Vanhin

And lots of (I mean lots) of ammo. Those buggers just keep coming at you. Vanhin

Me neither... lol

Hehe..

Oh yeah, no doubt. .22's are super fun and cheap. Or even an SKS as a cheap vintage option. Vanhin

Exactly!

Haha, nice. That's half the battle! You like guns! Is he into guns? Pick up an AR-15 ($800 - $1600) or an AK-47 ($400 - $900), that might peak his interest. Save up for it and get a bunch of ammo too. Regards, Vanhin

Yeah sounds like there is a problem there. I wish I could talk to him. I went through a similar phase in my life. However, you never know when there is going to be a Zombie Apocalypse. You will be grateful for his l33t skills then... Put the bug in his ear to get a real gun and the both of you can go to the range together. You would be surprised at how fun that can be. The first time I took my wife shooting (which is another one of my favorite pastimes) was on one of our anniversaries. She was a natural target shooter (put me to shame actually). Regards, Vanhin

Kimiko, Is this what you mean? Regards, Vanhin

I play computer games. Quite a bit actually. But I usually wait until late at night when all my other priorities are taken care of, and the kids are in bed. By that time, my wife is usually veggin' out on the couch watching TV, and I wear headphones when I play. I use my play time to stay in touch with my other family members throughout the world, who play too. My little brother and I, for example, have become really close friends over the years because we have been able to hang out, even though we don't live near by. I'm a computer geek, so anything having to do with computers, whether it be video games or just tinkering around at night learning something new, is one of my past times. However, my favorite past time is studying and discussing the gospel and being engaged in the work of th Lord. I temper my love for computers and gaming with being a faithful husband and father, magnifying my callings, and ministering to my home teaching families. I spend an a lot of time with the boys scouts and missionaries (I go out with them at least once a week). But... sometimes I just like to play! I think any activity can become a problem. I know someone who rides bikes competetively. He loves riding bikes, and sometimes he skips church because he is out riding his bike. There has been some concern, but just think if he was skipping church for video games how badly he would be condemned. If your husband is truly in a mess with gaming, he knows it. He probably feels really bad about it too. I would suggest to him that he would feel better about himself, and things will improve, if he takes care of all the important things first in his life. Take some time to study the scriptures, help out around the house, serve people, etc... Then playing games can be the reward. And get him some nice headphones. It will actually improve his ability to locate his enemies by "sound". Regards, Vanhin

If my memory serves me right, the maternity style garment tops are longer than normal. I don't know if that helps. I agree, the women's garment looks really uncomfortable and the waist seems too tall. Vanhin

I would help. Besides, I would never take such a useless job. Regards, Vanhin

This is starting to get out of hand... Please tone down the personal attacks. That means everyone. Vanhin

Don't give up. Make up your mind right now, that you are going to do what it takes, even if you slip up from time to time, and just start working on overcoming your weaknesses. Don't let Satan fool you into thinking that it is hopeless. Every night, find a quiet place, where you are alone, and pour out your soul to God, and plead with him to help you change your heart. You will soon learn that He is mindful of your struggles and qill come to your aid. Regards, Vanhin

I honestly don't understand what you mean then. How is there any "evolutionary" process without successive generations? Successive generations imply parents and children. If Adam was born, he had parents. If Adam was the first man, and he is the result of evolution, then his parents are not mankind. That would be pretty absurd. It's more likely that Adam's body was born to human parents somewhere else, and that it was placed into the garden. "Dust of the earth" simply means physical element. We help create human bodies all the time, from the "dust of the earth", my wife and I have produced five. It is held by some that Adam was not the first man upon this earth and that the original human being was a development from lower orders of the animal creation. These, however, are the theories of men. The word of the Lord declared that Adam was “the first man of all men” (Moses 1:34), and we are therefore in duty bound to regard him as the primal parent of our race. It was shown to the brother of Jared that all men were created in the beginning after the image of God; whether we take this to mean the spirit or the body, or both, it commits us to the same conclusion: Man began life as a human being, in the likeness of our Heavenly Father. True it is that the body of man enters upon its career as a tiny germ embryo, which becomes an infant, quickened at a certain stage by the spirit whose tabernacle it is, and the child, after being born, develops into a man. There is nothing in this, however, to indicate that the original man, the first of our race, began life as anything less than a man, or less than the human germ or embryo that becomes a man. (LDS.org - Ensign Article - The Origin of Man) Regards, Vanhin

Good advice from everyone. Except for the undue emphasis on "tracting" when you are a missionary. Only do that occasionally to keep it real. :) Spend most of your time working with members, if you don't have people to teach. Teach them the principles of the gospel, and help strengthen their faith in Christ and in his Atonement. Teach them to serve their friends and neighbors. Visit less-actives and part member families, with their home teachers, and help them repent and return. The members will be more motivated to share the gospel, and you will find people to teach. Help the home teachers remember that home teaching is still missionary work, and nothing will progress in their area until they are faithful at that important endeavor. Anyway, those are the kinds of things you want to be thinking about right now. Not girls... Trust me. Regards, Vanhin

Seminarysnoozer, I don't think that what spamlds described means that creatures can actually function on their own (walk around, procreate, make tools, etc) without a spirit to give them "life". Besides what you are suggesting still would mean that Adam's parents were not human. That a non-human species conceived and gave birth to a human. That's even more miraculous than a virgin birth. I think it's more sound to believe that Adam's body was born to human parents and placed into the garden, if we don't want to believe that God simply formed the body like a potter forms clay objects. God "placed" animals and seeds of plants of every kind, presumably from other worlds, so the thought is not so far fetched in my opinion. Regards, Vanhin

What it means to be sealed, quite literally means that our names are recorded on earth and in heaven. There is nothing magical involved. Our marriage is recorded, and covenants made. If we live up to the covenants we make in the temple, then we are sealed unto everlasting life. Otherwise, our names will be blotted out. If a holy act, such as marriage is not sealed (recorded by proper authority), then it doesn't exist in the eternities. Now, the nature of this ordinance consists in the power of the priesthood, by the revelation of Jesus Christ, wherein it is granted that whatsoever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Or, in other words, taking a different view of the translation, whatsoever you record on earth shall be recorded in heaven, and whatsoever you do not record on earth shall not be recorded in heaven; for out of the books shall your dead be judged, according to their own works... (D&C 128:8) Read the entire section 128, and notice how many times the word "recorded" is used, and every time you read it thinl "sealed" or "bind". Regards, Vanhin

I say just go serve your mission and try not to think about it too much until you get back. If you serve the Lord honorably, things will work out in the end. Believe me, you would not be the first to struggle with such issues right before serving as a missionary. As important as it seems now, you will soon be caught up in the work and will have no time for that stuff, unless you let it distract you. Regards, Vanhin

Justification? Is that the right answer? Vanhin

spamlds, I thought this was particularly insightful, and I have to admit that I had never thought of those passages in this way before. Thanks, Vanhin

It is light (possibly quite literally as you suggest) and it is truth, and it has always existed. The scriptures sometimes call it intelligence. ...Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be. (D&C 93:29) We can increase in this life giving light, until we know all things (perfect day, see D&C 50:24). As spamlds pointed out, it is the "divine energy, power, or influence that proceeds from God through Christ and gives life and light to all things. It is the law by which all things are governed in heaven and on earth." (see Guide to the Scriptures: Light, Light of Christ) Regards, Vanhin

Does a queen and a priestess unto the most high God count?

I hear you. There are times when Glenn Beck is being the funny man, but I think it would be helpful if you included an example of what you mean so that we have a point of reference. Regards, Vanhin

The spoofs are not a real representation of a person. I hope that's not the only exposure you have had before you came to the conclusion that he is a clown. The non-specific example you paraphrased is typically how the spoofs try to portray him. I've seen them all, and they are funny, but inacurate. Alright, who has Glenn Beck called out as a Marxist that actually wasn't? Van Jones, for example, is a self avowed communist (Van Jones, August 1992). Regards, Vanhin

What!! It's just a Google search. You might want to get your computer scanned for malware. Vanhin