Friday, January 31, 2003

2 Peter 1:5-7

"And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity."
2 Peter 1:5-7


Step by step... I think that this is cool.  We are supposed to be perfect, but we do it step by step, a little at a time.  We aren't going to be perfect all at once, so try this... add virtue to your faith, etc. :)  It seems in reach this way. :)  Of course, these are difficult things to do at times... but in the end, as we build ourselves up, we'll be able to grasp the ultimate... charity.  Being able to love as God does.  A worthy goal on our path to perfection. :)

Wednesday, January 29, 2003

Mosiah 2:41

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God.  For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.  O, remember remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it."
Mosiah 2:41


King Benjamin rocks. :)  ... and of course, more than that, the content of what he says here is surpassingly hopeful.  If we keep the commandments we'll be blessed, not just spiritually or in the long-term, but temporally, now, on earth.  Those blessings, of course, are guided by the wisdom of God, and it doesn't mean that if we are righteous we will be rich or we'll be protected from losing our jobs or any of that necessarily... but it could mean that, if that is what we need in our individual lives in order to bless the lives of others.  I like the idea, as well, of never-ending happiness.  Sometimes it feels like this world is a roller coaster (incidentally, I don't like to ride roller coasters) of emotion... and there are great, amazing times when you are completely happy and content... but then there is the inevitable fast downward plunge. :)  I would like to make it to that point where there is never-ending happiness.  No matter how hard life is at certain moments, never-ending happiness is worth it... is it not? :)




Thursday, January 16, 2003

Jacob 6:12

"O be wise; what can I say more?"
Jacob 6:12


Funny... he says this, but then he goes on talking for a whole 'nother chapter. :)  Sincerely, though... it is interesting how exacting we are when we want instructions.  The ten commandments aren't good enough for us, we need details. :)  Really, the gospel can be summed up in a few words... "be wise," "be good," or just "love..." :)  The thing is, in our effort to justify our lives, we inevitably ask... "well, exactly how wise do I have to be?" or "how good?" or "well, but I shouldn't be nice to HIM..."  and so God and the prophets do say more, even though, really, it is all the same message.  Be wise.  Let's try to be wise... without hemming and hawing and making selfish exceptions.  I'm not saying that it is easy, but it might be worth a try. :)

Wednesday, January 15, 2003

Daniel 4:30-31

"The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?
While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee."
Daniel 4:30-31


This is a guy who had a dose of humility from the Lord. :)  He lost his mind for a while and wandered like King Lear out in the wilderness.  We forget sometimes that everything that we have and every breath that we take is from the Lord.  We are dependent on him, whether we like to remember that or not. If we attempt to remember that, then the resulting humble gratitude can save us from a lot of pride-based sin in our lives. :)  ... and there is a lot of that. :)

Tuesday, January 14, 2003

Alma 32:13

"And now, because ye are compelled to be humble blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble, seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to the end the same shall be saved."
Alma 32:13


Perhaps some of the things that happen to us in our lives are to teach us humility.  And although things that humble us are rarely things that we would choose for ourselves, they are actually a blessing.  Sometimes when we are humbled, we remember God, and look to him for help and guidance, and try to repent of our sins.  Perhaps we should be thankful that God cares about us enough to give us a dose of humility. :)

Monday, January 13, 2003

John 15:4

"Abide in me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me."
John 15:4


This is cool.  It makes it really clear that our relationship with Christ isn't just a one way thing... he wants us to abide in him, and he abides in us.  The oneness talked about throughout the scriptures.  Like becoming a Zion people, becoming part of Christ as he is part of us.  I think we feel that a little bit with friends and family.  People that we love seem like they are connected to us, like they can't be separated without ripping out part of ourselves.  And that seems (to me) exactly like how we should feel about Christ.  First, because we really WOULD be ripping out part of ourselves, but secondly, because Christ is our friend, our partner in our effort to achieve salvation. :)  He wants to be part of us, and for us to succeed, just as much as, and probably more than, we want to succeed and to be a part of him.  It is a remarkably cool thing to think of us all bound together, being part of each other.  I mean, think of the person you love the most in the world, and what kind of a bond you have with that person... then make that bond more perfect, and multiply it by everyone.... I mean, can you even begin to imagine how amazingly cool that will be? :)  Another reminder that living and learning the gospel is SO incredibly worth it. :)

Sunday, January 12, 2003

Luke 1:37

"For with God nothing shall be impossible."
Luke 1:37


This is a good thing to remember.  In Relief Society today we talked about being children of God, and what that means... and basically it means that we have the potential to do anything that God does... to be like him.  Which means, essentially, that with US nothing shall be impossible either.  Instead of giving up on ourselves and believing that we can't make it... we are able to get past those moments of darkness and go on, and do the impossible.  God is on our side.  We are his children, and if we stick with our lessons and learn how, we can become like he is... nothing good is out of our reach.

Saturday, January 11, 2003

Proverbs 20:9

"Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?"
Proverbs 20:9


This is interesting... I think of keeping my language clean, or my clothes clean, or even my mind clean... but my heart I don't think about in that way (at least until now).  Often, and in error, I think that emotion and feelings are things that happen to us, not things that we can choose and control.  But, this scripture is right here before me, and it helps me to remember that I can choose what I feel, and I can choose to love rather than to hate, and I can work on making my heart clean.  I invite you to do the same. :)

Friday, January 10, 2003

Lamentations 5:21

"Turn thou us unto thee, Lord, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old."
Lamentations 5:21


This is interesting... the scripture asks the Lord to turn US, not for the Lord to turn to us. :)  Actually a lot more likely. :)  Also, sometimes don't you despair of turning yourself?  It would be nice to have some help in that.  And, I don't even think that it goes against free agency, as long as we are asking. :)  Maybe we should ask for some help from the Lord, with handling ourselves. :)

Thursday, January 9, 2003

Matthew 25:40

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Matthew 25:40


I know that we've probably all heard this scripture a lot.  Sad, really, that some scriptures are so common to us that we forget to think about them, but I think that that has been the case with me and this scripture.  This is fascinating to think about.  Is it part of the atonement that Christ relates to each of us so personally, or is it how we should feel about each other... or both?  I think that there are some people in my life that if someone offended them I would take it as a personal affront... and if someone was cool to them, I would feel like that person were being cool to me... but I don't think that is a common thing in my life, and I wonder if it should be.  Is it part of becoming "one" ... becoming a Zion people, of one heart and one mind?  Maybe so... and so maybe I should be relating to people more, trying to understand them more, having more of those types of friendships that connect to me in a real way. :)  Maybe we all should. :)

Wednesday, January 8, 2003

3 Nephi 17:8

"For I perceive that ye desire that I should show unto you what I have done unto your brethren at Jerusalem, for I see that your faith is sufficient that I should heal you."
3 Nephi 17:8


This is cool... Jesus can heal anyone, but it talks about how they had to have something going on their end too. :)  How many times do we ask God why we are afflicted, or why this is happening to us... and it is good to remember that we have an obligation too, in order to be healed.  God isn't going to violate the free agency that he gave us, and he, as a great teacher, needs to also wait until we're ready to accept what he has to offer.  So, instead of wondering why we're afflicted, or why things are going wrong in our lives today... let's work on accepting what God has to offer.  On believing that he can heal us, and untangle the mess we've made of our lives. :)

Tuesday, January 7, 2003

1 Corinthians 14:20

"Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men."
1 Corinthians 14:20


This is an interesting way to look at maturity.  As we get older, we gain knowledge, and hopefully some wisdom... but perhaps we also gain some things that aren't good.  Cynicism?  Doubt?  And definitely malice.  Today, let's try to hold on to the good parts of getting older, and let go of the bad.  We can understand things without being cynical.  We can eschew evil without letting hate canker our souls.

Monday, January 6, 2003

Alma 34:26

"But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness."
Alma 34:26


The closet thing reminds me of one day when I was living in Utah.  My boyfriend came over one night about 9pm and we had been talking for about an hour when my roommate burst out of the front closet in her nightgown and ran into her room.  We were baffled.  Later, I asked her about it and she told me that she liked to pray in the closet because of this scripture.  :)
I like the literal interpretation as well... when and where to pray, but it probably goes beyond the literal.  Basically it means we should pray everywhere, all the time, right? :)
The wording here is interesting, because the writer hastens to include closets, secret places, and wilderness.  Closets... because they are private, or because they are where we hide things?  Secret places... perhaps to remind us that no place is secret from the Lord, or maybe because the Lord wants to share the intimate setting of your favorite place.  And the most interesting to me is our wilderness... because in a symbolic sense we are all lost in a wilderness of sorts.  Perhaps the same one in Lehi's dream... perhaps we each have a wilderness of our own.  Praying will help us to find our way... and ourselves perhaps.  In another sense, wilderness is wild, untamed nature... where we go to escape the world.  Maybe God is letting us know that we don't need to escape him, that he shares that escape and wonder with us.  Or maybe all of the above. :)   Let's remember to share our lives with God today.  Whatever shape they are in, they will be better after a good talk with Him.

Sunday, January 5, 2003

Matthew 5:7

"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy."
Matthew 5:7


Life seems unfair at times.  You wonder why this or that is happening to you, while someone else seems to float through similar circumstances.  Or you wonder why similar things produce different results. :)  I'm sure that you can think of something that seems unfair in your own life.  I think the tragedy of life is not that life isn't fair... it is that we think we want fairness.  In the end, as illustrated by this scripture, things will indeed be fair.  Whatever we offer to others we will be offered.  Whatever we put into life is what we'll get out of it.  If we've learned to be happy here, then we'll be happy there.  All perfectly fair.  I think that the fairness that we think we want is more like advantage.  We want things to work out perfectly for us and the people we care about.  We want to win when we are in competition with others.  We don't want to have the things we dish out returned to us.  Today, let's remember to be good to others, and to be merciful.  That's the best way to ensure that we will receive mercy in return... and I don't know about you, but I could use some mercy. :)

Saturday, January 4, 2003

Haggai 1:7

"Thus saith the Lord of Hosts; Consider your ways."
Haggai 1:7


This is pretty clear. :)  I know that I often sink into some state where it isn't that I stop thinking really, but I think a lot about pointless things.  I think about what to have for lunch or what is going to happen next in my current book, and I don't think about my relationship with God and the things that he wants me to do.  So, today, I am going to consider my ways.  I invite you to do so as well. :)

Friday, January 3, 2003

3 Nephi 16:1-2

"And verily, verily, I say unto you that I have other sheep, which are not of this land, neither of the land of Jerusalem, neither in any parts of that land round about whither I have been to minister.
For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them."
3 Nephi 16:1-2


One of the cool things about God (and what isn't cool) is that he gives us little clues like this, and then leaves it up to us to ask to find out any more. :)  And it is cool that he manifests himself to everyone, not just certain groups. :)  Thousands of cool things to contemplate about God today. :)

Thursday, January 2, 2003

1 John 4:20-21

"If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also."
1 John 4:20-21


This is interesting.  I've never thought of things just this way, but I suppose that God is hard to love in some ways, merely because we can't see him and know him in a face-to-face physical sense.  So, when we have that advantage with other people, and we still don't like them, then we have some more to learn about love. :)  Of course, God is perfect and that offers some advantages right there... but, sincerely, when I think of the people that I love, it seems that I love the little idiosyncratic things about them.  The way they say something, or the way they avoid something else. :)  It's hard to know those things about God... does he have any idiosyncrasies? :)  I think that it is cool that God commands us to love other people, because I think that in our imperfect states, that is the only way we have to learn to love him.  And, yeah, we aren't very good at it yet.  We still have a long way to go to learn to be open and unselfish and to love the way we should... but we'll get there.  Another good thing to think about at the beginning of the year. :)

Wednesday, January 1, 2003

John 3:30

"He must increase, but I must decrease."
John 3:30


This strikes me as an amazingly humble thing to say... and something that we can probably apply to our own lives.  This is John the Baptist, speaking of Christ.  And, I think that in our own lives we have times where we know that we have to bow to something greater than ourselves as well.  We might not want things to go a certain way, but recognize that they need to, for bigger reasons than our own desires.  In everything we do and are, we have to allow God to increase his influence while we decrease our own.  Sometimes it is hard, but it is the only way that we'll be building God's kingdom and not some parody of our own.  Something I need to remember today, and a good thing to remember as we start out our new years, putting God first.

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