LeKook

After a while trying to obey a rigid set of laws gets to be tedious, and if that's all we're doing, then our view of God will become skewed (I think). In other words, if that is all we do - if there's no growth or progression towards Christlike attributes - then we will ultimately give up even trying to obey the law because we will come to the realization that we are a)always deserving of punishment because there's no way we can get a 100 percent perfect record, and b)God will become a fixed constant of being a vengeful entity, ready to pounce on us whenever we fail. Result "a" is the doorway to recognizing and accepting the atonement if we haven't truly understood it before reaching this point of frustration in never quite feeling like God is happy with us. If that's as far as our view of God extends, if we're just obedient out of fear, we'll get exasperated and give up. No growth there. Bottom line: The love of Christ transcends the law. Once we accept that, then Christ changes us. We're no longer pinned down to a series of "do this, not that" mandates. We are free in Christ. We will live the law in our hearts because of love, instead of obeying the law out of fear. Of course, it's taken me over 40 years to figure this out for myself. :) But that's why I am... LeKook!

Just got my Book of Mormon study manual today, so excited!!!! It's awesome. Should keep me busy for about a week. LOL!!!

True, all of it. :) I'm not letting this sidetrack me, either. Not fixated on it, in other words. Learning from my own experiences and those of others who've gone through it. Not sure what any of it means "in the big scheme of things", but hey, it's all good. :)

No estoy seguro de cómo interpretar esta Pam .... (?) *big silly grin* *gotta love Google Translate!*

LittleWyvern, I'm with you on this one. I refer to myself (generically, I suppose?) as "Christian" but if the conversation leads to more in-depth discussion, it just doesn't fit since the term implies for the most part association with religion that has nothing to do with the actual church of Christ. It just creates confusion. So I start with "I'm a Mormon" and then proceed to the full name of the church as conversation goes deeper.

But you may be required to learn the words to a hymn or two. LOL!!!

No, and while this has only happened twice, it has happened twice in just shy of 3 weeks, and to me that's just strange. I guess I could just pray that I don't get any more information like this, but isn't some of this experience intended to help me learn something??

This is the kind of thing I'm talking about, where it comes to revelation about another person or situation. In this case, you got a type of knowing "out of nowhere" of what type of person this was. You just knew, and that was it. Been through the same thing myself. Now, what do you think the outcome would have been had you said something? A falling out with family members, maybe? I definitely see what you mean about it being "too ticklish". Thing is, this has happened to me too, and I'm at a loss as to why I should be privy to something that I'm sure is factual information that outside of revelation I would not otherwise have known. It's just a situation where I know that I know but I don't know how I know. It's happened twice now since my confirmation, two entirely separate situations. The first having to do with a family member who I hadn't spoken to but knew was in trouble and what the trouble was, but not knowing why I was supposed to know this. As it turns out what I knew was in fact, well, FACT. LOL!!! The other one having to do with something going on with a certain group of people, and all I keep wondering is, "Why me? Why am I supposed to know this, and not the people involved?" Thing is, this second situation, the stuff I know is very good, very encouraging. But I'm not sure I should share it with them. It's all very new to me and I'm frankly a bit, not confused (wrong word), maybe mystified, by it. My M.O. so far is to keep my mouth shut and pray about it. That's all I can do, right? Thanks for sharing your experience, it takes some of the weight off my mind. :)

LOL I kept going back to it and waiting for a video to appear, LOL!!!

No, I think we agree. I mean personal revelation as in it's revealed to me, regardless of who/what it's about. :)

Right... we are not the MORMON CHURCH, we are the Church of Jesus Christ. But when referring to myself as an individual member of the church, for the sake of clarity, I can say, "I am a Mormon." Past that, if the subject of conversation continues in the "What are you?" vein, I can say, "I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints", and explain further. Cool, huh? :) P.S. As a side note, I've found that saying "I'm a Mormon" actually opens up far more opportunities to share than saying to what church I belong. I always end up being able to share what church I attend as the conversation moves along. Great opportunities to share the gospel!

I know from experience, that if my demeanor is negative, people respond to me negatively. When you're with the sisters, what do you discuss? Is what you have to say encouraging, edifying, positive? People are drawn to the positive. Keep negativity at home and get involved. Why are you sitting outside the RS room? If you're outside, insist on being let in!!!! :) Participate. Smile. Where you can, in whatever capacity, serve.

HiJolly, I'm not clear on what you mean... are you able to share a bit more about this either here or PM? Thanks! -LeKook

I can say in all honesty that the reality has far surpassed how I envisioned the fulfillment of the promises thus far. I was certain that this is the true church of Christ on earth before I was baptized. Is it possible for a person to grow even more sure of a truth every day? If so, then that's where I am. When I get my blog set up and start telling my story, you'll get what I mean. :) -LeKook (Lynn)

If I received revelation that wasn't necessarily personal revelation - let's say, it's something about an acquaintance, or a situation - I wouldn't accept it if it contradicted scripture. That's in the "no-brainer" category for me. :) As I have no children, yes, I am talking in the "grander" sense (for lack of a better term, LOL!!). God can talk to anyone in any walk of life about anything, I'm certain, but since the concept of personal revelation is something entirely foreign to me from my prior religious experience outside of the LDS church, I'm just trying to get something of a benchmark of what is, or isn't, or how we can know, if revelation (personal, family, social sphere, or ... grander) is actually from God. I'm not sure this better explains the question or not, but as Dravin phrased it, roll with me here. LOL!!!

Hi Danielle-Marie, Wow, you know what? I think you are awesome. How many wives will actually attempt to support their husbands in their chosen faith even though they don't necessarily agree with that faith?? I have to say I have seen it happen maybe twice in my lifetime (I'm almost 50, that's a lot of years). Most situations like yours one spouse ends up resenting the other or there is perpetual conflict because of the differences in religious views. I'm a recent convert, was just baptized on Sept. 4 of this year. Please ask away, I'm looking forward to talking to you here! :) -LeKook (a.k.a. Lynn)

Hello and great to meet you!!!! :)

Note: Please don't read more into this question than what it is! :) My question: Is it out of the realm of possibility that the average Christian can have visionary and/or revelatory experiences outside of the scope of strictly personal revelation?

Personally I think once I've crossed over to being judgmental of another human being for any reason, I cease to be Christlike in the finest sense of the word. It's a warning sign for me, in other words, that I've lost compassion for others, the same compassion Christ has for me. That's not to say I condone certain actions of others, but to write someone off as being permanently lost based on my own faulty observations, well, that can't be a good thing.

I'm not the sort to just approach someone and ask for this (I'm just not inclined to ask for stuff for myself, as it tends to end up putting other people out, LOL!), but if someone I know at my church recommends it it would be something I'd like to have. Thanks to all for taking the time to explain it to me. :)

Explanation, please? I'm a newbie to the church. I've heard the phrase "Patriarchal Blessing", but what is it, is it something everyone in the church receives at some point? Thanks. :)

I have only been a member of the church less than a month, but after reading what the OP said, all I can say is, going through the process of repentance and confessing what you did and taking the consequences has got to be easier than living with guilt and feeling separated from God in any way. Yes, it'll be difficult, embarrassing, etc., but imagine pretending all is well, returning to church, and then dealing daily with the reality of living a falsehood. Just the thought of doing that myself gives me the shivers. I wish you the best and hope you make the right decision. :)

It's not what he said, but how he said it (verbatim quote) that throws people off. And I'm like, "He's God, isn't he? Wouldn't he actually know (verbatim!) what he said in the first place?"

I'm kind of pushed into doing this sort of thing, otherwise I just don't "fit". Unfortunately there are cliques even in the church (sorry, sisters, but that's a fact!) and I'm a perpetual outsider. It's taking way more effort than I ever expected to even get to know anyone on a first-name basis. I guess I expected different, but you know, it is what it is. I don't have a teaching assignment, no - nobody's even mentioned that to me or what it is. Sorry if I'm starting to sound like I have a chip on my shoulder, it just gets to me, you're right, it does feel like high school all over again. Sometimes I want to walk up to people and say, "Sorry I'm not pretty to look at, but I assure you, I really DO exist." LOL!!!

I'll grab a few when I get a chance and post them. I don't want to mess with anyone's belief either, and won't post them here if I suspect it might do so. When I prayed about this to resolve it in my own heart, the response I got was that there are billions of people in the world, and why can't God say the same thing to more than one person, in the same way? In other words, what's it to me? God is God. He will convey truth however he likes, to whomever he likes. That was enough for me not to make an issue of it. I can't speak for anyone else. I was humbled enough by that answer to leave it alone, LOL!!!