You can read 1 Nephi Chapter 16 HERE.
There's something so much bigger than you and I, and it's something that we won't understand until the day we walk through the veil. This thing is... why. Why is it that even though we're doing everything we should and everything according to God's plan we face afflictions. It's so easy when things go wrong to blame God.
This chapter shows, however, that even when things go wrong, you can still turn to God. Even if you have blamed him and disappointed him. When you humbly go back to God and ask for his guidance and help, you just have to listen closely to that still small voice for the directions.... or listen to your heart.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Sunday, December 14, 2008
1 Nephi Chapter 15
You can read 1 Nephi Chapter 15 HERE.
This chapter is Nephi explaining to his brothers about the meanings of their father's dream. A couple of things were in my mind when reading this chapter. I'll start with the first.
In the beginning of this chapter it talks of how after the Messiah the fullness of the gospel will come unto the gentiles. The first thing that came in my mind was Joseph Smith. Was this talking about what would come through Joseph Smith?
The other thing I was thinking was evil vs good. How can a soul gain so much power? The Devil has so much power on people and I don't understand fully how this is possible. I know there's so much more that I need to learn, but this one has always boggled my mind. How can 1 soul have so much impact on this world. He originally was just a spirit child right?
If you have any input on this, please comment. I love to hear others chime in, because it helps me to learn on my journey.
This chapter is Nephi explaining to his brothers about the meanings of their father's dream. A couple of things were in my mind when reading this chapter. I'll start with the first.
In the beginning of this chapter it talks of how after the Messiah the fullness of the gospel will come unto the gentiles. The first thing that came in my mind was Joseph Smith. Was this talking about what would come through Joseph Smith?
The other thing I was thinking was evil vs good. How can a soul gain so much power? The Devil has so much power on people and I don't understand fully how this is possible. I know there's so much more that I need to learn, but this one has always boggled my mind. How can 1 soul have so much impact on this world. He originally was just a spirit child right?
If you have any input on this, please comment. I love to hear others chime in, because it helps me to learn on my journey.
First Calling
My husband got his first calling as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He is a Ward Missionary. Honestly I was totally stoked! I can't think of a better calling for him. The missionaries came over yesterday and dropped of a copy of Preach My Gospel and I've been looking through it and am so excited to start using this manual in our scripture study and to help our faith grow stronger.
Today we didn't go to church. So, I'm buckling down right now to move forward on my Book of Mormon reading (as soon as I finish this post). I'm kindof glad we didn't make it to church, because it's snowing so bad right now and I would have had to drive home in it, and I'm PETRIFIED of driving in the snow.
Today we didn't go to church. So, I'm buckling down right now to move forward on my Book of Mormon reading (as soon as I finish this post). I'm kindof glad we didn't make it to church, because it's snowing so bad right now and I would have had to drive home in it, and I'm PETRIFIED of driving in the snow.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
The Atonement
The day Jayden graduates High School (or maybe even Ella) will probably be the day I finally finish reading the BOM. Yes, I'm totally over exaggerating, but I really am taking forever. I'm going to talk about a something that I have a really hard time grasping.
I know that Jesus died for us and suffered for our sins, but that isn't a very simple thing to grasp. I struggle with understanding why. How is it that through Jesus we can be forgiven for the sins that we commit. Well, I grabbed my trusty Gospel Principles book and read Chapter 12 (you can read it HERE) and set out to hopefully grasp something that I'm missing. I think I did.
Towards the end of a chapter it gives a parable which you can read at the end of this blog post in italics. Reading this put into perspective in a way as to why we should be so grateful for Jesus. I have a long way to go in understanding the atonement, but hopefully through scripture steady and attending church I can get there.
"There once was a man who wanted something very much. It seemed more important than anything else in his life. In order for him to have his desire, he incurred a great debt.
"He had been warned about going into that much debt, and particularly about his creditor. But it seemed so important for him to do what he wanted to and to have what he wanted right now. He was sure he could pay for it later.
"So he signed a contract. He would pay it off some time along the way. He didn't worry too much about it, for the due date seemed such a long time away. He had what he wanted now, and that was what seemed important.
"The creditor was always somewhere in the back of his mind, and he made token payments now and again, thinking somehow that the day of reckoning really would never come.
"But as it always does, the day came, and the contract fell due. The debt had not been fully paid. His creditor appeared and demanded payment in full.
"Only then did he realize that his creditor not only had the power to repossess all that he owned, but the power to cast him into prison as well.
" 'I cannot pay you, for I have not the power to do so,' he confessed.
" 'Then,' said the creditor, 'we will exercise the contract, take your possessions and you shall go to prison. You agreed to that. It was your choice. You signed the contract, and now it must be enforced.'
" 'Can you not extend the time or forgive the debt?' the debtor begged. 'Arrange some way for me to keep what I have and not go to prison. Surely you believe in mercy? Will you not show mercy?'
"The creditor replied, 'Mercy is always so one-sided. It would serve only you. If I show mercy to you, it will leave me unpaid. It is justice I demand. Do you believe in justice?'
" 'I believed in justice when I signed the contract,' the debtor said. 'It was on my side then, for I thought it would protect me. I did not need mercy then, nor think I should need it ever. Justice, I thought, would serve both of us equally as well.'
" 'It is justice that demands that you pay the contract or suffer the penalty,' the creditor replied. 'That is the law. You have agreed to it and that is the way it must be. Mercy cannot rob justice.'
"There they were: One meting out justice, the other pleading for mercy. Neither could prevail except at the expense of the other.
" 'If you do not forgive the debt there will be no mercy,' the debtor pleaded.
" 'If I do, there will be no justice,' was the reply.
"Both laws, it seemed, could not be served. They are two eternal ideals that appear to contradict one another. Is there no way for justice to be fully served, and mercy also?
"There is a way! The law of justice can be fully satisfied and mercy can be fully extended--but it takes someone else. And so it happened this time.
"The debtor had a friend. He came to help. He knew the debtor well. He knew him to be shortsighted. He thought him foolish to have gotten himself into such a predicament. Nevertheless, he wanted to help because he loved him. He stepped between them, faced the creditor, and made this offer.
" 'I will pay the debt if you will free the debtor from his contract so that he may keep his possessions and not go to prison.'
"As the creditor was pondering the offer, the mediator added, 'You demanded justice. Though he cannot pay you, I will do so. You will have been justly dealt with and can ask no more. It would not be just.'
"And so the creditor agreed.
"The mediator turned then to the debtor. 'If I pay your debt, will you accept me as your creditor?'
" 'Oh yes, yes,' cried the debtor. 'You saved me from prison and show mercy to me.'
" 'Then,' said the benefactor, 'you will pay the debt to me and I will set the terms. It will not be easy, but it will be possible. I will provide a way. You need not go to prison.'
"And so it was that the creditor was paid in full. He had been justly dealt with. No contract had been broken.
"The debtor, in turn, had been extended mercy. Both laws stood fulfilled. Because there was a mediator, justice had claimed its full share, and mercy was satisfied" (in Conference Report, Apr. 1977, pp. 79-80; or Ensign, May 1977, pp. 54-55).
Our sins are our spiritual debts. Without Jesus Christ, who is our Savior and Mediator, we would all pay for our sins by suffering spiritual death. But because of him, if we will keep his terms, which are to repent and keep his commandments, we may return to live with our Heavenly Father.
I know that Jesus died for us and suffered for our sins, but that isn't a very simple thing to grasp. I struggle with understanding why. How is it that through Jesus we can be forgiven for the sins that we commit. Well, I grabbed my trusty Gospel Principles book and read Chapter 12 (you can read it HERE) and set out to hopefully grasp something that I'm missing. I think I did.
Towards the end of a chapter it gives a parable which you can read at the end of this blog post in italics. Reading this put into perspective in a way as to why we should be so grateful for Jesus. I have a long way to go in understanding the atonement, but hopefully through scripture steady and attending church I can get there.
"There once was a man who wanted something very much. It seemed more important than anything else in his life. In order for him to have his desire, he incurred a great debt.
"He had been warned about going into that much debt, and particularly about his creditor. But it seemed so important for him to do what he wanted to and to have what he wanted right now. He was sure he could pay for it later.
"So he signed a contract. He would pay it off some time along the way. He didn't worry too much about it, for the due date seemed such a long time away. He had what he wanted now, and that was what seemed important.
"The creditor was always somewhere in the back of his mind, and he made token payments now and again, thinking somehow that the day of reckoning really would never come.
"But as it always does, the day came, and the contract fell due. The debt had not been fully paid. His creditor appeared and demanded payment in full.
"Only then did he realize that his creditor not only had the power to repossess all that he owned, but the power to cast him into prison as well.
" 'I cannot pay you, for I have not the power to do so,' he confessed.
" 'Then,' said the creditor, 'we will exercise the contract, take your possessions and you shall go to prison. You agreed to that. It was your choice. You signed the contract, and now it must be enforced.'
" 'Can you not extend the time or forgive the debt?' the debtor begged. 'Arrange some way for me to keep what I have and not go to prison. Surely you believe in mercy? Will you not show mercy?'
"The creditor replied, 'Mercy is always so one-sided. It would serve only you. If I show mercy to you, it will leave me unpaid. It is justice I demand. Do you believe in justice?'
" 'I believed in justice when I signed the contract,' the debtor said. 'It was on my side then, for I thought it would protect me. I did not need mercy then, nor think I should need it ever. Justice, I thought, would serve both of us equally as well.'
" 'It is justice that demands that you pay the contract or suffer the penalty,' the creditor replied. 'That is the law. You have agreed to it and that is the way it must be. Mercy cannot rob justice.'
"There they were: One meting out justice, the other pleading for mercy. Neither could prevail except at the expense of the other.
" 'If you do not forgive the debt there will be no mercy,' the debtor pleaded.
" 'If I do, there will be no justice,' was the reply.
"Both laws, it seemed, could not be served. They are two eternal ideals that appear to contradict one another. Is there no way for justice to be fully served, and mercy also?
"There is a way! The law of justice can be fully satisfied and mercy can be fully extended--but it takes someone else. And so it happened this time.
"The debtor had a friend. He came to help. He knew the debtor well. He knew him to be shortsighted. He thought him foolish to have gotten himself into such a predicament. Nevertheless, he wanted to help because he loved him. He stepped between them, faced the creditor, and made this offer.
" 'I will pay the debt if you will free the debtor from his contract so that he may keep his possessions and not go to prison.'
"As the creditor was pondering the offer, the mediator added, 'You demanded justice. Though he cannot pay you, I will do so. You will have been justly dealt with and can ask no more. It would not be just.'
"And so the creditor agreed.
"The mediator turned then to the debtor. 'If I pay your debt, will you accept me as your creditor?'
" 'Oh yes, yes,' cried the debtor. 'You saved me from prison and show mercy to me.'
" 'Then,' said the benefactor, 'you will pay the debt to me and I will set the terms. It will not be easy, but it will be possible. I will provide a way. You need not go to prison.'
"And so it was that the creditor was paid in full. He had been justly dealt with. No contract had been broken.
"The debtor, in turn, had been extended mercy. Both laws stood fulfilled. Because there was a mediator, justice had claimed its full share, and mercy was satisfied" (in Conference Report, Apr. 1977, pp. 79-80; or Ensign, May 1977, pp. 54-55).
Our sins are our spiritual debts. Without Jesus Christ, who is our Savior and Mediator, we would all pay for our sins by suffering spiritual death. But because of him, if we will keep his terms, which are to repent and keep his commandments, we may return to live with our Heavenly Father.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
1 Nephi Chapter 14
You can read 1 Nephi Chapter 14 HERE.
We are told in this chapter of how we should follow the light of Christ. That we should not be swayed away by the devil. There are promises and blessings that come from this. Everyday we are faced with challenges that tempt us towards choosing the wrong. It talks of how there are only 2 churches on this earth. The church of Christ and the church of the devil. Anything that is taking us away from the Church of Christ is the church of the devil.
Basically, we have to stay away from the things that tempt us away from Jesus.
This chapter is the end of Nephi's vision where he is carried away by the spirit to understand what his father saw. It is revealed unto Nephi that an apostle will talk of the end of the earth, and that is John in Revelations.
I don't have a lot of words with this chapter.
We are told in this chapter of how we should follow the light of Christ. That we should not be swayed away by the devil. There are promises and blessings that come from this. Everyday we are faced with challenges that tempt us towards choosing the wrong. It talks of how there are only 2 churches on this earth. The church of Christ and the church of the devil. Anything that is taking us away from the Church of Christ is the church of the devil.
Basically, we have to stay away from the things that tempt us away from Jesus.
This chapter is the end of Nephi's vision where he is carried away by the spirit to understand what his father saw. It is revealed unto Nephi that an apostle will talk of the end of the earth, and that is John in Revelations.
I don't have a lot of words with this chapter.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Gospel Principles
I got up this morning and went to re-read Chapter 14 in the BOM again so that I could write about it, but I picked up my Gospel Principles book instead. I just opened up and the chapter I opened up to was Chapter 16, The Church of Jesus Christ of Former Times. I actually looked up every scripture that it referenced and was pretty amazed at literally how in sync with the LDS church it was. Our church is designed EXACTLY how Jesus had designed His church when he was on our earth.
When you read the scriptures that it references you learn how we lost the authority that Jesus had given us through the Holy Spirit back in his days. How it all became corrupt and the following chapter talks about how Jesus restored the church.
I love starting my mornings out by reading the scriptures. It sets this tone for my day that is peaceful, and I find I have much more patience. Gospel Principles is an amazing place to start if you are curious about the church. CLICK HERE to read it online. I'm still learning so much from the book and loving all that I am learning. I think I'm going to restart from the beginning of this book and read all the scripture references and really take it in.
There's so much I want to read and never enough time.
When you read the scriptures that it references you learn how we lost the authority that Jesus had given us through the Holy Spirit back in his days. How it all became corrupt and the following chapter talks about how Jesus restored the church.
I love starting my mornings out by reading the scriptures. It sets this tone for my day that is peaceful, and I find I have much more patience. Gospel Principles is an amazing place to start if you are curious about the church. CLICK HERE to read it online. I'm still learning so much from the book and loving all that I am learning. I think I'm going to restart from the beginning of this book and read all the scripture references and really take it in.
There's so much I want to read and never enough time.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
1 Nephi Chapter 13
You can read 1 Nephi Chapter 13 HERE
I've read this chapter a couple of times. The first time I didn't really grasp a lot of it, but this morning I opened up my Book of Mormon and re-read it again and I think I got the main points here.
First off I wanted to talk about this abominable church. The church that the devil is the founder of. Read this verse, which is 13:7-8
And I also saw gold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine twined linen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlot. (Harlots means Immoral persons or prostitutes)
And the angel spake unto me, saying: behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the desires of this great and abominable church.
This makes me think of when we put object, and desirable things above God. So, this "church" isn't even so much a "church", but the way that society is. Choosing the wrong things as your priorities, like going to the club, having the best of everything, doing the things that are wrong, yet are fun.... those are what makes up this "church". Sadly, society is here right now. The majority is all about these things. It's easier to be bad then good, and it might be a lot funner. Yet, once you get a taste of the joy of being good, and listening to the words of God, it's so much better. A lot of work, but like the vision ~ it is the sweetest fruit.
Next I want to talk about Nephi's vision of the Latter Days.
This chapter talks about how the Gentiles take away parts of the bible, so that basically they don't have to follow the rules. We are so blessed today to have the fullness of the gospel restored. We know the fullness of the words that God had for us. Nephi saw in his vision that the fullness of the gospel will be restored. Now we have it, and it is up to us to live by it and follow the words that God has given us.
I can tell you, by my experiences, that following the words of God have brought me so much more joy. I've had a lot of fun in my days. I've done things that I am not proud of, and these things have NEVER brought me joy. I'm so thankful for the opportunity of being able to have the fullness of the gospel in my life.
Verse 37 says:
And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.
That verse is enough for me to want to strive hard in my life to follow God's words. I say things things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
I've read this chapter a couple of times. The first time I didn't really grasp a lot of it, but this morning I opened up my Book of Mormon and re-read it again and I think I got the main points here.
First off I wanted to talk about this abominable church. The church that the devil is the founder of. Read this verse, which is 13:7-8
And I also saw gold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine twined linen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlot. (Harlots means Immoral persons or prostitutes)
And the angel spake unto me, saying: behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the desires of this great and abominable church.
This makes me think of when we put object, and desirable things above God. So, this "church" isn't even so much a "church", but the way that society is. Choosing the wrong things as your priorities, like going to the club, having the best of everything, doing the things that are wrong, yet are fun.... those are what makes up this "church". Sadly, society is here right now. The majority is all about these things. It's easier to be bad then good, and it might be a lot funner. Yet, once you get a taste of the joy of being good, and listening to the words of God, it's so much better. A lot of work, but like the vision ~ it is the sweetest fruit.
Next I want to talk about Nephi's vision of the Latter Days.
This chapter talks about how the Gentiles take away parts of the bible, so that basically they don't have to follow the rules. We are so blessed today to have the fullness of the gospel restored. We know the fullness of the words that God had for us. Nephi saw in his vision that the fullness of the gospel will be restored. Now we have it, and it is up to us to live by it and follow the words that God has given us.
I can tell you, by my experiences, that following the words of God have brought me so much more joy. I've had a lot of fun in my days. I've done things that I am not proud of, and these things have NEVER brought me joy. I'm so thankful for the opportunity of being able to have the fullness of the gospel in my life.
Verse 37 says:
And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.
That verse is enough for me to want to strive hard in my life to follow God's words. I say things things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
