The Doctrine of Christ

I understand and honor those who want to get to the heart of any matter set before them. I am also one that tends to brush away things that I consider ancillary to real purposes. In Christ's ministry in the holy land, he went to weddings and dinners; he socialized over the course of a three year ministry. In the land of Bountiful, as recorded in the Book of Mormon, Christ was only present for a handful of days, so we don't hear of his social schedule. He was rather purposeful and almost business-like. There was little time for things like parables, collecting new followers, or answering a lot of questions.

In one crucial incident, Christ did a clear progression of things in the first hours of his visit to the people at Bountiful, as described in the third book of Nephi, chapter 11:

1. God the Father announces and identifies Jesus and that he is the son of God (v. 3-7);
2. Jesus show each person that he was the promised and crucified Messiah who had been prophecied would come (v. 8-17);
3. Jesus calls Nephi and others and gives them the power to baptize (v. 18-22);
4. Jesus explains exactly how to perform a baptism and denounces (traditional Jewish) disputations on baptism and doctrine (v. 23-30);
5. The first rendition of the doctrine of Christ and his promise that the Holy Ghost will validate its truth (v. 31-36);
6. The second rendition of the doctrine of Christ (v. 37);
7. The third rendition of the doctrine of Christ (v. 38);
8. There is nothing more or less in the doctrine of Christ. Blessing to them that preach this as Christ's doctrine and punishments for those who teach other things as the doctrine of Christ (v. 39-40); and
9. Charge to Nephi and his brethren to go and teach these things. (v. 41)

There is a definite line of authority to baptise established, from God to Christ to Nephi and others. There is instruction on the authorized performance of the ordinance of baptism specifically to those newly authorized to perform it. There is a specific charge against speculation toward alteration of the baptism ordinance and the doctrine surrounding it. The doctrine of Christ is the singular importance of repentance and baptism to being saved and inheriting the kingdom of God, repeated three times. Finally, those authorized to baptize are instructed to preach the doctrine of repentance and baptism to everyone.

31 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, I will declare unto you my doctrine.

32 And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record of the Father, and the Father beareth record of me, and the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me.

33 And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.

34 And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned.

35 Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and I bear record of it from the Father; and whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

36 And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are bone.

37 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things.

38 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

39 Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and whoso buildeth upon this buildeth upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them.

40 And whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock; but he buildeth upon a sandy foundation, and the gates of hell stand open to receive such when the floods come and the winds beat upon them.

41 Therefore, go forth unto this people, and declare the words which I have spoken, unto the ends of the earth.

I emphasized a phrase above because there is a strong tendency for many people to say that there is nothing more to Christ and Christianity than repentance and baptism. From my reading, this is the total sum of what needs to be done to be "saved" (how many different flavors of salvation are out there?), which is to inherit the kingdom of God. It doesn't mean there is not more to God or Christ, such as exaltation. It means that you cannot add other stipulations to salvation (as the Jews were known for), nor can you neuter or push aside any of the stated requirements, such as authoritative baptism (as some Christ-believing groups have done), and say you will still be saved. In this situation of short exposure, Christ was terribly clear and immediately repetitive on this doctrine!

Are there further blessings and opportunities that God offers us beyond this "salvation"? I strongly believe that there are, including transcendence toward exaltation, which is to become like God. I don't feel that anything said in this chapter or elsewhere in the Book of Mormon or Holy Bible proscribes or condemns such further opportunities.

What I hope to convey here is the central importance of baptism performed by those authorized to do it. For those who essentially do nothing, relying alone on the "love of Christ" to "save" them, and loudly proclaiming this concept, I can only say that Christ has already condemned such teaching and (lack of) practice and purveyors, as quoted vividly above! I will rather say this, as instructed by Christ: "Repent! Be baptized! Be saved!"

Be Reconciled to God and Parents

God provides everything you have and everything you are. You really don't know much about God at all.  Stories in the scriptures teach you to trust God in his promises, such as the rewards for obedience to commandments.

You have parents. God tells you to honor them.  They may be terrible parents, but what do we have as children to judge those that gave us life, often cared for us in our early and most vulnerable years. We were fed and clothed and sheltered to various degrees by parents and grandparents, usually in ways that we could not see or comprehend in our young minds. Some hate their parents, taught to do it by people happy to tear down natural affection and profit from their destruction of the ignorant and innocent.

To have a better reward, you HAVE to reconcile yourself to God. Do what God tells you to do, even if you don't see it as being a good thing. Some teach an ignorance of God, seeking to erase Deity to fill that role themselves. You may think you know thing better then God does, and this attitude is increasing encouraged by haughty folk who seek your devotion to them. Don't allow anyone to place themselves between yourself and God.

You must also reconcile yourself to your parents, also doing what they tell you to do in your youth.  Until you leave their home and set up a home and family of your own, you are REQUIRED to reconcile yourself to your parents. As we grow older, parenting our own children, we gain a better understanding of the challenges they faced and the stresses of living that contributed to their choices. You do the same with your own children that may judge and hate you, perhaps as you did to your own parents.

Forgive your parents and perhaps your own children will choose to ultimately forgive you. God, who defines "good",  may choose to forgive our idiocy as we reconcile ourselves to his guidance and wisdom.

The Righteous will be Blessed

In the study of the Old Testament, we read of the young Joseph who saw visions offensive to his family. His father Jacob ultimately recognized these visions as an outcome of righteousness and, instead of taking further offense, blessed his son with the coat of patriarchy and made him beloved above all his other children. The story goes that Joseph's brothers, consumed with resentment for the blessings of righteousness that they neither merited nor deserved, threw him first in a pit and then sold him into slavery and let their father believe he had been killed by wild beasts (close to the mark as the brothers behaved as animals to Joseph).

I have heard Joseph described as a braggart and deserving of his treatment at the hands of his brothers, as if their deeds were somewhat justified, which they were not. Joseph was a righteous lad and worthy of the privileges he enjoyed, in gifts, favor, and inspired, prophetic dreams.

I have seen similar behavior in our day and in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is common for scripture stories to be watered down so that supposed blessings are given to all, even to the unrighteous in the name of "love" and "fairness". I remember a good man, made rich is his faithfulness, who was often castigated in Church for sharing "prideful" stories of his blessings and counseled to be "humble" and not speak such things. For many, it is unseemly to speak of experiences that everyone, wicked and righteous, do not enjoy.

Was this not the same justification used by the offended sons of Jacob? Did no all of them deserve a fine coat and the favor of their father and of God? The axiom today is often that the Lord doesn't play favorites, when the stories of Joseph, and Job, and Nephi, and many others show plainly that God favors the righteous and justice demands such favor.

If any of us feel offended by the blessed state of another, we would do well to examine ourselves and our commitment to the Savior and his will for us.

"...BUT his hand is stretched out still."

I've never understood this.  I have read this part of Isaiah a few times, and I still don't get it and I certainly am not trusting what some excuse-maker tells me.

Evil is being done, God is reciprocally angry, but everyone says he is extending mercy. I don't know.

Of course, it all may hang on that "but" word. The Lord is angry, BUT he still holds out the hand of mercy.  I can see that, I guess.

Isaiah 9:17

For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand stretched out still.

That's just one example of many from Chapter 9 into Chapter 10.  So, I think what is being said is that God will get mad (sorry, he isn't the serene being so many hope for), BUT He isn't taking away the opportunity for you to repent and get better, including his promise of not being remembered for being such a jerk in the past if you straighten up.  

As people do evil, the Lord is justifiable angry with them and it will not be "turned away" except for changing their ways. Evil will be visited with anger, not meely-mouthed "please please stop" pronouncements.  God will definately visit all of us with justice - good for good, bad for bad. We all still can work for redemption with Christ's help.

God is a supremely awesome deity, if you ask me.

"Please help me..."

Occasionally, I hear pleas from over-wrought parents - cries for help in overcoming family shortfalls that go far beyond food or paying some overdue bills. I know families with members that have near-tragic circumstances that no amount of money or personal intervention can relieve. They want to be successful; they want to be the picture-perfect family from TV shows and magazines; proud parents want their children to wins awards and acclaim, but they don't have "those" children or parents think a better job or house or marriage might make the "magic" happen.  For some reason, sometimes even of their own make, a family situation is merely broken and the only remedy is a temporary dissolution.

In some such situations, foster care can be better care than a "birth" family can provide. It sounds absolutely terrible, but the reality of smaller and more fractured families with little capacity to face larger challenges, public resources that you may have thought only dealt with criminal abuse or negligence can be a last solution for diminished and broken families.

Looking back only fifty years ago, families were larger, lead by hierarchies of unified couples, and could provide help and comfort from an extended group of people and resources bound to each other by blood and relation. If you had a difficult child, either by demeanor or handicap, there was someone in the family that could intervene, even so far as to take that child in and to provide what was needed.  If there was something your immediate family couldn't handle, the extended family very likely could.

Sadly, our society has been on a multi-decade, multi-pronged mission to destroy such families.  Many children live in households run by single, and increasingly never-married, people. Many young people purposefully reject and isolate themselves from parents and relatives in favor of transitory relationships with friends and co-workers. Too many people conceive children with no thought toward the work required to parent them well, intentions that demand a strong, stable, and resourceful (monied/brained) married couple devoted to each other and then their children.  Far too many people copulate with mounds of their own maturity/drug problems, mindless of the probable outcome. Most of the situations that made families successful in the past have been discouraged in recent times and what the past knew as family dysfunction (like never-married parenthood) is foolishly praised and even selfishly lionized.

I was a public health nutritionist twenty-five years ago.  It was painful to see 12-year-old pregnant girls brought to my office to collect food vouchers by their 26-year-old mothers (proud grandmas). There was not a husband (or stable relationship) in sight. I should have told them to give those babies up for adoption, but I was too young and frightened of the consequences to my income. More than ever, society demands the provision of public housing, food stamps, welfare checks, childcare, and a crowd of helpers for every child. Getting pregnant is often now a ticket to an enticing web of resources and services meant to replace the benefits of family in the most indiscriminate and political way possible. A girl and her coming children may technically survive day-to-day, but there will be little available with which to accomplish more (much less overcome) without massive help, especially from a large extended family (which has been mostly eliminated).  I assure you from experience that the help available from a well-funded program, filled with kindhearted and powerful social workers, do not begin to take the place of a decent extended family.  However, if you lack such an extended family, a government agency is a far better alternative than going it alone to beg help of your Facebook "friends".

Moving forward a decade or two, we see what I call "multi-generational dysfunction".  Resourceful, coupled and traditional and helpful grandparents and great-grandparents are dead; incompetent parents who rejected "the old ways" but enjoyed the crumbling remains of ancestral resources; and now grown children who had no decent examples of functioning family, no knowledge of extended family members, and nowhere to turn in difficult times except to the charity of strangers or soulless government agencies.  Increasingly, capable families cease to exist entirely and family members that are known are more of a disability than a help. No wonder society scoffs at family - in so many places, remaining families have become breeding-grounds of abuse, neglect, and dysfunction.

So, what is the product of a multi-generationally dysfunctional family to do when, for instance, a child is seriously handicapped?  If there are needs too far beyond ability, to whom should one turn?  Depressingly, a parent should face reality and take the painfully humbling step of turning to government agencies to take over the parenting of that child. If the proper care of a child is beyond parents stripped of other options, it may be time to put them out for fostering, no matter how painful or dispiriting such a move might be.  It is not just a question of money and gifts - many children and families have needs and intrinsic dysfunction that mere money can never resolve.  Sometimes, the needs of such a child are better handled by more resourceful and functional groups, often bearing governmental titles.

We should reward this - a debilitated parent's willingness to give their child over to others (even a government agency) for fostering toward a better childhood and future. I can think of no act more humbling and heart-rending to admit and to act upon voluntarily. Parents may have to make a greater sacrifice to put their children in circumstances where habitual dysfunction or serious disability might be better addressed, usually through your local government child welfare office.  Again, it sounds terrible, but isn't a child worth the personal sacrifice of giving up parental rights?  You can turn a corner for your family and set your children on a better path, even if it hurts your heart to do it.

For those of you not yet facing the decline of the  family you came from, don't let it happen on your watch!  Marry well and with devotion, have children, do what it takes to provide and nurture them well, and teach your children to follow your example!  There are so many broken families, but yours need not be one of those. Choose today not to abdicate your responsibilities to continue your family.

My Own Gratitude

As I look back on my life so far, I remember again that I am profoundly blessed and I thank God for his watch-care for me and my family. It can all be summed up in one word: gratitude.

My mom generously gifted the house in Tucumcari to us and we were initially preparing it for sale until Lisa suggested living in it, her continuing love of the area coming through. After a huge downsizing, she is snugly nesting in her new place. I still work my weekdays about a hundred miles away in Portales and spend time with her on the weekends. I am grateful for the generosity of my mother!

Speaking of the job, I am blessed to continue my work at Eastern New Mexico University, administering some computer servers and applications. It can be a bit more pressure than I prefer and I will surely appreciate retirement when it comes, but it is fine employment that lets me provide well for my family. Few jobs pay as much in this area and I have friendly people to work with, so I hope I am not found complaining too much during the rough times!

My father is a great (sometimes better than I am) influence on my adult children. Three of my sons are serving our country in the military in many ways due to his encouragement. I never thought I would have such a military family, but it isn't surprising given the service of both Lisa's parents as Marines and Dad's time in the Air Force. Such service provides some wonderful opportunities to develop skills and discipline. I am very grateful for their willingness to give up part of their lives for our nation.

My children are all engaged in interesting pursuits, from cleaning petrified wood and water lines to building earthships and caring for the disabled, each chasing their own stars. It has been especially gratifying that we were able to celebrate a marriage this summer and the beginning of a new family!  I am a happy father for the development of my adult children.

Of course, I bask in the love of my wife, Lisa.  I feel undeserving most of the time, but she resolutely cherishes me and our life together anyway. It is hard to find anything for which I am more grateful than the enduring love and companionship of my wife!

Most of all, I am grateful for God's greatest gift, his son Jesus Christ, who payed for my sins and works to give me a glorious future. In so many ways and seemingly every day, God provides the inspiration that I need to do what must be done and I am surpassingly grateful for his interventions in my life!

I hope each of you can find many things in life for which you can feel gratitude and express it often to those around you.

"... it shall come in a day..."

It is pointless to quote much of Mormon chapter 8 which says that the things that have been prophesied will happen and will come by the hand of the Lord. No machinations of women or men, save it be mass repentance, will stay the things that will come that the prophet have said.

This was the prophecy of what conditions would be prevalent when the Book of Mormon and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was brought forth.

Mormon 8:26-32

26 And no one need say they shall not come, for they surely shall, for the Lord hath spoken it; for out of the earth shall they come, by the hand of the Lord, and none can stay it; and it shall come in a day when it shall be said that miracles are done away; and it shall come even as if one should speak from the dead.

27 And it shall come in a day when the blood of saints shall cry unto the Lord, because of secret combinations and the works of darkness.

28 Yea, it shall come in a day when the power of God shall be denied, and churches become defiled and be lifted up in the pride of their hearts; yea, even in a day when leaders of churches and teachers shall rise in the pride of their hearts, even to the envying of them who belong to their churches.

29 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be heard of fires, and tempests, and vapors of smoke in foreign lands;

30 And there shall also be heard of wars, rumors of wars, and earthquakes in divers places.

31 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be great pollutions upon the face of the earth; there shall be murders, and robbing, and lying, and deceivings, and whoredoms, and all manner of abominations; when there shall be many who will say, Do this, or do that, and it mattereth not, for the Lord will uphold such at the last day. But wo unto such, for they are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity.

32 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be churches built up that shall say: Come unto me, and for your money you shall be forgiven of your sins.

It's obvious, at least to me, that Moroni truly was shown our day and that his counsel to those of us in these circumstances come from a position of inspired knowledge.

All wrongs must be made right that justice may prevail. Mercy gives us time to repent but time is nearly done as has been warned again and again.

Pathways to Blessings and Prosperity

I have spoken about prosperity at least once before and I have prospered myself in recent years. I don't know how much I deserve anything like it, but good things have happened regardless as I put myself in God's path.

My continued slow reading of the Book of Mormon might shed some light on some things that bring prosperity, physical and spritual. 

3 Nephi 5

21 Surely he hath blessed the house of Jacob, and hath been merciful unto the seed of Joseph.

22 And insomuch as the children of Lehi have kept his commandments he hath blessed them and prospered them according to his word.

As it reads, God blessed the house of Jacob (those would be the tribes of Israel) and has been merciful to the "seed of Joseph", which are more specifically the descendants of Ephriam and Menassah, the sons of Joseph. This is relevant to the writer Mormon, who is a descendant of Lehi, whose children were of both sons of the biblical Joseph.  It seems that these scriptures make reference to a lineal tradition of God's followers and covenant people.

The Book of Mormon has many references that God will "prosper" his people upon the Western Hemisphere who obey him.  The people of the Book of Mormon, both the righteous and the wicked, are descendants of Joseph, so blessings and mercy are due to them by heritage, if they seek such through obedience to his commandments, as in the second verse.

Blessings and mercy are not restricted to one or another of the twelve tribes of Israel: such is given to all the descendants of Jacob. Anyone who seeks out an authoritative baptism are included in the tribes of Israel and become an inheritor of these promises.

One of those promises is that we prosper according to our diligence in keeping Christ's commandments as in verse 22. 

Why not seek the prosperity that comes of being baptized into the house of Jacob and keeping the commandments of Christ?

Seeking meaning from peers and institutions more than parents

Most people look sideways to peers rather than up to God and their parents. There is nothing in the commandments to look to your peers. It says to "honor your father and mother."

I have been listening to and reading about how the meaningful life is transmitted over time. Older texts credit family transmission from parents or grandparents to children as the primary method of acquiring a meaningful life.

In the past few decades, it can be supposed that the academy, as processed through universities, have tried to usurp that role, as society has taught people that parents are selfish and silly, where scholars hold the key to meaning. I think this is why figures like Jordan Peterson have become so influential. He is both academic God and Father figure all wrapped in one.

But the proper course is that meaning comes from God, the eternal and reliable Father, as channeled through parents that have on-the-ground knowledge of understanding and  application.

There are plenty of bad examples to find, but the great part is that any man or woman can, as they marry and have children, can start the process afresh, hopefully influential into several generations of pointing their children to God and Christ, often better than their own parents did.

Fred Reed is One of the Best Commentators of Our Times

I first discovered Fred about fifteen years ago.

I put links to some of his columns here because they are often blocked without some obfuscation.  He is not considerate of the howlers who scream at things that bother them, so social media typically blocks his writing, which is a terrible shame and recommends him most highly.  Fred is a real "straight shooter".

https://www.amren.com/commentary/2022/02/fred-reed-joe-biden-democracy/ - The Care and Feeding of Rabble: Democracy Its Own Self

https://www.unz.com/freed/blackness-fatigue-enough-is-too-much/ - This gives the best explanation of how "diversity" is at the root of most violence and wars.  Mixing strongly different people together is a bad societal idea. 

You can see Fred's recent columns here:  https://fredoneverything.org/

The Robustness Principle

"Be liberal in what you accept, and conservative in what you send"
_{Postel J., (1989) Request for Comment (RFC) 1122, Requirements for Internet Hosts -- Communication Layers, 1.2.2 - Robustness Principle.}

There are very few people who have been so wise and productive that I choose to revere them. One of these is the computer scientist Jon Postel, whose list of accomplishments is long.

If you are reading this now, you have Jon and a handful of others to thank for the massive "network of networks" that each of us use everyday in our digital communications. Youtube, Netflix, Facebook, and everything else on the Internet owe a great debt of gratitude to Jon and his colleagues who conceived, designed, and built the inter-network in the first place.

Most people consider computer science to be pretty esoteric, however I have found that in any field of endeavor, certain principles emerge that, not only explain reality, but guide us to better and wiser ways of being. One of these was identified by Jon Postel and is an underlying concept that makes the Internet work as well as it does - robustness. Used in our everyday interactions with others, the principle of robustness would stamp out the forces of censorship and "cancel" culture and allow for more open and effective communication among all.

First off, the principle teaches to never reject a message, no matter how poorly constructed or transmitted. Always try to find some way to derive meaning from all attempts at communication and give a useful response. In computer science, even if a digital packet is mal-formed and doesn't follow standard protocol, the robust listener will attempt to process and act upon it regardless, even if the response can only be an error message. In wider communication, if someone shouts at you in a language and using terms that are not recognized, robust people don't just walk away from the attempt- you somehow signal to them that you don't understand at the very least. Much of effective communication has to do with negotiation upon what terms and methods each party can accept messages. As an example, the best "error messages" are those that attempt to see a sender's intent and offer a suggestion toward better communication - perhaps "I'm confused. Do you mean this?" This is at the heart of the axiom "Be liberal in what you accept..."

When responses are given, it is most useful to be "conservative", which is another way to say to fall back upon established communication standards and protocols. Computer science is loaded with standards (Jon Postel was a heavy promulgator and editor of the RFCs, or the library of internet standards, among so much else) and the most effective and useful communication between computers and devices over networks happens when standard protocols for message transfer are used. A successful "citizen" of the "community" is one who knows and uses the established "language" in standard ways that other citizens readily understand. When a person sends a well-formed message (we call that "conservative" in computer terms), that message is received, understood as widely as possible, and able to be acted up on as the sender intended. A "conservative" response allows communication to flow more freely, efficiently, effectively, and widely - the hallmarks of good interchange.

In the end, the winners are those who are the best communicators, whether that is in technology or more generally in life. We are living in an aberrant moment in time where screaming nonsense with fingers plugging ears seems to be making waves and getting attention. This cannot and will not last long as it is not robust and will not stand up to the tests of time. Those who see some success from disrupting interchange today will find themselves side-lined and practically ignored tomorrow as they lack the understanding of protocols and standards that make effective communication and bring results. What is true of digital network attacks is just as true of constantly shouted slurs - it may make its way into every corner of the globe, but there will be no real change made and you will see the dumping of such messages into what computer scientists call "the bit bucket", or something like the social version of a rubbish bin. Potential listeners will learn to filter or eliminate or ignore such noise and the creators of it as an established response and seek out others who work to establish communication.

Do you want to survive and thrive in any society, technological or social? Take a lesson from Jon Postel and learn how to be robust!

God as an Impartial Judge

Many people have a mistaken idea that, because God loves them, they can do as they wish with their lives and plead for mercy later through demands that "love conquers all". This concept of laziness flies in the face of God's work to develop us into people who can become like himself.

"Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:  But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him." - Acts 10:34-35

God is not a respecter of persons.  He must judge us in an impartial way and he cannot make special exceptions for anyone. All must be judged by the same set of rules - this is the nature of justice. Also, God cannot abdicate his role as judge because he loves you - he will not throw aside required repentance and growth through appeals to his love.

Under earthly circumstances, a judge with a close personal relationship with the litigants would have to recuse themselves. God can't do that as he has a close and personal relationship with all of us as our Father and there can be no other judge put on the case.

That is one reason why Christ was sent by God the Father to open the way for mercy under condition of repentance.  God can still be loving through Christ where he must also be a "no respecter of persons" judge.  This is why Christ is referenced as "Love" in many writings - He is the manifestation of God's love where the Father must be the impartial Judge who cannot recuse himself.

Mercy has already been offered through the works of Christ - you and I cannot appeal to some further mercy or love after the fact when we are brought before God for judgement. We must obey and repent during our mortal lives, as stipulated by Christ, if we desire a pleasant conclusion. There will be no "throwing yourself on the mercy of the court" in the end - such mercy was extended beforehand and has to be worked out prior to your appearance before "the bench".

Please don't think that you or I can ignore Christ's offer of mercy now and still access it in the hereafter - now is the time to repent, not later.

Flickers of Light, Enclaves of Righteousness

It is my thought that this world and circumstance must be among the lowest in the domain of our Heavenly Father.  There has always been stories of how this world was the only one in which the Christ would be crucified, but as I read scripture and view the expanse of history, I can come to the conclusion that righteousness is a very rare commodity here on Earth and often taken away from this place to find its promised thriving elsewhere.

I think of the people of the city of Enoch, who built a Zion Society that lasted for perhaps 400 years and then "fled", literally taken off of the Earth.  We also have a little reference to a group that was assembled at Salem, led by the great high priest Melchizedek, who are mentioned once and never heard of in scripture again, perhaps also removed from this sphere. We also have the case of the "lost" ten tribes of Israel, who legend says repented whole-heartedly of the behavior that led to their capture by the Assyrians and were eventually also taken from the Earth, perhaps. We have amazing satellite technology that has eliminated the thought that these people are hiding on some island or hitherto unknown place, so where did the larger part of Israel get to?  It seems that when the righteous come together, they are taken from the Earth by the hand of God, presumably to somewhere distant, maybe off the sphere entirely, no matter how fanciful that might seem.

In the time of this planet, the surface of the Earth has been changed, separating one land mass into different continents.  God says that he did this and proclaimed the land that we call North and South America as a chosen land for the righteous to dwell.  The miraculous "bringing" of the Jaredite, Nephite, and Mulekite nations to this chosen land are documented to varying degrees in the Book of Mormon, adding credence to the idea that God regularly separates the righteous from others, often by divinely inspired migrations.  It is no less telling that the seventeenth and eighteenth century Protestants braved the seas to come to the "New World" to practice a more biblical way of life and the nineteenth century Mormons fled Europe and the United States in order to pursue the restored Gospel in the Rocky Mountains.

Wherever the righteous are found, there always seems to be a migration and "gathering" involved, bringing them together.  Righteousness in concentration seems to increase it, so-much-so that it seems the only thing for the Lord to do is to ultimately take it away from this telestial world altogether and let its righteousness continue elsewhere for a time. In our own time, instead of gathering to one locality or two, we are instructed by God to remain physically dispersed as we can gather together through technology.  This time might be referred to as the Last Gathering, where the message of the Gospel will flood the whole earth and ultimately in no place will the words of God be inaccessible.  Further, in no location will the authorized servants of God and the saving ordinances they provide be unavailable.  It is an incredible time to live and to participate!

In the not-too-distant future, the chosen land of the Americas will be cleansed of unrighteous people, this time by plagues, famines, and such rather than a great flood, and the righteous of the Earth will be invited to migrate a "chosen land" once again, yet another enclave of righteousness.  All of the "fled" righteous people, those of Enoch and Melchizedek and Israel and perhaps others that we have no record of, will return to this place of gathering and endure the final destruction of the wicked when the entire Earth and all its people are cleansed and promoted to a terrestrial status and the millennium beyond.

I look forward to such things and I hope you do as well.

Long Now Seminars - TED Talks with Brains

When circumstances permit, I often walk to work. I did it as a WIC Nutritionist in Tucumcari (1 mile), a SysAdmin for ENMU in Portales (5 miles) , and a Linux Support person at Dell in Oklahoma City (4 miles). I cannot do it now as I am about 85 miles from work, but I was always looking for good things to listen to during my commute (when I am not recording my scattered, heretical thoughts).

If you like TED talks, you must understand that I think they are a mixed bag of psychobabble with some nice gems.  If you want far more intelligent presentations that are consistently high-quality, I will happily point you to the excellent Long Now Seminars that are sponsored by the Long Now Foundation. As always, there are many times that I disagree with concepts spoken about, but it never fails to get me thinking!

Forward and Upward!

A non-conservative take on Marriage

I am always being confused with political and social conservatives, often because I see the wisdom in much that God and his servants preach. I am married to a proud conservative and my love and devotion to her is undiminished by our ideological differences. 

I am not a conservative. Watch and find out.

I am much more strongly aligned with classical liberalism and have been so for the vast majority of my life.  And when I use the term, it bares no resemblance to the modern prostitution of the "liberal" term. I am for small, stay out of your life government, live and let-live neighborliness, and a lively justice system that handles difficult disputes. I love the original US Constitution and Bill of Rights and am a fan of both fiscal capitalism, personal generosity, and allowing natural consequences. 

Marriage has become the territory of right-wingers as more and more leftists view God's ordained union as some hateful prison of feminine servitude. It doesn't help that many people enter into the marriage covenant with a pile of unrealistic expectations of the sort of completion that marriage is supposed to be.

Lower or remove a minimum age for entering into a marriage.

I have no problem with laws that say that minors must have parental permission to get married, which goes far to reducing bully and child-exploitation relationships.  Dads protecting their children remain a powerful regulator against abuse.

Younger couples will more likely live with parents and draw on family cultural values (which is often good) rather than more ignorant, faddish, and ill-informed advice from an age cohort that captures minds from late teens into thirty year olds.

My grandmother got married at the age of 14. In most places today, this is defined as "statutory rape". This was a common practice in those days (check your genealogy records) and many of these marriages were more apt to be long-standing than our current versions. 

What we need is a Godsend

The people of Alaedea cry out for someone to sweep away the evil Empire and its Conclave. God promised long ago to send them a Queen, but the princess-in-waiting is a nasty vixen bent on her own purposes. How is God going to turn this rotten girl into the promised deliverer?

Find the answers in the Godsend novel!

https://www.amazon.com/Godsend-Navigiary-Book-Jason-Nemrow-ebook/dp/B08FCXN25F

Understanding the Voice of the Lord

Increasing numbers of people ignore established sources of wisdom that God provides through prophets. The world is becoming more tumultuous and the "experts" to whom many turn for answers are often revealed as vacuous and unreliable, more often wrong than right. The need for wise guidance has never been greater and those who know how to hear God will get the peace and direction that each of us desires in these confusing times.

I am grateful yet again for the writings of inspired prophets of God that we have today from the Book of Mormon:

 3 Nephi 11:4-6

And it came to pass that again they heard the voice, and they understood it not.

And again the third time they did hear the voice, and did open their ears to hear it; and their eyes were towards the sound thereof; and they did look steadfastly towards heaven, from whence the sound came.

And behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard;

In this instance, God was speaking to the people but they could not understand. We may very well sit in a church or read from scriptures and thus hear the messages from God, but we may not actually understand what God is telling us.  In these verses, a prophet helps us to better understand what God has to tell us:

1. We have to "open our ears to hear it". So many times, God has already provided answers, but we are too distracted by our own cares to "hear" them. As we set aside quiet time to put the responsibilities of life on hold, we will be more ready to hear what God wants to tell us.  I recall being in places far from the bustle of life that are quiet enough that you can hear the breeze and distant rustle of trees and the occassional bird. In such circumstances, where the buzz of our busy lives is far away, we have a better situation to "open our ears" to what God is saying.
2. We must focus on God, the true source of wisdom. In the verses above, "their eyes were towards the sound". I recall how often my children would talk to me and I obviously wasn't listening - I wasn't looking at them and paying real attention to what they said.  How often do we also hear from God yet are not similarly paying attention?
3. We can get answers directly from God. "...they did look steadfastly toward heaven...". It is good to listen to pastors, priests, and teachers, but it is better still to listen more to God who knows you and what you need far better. True prophets will always encourage a better and more direct access to God, so that we can "understand the voice".

I will be bold here and say that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints points me to scripture and prophets that put me on a direct path to a better understanding of God and Jesus Christ.  I am grateful for the Prophet Joseph Smith who translated the Book of Mormon so that we could have that better understanding of God and Christ's labors on our behalf. I am grateful for prophets that speak to us today, continuously pointing us toward God and what he is saying.  

If we "open our ears" and look to him, we too will understand what he is saying to us.

"Enough and to Spare"

In a media-saturated world that is slanted heavily toward anti-God ideologies, I have always found it useful to get news and perspective from a variety of sources. It is getting tougher to find some balance when anything other than absolute submission to socialistic ideals is being touted as near-treason to Neo-socialistic sensibilities.

Take for example a story from one of my favorite sources: Mercopress, a media provider in the South Atlantic where I can follow stories about the Falkland Islands and South America. I had never heard of Earth Overshoot Day before, but apparently this group marks the day when the world has used up all of a years renewable resources and then selfishly pillages resources that can never be renewed.

However, God presents a more hopeful scenario:

Doctrine & Covenents 104:17 

For the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things, and have given unto the children of men to be agents unto themselves.

Much of the environmentalist movement and its precursors in darwinism and eugenics are based on the idea of scarcity. The theory says that there are not enough resources and there are too many people.  The "Green New Deal" is heavily steeped in this sort of thinking combined with its close cousin of climate change fear-mongering. Many groups, often ignorantly, follow the war-drum-beats of elitists who desire some utopian gardenplace village with themselves awash in comfortable and easy plenty and with everyone else (including you) simply gone.

Fortunately, God has provided all that we need and more than sufficient for all the spirits that were promised their earthly mortal lives. Oppositionally, modern concepts of scarcity and "noble sacrifices" eschewing marriage and family are completely against the purposes, power, and preparations of God and deny his promise to all of his children. People that act on these concepts do an evil of very deep order: convincing themselves and others to fight against God and the abundance he provides by denying the unborn his promises of life.

Based on God's words above, much of the fervor of an environmental argument is just swept away. God doesn't want us to be wasteful or to deny the needs of life to others, but we are not running out of anything necessary and we are definately not destroying the Earth (big tough place). We can certainly destroy each other with things like war and pollution and murder, but that is a different and completely human matter that doesn't involve any shortcomings from Earth or God. Those pesky Ten Commandments are mostly about being grateful to God and sharing the plenty that God provides without hurting others - those are the things that are far more important to everyone's earthly experience.

Don't get distracted by lies meant to turn you away from God and deny life to others. Marry! Have children! Raise them upon the truths of God - there is "enough and to spare"!

Grounding Ourselves during the Maelstrom

When it comes to elections, my candidates rarely win. It would probably be useful to those who seek office to consult with me, just to be sure that I don't plan to vote for them, thus avoiding a nearly-sure loss.

I am not an extremist, at least I don't consider myself one.  The current political climate is rife with extremism, from succession to the "green new deal", from racism to the "cancel" culture. Society is demanding that everyone pick a side in a ideological war where fringe groups battle in a "winner-take-all" fashion and victory will never be claimed until all opposition is destroyed. In the minds of some, a winner's political enemies must literally be killed if they cannot be turned.  I am not of that ilk at all - I want all of us to survive these times and your compelled conversion to one side or the other has never been my aim.

It has been windy at "the Crash Site", which is where I sleep during the work-week.  It is a sandy desert place and I have been impressed by how much sand is picked up by the high winds and blown about.  The landscape changes quite a bit and only the things that I have tied down to various pounded posts are in the same place after a good windstorm.  A strong wind a few months back picked up my dome greenhouse (my former sleeping quarters) and deposited it, twisted and torn, across a neighbor's fence.  Only a number of deeply-set fenceposts now keep it in place in this week's winds. It brings to mind the oft-quoted bible story of the people building houses on sand and on rocks.

In a talk by Chi Hong (Sam) Wong from the April 2021 General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the concept of having a good spritual foundation is referenced yet again for us.  Christ himself has reinterated the idea in our own day here:

Doctrine and Covenants 6:24 

Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail.

I take heart in the assurance that if I am about good things, I will survive just fine. In the current climate of redefinition and hatred, it can be hard to know whether something is good or not, but Christ and his prophets have left us a fine scriptural record of good deeds to follow.  If we let our lives be ruled by the example of Jesus Christ, "ye are built upon my rock", and we have the promise that we will not be overcome by the various evil ideologies swirling about us like a storm.  As we "do good" in Christ's way, we will one day receive the peaceful and glorious future that Jesus offers to those who follow him.

One doesn't have to join an extremist group or vote the "right" way to get by in this world.  You may not get your dream job at your dream company and you may not become a "talking head" on some important news show, but a follower of Jesus Christ will survive and may even (quietly) thrive in our present society.  We have the Lord's promise.

Repentance Means Change for the Better

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, and forced the people of Judea to behave better, but that isn't the right way to effect a change of heart. Christ lived the life more like an itinerant preacher, moving from place to place, teaching and healing and serving as an individual man and encouraging his followers to do likewise. A lasting change of behavior only comes with a authentic change of heart, not just some display or pretense.  It cannot be forced externally but cultivated internally.

Second, Christ is perfectly aligned with God - Jesus commits himself fully what is commanded of him and he follows through on that commitment, even when it is difficult.  The act of taking on himself all the sins of the repentant and dying on a cross as a young man was a tremendous sacrifice that God required of him.  God has other work for us to do to show our devotion to him, certainly less dramatic.  Primarily, he asks us to put aside desires and devotion toward wealth and fame and instead "impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally.” (Mosiah 4:26) In doing these things, we align our lives with Christ's and do the good works God commanded us to do.

Again, repentance is a change of heart and behavior. As we read of the doings and teachings of Christ and the words of God's prophets, we let them affect our hearts and begin to feel more charity and love toward others. We desire to help those in need, both physically and spiritually.  I think it is useful to begin helping others even if we don't yet feel much love toward them - our service will soon bring on such feelings. As we do this, we will begin to feel toward others as Jesus does and behave more like him. Worldly concerns will fade in comparison to the service we can do. God will bless our efforts with resources and further opportunities to continue to serve others in meaningful ways that bless rather than coerce. We will feel greater joy in life, no matter what troubles we may personally face.

Our mortals lives are like a schooling opportunity: as we come to understand God and Christ and obey them, we learn how to become our best selves and qualify for the greater opportunities that they enjoy and desire to share with us. It all starts with changing our hearts and actions, which is repentance.