zil

While I'm sure there are some (perhaps many, how could I know) who do have too casual an attitude about the gospel and its covenants, please consider that at least some of the quick, short answers you got may well be because the answer itself is simple (meaning "not complex", which is entirely different from "easy"). Those who have a testimony of it know that God wants you to make temple covenants and receive temple ordinances. That is simple (again, "not complex"). Therefore, anything which conflicts with that is not God's will. But members, especially lifelong members or members who have not had to struggle (yet) for their faith, may not know how to express the simplicity of God's will in this matter in a way that doesn't sound overly casual - or they may not recognize the need to find a way - or even that they sound overly casual. Just a thought. PS: You might want to start another thread (or specify in this one if you want to discuss further) about things like the Word of Wisdom, tithes & offerings, serving in callings, frequency of temple attendance, scripture study, etc. where each member decides for themselves at least some of the details of their service / devotion - how much, how long, what some adjective or adverb means in practical terms, etc. Understanding that some degree of flexibility is "built in", why that's good, and how to view things from the Lord's perspective might help you as you continue in your journey with your fellow saints. (It might help all of us to recognize the good in this.) And it might help you understand the "why" behind some of the things your leaders have told you.

In fact, I would recommend that the two of you break out a few dictionaries and a good thesaurus and brainstorm about all the different kinds of integrity that exist, their application, and how these can expand one's understanding of personal or spiritual integrity.

You asked about integrity, so I gave you integrity. And there are lots of opportunities for symbolism between a really well-designed database and personal or spiritual integrity. But I guess if your daughter isn't into databases, then she'll need to figure out what she is into that relates to integrity. Indeed, coming up with her own idea for this project might actual be an exercise in integrity. (I tend to have an encompassing definition of integrity.)

Design and build a complex database with perfect referential and data integrity?

Snow crab legs - fewer calories than pretty much anything on the menu. Yum yum yum. Probably better for you than fries.

I see your fast food and raise you one

I assume this is a personal covenant, because no Church / Priesthood covenant could conflict with a temple covenant. Therefore, the question to ask yourself is whether God would have you make the covenants He has revealed as required for all who wish to receive exaltation or whether you should forgo exaltation in favor of a personal covenant made before you understood the Lord's will in this matter. (Because let's be clear, there is no other path to exaltation - no exceptions for "conflicting covenants".) Personally, I believe if this covenant you speak of really does conflict with temple covenants, God would have you gain understanding and accept the higher covenant that leads to exaltation - even if that means letting go of a prior, personal covenant. I also believe that if you do your part, humbly and with a willingness to do whatsoever God commands, He will help you come to understand this.

FYI, that link takes us to section 93.

I'll take a stab: That seems to summarize the point, to me. ...Or, in my own words: Mortality is meant to be a test. However, the world has adopted the attitude that it should not be, that everyone deserves "easy". Therefore, rather than viewing hardships through the lens of being tried and tested, they rant and rave and demand others change (or give, or validate, or any number of other verbs) so that their life might be easier. Those of us who believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ ought to understand that trials exist for our benefit, and should approach them in that way, always relying on Christ.

Not exactly about the power of speaking, but I always thought this was revealing (and in the same vein):

Intriguing. Will you tell us which two times you remember?

You know about wi-fi sd cards, right? Just checkin'.

And name it KITT?

10 Now the land south was called aLehi, and the land north was called bMulek, which was after the cson of Zedekiah; for the Lord did bring Mulek into the land north, and Lehi into the land south.

Probably in Lehi in the Desert.

Call me a snowflake, but that seems like a mean thing to say.

Only the Urim & Thummim were the brother of Jared's. All the rest came from Nephi down until Moroni buried it all. It's possible that king Mosiah is the one who received the brother of Jared's Urim & Thummim, which then passed down with all the rest of it until it was buried for Joseph to find. Someone else who's more up on this stuff will have to comment / clarify. Meanwhile, these links have what info I know of (and a link to D&C 17 to save others the time). https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bd/urim-and-thummim?lang=eng https://www.lds.org/scriptures/tg/urim-and-thummim?lang=eng https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/17?lang=eng

Well, think about D&C 88. Something therein is said of those who will inherit the celestial that is not said of those who will not (v28-31). Now maybe the difference can be excused but I'm not convinced it's meaningless - it may be, but I can't find anything definitive that says otherwise.

When I was trying to make my habit of trudging, it was very frustrating / discouraging in the beginning when I would fail to meet my goal, but eventually, I decided the failures didn't matter, only the successes did. I wasn't doing something temporarily, I was making a change that I would have to maintain for the rest of my life. So I decided not to beat myself up over the failures, but just to keep trying / starting over. I kept track (marking the days I did and didn't do it - which I'm positive helped), but started reminding myself that my goal wasn't to trudge every day, but rather to set a habit of trudging every day, and that it takes a long time to set a habit. Eventually I found the time of day that worked best and shifted my schedule to accommodate, and eventually reached the point where my habit was set. I still miss a day sometimes, but it's no longer a big deal because I know I'll pick it up again tomorrow, because it's a habit. It took at least a year to form that habit. (I could go back and look at the logs to see, but I'm sure it was at least a year.) When the habit was set (and some during, but it wasn't my focus), I started tweaking what I did while "doing my habit" (sped up the treadmill, increased the duration, added some arm exercises). Other people could have done it faster, would have set other goals and met them, blah blah blah. Hooray for them. I did (and still do) what I figured would work for me without risking something so difficult that I would quit altogether, and I'm content with my progress (mostly). I recommend you take a similar view - you are changing habits. That's hard. It takes a long time. You're going to fail sometimes. Oh well. It's not the end of the world. Just start again. In the beginning, the days you do the old habit may outnumber the days you do the new habit, but eventually, the balance will start to tip, and as long as you keep trying, it will tip, and the new habit will outnumber the old habit, eventually by a lot, until the new habit becomes the norm.

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/pgp/moses/3.5?lang=eng#p4 https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/29.36?lang=eng#p35 https://www.lds.org/scriptures/pgp/abr/3.22-23?lang=eng#p21 https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.56?lang=eng#p55 https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/93.29?lang=eng#p28

IME, only when we take all the standard works (Bible, BofM, D&C, PofGP), and study them in light of the restored gospel as taught by living prophets and apostles, do their teachings become logical and consistent. Without the whole, any individual piece might seem irrational or contradictory, but the whole of it together is the most internally consistent thing I know. And anything that remains internally consistent while spanning so much time and so many cultures has to be true.

If you thought that was fun, try this: http://archives.yalealumnimagazine.com/issues/01_03/seal.html

I copied the formula to all columns - you can mouse over the box at the lower right corner of the first cell, then click and drag over to the end of the row, let go and it will replicate the formula, updating column letters for you.

Call me absurd, but I'm highly entertained by google's identifying of anonymous people - right now, we have Anonymous Buffalo and Anonymous Ibex in. Earlier, there was Anonymous Otter and Anonymous Platypus.