How many fingers do you see?

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In the 1998, a film called Patch Adams was produced. The film was about a doctor who went through self discovery. In it there is a scene where the doctor's hand is grabbed by the patient, and he boldly asks Doctor Adams, "How many fingers do you see, Ed?" The doctor says four as he refers to his own four fingers. The patient saw the solution and pointed out that the Doctor was wrong. There is an exchange and the Doctor (played by Robin Williams) sees what the patient (played by Harold Gould)  sees, all the fingers.

Satan wants us to think we are the problem and not sin, and by getting rid of ourselves, we solve things, but that is not so. We are not the sins commuted as much as dirt is on clothes are not the clothes are not the clothes themselves. Christ wants us to see Him in our lives, but as much as He is holding our hands and whispering through the Holy Ghost's comforting words, we seem at times not to harken (profoundly and deeply listen) or behold (to watch with full intent). We let the coolness distract us, or troubles overwhelm us so that when Christ takes our hand and says to us, "How many fingers do you see, son... daughter..." We can start to see eight, His hand in ours, and that He has been here the whole time.

When I saw the film back in the day, I marveled at how such a scene changed the man. He began to see people and solutions, not problems and sickness. Our Savior sees us as the same. He doesn't look to heal the ailments that are in our way but to heal us, sometimes in our ailments, so that we look beyond our ailments and see Him. The scriptures are full of examples of simple men who have trouble but see the Savior in their lives. 

Sometimes, like a parent who loses their child in a mall, we wander off and lose our way; we lose the vision of what God has in store for us. We then have to rediscover the Plan for us, rediscover the scriptures or Atonement, and work on our spirits to behold and harken like the prophets. It takes time. Maybe we wondered because, not of sin, but career, family, injury, or just grew apart. I would encourage you to reconnect with God. Go back to the fundamentals, namely faith, repentance, covenant renewal, and prayer. Build the spiritual muscles you know you have and reconnect with a loving parent looking for you. Call out so He can hear you. Remember the words of the Centurion, "I believe, help me, my unbelief."

Have a great week. You got this.

Succour and Strengthen

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At times we are called to endure a hard trial. The scriptures say many are called but few are chosen. Perhaps that is because of how we addressed our trials. Do we bear with patience and wait for relief or do we mop and complain or council with the Lord in our trials?

I recently called an old friend, Gordon, he reminded me of a time where we were scouting up in the mountains of Utah. We we getting merit badges and just swamped out boats for our canoeing badge. The water was a cool 70° but it seemed ice and I swam to shore instead of getting back in the boat. I asked to go back to camp and in doing so, got lost. When I was found, I was severely sunburned as I had only a bathing shorts on. The other scouts did their best when I was discovered to succour my burns and give me comfort.

It was a comfort being found but I still had to endure the healing time it took. The same can be said for times when we leave the hearth of the gospel. Like my sunburn, it takes time, little by little to heal and regain strength. While the Lord may succour us and run to our side, He cannot take pain, but comfort us during the pain.

When Alma and Limhi went through their experiences as in the Book of Mormon (Mosiah 18-24) they were strengthen. The Lord heard their cries and comforted them. We are no different. Our daily lives are chalk full of things to overcome and it makes us the people we want to be. 

Once we have been taught to succour we can succour others. It's a humbling experience but it shows us how much the Lord cares for us and for others. We race to help and lift because we have felt a similar experience. I know we can share and make the experience of others a building opportunity. Old things are destroyed so that new things can take their place. If we see it as a step to God, we will ensure it well. 

Sunday School 19 - Mosiah 11-17 - Noah Blindness

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This post is one of the hardest. I love Abinadi. I listened to podcast after podcast and the theories of age, relationship to Jacob, who posed the first question to him but in the end it was his message of Christ that Mormon focused on that is important,though side note, I love the painting of the ripped man standing with confidence before a king with jaguars on his left and right still cowering in fear.

I'll start with a poem...

If

Rudyard Kipling

1865 – 1936

If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you; 

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too; 

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies, or being hated, don’t give way to hating, and yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream, and not make dreams your master; 

If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, or watch the things you gave your life to broken,   And stoop and build ’em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings and risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, and lose, and start again at your beginnings and never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew to serve your turn long after they are gone, and so hold on when there is nothing in you except the Will which says to them: “Hold on”;

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch; 

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you; 

If all men count with you, but none too much;If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, and which is more you’ll be a Man, my son!

This poem reflects every man and woman who sought God, preached of His Christ and some with a burning Holy Ghost who was their companion.

The question put to Abinadi was all about the Devine nature of Christ and echoed all of us. That message was that the fleshy carnal devilish side of us that learns pain and suffering, weeps tears of sorrow, must be subject to your Devine side, much like the Savior, who like a child asked if pain and sorrow of Gethsemane could be taken away. 

Our souls consist of two images. A child subject to a Father and an adult that must make decisions for ourselves. Sometimes our Father in Heaven cannot make the tough decisions for us but we must make them ourselves. Jesus was perfect and Devine and could of forgone the Atonement for himself but he chose to be the Savior, to be the man he was meant to be. He fulfilled the will of the Father and became a father to us all by allowing himself to suffer and die but because he was Devine, took what was rightfully his, his life and then offer the same to all of us.

Bur I seem to be sidetracked and I'll connect it to the prophet. 

The other image is the temporal and the eternal (the flesh and the Spirit). How many times do we on impulse, like a child, turn to temporal things. When do we listen to the old soul inside, the part of us that's been around for hundreds of years, the older wiser side of us.

Whilst he was on trial, the priests used Isiah as a crutch to show that they we teaching the Gospel of peace and that the people were happy. They were attempting to show that the king was an example of kingship and "goodness", for there was nothing that the king was doing that he kept the people from doing also. Drinking, drugs, parties and sex had become a common place. Nevertheless, they still had a temple and churches, sacrificed at the altar and outwardly kept the law.

Jeremiah 29:13 says,  "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart."

In another part of the scriptures the Apostle says...

(2 Corinthians 3:1-3) "Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men: Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

Abinadi challenged the priests and king. He desired them to see the Savior in all that they did and pleaded to turn from their wickedness. I marvel how only one saw the error of his ways, pleaded for the prophets release and left his old life because what he had learned changed his life. He took the time to write everything, preach everything and put his life on the same line as Abinadi. His career was over. He left friends, family, concubines, gold and silks, the alcohol and parties, all for the message of a dead man and a Savior who was to come. 

We are sometimes as sheep to the sheerer and the lamb to the slaughter. To the sheerer, sin and transgressions need to be cut away as they big us down and impede our ability to do simple things that we could otherwise do. For some, we think that it is a death sentence like being sent to the slaughter. Cutting away sin, I suppose could be like that as it is painful. Alma, knows all about that. Abinadi's message changed his life. The course correction was painful but he would not turn back.  Perhaps he pleased with God to make it less so but we must be adults and endure our experiences. Could we turn back to our sins like a pig to slop, yes, but we are encouraged to realize that slop called sin doesn't feed the soul and looking for a new source of nourishment is nessisary. Like the Prodigal son it then becomes a journey, with hopes and fear only to be meat with a father who runs to us. Is it the Savior, the father of our souls and redemption or the Father who is father to our spirits? Could it be like Joseph Smith's experience and be both?

Two years ago I blogged (or was it a letter to a missionary?) about fire. I compared the fire of the Holy Ghost to fire of Abenadi and Shadrach Meshach and Abednego. I pointed out how it didn't matter if they lived or died as the fire clearly had removed their impurities. More so, their testimony burned as bright as the flames around them. Abinadi knew who he was meeting. Perhaps he was among the dismissed priests of Zeniff. Regardless of consequence they were steadfast. We need to be the same.

Is the scriptures written in the head or heart? Outside or inside?

When it came to the priests of Noah it seemed that they knew how to connect doctrine dots but they lacked the ability or refused to do the work of anchoring themselves to the doctrine. Again they went to the temple, or church all day he time but some how there was a disconnect. We have seen examples of this today. Saints that took a wrong turn in their life because the gospel was written on their figurative lapel but not on the heart. They could quote scriptures but could not pray with full purpose of heart. Pray for those struggling, who smile on the outside but are dying inside.

It's interesting that Noah made it ok because "it's in the law" vs. it's right because it is of God. The civil and moral code of the law was separated like church and state. Somehow it justified and right, because it was legal. Abinadi had to hide and run about preaching because good had become bad and wickedness was now thought as righteousness.

Am I king of my house or am I subject to the king of my home and ruling thusly? 

When Noah was challenged in the prophet's trial, he failed to realize his role. King Benjamin saw it when he read Alma's record some years later, but it seemed that Noah thought he was the "bees knees" and that popularity was more important than responsibility. The temple teaches us that we covenant to be obedient to God and rule with that same covenant obedience, so that our children will know to whom they can turn to for redemption. Noah wanted so much temporal power he refused to surrender to a higher power. We cannot make the same error or we will see generations of descendents walk away from the Savior. Again be the adult, when child like ideas and a quick and easy pass wants to slip in.

We have two ways to approach the gospel, connect dots or connect to God. When we connect the dots, it's outside of us. We talk the talk but when trial comes we lean on our dark side for relief and escape. The two approaches are so close it's a wheat/tare situation. Sometimes we don't see friend from foe. We have a Noah/Abinadi moment. We cannot see who is on the Lord's side and who is speaking for us and to us. A big hint, the Prophet, as much as you think they might be disconnected, see ahead of us like a watchman on the tower. They have a vision we barely catch. I know it is hard if you have no testimony but if you do, you will catch a glimpse of what they see.

Did the priests of Noah ask to understand or accuse. Alma showed a understanding spirit, do we do the same? We have seen people stand on a street corner judging because of one line of a prophet and fail to pull in all the data of a talk. Noah's priests were trying the same. Let us be like Alma, adjust to change, push against our temporal side that screams to be childish and devilish and listen to the ancient spiritual side of us, the child-like side that boldly declares I AM A CHILD OF GOD AND HE HAS SENT ME HERE, the side that was with the Savior and a loving Father in Heaven. We need to listen to the Holy Ghost daily and he will lead us. The three will lead us home. God bless us as we see God to be part of our lives is my prayer, in the name of the Redeemer, Jesus Christ amen.

Being a leader

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Do we covet the world or covenant with God? There is a careful balance of being ourselves and following the Savior our way and exploring our lives through the gospel. Be careful of wandering ideas that lead us away from the gospel. Remember what I wrote before, your testimony, the scriptures and words of the modern prophets are the iron rod that will lead us to heaven.

Are we jewels of the Lord or just coveting stones? Malachi 3:17 refers to us as the jewels of the Lord. We are His cherished offspring. Our relationship is important to Him, but we must work on it. It is said that we will recognize the Savior when we meet Him. We are trying to find how we connect to Him through the gospel and our obedience is the first step.

Paul warned us that if we use the wrong sources we could be "Ever learning but never coming to the truth" (2 Tim 36-7). We can be quickly seduces by threads of the gospel that lead us away from the fruit of the gospel. Keep to the core; to the root of the gospel, faith, repentance and covenant renewal. If you never depart from that your testimony will grow astronomically.

Leadership comes through decipleship. A long time ago I met a young man in the MTC (I was a missionary at the time) Blendi Kokona came from Albania. He was a convert who sought knowledge and because of his trials and tribulations got to know missionaries who saught someone to teach them. Through sharing the gospel. This young convert left his country and serve the Savior. Because of him friends and family joined the church, the scriptures were translated and he found joy in the Atonement and his Savior.

God does not expect perfect faith or knowledge. Satan knows the Savior lives but he has no faith or drive to follow the Savior. Avoid following people who think the same. Perfection comes through faith. We don't need to know everything. What is expected of us is our willingness to follow the Redeemer because he will carry us in hard times because we follow Him in our toughest times.

Despite not thy youth (see alt translation in https://www.biblestudytools.com/1-timothy/4-12-compare.html). You are young now. As I mentioned earlier you don't need to know everything. Your testimony of Christ is so important. Missionaries are young for a reason. In the translation of this scripture Timothy was told let no one mock you or trouble you or think less of you because of your youth. You are ten, don't worry about what you don't know. Pray, fast and study the scriptures, those simple things will give you a hidden strength always.

God doesn't give a Spirit of fear. An example of this is the story of Joan of Arc. As a young teen she followed the spirit. She wanted to follow the Savior and did this example for France. No one shook her testimony. Like the prophet Joseph, she lived and died in obedience to the principals and ordinances she knew. She died at nineteen because her own people could not accept her or her testimony. Be strong in trial and you will see trials are a small moment. 

Reprove betimes with sharpness is counciled to us in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C121:41-43). Paul was racing all over the countryside as was the other apostles. The devil was unraveling the church and administration was important. Chasing false doctrine without chasing the saints are a balance. We want to bring the members together. We want teachers and leaders to teach through the Scriptures, through their testimony, use the words of the prophets and Savior. When we do that, the priesthood power is manifested in the keys given to us as leaders. Class, you will see more of that as you are given more responsibility in the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints.

We will know pain but we choose to suffer. When the Apostle was tried, he didn't let pain define him but looked for what he could learn from his experience. Heavenly Father is doing the same for all of us. Pain will be part of all of our lives. Suffering, though, is defined by us. Is our pain, insult, betrayal going to define us? Yes it hurts and need time to heal but let it go and we can heal faster. 

We need to make sure the sheep are fed what they need. (Timothy 1:3) Don't feed questions but answers. All too often we want to race beyond the mark and not give a simple answer to questions that you youth might have. For that, I apologize. (See President Kimball - Man of Action.)

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2007/01/spencer-w-kimball-man-of-action?lang=eng

 Be bold. You and I have a unquenchable spirit that drives us to be a powerful lead towards the testimony of Jesus. All to often Satan wants us to cover from opportunities of telling others how much we know and love Jesus; how the gospel has changed us to be who we are now and who we aim to be an who we want to be with. (2 Tim 1:6-8)

2 Tim chapter 3 talks about what we should warn about. Reading it, I realized that it says nothing about pandemics, floods, storms, wars fires etc. It talks about what boils inside each of us. We are warned in the very ten commandments about all of it. When we lie, covet, dishonored parents, show pride this shows outwardly the things that Paul warned us in chapter three. We need to love God and our fellow man.

Truth will change behavior. When we embrace the gospel and follow the Savior it is like a pendulum that swings one way. We cannot go back to a resting state. We will swing hard to the other direction. We need to yoke ourselves to the Savior so that we can push towards the light.

 Finally I want  to discuss Predestined vs. Forordinated. The word predestined is used in Timothy. The idea that Heavenly Father wants some of us and not others is foolish. He wants all of us to come home. In the preexistence he ordained us to roles that we could accomplish in the preexistence, our mortality and in the eternity. We have been given and will be given blessings that will continue to enrich our lives. This is done through the gospel, through the priesthood, and the Savior's precious gift of the Atonement. Show your love for the Savior by helping others and you will know more about what the Savior wants more for your life.

We will learn more next week

Challenges

1) Read Hebrews 1-6

2) Think of times when you were given responsibility.

Bullion

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I have reflected on repentance and thought of the sin that through repentance flavored my sin filled life and while it taught me so much it also changed me. In cooking, bullion has a place and time but for not all things. Beef or chicken bullion would corrupt a cake quickly as would a sin filled life corrupt my spiritual knowledge and experience. I thought of that all day and have thought how I can be more Holy as the Savior is holy. Certainly time cannot be erased but sin can. I need to make a better effort to be a better man so I will further be proud of the Gospel of Christ. Each day I attempt to seek the Lord's forgiveness, turn to Him in prayer and read the scriptures. God help me I am trying to be like Jesus as the song says. I fear that like a top spinning that it gets harder and harder the older I get, however teaching primary has kept it simple enough for my heart to understand moreso the gospel and has been a real teacher to me. I want my bullion to be of gold and not of beef salt. That means looking for fervently to the Savior in all His examples.

Sin and the natural man are so eager to polyte our experiences so it troubles me that at times I have become as flavored salt and not as pure salt. Not to say that the recipe that is my life is spoiled but perhaps I have prevented some experiences from occuring because of my weakness. I just thank God that He has been so kind in giving my Redeemer and that the option to be pure allows my book of life, my recipe truly can be complete.

A moo point

I was talking and laughing with my wife and we were talking about an old TV show, Friends. It was during this time that my wife brought up the point that Joey made of "moo point" that something were as important as the opinion of a cow. 

At times we are cornered by bulls and they bully us with their moo points telling us to do it say something contrary to our core. Learning this week has been an odd experience but a powerful one. At times when we hear a bunch of moos, let us listen to one who makes sense. 

All are trying to come to God

Perhaps the title is misleading as not all are trying to come to God as some have given themselves to worship the god of deceit and lies; Satan. I am not writing about them. I wish to bring up those that earnestly seek to follow God as they know how and wish goodness and kindness on others.

Said Ezra Taft Benson quoting Orson F. Whitney...

“Perhaps the Lord needs such men on the outside of His Church to help it along,” said the late Elder Orson F. Whitney of the Quorum of the Twelve. “They are among its auxiliaries and can do more good for the cause where the Lord has placed them, than anywhere else. . . . Hence, some are drawn into the fold and receive a testimony of the truth; while others remain unconverted . . . the beauties and glories of the gospel being veiled temporarily from their view, for a wise purpose. The Lord will open their eyes in His own due time. God is using more than one person for the accomplishment of His great and marvelous work. The Latter-day Saints cannot do it all. It is too vast, too arduous for any one people. . . . We do not quarrel with the Gentiles. They are our partners in a certain sense.” (Conference our partners in a certain sense.” (Conference Report, April 1928, p. 59.) (Civic Standards for the Faithful Saints by Elder Ezra Taft Benson General Conference - April 8, 1972).

I have read books like Mere Christianity (by C. S. Lewis), Dune (by Frank Herbert), and other great books. None of them LDS but inspired to lift and enlighten men and women to reflect upon the three divine questions; namely, who are we, where did we come from and where are we going. 

When reflecting upon God and His kingdom, I find it hard to imagine that all the ideas of heaven could be right but they can be wholly wrong either. My wife and I reflect on these things. We hope that the one who loved horses in this life is riding in the next; the outdoorsman is camping hunting and hiking. It would make no sense that God, an intimate and eternal being who loves all of His children, would give joy in this life that could not be given in the next life. Still, I cannot encapsulate the magnitude of what heaven would be like. 

In my life I have learned joy and charity in struggle, faith when I was thought to be alone, hope when reading the word of God, and forgiveness when I sought to repent and improve, putting away the old me for something better.

I assume it is no different for anyone else here on Earth. Each of us has been led to a light that lifts us and inspires us. Our eyes are opened in each new chapter of our lives when we thought that we were awake the whole time. Each challenge we take on changes us and refines us like silver or gold. Just when you think the Master is done, He bends and folds the metals and he's to make something even better. Perhaps the analogy isn't even close. Gold rings and silver necklaces are mere trinkets but I have a limited view of beauty as I have only seen the craftsmanship of man's hands and the beauty of nature, God's creation.

I recall at one point in my life when I was eager to dismiss others because of their different views. I pull my faith and views close because I didn't want them tarnished by others not realizing that they could grow and become better. As a missionary, I had a fragile testimony. As a young adult, I was easily swayed. I didn't want the sway that moved my tender branches, to destroy my young roots in my understanding of the gospel. Now I am older and wiser (well, at least older) and I find strength in sharing common strength in who I know to be the Lord God of Hosts. Perhaps I am still limited but I know God is helping this sleeper to awaken.