Gramajanes' Purpose in Life

"can't stomach" this?

2012-02-02T07:48:00.000-08:00

So, I have been having some quite severe stomach pains, off and on and of different levels since Sunday night. I have ruled out the normal things, and now wonder if I am getting an ulcer or Chrons' disease or something.I have noticed it is worse when I feel stressed, and then realized that I have been working to respond to anti LDS distortions=lies now flourishing online in news articles and even more in the comments to them :( . This has greatly increased my stress (as dealing with anti or even hearing anyone use the Lords name in vain ((even in a movie etc)) gives me a slight punch in the stomach feeling)-- ugh! ---- So with the anti LDS now being spread by a member of our family, this was even more, up close and personal to me, it has stressed me W A Y more.I have no problem with anyone sharing what they LIKE about their faith, but I feel there is not need to attack others faith (unless there is a real kool-aid type cult) but LDS is so not like that.Mormonism is easy to leave, encourages family unity and get together, encourages questions and getting to the source with fully seeing all points, has been legally established from the beginning, abt 200 years, not just based on one charismatic leader, doesn't require any to officially/legally donate all their belongings to the group etc etc)Anyway-- back to my point. The anti stuff, even in the presidential campaign, all goes on top of my/our "daily" stresses, dealing with our home being foreclosed on, my husbands commercial fishing business, and him building a skiff, among other things.

purpose of parenting in article about back talk :)

2012-02-02T07:31:00.000-08:00

I hope I can past this article! It was on Meridian Magazine. I have appreciated all I have read of her articles. Maybe she has a blog too? They were foster parents, and also on TV took in a super rebellious teens from another country-- and helped them have a change of heart in I think it was two weeks, on reality tv! WOW!Back Talking CureBy Nicholeen Peck Notify me when this author publishesComment on ArticleEmail AuthorAuthor ArchiveSend To a FriendPrint Article Bookmark and SharebackTalkingBoyQuestion:“How do you stop children from back talking?”Answer:Children talking back, or sassing, to their parents seems to be a behavior many children experiment with. At different phases of development feelings of independence and intelligence emerge causing kids to talk back.Ironically, parents spend lots of energy reinforcing the intelligence of their children, and teaching the children how to think for themselves. If we spend so many years moving our child toward self-governing thoughts and behaviors, why do we care so much about back talking children and back talking teenagers?RespectRespect is a vital part of learning self-government. Without an attitude of respect the child or teenager is doomed to fail in life.Successes in life are built upon successful relationships. Any sales person can tell you this. If a person trusts you and feels appreciated and respected by you, then they will give you more trust, more money, more affection, or more opportunity.Respect is a feeling of trust, acceptance, mercy and love. Families are built on feelings like these. When a parent feels respected she will happily serve a child more and be more willing to sacrifice for the happiness of the child.Likewise, if a parent feels disrespect from the child, she will naturally become more controlling and negative toward the child.Naturally, children offer similar positive and negative rewards to parents who treat them with disrespect. It is imperative that we understand there is a difference between good traditional strict parenting based on solid principles and calm communication, and disrespectful parenting manifested by feelings of disapproval, contention, superiority, and lack of understanding.Respect is a feeling!Aesop Knows Best“The Blind Man And The Whelp”A blind man was accustomed to distinguish different animals by touching them with his hands. The whelp of a wolf was brought him, with a request that he would feel it, and say what it was. He felt it and being in doubt said, “I do not quite know whether is is the cub of a fox, or the help of a wolf; but this I know full well, that it would not be safe to admit him into the sheepfold.The Heart Of RespectAt the heart of all behavior problems such as kids talking back, there is a selfish heart. This heart can be felt,even if the child is trying to deny the problem. Just as the blind man could feel the danger of allowing the pup he held in his hands into a sheepfold, we also feel the selfish heart of the child talking back and know the home environment is not safe.Since a selfish heart is at the heart of the back talking problem, that is the first place to focus our energies in order to stop the back talking.This issue with back talking is never about what is said, it is about what is felt. So, as a parent, the first thing to remember is that when a child is talking back, never acknowledge the words being said. The child is attempting to initiate a power struggle, which means you need to have enough self-government not to power struggle back. Hearts rarely change in the middle of an argument.Before you say anything, make sure you check the way you feel. Focus your energy on letting your heart speak to their heart. Practice speaking with love, understanding, and truth.How To Stop Back Talking Focus on your tone, and on reaching their heart. Never talk back to a back talker. Have negative consequences for back talking and do a proper correction. Teach your child how to disagree appropriately before back talking is an issue (proactive parenting is always better than reactive parenting) Praise your child for choosing to disagree appropriately. Disagreeing AppropriatelyStephen Covey says, “Seek to understand, then to be understood.” This principle, if understood in childhood, can create an assertive person who is likely to have many leadership positions and successful relationships.To properly disagree appropriately to parents, a child should announce his intentions by saying, “May I disagree appropriately?”Understanding parents always say, “yes” to such an inquiry.Then the youth proceeds to say what he “understands” about what the other person is feeling. After he shows he respects the parent enough to understand where they are coming from, then he shares his perspective of a decision or situation, and his desire for a different decision to be made by the parent.This straight forward, yet humble, approach to disagreeing unites parents and children instead of engaging them in relationship destroying power struggles like standard, selfish disagreements tend to do.The Positive ConsequenceAfter a child sees that when he disagrees appropriately he often gets his way, he sees there is an attractive positive consequence for choosing to respect his parents; increased personal freedom. Getting your way is a kind of freedom which shows that the parent trusts the child.When a child feels real trust he is more likely to repeat the respectful behavior which helped him earn that trust. Then the beginning of a respectful relationship is born.It is important that parents remember the point of parenting is to build a long lasting respectful relationship. The point isn't how many cookies a person has had, or what time they go to bed. So, if you take the time to teach your child to disagree appropriately, then make sure they see it often works. This positive consequence will encourage self-government. Which, after all, is what we work so hard at teaching our children each day of their lives.There is no greater gift we can give our children than an environment where self-government is taught, because the greatest battle any of us fight in this life is the battle of choosing to follow the heart over following the body. People who learn to master themselves, can lead others to do the same; which is the essence of greatness in this world.I don't know about you, but that is what I want for my children.Back Talking CureBy Nicholeen Peck Notify me when this author publishesComment on ArticleEmail AuthorAuthor ArchiveSend To a FriendPrint Article Bookmark and SharebackTalkingBoyQuestion:“How do you stop children from back talking?”Answer:Children talking back, or sassing, to their parents seems to be a behavior many children experiment with. At different phases of development feelings of independence and intelligence emerge causing kids to talk back.Ironically, parents spend lots of energy reinforcing the intelligence of their children, and teaching the children how to think for themselves. If we spend so many years moving our child toward self-governing thoughts and behaviors, why do we care so much about back talking children and back talking teenagers?RespectRespect is a vital part of learning self-government. Without an attitude of respect the child or teenager is doomed to fail in life.Successes in life are built upon successful relationships. Any sales person can tell you this. If a person trusts you and feels appreciated and respected by you, then they will give you more trust, more money, more affection, or more opportunity.Respect is a feeling of trust, acceptance, mercy and love. Families are built on feelings like these. When a parent feels respected she will happily serve a child more and be more willing to sacrifice for the happiness of the child.Likewise, if a parent feels disrespect from the child, she will naturally become more controlling and negative toward the child.Naturally, children offer similar positive and negative rewards to parents who treat them with disrespect. It is imperative that we understand there is a difference between good traditional strict parenting based on solid principles and calm communication, and disrespectful parenting manifested by feelings of disapproval, contention, superiority, and lack of understanding.Respect is a feeling!Aesop Knows Best“The Blind Man And The Whelp”A blind man was accustomed to distinguish different animals by touching them with his hands. The whelp of a wolf was brought him, with a request that he would feel it, and say what it was. He felt it and being in doubt said, “I do not quite know whether is is the cub of a fox, or the help of a wolf; but this I know full well, that it would not be safe to admit him into the sheepfold.The Heart Of RespectAt the heart of all behavior problems such as kids talking back, there is a selfish heart. This heart can be felt,even if the child is trying to deny the problem. Just as the blind man could feel the danger of allowing the pup he held in his hands into a sheepfold, we also feel the selfish heart of the child talking back and know the home environment is not safe.Since a selfish heart is at the heart of the back talking problem, that is the first place to focus our energies in order to stop the back talking.This issue with back talking is never about what is said, it is about what is felt. So, as a parent, the first thing to remember is that when a child is talking back, never acknowledge the words being said. The child is attempting to initiate a power struggle, which means you need to have enough self-government not to power struggle back. Hearts rarely change in the middle of an argument.Before you say anything, make sure you check the way you feel. Focus your energy on letting your heart speak to their heart. Practice speaking with love, understanding, and truth.How To Stop Back Talking Focus on your tone, and on reaching their heart. Never talk back to a back talker. Have negative consequences for back talking and do a proper correction. Teach your child how to disagree appropriately before back talking is an issue (proactive parenting is always better than reactive parenting) Praise your child for choosing to disagree appropriately. Disagreeing AppropriatelyStephen Covey says, “Seek to understand, then to be understood.” This principle, if understood in childhood, can create an assertive person who is likely to have many leadership positions and successful relationships.To properly disagree appropriately to parents, a child should announce his intentions by saying, “May I disagree appropriately?”Understanding parents always say, “yes” to such an inquiry.Then the youth proceeds to say what he “understands” about what the other person is feeling. After he shows he respects the parent enough to understand where they are coming from, then he shares his perspective of a decision or situation, and his desire for a different decision to be made by the parent.This straight forward, yet humble, approach to disagreeing unites parents and children instead of engaging them in relationship destroying power struggles like standard, selfish disagreements tend to do.The Positive ConsequenceAfter a child sees that when he disagrees appropriately he often gets his way, he sees there is an attractive positive consequence for choosing to respect his parents; increased personal freedom. Getting your way is a kind of freedom which shows that the parent trusts the child.When a child feels real trust he is more likely to repeat the respectful behavior which helped him earn that trust. Then the beginning of a respectful relationship is born.It is important that parents remember the point of parenting is to build a long lasting respectful relationship. The point isn't how many cookies a person has had, or what time they go to bed. So, if you take the time to teach your child to disagree appropriately, then make sure they see it often works. This positive consequence will encourage self-government. Which, after all, is what we work so hard at teaching our children each day of their lives.There is no greater gift we can give our children than an environment where self-government is taught, because the greatest battle any of us fight in this life is the battle of choosing to follow the heart over following the body. People who learn to master themselves, can lead others to do the same; which is the essence of greatness in this world.I don't know about you, but that is what I want for my children.

in response to having a nephew send anti LDS stuff to our family

2012-01-26T08:37:00.001-08:00

When Ray told me that Jacobs email went to Brinn and Rochelle, I realized that I needed to be sure that my witness was also sent to them (and you all). to be sure that you all have at least an opportunity to read my witness to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ as taught in his restored church. I realized that for me to assume that all of you know the things I know and feel, is a wrong assumption. Whether you read any or all of what I share is entirely up to you, but I will have at least done my part. I am interested in what positive things others have to say about what they believe has had good effects on their life, especially concerning Jesus Christ. What good things such a belief has wrought in their lives and choices, along with what supports they have found for the beliefs. I want to be as open to more truth, from whatever source, as I hope people are to what I have to share. However, I think for someone to send negative stuff to others--- specifically directed against the others personal faith---, is not a very Christian act, unless there is imminent danger (like the Jones cult) or that is leading them to break the 10 commandments etc. If you are fearful for them, ask THEM ab out your fears, and look at the fruits of their faith, or talk to members in good standing, check non biased historical facts etc. Check out on the web “FAIR LDS” for answers to anti, & I have lots of books too.In the Bible, I believe Jesus did not denounce the Samaritans, but made one the hero of a parable. I do nor remember (help me out if you find something?) where Jesus or the apostles spoke so much against others doctrines, as against their ACTIONS, and then it was usually when their OWN group was breaking the commandments, that they were called to repentance. The apostles were to go and preach THEIR gospel, but I don't see where they were to rip on others. If something is the best, and we let others know, they will gravitate to it as they come to see it better than what they have, but the more we denounce others, the harder they will hold on to what they have. What terrible things do others who fight against the church think LDS are doing? What commandments are we teaching others to break? Saul thought he was doing right to persecute the Saints too, as he thought they had corrupted the Jewish faith. When I went to bed last night, I was assuming that the reason I didn't receive any of email from Jacob was, that he was aware that showering me with anti garbage was a waste of time. I just didn't feel like digging through the negative stuff as I have spent much of my life already doing that and so far it has just been the same “pile of poo”, with maybe a few new blobs, but they seem to come from the same source (Satan), smell as bad and have the same basic substance. Also it seems, to continue with my allegory, that much of the contents in the negative propaganda I have dealt with, (ripping down LDS and other churches) was never anything new and enriching to start with, but worse than non food, being more like alcohol or tobacco, which was never meant for the belly, though some “consume” such and get physically/emotionally addicted to it which can ruin their lives, here and hereafter if they don't seek to be healed. There is no need to for instance consume red wine to get the good effect of the whole fresh red grapes, as all that is good can begotten without the alcohol produced from turning it into wine. Such to me is how I think we can go to the scriptures and to God in the teachings of the church for the truth. Yes, we are to seek for good (article of faith 13) but when something comes claiming to be good, but to the very beginning, it is adulterated with anti-- no reason to continue, in my view. Love to all, and may we all make the best choices possible. Gramajane

Later, after giving our talks. ( whew)

2012-01-22T17:48:00.001-08:00

I do feel like my prayers were answered, and I am more than satisfied that I was helped to give my talk better than I could have done it alone. I am sooooo glad it is over though.

My dear husband said I did a great job, (though maybe he is a little prejudiced in my favor) but I know he appreciated that I didn't take (he said) one second over my 1/2 of the time.
One father father of five commented to me that his kids were riveted as they listened. Another person came and told us we did awesome, and we should go be professional speech givers. It is gratifying to have people make so many good comments to me. I need to remember to do that when I especially like anothers' talk.

Several said that my talk made them think, and they really appreciated that. I did ask questions, (rhetorical I think is the word) as I didn't need them to answer me. Some said that they loved our talks and were especially glad we didn't read them.

I forgot to mention that if any one wanted more embellishment, etc to come check out my blog. Well, I left out a LOT that I had put on my distilled down one page, but I knew I needed to cut it down at least 1/2 more than than, which did happen it felt naturally (with Heavens' help).

I added a few things that popped into my mind, like that we did have communication with home from our boarding school (which I had said earlier was a little like our Hogworths) but not by any owls delivering messaged, but by something more powerful than a cell phone, as it didn't need to be recharged with electricity, --- humm that isn't quite how I said it, but then, I'm not being helped right now. Anyway then I said something about being connected to the source of all power, God.

Anyway-- I'm glad it "came to pass". It is interesting that as we lived here for the most part of our married life, the most talks I have given have been here, though the building only had the first phase when we first moved here, so part was at the smaller podium in what is now the Primary room.

Oh, several times the Doctrine and Covenants teacher referred back to Rays talk. He did his usual awesome job too, and related 3 stories. One of his mission about a dream he had then about his use of time, which was symbolized by a yard stick of the day, marked with black areas for wasted time and white for the best use, then all the dark was pushes to one side and he was appalled that he had wasted so much (sleep time was black too), then he told how he figured ways to better use his time, like he made flash cards of scriptures to memorize as he rode on the bus and walked etc.

He told stories from his commercial fishing, about choosing to do better as he had a change of heart, from twice within one hour of great frustration, using the Lords name in vain, and pleased that he had never done it again in the 55 years since.

HE told about feeling bad as he had been somewhat rude to a dental hygienist who each year hurt him so bad when he got his teeth cleaned by her, that he went prologize but she was with another client, so he went home and timed exactly how long it took to floss his teeth (32 seconds) and decided to floss the whole year till his next apt. He did that and with one glance in his mouth she pulled back and exclaimed "you've been flossing" and then he apologized and they both got tears in their eyes. That he was never hurt so bad again, either from naturally not having so much to scrap off his teeth, or she was more gentile, he was not sure.

I was so happy for Ray, and he had no such stress over his talk as I did over mine but it was funny, as he admitted that he was determined after I had kept my talk so perfectly in the allotted time, to do the same and that clock watching made him a little awkward.

It was cute though as the sister who leads the hymns said that it was ironic that he stopped right on time, while she wouldn't have minded if he went a whole hour over as he was so interesting to listen to.

still more

2012-01-22T07:09:00.001-08:00

So, one analogy I put on my list was about the long time ago TV program. They took two couples, and had them race in a grocery store to see which team could bring to the check out, the groceries that would total more than their competitor, as the couple that won, would get to keep the food, (free) and could resell it if they wished.
It was fun to plan what I would do, and try to think what was worth the most and could be gathered with the most speed etc. Learning to work with a partner, and to keep focused etc is important. This also seems to apply to the purpose of life in some ways too-- but of course not perfectly.

I also thought about a vacation to Disneyland as an analogy to this life, that if one knew they would get to go with their family, and depending on the age and situation of their children, what training would need to be given to the children so they would not get lost, and they could make the best use of their time in Disneyland without melt downs from hot, tired, sore muscles, hungry, thirsty, overwhelm etc. as I have seen happen to some families. Sadly some parents would then get angry and demand their children enjoy themselves! Sheeish!

So planning not just for how fast the money will go, (do we bring food with us or spend $ on the very expensive food they have there, but planning for rest stops, for bathroom breaks etc. Having a map, and talking it over with the children to see what things are most important to them to do, as there usually is not time to do it all or to repeat the same events etc. Making use of the map, to find what is close to what, so one is not walking from one side of the park to the other back and forth etc. Planning with the kids what to do if they get separated from the family! Helping them know how to recognize who they should go to for help (part of the trust thing)- what the helpers uniforms look like in this case, or go to a food stand etc.

In life it is much the same as we need to prepare our children for the time they will no longer be with us, but will need to take care of their own needs. Help them learn to learn, and know that they can do what is necessary, and many hard things they can endure, as they HAVE learned to work at our sides. Learn to enjoy the great feeling of getting an important work down well and on time. What great joy!

brings me to *** packing for our trip of a lifetime ***
Here we need to prioritize and plan. "if ye are prepared, ye need not fear" So we need to visualize what things we might encounter in the place we are going,and maybe even extend that to in case the airplane gets diverted to a different destination from some emergency?

What is the thing my husband and I have come to realize that we MOST want to bring with us anytime we leave the house or even the room? Did you guess "cell phone?", then you are right. To be able to communicate with each other and our loved ones, to be able to see the phones GPS, call for help, look up info etc. And along with the cell phone, we have learned it is best to take a multi use charger, for the car or for a regular electrical outlet-- or the phone dies and is of not much use!

There is something to me that is way better than any cell phone anyone will ever invent (though there sure are a lot of neat things out!) as this communicator does not need to be recharged with electricity (( though connecting to the source at least once a day helps)) and it puts me in connection with the best info in this world and out of it, along with warning me of dangers etc! It is the miracle of prayer! (did you guess that?) which we can do anywhere, silently or aloud, and know that God will hear us and answer our prayers, though sometimes the answer is no, or not yet.

So-- too, we can improve our "reception" by reading our scriptures and not getting surrounded by things that block that reception (bad places) or getting virus in our works (porn etc) -- there is a lot that can relate in this analogy.
So-- too, we can improve our "reception" by reading our scriptures and not getting surrounded by things that block that reception (bad places) or getting virus in our works (porn etc) -- there is a lot that can relate in this analogy.

So just as one needs to learn how to work a new cell phone, one also needs to be trained in prayer. Hopefully ASAP after birth or before!-- with the parents praying for the baby before it is born, and with the baby in their arms for family prayer each night and morning, and talking about their answers they have had from prayer. To be able to decipher the signals from the Holy Ghost, to recognize the feelings/promptings of yes answers, or danger etc. Most people are not blessed with this training in their families, but it is available for those who seek it, in the organization that God has set up to help his children return to their home in heaven, his Church.

Plus there is helpful information many other places, but some is not as accurate, so a person needs to keep seeking, with keeping an open mind, knowing that God hasn't moved away from us, and will always want to communicate with us, but the problem is on our side. Especially if sadly we think "God has ceased to speak to man" then I doubt we would be looking for that, and are then WAY less likely to accept if we find it is supposedly happening to others, true?

So-- from my notes-- a book came to mind, I think the title was something like;
"what I needed to know in life, I learned in Kindergarten" ?

Actually, hopefully the most important things are learned before kindergarten! First out of the womb would be "Trust", then communication (first crying), and feeding, and then learning to watch and learn from what we see and hear. Learning to control our bodies and our appetites and passions. Learning to wait and to share. Learning to respect others bodies and things. Learning to clean ourselves (for health and society) with cleaning our surroundings for health, (little children can pick up toys themselves) safety and to save time so things don't get lost or broken etc.

Learning an attitude of Gratitude, as I said earlier is also mega important to help us have a can do attitude and not a victim attitude. Learning to read, and write and the value of money, to ask for help when needed and to dress appropriately for not only weather for modesty etc too. Learning should be a life time occupation!

So, in packing a suitcase, we need to consider as I said above, where we are going, what we will do there, what we can get there instead of taking with us, what to wear, will there be a way to clean our clothes or how long will we be gone so need to take enough etc etc. Among these things then we need to see how to pack them safely.

When one packs, or plans a trip or just a day-- don't we need to consider the most important and the largest time/space users first? Then on down the line, to what we can fit in the last few spaces. Isn't this like our time? When we have less time or space then don't we need to plan the MOST carefully?

Along with planning trips, is finding out what might be something different there that you are not aware of that might be unpleasant or even life threatening? Like chiggers in the Eastern US, or alligators that can hide in a seemingly shallow puddle?? Sometimes the most important thing is to ask God, what is most important!

So, I am needing another break, as I started this around 4am and not it is almost 8am. I think writing it has helped, but I still have more work to do to distill it WAYYYYY down. (God help me!). Gramajane

continuing on with the talk material to distil FAST

2012-01-22T06:29:00.000-08:00

So, in the scriptures I just posted, I feel that it applies to the topic, as it is about what was most important for them, and it again is about what the gospel means which distills down to the answers to Why am I here, Where did I come from and Where am I going,-- which are the most important things for EVERYONE to know, and why sharing them would be most important.

Remembering again, that the ones who asked, were I believe single men, missionary age?

I believe some of the main things were came to earth to learn were:
to trust God, and obey his commandments which will lead us to the most happiness
and include getting married and having a family (one of the first commandments that God gave to Adam and Even ((whom I believe he married)) in the Garden of Eden, to multiply.

And that it is a committed marriage, using correct principles of respect,love etc, that we can learn and experience best the things we need to in this life, along with having a helpmeet to develop our talents etc.

I sure know having children lets you know what patience you thought you had was mostly an illusion, as we certainly get tested by our children ;0 but we are not likely to work to develop better what we already think we have mastered. Right?

Which reasoning with the scriptures, is why I also love missionary work, which is helping others to know what is most important (the answers to the questions) so they can get on with their lives.

So if our eternal goal is to become more like Jesus Christ, who led the way in becoming more like his Father, which is what the scriptures also command us to do "Be ye therefore perfect, even as I, or your Father in Heaven is perfect" but that is not to overwhelm us with how impossible that feels, as I understand in Hebrew the word perfect relates to "whole, or complete" not that we have to be perfect in every jot and tittle on the earth now. :)

So, Back to the list of notes
(maybe you can see why I have felt overwhelmed to be able to distill all this down into 15 min or less? umm-- yeah!)

is a list of things a person makes that they would like to do before they die (kick the bucket) and how important might it be that the list have relation to the eternities and not to just this world? Big to me! (though I do hope that I will get to learn to ride a horse when it is running at least once on this earth ;) but there are other things I want a LOT -- humongous LOT more! ((besides, that right might bring me out of this life sooner than I had intended- true?))

George MacDonald, who is my all time favorite author, said (among MEGA other great things) to "do that which is before you". In other words, that when we keep doing what we see as most important in the present, that we don't need to worry about the future so very much, as planning for the future might be one of the things just before us (after I wash the dishes ? ;)

I certainly do think better when everything around me is clean and organized.

So, what would I do "If Jesus stood beside me" ? or What wouldn't I do too? That ought to help in choosing what priorities there are. Hopefully I would not waste time, and certainly I wouldn't do anything I would be embarrassed for Jesus to see or know I was doing?

I thought about that the other day, in a conversation with a grown woman who saw nothing wrong with watching bedroom scenes on TV. My thought was, would she do that if the view was not through a TV screen, but through a bedroom window? (I doubt it) and as I doubt it is necessary or even good, to have that direct info about things that should be sacred/intimate-- I do not think God would want us to view others. --- Though I think, just as parents can be happy to see their children go off after their marriage on their honeymoon, and pray that they work things out happily, I do not doubt that God is pleased with a husband and wife,obeying his command to multiply etc. Though I also doubt that he would feel a need to have anyone view it.

So, some things in this life can be avoided to help us, just as some things can be enjoyed within proper boundaries set by God. :) Even eating healthy food can be bad for you if you eat way more than you need most of the time!

So next on my notes list-- One way to set goals is to look at our roles, and the "time and season" of our lives. Right now I have still some same roles, as a daughter of God, a member of my birth family, a wife to my husband, a mother to my family (this role has lessened a GREAT deal as the next came into play) a grandmother to my grandchildren. A neighbor to the world, starting with those close to me and working out (the rings of responsibility here) and so to all the world. :) who are all brothers and sisters and all are spirit children of God.

In being a grandmother, I think (hope) it is less important that I remember each of our 17 grand children's birthdays with a card and a gift (though that is one way to let them know I remember and care for them, but there are many love languages. I think it is most important for them to know that they are loved by me (and many outside of their little family) and that we trust that they will make good decisions and will still love them when they make their mistakes, as God does us.

what a challenge to distil all this into 15 min!

2012-01-22T06:11:00.000-08:00

So, three min later-- I'm back, and still praying in my heart!

so I think I'll look back at my notes and continue from there, as maybe if I, or AS I, talk/write about the things I felt were important enough to put in my notes, I will be able to feel what is MORE important to put in the talk this morning. I pray so!!!

So in LDS scriptures, in the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 15 and 16
(I am able to remember the references as they are important teen age years ;)
there are scriptures that relate quite well to this topic. They are very short, and though contrary to what one might expect to be possible, they are both almost word for word the same. It was for two (if I remember right, single men?) who apparently were both concerned about the same thing, and prayed to God over it and were given these two chapters in answer. Wow-- If I were Joseph Smith, I would be scratching my head, wondering if I were receiving inspiration right to get practically duplicates, but apparently it was right as they totally accepted it!

Anyway- I think I will divert so see if I can copy just one of them to paste in here, as it seems the right thing to do.

"Section 15
Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet to John Whitmer, at Fayette, New York, June 1829 (see History of the Church, 1:50; see also the heading to section 14). The message is intimately and impressively personal in that the Lord tells of what was known only to John Whitmer and himself. John Whitmer later became one of the Eight Witnesses to the Book of Mormon.

1–2, The Lord’s arm is over all the earth; 3–6, To preach the gospel and save souls is the thing of most worth.

1 Hearken, my servant John, and listen to the words of Jesus Christ, your Lord and your Redeemer.

2 For behold, I speak unto you with sharpness and with power, for mine arm is over all the earth.

3 And I will tell you that which no man knoweth save me and thee alone—

4 For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you.

5 Behold, blessed are you for this thing, and for speaking my words which I have given you according to my commandments.

6 And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring csouls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father. Amen.

more on thinking about todays talk

2012-01-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

So, if we choose our family and our place, nation, state etc, a huge part comes in here to me. Gratitude! We need to look at what good there is and work from there.

Even if we had parents who made mistakes (we ALL have had that) though some parents make a lot more mistakes than others, and maybe we even got adopted ?

Still, I do believe that we were shown bits of our possible future in different choices we could make, with different scenarios (which is where I think De-javu (sp?) come from- but we don't all remember them, but it sure is cool when we do!) and that we thought we would be able to learn and grow from the challenges, and God thought so too, or he wouldn't have offered us the choice. Still we can mess up too, and we all do to some extent, which is why I am so grateful for REPENTANCE! Jesus Christ has made that possible, and with his grace, after all we can do, we will be able to return home to our Father in Heaven and continue to learn and grow to be better people, till we become like Jesus and like God the Father (boy it is a good thing we have eternity to do it in!!!)

I'm feeling the need for a little break here- as I've been working straight for about two hours or more! (May God help me to get my head together to give the talk!)

what to pack for the "trip of a lifetime"

2012-01-22T05:46:00.001-08:00

So talking about priorities in this life, these analogies came to me.

If we won or were gifted to take a wonderful vacation trip,
or what if we got to choose what college we would go to?

what a lot of things would have a big play in what choices we might have?

What do we do here, about going to college? Can we afford it? Can we get accepted? Are any of our good friends going there? How hard is the work? What degree would we graduate with? How is the housing, do they speak our language? Many people do go through this situation!

Can we choose just a vacation, that costs a lot less than a college education?
Where would we like to go?
Disneyland, Europe, beach, mountains???

What things might enter in to our choice? Can we swim, ski (do we LIKE it?), do we sun burn, could we communicate when we get there? is it dangerous?
(I'd love to visit Israel, and many other places but I hear it is not safe!)

Can any of our loved ones go with us? If we are a young single adult, we probably want our good friends, but if we are a young child, we probably want our family (if we love and trust them!) and if we are married with children, we probably want them all (well maybe if some of our children have been very rebellious etc, maybe not :(

Do you think we have SOME choice of where we are born on earth? And who will be our family? I do-- within boundaries of what would be good for us to learn from and for them etc-- only God can know the best fit! I do think we have choice within HIS boundaries.

questions

2012-01-22T05:22:00.001-08:00

So what is one of the first things you ask someone you just met? "Where are you from?" (meaning usually, where did you dwell on the earth before) Why does that make any difference? Maybe they just came from a different country, and so need to be given some slack, that they probably don't "get" a lot of our culture. Maybe they came from someplace that we can relate to from our own past, or we can benefit from learning more about etc. --- It does matter, but just as history matters, as the next questions go with it and help us to relate even more.

Why are you here? What do you plan/hope to do in this place? Which helps us to know what their agenda might be, and if we are on the same track or if we can help each other in any way, or possibly if we need to not trust them much. (If they are here to further selfish harmful desires-- drugs etc-- which they may not, make that probably wouldn't tell us, unless they thought we were after the same things!

which leads us to knowing how we learn who we can trust. Hopefully we learned body language as a child, but if those around us were unstable emotionally or morally, their words might not match their actions, which is really hard to deal with, but it can be over come.

It also can be a big help if we learned other languages if they are spoken by people we might come in important contact with. Being able to communicate is so important!

I do not see how to get to the next topics, so this will not be entirely sequential (so sorry about that)

The third question, is Where are you wanting to go, (after your time here), or where do we go after death, which comes with the question, How much time do we have here?
Which we may have some idea of, but we do not always get to be the one in charge, death can come suddenly.

So along with how much time will we have here, and where will we go after being here, is the question of what can we take with us when we leave here? This brings me to the story of Maria, a girl from Mexico who worked as a part nanny and did house cleaning for my aunt. After she had worked in the US for some time, she got to go back to Mexico to visit her family. She told me that she was so mad to realize when she got to the boarder, that the radio she had spent money to buy and take as a gift to her family, the Mexican govt required her to pay so much tax on to get it into her native country that she didn't have the money. They said, to put it in the pile over there if she couldn't pay for it, and she expected that the agents were going to collect the things and sell them themselves for the money. She was so mad that she threw the radio against the floor as hard as she could, breaking it, as she said they were not going to profit from her hard work and leave her with nothing.

So, it is important to know what we can take with us. I had a sort of similar situation, when I bought as a fathers day gift for my husband, a really cool screw driver, that had extra bits in a cool holder on it, and it ratcheted plus it had a led light that pointed to what you would work on.

I had forgotten I had it in my carry on luggage (I would have put it in my checked luggage if I had thought about it) and so they were going to take it from me and throw it in the garbage when I went through screening. I felt terrible! I got them to give it to me, and I ran back to where people were getting off the airplane, and found a lady who seemed to be like me and offered her the tool for a loved one, explaining what was happening. She was happy to get it, though I was sad to lose it.

When we leave this life, what can we take with us? NOT things! Even if like the
Egyptians, who tried to send gold, food and servants etc it does not work. We can only take what? What we have become in our character, our memories (hop0efully they are good ones of service and joy) what we have learned. As the scriptures say, what knowledge we have learned, will help us be so much farther along in the next life.

There, I said it-- we will still have a life, existence after this one, but I totally doubt it is reincarnation. There have been enough people who have come back from dying and seeing "the other side" that we know that is not true, besides the words of the prophets (latter-day ones have spoken more on this than Bible ones)

continuing (I usually (as today) publish cold, no editing

2012-01-22T04:40:00.000-08:00

I think/hope getting to share on here will help me focus on what is MOST important. Maybe I will type on here what I have gathered in my notes, as that might help, and also then I can know that even if God HAS inspired me to write something in my notes, but I miss giving it in my talk, he could direct others to it here.

So, I plan to just barely expand on the often one word note,
not in order of importance, but in the order I wrote them down.

As the saying goes, it takes a lot more time to prepare a short well organized talk on a subject, than to be able to ramble along and manage to pack tons in.

So back again to the topic given-- speaking on what priorities there are in life that God has given us with setting goals for what our mission is to do while here. (I do wish he had given us the topic written down, as I was in a bit of shock, just to be asked and then we had to remember the topic, and not just a one word topic either!)

so- expanding on my notes just a little (not in order!)

---"An immaculate house is the sign of a wasted life"
---patriarchal blessings - are guides to what our gifts are, what to watch out for in life.
---prioritize, pray first (night and morning and all through the day) for help with what is most important to do-- it is like a compass check, to be sure we are on course
--- my blog, might be of some help, ironic how the topics match
--- my hobby questions-- I have for years enjoyed a hobby, of when I am having to wait in line, or on an airplane etc, asking some person around me my two hobby questions. the first is "What do you do for fun?" (this is important to me as I tend to focus on work so much myself, and also that it helps the other person relax in speaking with me and in answering questions. --- Second question is "What is the purpose in life?". I have had so fascinating conversations from these questions.

One answer to the second question, was from a rather wild looking guy who rides motorcycles, as he said he guessed the purpose was to survive. I questioned that as nobody does. That took him back a bit and then he said he would have to think on that, as he didn't know.

To me, the answer to this second question is so important, as if you don't know what you are here to do, the likely hood of your accomplishing it is really low. I doubt we are here just to have fun or to "get the most toys before we die".

I feel to jump from my notes a bit (though this is in my later notes) as part of the topic is also contained in "Why am I here, where did I come from and where do I go when I die." Which all presupposes that we are not just a body, but that we have a spirit/intelligence that is eternal.

Speaking of eternal, one suddenly can't become eternal, as to have a beginning (of all-- not just a part of us) is to not BE eternal, you can't just add eternal like frosting to a cake. We can add things TO our eternal core- like adding a physical body to come here is doing that, and then switching that to a resurrected body after the death of this mortal body. But the CORE must be eternal, though it can be growing all the time.

Which gets me to part of the possible ways to my subject or points to make, that I was thinking about last night. Matter is or seems to be eternal-- it can be changed to this or that molecules, but it does not disappear and I understand it can be turned back to what it was before-- even like oxygen. So if things "matter/materials" do not cease to exist entirely, why should we assume that we will?

In a story I read long ago, a man comes to consciousness, alone in the desert, but has lost much of his memory. He does not remember his name or his past, how he got there etc but he does remember mundane things and finds he has some urgent feelings. As I recall it, he feels like he is in danger from someone trying to kill him. He discovers that he must have parachuted down, as he is still attached to a parachute, and he feels he needs to hide/bury the parachute asap and he does. Now he needs to find someone he can trust to help him answer the urgent questions he has, as he had some mission to do but can't remember that either, and he feels that his life is in great danger! Besides being in the desert (no idea which one in the world even) with no food, water, survival equipment or even which direction to go to find what he needs, or if any people he finds will be able to be communicated with in his language.

In a few ways this is like life. We come into life, helpless, feeling emotions, and physical needs.

What is the first thing we NEED? Did you think of --- air ---- but most of us do not go around thinking about air, or talking about it, measuring it etc, it is even something we need to be taught to be careful to have and see that other people have, and that is what will kill us about the fastest if we don't have!

We also probably do not realize (with our minds)) that we need to feel safe, that we can trust that there will be help to fulfill our needs, and even respect/love with that trust. How does a baby learn about trust? From how the caregivers handle them, and fill their needs. Are they left to cry for help, hungry and cold, and when help finally comes, are they lifted gently and are kind loving words/tones used to sooth them? When this happens the baby learns to trust, which is a HUGE thing in life.

Without learning this, life is so much harder, though it is possible with a LOT of work, to learn to trust later. There are levels of trust too, you might trust that someone loves you, but not others, or you might trust that they love you, but they don't know how to intelligently protect and care for you. Issues on issues!

So back to wondering where we came from, and why that is important.

I'm to speak in church to day

2012-01-22T04:15:00.000-08:00

the topic the bishopric member gave to speak on (and same for my husband) is about priorities, goals setting- begin new Year- What is our mission from God etc

I find that ironic= as to me that condenses down to
What is the purpose in Life, and
How do we complete our mission here best

I wasn't concerned or scared about speaking until about a day and a half ago, but now the probably 15 min. I will have to account for to God, in addressing the whole congregation feels like a huge MEGA responsibility, especially for the importance of the topic- which IS the very basis of our lives. Now it really weighs on me!

I feel a need to get what MOST needs to be said over so the MOST people listening can understand it, while I have discovered that there are so many different things that could/should be said and ways to say it, with all ages in the group I am to speak to. Even members of other faiths may be there, besides teen ages and children.

I (we) have been praying for days for help to know/prepare what God would have us say. So many ideas have come into my mind, with stories and quotes. I have two pages full of notes and there is no way to say it all, especially as I must not speak too fast or I may not be understood. I need to go through a pick out the the VERY most important things (not an easy task when they ALL seem important). I need to organize the talk so that it is interesting but not overwhelming. I feel I need to give them places to go to get more info to help them. I know that in the last four years, I have only been asked to speak once.

What is kind of extra scary is that time (only second time in my life?) I was prompted while on the stand, during the hymns, that I should not give the talk I had taken so much care to prepare, but ideas came to me in floods of what I needed to talk about. It was incredibly amazing, and super scary at the same time.

The easiest way to prepare is to write out a whole written "talk" but that is the hardest to listen to, and also denies on the spot, inspiration from God
--- (though one can get the inspiration ahead of time as the General Authorities do for their talks in the twice a year conferences, where they must write them out, as they must have copies for translators to work from during the talks. )

I like to hear people share but not lecture, and I know how important it is to have the Holy Spirit help you and also help the congregation to understand too.

I was thinking about it, and I think in my whole life, I have probably given less than 25 talks in church, and that is being generous.

As a friends' son left this life by his own hand :(

2011-12-18T08:36:00.000-08:00

I thought this had published a month or so ago. but better late than never?

I found this article on Meridian Magazine (online-free) that is so timely that I believe it to be one of "Gods coincidences" as it was written by a mother whose own son left this life in the same way, seven years ago. This article includes some of the treasures from the scriptures and writings of LDS church authorities that have comforted her that the Savior of the World will still be working with her son though he be dead, as God is the God of the living and the dead, as all are alive to Him.

the title is "Glad Tidings of Great Joy" by Darla Isackson
"I was asked to substitute in Relief Society this week and teach the lesson the final judgment. Since my son’s death more than seven years ago, I have had a compelling need to learn more about that subject—especially the possibility of continued preparation in the spirit world. The experience of preparing for this lesson has been so heart-swelling, so sweet, so encouraging, because I reviewed much of what I have learned. Because the message of the Savior’s love and redemptive power is so intertwined with this subject it is an appropriate Christmas message as well.

I immediately knew I wanted to present this lesson in a way that would be comforting and encouraging. Some connect the word judgment with criticism or even condemnation. However, judgment simply means “to hear, to examine all aspects of, to apply the law to, to consider the relative merits of.” And in the case of final judgment, it means the Savior’s decision of what kingdom we not only merit, but are best suited for and would be happiest in. Stan Winchester, who reviewed this article for me said that he felt we could substitute “awards ceremony” for the “final judgment” because we will be receiving gifts of eternal life and kingdoms of glory. Remember, even the telestial and terrestial kingdoms are kingdoms of glory, which we’ve been told will be more glorious than we can comprehend.

The Savior’s Focus is on Saving

I read in the Ensign, “Too often, in well-meaning attempts at encouraging obedience, we stress the punishment that will eventually come to sinners, and we understate the extent of Christ’s mercy. (Todd A. Britsch, Ensign, April 1986, p. 13) This article will focus on Christ’s mercy; when looking forward to judgment we need to remember that: “God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:17) The Lord said, “For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39).

We also need to remember that the Lord’s judgment will be infinitely more merciful and kind than our own. Joseph Smith said, While one portion of the human race is judging and condemning the other without mercy, the Great Parent of the universe looks upon the whole of the human family with a fatherly care and paternal regard . . . He is a wise Lawgiver, and will judge all men, not according to the narrow, contracted notions of men. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, edited by Joseph Fielding Smith, Salt Lake City, Utah, Deseret Book Co., 1938, 218.)

Preliminary Judgments

The lesson manual mentioned preliminary judgments on earth, when we are interviewed for baptism, for a temple recommend, for advancement in the priesthood, for callings, for example. Other preliminary judgments would be our birth placement. For instance, God judges those he knows will die before the age of accountability already worthy of celestial glory when he places them in those particular bodies. Those with those with mental impairments, such as Down Syndrome are similarly judged and guaranteed celestial glory. There is a preliminary judgment immediately after death when spirits are assigned to various levels of paradise and spirit prison.

Final Judgment (Awards Ceremony)

The final judgment takes place at the very end of the Millennium after all are resurrected (Alma 11:41). So many scriptures refer to that judgment. The Lord judges by:

• Works (Revelation 2:12, D&C 111, 1 Nephi 15:32

• Words & Thoughts (Alma 12:14, Matthew 12:36-37)

• Desires of Our Hearts (D&C 137:9, Alma 4: 3,5)

• Records kept on earth and the book of life (the record kept in heaven (D&C 128:6-8)

• The Record in our own minds and bodies (Romans 2:15)

But here is where my personal story has to come in . . . and why I put up a poster that read:

The Redemptive Power of Jesus in the Final Judgment: Glad Tidings of Great Joy!

A little over seven years ago my son, who had left the Church and become involved with drugs and alcohol, died of suicide. I was plunged into desperate study and prayer in order to find some comfort in regard to his situation on the Other Side.

I have attained a very personal witness that because of the Atonement of Christ, the very records we are judged by can be changed as we repent and are sanctified by the power of the Holy Ghost—here and hereafter. I believe with all my heart that the process of sanctification continues in the Spirit World and throughout the Millennium, clear up to the final judgment.

One reference after another gave me new hope for Brian, such as: Ted R. Callister, of the Seventy said, “The consequences of the Atonement are no less effective prospectively. The redeeming powers of the Savior stretch forward to reach the spirits of the dead just as readily as they stretched back to our premortal life.” (The Infinite Atonement, p. 78)

I had found comfort in the following quote from the Prophet Joseph Smith for all the years Brian was a lost lamb, but after his death, they had new meaning. The italicized words jumped out at me. “Though some of the sheep may wander, the eye of the Shepherd is upon them, and sooner or later they will feel the tentacles of Divine Providence reaching out after them and drawing them back to the fold. Either in this life or in the life to come, they will return. They will have to pay their debt to justice; they will suffer for their sins; and may tread a thorny path; but if it leads them at last, like the penitent Prodigal, to a loving and forgiving father's heart and home, the painful experience will not have been in vain.” (Joseph Smith, in Conference Report, Apr. 1929, 10, emphasis added)

Progress after Death Gives Hope to All

The glad tidings of great joy pertains to all of us, because we all need more time than we have in mortality to become perfected. Bruce R. McConkie said, “Salvation does not come all at once . . . It will take us ages to accomplish this end [perfection], for there will be greater progress beyond the grave.” (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:18, emphasis added)

Stan Winchester said in a recent blog, “To be perfect, in the original Greek means to be complete. Who of us will be complete as our Heavenly Father is while we remain mortal? None, not one; yet, the commandment is to be perfect like Him. Accessing the grace of God is the process of becoming complete, it is about opening our hearts to Jesus Christ and trusting Him to lead us in this process.”

Missionary Work in the Spirit World and Temple Work on Earth

One paragraph in the lesson manual (Gospel Principles) states, “Through the work we do in temples, all people who have lived on the earth can have an equal opportunity to receive the fullness of the gospel and the ordinances of salvation so they can inherit a place in the highest degree of celestial glory.” (p. 272)

Billions of people—most of God’s children that have lived on this earth—have not had the opportunity to hear the good news of the gospel or to choose the blessings of temple ordinances while yet alive.

The scripture “few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14) is probably referring to the fact that few during this earth life find the strait and narrow way. Many others, like my son, had some knowledge of the gospel, but wandered off before it could be proven in their lives. We have been given glimpses of the mammoth missionary efforts in behalf of all these people in the spirit world.

After Brian’s death, Section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants, President Joseph F. Smith’s vision of the redemption of the dead, became one of my favorite chapters to study. I recommend the entire chapter. President Smith said, in part,

“I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption, through the sacrifice of the Only Begotton Son of God, among those who are in darkness and under the bondage of sin in the great world of the spirit of the dead. The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God. And after they have paid the penalty of their transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to their works, for they are heirs of salvation.” (vs 57-59)

Only the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints holds out the assurance that every person ever born will have the opportunity to be taught and really understand the gospel and have essential temple ordinances performed for them by proxy. There would be no point to missionary work there and proxy ordinances here if the people in the spirit world did not still have the option of accepting or rejecting, of repenting, of choosing Christ. Their decisions there still count. They have the opportunity to learn, repent, and progress according to their heart’s desires. Stan said, “When I was investigating the Church proxy temple work is one of the gospel truths that really excited me. I knew then that God was loving, fair, and not a respecter of persons based on when or where a person lived.”

“Wait!” many people have said, “What about Alma’s words about not procrastinating the day of our repentance, and about this being the time to prepare to meet God?” In no other area of gospel study is it so important to avoid taking scripture messages out of context. Alma spoke the truth, but we need to look at the whole picture, and to weigh his message carefully according to the whole gospel plan. Alma was speaking to those who had been taught the gospel and were in a position to see and understand the necessity of repentance. And surely, no one who knows and understand should take lightly his counsel. But can we believe for a moment that the Lord would condemn someone who didn’t know and understand in time to fully repent in this life?

My Quest to Learn the Limits of the Second Estate

I began to feel more and more strongly that the second estate continues in the spirit world. That would make so much sense! But “second estate” is usually defined as “life on this earth.” For years, the only documentation I could find was in quotes that indicate that the spirit world IS “on this earth.” But I wanted more. Finally, the month before my book of comfort for those who have lost someone to suicide went to press, a mother who had also lost a son to suicide sent me the following reference:

President Marion G. Romney said, “We have our second estate, which is the mortality we are now experiencing and our sojourn in the spirit world following death.” (“We Are Children of God,” Ensign, September 1984, 3).

She also told me that Elder Neal A. Maxwell, in his book The Promise of Discipleship, had written an entire chapter on the spirit world! I obtained a copy of the book and read and re-read the chapter on the spirit world. I was edified and uplifted by his words that are so full of hope for our departed loved ones! Here’s an important quote:

We tend to overlook the reality that the spirit world and paradise are part, really, of the second estate. The work of the Lord, so far as the second estate is concerned, is completed before the Judgment and the Resurrection . . . He gave us our spirit birth, bringing the first estate to all. He gave the gift to us of mortality, or the second estate, where all might be “added upon” . . . He provides in the spirit world a continuum of mortality's probation, the great opportunity for all. Neal A. Maxwell, The Promise of Discipleship, Deseret Book, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2001, 111. (Recently released in soft cover.)

How could it be any different? God is both merciful and just. What else would make sense?

We are told in the Book of Mormon, “And he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him” (2 Nephi 26:33).

My Personal Witness

I recently re-read my journal entries for the year after Brian died, and was thrilled to note that on two separate occasions I had received a spiritual witness that Brian now knows the gospel truths he resisted here. I love this entry made December 24, 2004, about three months after he died:

I was listening to a tape in The Work and the Glory series. Joseph Smith turns to Lydia and begins talking to her about her recently deceased father—who had been so bitter against Joseph, the Church, and the Book of Mormon. He said he suspected that Josiah McBride’s opinion might be changed by having the Angel Moroni sit down and chat with him about directing Joseph to the gold plates.

I started to cry and the words came to my mind, ”Brian knows now. Brian KNOWS.” I was filled with peace and hope and assurance that he had been taught in perfect clarity, in a way totally acceptable to him, the reality of the Restoration, the plan of salvation, the mission of the Savior, and how the Atonement applies to him. Nothing could comfort me more.

But something did comfort me even more. A few months later, on June 5, 2005, I recorded the moment when the Holy Ghost told me for sure that Brian not only knew of Christ, but had also accepted Him.

Had a special study time with scriptures in the morning and was left with a burning desire to know if Brian is accepting the gospel and feeling what I am feeling, is knowing the truth of God and the redeeming power of Christ. Went into the kitchen to get a drink of water and the Spirit washed over me and I KNEW Brian has chosen Christ, is repenting and making great progress. I can’t begin to express the joy this brings me. There is absolutely nothing I have desired more than to know that Brian has accepted the love and teachings of Jesus.

Nothing surpasses the “knowing” in our hearts that comes from the Holy Ghost. The Savior is a Being of light and truth; truth conveyed by the Spirit brings profound relief from Satan’s lies. Such experiences are part of my personal witness to you.

Quotes from church leaders are wonderful, but the best witness of all is from the Holy Ghost.

As members of the Church we have been given the Gift of the Holy Ghost—the Spirit of Truth. The peace that comes from that witness is the peace the surpasses all understanding.

So many things I may not know until I enter the spirit world myself. But so many things I know for sure right now because the Holy Ghost has borne witness to my soul. I know, for instance, that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, and that the spirit world is real, and is a place of light and truth where people may progress in major ways.

The concept of the final judgment need not be daunting when we know and understand that the Lord’s love and mercy and help are a constant for us here, as well as hereafter. As we celebrate His birth, may we remember that Jesus truly brought glad tidings of great joy!

Note: Darla has a rich background in writing and editing and has been one of Meridian’s most consistent and most-read columnists since 2002. To learn more about Darla and her books, Trust God No Matter What! and After My Son’s Suicide: An LDS Mother Finds Comfort in Christ and Strength to Go On, visit her website: darlaisackson.com. Also check out Barnes and Noble Nook Books and Amazon.com."

How to have a clean home & happy homemaker.

2011-12-18T08:13:00.000-08:00

So you want a clean house, but can't afford a maid? How can you do it yourself?

I will start out with the wee beginnings, as it really helps to start while the baby is in the womb. ;0, but feel free to skip around to find what you want.

Because the VERY biggest factor is how YOU (and your spouse) feel about housework! :)
If you like it, and expect the kids will like it too, and expect that of course they will help clean, you are sure to win helpers! You will also need to prepare adequate consequences to further the cause, good first and sad if that does not work.

Just like it is way easier to get kids to eat the foods you like, and hard to convince them to eat vegetables you don't care for -- same goes with ANYTHING in life. As the role models that you live with and love are the best teachers with “actions speaking louder than words” (or even rewards!) As most people think if you have to pay someone to do something, it must be something that they don't want/like to do themselves.

So the first thing to do in cleaning (or life even) is “Get yourself an Attitude of Gratitude.”

Of course if you had great role models in this, I don't know why you are even reading this, but, if not, you can overcome that challenge too. Maybe this story will help.

One couple hated housework, and their home showed it. They blamed it on the fact that they had little money, but they barely felt any gratitude for the used furniture they acquired. It was actually quite good looking, but it wasn't really what they had dreamed of. They also didn't like their apartment, the color or style of the flooring, the generic drapes, etc. Some other things that didn't help, were that her mother had been an immaculate house cleaner and had picked up after her daughter. Thus to her daughter, it felt natural to leave things out, and a burden undeserved to have to clean up. The husband also hardly noticed when they left things out, as that is how they had both been subconsciously trained. The mess itself seemed the leftover teenage battleground proving they had won the battle with Moms who used to nag about picking up their stuff, but didn't give any other consequences for doing so. They just weren't trained to care to take care of what they had.
Then a huge horrid hurricane happened to the little Island Nation. Many people were killed and almost all the people were plunged into poverty. Both of them had their whole families and all their businesses effected terribly if not wiped out entirely. All most every home was flooded, furniture clothing and everything ruined. There was little money to buy more but even then, the very furniture and food stores in town had their contents destroyed too. Everything damaged if not by the wind and water breaking windows, or trees smashing roofs, then the collapsing buildings. Even after the water finally drained away it left massive foul mud and sludge over everything. Fire finished the rest when the gasoline floating on top of the water was ignited by snapped electric lines etc. Disaster extreme!
Everything with filthy, it seemed that there was no place that was clean or pretty or comfortable, even the few cars were swept up and flooded/crashing into each other and buildings etc. You couldn't even clean you own hands, so when one tried to wipe away tears, they streaked their faces with dirt. The water no longer came out clean from pipes IF there were pipes you could get to, or soap you could find, or a clean towel. Everyone was thirsty and hungry, but thankfully not terribly cold as it was a more tropical country. They had their lives and each other with enough health to work. They had nothing of material wealth but they realized they still had the knowledge in their heads and their relationships with other people. It was amazingly enough to live on when with hope as they had the gospel of Jesus Christ and knew why they were on earth. To learn to be Christlike in challenges.
Now they appreciated what they had lost. Now seeing anything clean and orderly seemed a beautiful, wonderful miracle. It seemed a great teaching blessing in their lives, as they had grew in gratitude for what wonderful blessings they had. So when humanitarian help came, and they were given a plastic bag with soap, hand towels, tooth brushes with paste and combs, they felt loved and appreciated it greatly.
And the water, clean water! To drink and wash your hands and face! Though at first there was not enough to water wash any clothing they managed to salvage, that came much later. Food, also was so important, but more appreciated to eat with clean hands. It was a good thing they didn't have to do much to prepare any food, but it was ready to eat. Everything took time in a battle against dirt & mess.
They learned fast, to first prepare a place as clean as they could, to be an island amidst the mess. Then they worked to grow their island of cleanliness and order. They learned to love clear clean open space s. They learned to love order, specific places to put things for safety and reuse. When they found little things amidst the destruction that were still good, they carefully put them safely away. Treasures!
They were so thankful to have people come to take away garbage that they would rush to gather as much as they could to throw in the trucks. Now it was like heaven to GET to have a clean area to live in. They learned to work unconsciously but constantly in keeping their surroundings clean, as who knew when they would have more time later. They developed a “clean as you go” attitude which won the war against dirty clutter by gratefully replacing it with cleanliness and order. The end.

So, did you notice the principles they learned, and can you think of more?

1. Begin where you stand, and grow/keep an island of cleanliness. (Being grateful for what you have.)
2. Make places to put the things you need/treasure (a place for everything & everything in its place)
3. Make a way to collect/remove the trash that you gather together. (get bags, boxes or waste baskets)

So, now let us go back to the beginning. So if you are just 18, single, in an apartment, you can begin there. Just apply the basic principles above first.

The next principles are “first things first”.

In other words, get what you need, before getting what you just want.
What are the basic needs? Food, shelter, clothing, some meaningful work to do/someone to care for.

If you have a way to earn money, blessed are you, especially if you enjoy the work! Work IS a blessing and being able to do it with the time & energy to do what is required is a further blessing.

Think about time as the blessing it is too. If you have time, energy, knowledge and money, you can do almost anything. So what steals time, energy, knowledge or money from us?

“Stuff”. Some stuff is useful even if it is only a joy to our eyes- it bring joy. Some things are just stuff, and it is a talent to be able to see things for what they are. Are we protecting things that are just stuff that we don't personally need or love? Is it taking our time to clean them, store them, are they taking up room in our lives and in our minds that could be used for things we would use or love? When we remember that we can't take “stuff” with us when we die, but we can take the joy of giving to others things that they need- does that help us to let go of stuff?

Stuff, beyond what we need, that we are only emotionally attached to, but it is in storage, is just getting older, out of date, may mold or mildew, or be damaged or stolen, and it takes up room in our minds too.

Here is another principle; “if something is not convenient to store, it is not convenient to have”. If you live in a 5th wheel RV, probably having a huge Kirby Vac with a box of attachments is not convenient for you. Your amount of carpet to clean is tiny, barely larger than the vacuum. If someone gave you a Kirby as a wedding gift, can you return it or sell it or? If you have no place to store it or any need of it, so it just sits in the center of your living room, then, it is not a blessing, it is a curse!. Sell it or give it away! Do not be a hoarder! This is a challenge to many, especially when aged parents die and you inherit their stuff, which you probably don't need but may feel some attachment to. What will you do?

Unfortunately the longer we keep stuff, the more attached we may become to it, especially if we spent good money on it in the first place and then paid to store it in some storage unit. Declare freedom! Think in ways of plenty, not poverty, but you don't have to throw things away, first try to sell them, or gift them to someone who needs them, or give to a thrift store etc. :)

Trying to keep things that are not convenient to keep, because of sentimental reasons is sad. Maybe you could take a picture of the item, and attach it to a page with write up why it has meaning to you, and then pass it to someone who needs it? That way you don't just lose it, but bless others with it.

OK, now we should just have things that we actually really need, or things that are easy to have that bring us joy (pictures on the wall?). These things should also be easy to care for, clean, or hopefully we can do something to make them so. Put a new finish on it, if it has paint flaking off etc?

You can continually ask yourself about things around you, “is this blessing me or cursing me?”. Ask yourself the question before you buy something or accept something from another too. It saves time.

When our surroundings are functional, then we get more done. Function is first, form (beauty) second. Form follows function. How you arrange your belongings, even clothing in the closet or furniture works the same way. You wouldn't put your couch right against the wall with no way to sit on it except crawling over the back, so why should anything be put where it is harder to use?

Putting things near where they will first be used saves time and energy. Extra toilet paper goes best in the bathroom (if there is storage there- if not can you make a cute wall hanger for a couple of rolls?)
Coats go best by the door you leave the house from. Glasses go in the cabinet next to the sink so you can easily get a drink. (though I like to have personalized mugs hanging by the sink that get reused for water as that saves the most time, energy and money!) Hopefully you get the idea.

Here is something that really worked for me. Lower cabinets in kitchens can be more difficult to use as you often have to get down on hands and knees to see into the back. The high end kitchens these days often have pull out bottoms of the shelves so that is not necessary but I discovered that I could just cut a cardboard box to fit the shelf, and use it like a drawer. I folded the top flaps of the boxes to the inside, and so when moving day came, I already had a box that fit the contents. I also used colorful coordinating print contact paper to cover the end of the box that showed, and used stick on address labels and a felt pen to label the contents of the boxes. I loved it, and one daughter uses the idea even now.

Now you also have levels of storage space. “A” is what you use Almost every day, (the easiest to get to), “B” is maybe By monthly, (or medium hard to get at) and “C” is for Christmas (or things used only once a year etc.) You use this principle to see where to put things in your kitchen, (and the whole house) like pots and pans, etc. If you have a big platter for the Thanksgiving Turkey, don't put in where you have to deal with it to get your breakfast bowl. Right?

Now, I forgot to say, to clean the shelves or storage areas before you put anything there. Also to work to get containers for your things, so they don't get fouled by mice, spiders or dust etc. and they are protected from being smashed too. The plastic bins are very nice as they are water and pest resistant (but not proof so best not to store uncanned food in them), or same size cardboard boxes that you can put inside a plastic bag, that you label with a felt marker pen on all sides & top, with the contents, so you don't have to open it to know what is in it. You can also put a date on it if you want to show when you last used it, so if it goes three years without being used, I doubt you need it! The lower shelves for heavy things and the higher for lighter but also depending on how often you will need them.
So now, let us say that you have mastered the basic principles (can you name them in your own words?

a. Begin where you are, and make your island of clean order grow
b Keep only things you need or love that are convenient to have and use
c. Make safe places for your things where you can easily use them & put them away asap d. Make plenty of convenient places to deposit trash and empty them frequently

These same principles apply to all your stuff, even your clothing, shoes, and the food on your shelves.
Use it, sell it, give it away or lose it! Go through your belonging often so when it comes time to move, you will have way less work to do and you will be able to find what you want in a flash!

Ok, now we are ready for you to be carrying a wee one under your heart (I do not like the term “in your belly or stomach” maybe that is where some got the idea that ogres ate children?) and if you have done all the above, you will be one happy Momma, singing as you breeze through your home.

Oh, I forgot, there is the whole FLY Lady online stuff. (Finally Loving Yourself). Where you make your bed AS you get out of it (saves time- unless you must hit the potty fast!) but at least before you go to breakfast, or get dressed, you make your bed. If you get up at the same time as your dear husband, he can make it with you that saves even more time, or at least pull up your side, and the last one out of bed is to make it. :) This helps you not get back in it, and a bed is so large that the whole room looks cleaner if it is made. :) A made up bed makes it less likely that spiders or bugs could sneak in as the blankets would be too heavy for them to lift if it is made smoothly! (dust ruffles that hit the floor are ladders for insects :(

Next, you get yourself dressed for the day, clear to shoes that tie, like sneakers, as again, it helps you be in the mood and less likely to retire to the couch. Fix your hair, and face etc so Dear Husband sees and kisses his lovely wife before he goes to work. You leave each room clean as you leave it, so wipe the bathroom sink, straighten the towels etc, and you'll have no fear if company drops in and needs it!

Now, (hopefully) if you have left the kitchen clean the night before, and prepared ahead of time what menus for the whole week (month even better) then you know you have the ingredients and don't waste time searching only to find one missing. You fix breakfast and clean as you go, so if you spill egg on the counter or floor, you wipe it up immediately (with the cleaning cloth you keep in the pocket of your darling apron) rather than spread it around the counter, or horrors, smear the carpet through the house.

You both carry your dishes to the sink, rinse them and put them in the dishwasher (if you are so blessed to have one) but wait to run the dishwasher till it is full after dinner. If no dw, then do them by hand, by running hot water and using a dish brush that dispenses soap, immediately rinse, dry and put away. Wa la, the kitchen is clean!

Now the fly lady says to clean different zones each day- and I like that. You can check on line how that works, so I won't go into that here.

So-- where were we, oh, yes you are “with child”, and with the home front so organized and clean it is no big problem, as you are not tripping over unneeded stuff, though you can't see your feet. You have gotten everything ready for the coming baby, including your bag packed for the hospital. You have studied with your husband on natural childbirth and borrowed or purchased and read all the best books like “The Baby Whisper” “The Happiest Baby on the Block” and any others that catch your fancy.

Now lets say the baby has arrived, and you are not sleep deprived as the books helped you to help the baby go to sleep and you know how to help baby to not fully wake when you feed your baby in the night etc. Your Dear Husband or Your Mother or Sister, whomever has come to help out can see how to find what is needed as you take care of yourself and baby and they keep the home clean and laundry done.

Laundry-- I forgot that! The same principles apply here, so if you do not love to iron clothing, do not have any that need to be ironed. Same with dry cleaning, don't buy anything that needs it. Bless others with any clothing that is not working for you, just don't keep it in your closet as it crowds, wrinkles and blocks you for stuff you do love to wear.

Keep some neutral cleaner (Like speed cleanings “red juice”) in a spray bottle in or near your closet so if you see a spot as you inspect your clothing while undressing, you can immediately blot it away. If clothing is not smelly, or dirty, then put it away to use again, as no use wearing it out in the wash, which is also a waste of electricity, soap and water plus your time.

If clothing is dirty, then put it in the appropriate bin of sorted clothing, that is either in your bedroom, or if the laundry room is close, in there. You will need one for whites, medium, & dark colors, and one for towels or heavy longer drying things. You will probably want a rod up above the appliances with empty hangers so you can hang up no iron shirts etc.

If your washer/dryer is not stacked, then you have wonderful space above it, if you pull them slightly forward, to have your Dear Husband make a shelf for you to put square plastic tubs/baskets for the clean clothing to go into. You can label them for what you need, like bed linens, towels, His, Hers, kitchen, and one for baby. :)

As the clothing comes out of the dryer, you place it on top of the dryer and quickly fold it and place it in the appropriate bin, ready to carry to where they go when full. Later your children will have their own bins that they empty when full or on a schedule you set together. If there bins do not get emptied, you can express how sorry you are, but that you will do their laundry WHEN they have room in their bin to put more in. :) You also will not pick up their clothing off the floor, as if they are old enough to take it off their bodies, they are old enough to put it in the dirty clothes hamper.

“Love and Logic” parenting principles will save your sanity in dealing with your children, teaching them responsibility etc. They have books and DVDs, plus movies of how to apply their principles that are how I, myself, want to be treated. Also how I believe Heavenly Father deals with us too, with love, giving us choices and natural consequences.

I hope, expect my next post will be about some of the express systems for chores for kids. :)

Family News Letter for 2011

2011-12-03T05:01:00.000-08:00

Dear Family & Friends--- here is the annual Ray & Jane Wadsworth Family Newsletter for 2011
When I realized that I was waiting to write till we found out if we get to keep our family home in WA or not, I saw it might not happen in time plus that it didn't matter in eternity anyway. I realized that there are a lot of more important things it would be nice to share. We hope to hear your news too!
We wish we could have had all of you along on the 20+ years “dream come true” when Ray & I took an LDS church history tour of 9 days in a tour bus. It was a marathon of learning & experiencing history where we found in the 70s hall in Nauvoo that our ancestors on 3 lines, way back must have know each other! Cool! The side trip to the Abraham Lincoln area & museum was an added hit! It was a miracle we got on a tour, as all were full, yet we found a private tour with open space just a few days before departure! It didn't include the New York area sites or the Palmyra pageant we hope to do later.
What has made me happiest though are the strides Ray & I have made in our teamwork, as I got to “have my say” to the lawyer working to help us save our homestead from foreclosure. We also worked together to exhibit/promote Rays boat designs for an improvement on his “fat boat” & for a Bristol Bay Seiner plus promote our pin-bone fillet machine at the Seattle Fish Expo. There we talked to a major Marine Magazine Editor who said he was willing to work with us in coverage. Ray wrote two pages, & I wrote another page from the wife’s view while we both helped each other on our individual writing. We hope this will move things forward to boost the AK & US economy & jobs with also provide healthier, longer shelf life, better tasting wild salmon at a reasonable price.
Ray has been doing maintenance/finish work on the F/v Liahona with also making needed improvements on it to lease it for the crab/cod season. It is still for sale, as is the airplane Ray restored, & also most of our assets as we work to downsize & simplify our lives. Ray hopes to build a skiff before fishing season & that our fishing crew can be made up of our family members.
Right now we are living in the little old 5th wheel we bought from our kids & they bought used before that. It is a delight not having so much to clean, though I do miss a bath tub to soak this old grandmother body in. Ray also says he now realizes why old people walk gently, hunched over. Pain!
I am thrilled that many of the things I created & saved when our ward did “Visit to Bethlehem” about 10+ years ago, look to be used again this Saturday! I'm just sorry they were not able to do it more than one night- as so many more people could have been impacted to remember Jesus is the reason for the season. I am also enjoying sharing the gospel online with helping in comments to correct mistakes about LDS doctrine/history. Bringing people closer to our Savior Jesus Christ is such a positive experience for me. I love it! Someday I hope Ray & I get to do a couple mission to where ever!
********** Now our family news-- mostly just what has changed, to keep this on one page.*******
Eric & Tressa just moved to Calif for his work which we pray will be a blessing for them all. Though the move was stressful with tons of trials, which hopefully are blessings in disguise to help them with their kids Gavin, Brinn, Tayla, Kade, Maylee & Alissa growing stronger & helping.
Doug & Heather have Elida & Gene still in Kennewick, WA, & working in Credit Union. Doug now plays banjo & Elida clarinet. Gene loves cub scouts. Heather working on BS in psychology!
Debbie & Rick do online college classes, in ID where Debbie now gets to sub teach & teach exercise classes at the YMCA. Rick continues at Harbor Freight with Ruby, Mason & Rock in school.
Lori & Kevin moved to Boise ID area. Kevin is working as a business appraiser as their family of Ellie, Johnnie, Beth & Ray make their days full of fun, joy & work. They hope to buy a home there.
Richard & McKenna have welcomed little angel baby Aubrielle Rose who joins big brother Liam. We look forward to her Baby Blessing on Christmas Day. Richards latest plans are to become a foot doctor (podiatrist) maybe going to that special training in Northern CA. (we hope!)
Our foster/guardian-ed daughter Rochelle is expecting her second son in January. We really like Tim Neuharth who she has chosen to be the father in their family. May they all be blessed in all!
Life has blessed us in challenges while holding out hope of surviving the trials with the help of God, family & friends. We have good enough health, & in tact minds with an even stronger trust/love of God the Father & his son Jesus Christ His the restored from heaven gospel. God bless us, everyone!

Thanksgiving is coming- will we DO it?

2011-11-21T05:32:00.000-08:00

As it looks like we will not be able to join our family for the traditional holiday
(most of our family members are a couple of states away, and we HAD planned to feast with them all in our home there-- but we are in a temporary housing condition, in this older ((but MUCH appreciated!)) 5th wheel, without any tip outs and a table smaller than two TV trays), so then it brings me to thinking about the reasons for the feast.

A Sister at church added an sight- to look at the word piecemeal. "Thanks Giving", to thank God and then GIVE to others. (that could be a whole new post even!).

I was looking at that I'm so SOOO thankful my dear husband is with me, and that we both have enough health, to not need others to help with our daily needs, and that we have enough funds to buy nutritious food in adequate supplies (though the tiny fridge does not hold much) as we try to eliminate from our diet, "food" that is not really food, but choose instead more organic vegetables and fruits with unprocessed foods that we prepare ourselves to preserve the most nutrition.

I'm blessed that my dear husband likes to cook and watched the same film titled "FoodMatters" that has helped inspire us to eat more carefully. Yes, we still sometimes "indulge" in an ice cream bar, but it is WAY less and the REAL "good stuff" is a greater percentage of our consumption. :)

Family not being available, though I know will be missed WAY more than any specific foods. : /. So we are considering inviting to our tiny 5th wheel, or maybe taking out to eat an Elderly friend who is also without family, and uses a walker. (it would be really hard for him to make it up INTO this "home" on wheels.

So, still thinking about the title of this holiday, and that Gratitude is an Attitude, that brings with it peace and hope, I am working on that. It isn't all that hard, as I daily see and feel my blessings, even many times a day. While the whole "why I am here- purpose of life" is the basis for what goes on, is such a great help.

I just had a wife of a friend of my husbands, ask if she could ask me a personal question. I said sure, and she asked if it was our religion (she knew we are LDS or members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aka Mormons) that has helped us get through our financial challenges (our business was forced into bankruptcy which , we fought, and lost, and then lost 89% or more of our assets which also supplied my husbands work, and we may lose our family home though the bank I don't THINK has filed foreclosure on it yet.)

Anyway, I answered that question with "Yes." I explained that knowing we came from our Father in Heaven, and why we were here and where we go after we die helped. that "it is NOT a case of "he who dies with the most toys wins". They were just leaving for another meeting when she asked that question, so I couldn't go into detail. But I gave her a pass a long card, with the name "Gramajane" as the title of my profile to look up on Mormon.org and that she could get her questions answered there, that I had also worked to answer FAQ there too.

It is amazing to me how much difference it makes in life, in being more peaceful and joyful to live, when you know why you are living! I'm so VERY thankful for the restored from Heaven Gospel of Jesus Christ that answers that most important question, and how that answer fits with the rest of the questions I have had. I'm grateful and thankful for prayer, and my experiences with my prayers being answered. I'm thankful for my husband, my children, my grandchildren, and all humanity. I'm appreciative to a HUGE degree for our freedom to choose. I love having "a voice and a choice" in what happens to me, or at least in my reaction to what happens!

We do not have complete control, but we can learn to control our reactions, to be more Christlike, which I work to do. I'm so thankful for repentance, for the chance to try yet again to do better. I love the Lord Jesus Christ, and our Father in Heaven and I want to be a daughter of God, that represents our family well. May God bless me to be so.

Please use English to write comments! thanks!!!

2011-10-28T09:38:00.000-07:00

I would greatly appreciate it if comments made to my blog were ONLY in English, as I sure can't read Chinese!

I was also told by a friend that some of the comments in Chinese were rude. :(

I do not know what to do? Should I just delete ALL that are not in English, as I can't moderate them???

I plan to ask my Chinese friend to tell me which ones I should delete, but she works and does not have much time. : /

Any other suggestions? Thanks.

A parable I wrote a few days ago.

2011-10-28T09:31:00.000-07:00

Parable of the Pathway

There was a man, we will call James, who was smarter and kinder than any other man
He organized an area in a side dimension of the world
into a kingdom with many mansions
He only, held the key to entrance , but he invited
all who would obey him to come join him when they left this dimension.
He hand wrote directions written into a book
so that if the people would follow his directions,
they would be able to access the dimensional kingdom
and go to dwell there as long as they passed the extensive timed test
to see if they were willing to be responsible citizens
and at least repent and keep trying if/when they failed.

James had his followers form groups, with his name, so they could
help each other, and share the teachings better. He appointed leaders
to make sure that the teachings didn't get corrupted or changed, yet
he told them, he knew it would eventually happen, but try their best.

This James had a brother who was insanely jealous of him
We will call him Sleaze and he was also very intelligent but not wise or kind
Sleaze didn't care to build things himself, but just wanted to ruin all of James
and anything James cared about, Sleaze wanted and set to to destroy.
Sleaze, as soon as he saw what James had done with the dimension and groups,
Immediately set about to discredit James, and denounce his work
and also to cause others to persecute the people who loved James and followed him.

Sleaze published distorted pictures that were supposed to be of the mansions
He told lies about James and his kingdom and gathered others who had
refused to EVER repent of the evil they did, and so were denied the kingdom
These others then lied about what they had done, pretending the kingdom was false
They were so sly that they ACTED kind, and said it was out of love that they spoke up
They said they had been hurt and didn't want others deceived, and they wanted to save
those who still believed in James and his steps to inherit the “false” kingdom.

James had created several specific steps by which
it could usually be told if any who wanted to inherit were sincere
These were to be administered by people specifically appointed by James
In specific ways. Of course Sleaze immediately set to denounce the steps
and also as a double trip up, set up sham steps, or and a triple trip up Sleaze
said NO steps were necessary at all, but that as James was so loving, that ALL would inherit
If they just spoke magic words of acceptance of James. Sleaze said“Nothing else was required”
People who were good were deceived, others didn't really like to study, or just wanted an easy way
and so ailed to discover the deception, especially as Sleaze made his sham groups great fun!
Some good people were only fooled for awhile, but often these discovered the lies and
soon continued to search till they found the real FURTHER access steps and contacted James agents.

Sleaze also caused the Publishers of James book to restrict the printing of it because of greed,
Only allowing it in obscure languages and only allowing hand copies
Which as naturally done by hand by humans, errors began to creep in.
Some wise and good people tried to repair the errors, but failed
As they didn't have direct communication with James for the fixes
so the very “fixes” often made the errors worse. These were hard times.
Sleaze also caused some who worked to translate the book to be
banned and burned along with their translations, but James had good
waiting for those who did good!

Still for many of those who WANTED to find the kingdom
there was enough info in the corrupted books, that with diligent study they
found they could communicate with James and receive authorized fixes
and so they went on to find the true agents and get their test steps done
and to those James gave the passwords and keys to the kingdom, Happy are they!

Sleaze was livid and worked harder to destroy the truth about James
and the kingdom, though he had nothing better to offer.
Sleaze caused fear that James was trying to get power over the people
and would enslave them in his world, and that he would wash their brains
and many other things did Sleaze do to make others as miserable as himself

James was so sorry for what was happening that he authorized a reprint
of his book, and sent it by thousands of authorized agents to all the world
Yet Sleaze ridiculed them and set up sham copy agents and kingdom groups
while Sleaze allowed his followers to charged $ for his books and his kingdoms keys
- which were just fun enough and had enough of James truths in them that they lulled
the people in Sleaze groups to cease seeking further, and even to unknowingly
fight against James and his true agents, not realizing that this is what they were doing. So sad!

James, in his great love and intelligence, had set it up “proxy” from the beginning,
and that there be a waiting foyer, where those who hadn't heard the TRUE facts,
could be taught and have an equal chance to inherit. Yet as they were then out of the
original dimension, they couldn't follow the specific set steps,
So James proxy clause came into effect, where those followers who were still IN the dimension,
could do the steps in the NAMES of those who were passed on,
and then as James – who could read hearts- interviewed each, he said who
could accept the step work done for them, by they own hearts as their witnesses.

James then watched and waited to help any who sought him, yet some had
been so prejudiced by the subtle lies Sleaze told which included just parts of the truth,
that they still fought against the true agents. They were good people at heart
and the true group members worked to not be hurt at not being believed
while the true agents continued to teach any who were willing to listen and study
the truths that James and provided. The path is specific, and special and worth it!

The "price" of a clean, organized home?

2011-10-22T11:30:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about this-- as I have frustratingly noticed that lately my home is not as clean as I'd like to to be. OK, to be more honest, I would usually be embarrassed to have anyone drop by and have to use the bathroom!

I don't usually leave things out, but in the last year or so, I don't seem to MAKE time to do the real cleaning of surfaces or keep up things at a level of clean that I would personally enjoy more myself!

Often there are a few dirty dishes and maybe even a pan in my kitchen sink (I'm still not used not having to do big family meal dishes, so just a few things dirty feels almost a waste of hot water : / )

Yes, I thankfully still have the great habit of making our bed each morning (and it makes a HUGE difference as right now we are living in this older 5th wheel, where ALL can see the bed from the other end of the RV, and THAT would be a large part of the % of the total looking a mess! )

Maybe I could blame it partially on that I am a little past due to get a stronger prescription on my eye glasses, so I don't usually SEE the dirt, or that my eye glasses themselves are not as clean as I'd like either so all things often seem a little fuzzy too. (yeah, lame! though true. )

I could blame it on that I ** don't ** have any kids home to help with the work? I love it that "those who walk on the floors, help with the chores"! But it is just Ray and I and he works out of the home so it is ME, and me alone, responsible. :(
--- now He wants to use this computer, so I'll continue later, with the wonderful ideas that worked when we had kids. (I miss my own kids, and even kids in general, as I am so transient at present that i don't have a regular Primary class to teach.

by the way, I do still believe that "an immaculate home is the sign of a wasted life"
but I want to have my home a little more celestial, anyway! talk to you later! :)

♠

My 63rd birthday was yesterday- A NEW year!

2011-05-11T04:24:00.000-07:00

So, here I am, awake since about 3;30, and I have checked facebook, and my email, and still I am not sleepy. My Dear Husband is working on our fishing boat, F/v Liahona, in AK, and I miss him SOOOO much.
--- I am blessed to have family in this big old house though for a month and a half of their career transition time, our daughter Lori, her sweet husband and four children, ages, 6, just barely 5, next going on 4 and the youngest is 18 months. They give me joy and more purpose to my life.
--- So yesterday my daughter and her husband spent most of the day helping my brother paint walls and ceiling in his Bed and Breakfast, and they had the little ones there, as I had not been able to sleep the night before, and so was no use.
``` When they got home, I was feeling better, and THEY were super tired. I was able to step up and help then, when the youngest needed his diaper changed and was crying as his little sit down was burned from the runs, and my daughter and her hubby were feeling totally fatigued. I got him in the tub and let the warm water run down him, though the tears were still running down his face, I'm sure it felt better than if we had used the cold baby wipes to wipe the poo off. Poor baby!
--- I felt so happy to be helping and needed. The little sweethearts come to me too when they need help, and let me cuddle them and listen to them.
---- I have learned some about Attention Deficit Disorder with Anxiety-- and it has been suggested that I have had that challenge to deal with (learn from by conquering it?) AND that there are new medications that could help me. I have felt that most of the time in m life, it has been like trying to move through knee deep molasses, as it is often so hard to just GET moving, and to keep going, while it seems others just practically dance along and do things with a breeze.
--- It was hard for me in school, where I did ALL of my homework and school work religiously (for a member of my faith- that means MY BEST!) but still I never could make the honor roll. I felt I must be below normal in intelligence-- but now with this info-- maybe it was my body being "wired" a little inaccurately, and so it couldn't utilize the amino acids etc in the way it should have been able to, that help with restful sleep, energy, ability to focus and understand easily that most people can do.
--- I am hopeful that WHEN I can find a good doctor, and as long as we have enough money to not go into the red to pay the Dr. bills (no health insurance- as we usually don't get sick and just haven't been able to afford it!) that I will be getting some help! YEA!!!
--- What an amazing thing it would be to have more energy and not fight depression, but even not stress over trying to make a meal come out the right temp. and all on the table at the same time. (one coping skill has been for me to make "one dish" meals - or do things ahead- like the salad etc :) it really saves the stress!
--- Yet my dear husband just does it all at the same time and enjoys it! I have tried to work with him in the kitchen, and I have some, but mostly he can do things so fast and knows just what to do, that I am just in the way!
--- I had hoped that just taking the amino acids as supplements would solve my blocks, but it has not worked so far. It is so encouraging to think something may really help! Sharaterra (I think that is how to spell it?) is a fairly new medicine, I understand is not addicting, nor something that makes you "high" or mind altering, and does not really do anything unless your body NEEDS it, and has VERY few side effects (liver monitoring is necessary) but still is expensive. :(
-- It looks like it may cost at least $100 dollars for a months supply of the lowest level of the medication :(.
Well, "if it is right to do, there will be a way to do it!" is what my mothers mother used to say, and I believe that. :)

------- So I understand that there are things that are so stressful that especially if you have to deal with several in your life, they can cause depression,

and if you ALSO have some chemical/physical reasons that your body(mind- they ARE connected :) ) does not cope

that it is really REALLY R E A L L Y hard.

So I was thinking about the stresses in my life over the last few years. Here is a list of SOME of what has been happening in my life.

1. Business bankruptcy and lost 95% of our life's assets
2. Moved from town we had lived in for over 25 years- to two states away into 5th wheel, for seven months then "bought" with mortgage, a very needy fixer upper, and worked to make it work while living in it.
3. Death of mother in law
4 Suicide of father in law
5 death of my own mother
6. More business reversals, some relief with Social Security and Gods blessings! (thank goodness for food storage!)
7. Back and forth temp. moves between the two states to take care of the above
8. Invested time & inheritance from father in law & our IRAs etc in building a boat
9. Couldn't get boat mortgage which used to be easy but not under Obama :(
10 Cannery defaulted on agreements with us, and so we couldn't meet boat debts
11 boat wouldn't sell when finally listed for sale right before next fishing season
10. Husband leaves to fish in AK for six months-
12. properties still haven't sold though listed at banks demands,
13. Unethical lawyer after us
14 lost health insurance

PLUS some of my physical challenges;
a. fibromyalgia (sp?- the whole body aches most all the time, but worse some times!)
b. low thyroid
c. Hypoglycemia
d. depression struggles
e. insomnia

BUT I believe we came to this life to learn from experiences trials suited to what we need to learn (so Maybe I needed to learn a LOT? ;0)

I know that I have come to trust my Father in Heaven MORE, as we struggle through the challenges we have had (having my husband often not even in phone access is hard)

I have been blessed with a great supportive family (our kids and their spouses and my bothers and sisters -- my hubby has none :(
and my Religion is a HUGE help, as is paying tithing, which I think helps us to have what we NEED and even often some of what I want but don't REALLY need. :)

The priesthood, (which is the power of God to bless our lives as in the Bible), has helped with blessings by the laying on of hands on my head and words of inspiration and comfort given to the priesthood holder to bless me in the hardest trials!

We have working vehicles, and food storage, and we live in the country with the most blessings and freedoms and in a state that is safer than many. Our health is quite good and because of our obedience to church teachings, we are not addicted to alcohol, tobacco, caffeine nor any drugs or pornography etc. :)

Our children are all righteous and responsible adults, raising our wonderful grand-kids, and they are often able to give us needed support. :)

I am greatly blessed and life is good. Knowing the purpose of life sure helps!

what is prevening us from having a house of order?

2011-04-21T07:40:00.001-07:00

What could be ANY reasons to not maintain an orderly clean home?

1. We hate feeling forced to do it
2. We like to choose what we do
3. We think it takes too much time
...4. We don't know how to do it faster
5. We like to do other things more
6. We don't believe it's really worth it
--- As it will just get messed up again
7. Cleaning isn't that fun or rewarding
8. We like to feel a little rebelious
9. We feel it is others messes not ours
10. We have so little time for us
11. We don't think it is all that bad
12. We wish someone else would do it
13. We don't really notice messing up
14. Messes don't really bother us much
15. Rich people have maids to clean

True or false?
1. Most rich people have clean houses?
2. Most dirty clutter is in poor homes?
3. It takes intelligence to keep orderly?
4. Things are found fastest in order?
5. More things are broken in disorder?
6. More accidents happen in disorder?
7. Clean orderly homes are healthier?
8. Keeping clean saves time and $ ?
9. Order = better looking clothes ?
10. We want to pay others $ to clean for us more than go on vacations?
11. We like visiting others more when their homes are clean & orderly?
12. More respect is given for order?
13. Disorganization takes more room?
14. God organizes & wants us to?
15. Most rich people clean their own homes themselves?
16. Really rich people have less things?
17. One can never get enough of what you don't need.
18. Clean during beats procrastination?
19. Dried on food takes longer to clean?
20. Fresh spots clean easier than old?
21. An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure?
22. A place for everything and everything in it's place works best for finding and using things.
23. Orderliness takes training and works best by loving example.

2011-04-21T07:37:00.000-07:00

‎24. Doc & Cov 88:119 Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;

- Help to ...gain & keep a house of order -
1. Rewards for order= praise, pay, privileges, things, time, service,
2. Consequences for disorder = fines, sadness, loss of priviles, loss of things, owe service to others, ____?
3. Make a game of cleaning = random inspections with random rewards and consequences? Hidden prizes? Surprize pay? Surprize outings when house in order/sadness & left out if not? Chore spin wheel chart , rotating, choose? Money saved goes for family goal?
4. Make charts recording behavior?
What else ?? Pay MYSELF for cleaning? :)See More
Yesterday at 6:17am · Like

Epifinay this morning of wether to go to AK or not

2011-03-02T05:04:00.001-08:00

It started as I have lately felt so stalled/stuck/unmotivated/undirected as it seemed life was happening TO me, and that I didn't get to choose, but just kept being dragged along willy/nilly.

-- which THAT then caused me depression- helpless- hopeless and so frustrated-- trying to downsize "things" (sell property etc) and get back to basics, learn to be more self reliant, and produce what we need to live on, but things aren't selling etc. Even with having signed real estate papers to sell -- found the co had yet to write them up accurately and get them online, while I was feeling so desperate, I was ready to drop the price already as no offers yet!

So as I escaped into reading, feeling that I didn't want to DO anything of the things on my lists that I "should do" etc as it seemed they were probably just a waste of time, and we would
loose this home anyway- or rental 'guests' would destroy the things I was sharing, and disrupt the organization I created, while I wouldn't be here to re-organize nor had the money to hire others to.

Then of course I felt even WORSE- useless, wasted etc
(sure a good thing I don't drink or do drugs to escape!)

So waking this morning in the wee hours and unable to go back to sleep-- I thought maybe I wasn't asking myself the right questions- for this time?

How could I get the right answers to my problems, if I didn't have the right questions to start with???

So- that started me thinking about what was 'clutter' and what was really essential (with SOME few things for joy too ;)

I have come to this conclusion-- to ask these questions-- like even if it is something in my house, ( a lamp, a tool, a piece of furniture, a costume etc)

-------------------------------- the questions-- ---- in several forms ;0

Is this _____ helping or hindering me?
Does it make me happy- (not just fun- but celestial joy type happy)
Is it bringing me closer to God, or getting in the way?
Will this help my (and others) eternal progress or waste my time?

Isn't a "time waster" the ultimate cheat of life? Isn't "time" all we really have- that we can't regain or add to once it is gone?

Soooo- what is my work, my PURPOSE in life?
-- isn't it to do that good which is before me?
If Gods' work is to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" -- then isn't mine to support that?
How is that done?
Isn't that what Jesus told his apostles to do?
Preach the gospel to all the world
(bring everyone to know Jesus Christ and get to choose to follow him or not?)
-- Soooo then how does that involve me?
My dear husband isn't ready (finances hang up) to go on a couple mission yet. He feels we need to fish commercially to get out of debt.
Still I can be a member missionary- a cyber missionary
---- A N D ---- what about the people who have died without knowing the Lord, or having the essential ordinance of baptism?
--- I promised my Father as he was dying that I would work to get his ancestors names, so we could get their baptisms done (baptism for the dead that only the reestablished gospel of Jesus Christ does) and their temple work done (marriages sealed and children sealed to them for time and all eternity).

NOW THIS feels like important work I can help with!

If I go on our commercial fishing boat to AK with my dear husband as he wants me to, what will my work be there? I'm a 62 year old grandmother- and just not up to hauling fish on board etc!

Yet, IF we have the internet, I can do family history and missionary work! :) I can stay connected with our kids too and even SKYPE!

Most important is what you LEARN, not what you earn

2011-02-11T07:44:00.001-08:00

Still struggling with the finances here,
our year plus investment in commercial fishing boat now up for sale but no offers yet
( I'm feeling like the sharks are circling the raft-- but we are ok "today".

and I need to remember that we came here to learn and grow through trials
-- but I never wanted to be a giantess! ;)
I don't care for playing basketball--
(doing which I cracked the only bone in my body which has been damaged-- so far)

so, we do still have some more assets we could put up for sale, though my husband is totally against offering the home we are living in, while I would rather live in our old 5th wheel, and KNOW we were out of debt

When we try to open doors and they all seem locked,
we just must keep going down the hall way and trying the next door knob
but we can also check the windows- for opening and for inspiration from Gods sky. :)

"Some days are diamonds, some days are stone" from a John Denver song

I wish I had an infant to rock, which would comfort us both, as babies make the corners of my mouth turn up, even on days (months- years?) of trials.

I'm thankful for homeopathic remedies-- I just took a constitutional strength of Pulsitilla (sp?) which has helped so much in the past.

My sweetheart husband is three states away, working from dawn past dark, on fixing up the boat for a better chance to sell it though he REALLY wants to fish it again this summer. He got the trim paint on the wheel house and it looks great! (wish I knew how to get pictures on here).

He is a great guy, and I'm so lucky he wanted to marry me. :) Definitely my most happy thought but then it is harder when he is so far from me. Yet, I must remember that we are sealed as husband and wife for time and all eternity :). Earth life is just a blink of the eye in eternity they say.

(some days the earth seems to have a lazy eyelid!)

Still there are so many others that are in WAAAAAAYYYYY worse situations than me!
I have family who love me, I have the re-established gospel of Jesus Christ, which is so wonderful to know why I am here on earth, where I came from and where we go after death. ----

I do want to go to the highest degree of the celestial kingdom. Isn't it grand to know there are no limits to the number of mansions there? The only limits I know of are wither we will seek the path and stay on it, enduring to the end.

Sometimes one can feel like "enough already" though or "When will you make an end?"

This must be one of the lessons I am supposed to learn- patience and of course the BIG one that helps with that is TRUST in God. Yep, I'm being st reached there.

"Only one life,
Twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.
'To me to live IS Christ' "

The above is a wall plaque that was left on the wall in a home we bought years and years ago. I have it right above this computer-- and it does help. :)

I am also thankful for George MacDonald books-- which help inspire me to be a better person, and have more faith. :) They are even great plots too! I like the unedited versions.

May we all be blessed to feel our Saviors love, and know his Fathers hand is working for our best good in even the trials of our lives, (especially in the trials!)
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen!

Trying to post a connection to service for the Savior

2011-02-09T06:11:00.000-08:00

Purpose of all our lives?

2011-01-29T21:57:00.000-08:00

To let us learn by experience to act as we really are, spiritual beings having an earthly experience. Yet there are good, better and best plus evil levils of being.
Evil -- steals from others
good-- provides for them selves
better-- gives some of theirs to others
best- shares with those who can't provide while
teaching others to provide for themselves and to continue this pattern.

Trials In life are our tests in learning to get better and better till we become best-
as much like Christ as we can.

Marriage is the ultimate test, where two are to become one-- treating each other with great respect and counseling together
not either insisting on their own way, but talking things over, looking at all the possible choices till they both feel good
about what they are to do. .
Not in anger -- listening kindly, sharing the speaking floor , working to see what the other sees. Neither should just give up to bullying for the sake of peace as if either one loses then the couple looses.
Spending wether of money or time is the very hardest test.
My sweetheart and I continue to work on this.

Working to get set up to better serve Jesus Christ

2011-01-29T07:04:00.000-08:00

I am an Online Missionary

trying to make my blog better for any readers ; /

2011-01-25T09:52:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to add some gadgets, but I am such a novice that it is a huge challenge!
please bare with me as I struggle along. :) Blessings!

the last 1/2 of the article- :)

2011-01-19T05:24:00.001-08:00

# If it is really a need you can buy it then without guilt. Sit down as a family and set some self reliance goals. Children know children whose dad's have lost jobs, they see and hear about natural disasters. You are not protecting them when you fail to discuss challenges with them. They have attended Sacrament meetings and heard talks about self reliance. Include them

To actually write down a goal is a huge step toward attaining a goal

Begin with your goals for the year in several areas of self reliance: temporal, spiritual, educational, financial, and physical.

Once the family has agreed on the goals set shorter term goals, such as what you want to accomplish in 3 months. Now you are ready for shorter term goals, two weeks to one month.

* Create a plan you can follow, which all the family members have contributed to and can support.

* Plan to have at least one Family Home Evening each month devoted to one of your self reliance goals. Be sure to evaluate your progress at these meetings and if necessary, adjust your goals.

* Get extended family and friends on your team. Let them know this is important to your peace of mind and that you need and appreciate their support. Inform them that you have a list of items the family has decided to purchase, make or obtain during the next year and you would love to send them a copy of your list so they can consider the items as gifts or adopt some of your ideas for themselves.

Tell your friends and family that while you would love to take a trip with them this summer, you have decided to use your vacation money toward your goal. Tell them you have created a fund for specific, expensive items, such as a wheat grinder, tread mill, or emergency power generator, and tell them contributions toward these items would be as well appreciated as any other birthday gift. Remind them that "sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven".²

* Don't Panic! Remember no matter how bad the news gets the Lord is in charge and as Elder Ballard said: "Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and
never lose hope!"

Families who are recommitted to self reliance in uncertain times, will have peace of mind, as well as the essentials they require for health, happiness, and prosperity in a troubled world.

________________

¹M. Russell Ballard, “The Joy of Hope Fulfilled,” Ensign, Nov 1992

² William W. Phelps "Praise to the Man"

http://blog.TotallyReady.com.

Join her each Tuesday night on the Preparedness Radio Network at 9:00pm Eastern, 6:00 pm Pacific and download past episodes at: http://www.bepreparedradio.com/category/prepper-podcasts/ready-or-not/ Anyone traveling the roadways should be sure to include a copy of Carolyn's latest book Totally Ready for the Road in their glove box or auto kit. Finally, don't forget to get updates through her facebook page: Totally Ready.

here is the article that I told you about! blessings!

2011-01-19T05:21:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, January 19 2011
For All These Things Must Come to Pass
By Carolyn Nicolaysen Notify me when this author publishesComment on Article
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Living in difficult times requires each of us to maintain a positive, hopeful perspective about the future.

"Today, more than in the past, I am asked about the signs of the times and if I think the end of the world is near. My answer is the same one Jesus gave two thousand years ago: “But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.” (Mark 13:32–33.)

When Jesus was asked about the sign of His coming, he said, “Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

“All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Matt. 24:6–8 )

Although the prophecies tell us that these things are to take place, more and more people are expressing great alarm at what appears to be an acceleration of worldwide calamity. As members of the Church, we must not forget the Savior’s admonition, “Be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass.” These are difficult times, when the forces of nature seem to be unleashing a flood of “famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”......

Elder M. Russell Ballard continues: "My message to you today, my brothers and sisters, is simply this: the Lord is in control. He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis. His purposes will be fulfilled, and someday we will understand the eternal reasons for all of these events. Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and never lose hope! "¹

This instruction was given in 1992. Today we are troubled by even greater concerns. This week Realty Trac reported that 2.9 million foreclosure notices were filed during 2010 and 1.2 million homes were repossessed, up 200,000 from 2009. Five million homeowners are behind on their mortgages by 2 or more months. Home prices have declined 29% from their highs. During the depression of 1929-1933 home prices dropped only 25%. Experts now believe prices will continue to fall for another three years.

Food commodity prices are soaring. Please remember that food prices and the price of essentials such as clothing are based on a world economy, not a national one. Food prices world wide are soaring and food supplies are decreasing.

Floods in Australia have devastated an area the size of Texas and New Mexico combined, or in other terms, as big as both France and Germany. There are 11,000 homes underwater. Even the media is referring to this flood as "of Biblical proportions".

Oil is used in everything. According to the U.S. Department of transportation nearly 35 gallons of every 42-gallon barrel of crude oil is used for transportation fuel. The rest goes into the consumer products we use on a daily basis. What, you ask? Guitar strings, pantyhose, golf bags, backpacks, dentures, candles, hair coloring, aspirin, footballs, basketballs and soccer balls, food preservatives, shampoo, makeup, bedding, paint, bandages, dishes, flooring, even heart valves.

Oil prices are at $92.00 a barrel today. The all time high was $147.00 a barrel. Experts tell us if prices rise to that level again, and they are going up each day, we can expect consumer goods to go up by 60%. One year ago the price of oil was $74.00 per barrel.

We need to remember the counsel of Elder Ballard. "He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis."

Our Heavenly Father has given us instruction - but notice that President Ballard adds the words "if followed" to his reassuring counsel. We must remember the Lord has established conditions on many of his promises. Paul warns: "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

Are we following the counsel to become self reliant? As times continue to worsen, are we ready to care for the needs of our families?

The following are a few things to help you on your path:

* Include Heavenly Father in the plan. As you are prayerful, opportunities and answers will present themselves to assure your success. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. (1 Nephi 3:7)

* Increase your efforts to obtain a three month supply of the foods you eat and a years supply of basic foods for survival. The price of food is going up every month. Once you have a three month supply you never have to purchase foods again except when they are on sale, always saving you money. Food storage will see you through the winter months until you can plant a garden and produce your own food. Food prices went up 9% in 2010. If you were spending $500.00 per month on food in January of 2010 you would now be spending $545.00 per month for the same food or an additional $540.00 per year. For $540.00 you could purchase a three week supply of all the foods you normally eat for four people. Make food storage a priority now, before prices increase further.

* Maintain a healthy lifestyle. The cost of medical care has also risen dramatically the past year. It is wise to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly to avoid medical expenses. Do not forget good dental habits. Many illnesses and medical expenses are a result of poor dental hygiene.

* Stop accumulating debt, live within your means. Cut up or take your credit cards out of your wallet and leave them at home. Create a budget and live within it. If you have trouble with this, then take cash out the bank each payday, place it in an envelope, and when it is gone there is no more money for the month. This may take a little practice but if you have your food storage you will be able to enjoy great food while you learn a new habit.

* Stay current on your payments. A small late fee here and there may not seem like much, but over the course of the year by avoiding a late fee of $15.00 a month you could add another weeks worth of food to your "General Store" shelves. Not sure what a General Store is?

* Slow down. Do not make a purchase until you have really evaluated your need. Ask yourself, is this a need or a want? Is this purchase needed right now or can it wait until it goes on sale? Remember everything goes on sale. Wait three days before making a purchase. If it is really a need you can buy it then without guilt.
* Sit down as a family and set some self reliance goals. Children know children whose dad's have lost jobs, they see and hear about natural disasters. You are not protecting them when you fail to discuss challenges with them. They have attended Sacrament meetings and heard talks about self reliance. Include them

To actually write down a goal is a huge step toward attaining a goal

Begin with your goals for the year in several areas of self reliance: temporal, spiritual, educational, financial, and physical.

Once the family has agreed on the goals set shorter term goals, such as what you want to accomplish in 3 months. Now you are ready for shorter term goals, two weeks to one month.

* Create a plan you can follow, which all the family members have contributed to and can support.

* Plan to have at least one Family Home Evening each month devoted to one of your self reliance goals. Be sure to evaluate your progress at these meetings and if necessary, adjust your goals.

* Get extended family and friends on your team. Let them know this is important to your peace of mind and that you need and appreciate their support. Inform them that you have a list of items the family has decided to purchase, make or obtain during the next year and you would love to send them a copy of your list so they can consider the items as gifts or adopt some of your ideas for themselves.

Tell your friends and family that while you would love to take a trip with them this summer, you have decided to use your vacation money toward your goal. Tell them you have created a fund for specific, expensive items, such as a wheat grinder, tread mill, or emergency power generator, and tell them contributions toward these items would be as well appreciated as any other birthday gift. Remind them that "sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven".²

* Don't Panic! Remember no matter how bad the news gets the Lord is in charge and as Elder Ballard said: "Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and never lose hope!"

Families who are recommitted to self reliance in uncertain times, will have peace of mind, as well as the essentials they require for health, happiness, and prosperity in a troubled world.

________________

¹M. Russell Ballard, “The Joy of Hope Fulfilled,” Ensign, Nov 1992

² William W. Phelps "Praise to the Man"

http://blog.TotallyReady.com.

Join her each Tuesday night on the Preparedness Radio Network at 9:00pm Eastern, 6:00 pm Pacific and download past episodes at: http://www.bepreparedradio.com/category/prepper-podcasts/ready-or-not/ Anyone traveling the roadways should be sure to include a copy of Carolyn's latest book Totally Ready for the Road in their glove box or auto kit. Finally, don't forget to get updates through her facebook page: Totally Ready.

Living in difficult times requires each of us to maintain a positive, hopeful perspective about the future.

"Today, more than in the past, I am asked about the signs of the times and if I think the end of the world is near. My answer is the same one Jesus gave two thousand years ago: “But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.” (Mark 13:32–33.)

When Jesus was asked about the sign of His coming, he said, “Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

“All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Matt. 24:6–8 )

Although the prophecies tell us that these things are to take place, more and more people are expressing great alarm at what appears to be an acceleration of worldwide calamity. As members of the Church, we must not forget the Savior’s admonition, “Be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass.” These are difficult times, when the forces of nature seem to be unleashing a flood of “famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”......

Elder M. Russell Ballard continues: "My message to you today, my brothers and sisters, is simply this: the Lord is in control. He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis. His purposes will be fulfilled, and someday we will understand the eternal reasons for all of these events. Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and never lose hope! "¹

This instruction was given in 1992. Today we are troubled by even greater concerns. This week Realty Trac reported that 2.9 million foreclosure notices were filed during 2010 and 1.2 million homes were repossessed, up 200,000 from 2009. Five million homeowners are behind on their mortgages by 2 or more months. Home prices have declined 29% from their highs. During the depression of 1929-1933 home prices dropped only 25%. Experts now believe prices will continue to fall for another three years.

Food commodity prices are soaring. Please remember that food prices and the price of essentials such as clothing are based on a world economy, not a national one. Food prices world wide are soaring and food supplies are decreasing.

Floods in Australia have devastated an area the size of Texas and New Mexico combined, or in other terms, as big as both France and Germany. There are 11,000 homes underwater. Even the media is referring to this flood as "of Biblical proportions".

Oil is used in everything. According to the U.S. Department of transportation nearly 35 gallons of every 42-gallon barrel of crude oil is used for transportation fuel. The rest goes into the consumer products we use on a daily basis. What, you ask? Guitar strings, pantyhose, golf bags, backpacks, dentures, candles, hair coloring, aspirin, footballs, basketballs and soccer balls, food preservatives, shampoo, makeup, bedding, paint, bandages, dishes, flooring, even heart valves.

Oil prices are at $92.00 a barrel today. The all time high was $147.00 a barrel. Experts tell us if prices rise to that level again, and they are going up each day, we can expect consumer goods to go up by 60%. One year ago the price of oil was $74.00 per barrel.

We need to remember the counsel of Elder Ballard. "He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis."

Our Heavenly Father has given us instruction - but notice that President Ballard adds the words "if followed" to his reassuring counsel. We must remember the Lord has established conditions on many of his promises. Paul warns: "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

Are we following the counsel to become self reliant? As times continue to worsen, are we ready to care for the needs of our families?

The following are a few things to help you on your path:

* Include Heavenly Father in the plan. As you are prayerful, opportunities and answers will present themselves to assure your success. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. (1 Nephi 3:7)

* Increase your efforts to obtain a three month supply of the foods you eat and a years supply of basic foods for survival. The price of food is going up every month. Once you have a three month supply you never have to purchase foods again except when they are on sale, always saving you money. Food storage will see you through the winter months until you can plant a garden and produce your own food. Food prices went up 9% in 2010. If you were spending $500.00 per month on food in January of 2010 you would now be spending $545.00 per month for the same food or an additional $540.00 per year. For $540.00 you could purchase a three week supply of all the foods you normally eat for four people. Make food storage a priority now, before prices increase further.

* Maintain a healthy lifestyle. The cost of medical care has also risen dramatically the past year. It is wise to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly to avoid medical expenses. Do not forget good dental habits. Many illnesses and medical expenses are a result of poor dental hygiene.

* Stop accumulating debt, live within your means. Cut up or take your credit cards out of your wallet and leave them at home. Create a budget and live within it. If you have trouble with this, then take cash out the bank each payday, place it in an envelope, and when it is gone there is no more money for the month. This may take a little practice but if you have your food storage you will be able to enjoy great food while you learn a new habit.

* Stay current on your payments. A small late fee here and there may not seem like much, but over the course of the year by avoiding a late fee of $15.00 a month you could add another weeks worth of food to your "General Store" shelves. Not sure what a General Store is?

* Slow down. Do not make a purchase until you have really evaluated your need. Ask yourself, is this a need or a want? Is this purchase needed right now or can it wait until it goes on sale? Remember everything goes on sale. Wait three days before making a purchase. If it is really a need you can buy it then without guilt.
* Sit down as a family and set some self reliance goals. Children know children whose dad's have lost jobs, they see and hear about natural disasters. You are not protecting them when you fail to discuss challenges with them. They have attended Sacrament meetings and heard talks about self reliance. Include them

To actually write down a goal is a huge step toward attaining a goal

Begin with your goals for the year in several areas of self reliance: temporal, spiritual, educational, financial, and physical.

Once the family has agreed on the goals set shorter term goals, such as what you want to accomplish in 3 months. Now you are ready for shorter term goals, two weeks to one month.

* Create a plan you can follow, which all the family members have contributed to and can support.

* Plan to have at least one Family Home Evening each month devoted to one of your self reliance goals. Be sure to evaluate your progress at these meetings and if necessary, adjust your goals.

* Get extended family and friends on your team. Let them know this is important to your peace of mind and that you need and appreciate their support. Inform them that you have a list of items the family has decided to purchase, make or obtain during the next year and you would love to send them a copy of your list so they can consider the items as gifts or adopt some of your ideas for themselves.

Tell your friends and family that while you would love to take a trip with them this summer, you have decided to use your vacation money toward your goal. Tell them you have created a fund for specific, expensive items, such as a wheat grinder, tread mill, or emergency power generator, and tell them contributions toward these items would be as well appreciated as any other birthday gift. Remind them that "sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven".²

* Don't Panic! Remember no matter how bad the news gets the Lord is in charge and as Elder Ballard said: "Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and never lose hope!"

Families who are recommitted to self reliance in uncertain times, will have peace of mind, as well as the essentials they require for health, happiness, and prosperity in a troubled world.

________________

¹M. Russell Ballard, “The Joy of Hope Fulfilled,” Ensign, Nov 1992

² William W. Phelps "Praise to the Man"

http://blog.TotallyReady.com.

Join her each Tuesday night on the Preparedness Radio Network at 9:00pm Eastern, 6:00 pm Pacific and download past episodes at: http://www.bepreparedradio.com/category/prepper-podcasts/ready-or-not/ Anyone traveling the roadways should be sure to include a copy of Carolyn's latest book Totally Ready for the Road in their glove box or auto kit. Finally, don't forget to get updates through her facebook page: Totally Ready.
Page 1 of 2

Living in difficult times requires each of us to maintain a positive, hopeful perspective about the future.

"Today, more than in the past, I am asked about the signs of the times and if I think the end of the world is near. My answer is the same one Jesus gave two thousand years ago: “But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.” (Mark 13:32–33.)

When Jesus was asked about the sign of His coming, he said, “Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

“All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Matt. 24:6–8 )

Although the prophecies tell us that these things are to take place, more and more people are expressing great alarm at what appears to be an acceleration of worldwide calamity. As members of the Church, we must not forget the Savior’s admonition, “Be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass.” These are difficult times, when the forces of nature seem to be unleashing a flood of “famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”......

Elder M. Russell Ballard continues: "My message to you today, my brothers and sisters, is simply this: the Lord is in control. He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis. His purposes will be fulfilled, and someday we will understand the eternal reasons for all of these events. Therefore, today we must be careful to not overreact, nor should we be caught up in extreme preparations; but what we must do is keep the commandments of God and never lose hope! "¹

This instruction was given in 1992. Today we are troubled by even greater concerns. This week Realty Trac reported that 2.9 million foreclosure notices were filed during 2010 and 1.2 million homes were repossessed, up 200,000 from 2009. Five million homeowners are behind on their mortgages by 2 or more months. Home prices have declined 29% from their highs. During the depression of 1929-1933 home prices dropped only 25%. Experts now believe prices will continue to fall for another three years.

Food commodity prices are soaring. Please remember that food prices and the price of essentials such as clothing are based on a world economy, not a national one. Food prices world wide are soaring and food supplies are decreasing.

Floods in Australia have devastated an area the size of Texas and New Mexico combined, or in other terms, as big as both France and Germany. There are 11,000 homes underwater. Even the media is referring to this flood as "of Biblical proportions".

Oil is used in everything. According to the U.S. Department of transportation nearly 35 gallons of every 42-gallon barrel of crude oil is used for transportation fuel. The rest goes into the consumer products we use on a daily basis. What, you ask? Guitar strings, pantyhose, golf bags, backpacks, dentures, candles, hair coloring, aspirin, footballs, basketballs and soccer balls, food preservatives, shampoo, makeup, bedding, paint, bandages, dishes, flooring, even heart valves.

Oil prices are at $92.00 a barrel today. The all time high was $147.00 a barrel. Experts tell us if prices rise to that level again, and they are going up each day, we can expect consumer goods to go up by 60%. One year ago the price of oil was $74.00 per barrel.

We need to remember the counsel of Elder Ballard. "He knows the end from the beginning. He has given us adequate instruction that, if followed, will see us safely through any crisis."

Our Heavenly Father has given us instruction - but notice that President Ballard adds the words "if followed" to his reassuring counsel. We must remember the Lord has established conditions on many of his promises. Paul warns: "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." (2 Thessalonians 3:10)

Are we following the counsel to become self reliant? As times continue to worsen, are we ready to care for the needs of our families?

The following are a few things to help you on your path:

* Include Heavenly Father in the plan. As you are prayerful, opportunities and answers will present themselves to assure your success. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them. (1 Nephi 3:7)

* Increase your efforts to obtain a three month supply of the foods you eat and a years supply of basic foods for survival. The price of food is going up every month. Once you have a three month supply you never have to purchase foods again except when they are on sale, always saving you money. Food storage will see you through the winter months until you can plant a garden and produce your own food. Food prices went up 9% in 2010. If you were spending $500.00 per month on food in January of 2010 you would now be spending $545.00 per month for the same food or an additional $540.00 per year. For $540.00 you could purchase a three week supply of all the foods you normally eat for four people. Make food storage a priority now, before prices increase further.

* Maintain a healthy lifestyle. The cost of medical care has also risen dramatically the past year.
It is wise to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly to avoid medical expenses. Do not forget good dental habits. Many illnesses and medical expenses are a result of poor dental hygiene.

* Stop accumulating debt, live within your means. Cut up or take your credit cards out of your wallet and leave them at home. Create a budget and live within it. If you have trouble with this, then take cash out the bank each payday, place it in an envelope, and when it is gone there is no more money for the month. This may take a little practice but if you have your food storage you will be able to enjoy great food while you learn a new habit.

* Stay current on your payments. A small late fee here and there may not seem like much, but over the course of the year by avoiding a late fee of $15.00 a month you could add another weeks worth of food to your "General Store" shelves. Not sure what a General Store is?

* Slow down. Do not make a purchase until you have really evaluated your need. Ask yourself, is this a need or a want? Is this purchase needed right now or can it wait until it goes on sale? Remember everything goes on sale. Wait three days before making a purchase.
Prev - Next >>

woops-- guess I didn't get it all- so I will go hopefully to get the rest. ;0

patience is a virture- I need to practice it seems :)

2011-01-19T05:08:00.000-08:00

Today is Wed. the 19th of January- and we still have not heard any response from the most recent out of five banks we have worked with, on whether or not they will accept our request for a marine mortgage on our boat, thus allowing us to pay off other private debts to friends etc, and have enough to go forward with building a skiff and net to go fishing this summer.

Also, this morning I found on Meridian Magazine (online- free) an article that
seemed to be an answer to my hearts prayer for more peace of mind in these
days when it seems that the calamities of the end/beginning times are coming faster and faster, along with the bench marks that are to happen before Christ returns also getting met.

The article quoted Gods words to us for peace (this is just one quote) that "these things shall come to pass"
along with some doable things that I intend to get right on and do better (for those that I haven't done yet)

Hum, I think I should post that article HERE for others to be blessed too. :) I will go figure out how to do that now! May God continue to bless us with what we need!

my big test may come today

2011-01-14T05:28:00.000-08:00

So supposedly today the bank (this is the 5th one my sweetheart has applied to)
will tell us whether our application for a marine mortgage has been accepted.

Personally I feel that it would be better NOT to get one, but to sell the boat that my sweetheart built with a few others, and just get out of debt! He thinks that he will be able with investing more money in building a skiff and rehanging a net, and more work on the boat, and fishing it, to possibly pay off MOST all our debt. Well, we could win the lottery (if we bought any tickets) too. Though my honey does have a lot of skill and endurance plus what it takes, still, it takes the fish COMING back to the area, the boat not having any difficulties, no whales ripping the net up (yes it happened last year!) and a crew who will get along with each other and obey the rules etc plus they need skills, strength and endurance too!

I'm working so hard to accept and work for a win/win with whatever happens, but it is SO HARD if it means my sweetheart will be working loooonnnngggg hours again, and under such stress clear through till spring when he would ten take off for AK, where I will hardly get to see him for months (unless I spend $ for expensive airlines tickets, and getting sea sick and in the way etc)

Soooo, sigh, I'm not looking forward much to today. I think this has been the cause of my depression-- situational. Gods' will be done! Let me find a silver lining!

Depression is a weapon of the adversary - how I'm working to combat it!

2010-12-24T04:24:00.000-08:00

Most days I do better than other days. :)
What helps me MOST is serving others in ways I can see work for them. :)
This works best when I get to be around kids- as "validation" of children is easy for me- because I can see the "child of God" (that is the core of everyone) but has less "fruit" around the core (some fruits are much easier to appreciate than others!).

So when I don't have any little ones around-
- as being a grandmother,
with my kids raising their own kids and NONE of my grandchildren living closer than 45 minutes away-- it gets harder.

I loved my callings in the church to teach Primary or work in the nursery, and I liked being a Sub teacher for school
(though some days totally drained my body, my soul was lifted!)

but now- we keep needing to travel for business, and so I am not in one place long enough to receive an official church calling. I'm not even a visiting teacher :( nor do I seem to have any sisters coming to visit me.

I just saw on "Mormon Times" online magazine where one lady gives free tours of her home which she has made rooms of that show aspects of the Saviors life, and that sounded like something I could do with our "castle"- :)

The home motto is a poem done in colored, embellished calligraphy, framed professionally which hangs in the Woodhaven Castle tower entry. I "borrowed" the first line of the poem, but then gathered the rest of the words myself. It says;

Each man's home is his castle, &
True love makes a queen of his wife,
All Gods' children are royal,
When the light of the LORD fills your life.

Presently we are having the castle as a "Vacation Rental by Owner"
and so there have been many family reunions and gatherings of all kinds
but we are scheduled to lose it to foreclosure if we can't save it from the bank by Sept 6, 2011. :( (ironic date too)

Anyway-- other things that beat the depression (I have apparently inherited from both maternal and paternal sides of my family- the genes that hang my emotions at a below level of stability- which requires work to keep me "up". :(

Still, "all things will be turned to the good of them that love the LORD" and I do love our Savior, and try to do his works.

It is doing the works of Jesus Christ, that brings the joy into my life. I get hit by depression when I feel I have nothing to do that makes any difference in my life or others lives. I am reminding myself that

"if one can't do great things
do small things in a great way"

That even house keeping when done realizing that everything is Gods
and we are only stewards, means that when I dust and vacuum "MY" house,
I'm REALLY cleaning the House of the Lord!

Oh, my hubby and I DO have one official church calling! :)

We get to go with a team about once a month to clean the Twin Falls TEMPLE!
the hard part is the sadness of having to get substitutes when we are not here,
and finding any real dirt to clean, when we are cleaning what is already clean!

They have set cards with the list of things to clean, and the tools, and we still all wear white and have to have the same temple recommend to clean that one has to have to enter and do the baptism or other ordinances like sealing families together :). Clean teams wear all white, (even our white shoes are not to be worn outside!)

I have only been able to clean ONE time so far. Yet, the last cleaning time was when we got to take care of two foster children for the weekend to give the real foster parents respite. So that was "all good". I loved having the kids in our home, and they wanted to work to earn money to buy gifts so we actually got some of my "stuff" done! (They helped carry books to the "higher learning" attic room we made in this old Victorian home.

I need to take pictures and put them on our photo album in our son Erics' web page- wadhome.org. I'll try to do it today.

Today is actually the day before Christmas, and I have been struggling to keep my head above the flood waters of gloom over finances (I mentioned one- loss of castle, but there are about four others of as heavy a magnitude) and I struggle to trust God that "all is well" and "fear not". Somehow things will work out.

One funny (it IS time for something to chuckle over about now ;0)
-- is that I've been fighting myself to NOT make or TO make "goodies" (bad for ones health!) -- I broke down and tried to make gingersnap cookies shaped like Gingerbread boys and girls-- but in trying to "make it healthy" I substituted coconut oil for shortning, and so when baked, they "melted" into shapelessness! ;/

So NOW-- I think I will use those cookies, (which stayed quite soft still)
pressing them to make a pie crust shell, for a banana/coconut cream pie for our Christmas dinner!

Ok, it is not really healthy- but is is not SOOO unhealthy, and in this case a LITTLE bit (I'll only make one pie and there will be 7 people!) won't hurt us!

I hope! (I also have the challenge of hypoglycemia to learn from and conquer )

So to quote Tiny Tim from Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol",
"God bless us, everyone!"

counting what counts

2010-12-18T06:48:00.000-08:00

Some things can not be counted
some things that can be counted, don't really count
while levels of kindness and love can't be counted
what really counts more?

going on further with the last posted thoughts

2010-11-09T03:44:00.000-08:00

So--

Where the challenge is

is if the "work as little as possible" philosophy

causes one to then spend the greater amount of their time in trying to exist without having to HAVE/spend money

but by using what work others have done- without reimbursing the others

then it seems to be rather parasitic (a user not a contributor) life.

Then also though there is the -- what is one going to do with the time one is not working? Are your REALLY going to spend the time helping others in the right way?

The person gave as an example that Jesus went about helping others, and didn't work and that he told his apostles to not worry about how they were to be clothed or fed, as they had other work--

But to me this seems like it was SPECIFICALLY their callings, and the rest of us ARE to work, and of course not to over stress about providing for our needs, or trying to provide for every possible disaster etc.

We just need what is adequate in most cases. This also seems to all go back to that this life is our time to LEARN this very stuff-- to judge what is enough and adequate in all things!

Perfection in some things is overdone. What things need to be perfect?

"An immaculate house is the sign of a wasted life".

"Clean enough to be healthy, messy enough to show it is lovingly lived in" seems more the goal to me.

We don't need to have perfect;
hair, bodies, skin, nails, cars, yards, homes, meals, etc

Though sometimes doing things perfectly can be a joy;
playing a song to our perfect satisfaction on an instrument
writing a poem that perfectly expresses our feelings,
painting a picture that captures perfectly our idea
loving another with our whole hearts, as we should love God
or just doing the best we can with what we have to make our homes a heaven on earth!

and WE are to "be ye therefore perfect as your Father in Heaven is perfect"

but we must not despair that we can't get to that level in this earth life-- thank goodness we have eternity to keep working on it,
but we should nevertheless try to be better all the time, progressing to get there!

So--- this life is our time to "prepare to meet God" to "work out our own salvation with fear (reverence) and trembling".

As though it is only through the grace of God that makes us for our lack, we still must do all WE can, and then HE adds the rest.

It would be a terrible insult to expect to accept Gods gift, if we were to treat it so despicably as to ---

Oh, I just thought of an analogy for it! :)

Imagine that God has invited us to his Kingdom
and told us that he has a wonderful gift for us there
and told us to get prepared to receive the gift
to make ourselves clean and worthy of it

but we kind of ignore all the parts except the "free gift" part--

and so we arrive at the gates unwashed, in dirty clothing, muddy shoes and hold out our filthy hands to push the gate open when we suddenly notice that everything
inside is totally pure and clean and white, and that our muddy clothing and foul smells and even our choice of words is foul as we swear in our frustration and embarrassment, even hot anger at our selves and others that we didn't prepare!

How will we feel?

Isn't part of our purpose in life to find out "what we came here after"? Well, I have been sitting on this hard wooden seat for 2 and 1/2 hours now, and so I will see -- what work is my priority to do today. What would Heavenly Father and his only begotten son, Jesus Christ have me do ? today ? at this time?

May God so bless us all to discover, and have the strength and wisdom to do!

specifics on all our purposes in life are???

2010-11-09T02:44:00.000-08:00

Well- to anybody who is reading this-- I woke up thinking about this around 2:30 a.m. , as I had a conversation with someone about it yesterday.
--- Their philosophy of life (from what they said) seemed to be to get by with doing absolutely as little "work" (for earning money) as possible- that they could have more time to inter-relate with others- like family and friends and so help them have happier lives.
Well a quick look at that seems like it is ok- but somehow something seems skewed?

It seems that there are
CIRCLES OF RESPONSIBILITY
(for providing for our own needs and wants)

and first we are to make sure we have enough of the necessities
(oxygen, water, food, shelter, clothing ((to cover our nakedness and for modesty and protection)), means to stay clean enough to be healthy etc)

I believe that each person than CAN
(has the mental and physical etc ability)

- needs to be responsible for themselves FIRST
(like in the airplane safety directions- parents are to put on their OWN oxygen mask first- as THEN then can make sure they can take care of their kids- the children- if they HAD enough oxygen might not know enough to help the parents!)

Then when WE have our at least bare necessities then we can help others.

I think we get into trouble about this on both ends--

I know of some parents (long time ago- and I won't name names but not in my faith)

who felt their Christian responsibility was to go out in the world to help others
-- which is PART right- but their priority was in their own home first-- as it turned out their children didn't have enough supervision and the older brothers were abusing their young sister- which impacted her whole life in terrible ways!!!

Charity
(the pure love of Christ)

we are told BEGINS at home
(we are taught it best by example and there our responsibility also begin)

back to the CIRCLES OF RESPONSIBILITY

So think of a target-- and put yourself in the center (first)

in the next ring would go your spouse (if you have one and finding the best person for you to marry is right up there on the priority list in my view at the right age)

then comes your children
(some I think get mixed up and put their children before their spouse-- but it is that USUALLY
(if the spouse has THEIR PRIORITIES RIGHT -- then they are what you need to BEST take care of your children-- a father to provide and protect his wife and children, and the wife/mother to nurture the children-- with BOTH of them working with all respect together as a team and each doing what they are best skilled to do to help their family, train the children to be responsible for themselves (and others as needed) and provide the loving atmosphere in their shelter, nutritious food, adequate clothing and adequate education etc-

and the parents being the best role models they can be for their children that the children can go out in the world and also find the best spouses and raise responsible families.

--- HOWEVER-- if a spouse proves to be "toxic"
(so mean and deranged as to emotionally and or physically or sexually abuse any others- and refuses to get help to heal whatever was the cause, then the other spouse must get themselves and the children to safety.

Other ways a spouse can fail in their responsibilities would be to be so selfish that they care only for their own entertainment and needs and do not value the others in the families needs equally-- so they spend their money or time on addictions (alcohol, drugs, porn -- anything that uses their money or time
(which is needed to make the money to supply the physical needs)

or their time is needed to emotionally support their family
(sick kids all night? burned out Mom, housework overwhelm etc--
or for the fathers-- if the mother is so focused on her social life, or her looks or THINGS that her children are treated as problems etc instead of how

I think children should be treated--
as our spiritual best friends/brothers and sisters
sent from our Father in Heaven into our care while they are unable to care for themselves
and we are to help them have all the assistance/training we would like to have if we were them
--- not to over indulge them (causing a wrong feeling of entitlement)
but training them to see the big eternal picture and themselves as valuable in it
as is everyone else. Teaching them to be responsible for themselves and assist others as they can.

--- Which takes me back to what I was thinking when I woke up.

Of the conversation I had-- that the "skewed" view-- was the avoidance of work. I believe that it is BY our work, that we can bless others lives.

Here is a song that describes this to me. :)

Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel

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“252: Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel,” Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, no. 252

Energetically

1. The world has need of willing men
Who wear the worker’s seal.
Come, help the good work move along;
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

[Chorus]
Put your shoulder to the wheel; push along,
Do your duty with a heart full of song,
We all have work; let no one shirk.
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

2. The Church has need of helping hands,
And hearts that know and feel.
The work to do is here for you;
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

3. Then don’t stand idly looking on;
The fight with sin is real.
It will be long but must go on;
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

4. Then work and watch and fight and pray
With all your might and zeal.
Push ev’ry worthy work along;
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

---- The "Put your shoulder to the wheel" part refers I believe to when the Mormon pioneers were traveling west (escaping persecution because of their religion) and it was in the days before the automobile- so they traveled in covered wagons pulled by oxen or horses, with large wheels, that could get stuck in mud or sand etc-- and so often they needed the people to get together and "put their shoulders to the wheels and push" to get over the rough spots.

Anyway-- so back to the conversation that caused me to wake.

I think that the song shows that WORK is a blessing,

though again work can be totally overdone and the person be driven to work to "get ahead" in life, or "be successful" etc and they do not balance the work in their lives, with some rest (Sabbath Day) and with family and friends a little play.

I think though that it is WAY more likely that the skew will be "not to work" (not be responsible for your own needs- but expect hand outs and help from others, and even the government (which is taking from other workers in taxes etc) rather than doing what is necessary to supply for their own needs and wants, with some SAVINGS kept by for emergencies that they not be a drag on others.

Like in the analogy of the shoulder to the wheel-- it was for a SHORT BOOST when they couldn't do it themselves-- not to sit back (maybe drinking alcohol or doing drugs etc and or watching TV, sports or porn etc) and use up others lives (time is what our lives are made of- and it can't be replaced)- but we can help others get what needs to be done by giving of our time or funds to supply what needs to be done that THEY CAN'T DO FOR THEMSELVES.

I believe when we "help" others-- when they are NOT really in need, but just have been selfish or lazy-- then we actually are hurting/enabling them to continue.

Some of the best feelings we can have is when we help correctly when it is really needed. :) We can lie to ourselves and "rescue" others who don't really need to be rescued-- and I think it is a false thing we will come to regret when we understand what we have done by our "helping". It is not all that easy to find how to really help others.

Parents, I believe can really hurt their children in this way too. Mothers especially are prone to do too much FOR their children, instead of teaching the children to work and get the good feelings they can enjoy from seeing the work they did :).

I think the best way to teach children is to let them first see YOU happily work, and then as soon as they are able to "lift a dust rag" let them help WITH the work. Also the best way is not to say "good job" but to help THEM evaluate their own work, and ask them if they see how happy it makes you feel, and how do they feel etc.

It sure is a challenge! --

Anyway back to the purpose of life-- I think there is are Bible and other holy scripture about it (ok, lots of scriptures about work. :)

Even God works! "

Life goes on, and it is good and also challenging!

2010-10-22T04:21:00.000-07:00

So I often wake in the wee hours of the night, and after not being able to "fall" (doesn't that sound easy?) back asleep- I get up to get something done. :) So it is now almost 4:30am and I've been awake since 2:00.
We are in Washington, getting to stay in our own VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) a blessing and a challenge as when it is not rented then we get no income from it- but I DO get to work on the castle. :)My sweetheart is still in slumberland.
I enjoyed working with him on the F/V Liahona for three days (not Sundays- as that is a blessed day of rest :) while yesterday I got to work on the castle as he was in Seattle for meetings. I got to make curtains from sheets of a color and pattern that works great, not just the ONLY material available on board, and do it with a sewing machine instead of by hand. We then got to use real rods to put them up, instead of fish mending twine, which always sags. We did invent (?) a way to use about the least expensive rods possible, by Ray drilling holes in the frames of the parallelogram shaped window frames, so the tension rods stay in place. Looks great if I say so myself. :)
Actually what I did the whole first day though was to "muck out" the galley. Ray had cleaned it before me of the large stuff. I cleaned the fridge inside and out, the stove (oven still in process) the counters, washed all the windows (harder than you might think as there were rust stains that really took elbow polish!)and many of the cupboards inside and out.
I also had gotten from the thrift store some King size quality pillow shams, from which I made covers for the galley benches. It felt like such a blessing to find what colors and patterns I wanted for only 2.99 a case and I only needed 3.
We also found a clock that looks great- it was of all things at the hardware store! I got from the thrift store some frames and rescued the required safety and environmental posters Doug had printed for us, and I had put up (in the mad dash to get out of town last spring for fishing) inside plastic page protectors with masking tape- which didn't stick and so duct tape was added to the "decor". :/. Anyway, now it looks down right classy.
I don't think I mentioned that the whole inside of the boat had a thin coating of soot as a filter blocked up and spewed smoke and soot inside on the trip home? Well, soot makes everything dirty gray colored and gets anything that touches it the same way too. I still have the walls to wash down before I can finish the varnishing I started and had to leave half done as the boat had to go and I ran out of varnish anyway (& money to buy more) and they had to work in the area I was varnishing too.
Ray had been forced by lack of $ and time to make our door into the ships cabin
of plain old plywood, (he did put a window in it:) and painted it white,(so sad but it worked anyway)- so how totally blessed we were to rediscover a REAL marine door of thick Mahogany in dutch door style, (top opens separate from bottom of door) that we had taken off an old boat years ago and stored in our boat shop. It fit!!!
It did take two days to get it mounted though, with some cutting of the steel boat, and buying (credit card pit :( ) of special woods needed to frame it, but it is SOOOO classy and a great "first impression". Just wish I knew how to put pictures in here so you could see the things I talk about!
Now I am looking in thrift stores for two more picture frames, one for a picture by artist Arnold Frieburg, which includes the liahona held in their hands on board ship as the family looks towards the promised land they have been lead from Jerusalem and across the ocean to the American continent under the guidance of God through the liahona.
The Liahona is SORT of like a round ball shaped compass but it does not just point North. It has two needles, and one points the direction they are to go (which changes with the terrain etc) and the other if I remember right- is what indicates that it is working, as it didn't work if they were not being righteous! Also there is writing that appears on the outside of the ball, and is changed from time to time, with other directions of things they are to do.
So we named the first boat we made back in the early 70s after this marvelous device of "curious workmanship" (this history is told in the first chapters of The Book of Mormon) that God gave them, and used to help guide them. When we made better boats later, we took the boat name with us. We did digress with one boat, and named it The Order of Magnitude (which boat was illegally taken from us in the bankruptcy of our business) but God blessed us in a friend who actually paid directly to us some of the money he had from the insurance payment when his boat was destroyed by fire), when he got ours so auction price cheap! (bankruptcy story waits for later! )
So, what do I do when I wake up in the wee hours in the castle? I "putter" and put things where they are supposed to go, do mending, decorating, cleaning, organizing and in general try to make the castle more enjoyable for all guests and easier for the cleaning team to clean.
I also use some of the materials gathered over the years to make more costumes for the use of guests to the castle, and maybe to sell if I can and we need the $ enough. Velvet bedspreads from the thrift stores become full length hooded cloaks. Filmy curtains become princes dresses, often paired with satin sheets.
It is so fun to get to play the Fairy Godmother. I call myself a "Fairly Grandmother". We have planned for a group of Missionaries to come on their preparation and service day to help with some of the work here, and then get to dress up in the castle time costumes for picture taking. I'm so looking forward to the help (Ray is going full time on the boat) but he will be here the about 2 hours to help supervise the Missionaries.
We are trying to get a marine mortgage for the boat so we can pay back the several friends who loaned us some of the money to build it, but so far no mortgage. We have a few new leads and hopefully a lead for forward motion of our pin bone fillet machine too! I do love hopeful looking leads. :) It is getting scary though as the castle is scheduled to be foreclosed on Sept 6, 2011 if we can't pay the about $400 thou- we were forced to sign a mortgage of the castle to pay to negotiate out of the business bankruptcy-- though we were indemnified but the bank illegally didn't do that as they were directed to when our business was taken over by another corporation. :(
We are working on that too. I will not focus on the negatives, and anyway we have all we need and most of our wants, and that is amazing. I will trust God, that he will continue to supply our NEEDS as He has in the past.
If you are wondering if we got to go on the church history tour back East that we have wanted to do for years-- the answer is "not yet". Many parts of Alaska had record fish runs, but the one area Ray was limited to fish in, had the worst fishing run in recorded history- a disaster! Still though Ray managed by the grace of God, to get enough fish to squeak by, and pay the crew, but we still owe the cannery etc. The cannery reneged on the promised payment for our tender work for them, and paid us less, but we had already paid our crew based on what they had promised. Sigh, but we can hardly go ask for the money back from the crew, though Ray had already made a decision in favor of the crew, taking the fuel expenses out of the boat share instead of out of the joint crew/captain shares so they got more than the standard % but Ray had hoped to pay them all so much more! Everyone worked so hard!
Fishing is a gamble just as farming is- and it is Gods grace that makes the difference in whether there is a "crop" or not. All we can do is all we can do as we pray too! There is some blessing for us in all this, and I do understand that it is FOR trials and tests that we came to earth, as from THEM we learn and grow best. I'll sure be happy to graduate from this life though, God gives us just enough "free time" to make it livable. I must not whine- as so many others have such harder challenges than I have.
I have my best friend as my spouse and we are married for time and all eternity! We have such great kids, that they are also our friends, now all of them have kids of their own too. All of our family are righteous, and that is the greatest blessing! None of them are self destructing or on bad paths. Our grand-kids are such fun, and I just wish I had more time with them. Well, we still have our health (though no health insurance- as no money-- so maybe the unconstitutional Feds will fine us-- but what can we do?). We can't work as hard or as long as we used to, and our bodies complain more, but they still work which is a tremendous blessing! :)
Another blessing I SOOOoooo enjoy is getting to discuss the gospel with people of other faiths, to learn what they believe and why and share what I believe. The IPhones that were our wedding anniversary gifts to each other last year are so great, that I get to do facebook where I can share in the few sit down times I get. Also our VRBO is a missionary tool to it seems :), so though we haven't gotten to "Go" on a mission, in ways one has come to us.
Well, I don't know when I will get back to posting on here, as my life is so full and I rarely get to sit to a full keyboard but we will see. May God continue to bless and strengthen us to meet and win in the challenges that life gives us. Gramajane

Why I got married to my sweetheart.

2010-08-12T04:18:00.000-07:00

I had been looking for "Mr. Right" for years- though I had decided I wouldn't get married until I was 23, (the age my mother married at) unless the perfect man for me came along, and everything worked out perfectly.
Well I got married at 21, because I did find him, and the things I was looking for were seen in him.

a. Healthy male of marriageable age (these days it seems some do not take sex difference as a given)
b. He was a worthy member of my faith, (Mormon) and a returned missionary.
c. He was morally pure and wanted me (big deal here!) as his eternal mate.
d. We wrote weekly PLUS letters,(sent talk tapes too when that wasn't enough) for six months before we ever met.
e. He was honest, a hard worker, had plans and dreams that I could see myself in
f. He had the ability to provide safety (like he made a fire FIRST when a group of us went to the snow- so there would be a way to get warm BEFORE anyone got too cold.
g. He was fun to be around and made my life happier just to know he was in the world.
h. We planned to spend the rest of our earthly life together, and then into eternity together as Mormons have "Eternal Marriage" not-- "until death do you part"-- as the priesthood power of sealing on earth would be sealed in heaven as Given to Peter, has been restored with our church.

So-- now my husband is at retirement age, and I love him more than ever!- but there is a little problem here. His drive (read work-aholic) has kept us apart for I figure for at least 1/3 or more of the usual time a husband and father is home, and it looks like he may leave this life "in the work harness" -- while I feel I have been "put on hold" -- with "later we will ..." do that.

So we did get to go on 3 family vacations over our 40 years of married life, once to each USA Disneyland and once to Hawaii-- though he joined us there (from work) and then only spent ONE night and left for work :( )

We also got to go as a couple on three special times (OK, one was our honeymoon, another was REALLY a work related thing so I was a sideline, and the third was a second honeymoon that my mother helped us do, and she babysat our four kids-- because she was worried we rarely had time together (boy was she right)!

I know my sweetheart loves me, and he does not mean to neglect me-- I just think he loves working more-- I mean it is pretty hard to compete with his works, where he is on the leading edge, captain of his own fishing vessels, boss with such great experience and skill that he is hardly questioned on what he wants etc.

My problem is that it is my understanding that we were/are supposed to be partners for eternity, but when do I get to be put before work? Work trumps everything it seems.

Now our kids are all married and have kids of their own, but my sweetheart is working even more. Since November he has worked out of town all week, barely come home on Sat. night, then gone to church with me on Sunday (what a blessed day!) and usually headed back after church to the work site to be ready for Monday-- and he did that till spring when he REALLY went out of state, and I only got to see him when I flew to join him on the ship.

Even on the ship with him-- he was so busy that I barely saw him (OK, it is not his fault that I usually get sea sick unless the water is flat calm-- like a mirror!) To get a chance to talk with him, I would hang out behind him when he was at the helm (flat calm weather only) and try to talk over the noise of the twin engines.

Meal times usually had the crew shoulder to shoulder with us, and a couple of times we got to take a walk together on shore to go buy things the boat needed. I did what I could to make myself useful on board. I hand sewed curtains (sun glare is not good in the land of the midnight sun!) from a sheet I put on board- along with other things for decorating the boat or to use. I made bread, and did laundry, I cleaned and answered the radio (OK- mostly ran to tell my sweetheart someone was calling on the radio :) and I even mended net and did some wheel watches.

Anyway-- why am I writing this now-- I suppose it is to put my frustrations and dreams in writing-- isn't that somehow supposed to make them more valid? I do believe that things will work out for the best, I just pray that my sweetheart will choose to spend time with me BEFORE he is so old he can't even get around in a wheel chair (from which I really think he might keep working!). -- So I am working to trust God, and do a better job of communicating to my eternal mate that it is MY TURN for some more of his time.

He is a great father, and husband and I wouldn't trade him for anyone else, but it seems I am alone a LOT-- but not single. I'm so thankful for his phone calls (mostly they are out of range of ANY cell towers though :(-- and he told me he did write me a letter-- but I'm hanging out at our oldest sons (4 grandkids here:) as I was getting depressed, unable to do the things alone, that I would rather do with him (like move mattresses sets upstairs-- it is still in the hallway) do some much needed painting on the house-- or how about a real vacation :)!

Well, he SAYS he is burned out and that we will go back east to the church history sites this fall, but I am working to not get expectations-- as I've been disappointed so often before.

Somehow, I trust things WILL work out ok-- without that hope-- what joy or peace is there?

I try to look at others challenges (health crisis, war, famine, divorce etc) and I feel like a wimp to not be satisfied with the wonderful life I have. So I will pray more and keep the faith!
May God bless us to know that as we keep his commandments that all things will turn to our good.

the Power of Assertive choices opposed to agressive or passive

2010-02-22T09:57:00.001-08:00

I really feel this is TOTALLY AWESOME! I'm quoting this from a Meridian Magazine article titled "What do you do to get your way"

"In May 2009, I allowed the BBC Britain to bring two troubled British
teens to my home to make a show called “The World’s Strictest
Parents.” They brought me two seventeen-year-olds named Hannah and
James. For two days Hannah and James had tantrums and tried every way
they could think of to initiate power struggles and force us to become
aggressive. This is generally called, “button pushing.” What they
didn’t know was that I got rid of all my buttons long ago.

On day three, the teens were all of the sudden completely different.
They were obedient and generally wanted to communicate effectively. I
was really impressed with their new personalities. I said to Hannah,
“Hannah, why did you suddenly stop yelling and getting angry?”

She said, “Well, at my house if I yell, I get my way, or someone at
least yells back. But, here you always stay so calm that it doesn’t
do any good. So, I just figured I might as well try staying calm
too.” Because Hannah saw that her aggression wouldn’t work, she
was able to completely change the way she communicated. So what did
Hannah give up her aggression for? We taught her assertiveness, which
was a new way to get her way. (To see the BBC show go
toteachingselfgovernment.com/videos/
)

Communication 101

When most people think of communication, they think of words. While
words are a vital way to communicate, there are many ways
communication happens. Body language actually communicates even more
than words do. A person’s body, eyes, and over all feeling expressed
speaks much more about what the person thinks and feels than words
ever will.

We all know this. We form our opinions and moods from these intuitive
clues all the time. So, why don’t we think more carefully about how
we move, and express ourselves then? We get fooled into thinking that
we see other people’s moods and feelings more vividly than they see
ours. People see everything you do, and hear more in your words than
what you say. They hear your tone, and the feeling carried by the
tone is what speaks to their hearts.

So, what about those people who choose to say nothing? Are they
impossible to read? No way! They are easier to read in many ways.
They think they are controlling themselves by shutting down all
communication, but what they don’t know is that people can’t ever
stop communicating. Choosing to be absent or silent is also a
communication of how you feel about other people and your disapproval
of an issue, or distance from the other person. These communications
are obvious and cannot be hidden by the best actor or actress.

How Do You Try to Get YOUR WAY?

There are four ways people generally try to get their way; by being
passive, aggressive, passive/aggressive, or assertive. If you don’t
know which way you generally try to gain control of situations and
other people’s emotions, then take this little test.

Let’s say you are in a check-out line at a grocery store and someone
cuts in front of you in line. What do you do?

Do you grab the person and shove them aside? Do you very loudly
say,”Hey, I was here first. The back of the line is over there.”
If you find yourself acting like this in similar situations, then you
are aggressive and try to gain control of your environment by force.

Maybe you are more inclined to say nothing and focus on thoughts like,
“People are so rude now days. No one even looks to see if I am
here. Oh well, its better not to say anything because I never know
what they might do if I spoke up. It’s better to keep the peace.”
If you think things like this and often do nothing then you are
passive to gain control of your surroundings and keep the peace.

Perhaps you are the kind of person who responds by saying nothing to
the person who cut in front of you, but might make a rude remark about
the person who cut in line to the person behind you or to your
impatient child. You might “accidentally” get too close to the
person in front of you with your cart and make it difficult for them
to move, or just glare at the back of their head and think hateful
things about the person for a good while after the person leaves the
store. During all of this you will feel proud of yourself for not
showing emotional weakness by yelling at the person. If you take all
the control inside yourself and argue with body language and feelings
instead of with forceful actions and words then you are a passive/
aggressive arguer.

Assertiveness

These three manipulative responses are the most common ways to react
to the situation described above, but they are not the only way to
handle the situation. Instead, you could choose to assume the person
in front of you is unaware of the line and kindly suggest a correction
of the problem. It would look like this. You tap the line-cutter on
the shoulder in a kind way and say, “Excuse me.” After the person
turns around and can see eye-to-eye, you disagree in an appropriate
way. In my home we call this skill disagreeing appropriately. It is
a fundamental skill to creating a successful, happy adult.

The disagreement would go something like this, “Sir, I know you
probably didn’t notice before, but this is not the back of the line.
The back of the line is actually over there. Would you mind moving to
the back of the line instead of right here? Thank you.” Speaking
calmly, with respect and assuming the best of the person who you are
communicating with is called being assertive. Assertiveness is the
desired way to get what you want or what is right, and it works.

Sure, you could be assertive and the other person could come back at
you with aggression, but this is usually very rare. Remember, that
the feeling of your body, voice tone, and soul will be felt by the
other person. So, if you choose to really love the offender and see
his side for a minute, and communicate those feelings to him while
setting the situation right at the same time, then he will have a hard
time returning aggression for those kind feelings and actions.

However, if a person chooses to be aggressive to you when you are
assertive, then the best thing to do is to say, “Oh” and pity the
person for obviously having such a bad day or being out of control at
the minute. It’s okay to see another person fail at communicating.
Love them anyway. (I like using “Oh.” It is the perfect
statement. It says “I hear you” but doesn’t say “I agree.”)

Aggressive People

Aggressive people choose to rage because it feels powerful for a
minute and releases tension. They choose aggression to get what they
want because they know other people don’t know how to handle their
emotions. Aggressive people tend to believe that there are two kinds
of people; the kind that use aggression and get what they want and the
kind that back down and never get what they want.

My British child-for-a-week, Hannah proved this when she said, “Well,
at my house if I yell I get my way or someone at least yells back…”

Have you noticed that the majority of adults are not aggressive in
public? The reason this is the case is because it is generally agreed
that aggression is something that happens with frustrated children;
not adults. Children have to be taught to overcome aggression.
However, in private, many adults prove they never really learned to
handle their aggressive tendencies. They don’t know they can have
good relationships by being assertive instead of aggressive.

Passive People

Passive people think aggressive people are scary, and choose not to
battle things out with them for self preservation. They don’t know
about being assertive and think that their only options are either to
be aggressive, which looks out of control, or to be passive, or
passive/aggressive which seems like control. Truly passive people see
themselves as weak and everyone else as strong. They take abuse from
other people because they just don’t know how to handle it. Passive
people feel walked on and frustrated because no one really understands
them or cares about their wishes and feelings.

Sometimes passive people attempt to communicate but get shut down
easily and choose to become reconciled to their situation because they
don’t feel heard. Seeking attention by expressing their weaknesses,
or having “pity parties,” is common with passive people.

You may wonder how a passive person could feel like they are gaining
control over their environment by being passive and backing down. The
passive person controls the environment by keeping the peace and being
able to stop an argument. They know that if they back down to the
other person’s wishes then they can control most of the responses of
the other person and have less tension. Again, truly passive people
are rare because a truly passive person has to choose passiveness for
the sake of peace, and then not desire any change that would put the
peace in jeopardy.

Passive/Aggressive People

The reason truly passive people are rare is because most passive
people would fall into the category of passive/aggressive. Instead of
backing down from confrontation for the sake of peace the passive/
aggressive person backs down for force. They see that the person who
says less is not as vulnerable as the person who says more. They
completely buy into Benjamin Franklin’s quote, “It is better to not
say anything and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove
all doubt.”

Saying nothing feels powerful to passive/aggressive people. They use
their silence to make their argument. They only want communication if
the other person will see their way. If the passive/aggressive person
doesn’t think his idea will be adopted as the best, then he will not
offer it up. Passive/aggressive parents might leave a child who
isn’t ready to go on time. The passive/aggressive spouse is the kind
who sits in the car on Sunday mornings with a scowl on her face
feeling superior to all those not ready on time for church. Her
actions communicate, “I’m ready; it’s obviously all your fault we
are late.” Her body and feelings do all the arguing.

Passive/aggressive people put up emotional walls. They close
themselves off from other people and choose not to do any verbal
communication assuming they are choosing no communication. What they
don’t know is that they are communicating.

Their body movements and argumentative feeling of their soul are
easily felt. They feel distant because they have made themselves
thus. Their silence tells everyone on the other side of the wall
this, “I don’t agree with you. I feel like not talking but know
that if I talk to you I will feel better. I want to be understood. I
want you to see things the way I see them. I feel so alone. You just
don’t get it. Because you don’t value my opinions I feel like our
relationship is ruined right now. Do you really care what I think and
feel? My opinions are important…”

This really is what they are trying to say, whether they have thought
about it or not. As a parent or spouse it is helpful to know that the
person is shutting you out to get your attention and encourage
relationship building. It is tempting to be passive/aggressive too
and let the wall become stronger and taller, but that will not take
care of what the passive/aggressive person is really asking for;
attention, understanding and an insight into how to communicate with
you.

Passive/aggressive people can seem difficult to connect with, but they
are screaming in a silent way for connection and acceptance. An
assertive spouse, friend, or parent can change these hearts.

Assertive People

Assertiveness is the only problem-solving method which isn’t
manipulative! It doesn’t need to be because assertive people have
the power of self-government. Their reaction is about them
controlling themselves not them controlling others. They know how to
keep their emotions controlled, while still problem-solving
situations. They are calm, friendly, loving and understanding while
at the same time firm and principled.

Assertive problem solvers recognize that they have the power to
communicate either with love or contempt and choose love. They really
seek to understand what the other person might have been thinking or
feeling. Next, they lovingly describe the situation, and suggest a
remedy or give an instruction. Then they trust that the person is
good and wants to choose the right choice, even if the choice doesn’t
always turn out as planned. An assertive person isn’t afraid to talk
about situations and feelings. They believe that open honest
discussion is the key to solving a problem. In fact, assertive people
usually instigate healthy, humble discussion.

Assertive people are not afraid of aggressive people because they are
secure. Assertive people do not rage because they trust their
communication skills. Assertive people do not build up emotional
walls because they know that relationships are the most important part
of communication. Are you assertive? I haven’t always been.

The Assertive Home

I gave my parents most of their gray hairs with my aggression and
passive/aggression in my younger years and have had many family
arguments over the years which were all about building up walls. But,
11 years ago I learned there was another way to get what I wanted; to
be assertive.

Once I realized this skill was desirable above all other problem
solving skills I knew I had to improve upon it and teach it to my
children so they wouldn’t be the kind of children I was and so they
could be “joyful, happy adults, who know what their mission in life
is and can’t wait to fight for it, and have solid relationships with
God and family.” (Parenting A House United by: Nicholeen Peck) This
is my goal, and teaching assertive problem solving is my way. I call
it teaching self-government, and it has changed my life.

Talk about these four attitudes toward solving relationship problems
and disagreements as a family. If each person is aware of the four
different ways to see situations they are more likely to choose the
assertive way. Then the whole family can communicate more lovingly
and effectively.

More on principles of Teaching Self-Government and effective parenting
can be found onNicholeen’s blog.

true needs, truely met = true happiness or otherwise NOT

2010-02-15T05:29:00.000-08:00

Our True needs need to be Truly filled by right choices -- as anything less, though fast- will not really satisfy but cause sorrow sooner or later-- yet we can learn from our mistakes to repent and try again because God loves us and will help us choose the right.

I am thinking especially about the true need everyone has to be loved and to love others. It is so ironic to me that the much of the world seems to have gotten things so backward-

as to "not want to rush into marriage" but seem to have little if any qualms about rushing into the most intimate of all relations on first acquaintance even?

It seems like then when (if) they then get to know the other person better
and find out personalities and habits that are beyond their range of acceptance--

THEN they seem to think "good thing I didn't marry them"! Sheeish!

But the break up often causes painful emotional damage- as their hopes flew and then crashed and they also have exposed themselves and their loved ones to who knows what all!?

I try not to be devastatingly pained when it seems like people I care about are so 'crashing and burning" when I know how much they (and we all) truly need to love and be loved but they seem unable to do the "ground work" of taking the time to get their own lives in order, and get to know others over enough time and non intimate working and playing together- for so long that they are better than best friends.

Other wise it seems that both parties "project" onto the other the things they WISH were personal values and characteristics they desire in them- but they are blind to reality.

Unfortunately- studies show that when physical intimacy takes the stage, that the intelligence, vital discriminating powers and reasoning diminish to next to nothing.

I believe this is one of the reasons that our Heavenly Father has set in place his laws for us to NOT have intimate relations outside of legal, lawful marriage commitments- and that also seems traditionally to be done with the family approval- which sure seems like it would help avoid much pain.

Of course- many times- though you THINK you know another- and supposedly they have the same moral standards (same religious up bringing and commitment) it has been that either the other person changed, or that was a projection. Sigh.

So it comes down to- to take our time, date in groups to get to know others, and have some type of check list to keep reality engaged. Work with your other friends and family after spending time all together to see their "take".

Even when we do all that- if the other changes so much- as to force a divorce, as they are unwilling to work on the marriage--

our only comfort is that we can hopefully learn to do better next time,
to take longer to get to know them, their friends and family
and to see where our own weaknesses have made us blind

along with seeing what we need to do to strengthen ourselves to be a better us. We need to find work and service where we can get our needs met- so we do not feel desperate enough to seek intimacy before it is intelligent or righteous to do so.

These are my thoughts and deductions after over 61 years of life. I feel so blessed that I was taught true morals as a child and managed to keep on the side of right and also find person who wanted to partner in marriage with me, who had done the same- so we have "no ghosts" to come between us in our marriage.

We have had other problems- and challenges- but that is what we are here in this life to face- to learn from our challenges to make righteous choices that will lead us to become Christlike- and so be able to be like Jesus Christ when we leave this life. May we all be blessed to so do, and to help others with this goal too. I'm so thankful for the atonement and forgiveness, for prayer and the gospel of Jesus Christ that has been brought back to the earth in these latter-days with God speaking to prophets again.

The teachings in the restored gospel make sense out of the whole world, and bring me such comfort that I don't know how others deal with life without this knowledge.

I want always to share with any who will listen, and I pray that I can be a good example so they will see that what I have to share is of great worth. I declare these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. (I have written this in one sitting with out editing- so forgive any grammatical errors etc-- but I hope and pray that you can feel the truth).

life goes on- and so must we- till called home

2010-02-06T05:20:00.000-08:00

I've been following the Meridian online Magazine stories about Haiti disaster. I'm so sorry for their trials, and I'm praying for them-- for comfort and hope. I am glad we have enough to donate some money, and we have done that now. Probably will give more.

We have decided to sell all our properties in Sequim, partially just to get the debts paid off and to get funds for Ray to finish our fishing/tender ship, "Liahona". Also because it is just more than we can handle, and we feel we are not being good stewards for Heavenly Father.

Hopefully it will also give us money to go on a mission. I sure appreciate all the prayers others have prayed for our success for this and also for the sale now. It feels right- and I believe I am finally ready to "let go" of our dream home.

It has been a fun challenge to fix the castle and decorate it nicer than we ever had it, especially for families to get to vacation there. :)

I just don't feel this is where I am to stay- doing this.

The "last straw" was after feeling that to try to make a four hour turn around with rentals in one day-- would be a miracle- and shuddering just contemplating it

**THEN** realizing that to do a four hour clean, restock etc turnaround on a **SUNDAY***- with causing others to work on the Sabbath (and me too) just for $
(not saving lives like in a hospital etc)

where I couldn't even feel right to ask Heavens help- much less for a miracle-
to go against what I feel are Gods commandments-
then I realized-- this is just NOT any job I want. That Sunday turn around is scheduled for Sept. so hopefully it sells before then, and in pleanty of time so I can refund all confirmed guests money and they can get other vrbo if the castle does not sell to someone who wants to do vrbos. -- Yeah-- I need a miracle to sell it right!

It is also harder being here with no family near by as our daughter Debbie and family are now in our Oakley home, as they look for work in Twin Falls, and housing there. Prayers are appreciated for them too.

We are so blessed that we are not having to deal with situations like Haiti. I can not comprehend it.

I still believe that God is watching over us as we learn to deal with the challenges and trials, along with the joys and happiness of life. I am learning to trust God more, which helps me be much happier too. May God continue to bless us all, always!

Finacial diet control more important than body fat!.

2010-01-08T17:23:00.000-08:00

In New Years Resolutions- instead of getting control of our eating, isn't our financial health- getting out of debt, saving some each month etc more important?

This is from an article on Meridian Magazine titled "Employing faith to finance by Lyle and Tracy Shamo

"...Brigham Young continued in this cause: “We want you henceforth to be a self-sustaining people. . . .Ye Latter-day Saints, learn to sustain yourselves . . .
If you cannot obtain all you wish for today, learn to do without that which you cannot purchase and pay for; and bring your minds into subjection that you must and will live within your means.” (In John A. Widtsoe, comp., Discourses of Brigham Young [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1954], p. 293)

The Lord said: “Wherefore, verily I say unto you that all things unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I given unto you a law which was temporal.” (D&C 29: 34) In that same spirit, let us begin our new year by employing financial discipline which is in harmony with the principles of faith.

Faith and fear cannot coexist. Faith causes action; fear inaction.

Believing we can allows us to survive the most rigorous of circumstances. Remember the lesson of the Sons of Helaman who learned from their mothers that they must not doubt. God has promised he will sustain us; He said nothing about making us wildly rich in the things of the world.

When your own plight becomes desperate and your financial future looks stormy, do all you can do and when that has been done, fall back upon your faith. Do not be ashamed to take your plight to your bishop who is there to assist with your welfare needs. ******* Sell off your valuable assets. Re-prioritize your list of needs so that you focus exclusively on only that which is absolutely essential to survive. Sacrifice and work with all your might, and then, when all other resources have been exhausted and there is nothing left, draw upon your faith and expect the miracle. ****
Perhaps surviving by faith seems unrealistic, but it is only unrealistic to those who have not put it to the test. Unrealistic is the only way to describe the miracle of the ravens who fed Elijah, or the manna which sustained the children of Israel, or the barrel of meal which fed Elisha that never failed. “Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.” (D&C 6: 7)

One young mother recently bore testimony to the principle of faith in finance. Her husband lost his job sometime last summer. Their resources dried up. The bill collectors stood hovering at their door. Instead of giving in to despair, she and her husband and family slipped to their knees. Her testimony of the power of faith was clear as she told the story of the miracle. “I don’t know how it is done,” she said,”but somehow the Lord comes through and always just in the nick of time. When a bill is due I used to lie awake at night in fear and worry. Now I take the matter to the Lord. Somehow, someway, as the due date for each looming bill approaches, a miracle occurs and we receive barely enough income to make the payment: a friend slips us a bit of cash, our parents send us a check in the mail, a neighbor drops by with a bag of groceries, my husband or I find temporary employment. Oh, we never receive enough to have any surplus, but there is always just enough money to cover whatever is our most current need. So we have learned a lot this last year. We learned that it is possible to exist day to day and week to week knowing that when we absolutely need it, the Lord will provide and there will be sufficient for our needs.” Such is the principle of faith in finance.
Whatever the financial prognostication for the world, through faith, your prognostication for 2010 is rosy.
Next month we’ll focus on assessing and prioritizing needs from wants. For this and other good money-saving advice, see our new Deseret Book publication Live Your Life for Half the Price and its companion volume, Debt-Free On Any Income."

2009 Jane and Ray Wadsworth Family Newsletter

2009-12-24T09:15:00.001-08:00

Ray & Jane Wadsworth 2009 Newsletter
--- Life has often seemed like a roller coaster ride to me, with some wonderful high times, & some scary swift descents that seem to just barely avoid disaster at the last moment. Right now though, we’re feeling fairly hopeful, & peaceful while we are very active in adventure, as we’ve begun to do vacation rentals of our castle home. Maybe I’m learning to trust our Heavenly Father more from past experiences adding up?
--- Things are not really very settled, as we shuttle back & forth between ID & WA plus in & out of our old 5th wheel RV here. We move into it when we have rental guests. Hopefully the rentals will bring in enough income to convince a bank we can refinance the castle - saving it from foreclosure in Sept 2011. We are blessed to have Eric & Tressa take over the websites & business side. I do much of the housecleaning, restocking, maintance, & thrift castle décor. I’m still having a lot of fun too, as costumes I’ve made over the years are here for the guests to wear for pictures. Lots of new friends to share our castle with for a royal vacation! The castle really feels like it is Heavenly Fathers’, & that we are just the stewards over it.
--- We look forward to returning to our Oakley, Idaho home & friends, after this summer for which Ray is in FULL work mode for. He is building a steel 58’ x 24’ Limit Seiner, out in the weather (wettest & windiest on record!) in Port Townsend, as the boat won’t fit in his shop or on the road to the water. He computer designed it & had it pre cut by computer. He is welding it together as fast as he can- with plans (& prayers) of finding everything used- engines, etc! Our goal is getting it up to AK in time for the fishing season, & tender job he has lined up. He wants me to go too- what a ride! : / . My going mostly depends on the castle rentals getting set up to work ok without me!
--- We feel so blessed with our youngest - Richard & McKenna in Rexburg, ID are expecting their first baby in February. Eric & Tressa in South Jordan, added sweet baby Maylee to their cherished 4 older children this last year. Doug & Heather are in Pasco, WA doing great with their two darlings. Lori & Kevin continue in Tucson, AZ with their fun four little ones. Debbie & Rick live near us with their darling 3, so we get to enjoy some of our grandkids almost as often as we want though work, & weary bodies hinder us. We even occasionally get to see our “guardianed angel” Rochelle with her little boy and also our former foster son, Markus as they live in the area. Rays’ father, Gene, left this earth life in February of this year in his 93rd year. We are blessed by his work & saving ethic to be able to build the boat & and other things. We miss him, but believe he is reunited with his beloved wife Betty, whom he missed so much.
--- Our prayers are that all of our friends, family & the world will have the wisdom, strength & any needed help to progress in learning & loving as the Messiah has shown us the way. “God bless us everyone” with “Peace on Earth-- Goodwill to men”. hugs-- Ray & Jane

link to Love & Logic article on agressive toddlers and preschoolers

2009-12-20T04:11:00.000-08:00

http://www.loveandlogic.com/documents/aggressive-toddlers-and-preschoolers.pdf

Some ideas to help us enjoy little children

2009-12-20T04:09:00.000-08:00

I believe that a well socialized three year old will ***80 to 90%*** of the time---

1. obey parents/teachers the first time when first asked to do or not do something
-----------not do the opposite-- running when told to come, etc
2. use the best words they can to get what they want/need in an social tone level and modulation
--------- not grabbing, fighting, screaming or crying
3. expect to eat the food provided at meal times & may ask politely for something additional
------ not throw or dump food or demand other food after not eating what they are given
4. handle things carefully, appropriately --- ask politely for things not offered them
------- not run to grab anything left in reach or automatically throw or try to break things
5. stay in bed quietly at bed/nap time for 30 min- (they don’t have to go to sleep though)
------- not screaming or kicking, or throwing things around the room
6. dress themselves with a choice between two outfits, in an appropriate time period
--- not wait for or demand the parent dress them or fight if the parent tries to help them hurry
7. pick up their toys/clothing when asked to by an adult, and do an additional daily chore
-- like dusting, or wipe the table, or set the table etc. --- not to have an “entitlement attitude”.

I believe the way to achieve this is for the parents/caregivers to model correct behavior

a. and have a way to QUICKLY / sadly restrain/contain them without their winning more of our attention to do so (later to expect them to stay in time out mode on their own)
and not allow the TV to model incorrect behaviors
- maybe ONE non violent- teach correct principles program or movie a day
- --- only as a reward (not entitlement or using TV as a baby sitter)
b. Take the time to continually/gently teach the child to comply/obey while programming in the desired behaviors - like at bedtime ---AFTER regular bedtime routines maybe like--family scriptures/prayers, pjs, clean teeth/face, personal prayers, use potty, & choices like- drink of water and or water glass put beside bed, night light?, door open? books to look at ?or audio story? or soothing music ?(which choices get withdrawn one at a time, if they do not stay quietly in bed- if still not compliant- may have other logical consequences—maybe have them “practice” bedtime at a time the other children (who have been obedient) get to watch the reward movie or suggest maybe they don’t need as much sleep so when THEY WANT to sleep, don’t let them or get up earlier in the morning or something else logical
c. - and when disobedience happens (it will sometimes) to gently/sadly say “uh oh”
d. do not to ignore them when they are testing us by misbehaving (put them in time out)
e. do not to give them the more/most attention when they misbehave
f. Watch for “triggers” to negative behaviors - help them learn to obey=win!
g. NOTICE and specifically talk to them about their appropriate behavior OFTEN - something like—“ I noticed you shared, tell them something like “I feel happy inside when I see that, does it make you happy inside too?”
h. Praise their good behavior to others when they can hear you (do not talk of their inappropriate behavior where they can hear you – they listen when we are on the phone!)
i. Parenting and children are supposed to be a joy- not just endured till their bedtime!

Only give them ½ a bite of food to try for the first time-
And expect them to eat what they personally take or the tiny bit you give them with their approval-and if they find that they can’t eat it all right then- to finish it later, or work to pay for the food, or pay with money- or see if another will eat it for them- but not to waste it- and not to carry food around the house.

celebrating Christmas

2009-12-10T05:03:00.000-08:00

So-- I have joy in my heart again, and it is because I realized that my stressing over gift giving is not what God wants me to do. President Monson gave a talk and told how to really celebrate Christmas-- by visiting the sick and shutins- by doing good. It is NOT buying more toys or trinkets for others when they already have so much that they do not use that they throw them away or give them to thrift stores (that part is not so bad).

So when we are struggling to make ends meet, and get the work done that needs to be done to be ready for the next guests in our vacation rental-- then I do not need to be worried that I have not bought or made gifts for everyone (try anyone!) that I would like to have a wonderful gift to give.

An article in Meridian Magazine also helped me-- it was titled I think Grandmas Gingerbread Christmas-- I think. It told how one grandmother- Joy Lundberg, got her grandchildren together to make cookies, that they they packaged and took to shut ins along with singing to them. -- THIS I think I can do and feel good about! :)

I have also gotten out the faux Christmas tree and thought I would take the time to decorate it-- but I have not done that yet. Maybe we will have a "Deck the Halls" party and make it a friendship time- but without that it feels so much wasted time. It does not REALLY celebrate the birth of our Savior! How does a decorated tree be a blessing in others lives? If I can somehow work that-- then it might be worth it. :)

I have not yet even written any family newsletter to send to extended family and friends-- and I think that is something that I should take the time to do! :)

Anyway-- these are my thoughts at this time, when we are to consider Goodwill and Peace on Earth to all.

Gramajane

It will be ok-- if we have a Christlike attitude/heart

2009-10-12T04:16:00.000-07:00

It seems to me that this is the most important *thing* to get or grow. With this attitude one will;
a. trust in Heavenly Father
b. keep seeking to know/understand His will
c. and do it
which I understand would be to see what is most important
to DO at this moment for Our Father
and he has given us commandments like--to "love one another"
to help others as God does (not take over
- but I understand we are to assist only as really needed
- letting them learn by failures that are not eternal
-- and this is sure a hard call for what is or isn't
-- and actually REALLY I think God does let us fail
-- though he is ALWAYS there ready the second (nano second?) that we seek Him
-- but I believe he will not save (help) us IN continuing to sin
- but from the sins (mistakes) we are willing to turn away from
-- and part of it needs to be on our strength, or after all we can do.
It isn't very fun-- but it feels better when we get it right. :) Gramajane
--

adversity/trials= challenges/opportunites to grow!

2009-10-09T06:51:00.000-07:00

I do believe the title I put on here, though sometimes it is difficult to remember it! I need to remember that these are opportunities to practice being Christ like, and not do any "knee jerk" reaction when it feels like others are being purposely awful.

I don't really know what is going on in their lives, nor how they see things. I want to -- if I DO err, always err on the side of being a little too kind. - Not that I want to be stupid or a push over-- but give others the benefit of an doubt.

I remember feeling when my mother would tell me that -- God was just helping me to grow stronger- that maybe I didn't WANT to be THAT strong. (think murmuring here).

Yet, it seems when the peak of a stressful time is past, that I can usually see that *some* good came from it.

It is especially hard when there are several challenges going on at once-- as sometimes I get scared and just want to cover my head and hide till it calms down.

I'm so thankful for prayer-- (better than any cell phone!!) to talk to our Father in Heaven, any where is "perfect reception"-- and I don't have to have any battery or light to see to push the buttons either-- even better than the BEST phone voice recognition! God had this all worked out before the world began. :)

I'm thankful that I KNOW I can trust God that he does perfectly know my challenges and abilities-- though I am to keep praying that I won't be tested above what I can endure. (Maybe that means either smaller tests or God strengthening me-- I don't know).

The song "What a Friend we have in Jesus" just started to play in my head-- words too. Often songs will come into my mind that are a comfort or a reflection of how I am feeling. Sometimes when I am driving at night (which I don't like :(-- I find myself singing in my mind-- "Lead Kindly Light". It is a comfort and we are told that the songs of the righteous are a prayer unto God.

My prayer is for all of us to have courage and go forward, just one step at a time-- to choose the right- and keep praying for guidance as we seek to follow Gods' commandments.

I also try to remember not to take others burdens on myself-- but to just help when I feel prompted by the Holy Spirit to do so. But to not think they can't handle it, and then burden myself MORE than God has for me. It is a fine line between assisting THEM to achieve, and causing them to think they can't do it, which damages them (and me-- as I'm over there trying to do their work-- while mine is undone :(.

I think it will be **such a Glorious** day when I/we have finally finished with all that God has sent me/us here to do-- graduating from this boarding school of life-- and hopefully having a good report card to bring back to Our Father.

I know I can never be good enough alone-- and I rely on Jesus Christ and his atonement to make it up for my lack, but I must do all I can do to add to his "enough for the rest". I'm sooooo thankful for repentance! For the scriptures to guide us and for prophets that God speaks to to help us too. For the Holy Spirit that warns and comforts us-- when we live righteously. It is invaluable!

Jesus Christ, our elder spiritual brother and the second member of the Godhead, having suffered all our sorrows, pains and sins, perfectly knows us and what we can and can't do. I don't want to disappoint Him or God the Father!

I pray for strength and clear minds for all of us to see the traps of Satan, in the media and society all around us-- it is just awful seeing that most *expect* a couple to hit the mattresses before marriage. How far society has fallen!

Well, I need to get going with my work. Have a great spiritual day everyone! Gramajane

courage and prayers for it

2009-09-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

My sweet husband used to think I was such a "Chicken Little" (remember the children s story about the chick who ran around saying the sky was falling?) - as my fears caused me to tremble and fear as I watched out for the worst that could happen, and I'd prepare for that.

Then when my husband realized that **though** I had these fears (from my earlier life experiences they made sense!) that he was amazed that I must have had great courage to go forward and DO the things we did. We lived in Alaska, for a year in a one room shack we built, one window, one door, only a porta-potty and 25 miles from town, with no close neighbors, no phone, no electricity and two children, with him gone fishing most of the time! We also would make trips on our little family fishing boat, and bad storms would come up, plus we would fly in our little air plane and have to go through areas where we couldn't see the ground and could run out of fuel etc etc! He told me later that he had come to realize that I had great courage to be willing to do those things. :) (I prayed a **LOT***!!!)

Courage does not mean the absence of fear. Courage is when we DO and work with what needs to be done though we HAVE fears.

So now, I'm working to have courage (as I pray for more!) to go forward with this vacation rental business of our home. There is so much to do, and I'm so weary. I'm very thankful that my dear husband works with me, though he does not enjoy paper work and legal stuff either. He also gets overwhelmed with all there is too do, and just wants it done. Me too!

Life is not like that though, and this seems and feels the best way to be stewards over the resources that we are responsible for, and to prepare to have the resources for our older age needs. We don't want to be burdens on our children!

We have the large home we built for our family (5 kids) and we shared it and our time with more children through foster care, for 10 years when our youngest child was 12 years old. Now, maybe we can save our home from foreclosure by doing the VRBO path with it, God willing.

I wish it was as easy as just preparing a room for a new foster child. Getting the right size bed, and the decor to suit the gender and age of a child etc. I would put their name on a special mug and laundry tub, while I enjoyed making the room as comfortable and welcoming as I could. I loved working to fill their needs and helping them feel safe and loved.

We managed to get through all the Foster requirements, paperwork, required classes and mega hoops. I feel we were blessed by carrying out that role. Our hearts still are warmed by thoughts of "our Kids" (there were 20 of them!) - while we often pray for the ones we have lost contact with, as we are thankful we get some contact with some of them still.

Somehow, I pray, that we will get all this RBO work done too. I pray that opening our home to others, will be a win/win. I try not to think that some people may break or even steal some of the things we have collected over the years.

--Things like-- what about the glass slipper, that I was awarded for my costuming work for a Cinderella play? How fun for others to enjoy seeing the tiny impossible to fit any foot shoe! How sad to think of just locking it up behind a closed door to keep it safe --isn't that hoarding?? If we had a curio cabinet that would be great. It looks like I'll settle with using the Museum Wax, to "stick" it to the adult high fireplace mantel shelf, where others can see it, ostrich feather dusters can clean it safely and hopefully others will be discouraged from handling it.

I try not to worry about if people will not be careful and then sue us. Like, should we allow people to go up to the tower or attic? The tower stairs are quite a challenge, as they are very steep and for the last bit one must go on their knees to get in. Coming down is another whole challenge! What if someone falls?? What about the attic steep stairs?

Our kids LOVED that barely six feet high "A" shaped ceiling/walled space with "E" shaped floor layout. Will "enter/use at your own risk" signs be enough?? How about a drawing of a child/person falling down steep stairs with a red circle with a line over the picture for those who don't read English?? Do I wrote up a disclaimer in the forms I need to prepare for them to sign before we take any deposit? (probably- yes!)

You see how my "Chicken Little" fears kick in? I must continue to work with/through the fears. Probably many bad effects have been avoided because of my extra care and preparation. After all the foster people told us it was not "if" we would ever have accusations made against us as foster parents but "when" it *would* happen. Yet we were so careful that in 10 years, we never had any. :)

In my mind, I love to imagine other children/families enjoying the wonderful dream castle we have built and the things to decorate it that we have gathered over the years. I have put many costumes in the closets. Maybe they will ruin them. Maybe they will be careful of them and take pictures for us to see. :) Everything really belongs to God anyway! Wouldn't it be sad and even worse if the costumes just hung in a closet and no one ever got to enjoy them till they just molded away??

Anyway-- if anyone reading, has any room left in their prayers, if you will please add us and our situation in your prayers ---that we will seek, understand and **follow** the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all our work, I would greatly appreciate it!

May God bless us all with that same blessing! Gramajane

one step at a time

2009-09-11T05:18:00.001-07:00

So in my search for my purpose in life-- I'm becoming more aware that other than the MEGA goal of

A. returning to my (our) Father in Heaven, having lived my life as well as I can, with the light (truth and knowledge) available to me.

that there are some goals that my faith has helped me realize are paramount

1. keeping my body, mind and spirit clear and clean from addictions and pollution so I can receive guidance from the Holy Spirit and carry out what challenges I have to face

2. Follow Jesus Christ (study the scriptures, pray, be baptized, receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands of one with the proper priesthood authority, love one another, be responsible, share the gospel with others etc)

3. Gain knowledge, and form friendships till I found the man I wanted to marry,

4. Marry in the temple and build an eternal marriage as a team raise our children in righteousness

5. Serve others as I can along the way, and be a good example of Christ, and the grandmother, wife, mother, sister, neighbor, teacher, friend that Heavenly Father would like me to be to all our brothers and sisters on the earth that I come in contact with.

So it comes down to that there are short term goals/purposes and long ones, and some we don't even know, until they land in our laps. So, we are to do "that which is before us" as we keep our minds and hearts open to what is around us that we feel God would want us to do.

I missed a chance the other day, as I was talking to a man for some tech help, I should have said SOMETHING about the gospel. I think I need to get a short bit that is not pushy but sharing, that I memorize for times like that. I'll work on it!

I'm working with prayer every day to find what I should do that day and sometimes in the moment too. May God bless us all in our quest. Gramajane

define my meaning better?

2009-08-18T04:09:00.000-07:00

I was realizing that there were better word to express myself, than what I said. I believe I said that I felt "sorry for those with Same Sex Attraction"--

I think it would be more accurate in expressing my feelings to say it more like this--

I feel concerned for the challenge and weight of the difficulty/situation to find ones' self in such a situation. I feel to pray for them, for more strength to overcome, and to heal.

I feel as I would for anyone who has an illness or has been hurt in an accident and now needs to do a LOT of work to get up to speed, to be there best. I am thankful that my own challenges are not any harder for me to deal with, and I am glad I don't have to carry others challenges!

I consider that maybe they were/are such a accomplished or strong spirit that they needed a really strong challenge to be enough to challenge them to grow as they best could-- kind of like I think a handicap in golf is supposed to work? Or like when one accomplished chess player agrees to play a novice without their own Queen.

I do NOT feel they are any "less"-- not at all! Neither do I feel that way for anyone with a physical handicap. Who am I to judge-- NOBODY!! I don't think anyone ASKS for handicaps (when they are in this life-- though possibly they agreed to it before this life, for what strength they could develop from overcoming it?? I sure don't know!)

Anyway-- my heart hurts for them, and if I am aware that another may have ANY challenge I do pray for them for the best possible to happen for them-- Gods' will! Gramajane

What am I doing here? Where do we go from here?

2009-08-18T02:30:00.000-07:00

Well, from my life experiences and studies so far in my 61 years on the earth, my conclusion is that I (and everyone of us human beings, plus even animals and bugs) have a spirit in our bodies. The presence of our spirit is what keeps us alive, and when it leaves are bodies are counted dead by the medical community.

I believe that we humans are spirit children of Our Father in Heaven. I believe that God also created the spirits of the animals and even bugs, but they are not his children. Even the very earth has a spirit too (this from reading the Bible mostly).

I believe that we lived with our other spirit brothers and sisters in heaven before we came here, and that we were a family there, and so there must have been (and still is) though the Bible does not mention it-- a Heavenly Mother. There is even a Bible scripture with this quote "family in heaven". I believe that our spirits return to God when we leave this life.

I believe that what choices we make in this life, will determine how happy we can be in this life and in the life after this. Part of the reason that I believe there is a life after death is because of many experiences of members of my own family and from the Bible, and from Near Death Experiences that I have read in a whole shelf of books. One of my cousins wrote a book about it too. His name is/was Lance Richardson. He is about a 4th cousin and I haven't gotten to a family reunion in over 35 years-- so I don't know if he is still alive. The title of his book is I believe, "The Message". It tells about his dying and what his spirit experienced while it was out of his body, and what happened when he came to life again.

Oh, please note that this is NOT resurrection! Resurrection is when your body is changed by Christs' gift, so that you can never die again. It is restored to its perfect condition (and if you were born with something wrong or missing from your body-- that is perfected too).

I believe that resurrection is a gift from Jesus Christ, who is the second member of the Godhead, and the Savior and Redeemer of the world-- the literal Son of God. I believe that we don't have to "do" anything to receive this gift. I believe however that it is our choices in this life, that will make the difference in what level of happiness or exaltation we will experience after this life.

The Bible speaks of the resurrection as three levels, like the Sun, Moon and Stars-- and also of a 3rd heaven. My church teaches that these are 3 kingdoms-- and that there is also "outer darkness" with no light.

There is so much that I could share with you about this. This knowledge has helped me to live a happy life (sure I have challenges too!) still knowing why I am here, and where I came from, and will go after I die, makes a huge difference.

I believe that this Earth life is like a boarding school for Heavenly Father. He sends us here (yes we were willing and anxious to come too!) to learn and grow and prove to our selves-- what we will choose, and to grow from our choices of our reactions to what happens to us.

I believe that God has from the beginning communicated with the more righteous of us, calling them as prophets-- to help us see what we need to do. That there were inspired people in all the peoples of the world. I believe that Adam and Eve were taught that Jesus would come and to look forward to Him. I believe this is why so many nations have threads of that teaching still left in their legends. Like the basic story of Hercules even.

I believe that God made a covenant with Abraham and his posterity-- that if they would obey his commandments-- that he would guide and help them, that they would keep a record of their history and interaction with God-- and this is our Old Testament.

I believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the World, and that he died to save us all and let us live again. The New Testament tells about this, and it is the greatest thing to have ever happened.

Another book of Holy scripture-- from records kept by descendants of Abraham also, through descendants of the Joseph who was sold into Egypt, - is The Book of Mormon which is another testament of Jesus Christ, and tells of his coming to this American Continent.

This book-- which you can have a brand new copy of -- FREE-- hand delivered to you or mailed to your home (you choose) -- or access it free on the LDS.org web site -- along with our other scriptures (or you could get a free King James Bible-- with all the special study helps in the LDS edition) by going to Mormon.org also.

I believe that the scriptures can help us to find our way in this life. This is also the purpose of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints, to help us be better people, and know what God expects of us. It is my prayer that we will all seek for our purpose in life.

I believe we each have a smaller role to play in life also. My personal purpose I believe-- after my MAIN goal of living my life after the pattern of loving others as Christ showed us etc, I believe is to have been the mother of my children, and a supportive wife to my husband, along with developing my own talents and serving others I come in contact with in any appropriate way.

I feel blessed that we were able to be sponsors for 3 groups of Vietnamese refugees. That we also were blessed to be foster parents for 10 years and got to bring 20 foster children into our home. I think of them often and wonder how some I have lost contact with are doing now. I pray for them, to make choices that will bring them happiness. May we all so do. Gramajane

p.s.-- It was interesting to me to google my nick name, Gramajane-- and find that the words of a self proclaimed gay man from a facebook discussion board, were found where he claims that I said terrible things about gays (but he gives no quotes-- as there was nothing to quote-- as I don't call names or do such things) -- I told about the situation on early posts on this blog. I feel sorry for those who are challenged with Same Sex Attraction -- but I believe that it can be overcome-- as I know of some who have done so. There is even a book titled "Born that Way?" about this. I believe that we all have challenges in our lives, and that as we work to overcome them, we will better people, than we would have been if we had never had any challenges.

To me it is rather like a coach who has his team members work on different assignments for their individual bodies, some need to strengthen legs, or arm muscles for throwing, or whatever. While the coach also has all of them do other exercises or activities to help all of them work together. I think life is kind of like that.

To me-- God showed us the pattern of a man and a woman- made for each other, and sealed to each other in holy marriage is the ideal. In this way there is a safe place of commitment so that they could "multiply" and bring other spirits into bodies they helped make. I think any "other lifestyle" is a thwarting of Gods' plan. It will not bring happiness, but I still believe that we are given choices and that is a persons freedom to choose what they do, as long as it does not encroach on the choices of others.

This is where I have concerns with "gay" marriage-- as it changes the very meaning of marriage-- as there is no way that same sex couples can multiply in themselves. To let them adopt or be fertilized in another way-- I feel would be to not make appropriate role models for any children they would raise. Not that all parents or adoptive parents are perfect by any means-- but I feel that at least it starts out with the right coupling. What is the first question asked if someone is expecting? Isn't the question-- is it a boy or a girl?

Anyway-- I think I had better stop now, and try to get some more sleep. It is almost 3:30 am. May God bless us all to seek and do His will in our lives. Gramajane (I'm not taking time to read back over what I wrote-- which I rarely do anyway. I just pray that it is ok, and that any who read will realize I'm not claiming perfection either! ;)-- God isn't finished with me yet!

What others have said on marriage laws-- INTERSTING!

2009-08-10T05:03:00.000-07:00

This is from a married with five kids, son of ours -- in response to the article (included after his writing) from Meridian Magazine about marriage laws. VERY INTERESTING!!!

Family,

A year ago, I would have agreed with this completely. But no longer.
Before you condemn me as a heretic, let me explain.

In summary, don't strengthen the marriage laws, get rid of them altogether!

The role of government in people's lives is all about force. They are
the ultimate authority, everyone agrees that they have the gun and are
authorized to use it when necessary. Taxation is money taken by force
(if you don't believe that, try not paying taxes) to be spent in ways in
which you have very little influence, and therefore all government
programs rely on force to exist. This is another large topic, which I'd
be willing to continue on if desired, but for the sake of my argument,
I'll assume that we agree that government constitutes the mutually
recognized and authorized wielder of force.

Why does government even need to be involed in marriage at all? Why do
we need a legal definition? Why are there laws in the books about
marriage? What force is required here, that necessitates the involvement
of government?

One of the vital roles of government is to enforce contracts. Legally, a
marriage is nothing more than a contract. But the terms of the contract
are a giant mass of impossibly confusing laws. Why do you think that
divorce lawyers make so much money? The system is broken, people! It
doesn't need to be this much of a mess. Mixed into the mess are relgion,
legal definitions, tax laws, marital benefits, prejudice, sex laws, rape
laws, child protection laws... gadzooks, what a nightmare. I just
recently finished reading the Constitution, and there is nothing in
there about marriage (if I missed it, let me know).

Government should NEVER be used as a tool to enforce one person's
morality upon another, even when you are sure that your morality is
correct and beneficial. The federal government just needs to follow the
constitution, nothing more.

Here's how to fix it:

1. Throw out all marriage laws in the books. Government should not care
about it at all, especially at the federal level. We don't need a legal
definition if there are no laws about it.

2. A marriage is a contract. Treat it as such, for legal purposes! When
a couple wants to make a commitment to each other, they find a contract
that they both agree to, and have it witnessed and signed, with a copy
filed by the government. Now, if there is a breach of the contract, it's
the governmnet's job to exercise force if it is needed. This covers
child support, divorce, and so on. If the couple wants it to mean more,
having to do with relgion, that's their business.

3. Adjust the tax laws accordingly. A government adopting the principle
of liberty, and following the Constitution, will be minimal, and won't
have much in the way of taxation.

Government works best when it is pushed down to the lowest level
possible; if a community decides they want to recognize certain marriage
contracts for some reason, and that community votes accordingly, so be it.

"... Government power must be dispersed. If government is to exercise
power, better in the county than in the state, and better in the state
than in Washington. If I do not like what my local community does, be it
in sewage disposal, or zoning, or schools, I can move to another local
community, and though few may take this step, the mere possibility acts
as a check. If I do not like what my state does, I can move to another.
If I do not like what Washington imposes, I have few alternatives in
this world of jealous nations." --- Milton Friedman

Now, do you see how this solution completely resolves the whole problem
of gay marriage? There is no more problem! If someone wants to make a
legal contract with another person, for whatever reason, they can do so,
and call it whatever the heck they want to. It doesn't have any bearing
on anything else. If a local government wants to recognize it for some
purpose, sure! If I don't like the local laws, I have a chance as
getting heard. If it bugs me enough, I can always move elsewhere, near
people who believe the way I do.

Hopefully this clarifies my position on this issue. If anyone can find
any holes in any of this, let me know!

--- Eric

article from Meridian Magazine--

> Gay Marriage, Democracy, and the Courts
> The culture war will never end if judges invalidate the choices of voters.
>
> By ROBERT P. GEORGE
>
> We are in the midst of a showdown over the legal definition of marriage.
> Though some state courts have interfered, the battle is mainly being
> fought in referenda around the country, where “same-sex marriage” has
> uniformly been rejected, and in legislatures, where some states have
> adopted it. It’s a raucous battle, but democracy is working.
>
> Now the fight may head to the U.S. Supreme Court. Following California’s
> Proposition 8, which restored the historic definition of marriage in that
> state as the union of husband and wife, a federal lawsuit has been filed
> to invalidate traditional marriage laws.
>
> It would be disastrous for the justices to do so. They would repeat the
> error in Roe v. Wade: namely, trying to remove a morally charged policy
> issue from the forums of democratic deliberation and resolve it according
> to their personal lights.
>
> Even many supporters of legal abortion now consider Roe a mistake. Lacking
> any basis in the text, logic or original understanding of the
> Constitution, the decision became a symbol of the judicial usurpation of
> authority vested in the people and their representatives. It sent the
> message that judges need not be impartial umpires—as both John Roberts and
> Sonia Sotomayor say they should be—but that judges can impose their policy
> preferences under the pretext of enforcing constitutional guarantees.
>
> By short-circuiting the democratic process, Roe inflamed the culture war
> that has divided our nation and polarized our politics. Abortion, which
> the Court purported to settle in 1973, remains the most unsettled issue in
> American politics—and the most unsettling. Another Roe would deepen the
> culture war and prolong it indefinitely.
>
> View Full Image
> George
> David Klein
> George
> George
>
> Some insist that the Supreme Court must invalidate traditional marriage
> laws because “rights” are at stake. But as in Roe, they are forced to
> peddle a strained and contentious reading of the Constitution—one whose
> dubiousness would undermine any ruling’s legitimacy.
>
> Lawyers challenging traditional marriage laws liken their cause to Loving
> v. Virginia (which invalidated laws against interracial marriages),
> insinuating that conjugal-marriage supporters are bigots. This is
> ludicrous and offensive, and no one should hesitate to say so.
>
> The definition of marriage was not at stake in Loving. Everyone agreed
> that interracial marriages were marriages. Racists just wanted to ban them
> as part of the evil regime of white supremacy that the equal protection
> clause was designed to destroy.
>
> Opponents of racist laws in Loving did not question the idea, deeply
> embodied in our law and its shaping philosophical tradition, of marriage
> as a union that takes its distinctive character from being founded, unlike
> other friendships, on bodily unity of the kind that sometimes generates
> new life. This unity is why marriage, in our legal tradition, is
> consummated only by acts that are generative in kind. Such acts unite
> husband and wife at the most fundamental level and thus legally consummate
> marriage whether or not they are generative in effect, and even when
> conception is not sought.
>
> Of course, marital intercourse often does produce babies, and marriage is
> the form of relationship that is uniquely apt for childrearing (which is
> why, unlike baptisms and bar mitzvahs, it is a matter of vital public
> concern). But as a comprehensive sharing of life—an emotional and
> biological union—marriage has value in itself and not merely as a means to
> procreation. This explains why our law has historically permitted
> annulment of marriage for non-consummation, but not for infertility; and
> why acts of sodomy, even between legally wed spouses, have never been
> recognized as consummating marriages.
>
> Only this understanding makes sense of all the norms—annulability for
> non-consummation, the pledge of permanence, monogamy, sexual
> exclusivity—that shape marriage as we know it and that our law reflects.
> And only this view can explain why the state should regulate marriage (as
> opposed to ordinary friendships) at all—to make it more likely that,
> wherever possible, children are reared in the context of the bond between
> the parents whose sexual union gave them life.
>
> If marriage is redefined, its connection to organic bodily union—and thus
> to procreation—will be undermined. It will increasingly be understood as
> an emotional union for the sake of adult satisfaction that is served by
> mutually agreeable sexual play. But there is no reason that primarily
> emotional unions like friendships should be permanent, exclusive, limited
> to two, or legally regulated at all. Thus, there will remain no principled
> basis for upholding marital norms like monogamy.
>
> A veneer of sentiment may prevent these norms from collapsing—but only
> temporarily. The marriage culture, already wounded by widespread divorce,
> nonmarital cohabitation and out-of-wedlock childbearing will fare no
> better than it has in those European societies that were in the vanguard
> of sexual “enlightenment.” And the primary victims of a weakened marriage
> culture are always children and those in the poorest, most vulnerable
> sectors of society.
>
> Candid and clear-thinking advocates of redefining marriage recognize that
> doing so entails abandoning norms such as monogamy. In a 2006 statement
> entitled “Beyond Same-Sex Marriage,” over 300 lesbian, gay, and allied
> activists, educators, lawyers, and community organizers—including Gloria
> Steinem, Barbara Ehrenreich, and prominent Yale, Columbia and Georgetown
> professors—call for legally recognizing multiple sex partner
> (“polyamorous”) relationships. Their logic is unassailable once the
> historic definition of marriage is overthrown.
>
> Is this a red herring? This week’s Newsweek reports more than 500,000
> polyamorous households in the U.S.
>
> So, before judging whether traditional marriage laws should be junked, we
> must decide what marriage is. It is this crucial and logically prior
> question that some want to shuffle off stage.
>
> Because marriage has already been deeply wounded, some say that redefining
> it will do no additional harm. I disagree. We should strengthen, not
> redefine, marriage. But whatever one’s view, surely it is the people, not
> the courts, who should debate and decide. For reasons of both principle
> and prudence, the issue should be settled by democratic means, not by what
> Justice Byron White, in his dissent in Roe, called an “act of raw judicial
> power.”
>
> Mr. George is professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University and
> founder of the American Principles Project
> (www.americanprinciplesproject.org).
>

Happiness is me!

2009-08-09T07:02:00.000-07:00

I'm so happy. I have discovered that what I have perceived as more difficult for myself, than things seemed for other has a factual foundation! I have felt that in areas like energy levels, occasional "brain fog", cravings for bakery goods and starchy foods in general, and not being able to lose weight and keep it off, I have had more difficulty that the average person.

I found a book about Carbohydrate craving by a married couple, named Heller, both with PHDs. There was a test in the book, which I showed up as a "severe carb. craver". I felt like it was describing my life.

I have now been on the eating plan for three weeks, and I have lost nine lbs. What makes me even MORE happy is that I have had MORE energy than usual by a great amount, and so I have gotten a LOT more done on my to do lists. I have taken about six less naps a week. I have even been able to consider and understand more complicated things, like my computer problems, and even my computer guru son commented that I was not being overwhelmed when he explained, but I was asking appropriate questions which showed I understood. He was surprised and happy for me, and it was even my "usual nap (read pass out) time". I also have not been as hungry as I usually am when I would eat a normal "balanced" diet!

I even sat in the car, an hour late for my lunch, for an hour as we drove home, with my husband eating a Costco blueberry muffin right at my elbow, and the whole tray right on the seat behind me and I didn't even crave any! It was easy!

One thing that helps is that each day I get to have a "reward meal" where after I eat a salad, and divide a dinner plate up into thirds, with the *amount* of food in each 1/3 the same (forget counting calories or points etc!). So in 1/3 of the plate is the carb reducing protein (just about any meat, or cheese or tofu-- cooked any way except breaded) and 1/3 of the plate for a carb. reducing vegetable-- the non starchy kind-- (you can see the lists on line I think, and I may put the lists on here later) so it is like fresh or frozen veggies of green beans, celery, cucumber, sprouts, broccoli.----- THEN in the last 1/3 of the plate, I get to have **WHATEVER** carb rich thing I want.

This last 1/3 amount of ANYTHING I want, makes it so I don't feel deprived! :) Mostly I have some bakery goodie, like Costco chocolate muffins with ice cream, or I have pie, once I had two Dove candy bars etc! ) I know I can save any goodie that I would have eaten during the day, until my reward meal that evening (or it could be any time of day, but not before 24 hours of the last rewards meal.

We are also to drink the recommended amount of water- 6-8 glasses a day. So when I drink my water whenever I am wondering if I am getting hungry-- I usually find I was REALLY just thirsty! I try to drink my water before my meals.

I find that I think and crave food so much less-- it is amazing. I'm so happy just working away at my lists of to dos. I have also now with losing the nine pounds been able to go get 1/2 of my too small clothing and it fits! :)

How this all works is because of my body over producing insulin-- which is the body chemical that makes us hungry. Also my cells getting insulin resistant, and my family history of having "thrifty genes". Stress also plays a large part too.

Insulin production is prompted in the body by eating carb rich foods, so when I am not "pushing that button" but once a day, and the reward meal is to be totally consumed within one hour of time- it is allowed and even encouraged to be dormant.

I have said in the past that it seemed that if I would just SEE food, that I would gain weight. This has now proven true-- that for many people if they see or even THINK of food, their body assumes that it will be getting some soon, and so it pumps in the insulin (making us hungry!-- and begins converting any blood sugar into FAT-- as my cells are resistant to burning it like they should! -- It was true!!

Anyway, I urge any of you if you think you may be a carb craver, to check it out!

I also always felt it was easier to fast on Fast Sunday-- than to not have a morning snack or just miss a regular meal on any other day, and I would even feel hungry at 9:30 or 10 after having a BIG breakfast, than I would on Fast Sunday (when we have no breakfast and no lunch!). I complained to my dear husband that I felt better when I didn't even eat ANYTHING than I did to eat a day of "balanced" meals! It was true!

He and I could eat the same foods and amounts, I would still be hungry later and I would gain weight without eating any more, and even by eating LESS than he did!

Another thing the diet said to do was to avoid MSG-- like the plague! It CAUSES hunger, and appetite-- which is why so many love Chinese foods, and are hungry so soon after eating a ton! That even if they don't PUT MSG in the foods-- it IS in the soy sauce and the bean curd naturally, and is even a "Natural flavors" in MANY processed foods. So the best is to make your own foods and buy frozen but unprocessed foods, and organic of course is the best of the best.

Also avoid High fructose corn syrups and sugars in all forms (except for your 1/3 plate reward meal) and then it is still best to avoid the High Fru. stuff-- which also causes hunger/appetite! Caffine they said ALSO causes weight retention/gain!

Anyway-- I am pleased to share this with any-- as it has brought joy to my life. I feel like I could continue to eat this way the whole of the rest of my life, even if it didn't help me to lose weight.

I don't have to spend time cooking. I mostly just eat something like celery with cream cheese in it for breakfast (though I could have eggs like in an omelet etc) and for lunch a pure all beef hamburger patty, or slice of ham (not sugar cured) and a salad, and to eat out I have a grilled chicken salad (remove the carrots!) and I feel full and have energy and my thought process is working MUCH better! I feel that Heavenly Father helped me find that book in the thrift store, as I had prayed to find things I needed and not buy anything that I didn't need. May you be so blessed! Gramajane

What has been happening as I seek to follow what I believe is Gods will for me.

2009-07-08T04:48:00.000-07:00

So, I have been on a Facebook discussion forum "All Christians on Facebook" for months-- on a thread that was titled "Ask a Mormon"-- which single thread had over 6 thousand posts on it--

where also there were some posters on it with andti Mormon and or announced gay agendas-- who continuously posted in this thread that Mormons hated and promoted hate of gays--
and quoted things out of context and did all else they could "get away with" in attacking the church (and they got away with a lot-- though I did get to post the context-- and for any who would go back and read-- they could decide what was true.

and when I reported to the admin of the things said by this one poster

---who seemed to not have any work that he had to do to support the "gay family" he claimed--- ( I assume this from the amount of time he spent posting)

I was told that the admin. only saw a man defending himself and his "family" from the hate attacks of the Mormons church etc!! (a little prejudice had been shown by that admin before in my opinion against Mormons already)

This poster said things like

he refused to give any respect for any Mormon source or publication etc

The Mormons were murders who sent their gay youth to torture camps and didn't care about them-- even when they committed suicide--

and he linked to a site-- that said that Utah had the highest rate of youth suicide
--- which this poster claimed that they were Mormon gays who killed themselves-- and this poster claimed that the Mormons tried to hide this info-- and that Mormons considered gays less than human and didn't care if they died--

When I went to his link-- I discovered that the source for that info about the high rate of suicide was a ***MORMON*** newspaper-- The Deseret News!!

Also that the site/source did NOT specify any religion or sexual preference for any of the suicides--

which totally blew away his claim that
Mormons tried to hide such facts
that Mormons didn't care
that it was Mormon gay youth--

Then this poster still **KEPT** on posting more of these very same unfounded or out of context etc claims--

-- the claim for "murders" he sourced from the Mountain Meadows Massacare-- which was over 100 years ago-- and

the "gay torture camps" where Mormons "kidnapped" youth and killed them!!

This he sourced from a 30 years after the supposed fact-- reported in a gay site-- where one man claims that HE (at 15 years of age) asked for help for his same sex attraction-- and HE asked for his parents not to know-- so he had them told it was a Genealogy Camp--

and I understand that the procedures used at the psychology dept. of BYU were the accepted ones being used across the medical community of the whole USA and elsewhere at that time-- (and are now discontinued) and it was not substanciated that his claims were true either-- nor did he say he was kidnapped!

but this poster-- made it look like it was happening right now!!!

When I shared the facts about how "unsubstanciated and out of context" his claims were

and I also went to the site another poster claimed proved that homosexuality was inheriant at birth--

and showed that the source of the article for that
used for its studies-- outdated and unscientific "studies", some done in the 60s of groups of only 30 subjects-- where they supposedly looked in gay publications and wrote to them asking them if they had a twin who was seperated from them at birth-- and then mailed questionaris to the "twins" -- but the study still only found 66% of the "twins" who had same sex attraction-- and they acknowledged that they expected it should have shown 100% but that this amount still possibly showed a "link"-- etc

anyway-- it was not professional-- nor still did it prove anything!

Even they have shown that a tendency to anger may be found more in some twins and siblings and family histories-- yet still we expect them to work to not kill anyone! Just as some families have a tendency to become obese too-- we still have choices of what we put in our mouths and how much exercise we do etc.

Anyway-- one of the very admin of the All Christians on Facebook-- who I believe had consistently never found anything that others said to me to break the rules of attacking

-- but once he got mixed up in a quote I sent to be checked for breaking the rules-- thinking what the other person said was me saying it-- then he warned ME that I was being "rude and insulting"

and then a third poster pointed out that he had gotten it wrong

-- that I didn't call names or use such langauage-- but the admin. never appologized to me nor gave the other who DID say those things to me-- any warning! Oh- well. I just gave up reporting-- as also then they began claiming that I reported anyone who didn't agree with me!!

So-- after I had shared the facts about that it was an LDS publication that was the call to help with the youth suicides etc 9which showed LDS do care and do treat all youth with the same care!! etc)

and about the non professional "study" about gays-- that they claimed as proof--

then the poster who had posted again and again the unfounded claims-- even starting a whole thread about Mormon Gay torture camps!!!

He also reported me to the local admin! out of context and with grat "spin"

-- and said I said other terrible things (no quotes to prove it either)
and said someone should ban me from being a foster parent
-- and that I "was a dangerous woman"...

still--- no admin-- gave HIM any warning-- !!!-- and it was in their very thread!!!

And then the whole "Ask a Mormon" thread "disappeared

-- right when the (sympathetic to the gay guy) admin. was deleting another--

When I took the quotes of the "gay" guy-- that he posted against me to the admin (where we are not to have discussions) to a new topic thread that I made

-- "Ask LDS (Mormon) Gramajane"--

where I then posted them and explained and got to defend myself
-- putting the one quote in context
-- and showing that he didn't even have any quotes for the other awful things he said etc--

then the "gay sympathtic" admin sait that my topic was not approrpate!!! ????

Apparently the "gay guy" got to say whatever about me-- but I couln't defend??!!!

and the next thing I knew my access was limited on the whole forum
-- except to the admin-- where I posted asking for what I did wrong-- was I to delet my opening thread post? etc but I got no answer

(I have since deleted the opening post-- just in case -- though the "gay guys" attacks I believe are still in the admin area-- just my defense is not :( )

then today even my posts to the admin in their area were missing and my ability to post there was also gone--

and I got no warning-- nor was I breaking any rules that I know of.

--- so now it looks like "field of labor" is being changed-- and as I believe that God can and will take all things and turn them to the good of them that love the Lord (which I do) then it will be ok. May God bless us all to do His will. Gramajane

update on following Jesus Christ- to do the Fathers's will

2009-06-14T01:04:00.001-07:00

So-- tonight we just recieved four siblings age 15-10 in foster care respite, their first placement-- and just temp. with us, and tomorrow we will also add a seperate respite placement of a 13 year old boy.

I am seeking to know what Heavenly Father would have me (us=my dear husband and I) do-- and it looks like we just got a "big" answer! I'm praying for guidance and help for them and for us from the Father of us all! Gramajane

Scripture Mastery- LDS H.S. Seminary-- N.T.

2009-06-04T13:43:00.000-07:00

New Testament

1. light of the world Matthew 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
2. two masters Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
3. thou art Christ- rock Matthew 16:15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
4. least of these 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.
5. handle me,Luke 24:36 ¶ And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. 37 But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.
38 And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.
6. born of water & spirit John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
7. do God’s will –know doctrine John 7:17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
8. other sheep John 10:16 16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
9. if ye love me John 14:15 ¶ If ye love me, keep my commandments.
10. know the only true God John 17:3 3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
11. Godhead Acts 7:55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
12. not ashamed Romans 1:16 ¶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
13. Escape temptation 1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
14. Christ overcame Fall 1 Corinthians 15:20 ¶ But now is Christ risen from the dead, [and] become the firstfruits of them that slept. 21 For since by man [came] death, by man [came] also the resurrection of the dead.
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
15. Baptism for dead 1 Corinthians 15:29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?
16. Degrees of glory 1 Corinthians 15:40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.
17. Perfect the Saints Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we [henceforth] be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, [and] cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
18. Apostasy foretold 2 Thessalonians 2:1 ¶ NOW we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 ¶ Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
19. Perilous times 2 Timothy 3:1 ¶ THIS know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
20. Scrip. by inspiration 2 Timothy 3:16 All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
21. Priesthood conferred Hebrews 5:4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.
22. lack wisdom 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. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
23 Faith without works James 2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. 18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
24. Restoration foretold Revelation 14:6 ¶ And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, .
25. Judged out of books Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

Scripture Mastery LDS H.S. Seminary- Doc&Cov/Church History

2009-06-04T13:42:00.000-07:00

1. search these comm.-D&C 1:38-38--- 37 Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled. 38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.
2. spirit of revelation- D&C 8:2-3-- 2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart. 3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.
3. pray always- D&C 10:5 Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work.
4. gods’ greatest gift- D&C 14:7 7 And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God.
5. worth of souls- D&C 18:10, 15-16 ---10 Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; 15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! 16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!
6. Christ suffered for us- D&C 19:16-19--- 16 For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent; 17 But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I; 18 Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit--and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink-- 19 Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men.
7. song of righteous = prayer- D&C 25:12 For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.
8. Anxiously engaged in good- D&C 58:26-27--- 26 For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward. 27 Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
9. repentant are forgiven- D&C 58:42-43--- 42 Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more. 43 By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins--behold, he will confess them and forsake them.
10. Keep Sabbath holy- D&C 59:9-10---9 And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day; 10 For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High;
11. forgive one another-D&C 64:9-10 --- 9 Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin. 10. I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men. 11 And ye ought to say in your hearts--let God judge between me & thee, & reward thee according to thy deeds.
12. tithed not burned- D&C 64:23 Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming.
13. J.S. & S.R.. saw Jesus --D&C 76:22-24 ---22 And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all which we give of him: That he lives! 23 For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father-- 24 That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.
14. Greater light/>condemnation- D&C 82:3 For of him unto whom much is given much is required; and he who sins against the greater light shall receive the greater condemnation.
15. Lord bound>obey- D&C 82:10 I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.

16. Oath & cov. priesthood- D&C 84:33-39 ---33 For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies. 34 They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God. 35 And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord; 36 For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me; 37 And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father; 38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him. 39 And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
17. love one another- D&C 88:123 See that ye love one another; cease to be covetous; learn to impart one to another as the gospel requires. 124 Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated.
18. word of wisdom- D&C 89:18-21 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; 19 And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; 20 And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.
19. many called, few- D&C 121:34-36 34 Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen? 35 Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson-- 36 That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.
20. knowl. Rises in Res.- D&C 130:18-19 18 Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. 19 And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.
21. obedience to law= blessings- D&C 130:20-21 20 There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated-- 21 And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.
22. Father & Son bodies- D&C 130:22-23 22 The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us. 23 A man may receive the Holy Ghost, and it may descend upon him and not tarry with him.
23. cov. of marriage- D&C 131:1-4 1 IN the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees;
2 And in order to obtain the highest, a man must enter into this order of the priesthood [meaning the new and everlasting covenant of marriage]; 3 And if he does not, he cannot obtain it. 4 He may enter into the other, but that is the end of his kingdom; he cannot have an increase.
24. heirs celestial - D&C 137:7-10 7 Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying: All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; 8 Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom; 9 For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts. 10 And I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.
25. The First Vision- Joseph Smith History 1:15-20
15 After I had retired to the place where I had previously designed to go, having looked around me, and finding myself alone, I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction.
16 But, exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction--not to an imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the unseen world, who had such marvelous power as I had never before felt in any being--just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.
17 It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other--This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!
18 My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)--and which I should join.
19 I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: "they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof."
20 He again forbade me to join with any of them; and many other things did he say unto me, which I cannot write at this time. When I came to myself again, I found myself lying on my back, looking up into heaven. When the light had departed, I had no strength; but soon recovering in some degree, I went home. And as I leaned up to the fireplace, mother inquired what the matter was. I replied, "Never mind, all is well--I am well enough off." I then said to my mother, "I have learned for myself that Presbyterianism is not true." It seems as though the adversary was aware, at a very early period of my life, that I was destined to prove a disturber and an annoyer of his kingdom; else why should the powers of darkness combine against me? Why the opposition and persecution that arose against me, almost in my infancy?

scripture mastery LDS H.S. seminary OT

2009-06-04T13:41:00.000-07:00

1. Gods’ work- Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work & my glory--to bring to pass the immortality & eternal life of man.
2. Zion people- Moses 7:18 And the Lord called his people ZION, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.
3. Noble & great- Abraham 3:22 Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
23 And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.
4. Gods’ image- Genesis 1:26 ¶ And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
5. Joseph fled- Genesis 39:99 [There is] none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou [art] his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
6. 10 Com.- Exodus 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me; 6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. 7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. 8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:10 But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy aidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: 11 For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.12 ¶ Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. 13 Thou shalt not kill. 14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 15 Thou shalt not steal.
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that [is] thy neighbour's.
7. face to face- Exodus 33:11And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend...
8. love neighbor- Leviticus 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I [am] the LORD.
9.covenant marriage- Deuteronomy 7:3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. 4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.
10. Meditate on scrip- Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
11. Choose serve- Joshua 24:15 ¶ And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that [were] on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
12. looketh on heart- 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for [the LORD seeth] not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.
13. Redeemer lives- Job 19:25-26 For I know [that] my redeemer liveth, and [that] he shall stand at the latter [day] upon the earth: 26 And [though] after my skin [worms] destroy this [body], yet in my flesh shall I see God:
14. Clean hands- Psalms 24:3-4 ¶ Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He that hath clean hands, & a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
15. Trust Lord- Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own under-standing. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
16. sins scarlet- Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
17. marvelous-Isaiah 29:13-14 Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near [me] with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: 14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, [even] a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise [men] shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent [men] shall be hid.
18. Christ suffered sins-Isaiah 53:3-5 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.
4 ¶ Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he [was] wounded for our transgressions, [he was] bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace [was] upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
19. Gods ways--Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
20. send miss.- Jeremiah 16:16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.
21. scrip. one in hand- Ezekiel 37:15-17 ¶ The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 16 Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, & write upon it, For Judah, & for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, & write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, & for all the house of Israel his companions:
17 And join them one to another into one stick; & they shall become one in thine hand.
22. stone cut- Daniel 2:44-45 44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, [but] it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream [is] certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
23. . secrets to prop.- Amos 3:7 7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
24. rob God? -Malachi 3:8-10 8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. 9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
25. hearts to fathers- Malachi 4:5-6 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

2009-06-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

I thought I would post the scriptures mastery list from LDS High School Seminary-- there are 15 for each of four years-- 1. OT, 2. NT. 3. BofM, 4, Doc & Cov /church history

this one is for the Book of Mormon

1. go and do- 1 Nephi 3:7 7 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.
2. liken all scrip.- 1 Nephi 19:23 23 And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning.
3. Adam fell that men- 2 Nephi 2:25 25 Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.
4. free to choose- 2 Nephi 2:27 27 Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
5. learning good if follow- 2 Nephi 9:28-29 28 O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish. 29 But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God.
6. not justify any sin- 2 Nephi 28:7-9 7 Yea, and there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us. 8 And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God--he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God. 9 Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.
7. feast on words Christ- 2 Nephi 32:3 3 Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.
8. Spirit teaches to pray- 2 Nephi 32:8-9 8 And now, my beloved brethren, I perceive that ye ponder still in your hearts; and it grieveth me that I must speak concerning this thing. For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray. 9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.
9. seek 1st Gods’ kingdom - Jacob 2:18-19 18 But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.
19 And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good--to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.
10. serv. others serves God -Mosiah 2:17 17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
11. Nat. man God’s enemy- Mosiah 3:19 19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.
12. watch thoughts-Mosiah 4:30 30 But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not.
13. Faith not perfect knowledge- Alma 32:21 21 And now as I said concerning faith--faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.

14. not procrast. repentance-Alma 34:32-34 32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.
33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.
34 Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.
15. small things> great things- Alma 37:6-7 6 Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise. 7 And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bringeth about the salvation of many souls.
16. learn early keep com. Alma 37:35 35 O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God.
17. wicked never happiness- Alma 41:10 10 Do not suppose, because it has been spoken concerning restoration, that ye shall be restored from sin to happiness. Behold, I say unto you, wickedness never was happiness.
18. Rock of our Redeemer- Helaman 5:1212 And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery & endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.
19. Father of contention- 3 Nephi 11:29 29 For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
20. Be as Jesus- 3 Nephi 27:27 27 And know ye that ye shall be judges of this people, according to the judgment which I shall give unto you, which shall be just. Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.
21. witness after trial faith- Ether 12:6 6 And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.
22. weak things strong- Ether 12:27 27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.
23. way to judge- Moroni 7:16-17 16 For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God. 17 But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him.
24. Charity suffereth long- Moroni 7:45 45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
25. Holy Ghost reveals truth- Moroni 10:4-5 4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

Castle for Sale-- English Tudor w Tower- 5,000+ sq.ft.

2009-05-29T10:17:00.000-07:00

We do have our "Castle for Sale"

"Each Mans' home is his castle
True love makes a Queen of his wife
All Gods' children are royal when
The light of the Lord fills your life"

You can see a virtural tour on ReMax Sequim Washington- realtor is Carrie Millet- it is on her "cream puffs" with it listed 2 ways-- the castle with 20 acres of forested hill with view over the Straits of Juan de Fuca to Victoria.
There are five levels in the castle with 20 rooms, (5 bedrooms 4 bathrooms) a much used intercom system, a central vac. system, some 12' high ceilings & 1 secret door to a hidden room. Extra insulation in all interior floors, ceilings & walls, individual electric wall heaters in all bedrooms & bathrooms. Natural light in all rooms except the dungeon.

1.West bedrm main fl., 1 West window, 1 to South, 2 closets & cool curved wall
2.East bedrm on main fl., 1 East window, & one larger to South, 1 HUGE closet
3.North bedrm 2nd fl., North bay window, storage loft(carpet/sheetrocked/light)
4.South bedrm 2nd fl., South bay window,walk in closet, 2 storage lofts (")
5.Master Suite, all catherdral celings, huge fan, dormor window to South, 2 windows to North, sliding doors to deck, walk thru closet to private bath, side storage with
doors and shelves, second closet, sm loft behind it, 2nd sm. loft (all lofts
carpeted, sheet rocked, painted and lighted)
6.Attic in T shape, 4 directional lighting, from 2 windows & 2 sky lights, with
heat pumpcooling, intercolm, vacuum port, laundry chute, sleeps 5
7.Tower has two long windows to the North water view and sleeps one
8.Main floor bath, sink divided from tub/toilet by door, heat lamp, window over tub
9.High bath, large sink area divided from tub/toilet by door, heat lamp, tub window
10.Master Bath, window to North, oversize jacuzzi tub, chandileer, corian counter
sink, cathedral ceilings, pocket doors between bath, dressing area and bedroom.
Master dressing/closet- cathedral ceiling, 2 sky lights with shades, chandileer
11.Main entry, 2 long windows to front porch,2 closets, bench/storage, wainscotting,
large brass chandileer, rounded top of custom thick door, door knocker, peep hole
and spiral stairs are real wood wainscoated up and down, with 3rd story stair
free standing to tower
12.Library/front room, bay window to South with seat/storage, pocket door from
main entry, and one way view glass filmed sliding doors to formal dining rm.
13.Formal dining room, bay window to North with full window seat/storage
14.Family room, 2 picture windows to North, 1 sliding large window to East, free
standing wood stove with blower on huge natural river stone hearth, water pipes
through it in winter to pre-heat water, enclosed wood storage with outside 2nd.
entrance by West exit door to the family porch & covered carport/wood storage.
15.Great Hall, East window slides, 2 North windows slide, 12' ceilings, corner river
stone fireplace to ceiling(with forced air fan, & huge mantel, air tight firedoor
with window, walls are natural cedar, 3 wrought iron chandileers, curved corner.
16.Home theater, 12' shelved, play room and fall out shelter!
17.Low 3/4 bath, brick walls, between great hall and theater thru under stair hall
18.Hidden room & dungeon off Home theater/Great Hall,shelves, chandileers, bar
19.Kitchen open to dining room while the upper cabinets & drawers over the sink
open to both sides to set the table easily & family room, with built in breakfast
barstools, center island stove, real chopping block counter & custom vent hood.
20.Craft/sewing room is off the end of the dining room with view of great room
& view to mudroom/pantry with door to 2 car attached garage for depositing food in
freezer or other groceries to shelves, and removing family coats and shoes etc

*** Many "green" living features designed in-- eg. the wood stove also pre heats the water in winter, heatpump in the attic cools house in summer & pre heats the water.

We had the house built in 1986 for our family of eight-- five of our own biological children and then we did foster care for 10 years. I wish we didn't have to sell our castle, but we only have 2 years to pay off the mortgage or they will forclose. It is a weird deal.

Reluctently we had put the castle as colateral on a business loan-- and then the business was taken over by an Alaska Native Corp. (they gave us no money but were supposed to pay the debts and indemnify us -take our house off the loan- but they illegally ran the busines into bankruptcy and then dropped it.

We had been so busy working ON the fish processing business in AK (with the machine my husband invented--only machines in the WORLD that can pinbone/fillet a FRESH wild salmon in seconds!) -- that we had neglected to make sure the bank had followed through to take our home off the loan. They didn't do it.

The bank felt that they could easier get out home, as they still had the note, than get any money out of the Alaska Native Corp. (who claimed poverty-- but the fish processing had been ahead of schedule to bring in money!). The bank also came after us. They first sold (= gave away for about pennies on the dollor) our corp. huge fish processor ship "The New West", our small private processor ship "The Wild Salmon" and our own personal fishing Seiner "The Order of Magnitude" (it *had* a turbine & water jet in it!-- fastest fishing seiner in the world!) --- which I believe actually paid back the bank all the money the corp. had borrowed from them.

But they still came after us and we fought them, as we were supposed to be indemnified! We tried to get it to court for over a year-- but they had multiple lawyers on their payroll-- so it cost them nothing to stall and stall and keep running us in circles and running up "our" lawyers bills-- till when our lawyers bill was over 140 thou. we mediated out-- by giving them a mortgage our home, which had been all paid off years before. :(

It is a crying shame that justice in the USA is NOT done-- it is the guys with the deep pockets that can ruin the honest guys who never can get them to court!!!

Still I feel to remember that the earth is the Lords' and we are really only stewards-- so we have been working for 2 years to sell our castle, with no doable offers yet (one that would have had us *paying* about 40 thou- to "give it away".

We are trying every idea we can think of, so we are presently looking into if it is possible to make it a time share property-- where others would pay for a share of the castle, (paying off the mortgae in one lump to stop the acurring interest!) and have time to stay in it.

We have been setting it up with the staging and other supplies so we could make it a Vacation Rental-- but that will not bring in enough soon enough to stop the foreclosure. We are even offering it *with* all the castle decor & furniture!

Anyway-- I wish that our castle could at least be sold for a family to grow up in or for weddings, or reunions, or retreats or seminars etc. It does not seem right for the illegal greedy bank to get it! :( We keep seeking to know what God would have us do with it, and try not to worry about what may happen. May Gods' will be done! Gramajane

2009-05-28T06:56:00.001-07:00

that poem was by Nixon Waterman --

2009-05-28T06:53:00.000-07:00

TO KNOW ALL IS TO FORGIVE ALL

If I knew you and you knew me –
If both of us could clearly see,
And with an inner sight divine
The meaning of your heart and mine –
I'm sure that we would differ less
And clasp our hands in friendliness;
Our thoughts would pleasantly agree
If I knew you, and you knew me.

EX- POW on Day of Prayer program- art. from Meridian Magazine

2009-05-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

(Gramajane says this is a great read! :)

PROVO — Nicknamed "Lucky" during his seven years in Hanoi as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, Larry Chesley found another source for the series of life-sustaining miracles he experienced.

Even during the darkest days, when he was racked with pain unless he passed out briefly, experienced stretches of three or four sleepless days and lost 65 pounds, "never once did I say I wanted to die," Chesley said. "I didn't want to die. I wanted to come home, and I knew with God's help, I would."

Chesley — a retired lieutenant colonel who later served as a state senator in Arizona and authored a book on his POW experiences — was the keynote speaker at Thursday night's Utah Valley National Day of Prayer Commemoration at the Provo LDS Tabernacle.

Prayers and scriptures were offered by leaders of a number of different faiths, including Seventh-day Adventist, Hare Krishna, United Church of Christ and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Prayer trees were stationed outside several of the tabernacle's entrances and at the front of the rostrum.

When his jet was shot down on April 16, 1966, on the 76th of his required 100 missions, Chesley — a member of the LDS Church — broke three vertebrae while ejecting, eventually regaining consciousness while parachuting to the ground before being stripped to his underwear and socks after being captured.

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Anticipating a long hike, he first prayed for his boots — they were returned within a minute. He later in prison saw fellow prisoners who were forced to hike barefoot — "the meat was stripped off the bones of their feet," he recalled.

At one time during his 21-day delivery from his capture point to Hanoi, Chesley said prayers when he suffered from paralysis from the waist down and had no feeling in his arms and hands, when he was being constantly beaten by a ruthless guard, and when he was tied awkwardly and painfully in the back of a transport truck.

Feeling was restored in his body, he never saw the guard again, and the knot in the rope loosened — "within 24 hours, I had asked for three little, simple things, and God had given me all three," he said.

Other instances of answered prayers included an established form of tap-code communications — "really, truly a godsend" — among U.S. prisoners and the time his cellmate, Jim Ray, threw out a guard that was attacking Chesley.

He and his roommate prayed before and after an English-speaking guard acknowledged the broken rule of attacking a guard and the impending punishment. The next day, the punishment given to Ray was simply standing in a corner for one minute.

"Jim Ray, a Baptist, and Larry Chesley, a Mormon, believed in a God that can soften the hearts of the enemy," Chesley said.

The National Day of Prayer was established by an act of Congress in 1952, but national prayer days date back to 1775.

In her welcoming address, Chaplain Linda Walton of the Utah Valley University Interfaith Student Association said President Barack Obama had recognized the day with a national proclamation, which included calling attention to the importance of the Golden Rule.

Acknowledging providence more than coincidence, Walton noted the evening's printed program listed Golden Rule-type scriptures or sayings from nine different religious groups — Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Baha'i, Buddhism, Hinduism, Native American Spirituality, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.

E-MAIL: taylor@desnews.com

"Black Latter-day Saints: A faith-Full History

2009-05-03T08:50:00.000-07:00

Black Latter-day Saints: A Faith-FULL History (this was on the FAIR site) its cool!
by Margaret Blair Young

[Editor's note: This was a graphics rich presentation. This transcript does not include slides from the presentation.]

Let me just quickly tell you before my friend Richard needs to leave. Richard Dutcher you may know as the producer/director/writer and star of God's Army and also Brigham City (which was a movie that my husband just absolutely loves, that was one of the great ones) but we are working on a documentary about blacks and the LDS Church and if you're interesting, Richard can give you information--he's down there; and Robert Foster who is our ASBYU [Associated Students of Brigham Young University] president from last year can give you information about that. The flyer itself is just really cool and you can certainly have one of those. It promises to be a really- I'm just- I'm very excited about the people who are working on it and the aims of it. I think it's going to be a very worthy project.1

The title I've given this presentation is "Blacks in LDS History: A Faith-FULL History". We'll talk a little bit about some of the issues that we come across when people describe us. I recently looked at the Krakauer book to see what he said about race--because I knew that he was going to bring that up--and sure enough he's got it that blacks were never given any rights in the Church; that there was discrimination until 1978 when it was suddenly lifted.

Let me just sort of open things up a little bit. How early do we have African-American converts to the Church? Just throw out a guess-

I actually heard the right number: 1832 when Elijah Abel (Br. Abel's right there2) was baptized by Ezekiel Roberts and he actually did hold the priesthood and was even a member of the Third Quorum of the Seventy--that was never changed. He has a most interesting obituary that talks about his certification as a seventy and his recertification as a seventy. It says, Elijah Abel died consequent to "old age and debility" after serving his third mission for the Church.

He was the first undertaker in Nauvoo--actually assigned that by Joseph Smith; given that assignment because Elijah was a carpenter and carpenters traditionally did those jobs. You can imagine that a carpenter would know how to build a coffin. Carpenters also did a lot of upholstery. I went back to some of the books of the time to look at advertisements for carpenters and they'll say, 'Upholstery, furniture, coffins' the whole thing. And so Elijah Abel was one of the founding members of the carpenter society of Nauvoo and the first undertaker.

We know that he was at the bedside of father Smith at father Smith's passing. And that must have been very, very tender for him. The books that Darius and I have written take some liberties so we put them in- I'd call them historical 'faction' because we have been really researching hard to try and keep things as accurate as possible but obviously we have to fill in the blanks periodically.

We don't have a written history by Elijah Abel--we do by another woman, Jane Manning James, another black convert--so we look at the records and what other people say, mentions of Elijah Abel in the history of the Church and from that sort of gather what was happening in his life and what his contributions were. We know about his missionary service. We certainly know the esteem in which he was held.

The fact that he was a member of the Third Quorum of the Seventy and that was verified for him in 1877 that indeed that calling had never been changed.

Let's just do a couple of other word definitions because one of the things that we come across in literature about blacks and the Church is the word 'curse'. So let's- and I should tell you that it goes beyond blacks. I taught Spanish Institute for five years and my students would read in the Book of Mormon about a curse and ask if they were under some sort of a curse.

So what's the definition of a curse? (Are you feeling like you're in Sunday School? (Laughter)) Well etymologically a curse is a separation--a separation of God from men.

So how do you perpetuate a curse generation through generation? If a generation or a lineage is going to be cursed, how will that happen? Hatred will do it. Any false tradition will do it. That's maybe the biggest teaching of the Book of Mormon.

If you look at the Book of Mormon, if you just- if you wanted to read it just as a text about race you actually would find some remarkable things. You would find the division of the races possibly being pretty superficial. It may deal simply with lifestyle where you have one- they become a race, the Lamanites living outside as savages, and you have kind of an 'indoor people'. Hugh Nibley talks about this a little bit in some of his books. But eventually it becomes a full-fledged two races opposed to each other but it's not real hard for the races to shift sides and then we get the righteous dark-skinned people, righteous Lamanites, the people of Ammon--some remarkable things, Samuel the Lamanite.

And there's no mention of- 'and his skin turned color' but the curse is not there and there is mention of "they became a righteous people" (Alma 19:35) and they were no longer cursed. My interpretation is that the curse in the separation from God is lifted and the greatest example is in 4 Nephi where there are no -ites3 among them. They're of one heart and of one mind, all together in Christ and what changes it? Exactly what we know will change it--they return to their divisions.

They return to the rich being very proud of their wealth; the poor becoming downtrodden and the -ites come back. There's a whole scripture that goes through the new -ites, the new divisions that we will have and ultimately it ends in the destruction of one of the peoples--not the utter destruction but pretty close.

Probably the greatest theme- I think my very favorite scripture that I remember teaching in Spanish many years ago in Mexico that says, it's in the very last of the Book of Mormon quoting Isaiah:

And awake, and arise from the dust ... and put on thy beautiful garments ... that thou mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled. (Moroni 10:31)

Those covenants are not race specific, they are righteousness specific; those who choose to follow God will be a chosen people. And then the next verse says, "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him", and so the invitation goes out to all and of course we've already--in 2 Nephi 26--we've already had the scripture "all are alike unto God" and all are invited to partake "black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen" and all are alike unto God. (verse 33) It becomes thematic throughout the whole Book of Mormon.

So then we get to deal with our own history and I'm not going to go into- I think Armand Mauss is going to be talking a lot about the origins of the priesthood restriction. He'll be doing that tomorrow. I'm not going to talk about that; we can maybe field a couple of questions. My co-author will field questions with me at the right time. But I want to tell you about these people. I want to tell you about the remarkable faith of the people that we have come to know.

The research for these books has been really, I would call it, miraculous. We just would have things drop into our laps. Darius met a man in a temple who said, 'You're working on those books about the black pioneers.' There's this black man, some of you may have heard of Abner Howell--if you've read our third book you've heard of him. He said, 'He left me all of his life's possessions, his patriarchal blessing, a letter from LeGrand Richards,' you know remarkable things, 'would you like those?'

And he came to my office where Darius and I were working and turned all of them over to us. Elder Marion D. Hanks took us through his house and just started pulling books off the shelves, 'I think you could use this, a book by John A. Widtsoe typewritten. I don't know if there is another copy in the world about his research on the issue.' And then a tape, made by a remarkable man who I'm going to tell you about later, Len Hope.

Over and over we would have these experiences, you know, a sudden email contact from somebody who apparently needed their story told or an ancestor's story. Somebody taking us aside and saying, 'I've got all of these artifacts of Green Flake and did you know that my great-grandfather was at this pioneer appreciation day where Green Flake spoke and I have the words.'

All of a sudden we're accessing stuff that I've never seen any place else and it really was the windows of heaven. It has been an absolutely remarkable project.

So let me tell you about- let's move on to the next one, you've seen Elijah, I think the big thing I want you to notice about him is his race. Anybody have any questions? Is there a chance that he's white? Probably not. Is this just somebody's depiction? I actually talked to Richard Van Wagoner who helped write A Book of Mormons with Steve Walker and said, 'Where did you get that?' And he said, 'We found it in a museum. The paper appears to be appropriately time-dated, we think this is an official likeness of Elijah Abel.' We know from census records that he was listed either as black or as mulatto, but certainly he was of African descent. There really was no question of that.

We want you to know what attention the Church has been paying to Elijah Abel and to some of our other pioneers. This is the Elijah Abel monument4, the Genesis Group--and we'll field questions about the Genesis Group--President Gray was just released as president after six years incredible years of service this past Sunday.

This is Elder Ballard with (the guy's whose name I don't remember), the Missouri Mormon Frontier Foundation, anyway this is the monument to Elijah Abel that we dedicated this past summer- last year that talks about who he was. It's right next to his grave in the Salt Lake Cemetery and mentions his priesthood, that he held it. And Elder Ballard spoke about it, he spoke about the priesthood revelation of 1978, paid tribute to this black man and did say that he was a black man--the reason I emphasize that is that there actually did arise some controversy over whether or not- people said well there were two Elijah Abels, one was white and one was black and there were some other things as soon as his race was discovered he was dropped from the quorum and so we just want to kind of put those to bed quickly and move on, don't need to spend a lot of time with them. If you want to go out to the Salt Lake Cemetery and find Elijah Abel, he's buried next to his wife Mary Ann, and the monument is right there beside him.

We had wonderful support from the Church. We've had general authorities present at a number of things where we've been able to pay tribute to our black pioneers.

Jane James is probably the most famous of the pioneers. How many of you have heard of Jane? But not everybody! Interesting.

This is her brother, his name was Isaac; we call him Lew in the books because her husband was also named Isaac and this is the best picture we have of Jane.5 There's another picture where she's with a lot of the pioneers but let me just give you sort of the basics of her life because what- my goal here has a fairly liberal focus--I just want to give you a sense of the black legacy in this Church. I can't do it in a full- I can't tell you everybody who joined the Church and recite their testimony but I can tell you of a few of them and then you consider that they are not the only ones.

Consider that all of us are dealing with a racist history in this nation. That at the time the Church was founded in 1830, at the time Elijah Abel joined in 1832 the Nat Turner case (1831) was fresh news. There was fear of slave uprisings, there was all sorts of fear of what was going to be happening because of the race issue all throughout the nation and we're not even going to go into what happened in Missouri with the driving out of the Latter-day Saint people and the association of the slavery issue with that.

But Jane Manning James came in contact with the missionaries, Charles Wandell (I'll mention him in case any of you are related) in Connecticut and became converted and in fact had a vision of Joseph Smith. And if you heard the dedication of the Nauvoo Temple by- when Elder Monson spoke on the Thursday (I didn't hear it), my husband came home just absolutely thrilled because he had quoted Jane Manning James; and it was from an interview she did with the young women in the Young Women's Journal where she said, 'I saw Joseph Smith's face, I saw it plain and I had to gather to Nauvoo.'

Now it wasn't easy for black people to go anywhere especially if you're moving from Connecticut which was a free state to Illinois where very recently we've had the execution of an abolitionist publisher, Elijah Lovejoy. And in fact they were stopped in Peoria, Illinois. Let me backtrack just a little bit to give you some of the most poignant parts of her life history.

They began walking from Wilton, Connecticut, intending on taking a canal boat from Buffalo, New York, but they were told they couldn't get on the canal boat unless they could present their money immediately, which they could not do. But again, it's- if the boat is to take on so many people of color we expect something a little different of you and it's certainly not uncommon in the time. So Jane says, 'So we began to walk. We walked 800 miles, we walked until the soles of our shoes wore out and we could see the blood- our footprints in blood on the snow. We knelt in prayer, "we asked God the Eternal Father to heal our feet. Our prayers were answered and our feet were healed forthwith. ...we went on our way" singing praises to God and thanking him for his goodness and mercy and healing our feet as he had.'6

That was her attitude. Shortly thereafter they were stopped by a sheriff who threatened to put them in jail unless they could show their free papers and she said the only papers we had were our membership records in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since they had never been slaves. Her mother had been a slave but Jane had not.

Then finally they came to Nauvoo and we don't know what all happened. She goes- she has one sentence where she says, 'We met much rebuff.' Certainly there must have been suspicion even from the Saints, we would hope that we would be better but we know what the times were like and they experienced some difficult things that she summarizes just in that phrase, 'We experienced much rebuff.'

And then finally Orson Spencer led them to the Mansion House where Joseph and Emma were living and interestingly, now you have you imagine they've walked 800 miles. We know that Jane did not have the clothes that she had planned on having, she had put her trunk of clothes on the boat in Buffalo, they hadn't arrived--they never did arrive in Nauvoo. So she's probably wearing the same dress she's been wearing for 800 miles through all of the- they've gone through rivers up to their necks, she talks about, they've slept outside where the snow would fall on their faces and here they are at the Mansion House. Emma Smith meets them at the door and says, 'Come in, come in all of you.' And these are from- these are the words from Jane's own life history.

So they went inside, Joseph Smith came down and said to some women in the parlor, 'We've got company come' and then invited this black family to come inside and told them, 'I want to hear about all of your trials.'

Jane was the spokesperson and Joseph Smith said to her, "You have been the head of this little band, haven't you!" and she said, 'I have, sir.'

Then, the way she puts it, 'I told him all we had experienced--and much more than I can now recount, as my memory has faded.' Some of us can identify with that.

Dr. Bernhisel was with him, Joseph Smith turned to Dr. Bernhisel and said, "Isn't that faith?" Dr. Bernhisel replied, 'I rather believe it is. I think if it had been me, I would have turned around and returned to my home!'

Of course her trials did not end there. Her husband left her for 20 years--returned, they were divorced but he died in her home and his funeral was held at her home. Not only that but she had begun petitioning for Temple blessings. Interestingly, the date of her first petition is the date of Elijah Abel's death. So we associate those two things together. Elijah Abel died Christmas day 1884, Jane James goes to John Taylor on that very same day--which we know from a letter written the 27th where she says, 'I called at your house last Thursday to have some conversation with you concerning my future salvation.' She goes on to petition for temple blessings saying, 'Inasmuch as this is the fulness of times and through Abraham's seed all mankind may be blessed is there no blessing for me?'

Well from that- that's only the beginning of the petitions that are going to go from president to president; she'll go to Zina Young; she'll go to John Taylor- she's already gone to John Taylor she'll go to Joseph F. Smith; she'll go to Wilford Woodruff's house, he will write about it in his journal. But after the death of her husband--and this is the man who abandoned her--she goes and asks if he can be adopted into Joseph Smith's family. She wants to be adopted, Emma had told her that Joseph had wanted her to be adopted as their child and so she not only asked for herself but asked for her husband.

This- I think you're not going to see this terribly well but I want to give you a sense of who Jane was. Of course that's me, that's my co-author, what you're seeing here is the monument7 we dedicated to Jane Manning James and I wish there were time to tell you about the day we dedicated this monument and the day before which was evidence of the bells of Hell. This must have been awfully important to have the things happen that happened for us to get this up!

David B. Haight presided at this, actually David Haight's ancestor Isaac Haight was in James' company and he talked about Jane Manning James and said, 'I know that she took care of my family because that's the kind of person she was.' What we've depicted here, and the sculpture is done by a man named Leroy Transfield, is Jane giving two pounds of flour to Eliza Partridge Lyman. We would not know of this event were it not for Eliza's journal and I love the way Eliza is so subtle sometimes. She talks about the California missionaries, Amasa Lyman, her husband, Porter Rockwell, (I just found out that one of my great-great grandfathers was in the group- great-great-great-) and she says, 'My husband has been called to go to California with,' and names everybody else, 'may the Lord bless and prosper them on their way. They left us nothing in the house nor any way to get it!' (Laughter) Now is that subtle?

Another she says that I love is, 'I do not think,' when she comes to Salt Lake, 'I do not think our enemies need disturb here. I do not believe they will envy us this locality.' (Laughter)

Anyway, two weeks later after she's put that entry, 'They left us nothing in the house nor any way to get it' she says, "Jane James, a colored woman, let me have two pounds of flour, it being about half she had." To me, this sculpture from a time we thought of what we ought to have pictured, this to me has been Joseph in the Old Testament who his own brothers didn't recognize, who they had harmed, who they had sought to kill or to enslave, and it was he who delivered them and told them that what they intended for evil, God meant for good. (Genesis 50:20)

To me this is another vision of Joseph and it's why we called the play, "I am Jane", the play about Jane Manning James. For me that's why that title was the chosen one because it harks back for some to the words, 'Brothers, "I am Joseph"' (Genesis 45:3) The first time he spoke to them in the language they all knew, the language of their childhood which acknowledged their common parentage and their brotherhood and gave him an opportunity to return good for evil. This to me is Joseph.

Let's go on to the next one, Green Flake. Now I don't know if you realize that there were three, they're called colored servants, if you go to the Brigham Young monument just west of the Salt Lake Temple and look at all of the pioneers listed, all of the names that you're very familiar with, and then there are three bracketed and it says "colored servants". And those three are Green Flake, Hark Lay and Oscar Crosby.

Green Flake was a wedding gift at age 10 with a young girl named Liz Flake, remarkable stories for both of them. Green was told that his mother had died--which was not true--they didn't want him running off to find her and I think that's one reason that his gravestone (which we'll show you in a second) says what it does. Family became very important to him. But I want to talk about him as a Mormon convert.

You may think that a slave would have been coerced to join the LDS Church, if his master did--and I don't know what the circumstances were I just know that in John Brown's journal it's recorded that one of the slave boys, Green, was baptized into the Church. What we do know is that he stuck with it. In fact, in Idaho he was called, 'the best damn missionary we have.'

He had gone to Idaho to call his son to repentance, his son had a little drinking problem, and Green Flake went up there and ended up dying in Idaho. His body was sent back to be buried next to his wife in the Union Cemetery.8 It was a good gravestone, I'll just tell you about it, you can go visit it in the Union Cemetery (the words are very hard to read on that picture anyway) the words that he chose and helped to carve on his gravestone are "In my Father's house are many mansions." And, as it was explained to me by a friend of his descendants, that was intended to be a message and an invitation to his children, that they did not to be separated as Green had been separated from his family; that the gospel in fact gave them the possibility of dwelling in a mansion on high.

Now, we come to Len Hope. We were so thrilled to get these pictures of Len Hope; this is Len and Mary, if you've read our books they don't come up until the third book. Do you recognize the young missionary with them? That's Marion D. Hanks.

I'm probably not going to get through the whole PowerPoint so let me just tell you Len's story because I think it's a really good place to finish up with, I was going to do a little warning of some of the literature that's out there. I'll just tell you to beware of the Elijah Abel Society; it is not what it pretends to be. If you find that on the Internet--and you will if you look up Elijah Abel or anything like it--it has an agenda and I had that included in the PowerPoint as a warning that there are some people out there who are coming across as great missionaries who actually have the agenda of talking about the curse of Cain and the official Church position on that is we do not know why the restriction existed and erase everything else. It should not be taught, that that is in the past. So we move on from that and I'm not even going go there, I'm going to finish up with this remarkable story of Len and Mary Hope.

Let me first of all just set the stage for you and let me do it with Len's own voice. (Can somebody turn on that CD?) This is Len. I just wanted you to hear his voice, he's a little hard to understand, that recording was made back in the 40s in Elder Hanks' living room when Len came to visit in Salt Lake City and we've tried to improve it, his accent is strong and the recording has- that's as much as we've been able to improve it.

But he talks about wanting to get religion. And joining the Baptist Church and then feeling, actually having a dream of himself being baptized again and realizing there was another baptism ahead of him.

When he read about the Holy Ghost, and he was a sharecropper's son, lived in a very isolated farmhouse, probably just a little cabin, a ramshackle shack that had corn stalks- he describes everything around the cabin, how it was all grown with- they didn't waste any of the soil so there wasn't a walkway leading up to it, there was just corn stalks and whatever else and nonetheless he could read and he had a Bible and he wanted to find out about the Holy Ghost because as he read in the scriptures he saw that the Holy Ghost could "bring all thing to your remembrance" and "teach you all things" (John 14:26) and as he put it, 'I thought if that gift was available, everyone ought to have it.'

So he made his way to a place where wanted to feel isolated and cast off so the Lord would take pity on him. What it was, was another sharecropper's cabin that had been long since abandoned, the roof was half torn off, the floor was mud and there Len Hope knelt and he was ready to tell the Lord that he would stay there until he died so that he could get the gift of the Holy Ghost but felt he shouldn't make that offer because what would his mother say when his body was discovered and he didn't want to bring that kind of grief.

But he did say that he would pray as long as it took and he prayed all day and all night long. Finally the rain started coming in and just- you can imagine the scene of this young black man, this is pre-World War I, praying for the gift of the Holy Ghost as did Enos in the Book of Mormon, all day and all night long as the rain is coming through, the floor is muddying his knees and finally he feels the strong impression, 'You will receive what you desire, go home.'

He goes home, he has to meet his mother; he has to explain where he's been. They make their peace and a few days later he comes in from working the fields and his sisters said, 'Some ministers brought you something.' He said he wondered why she thought it was for him, and the way he says, 'Now can you imagine those Latter-day Saint missionaries coming all the way out to our little cabin, they had never been out in this direction before.' The pamphlet they left was a tract by John Widtsoe called The Holy Ghost: Who is it, who is he and how does one receive the gift?

He made his way to the missionaries. He looked in Magnolia, Alabama, found the address of the missionaries and went and said, 'I'm ready to be baptized.' And they said, 'Don't you think you ought to know a little something about the religion first?' And so gave him a number of books, he had the Book of Mormon with him as he served in World War I and said, 'I felt that I was in a partnership with God and was preserved.' He came home a decorated war hero and then was baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost.

And he talked about how he had seen others cutting somersaults after they received the gift and he wanted to do something dynamic and jump up and shout and a missionary said, 'No, Br. Hope it don't come that way. The gift will come as you need it. You just keep doing what you need to be doing.'

The next part--and just think of this in the time, we have the rise of Ku Klux Klan, the production "The Birth of a Nation"9 and it's actually- in a re-release but right after World War I, the Ku Klux Klan is in its heyday and Len gets a visit. He's at his brother's house and the Knight Riders come, demand that Len come out to meet them and, imagine it, you know as a black person what this means. If there's a mob of Knight Riders telling you to come out and talk to them, you know that you're probably not going to live for very much longer.

They said, 'We aren't going to hurt him we just want to talk.' And Len, and this is in his recording said to his brother, 'I think if they wasn't going to hurt me they'd have left their guns at home.' (Laughter)

They have sawed-off shotguns, pistols, all manner of weaponry and as Len comes out the one in charge says, 'So what's this we hear here? You've gone over the seas or you joined this white church or you find out something about the white folk and now you think you can be one of them is that it?'

And Len said, 'No sir. I found out about this Church before I went over the sea and they agreed that I could be baptized.'

He then was told, 'You get your name scratched off that record or we will hang you by a tree and shoot you full of holes.'

So chagrined, Len Hope goes the next day to where they're holding District Conference and says that he's ready to see the missionaries with heads downcast, and instead, and I'm quoting, he says, 'I seen the beautifullest smiles you ever saw on Latter-day Saint faces and they said, 'Why Len, this is just the persecution of the devil. We'll scratch your name off the records if it will save your life, but you should know your name is written in the Book of the Lamb of God and it's written in Salt Lake City so what would you have us do?'' And Len told them to keep his name on the records.

He survived. He married Mary Hope, sadly they experienced what was common in the time when they moved to Cincinnati, just by Kentucky and when they went to Church the white members made it known that they did not want a black family present.

Soon after that, apparently the report that we got from Mark E. Petersen was that the white members told the branch president that they would quit coming if there were a black man present and so that's why we have Elder Hanks with Br. and Sis. Hope. The Hopes went once every three months to Church to pay their tithes and offerings. Every month on Fast Sunday, the missionaries, which included Marion D. Hanks, went to the Hope's home and gave them the sacrament and held a testimony meeting with them. 'There was music; ribs and homemade ice cream,' Elder Hanks told us, 'and great spirit, great testimony.'

Elder Hanks became ill while he was staying with the Hopes and remained there for a number of days, became dear, dear friends, this friendship lasted throughout the Hope's lives. Became dear, dear friends and when finally he had to leave, just a little dusting of snow had fallen on the steps and he- Elder Hanks, was led to the car to be with his missionary companion and then he found out later that Mary told Len, 'Len would you sweep the steps?' And Len said to Mary, 'I've treated you like a lady all of our married days but don't you ever ask me to do anything like that again. Don't you know what the scriptures say? "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace."' (Romans 10:15) 'Don't you ask me to sweep away that missionary's footsteps.'

I think that's actually an appropriate place to end, I've just given you little snippets of faith. To me, these are a much better answer to the race questions.

We, as a nation, we've been dealing with race issues from the founding. You know that this was an issue in establishing the Declaration of Independence. Would we talk about equality? In establishing the Pledge of Allegiance? Would Equal Rights be mentioned there? This has been something that has been with us for all of these many years.

The faith of these remarkable members of color which continues yet today and there are a couple of them here, Rob Foster, Renee Olson, Darius Gray, three who I can see in all of you white faces, who have their own stories of faith and endurance through some remarkable trials.

If you would like to hear this presentation on audio CD, you can order a copy by clicking on this link. The CD is great for listening to and sharing with friends. Your purchase also helps to support FAIR and its mission.

Notes
1 The Eleventh Hour: Blacks in the LDS Church (accessed on 30 December 2005).

2 See photo on (accessed on 30 December 2005).

3 4 Nephi 1:17.

4 See photo on (accessed on 30 December 2005).

5 See photo < http://www.blacklds.org/photos.html> (accessed on 30 December 2005).

6 (accessed on 30 December 2005).

7 (accessed on 3 January 2006).

8 < http://www.blacklds.org/flake.html> (accessed on 3 January 2006).

9 Originally premiered with the title The Clansman in January, 1915 in California, but three months later was retitled with the present title at its world premiere in New York, to emphasize the birthing process of the US. The film was based on former North Carolina Baptist minister Rev. Thomas Dixon Jr.'s anti-black, 1905 bigoted play, The Clansman. (accessed on 3 January 2006).

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getting old is a humbling experience to me

2009-04-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

It seems that as I get older, my mind and my memory both get weaker along with my body. It is hard not to feel frustrated. So, now I am working to make things simpler in my life. Get bills paid automatically, have less "things" to deal with, and share more of what I do not need with others who would use it better. I pray for our Heavenly Father to help me to do this.

list on FAMILY LEADER on same sex marriage impact articles

2009-04-27T04:51:00.000-07:00

Copy pasted from FAMILY LEADER--- Articles there listed about same sex marriage

IMPACT ON RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES

"The Battle Has Just Begun" By Timothy J. Dailey, Ph.D.

"The California Supreme Court's Edict Redefining Marriage Will Affect All Americans" By Christopher J. Gacek, Ph.D.

"The Role Faith Plays In Marriage And The Likelihood Of Divorce" By Glenn T. Staton

"Are You a Bigot?" By Maggie Gallagher [Article]

IMPACT ON SOCIETY

"DOMA Won't Do It: Why the Constitution Must Be Amended to Save Marriage" By Dr. Gerard V. Bradley And William F. Saunders, J.D. [Brochure]

"Differing Definitions Of Marriage And Family: Comparing And Contrasting Those Offered By Emerging Same-Sex Marriage Advocates And Classic Anthropologists" By Focus on the Family [Research]

"The Slippery Slope Of Same-Sex "Marriage" By Timothy J. Dailey, Ph.D. [Brochure]

"Sacred Vows, Public Purposes" By Dr. W. Bradford Wilcox

"Rebuilding America" By Ken Blackwell [Book]

"What Harm Would Same-Sex Marriage Do: Eight Ways It Hurts Society" By Peter Sprigg [Analysis]

"Redefinition Revolution" By Maggie Gallagher [Article]

"The Real Danger of Same-Sex Marriage," Stephen Baskerville [Research]

"Europe's Marriage Crisis," Maggie Gallagher [Article]

"Defining Marriage Down," David Blankenhorn [Article]

IMPACT ON CHILDREN

"California Court Strips Children of Right to Mother and Father," Terence P. Jeffrey [Article]

"Why Children Need Father-Love and Mother-Love" By Glenn T. Staton [Article]

"Ten Facts About Same-Sex 'Marriage" By Timothy J. Dailey, Ph.D. [Analysis]

"Love Isn't Enough," Dr. Trayce Hansen [Article]

IMPACT ON THE FAMILY

"Family Portrait" By Bridget E. Maher, M.A. [Book]

"The Family Under Attack," Sears & Osteen [Book]

"The Future of Marriage" By David Blankenhorn, M.A. [Audio/Video lecture]

"Deterring Divorce" By Bridget E. Maher, M.A. [Brochure]

"Cashing In" (financial benefits of marriage) By Jenny Tyree [Article]

"Why Marriage Matters for Adults" By Glenn T. Staton [Research]

"Measuring the Taxpayer Costs of Family Fragmentation and Promoting Use of a U.S. Marriage Index:A Collaborative Project of Research, Publication, and Public Education:A Collaborative Project of Research, Publication, and Public Education" By Institute for American Values [Research]

"French Out-of-Wedlock Birthrate Shows Impact of Marriage Substitutes," World Congress of Families [Article]

ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE REDEFINITION OF MARRIAGE

Testimony of Peter Sprigg to the Maryland House of Delegates (February, 28 2008) [Testimony]

Testimony by Peter Sprigg to the Maryland State Senate on Senate Bill 689 "Domestic Partnerships" (February 14, 2008) [Testimony]

Testimony by Peter Sprigg to the Maryland State Senate on Senate Bill 168 "Covenant Marriage" (February 14, 2008) [Testimony]

"Debate-Tested Soundbites on Defending Marriage" By CitizenLink [Resource]

"The Human Case Against Same-Sex Marriage" By Glenn T. Staton [Article]

"What No-Fault Divorce Can Teach Us about Same-Sex 'Marriage" By Glenn T. Staton [Article]

New grandbaby & where we all came from before this life

2009-04-27T03:50:00.000-07:00

So, we have a new grand daughter- Maylee. The teachings of my church are that we all are spirit children of our Father in Heaven, and that we dwelt with him there before we came here. Here being the earth- which is like Heavens boarding school. That we do not remember it- so it can be a real test for us- to see if even through the trials of this life, we will choose good over evil.

That the very family and body we are born into are part of our test, and through the challenges that come with them, we will have the experiences suited to the growth areas we choose to develope. That no one can tell if being born into a rich family with a beautiful body and luxuries isn't MORE of a test- to still choose to do good to others and not be selfish and prideful- than to be born to a poor family in a third world country- where it would be easier to serve.

But that there will be pleanty of trails in each persons life, along with chances for joy as we make our choices. That we need to remember to thank God in all things, as even the very trails are blessings and opportunities for us to grow.

I am so pleased that we have this new grand daughter and that another grand baby- a boy Ray Kevin is expected the first week of June. May our Father in Heaven bless us all with what we need most.