Melissa569

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Everything posted by Melissa569

  1. As far as speaking against the church goes, I think its reasonable to allow people say, "I disagree with the LDS gospel because ______." There are people of other religions (or no religion) here, and we're not all going to have the same opinion. But we also have the right to say what we think-- as long as we do so in a grown-up way, without intention of picking on the mods, insulting people, or starting fights.
  2. Not meaning to offend anybody, because its my church too-- But I think there are a few reasons why people leave the church, and I'll be very frank about them: 1-- Pressure to always be doing more callings and moving up in the church. People are busy. They have lives and things they have to do outside the church too, and dreams they want to acomplish. Some of the steps toward those dreams are not taken through the church-- not because the dreams are bad, but because maybe the church doesn't have influence in all circles? But people often get the old guilt trip thrown at them of, "How could you be too busy for god?" Well... That's the wrong way of looking at it. Nobody can avoid God, because he is with you everywhere you go! :) But you CAN be too busy to do something a bishop or a member of the church wants you to do.... So that's why you keep God in your mind and heart, and mentally consult with him in everythng you say and do, all day long. In this way, his will is always going to have influence over your actions, no matter where you are or what you're doing. Church callings aren't the only way to do god's bidding. Yes, you can go to church and get support from other godly people-- that's fine. But you can't just isolate yourself from the world outside the church. At some point, you have to develop the strength to make your own stand as a soul, and face the world outside the church, without letting it shake your faith. Its almost impossible to get some members of the church to accept that, though. This tends to frustrate people and drive them away. 2-- Ideas fairly unique to the LDS church, like "becomming a god when you die", or "the gold plates", or "you have to be sealed in an LDS temple in order to be with god, or with your family members in heaven", etc., etc., etc. None of these things are taught in other religions, and they can be a lot to swallow. 3--Being the only LDS member in your family. When the rest of your family is not LDS, and they get mad at you when you try to convert them-- that can leave a person with a rather depressing feeling that the church wasn't geared toward "single converts". But rather "entire families". Often you see most of the leading members in a ward brag about being "3rd, 4th, or 5th generation" in the church, etc. If that's not the case for you, it makes you feel left out. And a person may not like being in a religion that makes them worry about not being with their family in heaven. So people tend to turn their backs on all that, and go in search of something less "exclusive". Something more centered around "believing in god, the bible, and being a good person", and not so much about the historical manifestation of a specific church, or its dogma. I myself particularly struggle with #3. I've only ever regularly attended the LDS church, but much of the time, I feel very excluded in it. Its starting to look like ALL churches and all religions are more about glorifying their own dogma, history and structure in the eyes of man-- instead of focusing on god. That really disturbs me, and I get the feeling that god's not too happy about it either. I would never turn my back on god or Jesus. But I've dismissed many specific churches as "too self-righteous" to lead anybody in the right direction. There is a BIG difference between god, and a church. Churches are run by humans. Humans can choose to listen to god, or choose to ignore him. I would never trust any other human to ALWAYS listen to god, and never distort his truth in any way. I would only trust myself to decipher the meaning of his words. Sure, I'll listen to others' opinions, but I will NEVER vow to blindly trust and follow any human, under all circumstances. Not even if its a "prophet". Because a prophet may mean well, but he or she is still a human.
  3. I use Suave shampoo and conditioner, and that's only a dollar for each bottle. I only have to use a littel bit, so each bottle will last me about 2 weeks. So that's about $4 per month. Some times I wear it down, or up in my favorite clip, which was only $5, and I bought it 3 years ago. Its still in perfect condition. I don't get professional hair jobs done. I have something called a "Creaclip" (it was a Christmas gift). Its a perfect cutting guide that clips onto your hair and slides down, so you can trim your own hair perfectly, all by yourself. It came with a smaller one for bangs too. So I cut my own hair at home. And it does a very professional job, so I love it. So basically, the only thing I ever spend money on for my hair is shampoo and conditioner. $4 per month, that's only $48 per year. Over a 75 year lifespan, that's only $3,600. Not even close to the other estimate :)
  4. Gwen-- very well said. I suppose in that light, additions to garments shoudln't be necessary then. It just seemed like a lot of people were struggling with how to wear them in relation to regular underwear, and possibly feeling like they weren't living up to what the temple workers had told them because of it. But if it can be squared with god that you wore other underclothes for very personal reasons, and if that's ok with the church too, then that sounds pretty fair.
  5. I think its because your priorities change when you get married. And sometimes your old single friends understand, but sometimes they don't... If they don't, sometimes old friends can turn into new enemies, lol. Before we got married, my husband had this buddy named Duke. Duke was a 38-year-old man who has ALWAYS chosen to remain single (many women have wanted to marry him, but he wasn't interested in being "tied down"). Duke is a VERY happy bachelor. He wants all his friends to be happy bachelors too, and when any woman threatens his "bachelor group" by winning the heart of one of his buddies, he tries to run her off by comming between the two. Well, after we got married, Duke still insisted on all his friends acting like bachelors. He figured out when my hubby was off work (we lived downstairs from him). Then Duke would come a-knocking on the door, tempting hubby to "come upstairs to his house for all the free beer, and gourmet food (he's a very good cook), and card games, and guy movies he can stand!" On a nightly basis, there would be 4 to 10 "guy buddies" hanging out in his rather nice apartment. Duke INSISTED there be absolutely no women allowed in there. He basically had his own "men's club" for a home, lol. And most guys couldn't help but take him up on the offer; being at "Duke's house" was always more fun than being at home, or doing anything with a girlfriend or wife. So night after night, hubby would just go straight up to Dukes when he got home from work, and not even say hello to me. Finally, he would come home around MIDNIGHT, after I had gone to bed. Then get up and go to work the next day. That first year of marriage, I hardly every had the chance to SPEAK to my husband, thanks to Duke. All we ever did was fight. I was angry because I felt like Duke had robbed me of my first year of marriage. My husband was angry because I was bashing his "oh so wonderful buddy". If I ever managed to talk Shawn into staying home one night, Duke would knock on the door, hubby would RUN to answer, and then it was up to Duke's apartment again.... If I follwoed them outside and protested that hubby and I had a night planned together, Duke and the rest of the bachelor mob would all yell at me, calling me "posessive, insecure, a prison warden", tell me to "get a life", yadda, yadda, yadda. I tried many times to explain to Duke that my husband was a married man now, and had duties and responsibities toward his home and his wife. That when you get married, your life and your schedule changes. When I told him that, he just shrugged, and said, "I don't see why...." Finally, a job switch forced us to move 30 miles away, and we escaped the clutches of "Duke", and we only fought 1/100 as much, lol. But yes, bachelor friends and married friends often don't mix, lol. I guess its jsut the way lifestyle and priorities change. You also suddenly have a lot less in common, lol.
  6. Well, that's just an expression I once heard floating around this forum. I still think its a good idea, though. I've never worn garments due to being inactive for a very long time. But from all the photos and videos I've seen, and everything I've read in this post, I know I deffinitely would NOT like not being able to legitimately wear regular underwear under them, especially for all the previously mentioned reasons, but also personal preference. :)
  7. Ditto, the only country besides USA I've lived in was Germany. Tons of rules there that were different from the USA. For example, if you tried to eat sunflower seeds in public, everybody would laugh, point, and tease you for eating "bird food". Here, you drop food on the ground, nobody picks it up. But in Germany, I would be eating potato chips, accidently spill some on the ground, and all the kids would run over to pick them up and eat them. Unless you were going outside town, or hauling something too heavy to carry-- you walked, rode a bike or took the strause (kind of like a cable car). Not the case over here, we would drive to the bathroom if the car would fit inside the house, lol. Germans shop on a daily basis, REGARDLESS of the day of the week, even Sunday. Some of them even shop meal to meal, and make a walking trip to the market 3 times a day! Those little pully-carts and reusable over-the-shoulder shopping bags are common place there. You see people hauling them down the sidewalk all over the place. So to me, buying food on Sunday isn't a major uproar, like it is to the people in my USA ward, lol. Even the LDS Germans over there in the afternoon ward did it. Germans are really into FRESH stuff, they don't like a lot of canned, jarred, or frozen stuff, or foods that have been stored for a long while. That's why they have so many bakeries and little butcher shops :)
  8. You know what I think would be cool, is if the church started manufacturing garments in pairs-- Like shirt AND bra combos. Or panty AND lower garment. As in the panties and bra belong in the set, they are just as sacred to be worn next to the skin, and are made of the same material as the regular garmies. But they would be designed like traditional bras/panties, and could be worn under them for comfort and support (think breast support, or for security wearing dipsosable pads and such). But the regular garmies still come with the set for the "conforming to modesty" aspect. And of course you could choose bra and panty size, etc. Just like you normally do. It seems like a lot of people are wearing regular underwear under the garmies anyway, so this would just be a more legitimate way to do so. Then of course, some women complain that its hard to feel "feminine" with the full garmies while laying next to their husband at night. So when its just you and your husband alone at night, baybe you could just wear the bra/panty combo. And during the day, wear the regular stuff. I just think it might solve a lot of issues :) Its also health issues. I've been told by doctors that its really not a good idea to wear pants and shorts without panties... Because (this is yucky I know) it can cause infections-- its from the bacteria from the "back area" sliding up by the front area in the loose fit. So-called "thong" undies are dangerous too, for similar reasons. Of course, you need air flow for health reasons too, so they also recomend not wearing spandex or leather pants. But they recomend a decent-fitting (not too tight, or too loose) pair of cotton panties, to reduce all the problems and risks. Also for sanitary pads, because if those slide around too much from front to back, you will have the same problem. Decent panties are just best all around. So this might be something that church women need to push for health reasons as well as comfort.
  9. People are for and against Christ in different levels. It isn't black and white I agree, there are little issues that really aren't going to determine much of your fate, and are mostly just friendly suggestions for your health. And then there are big, major rules that you are expected to follow, and that play a huge part in weather or not you can be with god one day. For example, you can't say, "Well god, I know I beat my wife to a pulp on a regular basis, and she died young because I stabbed her when she tried to run away to a women's shelter. But its all good, because-- I NEVER did drugs."
  10. When you put it that way, I can see why you would prefer to just not vote. It might feel like by voting on what we think of as religious matter, we are pushing our religious laws on others. But then again-- Yeah, the law may separate church and state, but an induvudual doesn't have to in their heart, if they don't want to. I know god probably wouldn't want you to separate them, he does expect us to live by his influence, in everything we do, including votes. not to mention the fact that there are many laws that go hand-in-hand with religion, that nobody questions for a second-- such as laws on murder, theft, etc. It seems like our willingness to accpet the joining of church and state is somewhat selective. But in the end, I guess its up to the individual.
  11. Couldn't have said it better. I'm not perfect, but I know on the BIG issues, I'm deffinitely for god.
  12. Well, like I said, there's a problem with that--- Religiously, christians cannot "allow" it, even if its in the form of voting yes. Many christians believe they will be held responsible for "allowing" it. So they're most likely not gonna do that. So if it is "allowed", it can only be allowed DESPITE the Christian votes againts it. Otherwise we will directly be held responsible. Now if there are more people for it than against it, fine. I guess in that case, it will be (legally) allowed. Remember, our votes won't change what holds true in heaven. But as long as devout religious voters outnubmer gay supporter voters, it won't be allowed, it seems.... And gay rights activists don't really have as much support as they like to think they do... There are a TON of "closet cases" who in public will say "Yeah, sure, homosexuality is ok". But deep inside, they don't really believe that. They are just saying it because they don't want dramatic arguments, vandalism, or violence. But those people can vote whatever they want without fear, because votes are made in private. Lots of closet cases came out of the wood work just to vote on Prop 8, because its a matter they take very, very seriously. And the more attention that's brought to it, the more closet cases will come forward. So unfortunately, the battle may be far from over. Then of course, you have to consider all the people who do not vote, which is actually a pretty high number...
  13. Well, that may be what the doctrine says, but no doctrine strips anybody of their free will. Technically, a human can always choose to follow the teachings of a church or not. I never said gays had to adopt a straight lifestyle, just like drunks don't have to adopt a sober lifestyle. We must have free will, otherwise we cannot be held resposnible for our actions. But likewise, I should not be stripped of my free will to accept or reject the homesexual lifestyle. If somebody could come up with a solution that allowed everyone to maintain their free will, that would be better.
  14. not really a direct answer to the questions, just my opinion here: A person should only join a church if they fundamentally agree with it. Otherwise, they should look elsewhere for a place of worship. Churches have the right to believe and practice whatever they want. Instead of trying to change the church to suit personal needs, a person should find a church that agrees with what they believe. Why would somebody want to join a church, if it didn't support their lifestyle? That's what I would like to know. You either believe the gospel is true, or you don't. And if you're not sure, then search for answers with an open heart. I don't think its about being fair at all. I think its more about forcing people to accept the gay lifestyle. And that's wrong. Weather or not you accept it, condone it, or allow it should be a personal choice, and should always remain so. Especially when people believe that they will be held resposnible for supporting it in the afterlife. Nobody should be forced to support something that they believe is against the word of god.
  15. Its not that this judge can't be fair just because he's gay... Its that he directly and personally has something to gain or lose in the ruling. But for most other people, its just an "opinion" they might have. Totally different. I think somebody who has nothing to gain or lose (directly or personally) from the ruling should be judging the case.
  16. As others have said, there's always 2012. And who knows? Maybe a few times between then and now! I mean this one kinda hit us by surprise, we had what? A day's time of warning? lol. As for possible power outages.... Especially the LDS church is good about "preparedness", so hey, it might be a good idea to brush up on our solar power preparedness, just in case. Here's a video I found on how to build a very simple solar cooker/oven, with regular everyday tin foil products! Good to know. But of course in winter, you would still probably need a fire, lol: These days, solar panels on the roof tops are actually a fad that lots of people are jumping on. I'm seeing them on family's rooftops all over. If for no other reason, than just to prepare for "peak oil" or to save a litttle money on the power bill. I'm just curious-- do those things work on cloudy days too?? I wouldn't mind using one, it would actully make me feel kind of secure! Although I imagine you might have to hide it. Because of "social unrest", groups of local thugs might come a long and try to kick you out of your home so they can have it. I guess preparedness is a smart idea, if you assume people will be nice to each other. But if you've ever seen the movie "The Book Of Eli", that shows you how people might really behave-- Out of desperation, they act like animals and kill you over food and supplies, when they find out you have them. Preparendess isn't just about having supplies (although sadly, that's the way most people treat it). I think self defense, weapons, and ways of keeping a low profile should also be learned, just in case. No, its not the flowery meadows "Barney and friends" type of thing we would prefer to show our little ones, but we might have to for their sake. Its gonna be up to them to straighten the world back out, after all :)
  17. Hey, you never know it could very well have. Come to think of it, my own animals were acting pretty wild last night, chasing each other all over the house and they don't usually do that. And my husband was unusually giddy too. Very noticably so, to the point I looked at him oddly and literally said to him, "Who are you and what have you done with my husband?" lol. Interesting....
  18. Pam-- Awwwww, DRAT! That means I missed it. Well, at least I got to the the last one about a decade ago, that was pretty amazing.
  19. Urbanfool--- Awww, you mean I could have missed it??? That bites, I was gonna try to get shots of it with my camera. Lemme check the date on the video, I'll see if its possible to post a link to it. The video says "8/4/2010" but I dont' knwo if that's the date the video was posted, or the date its supposed to hit.... They said jsut lok for it when its dark, and look generally north. Loudmouth_Mormon -- Don't really know, I keep hearing conflicting opinions about that stuff, regarding how long it takes for solar flares and such to reach the earth... This is the video I saw, its actually described more as "A billion tons of super-heated gas, comming our way a thousand miles a second": 'Solar Tsunami' Hurtles Toward Earth | Featured Videos | Comcast.net
  20. I watched it on Comcast News on my computer's homepage. They didn't give an exact time of when it would hit earth, they just said "tonight". But other sites might have a more accurate estimate. Since my husband and I are formed to the old "grave shift" lifestyle, I'll probably be up all night anyway. I live in a city, so that might make it more difficult for me to see with all the city lights. They said it woudl be most visable out in the country, where there is less artificial light influence.
  21. Saw a report on the news-- the sun just shot off what they call a "solar tsunami" toward earth. It should hit some time tonight. Its an extra burst of the sun's radiation. Our magnetic field protects us from most of the sun's heat. But tonight, because of this flare, we may be able to see Aurora Borialis as far down as mid California, or further. It can turn the whole sky (or part of it) bright red, green, blue, pink, etc. This one also may or may not cause power outages. Hopefully not. Guess we'll know tomorrow, lol. It happened before, just over a decade ago (happens about every 11 years). I was living in the mountins of northern California with my dad, and I got up to let my dog in at 1:00am-- the ENTIRE sky was bight red! Scared the heck out of me, lol. Until I found out what it was. The one they are REALLY worried about is the one due to hit in 2012. That one may be able to knock out the electicity all over the entire earth, for 4 to 7 years!! Cars, computers, phones, and even battery operated items wouldn't work in that case. Even satellites would fall out of the sky, and we'd be left with no way to watch for asteroids, weather, or any other solar activiety... Or military stuff. Guess we'll just have to hope that doesn't happen, hm?
  22. Just saw the new development on the prop 8 thing today..... U.S. judge overturns California gay marriage ban | General Headlines | Comcast.net
  23. Oh lord... When I was a kid, I was TERRIFIED of the film "Hansel And Gretel" by Fairy Tale Theater, lol. They actually have all the Fairy Tale Theater films on YouTube. Here is the part of the film I always thought was the most scary, lol: YouTube - FTT (S2) - "Hansel & Gretel" pt.4/5 Man, that witch used to scare the daylights out of me. I was terrified of ALL elderly women when I was little, because my jerk of a brother told me that ALL women become witches and eat children when they get old-- and that I would too some day, lol. He was so mean!! He had me terrified of my own grandmother, lol. I asked him why grandma never ate us, and he said, "She's waiting for us to get fat! Why do you think she gives us so many cookies?" Then when our family got stationed in Germany, it got worse... My brother looked over at me during the car drive to our new house and said, "You know, Germany is where the story Hansel and Gretel REALLY happened..." *SIGH* Brothers...
  24. Thanks everyone, I'll have to look into all this material. :) rameumptom-- Sounds like she's fair because she might be trying to decide for herself. If I were going to share what I have learned, I would want to share everything that pulled my attention tot he left, and to the right. It would be like taking people with me on my journey :)
  25. I would like to do my own research on the history of the LDS faith. I grew up in a baptized but inactive family. So I'm trying to make up my own mind about the church and its founders. Unfortunately, it seems that all the information sources out there are either provided by people who are trying to prove that all the written accounts are true, or people trying to prove that they're false. And because of that, I feel like I'm not getting a fair and equal view of the facts. This makes me think of a scene from one of my favorite movies ("My Cousin Vinny") about how biased versions of a story can be very confusing and misleading. In the movie, Vinny is a defense attourney, defending his cousin in a murder trial. Vinny pulls out a deck of playing cards, and gives his cousin an example of a case: "The D.A.‘s gotta build a case. Building a case is like building a house. Each piece of evidence is just another building block. He wants to make a brick bunker of a building. He wants to use serious, solid-looking bricks... He’s gonna show you the bricks. He’ll show you they got straight sides, he’ll show you how they got the right shape, he’ll show them to you in a very special way, so that they appear to have everything a brick should have. But there’s one thing he’s not gonna show you-- when you look at the bricks at the right angle, they’re as thin as this playing card. His whole case is an illusion. A magic trick. It has to be an illusion, cause you’re innocent.” I would like to see ALL angles. So does anybody know of any good historical sources about the LDS faith that are unbiased? As in just facts, not trying to pull you in one direction or the other?