When to Give and When to Take

I had a conversation with my teenage daughter about the law of consecration and the United Order.

Before I describe the conversation to you I feel like you need a little bit of background on me.

I am something of a minimalist. I try to live by Sarah Lazarovi's "Buyerarchy of Needs" (a play off of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs).

This, along with the quote "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful" from William Morris are the guided principles of my consumerism.

My daughter was not familiar with the United Order, so I described it to her, definitely oversimplifying things, with this statement, "Basically you gave everything you had to the church, and then they would give you back anything you needed." I followed up with, "That didn't mean no one had nice things - but for example, if you needed a ball gown for a fancy dance, you got one. If you didn't need it, someone else got it."

My daughter's response: "That sounds like something you would love."

You have no idea how much I would love it. So so much.

This essay is about sacrifice. I think minimalism and the law of consecration are very much tied to the law of sacrifice. But sacrifice is so tricky.

Young mothers tend to sacrifice so much that they don't get enough to eat, enough sleep, or enough mental health support. This leads to devastating outcomes like postpartum depression, and suicide.

Spouses of abusive partners tend to sacrifice so much that they stay in abusive relationships, which leads to depression, suicidal thoughts, and in some instances murder or suicide. When children are involved, the heartbreaking outcomes can be devastating for these kids.

Members of the church who make covenants to obey and live the laws of consecration and sacrifice often give so much of themselves that they become disillusioned with at least the church, and in extreme cases even deny the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The problem with sacrifice and the law of consecration is pride. Pride is a barrier.

Being a survivor of abuse I have found some bitterness in my heart toward the law of sacrifice. I sometimes find myself saying in my head "But I sacrificed everything, and it got me into an abusive relationship where I felt robbed of my very being, where my children's quality of life was diminished, where my safety and the safety of my children was not guaranteed. Why should I sacrifice? People will just take advantage of me." In my mind, living the laws of sacrifice and consecration were the gates to abuse. Indeed, very often they are. It is easy to be taken advantage of if you sacrifice and give. So how do we protect ourselves from abuse when we are living the law of sacrifice?

Here is the not-so-easy answer I have come up with: we don't.

Oh, I believe in boundaries, definitely. But we have to be careful that our boundaries come from a place of Doctrine & Covenants 121:43 - "when moved upon by the Holy Ghost" - rather than from a place of pride.

The past several years I have been recovering mentally and spiritually from an abusive relationship. I have learned a lot about boundaries, and at the same time I have developed a lot of pride.

Ironically, pondering the law of sacrifice as I have been doing the past several months seemed to increase my feelings of pride. The elusive balance between sacrifice and boundaries was something I couldn't quite grasp until a month or so ago when I had this inspired thought:

The Savior gave everything. Not just His time and His talents and His love. He gave His very life. His life. And who appreciated him? Very few people. What happened to him? He was abused. In fact, in the words of my beloved Isaiah, "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not."

That thought was humbling, and I try to use it whenever I want to withhold something - time, money, love, compassion, my talents, whatever it is. I try to come back to that thought. He gave everything - He sacrificed everything and He didn't stop when people abused Him.

Now, am I saying that you should find ways to be abused and taken advantage of? No way. Remember that the Holy Ghost might prompt you not to give - but you have to be very very in tune with that and make sure it isn't pride motivating your stinginess.

I am saying that when you find yourself in a position to give of your time, talents, energy, compassion, love, etc and you want to withhold because you are worried about being taken advantage of, or you start feeling those begrudging feelings of "But who is going to take care of my needs?", remember the Savior and give anyway.

And then take.

Take the Savior's yoke. Take and take and take from the Savior. That is the place to take. No spouse, no friend, no child, no church leader, no human being will ever be able to give you everything you want and need (remember that thing about pride?). So you have to take it from the Person who is immune to Satan's tricks and lies. The only human who has no pride. Not one drop. The only person capable of giving you absolutely everything you need.

And sometimes the only thing you can get from Him is the assurance that some day you will be able to enter into His rest.

Surrender by Reflections of Christ

A friend of mine once said that she imagines our reunion with the Father will consist of us falling, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted into his arms, and He, with tears streaming down his face, will say, "That was hard, wasn't it? I am so glad you are safe at home with me now."

How do you find a balance between sacrifice and mental health? How do you keep pride out of the picture? Have you learned to rely on the power of the Savior?

Remember

Sometimes, when studying the gospel, I get bored of the topics I am studying. Particularly at church in Sunday School and sometimes in Relief Society. I crave something new, something deeper. I get bored with the same gospel topics every week, the same discussions, the same comments, everything the same. I have always understood the value of these repetitive lessons for those who haven't learned the lessons, those who are new to the church, and such. But only recently have I learned the true value of those lessons for me.

As I was completing a requirement for Personal Progress with my youth age daughter, I came across this scripture in 2 Peter 1

Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

Image Credit: LDS Media Library

What a humbling verse of scripture. Peter knew that the Saints already knew these gospel topics. He wasn't trying to teach them something new. He simply understood the principle of putting people "always in remembrance" of the things that are most important - the plain and precious, simple parts of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As a math teacher and a musician you would think that I already clearly understood this idea.

In order to be a good mathematician, you need to be constantly reviewing the basics - if you aren't constantly using your times tables, you forget them. If you don't frequently solve equations, or factor polynomials, you won't be very good at it.

Professional musicians will agree that in order to be a good musician, you still need to practice the basics, your scales, etudes, and so on. When practicing even an advanced piece, you should stop and practice intonation, bowings, fingers and such.

This principle of remembering is so vital to everything we do in life - even walking or using a muscle. A broken arm will need to remember how the muscles move after being confined to a cast or sling for so long. It's amazing to me that I didn't full recognize the importance of this principle until much later.

It has changed my perspective of repetitive messages in Sunday School and Relief Society lessons, and even in General Conference talks. I now crave the repetition, I need it to keep me straight and keep me grounded in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

What things do you get bored of? Does the principle of remembering change your perspective?

GCBC Week 5: "The Savior Wants to Forgive"

I am grateful that the Savior wants to forgive. I am also grateful for the knowledge we have of a merciful, forgiving God. Isn't that a much better thought than someone who wants to make us pay for every sin we have committed? Isn't is a beautiful thought that a man loved us so much that He gave himself as an offering for our sins? He offered himself to satisfy the demands of justice, allowing God to be merciful and forgive us.

Can we even imagine the love He must feel for us?

What were your thoughts about Elder Cardon's talk?

The Savior Wants to Forgive - Elder Craig A. Cardon

If you are new to General Conference Book Club, click here to find out more. The basic idea is to study one General Conference talk each week between April conference and October conference, and to chat about the talk here in the comment section. You can also link up (using the linky tool below) to your own blog post about this talk. The link up will be open until I post the next week's talk, but if you study this talk later and missed the link up, feel free to post your link in the comment section.

The Living Among the Dead

Easter Sunday is tomorrow. Honestly I haven't done much to prepare. I blame it on the fact that I have been constantly nursing and sleeping (what else can you do with a newborn baby?). I should be better about studying the gospel when I am nursing, instead of wasting time on Facebook (did I actually just admit to that?) but I have been having a hard time studying the gospel lately. I told my husband that I feel like I am constantly in "input" mode, and rarely in "output" mode. That is, I feel like I am absorbing all sorts of information, but I am never actually putting that information to use in changing my behavior, or actually doing something. It's like my brain is one big pinterest board - you know, full of really awesome ideas that you will probably never actually do.

I need to focus more on creating. Especially creating things with my family, specifically my children. I don't know when I got distracted from that important task, but it was easy to feel like all of my studying was important.

Many years ago at an EFY (Especially For Youth) summer camp, one of the instructors told us not to write down what we hear him say, but rather to write down what we are going to do because of what we heard.

I think that in all my studying of the gospel and other truths I have been too focused on the information and not focused enough on what I am going to do because of the information I am absorbing and the insight I am gaining.

I have been thinking about the question posed by the angel at the tomb, "Why seek ye the living among the dead?" I want to make sure that I am actually living. I want to live the things I read, the things I learn. It's as if I have been seeking life by reading and studying. Not that reading and studying is bad, but all of this knowledge is dead without action. Reminds me of that scripture - "Faith without works is dead."

So, first off, I am going to actually go and talk with my children about Easter. We're going to talk about the Savior and the purpose of His life and death and resurrection. Then we're going to do something about it. In order to really drive home the idea that Christ gave His life for us, I think we will each decide an act of service to do for each member of our family, and then we'll spend time today doing those acts of service - giving of ourselves to our family members.

I don't think I have ever been so excited to shut the computer down and spend time with my family! I think it is refreshing to be in "output" mode. Why learn things if you aren't going to use them, right?

A Vessel Without a Sail

Today in Sunday School we are talking about how Mormon felt about the Nephites as he watched them decline in their spirituality.

He likened them to a vessel with no sail or anchor or any way to steer.


When we read this scripture it reminded me of another kind of vessel that didn't have a way to steer, but rather than being blown about by satan, it was guided carefully toward the promised land.


When the Lord commanded the brother of Jared to build barges to take his people across the ocean to the promised land, there was not a way to steer them - no sail, no anchor, no rudder.

The brother of Jared asked the Lord:


The Lord's answer is instructive:




The Lord comforts the brother of Jared and instructs him - they do not have to worry about steering the vessels because God will steer them.

The difference between the ill-equipped vessels of the Jaredites and the ill-equipped figurative vessels of Mormon's people is the connection with God.

Mormons people had hardened their hearts and were not influenced by the Savior anymore, which left them to be influence by satan.

The brother of Jared and his people were humble, seeking the Lord, and so they were guided by His hand - their vessels were steered by Him.

Have you ever felt as if the Lord was guiding you even though you may not have had the resources to steer?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A Little, Young and Tender Branches

As promised – more on Zenos’ Allegory of the olive tree. I wrote last week about a little connection I made between the house of Israel and the lifespan of an olive tree. I promised myself that I would use that connection to make my study of the allegory more meaningful this go around.

My first step was to look up the pertinent chapters to the allegory in the Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine manual, the Institute manual, the seminary manual on the allegory, and then any talks/Ensign articles/etc. Most of them had one thing in common – they started with the part where the master of the vineyard starts grafting in the branches of the wild olive tree.

But I had noticed that the master of the vineyard did not resort to grafting at the very beginning. In fact, in verse 4-6 we discover that the master “pruned it, and digged about it, and nourished it” – and as a result, “after many days it began to put forth somewhat a little, young and tender branches.”

The only place I found a reference to these verses was a fun little graphic in the Institute manual.

So what was the pruning, digging about, and nourishing that the Lord did? And who were the “somewhat a little, young and tender branches” that began to grow? Well, I went back to the timeline of the Old Testament (the seminary bookmark) and checked out what went on before the house of Israel was scattered.

We know that after the time of Moses, the House of Israel started going downhill fast (this was about 900 years or so after the beginning of the House of Israel – or the birth of Jacob). In fact, even Moses had to deal with a lot of issues due to the House of Israel’s hard headedness. From the time of Moses until the scattering of Israel (when Lehi went to America and the rest of the Jews were carried off by the Babylonians) was about 600 years.

Image Credit: Bruce Okkema

The Lord pruned, dug, and nourished the dying house of Israel for nearly 600 years. During that time, several “young and tender” branches came forward. The Old Testament bookmark lists several of those “young and tender” branches – Joshua, Gideon, Samuel, Deborah, Ruth, Solomon, David, Saul, Elijah, Elisha, Jonah, Amos, Lehi, Isaiah, Jeremiah.

The description of the branches being “young and tender” makes me think of something delicate and easily damaged. Some of these “young and tender branches” were easily damaged. The good kings that were raised up in this time – many from their youth (young and tender branches) – Solomon, David, Saul – they were delicate, and those “young and tender branches” ended up dying off. They didn’t make it.

But there were other branches that, though young, became stronger and were able to be grafted into other tress. For example, Joshua was born in Egypt before the Exodus and was basically raised under Moses and became his successor. Then there is Samuel, who was called by God while he was still a child. We also have Elisha, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, who were raised in mostly righteous environments – young and tender branches that grew strong and stayed strong. , who was adopted into the house of , became a very strong branch – in fact, through her branch would eventually come the Savior of the world. And finally Lehi, who was spiritually young, although physically he was old became one of the strongest of the new young and tender branches, through his sons, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph.

However, even when all of these “young and tender branches” were growing, “the main top thereof began to perish.” During this whole time the the Lord was furiously taking care of the house of Israel, trying to save it, the house of Israel was becoming apostate, regardless of the new branches that were growing.

It was at this time that the master of the vineyard finally decided to cut his losses, burn the dying branches, and begin the process of grafting his young and tender branches into other wild olive trees, hoping to create more tame olive trees that would bring him good fruit.

Image Credit: khraishi.sameer

The gospel doctrine manual points out that “For a wild olive tree to become tame and productive, its main stem must be cut back completely, and a branch from a tame olive tree must be grafted into the stem of the wild one.” The master’s plan was to tame the wild olive trees with the young and tender branches from his beloved, ancient olive tree.

It might seem odd that the master would graft wild branches into the roots of the tame olive tree, but he didn’t want to lose the roots of the old tree. The gospel doctrine manual also points out that “the root of the [olive] tree may go on producing new trees and fruit for thousands of years” through grafting the new shoots that can potentially grow from the roots of the old, dying tree into other wild olive trees (this is probably where the young and tender branches came from originally). Because the master of the vineyard took all the young and tender branches and grafted them into the wild trees around the vineyard, he put some of the wild branches into the old tree to help preserve the roots, probably hoping that the roots would keep sending out new young and tender branches.

This post would not be complete if we didn’t have a little discussion about what this all means. The most significant part of the beginning of the allegory of the olive tree, and a theme that is constant throughout the allegory (and throughout our lives) is the love of Jesus Christ for His people. He experiences grief when His people are lost. “It grieveth me that I should lose this tree” – that sounds like a loving Savior to me. He always does all He can to save us, to protect us, and take care of us. We still have our agency, and as seen by this first part of the allegory, despite everything the Lord is willing to do for us, He cannot save us against our will. But He will definitely do everything in His power to help us.

I also can’t help thinking about the young and tender branches in my own life. I want my children to grow to be strong branches of our family tree, and so I need to treat my family tree the way the Savior treated the olive tree, by pruning and digging and nourishing. Ruth is one of my favorite examples of a strong branch – she was a convert, but her branch became so strong it was through her lineage that the Savior was born. That’s the kind of strength I want in the branches of my family tree.

What doctrinal principles do you see in the allegory of the olive tree?

GCBC Week 25: “What Thinks Christ of Me?”

Only two more weeks until October General Conference. I love General Conference. I’ve said it multiple times, and I’m sure the number of posts around here about Conference, referring to conference, or quoting conference talks proves it. I am a General Conference junkie. I can’t get enough. I even downloaded every General Conference that is available (back to 1974 I believe) on my iPhone so that I can have General Conference at my finger tips.

That also means that after this week there are only two more weeks of General Conference book Club before the new session starts up in October. And, much as I have loved hosting GCBC, due to Stephanie’s return from sabbatical General Conference Book Club will be returning to Diapers and Divinity after October Conference. I told Stephanie that honestly I was excited for her return, because while I have really enjoyed hosting General Conference Book Club, I much prefer being a participant on her blog. I like writing lengthy posts and linking to them in the comment section on her blog. What can I say, I like being long winded. I also like not having to remember to blog every Sunday (and if you’ve been around you’ll know that I don’t remember to blog every Sunday… and this post is no exception).

So, without further ado, here is Elder Neil L. Andersen’s conference talk -

What Thinks Christ of Me? - by Elder Neil L. Andersen

What were your thoughts about Elder Andersen’s talk?

Secret Combinations

Note: This post was originally published on May 2, 2011. I thought it would be appropriate to share again on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the United States by terrorist groups. My thoughts are turned to the victims - both those who survived and those who did not - and their families. It is heartbreaking that our country had to endure such tragedy, but I am hopeful that we can remember the unity that we experienced after those attacks and work at unifying our country again - especially as we come together in a few months to choose a president for this country. I hope that we will keep in mind that unity, and not be so divided by all the partisanship and the backbiting and the arguing. United we conquer, divided we fall. Let us be united in this great country.

Yesterday, the President of the United States announced that Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centers in New York, the Pentagon, and (presumably) the White House, has been killed in Pakistan.

What does this have to do with a scripture blog? Plenty.

The Book of Mormon is rampant with examples of “secret combinations.” What is a secret combination? Examples in the Book of Mormon talk about secret combinations that “plan to murder, rob, get power” (Hel. 2:8), “secret combinations murder to get kingdom” (Hel 6:15, 18-19, Ether 14:8-10), “government is destroyed by secret combinations” (3 Ne. 7:6,9), “secret combinations are had among all people” (Ether 8:20), “nations that uphold secret combinations shall be destroyed” (Ether 8:22-23), “many are slain by sword of secret combination” (Ether 13:18).

But secret combinations “had their origins long before Lehi left Jerusalem, long before the Jaredites colonized the Western Hemisphere.” (here) In Moses 5, we can read of secret combinations of Cain – the son of our first father, Adam. Secret combinations want to gain power and influence by violence and fear. If al-Qaeda is not a secret combination, I don’t know what is.

“Great civilizations of the past have fallen because of the influence of Cain’s combination. As it happened in the past, it could happen again.” When we look at the horrible political, social, and military conditions of countries in the middle east, where al-Qaeda, and other terrorist groups, run rampant, we see the truthfulness of this. Any country that gives support to these secret combinations will not be great. They will be ravaged and torn.

While most of the country, and probably the world, celebrates this recent military victory for the United States, I am reminded of the death of Kishkumen in the Book of Mormon. In Helaman 2:8, we read that the servant of Helaman (the chief judge) tricks Kishkumen into coming with him to the judgment seat, but slays Kishkumen instead, Gadianton and his little band of robbers flee into hiding so that they can’t be found. Just because our military found and killed bin Laden doesn’t mean that the rest of al-Qaeda will be easy to catch.

We can hope for the best, like what happened shortly before Christ’s death and visit to the Nephites. In 3 Nephi 5 we find out that all the members of the secret combinations were taken into prison – and my favorite part? They “did cause the word of God to be preached unto them; and as many as would repent of their sins and enter into a covenant that they would murder no more were set at liberty.” Of course, God’s law required mercy. I wonder if our countries would do this if by some miracle they were able to round up every member of al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups. Would they allow the gospel to be preached to these murderers?

Unfortunately, it didn’t really turn out so well for the Nephites. The scriptures don’t say if it was the same people who had “made covenants” and were set “at liberty,” but a few chapters later, in 3 Nephi 7, we read about the secret combinations that developed in the actual government, and the eventual collapse of the government. Why, after they were able to overthrow the secret combinations, and they were able to grant such mercy to those members of the combinations who would repent, did they fall so hard and so fast? They had prospered because of their righteousness, and “some were lifted up unto pride and boastings because of their exceedingly great riches, yea, even unto great persecutions".

In the United States, the stock market rose slightly to the news of bin Laden’s death, and oil prices dropped slightly. Some suggest that if this success is effective long-term against the terrorism groups, our economy might grow substantially. I doubt it will take long for us to fall back into wickedness. After the September 11 attacks, we were united as a country, people were more religious – they prayed more, they went to Church. And our country prospered. Then we started to talk about gay rights, we started to talk about same-sex marriage, we started buying more than we could afford, we stopped going to church, we started consuming more than we needed, and the economy dropped like a rock. And now, we have worked again together to uproot secret combinations from our world – which is really very small these days – and we will probably see our economy rise again. I wish that I could say I think we might last a little longer this time, but we probably won’t. In 3 Nephi, shortly after the government fell, Christ came to the Nephites.

I can’t make any predictions about when Christ will come again, but I can feel that it will be soon. (But remember Lehi and all those other Book of Mormon prophets who said “the time is near at hand” – 600 years or so before Christ’s birth – so when I say “soon” I don’t mean in the next few years – but I can believe within the next hundred years or so).

On our family blog, I have this scripture written (it’s kind of my personal theme for our family), and it is no more true then than it is now:

For behold,
this life is the time
for men to prepare to meet God;
Alma 34:32

Follow the Prophet

Note: This blog post was originally posted on our private family blog on October 18, 2010. I first reposted it on this blog on March 23, 2011 so that I could refer to it in another post. I am reposting it today because I want to get some more feedback on these thoughts. How do you sustain our prophets when others seem to attack them from every side - and sometimes might even seem to have rational arguments for doing so?

On Sunday, October 3, 2010, President Boyd K. Packer, whom members of the church sustain to be a “prophet, seer and revelator” gave this talk.

As a prophet, President Packer’s responsibility is to call the world to repentance – much like Noah did in his day as he built the ark, like Lehi in Jerusalem, and like many other prophets in the past.

Unfortunately, as they did with Noah and Lehi, the world has rejected the words of the prophets, and have even gone so far as to petition him to withdraw his statements. This is not a new thing. It has happened again and again throughout history, and God’s word has always remained unchanged. As President Packer so bluntly put it:

...there are those today who not only tolerate but advocate voting to change laws that would legalize immorality, as if a vote would somehow alter the designs of God’s laws and nature...There are both moral and physical laws “irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world” that cannot be changed...To legalize that which is basically wrong or evil will not prevent the pain and penalties that will follow as surely as night follows day.

I respect everyone’s right to an opinion. But I also believe in God’s word, and I firmly believe in God’s prophets who deliver His word to us – especially in these latter days.

Satan is stirring up the hearts of men. A war is waging. “Who’s on the Lord’s side, who? Now is the time to show...” This particular battle hits really close to home for me. I have had to make some really difficult decisions about some people who are very dear to me. All I can think about is how to “love one another” while still being devoted to righteousness, and not “look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.” This article, a Q&A with Elder Oaks and a member of the 70, has been particularly helpful. I also read something Joseph Smith said in one of the first Relief Society meetings. He said, "God does not look on sin with allowance, but when men have sin'd there must be allowance made for them." We still need to be caring and compassionate - no matter the circumstance.

In response to the petition I mentioned earlier, the brethren had this to say:

Much of this was not new, but there were a lot of really great things said. A few of my favorites:

“As a church, our doctrinal position is clear: any sexual activity outside of marriage is wrong, and we define marriage as between a man and a woman.”

“None of us is limited by our feelings or inclinations. Ultimately, we are free to act for ourselves.”

“The Church distinguishes between feelings or inclinations on the one hand and behavior on the other. It’s not a sin to have feelings, only in yielding to temptation.”

I believe that people have same-gender, or homosexual, attractions, and that they can sometimes be very strong. But those people are still just children of God to me. I believe that there is nothing fundamentally different between someone who struggles with same-gender attraction, and the rest of God’s children who struggle with something else. We are all children of God experiencing trials and struggles on this earth with Satan tempting us and trying us. We inhabit imperfect bodies with imperfect emotions and chemical make ups. We all face trials. (read more about that here)

God made man and woman. He created them specifically different – to fulfill different purposes. From The Family: A Proclamation to the World, “Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.”

As I write this, I realize that I am not writing it to an audience of people who don’t believe in Christ and the atonement. I am writing it in hopes that someone who feels unsure about the word of God on this issue can maybe read my testimony and perhaps feel the spirit and have a little better understanding of God’s word.

It is not easy to stay true to the Savior. Especially in today’s social and political climate. There is so much of the Adversary’s influence in our societies that we can be easily confused by the arguments out there.

Sometimes I get very discouraged because the world is getting more and more wicked – good is called evil, and evil is called good. But I know that there is hope and happiness available to those who live the gospel – for those who earnestly call on God in the name of His Savior, Jesus Christ and ask for a confirmation of that which is true. The Spirit will guide us. I know that because I beg the Lord for His Spirit to be with me as I raise my children - often I feel like I don’t know anything.

If there is one thing I know is absolutely true, it is that God lives and loves us and has given us living prophets on the earth to help guide us when we become confused about how to live in the world and not be of the world.

And I hope and pray that you will try to get that testimony for yourself.

Recommended reading:

Cleansing the Inner Vessel by President Boyd K. Packer
The Q&A with Elder Oaks and Elder Wickman
The Response to the HRC Petition
Many of These Articles
This Proclamation
Another Good Article by Elder Oaks

Nephi and the Law of Moses

I have been intrigued recently by the fact that Nephi and his descendants obeyed the law of Moses, even when it is apparent that they understood the fullness of Christ's gospel.

Nephi's understanding of the plan of salvation is impressive, given that he lived six hundred years before the coming of Christ, and he lived in Jerusalem in a time when the Jews did not even understand the Law of Moses.

And, notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we keep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled. For, for this end was the law given; wherefore the law hath become dead unto us, and we are made alive in Christ because of our faith; yet we keep the law because of the commandments.

It is significant that Nephi said the law of Moses was dead to them because they knew that it was only a type of Christ, a reminder of what was really important.

I believe this is one of the reasons Lehi and his family were led to the promised land. They understood that the law of Moses wasn't the important part of the gospel. The important part was faith in Christ and his atonement and sacrifice.


Nephi understood that the law of Moses would be fulfilled.

Wherefore, we speak concerning the law that our children may know the deadness of the law; and they, by knowing the deadness of the law, may look forward unto that life which is in Christ, and know for what end the law was given. And after the law is fulfilled in Christ, that they need not harden their hearts against him when the law ought to be done away.

Nephi and his brethren took care to teach their children that the law of Moses was only a type of Christ, and a way to be reminded of His coming. It was important to them to teach their children tha the law of Moses is "dead" and that life is found only in and through the Savior, Jesus Christ. They wanted to make sure that when Christ finally came their children would be willing to accept Christ's fulfillment of the law of Moses, rather than harden their hearts toward the Savior, as the Jews in Jerusalem would do when he came.

Why do you think it is significant that Nephi described the law of Moses as being "dead"? Why did they continue living the law of Moses when they knew of the fullness of the gospel?
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Christ’s Millennial Reign

Book of Mormon Papers - a series of posts
containing papers I wrote for a
BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: It’s ironic that I just wrote about how Isaiah has been on my mind – since I’ve been trying to slog through Isaiah in the Book of Mormon – and then here I come to post the next Book of Mormon paper and it’s about Isaiah. Maybe I need to pull out my Old Testament seminary manual or institute manual and have it by my bedside so I can get something out of Isaiah this time around. I actually love Isaiah, but I don’t always understand it without having to do tons of research, which is time consuming, and I read my Book of Mormon right before bed which doesn’t leave time for a lot of research. I usually read a page or two and write my thoughts in the margins. My scripture study usually comes during the day, and that’s when I do some major researching. But I keep feeling bugged to study Isaiah, so I think I’m going to have to start sooner rather than later… I’ve been putting it off so that I can finish my study of the Character of Christ in the gospels, so either I need to hurry up and finish my study of the gospels, or I need to postpone that and jump head first into Isaiah… )

 

The words of Isaiah are valuable sources of plain and precious truths of the gospel. When Nephi quoted Isaiah he included many prophesies of Christ’s first and second comings. What are some of the important things that Isaiah prophesied concerning the coming of Christ and what do these things mean? Isaiah prophesied of the destruction that would come to the wicked and the saving of the righteous and the peace that would come from Christ’s reign.

The fate of the wicked, or those members of the great and abominable church, has been compared by prophets to several tragic historical incidences. Isaiah relates the destruction of Assyria as a type for the destruction of the wicked during the second coming. Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would “punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.”(2 Nephi 20:12) Assyria was destroyed because of the worldliness of its people, and so shall the members of the great and abominable church be destroyed at the second coming of Christ.

When Isaiah prophesied of Christ’s birth he prophesied that Christ should be called “Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.” (2 Nephi 19:12) The peace that will come from the Savior is everlasting and will dwell upon those who are righteous at the day of his coming. The Lord said “O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid…” (2 Nephi 20:24) The Lord will destroy those who contend against His people, and he will leave them with an everlasting peace. The state of the earth during the reign of Christ will be peaceful and righteous when “the wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and fatling together and a little child shall lead them.” (2 Nephi 21:6)

Innocence, peace, and righteousness will characterize the world while Christ reigns, and those who are righteous at His coming will be spared to live at that time, while the wicked will be destroyed according to the prophesies of Isaiah and the word of the Lord.

What do the prophecies of Isaiah mean to you? How do you “liken” Isaiah to yourself?

Proving the Coming of Christ

I realized that there has been a bit of an intense or deep feeling on the blog lately, and it has been making me a little crazy. I have been thinking of something a little "lighter" to post about - but really, is there any part of the gospel that really is "lite" (yes, that was kind of a snarky comment about the "Mormonism Lite" review - if you don't know what I am talking about, go look it up. But it's not light reading, just consider yourself forewarned).

I am learning the balance between boldly declaring Christ'a gospel and not coming across as condescending. I appreciate those folks who stick around on the blog here and let me practice on them. I have a lot to learn about the gospel and I think I have just as much to learn about sharing it with people.

A few nights ago I started 2 Nephi 11 and I read the phrase "my soul delighteth" a couple of times, so I figured I should definitely write about it.


I especially loved this, "my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ" - perhaps that is one of the main reasons I write on this blog - because my soul delights in that same thing.

Like I said - I am trying to be bold without being overbearing (see Alma 38:12). I am really not good at that (ask my husband! And pretty much anyone who has met me "offline"... yikes. I am pretty bad). Well, we all have strengths and weaknesses, and if the Lord can really turn my weakness in this into a strength (see Ether 12:27) then perhaps some day I will indeed be bold without being overbearing.

Do you delight in proving the truth of Christ to "your people"? Do you struggle to be bold without being overbearing?


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To Understand With Your Heart

Book of Mormon Papers - a series of posts
containing papers I wrote for a
BYU Religion class my freshman year of college.

(Note: I enjoyed re-reading this post because it reminded me that I need to study the words of Isaiah more! It’s interesting how many people talk about how hard it is to understand Isaiah. His words really are plain and precious. The symbolism is sometimes hard to understand, but only if you aren’t familiar with symbols. I had great teachers (both religious teachers and secular teachers) who really helped me to understand symbolism. One of my favorite classes in high school was Art History, and we learned a lot about symbolism in that class.)

In the Book of Mormon, the prophets quote Isaiah several times and often will give their own interpretation of Isaiah’s prophecies.  Nephi is not only no exception, but he alone quoted Isaiah more often than any other writer in the Book of Mormon.  Nephi explained himself several times, often stating how he read Isaiah to “more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer,” (1 Nephi 19:23) or for the “proving unto [his] people that save Christ should come all men must perish.”  The words of Isaiah are often hard to comprehend and can cause frustration instead of enlightenment.  How, then, is one supposed to read the words of Isaiah so that he may believe more fully in Christ?  Isaiah himself states that man must “understand with their hearts” (2 Nephi 16:10) in order to understand and be converted.  After one has begun to understand with his heart, the treasures of Isaiah may be enjoyed and stored up in burning testimony.

In a vision described by Isaiah, he is called to testify and prophesy of Christ.  After overcoming feelings of self doubt, removed by the atonement of Christ, Isaiah offers himself as a witness. (2 Nephi 16:5-8)  However, Isaiah was informed that, although men would hear his words, they would misunderstand and perceive not. (2 Nephi 16:9)  The things of Isaiah are simple and plain truths of the gospel; they are words which, if received in the correct spirit and mind, can enlighten and enlarge the soul.  Man is continuously instructed throughout the scriptures to experiment on the word and plant the words in their heart with faith. (Alma 32)  If one will but follow that counsel, the plain and precious truths contained in Isaiah will begin to change the lives of those they touch.

Isaiah was called as a special witness of Christ.  Words which testify of Christ are important to one’s own understanding of the Redeemer, and there is no better way to come to know the character of Christ than to read of Him through the prophesies and witnesses of those called to testify of Him.  The words of Isaiah may be hard to understand, but if approached in the correct spirit and mind, within Isaiah’s words may be found plain and precious truths that will strengthen and enlarge the testimonies of those who read them.

How do you approach the words of Isaiah?

Equality and the War on Gender

I went through a few different titles for this post, thinking about what I was going to write: Women and the Priesthood, Women and Equality, Culture vs Doctrine, Feminist or Disciple of Christ? I hope this title describes the post accurately.

My mind has been really full lately. This post, I think, is really just me trying to sort out all those thoughts.

I am not sure what piqued my interest in the Mormon feminist movement, but I am pretty sure it had something to do with all the talk about Joanna Brooks’ book and Ralph Hancock’s responses and critiques of the book. It may have been a post I read on Segullah about the “war on womanhood”. Regardless, a few months ago I started doing a lot of thinking about equality, gender, and the doctrine of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I also started thinking about the way women (and men) in the Church seem to misunderstand the fundamental doctrines of Jesus Christ.

Manhood/Womanhood vs Discipleship

A commenter on the Segullah post said, “I don’t think in terms of womanhood and manhood. We are all children of God with eternal potential. There is nothing uniquely female about the godly characteristics I am asked to develop.” I agree with this in a major way. In the Church’s handbook for parents there is a section that talks about teaching children to accept and understand their gender roles. If you are unfamiliar with the A Parent’s Guide, I will point out that it was published in 1985 and has not been revised since. When I read this section yesterday I was fully expecting to read about how the Church encourages stereotypical gender roles, such as cooking and cleaning for women, and college and job skills for men. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Church has been teaching equality of the genders at least since the mid-80s, but obviously the doctrine of Jesus Christ has been around for longer than that, and as “all are alike unto God” (2 Nephi 26:33), this doctrine of equality has been part of the gospel since before any women’s movements.

A quote from the book that supports the commenter at Segullah says, “There are many patterns of behavior that are appropriate for all people. Everyone, male and female, is invited to examine the character of Jesus Christ and emulate him … Among the traits Christ revealed as proper for men and women alike are faith, hope, charity, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, kindness, godliness, humility, diligence, and love. These virtues transcend gender. They are Christlike attributes to which both sexes should aspire … Spiritual gifts, as described in Doctrine and Covenants 46, are not restricted to one gender either. Included are gifts of knowledge, belief, administration, organization, healing, and discernment.” There is more of the same through the section, including statements such as, “You should provide opportunities for your children to develop talents in various directions unhindered by improper stereotypes … Teach your daughters and your sons to seek opportunities to learn and to exploit every such opportunity fully … Boys must learn basic domestic skills, and girls must be able to earn a living if necessary.”

Gender as an Eternal Characteristic

However, the same guide says, “members of the Church must not be deceived about one immutable truth: there is eternal significance in being a man or a woman.” And recall that in The Family: A Proclamation to the World it states, “Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.” So, if gender is so important, but each gender is equally expected (by Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father) to develop all of the characteristics of Christ (many of which, ironically, are “naturally” attribute to women) and any of the spiritual gifts available to God’s children, then what is the difference between the genders?

The same commenter at Segullah pointed out this problem we often encounter in trying to learn and teach about the significance of gender, “Our efforts to teach women of their spiritual equality often overreach into expressions of otherness, specialness, or even betterness [than men]. If we truly believed we were equal in God’s eyes we wouldn’t need to find ways to feel set apart or special.”

So, how do you teach the importance of gender and identity while staying away from expressions of “otherness” and “betterness”?

When Equality Gets in the Way

Equality is a hard principle. What does it really mean? Does equality mean that we should all be the same? Does it mean that everyone should have the exact some opportunities in this life? Does it mean that we should all be treated the exact same? Children should be treated like adults, young adults should be treated like mature adults, the elderly should be treated like young adults?

What does equality really mean? What do we really want when we say we want “equality for women”?

Men today are pressured to be worldly. They are pressured to neglect their families for their jobs, often using their families as an excuse for how much they work. They are pressured to provide the luxuries of the world for their families.

Image Credit: Alex E. Proimos

Families are used by the world as an excuse for men to focus on their jobs and careers, rather than focus on their family. It seems like the opinion of women is, “Why do we only pressure men to be worldly? I want pressure to be worldly, too!” That’s not what they say, but think about it – as women we are not fighting for men to come home, man up, and protect and lead their families. Instead we are fighting for women to be pressured to do more outside the home. We want equality, but we want it in the wrong direction. We are sick of the stereotype of women being housewives and staying at home and doing the laundry while our husbands are out smoking cigars and going to bars with their coworkers and bosses. Should we instead be sick of the stereotype of men being workaholics, spending more time pursuing their careers than spending time with their families?

Is our fight for equality perhaps pushing all of us in the wrong direction?

Manhood/Womanhood and Discipleship

Although there are cultural stereotypes for gender roles which, as members of Christ’s Church we should not espouse, gender is still a significant part of our creation.

In the world today I think that some would like to remove all distinction between the genders. In fact, we are moving at an alarming rate toward a society where you can choose your gender. You can choose to marry someone of the same gender, as if there isn’t a reason why we were created male and female. It was just chance, or it was a mistake nature or God made. If you don’t like it, don’t be that gender, don’t follow the “gender roles” of that gender (and I don’t mean the stereotypical ones here, I mean the we-need-a-man’s-reproductive-organs-and-a-woman’s-reproductive-organs-to-make-babies roles).

Why would we be created the way we are if there wasn’t a reason for it? There is a reason for it. Gender is essential to our identity as children of God. I am just still learning exactly what that means.

From the proclamation again, “By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.”

What does this really mean, though? I do not think it means what a lot of people think it means. I do not think it means that men or women are necessarily more naturally inclined to perform their divinely appointed roles. I take this as more of a commandment. Rather than God saying, “Women, you are more naturally predisposed to nurturing, so you guys nurture. Men, you are more predisposed to protecting your families and earning a living, so you guys do that.” I think what God is saying is more like, “Regardless of what your ‘natural’ tendencies are, I want you, women, to nurture children. Men, I want you to provide a safe environment for women to do that, and make sure women and children are clothed and fed and sheltered, and help her out in the nurturing.”

My husband and I have talked at length about this. As far as providing for a family goes, I could make probably two or three times my husband’s income. But my husband has been commanded to provide for his family, and we feel that it is really important for him to do that. Staying home with kids and being nurturing is hard for me, even though I know a lot about raising kids (from a research stand point – not from experience). I can deal with workplace stress a lot easier than I can deal with children-induced stress. But we feel that it is really important that I learn how to nurture our children, even though I would rather provide for our family than nurture our family, and my husband would rather have it be that way, too.

I am aware that there are individual circumstances, but as with every other area in the gospel where there is an “ideal” we should not be looking for reasons to not live the ideal. Nor should we judge others who are not living the ideal for whatever reason.

Questions Without Answers

I’ve been asking a lot of questions in the past few months, and I don’t have all the answers yet – and I was hoping that I would have more answers as I wrote this post, but they seem to elude me. Please feel free to share your thoughts and feelings, and especially quotes from talks or scripture passages that help you answer these questions. Maybe I can find some more answers, too.

Washed Clean

I was sitting in sacrament meeting at the organ - which meant that someone else had my kids and I could ponder during the sacrament. My thoughts drifted to the events of the previous day, Saturday.

One of the perks of playing the piano is being asked to play at baptisms. Saturday was one of those occasions for me. The member of the bishopric who was presiding told the young woman who was baptized that she had been washed clean and that it she would continue to repent and be worthy to partake of the sacrament she could be washed clean each Sunday as she partook of the sacrament.




I knew this doctrine before and I have always believed it, but that day as I took the tiny cup of water and felt the cool liquid wash down my throat, I actually felt clean. I felt as if in that moment I was as perfect and clean as I was after my baptism.

Recently I have been thinking (and writing) about repentance and the atonement, and I feel like as this has been a focus in my personal study, I have been applying the principles of repentance more effectively.




It is this application of the atonement that has made the difference. In order for the sacrament to cleanse us, we must be repentant.

I know that I am clean - perfectly clean - after repenting and partaking of the sacrament. I know that as I strive to live the gospel and repent when I fall short and rely on Christ, I can partake of the sacrament and be cleansed as if by the waters of baptism.

Do you feel clean when you take the sacrament? How do you feel as you apply the principles of the atonement in your life?


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Sunday Study–Scriptures

Welcome to the Sunday Study link up! This week, I was inspired by a post by Jocelyn at We Talk of Christ, We rejoice in Christ about reading your scriptures. There’s just something about studying the paper scriptures that I don’t think will ever be replaced by technology.

With that in mind, my study this week will focus on the words and life of the Savior. I had made a goal to read about the life and words of Christ by April General Conference, but that might not happen. But I think I will make my best effort!

My study on Sunday will be focused on:

The Four Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John

The Savior’s Visit to the Americas – 3 Nephi 11-26

What are you studying tomorrow? Do you have some good reads you want to share? Link up below!

What Think Ye of Christ?

(find the talk here – Teachings of Jesus)

I have mentioned before that I have always enjoyed Elder Dallin H. Oaks’ talks. When I was little and General Conference was … well, a little boring, I would color or maybe play a little conference bingo, but when I heard Elder Oaks’ voice, my ears would perk up, and I would listen to his whole talks.

I think that my favorite talks from General Conference are usually those given by Elder Oaks, and this one was no exception. I love how clearly he speaks, and how logical his arguments are (must be because he’s a lawyer). There is just something authoritative in how he speaks. As if he’s just daring someone to contradict him.

And how could you contradict what Elder Oaks testifies of in this conference talk?

“What think ye of Christ?”

(Image credit)

How do you answer that question? Here’s how I answer it.

I am so grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ. While I will admit that I do not know everything about Him, what I do know, what I have learned about Him, I know is true. He is my Savior. The most significant part, to me, of His mission was His willingness to suffer for my sins, to take upon Him my infirmities, in the garden of Gethsemane, and then do give His life for me on the cross. And it didn’t end there. After three days in the tomb, the Savior took up His body again and was resurrected so that we can all live with our Father in Heaven again. I know that He has “engraven [me] upon the palms of [His] hands” and will never forget me.

Elder Oaks’ talk was a wonderful reminder to me of how I need to study the life of the Savior – the prophesies concerning Him, and most importantly, His own words. I made a goal after October General Conference that I would try to read all four gospels and the Savior’s ministry in America in 3 Nephi before April General Conference. I guess I have one more month. Better get down to business!

I would also like to really read and study Jesus the Christ, by James E. Talmage. I have read parts of it before, but I have never really done an in depth study of the Savior, and I think that it would be really beneficial.

The challenge Elder Oaks gave at the end of his talk to have citizenship in Christ’s Church and not use a visa to visit Babylon, have a second residence there, or act like one of its citizens, really called my attention to the ways in which I am not fully a member of Christ’s Church. I need to be constantly “examin[ing] [myself], whether [I] be in the faith.”

I need to have that examination daily. I know there are ways in which I let Babylon creep into my life, and I really do want to be a true follower of the Savior.

What think ye of Christ? Do you do a “self-examination” to determine if you are “in the faith”? How do you keep yourself away from Babylon? What is your testimony of the Savior?

Find more great comments and insights
into this and other talks from General Conference
at Stephanie’s General Conference Book Club

Joseph Smith and a Personal Relationship with Christ

Today the Relief Society lesson was Chapter 4 from The Teachings of George Albert Smith manual. The entire lesson was about Joseph Smith and the restoration, and it was a really good lesson for me. I have always believed that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and when I was a teenager I think I started understanding the significance of the First Vision a little more, but I never really had a “missionary” testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith. You know – when the missionaries teach about the First Vision and the spirit is so strong it almost knocks you off your feet. I’ve always been able to feel the testimony of others, but never been really able to feel that testimony coming from within. You know the difference.

A few weeks ago I was looking at the lessons in the manual and checking out which lessons I would be “teaching” in Relief Society (I feel it’s more like leading a group discussion than actually “teaching” – especially because I am one of the youngest members of our ward’s Relief Society). I noticed that last week was a lesson on the Savior and then my lesson was going to be on Joseph Smith, and to be honest, I was a little disappointed. I wanted to lead discussion about the Savior! I love the Savior! I feel like I know Him! What a great topic!

But I had to teach about Joseph Smith. This somewhat mysterious man to me (even though I have read biographies about him, and I even took a History of the Church religion class at BYU – and I still didn’t really feel like I knew him very well) I would have to teach about and talk about for about 45 minutes. I didn’t think I could do it.

Then I started reading the manual. Wow. Talk about good stuff. And did you know that the Spirit will guide you as you prepare lessons? Just sayin’.

My favorite part of the lesson (after the part where I read Joseph Smith History 1:10-19 and had to choke back tears because the Spirit was so strong) was the part where President George Albert Smith said,

It was a very natural thing that Joseph Smith should seek the Lord. He came of a … people who believed in our Heavenly Father, in the divine mission of the Savior, in the efficacy of prayer, and that God would hear and answer his people if they went before him with a proper spirit. It was easy for this young man to believe, because he had been born and reared in a believing household; and when he went out into the woods in response to the injunction of the scripture (James 1:5): “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him,” he believed that his prayer would be answered, and our Heavenly Father has promised his children from the beginning, that, “by faith ye may know all things.”

This brought back a flood of memories of things that I had learned about Joseph Smith’s family. He came from a very faithful family – on both sides. His ancestors and his parents were men and women who believed in God and had great faith.

And then I thought, “Would it be (is it?) natural for my children to seek the Lord when they have a question? Do they have faith that Heavenly Father loves them and will answer their prayers?”

I realized that I am not doing nearly a good enough job raising my children in a “ believing household.” Sure, we have family prayer and read the scriptures together, but do I tell my children every time the Lord answers my prayers? Do I lead by example by going to the Lord when I need help or answers?

From Rob Gardner’s “Joseph Smith the Prophet”

I have a testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that he is a prophet of God. I know that he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ in the sacred grove, just as he said he did.

On a different note, if you checked out the Sunday Study link-up yesterday, you’ll know that I was going to study this (somewhat ancient) talk by President James E. Faust. Well. I did. And wow. Now you need to go read it.

If you struggle with your personal relationship with Christ, go read that talk. President (well, then Elder) Faust has some great instruction to help you figure it all out. I want to have a more personal relationship with the Savior, and this talk has helped me clearly see the way I can do that.

Also, Chocotania’s post today about becoming something better than you are, three weeks at a time, was really well written and very motivating. I am going to follow her example and change one habit for three weeks, every three weeks (hopefully for the rest of my life). Can you imagine the impact that could have on your life? There is always something we can change, and as I mentioned in the comments on that post, I have been on a “personal improvement plateau” for the past year or so. I mentioned that my “status quo” has been pretty good. I read my scriptures daily, study the gospel mostly daily (in addition to the scripture study), I prayed daily, I basically did all the “basics”. But that’s not enough. I need to be moving forward. If you’re not moving toward the Savior, you’re moving away from Him, right?

So my plan is to change a habit or start a new habit for three weeks, every three weeks. I am going to spend this week praying about what to do first, because it has to be small and simple – line upon line. But I want to make sure that it is a really significant thing, and because my goal this year is to find out what Heavenly Father wants for me, I am going to make sure that I get His input on my first task.

How do you change habits or make new ones? How do you develop your personal relationship with the Savior? What is your testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith?

Elder David A. Bednar’s Regional Conference Talk

I have noticed that a few people have been finding my blog looking for Elder Bednar’s Regional Conference talk for the South Salt Lake Valley regional conference. Not sure if he has given another talk at a different conference since then, but I figured I should post the notes from ours. Our conference was on Sunday, October 23, 2011.

I actually found a website with an audio file and transcript. However, I am hesitant to post a link to it here because of a Church policy that says “Church members should not record the talks or addresses that General Authorities… give at stake conferences, missionary meetings, or other meetings. However, members may record broadcasts of general conference on home equipment for personal, noncommercial use.” I am going to send an email and figure out if it’s okay to post that, and I will get back to you.

Now I wish I had taken more notes. I am sure I took notes during the conference, but I can’t find them, and I am sure that I was more occupied with trying to make sure my children didn’t smash cheerios in the carpet of the Conference Center (our stake was invited – and encouraged – to attend at the Conference Center), or throw fits disrupting the people behind us. So I probably didn’t take very many notes anyway. However, apparently I either remembered a lot, or by some stroke of inspiration by the Holy Ghost I wrote here on the blog a lot of the things Elder Bednar said – most of the things I just mentioned in passing in another post, but I’ve collected them all here for you.

Sacrifices and Things That Matter

I made it home and we went to our Regional Stake Conference on Sunday where we listened to Elder Bednar. The first thing out of his mouth was a story about how his son chose not to play in a football tournament that was going to be on Sunday. And then how his sons gave up attending a college basketball game they wanted to attend – because it was going to be on a Sunday. Can I tell you how relieved I felt that I wasn’t driving up from Las Vegas during his talk? I don’t even know what those stories had to do with the rest of his talk (wrestling a four year old and two year old during conference might have had something to do with that) so I almost felt like his words were so that I would feel as if the Lord noticed my decision and approved of it.

Being With God

We had the privilege of listening to Elder David A. Bednar at our Regional Conference on Sunday at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. He spoke about a lot of things, but one of the things that stuck with me the most was his admonition to study the life and character of the Savior, because we need to receive His image in our countenance – and in order to become like the Savior, we need to know the Savior.

I thought it was interesting that Elder Bednar specifically mentioned studying the gospels and 3 Nephi, because during the Relief Society Broadcast I felt a distinct prompting to study those exact scriptures – to really study the life of the Savior so that I could become more like Him.

…

Elder Bednar pointed out the translation of verse 11: “Then the devil leaveth him, and now Jesus knew that John was cast into prison, and he sent angels, and behold they came and ministered unto him (John).” This translation is significantly different than the Savior having angels minister to Him. The Lord knew that John was in prison, and he had just been fasting for forty days and forty nights and had been dealing with the father of lies, and instead of worrying about himself, the Savior sent angels to minister to John.

The Time Shall Come

At our Regional Stake Conference yesterday, Elder David A. Bednar talked about this principle. We cannot be converted to programs, people, or policies. We are converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ – which is that He lives and that He atoned for our sins. Sometimes I think that we lose sight of the “most important message” of the Church. We need to remember that our message is of the Savior – and that is the message that we need to take to the world.

…

Yesterday Elder Bednar testified that He alone does not have any of the capacity or ability to be an apostle – but that through the atonement of the Savior and through the power of the Holy Ghost, he is made to be more than he is. I loved Elder Bednar’s thoughts about that and I think they fit in with Elder Clayton’s testimony that this work is God’s work. We participate in God’s work as we allow the Savior to make us more than we are – and God does his work through us, but it is still God’s work. And we would do well to remember that.

In case my notes aren’t enough, I found a few other people who wrote about Elder Bednar’s talk:

Mormon Wookiee: Regional Conference with Elder David A. Bednar
Mormon Angst: A Testimony is Not Enough
LDS Freedom Forum: Notes from Jason

Here are some links to a few similar talks from Elder Bednar:

In the Strength of the Lord” (BYU speech, 2001)
“The Character of Christ” (BYU-I Symposium , 2003)

Is this what you were looking for? If you attended, did you have any other notes from Elder Bednar’s address? Please share them here if you did!

Filled by the Sacrament

I don't know about you, but one little piece of bread and one sip of water has never really filled me up. (not that it should).

But in 3 Nephi 18, when Christ administers the sacrament to He disciples and to the multitude, the scriptures say the disciples and the multitude "had eaten and were filled" and then later "they did drink, and they were filled."

Apparently taking the sacrament "filled" the Nephites. Filled their bellies? Probably not. I imagine that what the scriptures mean here is that the were "filled" with the Spirit of Christ and with the covenant they were making with the Father to "always remember" Christ.

Do you ever feel "filled" when you take the sacrament? Do you take the sacrament while thinking about the promise that you are making to "always remember Him"?


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