tubaloth

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  1. Scriptures: 1 Nephi 8 8-10 10 And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy. 2 Nephi 5:27 27 And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness. Mormon 9:27 14 And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still. Quote by Joseph Smith Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God. [Teachings, 255–56] Talks Finding Joy in Life Quote: Sadness, disappointment, and severe challenge are events in life, not life itself. I do not minimize how hard some of these events are. They can extend over a long period of time, but they should not be allowed to become the confining center of everything you do. Our Search for Happiness Quote: The problem is that too many of us try to consume happiness rather than generate it. Your Happily Ever After I just found this, this morning. http://worldhappiness.report/ed/2018/ I haven't gotten into it yet. Passing it on.
  2. I get the opportunity to teach/council an Elders Quorum in a mid singles ward (31-45) in Utah. We had noticed a couple of Elders are kind of negative. I caught hold of idea about the Plan of Happiness, and we should be happy. I will share some of the scriptures and talked in the next post. One idea that popped into my mind is that Happiness is a spiritual feeling. I might be the last person on earth that finally realized that. Before I felt like Happiness was more of a physical attitude/state of mind. I think it still is, but I now feel like a happy spirit can lead to a happy attitude.
  3. I also am teaching this 4th Sunday topic. I'm in a mid singles ward, and we really haven't talked about it that much. I actually have tried to push the Elders Quorum Pres to do more. (We did not have any change in our quroum because we don't have a high priest group). In preparing for my lesson, I wanted to go back and figure out when Home Teaching started. It was announced in April 1963 conference. Elder Lee (at the time) was giving the assignment to present this new correlation program the church had been development. (This is also were the term ward council seems to have started). The idea at the time was to revamp the teaching in the church. New way of teaching the different age groups, a bigger emphases on teaching in the home, thus Home Teaching. We realize now we have more members outside the USA then it it. Yes Home teaching probably could still work fine in Utah and maybe even the USA. Outside it, things needed to evolve. In my singles ward we actually tried to adapt home teaching as Elder Holland brought up a year or two ago. The problem we actually ran into was the church's record still needed to know who you visited each month. Became kind of a hassle figuring out if we count that as a visit. Like others have said, I think for the last 55 years we just got complacent with how things were done. Back in April 1963, Pres David O. McKay wrote about Home Teaching in some new leadership manual that was coming out. The first part of it I think got lost over the years. I just changed the quote from Home Teaching to Ministering.
  4. I would even suggest to go Mormon.org each day. 1. they have a short video for that days item. 2. They have other suggestions on what you can do. 3. they have a scripture about Christ doing that days item. That was the one thing I wish was on the Advent Calendar is scriptures to go with it. I get they didn't have the room. Nice to see they are on mormon.org.
  5. The big thing I remember probably has blended together of some small experiences. I remember being on splits with some other companion. I remember us walking and talking about agency and how people have the power to choose. Blending in the knowledge of what I had gained of the plan of salvation, a light bulb went off in my head during this conversation. The plan of salvation is so perfectly constructed that it allows each person to grow or fall as much as they want to. The more a person follows the path, the closer they can get to God. The opposite is also true. Each person has the power themselves to grow at there own speed. The plan of salvation is really the perfect plan to allow people to use their agency.
  6. So for those that have started doing the Teacher Council, how is it going? I do like the idea for the most part. I think having a monthly meeting to motivate and prepare teachers is great. We seem to be having some growing pains. We only have had one meeting. We choose to have the meeting on Fast Sunday, easy to remember, I guess the primary has some combined sharing time so this allows the teachers to be available during the Sunday School Hour. But we ended up having 35 teachers in the room, were as the one for Sunday School teachers only had 8. The video's I have seen so far of examples of this Teacher Council didn't show 35 people in the room. We would like to group the youth teachers together (YM and YW) and group the primary together, but we don't have enough class rooms big enough for that many people. The lessons are divided up into different sections. Each part I think has three topics. For some reason people were confused if we were picking a section, or the topics in the section. We also had confusion on how to lead the discussion to cover the areas they want (how to apply the principle to your classes, role play the topics). From what I can gather actually reading the first couple of lessons, you actually covert the lesson/discussion. Talk about how the Savior Taught. It isn't until the end, do we then try to apply the principle.
  7. https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/david-a-bednar_quick-observe/
  8. With the new push for more spiritual sacrament meetings in our ward counsel it was brought up to maybe give members of our ward some talks about Sacrament and Sabbath day for use in some family home evenings. During part of the training for Sabbath day our Bishop shared some quotes from a Pres. Kimball article found in the Jan 1978 Ensign. This Ensign was decided to Sabbath day worship. I was seeing if there was any other articles that could be used for a family home evening. Nothing really new here, but just the way this guy says it, made it a good read. https://www.lds.org/ensign/1978/01/the-sacrament-and-covenant-making?lang=eng
  9. I think the temple is a spiritual place. I think for some life changing movements we do need the extra spirit that is in the temple. But here is what is bothering me. Our Bishop wanted to call a new Ward Mission Leader. He felt like he needed to take the names to the temple. The Bishop also instructed our new YW president to go to the temple to figure out who to be her Secretary. I know when I was in a singles ward years ago, I was told to go to the temple to confirm counselors I was to pick for an Elders Quorum. Which I did more thinking that is what way we do things. So it seems as members we can get revelation, but we can't get enough of it with out the temple? I assume with the Bishop's calling he should be able to get revelation on callings in the ward. I also assume bishops in other parts of the world where a temple is farther away, that they don't run to the temple to confirm ever new calling. It seems like maybe we rely on the temple too much? I guess it could be that this how my bishop has learned to get revelation? So he does it that way. But I don't know if its needed?
  10. We don't really know a lot of what happens in the next life. We know we will be judged of what we did here. I would have to think to some degree that would play a part in how our marriage went. But Heavenly Father knows all, and so he knows all sides to it. If it was out of our control then he would know that and judge us accordingly. The quote you give by Joseph Smith isn't really talking about divorce its talking about committing adultery which is a sin. We can repent of adultery. I that is different then divorce.
  11. This was the instructions with "if allowed to do so" something like that. Our Stake just changed in June. It was different.
  12. From the Letter Powerful! Got me thinking! Thank you
  13. It was after his Crucifixion. About the only way he could have "traveled" that far. The exact time he came is not exactly known. I don't think that matters as much as He did come. Looks like the questions was ask on LDS.net years ago. http://lds.net/forums/topic/36069-when-did-jesus-visit-america/ Pretty typical that the same questions get asked again and again. http://rsc.byu.edu/archived/jerusalem-zarahemla-literary-and-historical-studies-book-mormon/when-did-jesus-visit
  14. The JST has this a little different JST Heb. 11:1 … assurance of things hoped for …
  15. Glad your lesson went well. For our opening exercises once our bishopric counselor wrote all the announcements on the board. He kind of goes over them, but you don't get all the back and forth questions. "What time does it start" "Where is that at" We went to our Elders Quorum and hardly anybody was there, and no teacher. We all discussed where everybody was at. Then I looked at my watch and realized we were 8 mins earlier. So now I push our counselor to write the announcements on the board each time. Now it doesn't really help that half the time the Elders Quorum Pres goes over the same thing again. Doh!
  16. I could see it being required for the top two kingdoms. The middle kingdom they have accepted Christ after the fact. "74 Who received not the testimony of Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it." I don't see how you can receive Christ unless you make a covenant with him? But the Telestial Kingdom are those that reject Christ, (so why would they need to make a covenant with Him?) 82 These are they who received not the gospel of Christ, neither the testimony of Jesus. 84 These are they who are thrust down to hell. I feel this is the key. Those that are in the Telestial Kingdom pay some Telestial Law Punishment. The Hell spoken of here is Outer Darkness. They are put there to be punished until the resurrection. Alma 40 13 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evil—for behold, they have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their house—and these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil. 14 Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection. I don't see why those in the telestial kingdom would need or more accept any baptism that was done for them. They rejected Christ and his Atonement. I do think that all people regardless of which kingdom will have their work done of them. (I guess unless Heavenly Father tells us not to). But those in the telestial kingdom reject every part of the Atonement. (they can't really reject the resurrection).
  17. We couldn't progress anymore in pre-mortal life. We needed a body to move forward. We need the plan of salvation (Creation/Body, Fall, Atonement) to fully move forward.
  18. The Sacrament promises His Spirit to always be with us. (Part of keeping his commandments)
  19. Just keep studying. As you feel like you understand things, share that feeling with your wife and kid. I did have a hard time with the seer stones for a while (It didn't make sense that Joseph Smith would need them if he had the U & T which was giving for that purpose). That is something for you to study and learn about. Like others have said I don't know if a 6 year old needs (or cares) yet about it. I just read a interesting article about Blacks and the priesthood. Its all about the revelation that came. I never had studied it much but knowing the full story put things in correct perspective. Do keep searching for the truth, but stick to whats important to you and your families salvation.
  20. How else do you get answers, its through the spirit (I guess you are calling this personal interpretation) and by the words of the Prophets (which is really just the scriptures again). I wouldn't expect them to contradict. That is kind of the mean of truth. Not sure what kind of proof you would need. D&C 76 and D&C 138 The truth is you can say that about any Religion, you can say that about God and Jesus Christ. Thats the point of the scriptures, Alma 32. You hear or read some principle/commandment. You then apply that to your life and see what the results are. When that principle is proven to work in your life, you then know that its true. You then move to the next thing. That is true, only you can decide. This is called Hope. Its a central part of Faith. Hoping for the future that we don't complete see. https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2008/10/the-infinite-power-of-hope?lang=eng How did you try? What did you do? How do you know you don't have it? How so, do you have an example? I'm not sure what you mean by that. The scriptures are filled with people of "lesser status" overcoming their situation by turning to Christ and his Atonement which helps heal, lift and strength us. Thats kind of point of Christ's Grace. It seems to me, you have been missing what the Gospel really is? I guess you know the direction you are going in. When is the last time you have Read the Book of Mormon? I don't know how you can not read it, and at least to some degree know that our Heavenly Father (Dad) is watching over us, or at least Nephi. I also would suggest you read the Joseph Smith Story again https://www.lds.org/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1?lang=eng I would also suggest you express these views in prayer to your Heavenly Father. Yes Prayer takes faith. This is the joy of the Gospel or more the Plan of Salvation. Heavenly Father gave us our agency to Grow as close to him and his Son as we choose too. If we want to take the steps to follow the prophets we can have that Joy.
  21. The problem with most of these answers is that it's all the personal interpretation of the scriptures and the words of the leaders of the church who by all rights are not going to say anything contrary to the established 'party line'. How else do you get answers, its through the spirit (I guess you are calling this personal interpretation) and by the words of the Prophets (which is really just the scriptures again). I wouldn't expect them to contradict. That is kind of the mean of truth. The truth of the matter is, no one knows what happens in the after life, there is no proof of any of this. None, nada, zilch. It falls on your faith and you either have that or you don't. Not sure what kind of proof you would need. D&C 76 and D&C 138 The truth is you can say that about any Religion, you can say that about God and Jesus Christ. Thats the point of the scriptures, Alma 32. You hear or read some principle/commandment. You then apply that to your life and see what the results are. When that principle is proven to work in your life, you then know that its true. You then move to the next thing. Then you have to decide if you want to find the faith. That is true, only you can decide. Then you must establish how you want to live to ensure the outcome you have the faith to believe will happen. This is called Hope. Its a central part of Faith. Hoping for the future that we don't complete see. https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2008/10/the-infinite-power-of-hope?lang=eng It's pretty simple really. I don't have that faith, tried to get it, couldn't, and I've moved on. How did you try? What did you do? How do you know you don't have it? The scriptures feel dead to me, inert, and filled with contrary ideas, ways of doing things and a ton of double speak. How so, do you have an example? They've been perverted for the use of man to keep those who are of a lesser status down. I'm not sure what you mean by that. The scriptures are filled with people of "lesser status" overcoming their situation by turning to Christ and his Atonement which helps heal, lift and strength us. Thats kind of point of Christ's Grace. It seems to me, you have been missing what the Gospel really is? Now that may sound negative but to me it's not, I accept that idea and I move on. I try to live my life the best way I can, I support my wife who is raising our children in the church and I am willing to let the chips fall where they may. I love, I live, and I help where I can. I guess you know the direction you are going in. When is the last time you have Read the Book of Mormon? I don't know how you can not read it, and at least to some degree know that our Heavenly Father (Dad) is watching over us, or at least Nephi. I also would suggest you read the Joseph Smith Story again https://www.lds.org/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1?lang=eng I would also suggest you express these views in prayer to your Heavenly Father. Yes Prayer takes faith. This is the joy of the Gospel or more the Plan of Salvation. Heavenly Father gave us our agency to Grow as close to him and his Son as we choose too. If we want to take the steps to follow the prophets we can have that Joy.
  22. I think we are missing the word Should. I haven't read what Joseph Fielding Smith said. But the Should is the key. I think the Lord always wanted his priesthood/gospel to be on the earth. But that doesn't always mean it would be. Yeah there was a guy, don't remember his name, In Nauvoo around 1844 that remembers Joseph Smith telling the account of getting the M. Priesthood. This guy didn't start sharing this account until later like 1860's. It might have even been Joseph F Smith some apostles went to record the event from the guy. The problem is the Church at that time started to share this store over the pulpit. But after some time and actually examining the account there became to many holes that it wasn't a very reliable source. The account is still a verify interesting read. You take it for what it is.
  23. So I'm the ward clerk. I take the minutes that we pretty much don't do anything with. (I have been sending out a summary email on mondays, kind of like what needs to happen over the week). But is my ward the only ward that seems to do the same thing in PEC as Ward Council? I get that Ward Council has other people in the meeting, but our ward we talk about the same thing in both meetings. Who needs help, and who are the missionaries visiting. Looking at the handbook it says What are priesthood matters? I can see us talking about Home Teaching (hows it going, how to improve it). I can see we talk about Young Men and how they are progressing? From what I can see the PEC meeting shouldn't even take more than a half an hour. (If its done right). It even suggest having it before Ward Council. Does anybody do that? Our ward does every other week? PEC WC, PEC, WC. Any idea on what should be talked about in PEC vs Ward Council? Thanks
  24. I am a ward clerk, mostly our financial clerk did the tithing. He has got other things going in his life right now have stepped in. A couple of things I would like to pass on that would help us (tithing enterers). Nothing to big. Just passing it on. I know being married means you are one! But putting both husband and wife name on the tithing slip doesn't do anything. We can not enter tithing for two people. I'm sure the check that paid for the tithing came out of a joint account. If its tithing for the husband he should put his name so it goes under him. If its the wife that is paying tithing put it under her name. If you put both names, they will just use the first name on the list. If you separate the names that does mean you would get two tithing settlement print outs. I can see that would maybe make it harder to know if all the tithing is correct. If that is the case, then just say we are going to put all our tithing in one name (husband or wife). Also, if you pay with a check, it would help us if you write the check number somewhere by the check box at the bottom. Usually we put # in front of it so we know its a check number. You probably are asking "I sometimes pay with multiple checks do I really need to write the check numbers for each check?" Yes! If you don't we have to. The church's program (MSL) required a check number for each check. So you can either write the check number and the amount of each check or you could even use multiple slips. It doesn't matter to us. Sometimes we end up doing multiple slips anyways. We also had a guy in our ward that would use his Bill pay to generate a check and send it to the bishop. The bishop just gives us the envelope with everything. I know this is convenient for people. As you can guess we have to fill out a tithing slip and put the long check number they have on those. I would prefer you send the check to yourself and you feel out the tithing slip. The church actually does have a way you can send money (through your bank's bill pay feature) and send it straight to the church. Its not something the church can sign up everybody at the same time. If you are interested in it, send me a message. Neither of these things things are that big of deal, but if you want to be kind to your tithing enterers, this would help. Oh one other thing. I'm sure there are people that have no use for the Yellow Carbon copy of your tithing slip. If you pass it on to us, we just take it off and shred it. Again not that big of deal, but every little bit counts. Thanks
  25. I have been doing the nap thing for years now. The problem is I probably have become "additive" to the nap. But I know I don't get enough sleep so I'm causing my own problem. I usually take about 10-15 mins nap. I try to give myself 5 mins to wake up again.