classylady

Congratulations! You'll be a great missionary!

Twort, do what you need to do to get your life in order. If it means leaving your wife, then that's what you need to do. I believe that you are going through a very difficult time right now. Not only are you, but your wife and children and the other woman too. Do what you feel is right after you've prayed about it. If that means leaving your wife and children, because the marriage is over anyway, then get on with your life. Don't drag it on and on, where there is no closure for you, your wife, or the other woman. Sometimes, we make mistakes in our lives that hurt others, and ourselves, but I know that the Lord loves you and will forgive you. Take care!

Another question that I have on this, is: Are there any additional temporal Priesthood blessings that a husband and wife have by being sealed in the Temple? For example, if a man and wife are civilly married, active in the church, he holds the Melc. Priesthood, but they haven't gotten sealed yet, will there be any additional Priesthood blessings they will receive "in this life", once they are sealed? I know there are blessings in the eternities, but I'm wondering about this life? Does anyone have any insight into this? Thank you.

I haven't found "delicious to your soul", but I've found "joyous to the soul" in 1 Nephi 11: 21-23 it says: "21. And the angel said unto me: Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the Son of the Eternal Father! Knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw? 22. And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things. 23. And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the soul." I'll continue searching and see if I can find anything with delicious to the soul, but I'm thinking this is close to what you're thinking. This is in reference to the Tree of Life, and how the fruit is desirable.

Here's another reference: Handbook 2 Church Policies 21.4.8 Occult Affiliation Church members should not engage in any form of Satan worship or affiliate in any way with the occult. “Such activities are among the works of darkness spoken of in the scriptures. They are designed to destroy one’s faith in Christ, and will jeopardize the salvation of those who knowingly promote this wickedness. These things should not be pursued as games, be topics in Church meetings, or be delved into in private, personal conversations” (First Presidency letter, Sept. 18, 1991).

Here are a few quotes from church officials: James E. Faust "The Great Imitator" Ensign Nov, 1987, 33 "It is not good practice to become intrigued by Satan and his mysteries. No good can come from getting close to evil. Like playing with fire, it is too easy to get burned: “The knowledge of sin tempteth to its commission” (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1939, p. 373). The only safe course is to keep well distanced from him and any of his wicked activities or nefarious practices. The mischief of devil worship, sorcery, casting spells, witchcraft, voodooism, black magic, and all other forms of demonism should be avoided like the plague." Boyd K. Packer "To Young Women and Men" Ensign, May 1989, 54 "A warning: there is a dark side to spiritual things. In a moment of curiosity or reckless bravado some teenagers have been tempted to toy with Satan worship. Don’t you ever do that! Don’t associate with those who do! You have no idea of the danger! Leave it alone! And there are other foolish games and activities that are on that dark side. Leave them alone!" From the Aaronic Priesthood Manual 2, (1993) Lesson 11: Satan and His Temptations "The young men should understand the reality of Satan, but you should not talk too much about him or relate personal experiences with the power of evil. Avoid discussing the occult. If the young men bring up such subjects as Ouija boards, séances, spiritualism, or Satan worship, you should tell them that such things are tools of Satan and that we have been counseled to avoid them completely. Then direct the discussion back to the lesson." Are any of these references what you are looking for?

I don't consider myself a scholar, just someone who loves to learn and study. What are some of the better LDS books out there that I should add to my personal library?

Thanks, Jenamarie, I sort of had to laugh when I read your post about blessing treats to "strengthen and nourish our bodies". I have to admit that I sort of cringe whenever I hear that one, especially when just blessing sugary treats. Maybe a more honest request to HF would be to bless the treats so they are not harmful to us?:)

Javajot, this is the reference: I copied it off of LDS.org Joseph Smith (1805–44) First President of the Church “The Prophet Joseph Smith declared—and he never taught a more comforting doctrine—that the eternal sealings of faithful parents and the divine promises made to them for valiant service in the Cause of Truth, would save not only themselves, but likewise their posterity. Though some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them, and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in this life or the life to come, they will return. They will have to pay their debt to justice; they will suffer for their sins; and may tread a thorny path; but if it leads them at last, like the penitent Prodigal, to a loving and forgiving father’s heart and home, the painful experience will not have been in vain. Pray for your careless and disobedient children; hold on to them with your faith. Hope on, trust on, till you see the salvation of God” (Orson F. Whitney, in Conference Report, Apr. 1929, 110). I hope that helps.

I would like a new watch. An inexpensive one is fine--just something that isn't too big and bulky and I can still read the dial.

Another intangible blessing I've thought of is the peace-of-mind that comes knowing you're an eternal family--especially when a spouse or child dies.

What are the temporal blessings we receive in this life from our temple sealing? My husband and I were discussing this the other night. We both pretty much understood the "eternal" blessings that we would receive in the next life. But, we're not as clear on what the temporal blessings are--what are the blessings we receive while in mortality? I can think of some intangibles, such as, a couple would work harder to make their marriage work knowing they have an eternal marriage. And, I have thought about the promise we've been given as parents that our children who have strayed will some day feel the "divine tentacles" of the spirit and will return--it may be in this life or the next. But, what about the couple themselves. Are there any specific blessings they receive while in mortality?

It's not wrong to ask for a calling. Tell the bishop you would like/need to serve. The Lord knows of your desires, but definitely tell the bishop how you're feeling.

It hasn't happened in a lot of years for my husband to call me by his ex-wife's name. And yes, I think he was mortified too. Especially, since once it was in front of his mother. You should have seen the look on his face, and his mother's. Now, I can laugh at it. I know now that it didn't mean anything. But, at the time, being a newly wed, it was hard to hear. I'm glad your husband tells you that he is happier with you than he ever was with his ex-wife. I think with the type of person I am, that I needed to hear that, but never did. So, I always wondered if he was happier with me--or at least as happy. I never knew for sure. After reading the book "The Five Love Languages", I've learned that one of my love languages is "Words of Affirmation". So, now I've told him that I need to hear how much he loves me. After reading that book and taking the quiz, I came out as being trilingual. I had a three way tie for Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, and Acts of Service. So, I'm feeling bad for my husband--he wants to show his love to me. And for me to feel like my "love tank" is full, it takes three love languages to do it! I never thought of myself as "needy", or "high maintenance". I'm pretty easy-going--anyway, so I thought.

I recently retired from working for a major airline. The whole industry changed after 9/11. I used to love to fly, but now, it's a whole different ball-game. It's stressful to me to get through security, and wondering how long the security lines are going to be. I barely made my flight out of Seattle awhile back, because of the long lines--they were just about ready to close the doors of the plane when I got to the gate. I'm okay with the full-body scanner or a pat down. I've had both. When I use my flight benefits, I fly standby, so I don't like to check a bag in case I don't get on my flight. So, that means I have to pack everything into my carry-on, (even though I can check a bag for free--that's one of the perks for being an airline employee). That can be quite a feat, especially when I might be gone for a week or two. For me, who likes to bring all my lotions, shampoo, toothpaste, mousse, etc., it's pretty tough to fit everything into a quart-size baggy. After 9/11 it was a real struggle for most airlines to start operating in a profit mode again. Some airlines didn't make it financially and went under. When people are afraid to fly, it's pretty hard to fill the seats, and without passengers, there will be no profit, and then in the long-run, fewer airlines--which means less competition, which probably would bring about higher fares. Even though going through security can be stressful to me, I'm willing to put up with it because if it deters even one terrorist getting on a plane and trying to bring it down, it is worth it to me!

I believe you can forgive someone and still not totally trust them. Part of life is making judgement calls. We can choose to forgive, choose to love someone for who they are--sons and daughters of God, our brothers and sisters, and we can still choose not to associate with them. That doesn't mean we haven't forgiven them, it just means we have no desire to be with them. Part of making a judgement call, is knowing the past, and knowing the personality of the person, etc. We do need to be careful in our judgements. When someone is trying to repent and really turn their lives around, it's so hard for them to rid themselves of the old "label". Depending on the situation, often, only time will tell if a person has truly turned their life around. JudoMinja, you've forgiven and love your ex, for who he is--a son of God, and your eternal brother. You don't need to associate/respond with/to him to prove that you have forgiven him. You know that within your own heart.

JudoMinja, I have to agree with everyone else. Don't respond. Especially, because of the protection order, I wouldn't respond. If he wants to make child support payments, let him, but again make sure it's through the system that was originally set up, not by him contacting you for him to pay it. I believe you when you say you have forgiven him. You are still being Christ-like in not responding. You are protecting yourself, not only physically, but emotionally, by not responding. You don't need the emotional stress this would bring in your life. Forget it, and go on with your life. From what I read on your posts, you're doing a wonderful job with your son, and I admire you greatly!

Slamjet, I hope all goes well. I'm really happy for you. I mentioned several weeks ago, that I was able to attend the re-baptism for an ex'd neighbor. It was one of the most spiritual events I've ever witnessed! Keep in mind, that Satan is really going to work on you. He doesn't want you to take this step. So, if you don't mind me giving you some advice, stay close to the Lord, say your prayers, read the scriptures, and ask for help from other members (or even us on the forum) if you need it. We are all rooting for you!

This is a tough situation! There is no easy answer. My grandson just turned eight. Last summer he was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome. Years prior, and even now, he has had some behavioral problems, (though he never hurt anyone), just acting up in class. At the time we didn't know what the problem was. The Bishop actually gave a calling to a sister in the ward to be with him in Primary. That was her assignment. She wasn't the Primary teacher, but she would sit with him in class and sharing time. She was very loving, and sometimes during Sacrament meeting she would ask my grandson if he would like to sit with her and her family. She would invite my grandson over to her house during the week and sometimes after church. She was wonderful with him, and somehow had a wonderful calming influence with him. I'm so grateful to her and her influence. We had no idea at the time what my grandson's problem was. Now that we know, we know how to deal with his issues. My husband and I once team-taught a primary class (I think 9 or 10 year olds) where we had a young girl with some problems. She would often act up in class and she once actually grabbed my husband by his tie, and yanking strongly, shouted "I'm going to kill you!" She was not joking around. She was upset about the lesson, because part of the lesson had requested the teachers during the week to call a parent of each of the children, and have the parents give us something positive to say about the child. She didn't want the rest of the class to know what her mother had said. We didn't get angry with her. Just firmly told her that was inappropriate behavior. I don't know if what we did next was the best, but for the next few months I had her be my special helper, and showed an outpouring of love for her. That seemed to help, because we didn't have any more out-of-control outbursts from her, and her back-talk wasn't as bad. In her situation, she came from a broken-home and her mother didn't have the best parenting skills. If a child actually has something physically wrong, sometimes the best parenting in the world won't be able to completely overcome a child's problem behavior. Hopefully, over time, a child will learn coping behaviors to help overcome their problems.

Sorry, I knew it was an error. But, I had to laugh. It sort of put a whole new spin on things. :)

Dravin, do you mean immortality instead of immorality?

Wow! I didn't even realize it was a regional thing.

Wait! You forgot Sunday School. I think it went Sundays 7:00 or 8:00 am Priesthood 9:00 or 10:00 am Sunday School go home 1:00 pm Sacrament Meeting. Wasn't it two hours? If not 2 then I think 1 1/2 hours. Wednesdays 4:00 pm Primary Relief Society was mid week. My husband tells me it was in the morning. I don't remember because I didn't attend RS back then. It might have been in the evenings?

I'm sorry if my posts came across that I was asking my husband specific questions about his past relationship with his ex. I haven't asked him to compare us. And he has tried hard not to compare me to his ex. It's just that he has let slip some things through conversations. It's his past, and so of course he contributes to conversations about what he's done. For example, when his brothers or sisters (he has 8 of them) got married and talked about their rings, he likes to be involved in the conversations too, and would talk about the ring he bought for his ex. I'm in the room listening to the conversation, and perhaps it's just because I'm a woman, but my feelings have gotten hurt. He didn't mean to hurt my feelings. He just sometimes says things before thinking--the same way he has mentioned how I reacted differently to our intimate relations than his ex. Again, he doesn't mean to purposely hurt me, but over the course of years, things come out. Plus, we are best friends, so we have pretty much confided everything to each other. He's read this thread. He knows how I feel. And maybe, he's confided a little too much? For him, he has told me, that he hasn't been sure where to draw the line. What does he keep to himself, and what is okay to share? He wants to share everything, because he doesn't want to keep anything from me, but at the same time he doesn't want to hurt me. I probably know too much about their past relationship. I probably have received too much information that should have been kept private--I don't know. It's hard to keep things private over the course of our 30 years together. I've accidentally seen the "naughty" pictures and movie he and the ex took of each other. That was definitely too much information that I would have preferred not to know about. So again, maybe it's a "woman" thing. It's been hard not to feel hurt about certain situations in our relationship.