2 Nephi 21

Isaiah prophesies about the Millenium. Everyone will know about Christ. What an exciting time that will be. There will be no disputation about whether or not there is a Christ. There will be simply obedience or open rebellion- nothing in between.

We're actually reading in 2 Nephi as a family right now as well and we just had a discussion about the Millenium with the kids last week. Last night Nathanael came into my bedroom and told me that Frosty (our adopted cat) had caught another mouse outside. He was pretty distraught because he said it was tiny and so cute. Lance told him not to be upset- that's how Frosty was made- to hunt. Nathanael protested, "But it really was tiny and so cute! I can't wait for the Millenium and then there won't be any more killing of animals at all." I laughed and agreed with him. But then another thought occurred to me, "You realize that means you won't be eating any more steak either, right?" His eyes got huge and he thought hard for a second. Then he said, "Well, I better eat as much steak as I can before then!"

2 Nephi 20

Isaiah prophesies that the destruction of Assyria is a type of destruction of the wicked at the Second Coming. I wonder if this means that the wicked will be destroyed through the actions of another nation, warring against them.

15 Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? As if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself as if it were no wood!

What a poignant analogy. It is absurd how man takes glory in his actions when everything we have- even our own abilities were given us by our Heavenly Father. Everything we do should be to give glory to the Father- not take glory on ourselves. Without God we are nothing.

Things as They Really Are 3

(Satan's Attacks, continued)

a. Minimize the Importance of our Bodies – Virtual Reality
i. Jeopardize our physical well-being for an adrenaline rush
· “Putting at risk the very instrument God has given us to receive the learning experiences of mortality-merely to pursue a thrill or some supposed fun, to bolster ego, or to gain acceptance-truly minimizes the importance of our physical bodies.”
ii. Fidelity- the similarity between reality and a representation of reality
· High fidelity + Bad Purposes = Spiritual Danger
· “Today I raise an apostolic voice of warning about the potentially stifling, suffocating, suppressing, and constraining impact of some kinds of cyberspace interactions and experiences upon our souls.”
iii. Temptation to disconnect gradually & physically from things as they really are
· Essentially- thinking & acting as if we were in our premortal, unembodied state
· Miss the richness of person-to-person communication
· Innocent entertainment becomes enslavement
· This is how we become “past feeling”
· We should not squander and damage authentic relationships by obsessing over contrived ones
b. Anonymity
i. “Apostasy is not anonymous simply because it occurs in a blog or through a fabricated identity in a chat room or virtual world. Immoral thoughts, words, and deeds always are immoral, even in cyberspace.”
c. Two Questions:
i. Does the use of various technologies and media invite or impede the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost in your life?
ii. Does the time you spend using various technologies and media enlarge or restrict your capacity to live, to love, and to serve in meaningful ways?
2) The Rising Generation
a. “God has reserved spirits for this dispensation who have the courage and determination to face the world, and all the powers of the evil one, visible and invisible, to proclaim the Gospel, and maintain the truth, and establish and build up the Zion of our God, fearless of all consequences. He has sent these spirits in this generation to lay the foundation of Zion never more to be overthrown, and to raise up a seed that will be righteous, and that will honor God, and honor him supremely, and be obedient to him under all circumstances.”
b. Obedience-
i. 1997- “The youth of this generation have a greater capacity for obedience than any previous generation.” -Maxwell
ii. the primary weapon against evil
iii. opens door to constant companionship of the Holy Ghost
· spiritual gifts and abilities
· enable us to:
a. avoid deception
b. see, feel, know, understand, & remember things as they really are

“To be ‘encircled about eternally in the arms of his love’ will be a real and not a virtual experience.”

Things as They Really Are 2

1) The Adversary’s Attacks:
a. Misuse of our Physical Bodies
i. Violating chastity, drugs/addictive substances, disfiguring/defacing body, worshipping false idol of body image (own or someone else’s)
ii. “Any defiling of the body is rebellion and a denial of our true identity as sons and daughters of God.”
iii. We must study & learn for ourselves:
1. what we should & shouldn’t do with our bodies
2. the doctrinal reasons why/why not
3. spiritual enlightenment & protection will follow
4. “According to your faithfulness & diligence, you will have the power to discern the deception and repel the attacks of the adversary as he tempts you to misuse your physical body.”

Mosiah 2:36-37

36 And now, I say unto you, my brethren, that after ye have known and have been taught all these things, if ye should transgress and go contrary to that which has been spoken, that ye do withdraw yourselves from the Spirit of the Lord, that it may have no place in you to guide you in wisdom's paths that ye may be blessed, prospered, and preserved-
37 I say unto you, that the man that doeth this, the same cometh out in open rebellion against God; therefore he listeth to obey the evil spirit, and becometh an enemy to all righteousness; therefore, the Lord has no place in him, for he dwelleth not in unholy temples.

Once we have knowledge of right and wrong, once we have been taught a higher law, if we decide to act contrary to that knowledge, we are openly rebelling against Heavenly Father and the Spirit will withdraw. Some of the benefits of the Holy Ghost's companionship are noted here- guidance in wisdom's paths, blessings, prosperity, and preservation. When I look at it in this light, it seems ludicrous that I would ever choose to act against the Spirit and lose the blessings of its guidance. So, not only are we acting against the Spirit, we are openly rebelling against Heavenly Father AND we are choosing to follow Satan. Why??? Why would we ever choose misery over happiness? I don't think most people look at it like this- so black and white. Satan must use sly tactics, lies, and deception to ensnare us. When I think of "becoming an enemy to all righteousness" so that "the Lord has no place in [me]", I can barely stand the thought. I yearn for the day that I will see the Savior again; that I will be able to sit at Heavenly Father's feet and feel the familiar, loving embrace of Heavenly Mother. To not be with Them, to not be with my own eternal family, to not have Lance for eternity would be eternal hell indeed.

Things as They Really Are

This coming weekend is Ballantyne Girls Weekend and I have been assigned to lead a discussion on Elder Bednar's talk, "Things as They Really Are." It is based upon...

D&C 93:24
"The Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls."

Elder Bednar addresses "things as they really are" in three key points:
1) Key elements of our Heavenly Father's plan of happiness as the doctrinal foundation for knowing and understanding things as they really are.
2) Methods of attack used by the adversary to distract us from or inhibit our capacity to discern things as they really are.
3) The responsibilities that rest upon us to be obedient, to honor sacred covenants, and to discern things consistently as they really are in today's world that grows ever more confused and wicked.

1) Key elements of the Plan of Happiness - Obtaining a Physical Body
a. “Our physical bodies make possible a breadth, a depth, and an intensity of experience that simply could not be obtained in our premortal estate”.
i. tenderness, love, kindness, happiness, sorrow, disappointment, pain, & even physical limitations prepare us for eternity
ii. Spirit + Body = Soul
b. The Devil…
i. his Punishment- no body
ii. wants power over a physical body (prefers pig’s body to none)
iii. Anyone with a physical body has power over those who don’t have a body
1. Devil only has power that we give him
iv. wants all to be miserable like he is
1. can’t marry, procreate
2. won’t participate in the resurrection
c. A physical body is central to the Plan & our spiritual development
i. Satan wants to frustrate our progression
ii. He tempts us to use our bodies improperly
d. The ultimate irony:
i. The adversary is miserable because he has no body
ii. He invites us to share in his misery through the improper use of our bodies.
iii. “The very tool he does not have and cannot use is the primary target of his attempts to lure us to physical and spiritual destruction.”

Personal Purity through Self-Discipline - Language

This week I am teaching Personal Purity through Self-Discipline to my Young Women class so I thought I'd spend a few of my scriptures studies on it.

James 3:2-13
2 For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.


Elder Holland gave an unbelievably powerful talk in Conference a couple of years ago called, "The Tongue of Angels". He uses this scripture passage as the basis for his talk. How marvelous to be able to control our tongue to the point of not offending, and therefore, being perfect. James says that if we are able to control our tongue, we will be able to bridle our whole body. This is most certainly an area that I need work in. When I am angry, words come out of my mouth like fire. When I'm hurt, I throw out daggers to retaliate. When I am frustrated or stressed, I often yell. I need to concentrate on bridling my tongue and the rest of it should fall into place.

3 Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body.
4 Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth.
5 Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things...

Our words really have such an enormous impact on those around us- especially those we love. The imagery here of the small, and seemingly insignificant part being such a key regulator is the perfect description of the power of our tongue- the power that our words have.

...Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

People have left the church over something as insignificant as a few offensive words. Wars have been waged over poorly chosen words. When we allow our tongue to control us instead of us controlling our tongue, we allow the natural man to take over and lead us down a path we would never consciously choose.

7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind:
8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

As humans, we are capable of many great and marvelous works. We can tame animals to do our bidding and yet we have such a difficult time taming our own tongue. It takes a great deal of self-discipline.

9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.
11 Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?
12 Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.
13 Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.

I love how James points out that with our mouth we praise Heavenly Father. But out of the very same mouth we curse, or defile our brother, who is the son of God, made by His hands. We are either godly or we are not. We can't be both.

2 Nephi 19

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

I marvel at the Lord's love and patience for His children. No matter how hard our hearts become or how many times we hurt Him and turn our backs on Him, He will still reach out to us. There is a qualifier here: His anger is not turned away. So the Lord will be angry with us. He will reprimand us and provide the necessary consequences for our sins. Consequences, especially hard ones, are how we learn and grow from our mistakes. Yet, He will never stop loving us. I love the image that this verse invokes- the Lord with His mighty arm, stretched lovingly and patiently out to His wayward children, to me. There are two very important lessons for me here. First, that I should never give up on myself or get down on myself for how weak I am. No matter how many times I fall, I must continue to get back up and try again to be better the next time. For the Lord will never give up on me. Second, I must follow this same pattern with my own children. No matter how many mistakes they make, I must continue to patiently reach out to them and love them. It is okay for me to be angry with them. It is natural and a normal reaction to poor behavior. However, even in my anger, I must reach out to them. I must not allow my angry feelings over what they have done to influence my actions toward them and how I feel about them. I must show them the same consideration, patience, and love that Heavenly Father extends to me.

2 Nephi 18

The Lord tells the people that He has tried over and over again to guide them and warn them with the gentle promptings of the Spirit. However, they have not listened and so He must use more forceful means to get their attention, to humble them, and to teach them.

How much like the people of Israel am I! When times are easy and the Spirit whispers to me in my laziness, I am slow to respond. When times are hard, I turn quickly and readily to the Lord for help.

2 Nephi 17

Chapter 17 tells of how Judah was in danger from two conspiring enemies: Ephraim & Syria. When Ahaz gets wind of their joint plan to attack his kingdom, he is worried and gathers together his armies and takes them to the main source of water to guard it and prepare for battle. The Lord tells Isaiah to go to this place of water and counsel with Ahaz not to go to battle against Syria and Ephraim. Isaiah tells Ahaz that these enemies will not prevail against him, that they have no firepower left, and not to worry but to trust in the Lord. I can imagine that must have been hard to back down like that. We sometimes feel it is easier to rely upon the arm of flesh rather than upon the Lord. There is great irony in this kind of thinking. While the initial leap of faith is sometimes a bit difficult to some, the resulting blessings are incomparable to the struggles that will always eventually emerge as we rely upon man instead of the Lord. Without the Lord's help, we are left to struggle on our own, relying upon our minuscule strength that can never sustain us through to the end. I'll take the Lord's help thank you very much!

2 Nephi 16

More Isaiah! I try so hard not to get discouraged when reading Isaiah and I hate to even admit how quickly I try to get through 2 Nephi. It's just so difficult to understand most of what he's saying, or at least to apply it to my life. In this chapter, Isaiah talks of how he is forgiven of his sins. He uses the imagery of the seraphim placing a burning coal from the altar on his mouth. The Lord then speaks, asking, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said: Here am I; send me." The Lord then sends him forth to preach and to prophesy. I believe this is his actual calling from the Lord to be a prophet. I guess that is a pretty powerful visual- a burning coal to purify our sins. The powerful imagery of a burning coal evokes strong emotion, which is what happens when we are forgiven of our sins. Strong emotions encompass me when I feel forgiven and made clean again- gratitude, love, joy, the burning in my bosom of the Holy Ghost.

2 Nephi 15

20 Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

It is amazing how often this happens in the world. Right now, one of the big issues is gay marriage. We vote against gay marriage and the world attacks us as bigots, calling us intolerant and self-righteous ignorants. One of Satan's great tactics is just this- call good evil and evil good. Very tricky!

21 Wo unto the wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!

There are several warnings in the scriptures to those that are learned, or intelligent. The tendency for those that acquire great secular knowledge is to begin to feel that they are wise enough to dictate their own lives and begin to even feel that they are independent of God. No matter how much I learn, I continually feel that there is an unthinkable amount of knowledge out there still waiting for me. It will take me an eternity to learn it all. Perhaps that is the plan!