Misshalfway

If what you say is true, then there is no right or wrong in the world. Everything.....I mean everything....would be relative to the person's preference or biological process.

Hey Pushka, you are lucky you have so much time to prepare. We usually get a call from the bishopric only a few days before!

Sorry. I should post all my comments in one. But I am doing three things at once. So forgive me. I don't think that any member of this church lives on feelings alone. The Lord is a giver of gifts and it is those gifts that keep us all going. And it is usually not one experience that lives on thru-out our lives. It is a series of spiritual experiences that build together to help us understand and drive us to further devotion and commitment. Had I prayed and not gotten the answers I have in my life, I most surely wouldn't be where I am today. I would prolly be making very different choices. But I DO have the evidence. It is evidence only for me to taste, but it is most certainly evidence.

Faith isn't a sure knowledge. Not at first. Sometimes you just have to plow forward because you see somewhere in your mind it might be true. The idea comes before the realization.....IE. The wright brothers, the lightbulb...etc. EDIT: Skepticism is part of those feelings. There were prolly many skeptical that a little bit of wire and glass could produce light.

I know it doesn't make sense. There have been many things within my own faith....and the world frankly that don't make sense to me. For me, I hang on to my own intuition more tightly that others. I know that thinking logically or using reason alone was not something that has come to my understanding easily. Sometimes I listen to these discussions and the stuff goes right over my head. WHOOSH! :) I think that the point I am trying to make is two fold. People make lots of choices in this world for hosts of different reasons. Trying to pin down human kind to one set of expectations is like trying to hold a cloud in your hands. Mankind is inherently wild, if you will, and certainly not predictable. They don't follow natural law like our world does. And secondly, no one can give the knowledge that faith is the right thing. It is a journey only for the individual. The knowledge can ONLY come if one walks in the dark long enough to get to the light on the other side. You can't get the knowledge first, and then walk. You can get educated about possible outcomes. You can listen to the testimonies of others and wisdom of trusted individuals and trust the message. You can listen to that conscience or intuition inside of you to tell you if you are on the right track. And if a person were to give themselves up to it for a time.....what would they really loose in the attempt??? Discussion is an important and enlightening part of the quest. But people come to Christ one person at a time. The miracle happens in the quiet and hidden parts of the human heart and mind. No one can put that knowledge there for you. No one can go to the gym and lift the weights for someone else. The quest is an individual one and so is the fruit. But it can and will happen for you IF you put into place all the peices that are required. D&C 130 20 There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated— 21 And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.

We will miss you around this place. If you can, jump in and let us know what is happening for you. Best wishes and may the Lord bless..... MH

Sometimes my favorite talks come from the youth speakers!!! They have so very much gold in them!!

Or maybe that people don't always act according to the dictates of conscious...... or that they still recognize duty or truth even though their lives aren't completely clean........... Or maybe that being perfect isn't always a prereq for being trusted of the Lord...... Everytime I read that, Tom, I feel the love of the Lord for Omni or that God understands Omni's capacity in a way that perhaps he doesn't recognize in himself yet. Don't know why exactly..... Just guessing.

Reading this, I am reminded of so many movies!!! Disney's "The Black Hole" from way back when, or "Frequency" with Dennis Quaid. :)

I was so very touched by this! So important for a child to know that questioning or even making mistakes doesn't change their worth in the sight of parents. And I love that the desire for righteousness is there in your boys underneath all the rest. My husbands blessing refers to our kids making interesting choices and perhaps leaving the foundations of faith as you so eloquently put it. I suppose I am a little nervous for the future. Right now, my kids are young and our trials are about dirty rooms and leaving half-eaten gogurts behind the TV. I hope I will train them up sufficiently.

I think I understand what you are trying to suggest. Let me assure you that the above process is as familiar to us as eating cold cereal every morning. :) It is very much a common basic of our study. You will see an added emphasis to the BofM. There are reasons for that. And, the way our scriptures are printed.... they cross-reference the bible and vise versa. We have prolly said it before, but the two books of scripture work in tandem. Speaking of the Bible, this past year was the study of the NT. Our gospel doctrine teacher laid it all out it such a way that was so wonderful. I wish I could share all of it with you. His lessons really brought so much of it to life for me. I love it more than I did before. Understanding that culture and what was happening inside that very diverse Jewish/gentile mix is simple fascinating. And then understanding better the life of the Savior....I can't even express........

I understand these feelings. Sometimes it really feels like perhaps God likes the boys best. Sometimes my mind wonders if God is sexist. Or if the scriptures were twisted in that sort of way because of the culture of those early Israelites. ( I won't say that all of my confusion and childlike indignation is gone on this subject.) But, I can't believe in a God like that. I don't understand everything yet. I do gather comfort from the Savior and his reverence and inclusion of women. It is clear they were part of his inner circle and he did educate people to understand. And I do, at select times, feel that the worth of all souls is great even in the different roles in which mortality puts us. I do know that the priesthood, within the realm of the family, is not there for administrative purpose. It is there to support and bless and it draws the heart of the man to desire his wife and children and protect them and bless them as a servant.... not as a superior figure. I do think that Motherhood is a tremendous role.....one our world has sufficiently demeaned and dismissed. It must be so, or Satan wouldn't have sent such an assault against it. Fatherhood is just as important. It is clear Satan has literally taken the father out the equation in some cases! I think that Father uses the priesthood and the nurturing aspects of the female nature to strengthen and bless the home. Beyond all that, I must say that being inside the influence of a righteous priesthood leader is a tremendous experience. The humility and strength that I have witnessed and been blessed by is unmistakeable. Who wouldn't want to be married to something like that?

AHHH poop! The one thing I would love to share about and we were home sick. Oh well. My husband and I did read a little in the BofM; Alma 32 and Jacob 5. The Alma stuff is about faith and how faith leads to sure knowledge. And Jacob 5 is an allegory about a vineyard and grafting in branches..etc. hard to explain. Anyway...it was home study for us today!

Howdy!

What would we do without you, Kona? Give me an electric mini-van I can afford!

Welcome! I have many friends that served missions in your neck of the woods! Always wanted to go to S. Africa myself. Some day.....hopefully! :) Mother of five! That means that you are an automatic super hero! I have four; 2 girls and 2 boys. They sure keep life exciting! Hope you enjoy the site.

Would you feel more comfortable in an older singles ward or in a regular ward?

Is your point that the church isn't sufficiently meeting the needs of singles?

Hmmm. Good point.

Well, I am LDS and I care about the environment and the animals and the whole earth!! I am not sure if Global warming is completely accurate in its conclusions, but I can't see harm in taking steps to improve the way we interact with our planet. And while I found Al Gore's little show compelling, there are enough reputable people who disagree with his data. I think that the earth has its varied processes. I also think that some humans are very irresponsible in how they treat the earth. (COUGH!... Corporate America) I just watched "The Human Footprint." Pretty amazing how much American's (and others) consume and how much we throw away. Just learning about how plastic does not bio-degrade was eye-opening. I must say, I long for simpler times. Not that I would have any idea how to live like a Native American of the past, but they have such reverence for the earth. I love the idea of farmers markets (who knows what kinda chemicals we consume) and second hand stores and only using what we need. Reduce and simplify sorts of stuff.

Oh I see what you are saying. And I agree. I guess I meant that he didn't need the atonement himself. I was trying to describe that Jesus was and is sinless.

I can't wrap my mind around it either. I think my knowledge about this kind of stuff is the very tips of the branches of my tree, if you follow me. It is the basics -- the gospel and my activity in working together with the Lord in my mundane everyday stuff that I really see the power and truth and feel absolutely sure.

I never thought you were a guy! Your original post helps restore my faith in investigative questions! Thank you!! I have learned as well! More than anything, I think that it is understanding......not perfect agreement, that brings people together!!

Was this part of working out all the kinks in the early days of restoration or was this something the Lord allowed out of necessity? I know the temple work started before the temple was completed...and that the Lord gave permission for that, but that some of the sealing practices and ideas were inaccurate and the Lord then corrected those misunderstandings. It seems the Lord allowed the early saints to make some mistakes or allowed different policies as the church needed time to grow up.

DS, I watched that little skeptics clip you posted earlier. I actually watched it a few days ago. So enjoyable!!! Bet that guy loves going to work everyday. He was having way to much fun!!! I was thinking also about the whole food analogy. And it was the little drug finder dud device that helped me see it. The truth really isn't about who says it is true. Although, it is good to listen to those with experience. The makers of the dud drug finder most likely knew their product was ineffective, but their apparent greed was eventually revealed. I think that it is the same with eternal truth. By their fruits ye shall know them. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. What does happen to someone's life when they apply the teachings of the church? When the pray multiple times a day, and employ daily scripture study, and who chooses to improve their character thru practicing the commandments? That proof, I believe is measurable with logical reasoning. And just one more thing....... The above clip did confirm that even science needs to be debunked sometimes. Alma ch 32 31 And now, behold, are ye sure that this is a good seed? I say unto you, Yea; for every seed bringeth forth unto its own likeness. 32 Therefore, if a seed groweth it is good, but if it groweth not, behold it is not good, therefore it is cast away. 33 And now, behold, because ye have tried the experiment, and planted the seed, and it swelleth and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is good. 34 And now, behold, is your knowledge perfect? Yea, your knowledge is perfect in that thing, and your faith is dormant; and this because you know, for ye know that the word hath swelled your souls, and ye also know that it hath sprouted up, that your understanding doth begin to be enlightened, and your dmind doth begin to expand. 35 O then, is not this real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is good, because it is discernible, therefore ye must know that it is good; and now behold, after ye have tasted this light is your knowledge perfect? 36 Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither must ye lay aside your faith, for ye have only exercised your faith to plant the seed that ye might try the experiment to know if the seed was good. 37 And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say: Let us nourish it with great care, that it may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit. 38 But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out. 39 Now, this is not because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable; but it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof. 40 And thus, if ye will not nourish the word, looking forward with an eye of faith to the fruit thereof, ye can never pluck of the fruit of the tree of life. 41 But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life. 42 And because of your diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst. 43 Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.