A Curious Instrument

Just in case one thinks this will be about slogans on coins and bills, this isn't about money. This is about who we trust.  When it comes to very important matters, those we trust become very important as well. As time passes, you should learn that people and their institutions are not very trustworthy. Too many expect the local store to always operate in ways that make customers happy, but a business can't do that consistently.  Sometimes inflation intervenes, wages rise, and prices go up. If a customer has a fixed income, that isn't the store's problem and you can't trust the store or its owners/managers/employees to make sure the price of goods are always affordable for you. The larger problem is that people are expecting far too much in almost every way from every external source.  Physicians must provide painless and complete heath. Governments must provide large assets (such as houses) at no or little cost to citizens.  God must punish the wicked immediately a...

Many people spend time making bigger choices, such as buying a car or a house.  These things should be considered and the more information you have on big decisions, the better your decision will be. There is no decision larger than who or what your God is.  I wrote about that before . It is important to choose wisely what gets your fullest devotion. Sadly, circumstances are not working in favor of taking lots of time to make your choice on approaching God or not. Because of all the terrible things that people are doing in our world, God will soon take away the opportunity to have his blessings: 3 Nephi 15 :10 And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner ...

In updating this, I see that it is a fore-bearer for the Agenda of God .  The concept didn't arise out of nowhere! Often enough on this blog, I have spoken of exaltation, or becoming as God. One could look on that goal as being like a destination. Others, in this case Jesus Christ, have reached the destination of exaltation and have mapped out a path that we can follow to come to the same place.  I have sometimes called this the Mariner's Log  and those within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints often call this the Plan of Salvation . Whatever the name, the road to take and the destination to which it leads are the same. As with any destination, as log as you are on the proper road, faced in the right direction, and moving forward, you will reach it. Prophets and the Savior himself called this road the " straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life." It doesn't matter how slow you move as long as you are on this path, you will reach the promis...

In this time of dubious justifications for dwindling liberties and forced compliance, it is good to recall Christ's teachings on such times as these. I take some excerpts from the retelling of the Sermon on the Mount to those in America in the Book of Mormon , but the concepts are the same as those found in the biblical Book of Matthew . 3 Nephi 13:25 Agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way with him, lest at any time he shall get thee, and thou shalt be cast into prison. Christ doesn't want us to do jail-time that we may not escape.  Although a few of his servants were cast into prison, it is not something he wants for us.  We are to comply with our adversaries to avoid incarceration. Note the use of the word "adversary" - we are not to join the other side, only to work together as partners when it is advantageous. Don't make others destroy you as you can't preach to the living if you are dead. 3 Nephi 13:30 For it is better that ye...

A rather unique doctrine of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reveals that all of us had an existence before birth as spirit children of God.  The Bible mentions this in reference to Jeremiah (1:5) and Job (38:4, 7). Revelations 12:7 talks of the "war in heaven", where the spirit children of God chose to follow either Jehovah (Christ) or Lucifer (Satan).  Satan's followers were cast down and Christ's followers were prepared to come to earth through birth. When you chose Christ before you were born in mortality, it wasn't just a choice, it was a commitment .  You said you would follow Christ - that is why you are here.  Mortality is called a lot of things, but it may be thought of like a very extended military "boot camp".  It is designed to ascertain if you are qualified to be part of God's "army". The biggest thing to remember is that you committed to this.  You enlisted in God's development program. I suppose you can sa...

This world is crazy and it is just getting more so.  How do I cope? I spend workweek evenings living on an acre of desert land I bought within commuting distance from my job. My first shelter was a geodesic dome greenhouse that I built from a kit.  I didn't anchor it down as well as the instructions said and a big wind picked it up, tore it apart, and deposited it in a neighbor's field.  I found it and rebuilt it again, did a better job of tying it to the ground, and ultimately covered it with a much more durable tarp.  I don't live in it anymore, but it has proven very good for storage. The dome made a lot of noise and even though I had a fine bedframe and bed, I was losing sleep with the original polyester sheeting cover snapping in the wind and getting torn up over the weeks.  I thought about how to solve the problem and settled on buying a trailered MacGregor 25 sailboat from a guy on a nearby lake.  It was much cheaper than a comparable RV and gives...

My readings in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants have inspired me to use this blog to repeat and repeat the charge to all that we must repent . I woke today thinking that it might be useful to help people understand what I interpret repentance to actually is and, perhaps more importantly, what it looks like. Repentance is a change of heart and behavior that better aligns us with Christ and his commandments. It is a short statement, but there is plenty packed into it. First, it is important to gain a personal understanding of God, his Christ, and what they command us to do. Jesus did what his Father (and our Heavenly Father) told him to do, even the difficult things. Much of what we know of God comes to us from the example and teachings of Christ and his prophets throughout time. Jesus went about doing good and we should do the same. I know it would have been very useful for Jesus to have rallied his followers into an army, taken control of local government,...