Friday, March 12, 2010
So busy!
I just wanted to write that I am still reading, and taking notes but I haven't had time to write the blog but I will as soon as I can! =)
Sunday, March 7, 2010
We are not limited to one form of revelation per person
I can't believe how much I've gained by reading the first two chapters of the Book of Mormon. Some of it is reaffirming doctrines I already knew, and some things are insights that are new to me, as well as back up for things I've felt myself but didn't know where to find scriptural confirmation.
Chapter 2 of 1st Nephi talks about eternal perspective, obedience and the Spirit in ways I'd missed. First of all, in the first chapter (v. 20) Nephi says that he wants to show the tender mercies of the Lord in delivering the righteous. Verse 1 of chapter 2 is the fulfillment of that. So Nephi follows through immediately. Secondly, in chapter 1 Nephi speaks of his father having visions, then in chapter 2 he refers to dreams and further on he talks of the voice of the Spirit, Angels, transfiguration, Temples (mountains in this case), and also discussing things with his father and Sam (he tries with Laman & Lemuel but they're not exactly pleased with the spiritual perspective of their family). So between Nephi and Lehi we have specific examples of how one person can be taught by the Spirit, or receive revelation in several ways, not just one per person. I like it because it means I am limited only by my level of faith and intent.
That's another thing, real intent is prevalent in the way that Nephi prays to know the truth & mysteries of God. He has every intention of obeying anything the Lord requires of him. Verse 3 is very simple and beautiful (this is what I was referring to by obedience in ways I hadn't noticed). Lehi's attitude is one of obedience, so putting into action follows on naturally. He gives up every material possession (much to the incredulity of Laman and Lemuel) without even a question, then departs into the wilderness. Lehi also stops along the way to build an alter and give thanks.
Lehi is grateful! Despite Laman and Lemuel's perpetual whining, and the conditions in which they were travelling (not to mention the length of time), Lehi still sees that the Lord has delivered his family and he's grateful. So I'm sure that he was grateful for his wealth, but he saw it in it's proper place because he had an eternal perspective. Also Nephi saw his father's obedience and noted it. Our children do see the good we do. I need to be obedient to the Lords commandments so that my children will see it. This example will be more powerful than anything I can say to them. (I'm going to do that too of course).
I also learned from Lehi that gratitude and ordinances are important no matter what our circumstances, and for me, I need to remember to never be too busy to attend the Temple. Perhaps our homeless situation served some purpose of the Lords and isn't something to murmur about. Lehi dwelt in a tent & we almost did too. Is our current journey to our promised land to fulfill the purposes of the Lord? I think it is.
One thing I will say that has been reinforced by my reading is that being a righteous parent doesn't guarantee that all of my children will follow suit. It isn't necessarily a reflection of my success or failure as a mother. (as long as I am actually righteous & doing my best in all things. If I neglect them then that's clearly not righteousness or very smart)
Ok, I love that Nephi prayed for his brothers because he loved them so much. He put up with so much garbage from them and still loved them all his life! I would like to say something that I think about Laman and Lemuel. I'm not sure how concise I can be but I'll give it a good effort;
Verses 19-24 are beautiful because Nephi is receiving a direct answer to humble prayer. He was humble, obedient and had real intent and a pure heart. Because of this he was open to the understanding the Lord wished to give him. He was told some future events and found out where they were heading. Laman and Lemuel were bitter about leaving their stuff and obviously liked living in Jerusalem and thought their father was paranoid or crazy or both. They constantly complain throughout the whole journey about how hard done by they are and how they don't get any revelations for themselves. They lack eternal perspective. So even if the Lord came personally and told them the same things as Nephi, they still likely wouldn't see the point and would then have greater responsibility because of the greater light. It is wisdom in God when he doesn't share more with us than we're ready for. It must have been very frustrating for them to be out of the spiritual loop, but it was their own attitudes that kept them there.
When the Lord tells Nephi that he is to be a teacher and a ruler over them, he is offering them yet another chance to understand at their own level, the big picture but they're still so caught up in their "why me"'s that they can't see it as anything more than a pious affront to their birthright as the eldest. If they pulled their heads out of their indignation they would have seen what the Lord, through Nephi was trying to offer them. He was offering them exactly what they were whining about not having, the knowledge and mysteries of God that Lehi and Nephi had.
The moral of this story I think, in layman's terms (not Laman's terms, heheh) is: Don't shoot yourself in the foot with your own arrogance.
Chapter 2 of 1st Nephi talks about eternal perspective, obedience and the Spirit in ways I'd missed. First of all, in the first chapter (v. 20) Nephi says that he wants to show the tender mercies of the Lord in delivering the righteous. Verse 1 of chapter 2 is the fulfillment of that. So Nephi follows through immediately. Secondly, in chapter 1 Nephi speaks of his father having visions, then in chapter 2 he refers to dreams and further on he talks of the voice of the Spirit, Angels, transfiguration, Temples (mountains in this case), and also discussing things with his father and Sam (he tries with Laman & Lemuel but they're not exactly pleased with the spiritual perspective of their family). So between Nephi and Lehi we have specific examples of how one person can be taught by the Spirit, or receive revelation in several ways, not just one per person. I like it because it means I am limited only by my level of faith and intent.
That's another thing, real intent is prevalent in the way that Nephi prays to know the truth & mysteries of God. He has every intention of obeying anything the Lord requires of him. Verse 3 is very simple and beautiful (this is what I was referring to by obedience in ways I hadn't noticed). Lehi's attitude is one of obedience, so putting into action follows on naturally. He gives up every material possession (much to the incredulity of Laman and Lemuel) without even a question, then departs into the wilderness. Lehi also stops along the way to build an alter and give thanks.
Lehi is grateful! Despite Laman and Lemuel's perpetual whining, and the conditions in which they were travelling (not to mention the length of time), Lehi still sees that the Lord has delivered his family and he's grateful. So I'm sure that he was grateful for his wealth, but he saw it in it's proper place because he had an eternal perspective. Also Nephi saw his father's obedience and noted it. Our children do see the good we do. I need to be obedient to the Lords commandments so that my children will see it. This example will be more powerful than anything I can say to them. (I'm going to do that too of course).
I also learned from Lehi that gratitude and ordinances are important no matter what our circumstances, and for me, I need to remember to never be too busy to attend the Temple. Perhaps our homeless situation served some purpose of the Lords and isn't something to murmur about. Lehi dwelt in a tent & we almost did too. Is our current journey to our promised land to fulfill the purposes of the Lord? I think it is.
One thing I will say that has been reinforced by my reading is that being a righteous parent doesn't guarantee that all of my children will follow suit. It isn't necessarily a reflection of my success or failure as a mother. (as long as I am actually righteous & doing my best in all things. If I neglect them then that's clearly not righteousness or very smart)
Ok, I love that Nephi prayed for his brothers because he loved them so much. He put up with so much garbage from them and still loved them all his life! I would like to say something that I think about Laman and Lemuel. I'm not sure how concise I can be but I'll give it a good effort;
Verses 19-24 are beautiful because Nephi is receiving a direct answer to humble prayer. He was humble, obedient and had real intent and a pure heart. Because of this he was open to the understanding the Lord wished to give him. He was told some future events and found out where they were heading. Laman and Lemuel were bitter about leaving their stuff and obviously liked living in Jerusalem and thought their father was paranoid or crazy or both. They constantly complain throughout the whole journey about how hard done by they are and how they don't get any revelations for themselves. They lack eternal perspective. So even if the Lord came personally and told them the same things as Nephi, they still likely wouldn't see the point and would then have greater responsibility because of the greater light. It is wisdom in God when he doesn't share more with us than we're ready for. It must have been very frustrating for them to be out of the spiritual loop, but it was their own attitudes that kept them there.
When the Lord tells Nephi that he is to be a teacher and a ruler over them, he is offering them yet another chance to understand at their own level, the big picture but they're still so caught up in their "why me"'s that they can't see it as anything more than a pious affront to their birthright as the eldest. If they pulled their heads out of their indignation they would have seen what the Lord, through Nephi was trying to offer them. He was offering them exactly what they were whining about not having, the knowledge and mysteries of God that Lehi and Nephi had.
The moral of this story I think, in layman's terms (not Laman's terms, heheh) is: Don't shoot yourself in the foot with your own arrogance.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
First day of Book of Mormon goal
Well, let me just say that I have already gotten more out of this than I expected! For a start, I hadn't realized just how obedient Lehi was. For example in chapter 1 of 1st Nephi before he has the vision, he was going about doing something and as he went forth he had the vision, and he wasn't like "no, I'll be late for work if I stop now" he immediately obeyed and listened, then went home, received more and straight away went out to testify of Christ.
Another thing I've learned is that Nephi honored his parents by abridging Lehi's record before starting on his own. I think that's considerate, which seems to be a key characteristic of Nephi. A lot of the information and the way he phrases it is considerate to either someone in the situation or to the reader.
I like to look for parenting advice too when I read the scriptures, because anyone who is a parent knows that you can't do it to the best of your ability alone. We need to be teachable and take advice. Obviously we need the Lord, and we need to swallow our arrogance sometimes for the greater good and the sake of our children. In verse 1 of chapter 1, Nephi's context of being born of goodly parents follows that he was taught by his father and that he had a "great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God". The advice I take from that is to be a goodly parent and to teach my children that God is good. And to understand the Spirit so they can come to a great knowledge and recognize their gifts. I also took some other notes of historical interest, but I want to focus here on things of the Spirit.
One of those things is that Nephi (in chapter 1 verse 20) very much wants to show us the Lords character of mercy and love. I love the way he says "But behold I Nephi will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance" The Lord always delivers us, sooner or later, it happens every time. Sometimes it's quick like Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego and sometimes it takes longer, like the children of Israel when Moses delivered them. The Book of Mormon itself is full of examples too but they were the first that came to mind.
Also Nephi mentions that his father saw "many great and marvelous things" (1 Nephi 1:14) but the only one he mentions at this stage is the warning that Jerusalem will be destroyed (cross reference 2nd Kings 24 & 25) I just thought that was interesting for our day with prophesies now of wars preceding the Second Coming. It came to pass as warned. That's another things I gained from this is that the Lord always gives so many warnings about everything. If He was just interested in fire and destruction as some believe then why would He go to the trouble of warning and exhorting repentance so many times? He gives us every possible opportunity to do what's best for us and to accept His love and Atonement. The way verse 4 is worded seems to me that the destruction was an inevitable consequence of the actions (wickedness) that the people were warned about, rather than anything nasty like some think. I think John 3:17 sums it up pretty well and of course the verse before it is one of my favorites!
These are my notes from just the first chapter of the Book of Mormon...wow! And I thought I was being brief. =)
Another thing I've learned is that Nephi honored his parents by abridging Lehi's record before starting on his own. I think that's considerate, which seems to be a key characteristic of Nephi. A lot of the information and the way he phrases it is considerate to either someone in the situation or to the reader.
I like to look for parenting advice too when I read the scriptures, because anyone who is a parent knows that you can't do it to the best of your ability alone. We need to be teachable and take advice. Obviously we need the Lord, and we need to swallow our arrogance sometimes for the greater good and the sake of our children. In verse 1 of chapter 1, Nephi's context of being born of goodly parents follows that he was taught by his father and that he had a "great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God". The advice I take from that is to be a goodly parent and to teach my children that God is good. And to understand the Spirit so they can come to a great knowledge and recognize their gifts. I also took some other notes of historical interest, but I want to focus here on things of the Spirit.
One of those things is that Nephi (in chapter 1 verse 20) very much wants to show us the Lords character of mercy and love. I love the way he says "But behold I Nephi will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance" The Lord always delivers us, sooner or later, it happens every time. Sometimes it's quick like Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego and sometimes it takes longer, like the children of Israel when Moses delivered them. The Book of Mormon itself is full of examples too but they were the first that came to mind.
Also Nephi mentions that his father saw "many great and marvelous things" (1 Nephi 1:14) but the only one he mentions at this stage is the warning that Jerusalem will be destroyed (cross reference 2nd Kings 24 & 25) I just thought that was interesting for our day with prophesies now of wars preceding the Second Coming. It came to pass as warned. That's another things I gained from this is that the Lord always gives so many warnings about everything. If He was just interested in fire and destruction as some believe then why would He go to the trouble of warning and exhorting repentance so many times? He gives us every possible opportunity to do what's best for us and to accept His love and Atonement. The way verse 4 is worded seems to me that the destruction was an inevitable consequence of the actions (wickedness) that the people were warned about, rather than anything nasty like some think. I think John 3:17 sums it up pretty well and of course the verse before it is one of my favorites!
These are my notes from just the first chapter of the Book of Mormon...wow! And I thought I was being brief. =)
Friday, March 5, 2010
I'm setting some goals
I have set myself some new goals. Now that we're not homeless anymore...sort of...and hopefully we're over some of the awful things we've been through in the last year, I'm setting some goals for the rest of this year (some extend longer)
I have started studying again & I occasionally keep a journal, though one of my goals is to do that more.
I'm going to finish two of the three novels I'm working on
I am going to move to Adelaide, South Australia
I am going to read the entire standard works by the time I'm 30 (3 years & 11 days)
I am going to read the Book of Mormon this year, but this time I'm going to read it as though it was written to me, like a letter sort of thing. and I'm going to blog my thoughts/feelings about it.
This was inspired by watching John Bytheway's Book of Mormon heroes where he talks about how the writers of the Book of Mormon saw our day and wrote it for us. So I'm going to read it with this in mind. My brother told me I should take notes, so I will & I'll blog it at the end of the day.
I have started studying again & I occasionally keep a journal, though one of my goals is to do that more.
I'm going to finish two of the three novels I'm working on
I am going to move to Adelaide, South Australia
I am going to read the entire standard works by the time I'm 30 (3 years & 11 days)
I am going to read the Book of Mormon this year, but this time I'm going to read it as though it was written to me, like a letter sort of thing. and I'm going to blog my thoughts/feelings about it.
This was inspired by watching John Bytheway's Book of Mormon heroes where he talks about how the writers of the Book of Mormon saw our day and wrote it for us. So I'm going to read it with this in mind. My brother told me I should take notes, so I will & I'll blog it at the end of the day.
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