Misshalfway

Well, if it is any consolation, I think lots of us deal with anger and even rage. Especially when life hasn't met our expectations or when painful things happen to us or when we feel powerless. Isn't it crazy how you can just feel so angry and not know why? It could be a lot of things. I suppose the music could be a factor in mood, but the kind of anger you are describing sounds like you have deeper emotions bubbling up. Over the last year or so, I have been reading a lot about anger and trying to understand it better and I am learning that it is usually a way for our inner self to alert us to injustice or imbalances in our emotions or something painful in our circumstances. The real trick is discovering what those underneath emotions are. It could be emotions from the past......and now your brain is finally dealing with it or it could be something in the present that needs your attention. I like the above comments of Mikeupton about the "shoulds" and "have to's". I think that is really wise. Perhaps the anger comes from feelings of powerlessness. Or maybe it is a giant argument with reality. Or maybe it is a way your brain can feel protected against something that is causing fear. Whatever it is, it is certainly a defensive posture. So, the next question must be why? Anger has become a really valuable resource for me as I am learning what it is trying to teach me. The more I listen to it and whatever message it is trying to send to me, the easier it is to let it go and move myself to more peaceful and productive headspace. Sometimes I am successful, and I can let the anger go. Sometimes I am just pissy! And I have to hand it to God and hope he takes it from me when I can't let go. Perhaps you could add an addendum to your prayer and ask HF what your anger is trying to tell you and then even some ideas about new ways to think about things.

Perhaps the horse and buggy will make a comeback!

I think you should watch Little House on the Prairie. Charles and Carolyn! Best parents on TV! HA!

And you know, we can protect our kids and should be dedicated about such efforts, but heck, they are going to be exposed at one time or another. Part of protecting our kids is arming them with proper choice making capabilities. I mean, we should talk to our kids about inappropriate viewing material and keep the lines of communication open. My kids had an experience with a 9 year old neighbor girl who taught them about sex one day and said she saw some neighbors stripping in the window of a nearby house. My kids told me about it and I was able to call this girls parents. They didn't have a clue their daughter even new that sex was anything but gender!

My neighbor is a therapist and because of all the reported traumatic childhood stories that happened on sleepovers she has heard in her practice, she will not allow her kids to participate. She opts for the supervised stay late instead. We have done sleepovers but I am very cautious about when and with whom. Most of the time we do the stay late thing too. It is a tricky thing because even sending the kids to spend the night with cuzzin's or other relatives can be unexpectedly scary.

Why were the Scrolls hidden in the first place? I mean after they were discovered. And have they been officially published for everyone to see? I was under the impression that some parts were released but not the whole of the find.

as in Paris???? Ouch! Hotels

I think science and belief in deity can and should live together in harmony. They are part of one another. That song.....Stampede, is truly one of my favorites! One of those mind stretchers...... and a good reminder that there is so much that we don't know.

I'm tellin' ya. Everybody should pay taxes like we pay tithing. Everybody pays 10 %. Easy, short, and equitable for all.

trash

Stormy nights!!! Fiction or biography?

I remember hearing similar objections to Harry Potter. I don't have any objections with such a book being sold in a LDS bookstore. I think places like Deseret Book are pretty good about scanning for content and anyway it is just a book. If you personally object to reading stories about vampires and werewolves, then just don't read them. I personally think that it is fun every now and then to read about things that are far from our experience.....and in this case, we are talking about fiction and fantasy. I'd rather read the Twilight Series than Lord of the Flies or Heart of Darkness or some other such depiction of human nature. From what I have heard, these vampires are pretty tame!!! :)

I keep telling my kids who the real heros in the world are..... and they don't shoot hoops or make touch downs!! Thank you for all you do ...and for all you and your family sacrifice! I always want to start spontaneous parades when I see a serviceman. ---of course that would be rather embarrassing for everyone. :) I have a question. I just feel like I don't know whether we are getting the right story over here from the media machine. Is it as bad as they say? Or is it getting better as certain Republicans explain? Or is it just a quagmire of ups and downs and no real gains in sight?

I Love this church for a lot of reasons.....but one of them is that God doesn't require perfection of the leaders. Worthiness yes, of course, but not infallibility. Perfection is not a prerequisite for being trusted of the Lord. Anyone who has served a mission with Elders will know that!!! (just kidding Elders :)) Our ward just split and now I am part of a newly created ward. Our new bishop is 33 years old. His counselors are in the same age range. All as green as grass!!! As our SP introduced them, he made it very clear how powerful the Spirit was in preparing and calling these men, but that didn't mean they would never make mistakes. He said he called these men because they were men of faith who had learned to live their lives by following the Spirit. I loved this information!! It applies to any of us who are called to serve.....which in this church means everybody!!! :) A previous poster suggested that we have the responsibility to hold our leaders accountable. This statement caused me to pause. Do I really have that responsibility???? I seriously don't think I do. My job as a follower is to sustain and forgive and follow with my energies and my talents and in some cases my long suffering. It is the Spirit's job to censor. When we join this church we better understand that our leaders are flawed. We trust them because of who they follow and obey! I loved that counsel from Pres Oaks. That we aren't to criticize, even if we are right! Our job is not to judge someone in that way. I think we become less loving....less obedient when we engage in denouncing leadership. Such attitudes and activities invite the spirit of contention. Didn't we learn anything from the early church and all the in-fighting over Bro. Joseph and his imperfections? Moses 6:31-32 And when Enoch had heard these words, he bowed himself to the earth, before the Lord, and spake before the Lord, saying: Why is it that I have found favor in thy sight, and I am but a lad, all the people hate me; for I am slow of speech; wherefore am I thy servant? And the Lord said unto Enoch: Go forth and do as I have commanded thee, and no man shall pierce thee. Open they mouth, and it shall be filled, and I will give thee utterance, for all flesh is in my hands, and I will do as seemeth me good. We serve Jesus! And part of that service is upholding His chosen servants. Jesus is at the head of this ship! The efforts of this work WILL succeed in spite of our weakness as human disciples. Tearing each other down doesn't help anybody or the work. It puts us at odds with the bigger picture. What is it the NT says about the beam and the mote?

Welcome! Hope you enjoy!

This is an interesting point. If we are the product of evolution, why is it that we don't have stronger instincts? Why is it that we are so flimsy in terms of behavior and why we insist on destroying one another? I don't see animals trying to destroy one another. I see laws of nature at work to keep the systems in balance. If this earth were just made up of human animals, I think we would see more order among our species. Having a moral code or sense or inclination certainly must set us apart from every other living creature. If we weren't created by God and there is no purpose to our existence and we are just going to live and die, why evolve into such an intelligent and moral place?

I think too often we wait for God to come to us....instead of seeking him diligently. I think that is what impresses me most about Nephi is that he is constantly moving himself toward God and companion-ing (is that a word? Ha!) himself with God. I see in myself sometimes an impatience. I wait for God to come to me and show me things and when he doesn't, then I sometimes doubt. I feel like that is part of my natural man I am trying to discipline. I love it when Nephi goes to pray about his father's dream or about his own anger or about his troubling and bothersome brothers or about how to make tools for a boat! There isn't a part of his life that God doesn't influence.....no part that Nephi keeps away from the Lord.

As you move forward doing the best things for you and yours, it may just turn into something that is good for her. It might just be the best gift to NOT to be available to save her. Hopefully she will quit looking to everyone else to carry her, and grow up a little bit. :) Sounds like more peace is headed your way!

Taking the idea of God off the table..... Is it possible that part of being human is being moral? And expanding on that idea, could it be that each human is actually a combination of moral and carnal sensibilities? If that is true, then would it be possible that such a genetic trait or condition could explain why most humans seem to have a general sense of right and wrong?

This has always fascinated me. They could get mad at Joseph, or get upset over management or get offended and even leave the church over it all, but never go so far as to deny the truthfulness of the BofM. During all my time struggling with whether or not there was a God and what the heck I was going to do with the church, I always came back to the BofM. To this day it is still the stongest element of my testimony concerning this restored gospel. And just a note concerning Emma..... I can't imagine what that women endured! There are probably dimensions of suffering that only she could know. And considering Father's understanding of the hearts of women and his reverence towards such, I have wondered if God understood and accepted her offering as enough and then let her live out her life in a quieter place of peace.

Really awesome photos! I just took my kids to the Lion House and Beehive house right there in SLC. They had never seen them before. We were so amazed at the size of the shoes the girls wore. SOOO tiny! And hadn't realized how much of an entertainer Brigham was. He was always hosting some important person and he created his home accordingly. He even had a family store where all of his extended family could come and get supplies and goods. Can't remember if they had to pay or if it was like a bishop's storehouse type concept. Really astonishing how industrious this man was and the culture of hard work and resourcefulness he set in motion.

Well, my take on this is that it isn't your business where she gets the money to pay you. Maybe that sounds rough but she is making sure you get paid. If I do business with someone and they pay me, I don't ask them where they got the money or demand that they only pay me with money they earned themselves. You only have grounds to ask for the honoring of your contract with the girl and beyond that you should stay out of it. What your FIL chooses to do with his daughter is up to him whether you agree with it or not. You can't make her responsible and you can make this father stop enabling. So, if it were me. I would take the money graciously and extract myself from the rest of the drama. And then take steps not to do business with this young lady again.

We are vigilant about turning off lights and keeping doors closed. We open all the blinds and shutters so that natural light comes in. We also put in the efficient light bulbs and changed the settings on the furnace and AC. We just got our bills and realized we had lowered our energy consumption by 30% since this same time last year. During the winter relied on the gas burning fireplace to heat the main floor. The kids sometimes wore sock and wrapped up in blankets, but it saved on our monthy bills. I also patch the kids clothes and do the hand-me-down thing. That has really helped. I try to buy good quality clothes that wash up nice and last. I am not that great at it, but my SIL finds the best deals on clothing and is an avid coupon shopper. She saves a ton of money on clipping coupons and doubling up with the store and manufacturer coupons. We are looking to save money other ways because our city is raising taxes. YUCK!

I suppose ones mission never ends.....even after death the gospel is being preached. But I do know from experience how it felt to be set apart as a missionary and how it felt when that extra measure of power left me and I couldn't put the badge on anymore. Our missions change, as do our spheres of influence. There is a time and a season for all things under heaven. And there are many ways in which we can participate in the gathering process of these last days. I suppose it is up to us to search our hearts and pray for guidance as to which parts of the vineyard need our attention.

Sometimes people are soooooo dumb!! While we were their someone told us a story about a mother who put honey on her toddlers hands to attract the baby bear they saw! HELLO!?!?!?! Is anybody home????