Sunday21

[*]The plates of Laban. This was an extensive collection of sacred writings, equivalent to our Old Testament but, it would seem, rather significantly larger, giving a pretty comprehensive history of God's dealings with the house of Israel along with the spiritually historical material such as we have in the book of Genesis. Ah so this is where the Book of Mormon gets prophets such as zenos. Vort you have an amazing understanding of the Book of Mormon!

Holy Cow Vort! You are hardcore. I didn't know anyone could actually do that! I am going to print this out and give it to friends, That's amazing!!! I am stunned anyone knows the book that well. Seriously cool! I will print this out and keep with my scriptures. Must go to bed. Midnight and I am teaching employment law in the am. What's scary is I am by turns relief society teacher and goodness knows what else teacher here and I cannot keep my nephi's straight! Nite nite. Thanks a lot!

Thank you bytur! Pictures- nice ones!- and explanations. Very nice! I thought there had to be something for children somewhere.

Thank you! This is golden. The whole narrative makes a lot more sense now!

Thank you. This explanation is most helpful!

Thank you. I am using both the seminary and institute manuals. There are both helpful but I am still confused. There is just so much information to adsorb at the same time. How the church works, the vocabulary, the culture. Changing habits, viewpoints. Giving up coffee. Every day I learn something new and sometimes the missionaries make up commandments to be funny! I learnt not long ago that we don't buy lottery tickets. (Is that true by the way?). And genealogy, and going to the temple, and the Book of Mormon! There is so much information in the Book of Mormon! A different use of language, geography, weapons, a lot of gospel information! People convert to this religion in their 70s. How I ask you? How? And by the way, Please help us run this social service agency!

Also very handy, ldsliving and meridien magazine, both available online. Goes through each Sunday school lesson. You can google the title of the lesson and the title of the magazine. This how I survived "acts". You know it is not easy to go from zero familiarity with scripture, having been a lifelong atheist, and try to read the bible. I did not even know that Jesus was Jewish! That was a surprise. I explained this to my sister and she still doesn't believe me.

Is anyone else having difficulty getting this thing to work? Or is it just me? Love "step by step through the Book of Mormon", life-saver. Also youtube's Discussions on the Book of Mormon by byu university. Very helpful! Ridges book series, 3 for the Book of Mormon, are really easy to follow. The Book of Mormon is reproduced in its entirety so you just need one book. No flipping back and forth. I bought ridges' Isaiah made easier and it is a lifesaver. What a friend we have in Ridges. That guy is the man. Detest "the Book of Mormon made harder". Like I need that! Asks interesting questions but doesn't answer them. Highly annoying. Any suggestions for explanations for beginners? Not the hideous "lectures on faith". What language is that book written in? Is there a JST translation?

Divorce probably lowers the murder rate, also against church teachings!

Be aware that most school boards have a set policy in terms of reimbousement for degrees. It is likely that the policy is spelt out in a collective agreement. If you have an employee advisor, a union rep or even a payroll clerk, someone will know the answer. Clue number one, do you pay union dues? If so, there is a union! Call the union first. If there is a chart somewhere it is unlikely that anyone thought to give fewer points for an online degree.

This discussion reminds me of a clip from an old Woody Allen film. Diane Keaton and Woody play characters who are dating. Diane is asked, how often do you have sex and she responds , oh all the time. Twice a week. Woody is asked the same question and responds, never. Twice a week.

I suspect that this is not the route you want to take and I know that libido is not the only problem in your marriage but...you can pray and ask to have your libido lowered. I know that you feel that you are entitled to more sex but...there are many lives in which regular sex is not an option. Even I would say most people have long periods of adult life in which regular sex is not an option. Most young moms that I know are juggling a full time job, household chores, and children's needs. Older people have health problems. Start looking at the faces at church. I remember a quote from a bishop who said that he came away from his counselling duties grateful for his own problems relative to other people's problems. Look around the pews, I bet you see a lot of people who are involuntarily celibate. I know you feel entitled to sex but maybe this is not the plan for you.

Thank you for your helpful responses!

So Nephi was praying not to have a vision but to have a conformation of the truthfulness of his father's vision? Nephi was not recommending that his brothers pray for a vision but rather that they pray to know and understand their father's vision? To pray for a vision is seeking a sign which is something sinful people do?

Reading 1 nephi, nephi seems to suggest to his older brother that it might be possible for them to have their own visionary experience. I assume that lamen and Lemuel would have to improve their behaviour and pray sincerely. Is this part of Mormonism? Do rank and file church members have such experiences? Is this something to aspire to?

What if you did a slide show about the temple? There are great lds slides of temples online. You could describe the purpose of the temple ceremony. This would help to explain why temples are important.

The book "feeling good" by David d burns is said to be as effective as therapy. There are exercises to change the way you talk to yourself eg I am useless. It is cheap. You can check for a used copy on "Abe books"

I am the only member in my family. The rest are atheists. I and my siblings took dangerous jobs and jobs that put us in dangerous situations to put ourselves through school, and I am including high school here. We were exposed to dangerous chemicals, dangerous people and dangerous situations. We were assaulted and sexually assaulted. Guess what? My mother is getting older and she needs help. I notice that there are clear limits as to what my siblings are prepared to do for her. One brother and one sister refuse to let her visit their homes - she is losing her marbles and thus is quite annoying to be with. What goes around comes around.

A lack of financial support can sometimes have the effect of reducing the age at which people marry. My sisters and I married pretty young as a survival strategy. We had fewer choices when young and got our educations with the help of our husbands. Our parents were not very interested in our welfare so we found husbands who could help us. This type of choice is not one you want your children to make.

Not having grown up Mormon, I am not familiar with Mormon customs. I paid for all bills including medical since I was 14, medicines, glasses, didn't have a car till I was married and left my parents. My parents contributed very little to the wedding, a suit and about $30. In Canada parents are often far more generous to a daughter than to a son. You know what, although I was raised with very little help even for basic necessities like pens and paper since I was about 10, I am not in favor of putting young people in a position of desperation when they are young. It is hard to attend without books as students here often do here. It is hard to do well in school if you are always hungry, as I was. Walking miles in the cold without a coat in winter, as I did, is unhealthy. Making the wrong kind of friends, as I did, because you need a ride or a meal, as I did, is risky. Also, for Mormon youth, delaying marriage, might not be a good choice.

Does your school board honor online degrees? If so Western Governors is both inexpensive and online. My sister is doing a master with this school. If your school board does not honor online degrees then I would try a university that has both an onsite school and an online program in which case, your employer does not know that you did the degree online.

Good work cdowis!

Sorry you are going through this. I tried supporting a friend through this situation. He spiralled out of control. Nasty situation. Look after yourself. Be kind to yourself. Best wishes.