only love. Never coerce. Only persuade. If you are moved upon by the Spirit to start a conversation with someone who is LGBT (or any other mortal; we ALL sin) about the gospel, then do so as moved upon. Otherwise, just treat them like you would anybody you love. The irony, though is we tend to judge most harshly those we love most (son, daughter, sister, brother...). After work today, I happened to walk out with a co-worker who is gay (family is LDS). I didn't feel the need to say anything about his sexuality anymore than he felt the need to say anything about my Christianity. I know he is studying to be a sytlist and also barbering. I told him I've been cutting my own hair for a year now and just starting to teach myself to do a proper fade. We carried a normal conversation as we would with anybody else. He knows I'm a faithful LDS and he was respectful of me just as I was respectful of him.

I agree with Pam. Teach them the truth. Truth is light. Light cleaves to light. Sometimes, the truth hurts, but then it sets you free. In the end, truth is all we have. In the end, if we are true, we will live in the light.

Ah, thanks, kapikui. :)

Interesting picture... Ok, what does hash tag spacious building mean? Am I supposed to go on Google and type that in? Elder Pearson said these words in his talk. Oh, and LOL, Elder Uchtdorf! I loved hearing him talk auf deutsch!

I don't think I fit the mold either as husband to a wife who couldn't have children and an adoptive father to two boys, now full grown and serving time behind bars. I have a perfect brightness of hope, however, that the Lord has accounted for all these things for those of us who don't have the chance for a proper traditional family. Something is troubling me, though, with all this talk to shore up the family, which I strongly support, though in the wake of the new SB296 legislation...I know our leaders have their fingers on the pulse of our social/political climate, but...