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12.21.2008

"The God of War" Chris Stewart

Who knew Chris Stewart wrote political thrillers! It is refreshing to find one without the sex and swearing and graphic violence of Vince Flynn. In this story someone steals a super capable, even unstoppable, American jet as it is being rolled out for its first international demonstration. One of the test pilots has to help them find it. This story includes a beautiful woman, foreign intrigue, attempts to kill main players, secret combinations, and so many plot twists you wonder if you've done a somersault! I kept thinking I was almost done, but the story went on and on. Even when I thought I only had one more chapter to read, there were three more!
At the end when we see all the players, they tell us the moral of the story. America must be careful that it is not manipulated and distracted while other powers build themselves into a superpower.

12.12.2008

King George Is Back!

Time for a new Declaration of Independence. We have discovered that George Bush is really another King George. I cannot begin to express my disappointment with President Bush. These bailouts were unconstitutional from the beginning, and now Bush seems determined to defy the power of the legislature and bailout the automakers (Actually the unions) anyway. He is ripping our constitution to shreds!
These politicians are destroying our futures in a vain attempt to "save" us from ourselves. Who do they think they are? Gods? I am so angry that I cannot even discuss this or watch it on the news. I only have to imagine the worst thing that could happen and POOF it happens! UGH!
The most frustrating thing for me is to see that so many people are so asleep that they do not understand what all these things mean. That is the only way that Washington DC is getting away with this. Too many people don't understand what this is, how it is horrendously unconstitutional and how it threatens our future and the future of our children. Even many of those who are paying attention are so afraid of the collapse that the hysterical talking heads are watching for that they are selling our freedoms and our children's future for their own security now.
Watching this has so depressed me that I can't even describe the feelings and thoughts that I am experiencing.

11.24.2008

Only Two Options

The Lord’s way is not hard. Life is hard, not the gospel. “There is an opposition in all things,” everywhere, for everyone. Life is hard for all of us, but life is also simple. We have only two choices. We can either follow the Lord and be endowed with His power and have peace, light, strength, knowledge, confidence, love, and joy, or we can go some other way, any other way, whatever other way, and go it alone—without His support, without His power, without guidance, in darkness, turmoil, doubt, grief, and despair. And I ask, which way is easier?There is only one way to happiness and fulfillment. Jesus Christ is the Way. Every other way, any other way, whatever other way is madness.
Lawrence E. Corbridge, “The Way,”

11.23.2008

The Love Dare

If you've seen or heard about the movie "Fireproof" you may be wondering if you can get that book the changes Caleb's life. It's the Love Dare. Well Barnes and Noble has it! It has a topic for each day and scriptures to support it. I gives a challenge to go along with the topic and a place to check off the successful completion of the challenge of the day. It also includes a place to record your thoughts for the day. I decided to give it a try and see how these tasks could change my own life. I am on day one. I'll keep you posted on how it works as I get through the full forty days.

Quit Pushing Your Politics On My Religion!

Many leftists and their lemmings are all whipped up about the separation of church and state. They consistently tell us that the Constitution separates religion from politics. I agree politics should stay out of my religion. If my religious values tell me I ought to pray at school, the government should get out of my way. If my religion says I ought to be chaste before marriage and faithful after marriage, the schools (aka. government) should not pressure me otherwise. If my religious values say that life is precious and ought not be taken in the womb or at old age, the government should not take my tax dollars to support these practices, nor should they compel me to dispense life taking medications and instructions for suicide. If my religious values say that homosexual sex is contrary to God's laws, I should not be threatened for believing and acting on those beliefs.
When other religious values clash with mine, the government should remain neutral. The government needs to stay out of my religion. I don't want the government threatening me to conform to the trends of the day or else risk prosecution. The government should be defending my ability to act on my beliefs.
Marriage has been a religious institution for centuries. Government got involved to keep records of marriages, and eventually to create a contract that was legally binding in the interests of society. Society is tangled with this institution because it is the foundation for civil order. Without healthy and orderly families, we cannot have a healthy and orderly society, and the next generation brings chaos. Any wonder why crime has spiraled to new heights lately? Anybody checked the family situation in America lately? Anyone who pays even the least bit of attention knows that crime stems from hurt children in chaotic families. Chaotic families do not have healthy marriages. Now of course there are exceptions, even when marriages were somewhat stable, we had crime. But as marriages and families have been torn apart we have also seen our societal order torn apart.
We see that politics is increasingly poking its nose in family and religious affairs. Family planning, school sex ed, school lunch programs, administering child support orders, welfare, health insurance, day care, abortions, and religious speech being morphed into discrimination and hate speech are all areas of family and religious responsibility. Agitators for the "nanny state" and the "do what makes you feel good" ideas are pushing their political views on my family and religious views.
The most blatant example is the gay "rights" agenda. They want to distort what marriage means all in the name of civil rights. But they are not happy to just have the rights, they want the word. In several states, including my own and California, gay couples already have these legal rights as a civil union. This is not enough. They want to poke their noses into my religious values by changing the meaning of the word marriage in order to elevate their lifestyle to the normal and beneficial marriage of centuries. Because of recent trends in other places that have accepted this practice and definition we have a legitimate right to be concerned that making this religious value into a political issue is a threat to our religious freedoms.
I'm sick of hearing that the LDS church is pushing its religion on a state. That state and its agitators are pushing their politics on my religion!

11.17.2008

Who Says Mormons Don't Have Fun?

Self Motivated Questions

Who knew rocks were so complicated? I remember taking my dad's hammer and breaking open rocks on the walkway. Does every kid do this?
I'm trying to feverishly finish my BYU Independent Study Geology class. Igneous rocks have been a insurmountable wall twice before as I attempted to make progress on this class. This time I decided that I would get it over with no matter what grade I might get on the test. I managed to squeak out a C-. I never knew volcanic rocks were so complicated! I still don't quite understand all the information, but I knew where to find it in the book. Did you know that different kinds of magma make different kinds of rocks? Did you know rocks have cleavage? It's all amazingly confusing and beautiful.
I suppose if I wasn't doing a class I might be more interested. I am beginning to understand how making a normally fascinating subject into a requirement and then judging someone on how much a person can spew back at an authority figure, can ruin the desire to learn the subject. There is definitely something to the theory that kids ought to be allowed to pursue knowledge according to their desires.
Self motivation is what really results in learning. I know that the assignments I have been given that allow me to chose the subject stick with me far longer than an assigned topic. Books I've read because I was curious teach me far more than those imposed on me by someone else's choice. Although I chose to learn Geology, I am finding that the structured study is killing my curiosity and making rocks baffling and boring. I wish I could just ask questions and get answers in the order that the questions come to me.

11.15.2008

American Nehors

What is priestcraft? Is it something we need to be worried about in modern times? Is it simply a religious practice? Can it become unrecognizable to us? Can we be persuaded to support it?
for, behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion. 2 Nephi 26:29
Priestcraft is the idea that popular leaders ought not to labor with their hands, but should be given money by their followers so that they can simply be popular and do whatever it is they are advocating to do. In Alma's time this took the form of a religious leader who proclaimed a flattering doctrine, that man is not to be punished for sin, and then began to tell his followers that he ough to be free of the need to support himself so that he could preach this doctrine. These followers were named after Nehor, the leader who proclaimed it.
Do we have modern day equivalents who proclaim falsehoods "for the sake of "riches and honor"? Do we have any who seek to be supported by donations? We see this commonly in leaders of Protestant churches whose occupation is leading their churches. Many Protestants "shop around" for a church they like to attend. They look for doctrine that flatters them and makes them feel righteous. This is human nature. We all want to avoid being wrong. We all gravitate to doctrines that we agree with and away from those we disagree with. There are even LDS people who go to another ward to avoid an uncomfortable situation or disagreement with their leaders.
But is there another unrecognized type of priestcraft out there? I believe there is.
Let us look at our political election system. We have two parties that dominate the system. People donate to the party that they most identify with. Leaders of the parties go to fund raisers and some are leaders simply because they are good at raising funds. We see rallies where the crowds are cheering and clapping as the candidates speak flattering words. These are mostly the party faithful who love the candidates. Those who are looking for information are quickly converted by slogans and a brief look at a website or two. What is the most common doctrine that we hear from politicians? This last season we heard about how much the average person is struggling -ad nauseum. The government was portrayed as a Prince on a white horse riding to the aid of the distressed American princess. Is this flattery? I think so.
If we look back at our definition of priestcraft, we see that we have all its elements in our political system. 1. Donations to support leaders who preach flattery. 2. Votes to these same leaders puts them in power. They receive gain and power for their flattery. Have they set themselves up for a light to the world? Do we see citizens who believe that those leaders will make their lives all better? Yes we do. Do we see the whole world taking sides? Yes we do.
In the beginning of our Nation elections were much different. Presidents were voted on in Congress and candidates did not openly campaign or raise money. They ran solely on their reputations and record. There were no adoring crowds, fundraisers, and worldwide opinions and powers.
How similar we have become to these Nehors! Could Americans be called Nehors?

Follow the Prophets

It is suddenly obvious to all LDS people in America that the future of following the Prophet may get very ugly. We are seeing the mobs combine again in California over the passage of Prop 8, an amendment to the state constitution that reads "Only marriage between a man and a woman will be recognized in California." Temples are being targeted. Homes and jobs are being targeted.
From Proclaim Liberty:
"Make no mistake about it, brothers and sisters, in the months and years ahead, events are likely to require each member to decide whether or not he will follow the First Presidency. Members will find it more difficult to halt longer between two opinions. President Marion G. Romney said, many years ago, that he had 'never hesitated to follow the counsel of the Authorities of the Church even though it crossed my social, professional or political life.'

"This is hard doctrine, but it is particularly vital doctrine in a society which is becoming more wicked. In short, brothers and sisters, not being ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ includes not being ashamed of the prophets of Jesus Christ. . . . Your discipleship may see the time when such religious convictions are discounted. . . . This new irreligious imperialism seeks to disallow certain opinions simply because those opinions grow out of religious convictions.

"Resistance to abortion will be seen as primitive. Concern over the institution of the family will be viewed as untrendy and unenlightened.... Before the ultimate victory of the forces of righteousness, some skirmishes will be lost. Even in these, however, let us leave a record so that the choices are clear, letting others do as they will in the face of prophetic counsel. There will also be times, happily, when a minor defeat seems probable, but others will step forward, having been rallied to rightness by what we do. We will know the joy, on occasion, of having awakened a slumbering majority of the decent people of all races and creeds which was, till then, unconscious of itself. Jesus said that when the fig trees put forth their leaves, 'summer is nigh.' Thus warned that summer is upon us, let us not then complain of the heat."---
Elder Neal A. Maxwell's whole talk (fabulous and prophetic as usual)

We know that in the future our safety and security in Zion will be dependent on our adherence to the prophets. Man is fallible- God is not and he talks to us through his prophets. But we must be able to discern a real prophet from a false one. If we are reading and pondering the scriptures and praying intently we will be able to know who is speaking for God.
Because there is opposition in all things, we will see an increase in evil and wickedness, in proportion to the rise in righteousness. Look at how the temples have sprung up all over the world. We should not be surprised that wickedness will also sprout up all over the world. And that wickedness appears to be directed at a specific demographic- Mormons. We should not be surprised to see it. How sad it will be to see the fair weather Mormons bid farewell when the summer heat and winter storm begins. Let us hope we are not among that group.

Those Tolerant GLBT folks!

Because of the high number of comments submitted on this story that contain threats or references to violence, no more comments will be posted on this story.

This was the quote from Deseret News after this story was reported.
Substance mailed to LDS Church not toxic

And here is a picture of the tolerant folks who don't like Mormons since Prop 8 failed at the polls in California.


Though opponents of Prop. 8 who seek for same-sex marriage tout that they are the movement of tolerance, their actions mark them as hypocrites, as they send the message through protests, property vandalism and singling out donors for vilification that anybody getting in their way had better watch out. Payback and punishment will follow for those who have exercised their right of political expression to support traditional marriage.

This, of course, is designed to inhibit and terrorize anyone who opposes redefining marriage, chilling not only discussion of the issues, but political opposition altogether. At the very least, those who support that marriage is between a man and a woman are labeled hateful and bigoted.


Businesses are being targeted for boycotts because an employee supported Prop 8 and professionals have been forced to resign jobs of 25 years and . Temples have had to be closed for fear of the safety of those entering. All this courtesy of the folks who want to teach us tolerance.



No thanks, I'll pass.....

11.13.2008

Fireproof

We went to see Fireproof after hearing rave reviews. It was great! It was unabashedly Christian. The whole premise of the movie is based on faith. The husband tries the love dare when he wants to file for divorce. In the end he finds faith which changed the way he treated his wife and the way he viewed life. As a result, he gets his wife's heart back. It's a very simple answer to a relationship problem... But sometimes the simple answers are the best answers.

11.11.2008

Old Friends

I've lived in lots of places.
I have recently been thinking about old friends. Having moved around so much I have accumulated a lot of friendships that I have had to leave. In Texas it was Marie. In Nevada it was Tiffany, and Montse. In Washington it was Lisa and Kelly. Some I can't even remember anymore. Sad.
Not everyone keeps in touch. I'm not known for it either. It is so hard to do when you aren't part of their everyday lives. What do you talk about? Only old stuff.
I do have a couple friends that I have been able to keep in touch with on a more intimate level. These are the people I can talk with about anything. They are open-minded and like to talk about everything. They want to keep in touch with others around them. I find that the busier I am the less able I am to keep in touch. In fact busyness keeps me from even keep up with my new friends that are right in my neighborhood.
Thanks heavens for email and the internet. It is so much easier to visit with friends. We can look at pictures, read blogs,and emails, and feel like we are more a part of what is going on. We can see each others kids grow up and hear about their progress. Hard to imagine how much time has passed sometimes.
I am so glad to be able to drop in on old friends and quietly see them again.

11.08.2008

Sad....

Look at these faces lashing out after the passage of Prop 8 in California. They are blaming the church for their unhappiness. I feel so sorry for their misery- even more so because they lash out at the very thing that could save them....




LDS Leader Ezra T. Benson 1975

I found this little nugget at lds.org. President Benson was so awesome.
**************************************

The elders of this church have a prophetic mission yet to perform so far as the Constitution is concerned. In a discourse by Joseph Smith on July 19, 1840, he said:

“Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground, and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin, this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean, and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction.” (M8d 155, Bx4, Joseph Smith, Church Historian’s Library.)

Now, how are the elders going to prepare for that mission? How are they going to know what the Constitution is so they will know when it is on the brink of ruin? In many of the law schools of today you will hear that the Constitution is whatever the Supreme Court says it is. Could it be that the Supreme Court, which President McKay said is leading this nation down the road to atheism, is the agency to tell us what this divine document is? Can we learn best how to preserve it by studying what it is at the hands of some of those who are seeking to destroy it?

But President McKay had a better approach when he encouraged us to support good and conscientious candidates who are truly dedicated to the Constitution in the tradition of our founding fathers. Ah … there it is … the Constitution in the tradition of our founding fathers. They are the ones the Lord referred to as wise men. It is to them, the Lord, and his prophets that we should go to determine what the Constitution is. There must have been a tradition of our founding fathers or President McKay would not have referred to it.

One of the best books on this subject was written by Clarence Carson and is entitled The American Tradition; it is distributed by the Foundation for Economic Education at Irvington-on-Hudson, New York. President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., served on their board of trustees for some time. I now have the honor of so serving.

To the Lord, his prophets, and the founding fathers we must go to learn of this divine document so our efforts will be to preserve and not destroy the Constitution.

The Prophet Joseph Smith said in a great discourse in Nauvoo on February 7, 1844, “Were I the President of the United States … I would honor the old paths of the venerated fathers of freedom; I would walk in the tracks of the illustrious patriots who carried the ark of the government upon their shoulders with an eye single to the glory of the people. …” (HC, 6:208.)

Said President George Albert Smith, “I am saying to you that to me the Constitution of the United States of America is just as much from my Heavenly Father as the Ten Commandments. When that is my feeling I am not going to go very far away from the Constitution and I am going to try to keep it where the Lord started it, and not let anti-Christ come into this country.” (Conference Report, April 1948, p. 182.)

And speaking of anti-Christ, if you want to get some idea of how we are flaunting the Constitution, see how the Constitution defines treason. Then observe what we are doing to build up the enemy, this totally anti-Christ conspiracy. If we continue on this tragic course of aid and trade to the enemy, the Lord has warned us of the consequences that will follow in chapter 8 of Ether in the Book of Mormon. [Ether 8]

Thank God for the Constitution that made it possible for the Lord to establish his church and base of operations here in the United States for these last days. And may God bless the elders of Israel that when, as President John Taylor said, “the people shall have torn to shreds the Constitution of the United States, the Elders of Israel will be found holding it up to the nations of earth and proclaiming liberty.” (Journal of Discourses, 21:8.)

Now, Christ’s life, his prophet, his Church, the Book of Mormon, and the Constitution of the United States are but a few of the gifts of Christ that bless us throughout our lives.

And We Are Intolerant? Give Me A Break...




Silly Laws Coming Soon to a State Near You....




11.04.2008

Mornings- Love/Hate

I hate mornings. I am not a morning person. I love evenings, after everyone goes to bed and the house is all mine! But now I am a working woman. My work hours are stubbornly stuck on the few hours between kids getting out of school and a late dinner time every weekday. A friend advised me to try to spend one on one time putting the kids to bed each night, but I am so tired when I get home (and sometimes quite grumpy) that I haven’t been doing this very well. (ok not at all). The other day I hit on an idea. I had been to IHOP with a friend and ordered biscuits and gravy. And now I was at the grocery store in the area with the bins of bulk dry goods and staring at a country gravy mix. Inspiration struck. I could get up and make biscuits and gravy in the morning before the kids go to school. They would actually get a home made meal! (I’m really not a very good cook, and find my creativity lacking after working). I would have one on one time with them, help them get out the door on a cheerful note in the morning, and maybe even effect the rest of their day!
So the next morning I dragged myself out of bed, made the breakfast, and was surprised at how smoothly the morning went. No fighting (a major problem lately) kids had all their supplies, we actually had a conversation, and all the teenage angst seemed to have disappeared! I managed to get up in time to make breakfast the rest of last week and so far both days this week. I even got some compliments. It feels good. So good in fact that I don’t’ quite hate mornings so much lately. (I love naps though!)

Hanging By A Thread

So many things are hanging by a thread. I feel like my life is a string pulled tight and at any moment it will break. I have felt for about a year and a half that there is another shoe to drop. I felt it right after 9-11 and it eventually went away. But lately it’s back. A talk from spring conference ( Bro Holland I think) encouraging mothers brought it into my awareness in a way that I could not shake. Suddenly my antenna was up and looking for what we were being reinforced for. What great trial was on its way? I already felt that women had been bombarded with satanic strategy; everything from “having it all” and fighting so called “oppression” myths, to men who will not be men and support their families. But it seemed to me that we were in for another onslaught and that conference was our reinforcement in preparation.
In my own personal life, I found myself coming under attack. I found myself forcing myself to go to church when no one at home would go with me. I found my heart breaking for family members who were struggling. I found myself fighting not to drown in despair and depression. My normal optimism was gone and replaced by cynicism and defeat. I was planning for it. This is far from my normal mind set.
But I recently realized why. As I was explaining to someone that I felt that all the joy and hope was being sucked out of me, one of my favorite scriptures came to mind. Helaman 5:12-

“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 and 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. “

I realized I was being dragged down into the gulf of misery and endless wo! I had let my foundation slip off of Christ and I needed desperately to re-center my life on Christ. So that is my new goal. When I begin to puzzle about someone else’s behavior I repeat to myself that I am centered on Christ. I need to find something more creative to recite, but for now that is what I am trying to remember.
Now, I see another area of life hanging by a thread. Granted it seems like a stretch to those who are not paying attention, but bear with me. We are today voting for a President. Our choice- Obama the Marxist or McCain the liberal “Moderate” doesn’t bring me any comfort. What often isn’t talked about is that that Senate and the House are likely going Democrat by large majorities. Now if Obama is put in with a large majority (read no ability by Republicans to filibuster bad bills) then he is pretty much given free reign. There will be no holding back Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Barak Obama – all committed Socialists. Ok well Harry Reid I don’t know for sure that he is a committed socialist, but he is definitely a partisan and is supporting and working for Democrat tendencies to personally attack opposition. There are people who see this danger and are angry. Obama said that the civil rights movement did not go far enough because they didn’t break free from Constitutional restraints! He does not revere or respect the Constitution! I think we may be hanging by a thread just as Joseph Smith predicted.
Related to that is the possibility that this is another close and contested election, and as a result we loose even more confidence in our system. We have already lost so much confidence. I look at my children who have seen the last two elections on the state and federal level bitterly contested. The next election will see my oldest son eligible to vote. Will he have any confidence in the results? Ever? Is there any way that elections will get back to what they used to be- called peacefully and with everyone having faith that the process was legal and fair? The longer we have these kinds of elections the more we hand by a thread. There are violent people out there on both sides who are close to the edge of control. They see what is happening and want to stop it. Think Timothy McVeigh or the Unabomber.
Finally there is the economy, which seems to be hanging by a thread. Many think we are on the verge of a Depression. We have seen totally unconstitutional methods used to try to prop up the false and foolish methods being used to make politicians look good. The Fed is printing money as fast at they can, banks and companies who have been the recipients are holding on to the money the government is handing out and not letting it through to the economy. Once they pull the plug and that rush of money enters the system, we may see huge inflation. Or they may never let it out preferring to keep it for a reserve against poor economic times and we will see layoffs. Either way we suffer with a terrible economy, because we have built a house of cards built on credit that we can’t repay! People have discovered that they can vote themselves goodies, but the government will not to be able to pay on their promises without raising taxes which will in turn cause more economic hardships with layoffs, and less money in the hand of consumers.
In the end the only way to rescue our nation is to return our foundation to Christ. How can the Elders of Israel save our Constitution? Maybe by returning to personal righteousness.

11.02.2008

Iraq War Veteran Addresses Obama

Watch it all the way to the end. The final message is the most powerful.

10.22.2008

Our Money Is Evaporating.........

This is a very educational video about how money is related to gold.

10.20.2008

Brigham Young Journal of Discourses: The Value of Wheat

I've been thinking of BY quote comparing wheat to gold and here it is.(update, Journal of Discourses website changed. This is from Journal of Discourses 1 pg 250, June 5th 1853)
"Were I to ask the question, how much wheat or anything else a man must have to justify him in letting it go to waste, it would be hard to answer;figures are inadequate to give the amount. Never let anything go to waste.Be prudent, save everything, and what you get more than you can take care of yourselves, ask your neighbors to help you. There are scores and hundreds of men in this house, if the question were asked them if they considered their grain a burden and a drudge to them, when they had plenty last year and the year before, that would answer in the affirmative, and were ready to part with it for next to nothing. How do they feel now, when their granaries are empty? If they had a few thousand bushels to spare now, would they not consider it a blessing? They would. Why? Because it would bring the gold and silver. But pause for a moment, and suppose you had millions of bushels to sell, and could sell it for twenty dollars per bushel, or for a million dollars per bushel, no matter what amount, so that you sell all your wheat,and transport it out of the country, and you are left with nothing more than a pile of gold, what good would it do you? You could not eat it, drink it, wear it, or carry it off where you could have something to eat. The time will come that gold will hold no comparison in value to a bushel of wheat. Gold is not to be compared with it in value. Why would it be precious to you now? Simply because you could get gold for it? Gold is good for nothing,only as men value it. It is no better than a piece of iron, a piece of limestone,or a piece of sandstone, and it is not half so good as the soil from which we raise our wheat, and other necessaries of life. The children of men love it, they lust after it, are greedy for it, and are ready to destroy themselves,and those around them, over whom they have any influence, to gain it.

When this people are blessed so much that they consider their blessings a burden and a drudge to them, you may always calculate on a cricket war,a grasshopper war, a drought, too much rain, or something else to make the scales preponderate the other way. This people have been blessed too much,so that they have not known what to do with their blessings."

It's a bit different when looked at in context. He is saying that we are fools to make the pursuit of gold (not just money- but specifically gold) our safety net. I'd say that in the years to come, he will prove to be absolutely right. When our money becomes worthless we will wish we had stored some wheat, and learned how to use it!

Modern Day Gadianton Robbers

I found a great website called the Gadianton Times. On it there is a great description of the tactics the Gadianton robbers used. Put into modern language and context (with references) it helps us see just how far down that road we have come. Here's the article. Look around the site. It's a good one.

10.19.2008

When God Shows His Cards!

I didn't realize that Biology could be so important. But this summer it turned out to be so. When one of my kids was diagnosed with a basically harmless condition, I was able to understand the doctors explanation of the biology of the syndrome.
More important when a book about hormones fell into my hands at the exactly right time, I understood the reason for the problems I was having, and how to start to correct them. I now have a basic understanding of my DNA and the inheritance I have from my family. I understand my brothers CLL a bit better.
None of this means I suddenly know all I need to know, but I have a foundation now for understanding how to learn more and what diagrams of molecules mean, and how the body works.
I believe that the timing of this class was divinely arranged to coincide with my needs!
I love it when God shows his cards!

10.18.2008

Timeless Wisdom

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Politically Lost

Not having a candidate to be enthusiastic about has left me feeling lost. I am scared enough by Obama and his ilk, that I will hold my nose and vote McCain. Hey I can always hope we end up with Sara Palin right? I am lukewarm about my local congressmen who is actually quite conservative, but not real fired up and ambitious. I see that local politics is ripe for my attention. I feel like I can make more difference there anyway. I just can't help feeling like America is just lost in a heavy fog and I am right there with it.

Joe the Plumber- a Real (Harassed) American

Did the media think that we would suddenly turn away from Joe when they found out he owes back taxes? Holy cow- it made him more real to us than before!
The media is so outta touch with "fly over country" that they think we share their belief that being a slave to government is actually a good thing. Joe's difficulties with life like tax bills and licensing only endear us to him more. Here's a guy we can identify with. Between the media and the government exposing their harassment of him he becomes more and more a typical American, and we get mad!
Keep up the good work CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC,MSNBC etc!

The Great (not) Debate

Ok I watched the last presidential debate. I left it a little early to go to a debate by our local candidates for Congress. I didn't miss anything.

The only line I liked was when McCain replied to Obama's tax plan nonsense with "Hey Joe congratulations! You're rich!" He should have kept it up. It was funny. Only because it was dead on. We don't realize how much money it takes to run a small business. If 250,000 in income for a business is rich, we are all screwed! Remember, that profit has to pay a lot of expenses, and most small business are a sole proprietor. That means that the business income is also personal income. I was frankly put to sleep by the debate. Real debate in America is no longer tolerated. Either our eyes glaze over at the complexities of real issues, or we see partisanship and mud slinging. All I know is that American's better wake up a smell the manure soon or we are really in for a rough ride.

Pillage by Obert Skye

Ok, I love this author's name. What a unique and eye catching name! His book Pillage was a hit with my teenage son. This story is about dragons, and if you are a mom like me who is sick of books about dragons, this book really puts them in a minor role. They are a tool to teach a great lesson. The main character, a fifteen and three quarters year old boy, gets himself in trouble a lot. At the risk of a spoiler I will tell you the moral of this story is that kids are easily manipulated by their penchant for rebellion.
Pillage is a quick read and clean. The graphic of the dragon on the cover is beautiful, but again that repelled me more than attracted me. I was sick of my son's dragon obsession. I picked up Pillage because the summary said it was a family history mystery type story. It was, but the family history was a minor element- just typical of fantasy stories where the teenager inherits some power. I am intrigued enough now to try another book by this author with the cool name.
Here are the other books listed in the back cover:
Leven Thumps series
Professor Winsnicker's Book of Proper Etiquette for Well-Mannered Sycophants

10.07.2008

Angry American

This bailout just makes me MAD! I am on of the lucky ones whose Congressmen voted against it - twice! But my Senators voted for it! Sorry America. Your just screwed. Our children have just been sold into slavery.

The worst part is that so many Congresspeople were bought off once pork was added to it. They voted against it the first time. But once it was loaded up with sugar and pork it was ok??? Hey party time how eh? And now they are hiding in their holes rather than explain themselves. Was $700 BILLION not BIG enough the first time around? We are in for a rough ride and I think this bailout has only made it worse. Get buckled in folks. Pay off your debt, save your money, stock the pantry for the future, buy clothing for your kids who will outgrow what they have now. It's not too late, but those who don't make tracks now may not make it. I started a year ago and I may not be prepared enough.
Both of these yahoo's running for president are a joke. Their is no difference and I am back to having to hold my nose and look at Sarah Palin just to think about voting for McCain! I can't believe this supposed "maverick" voted for this bill without a word about all the crap in it. I'm disappointed that Sarah Palin has not attacked this bill. I though McCain was open to disagreement.

9.18.2008

The Slippery Curse

The economy appears to be on the verge of a meltdown. The Federal Reserve is printing new money and evaporating the value of our money on a whopping scale. Our politicians are all trying to point fingers elsewhere and sitting on their hands lest they show the dirt on them. Times like this remind me of the scriptures in the Book of Mormon about slippery treasures. I looked them up tonight since they were once again nagging me. I found the same curse three times. Before Christ came in Helaman 13 it is described in detail. In Mormon at the time of the great Lamanite and Nephite wars, it appears, and again in Ether at the time of the Jaredites it is described. Here they are. Do you think this can be likened to our day?

Helaman 13: 16 Yea, and wo be unto all the cities which are in the land … because of the wickedness and abominations which are in them.
17 And behold, a curse shall come upon the land, saith the Lord of Hosts… because of their wickedness and their abominations.
18 And it shall come to pass … that whoso shall hide up treasures in the earth shall find them again no more, because of the great curse of the land, save he be a righteous man and shall hide it up unto the Lord.
19 For I will, saith the Lord, that they shall hide up their treasures unto me; and cursed be they who hide not up their treasures unto me; for none hideth up their treasures unto me save it be the righteous; and he that hideth not up his treasures unto me, cursed is he, and also the treasure, and none shall redeem it because of the curse of the land.
20 And the day shall come that they shall hide up their treasures, because they have set their hearts upon riches; and because they have set their hearts upon their riches, and will hide up their treasures when they shall flee before their enemies; because they will not hide them up unto me, cursed be they and also their treasures…
21 …for behold, he saith that ye are cursed because of your riches, and also are your riches cursed because ye have set your hearts upon them, and have not hearkened unto the words of him who gave them unto you.
22 Ye do not remember the Lord your God in the things with which he hath blessed you, but ye do always remember your riches, not to thank the Lord your God for them; yea, your hearts are not drawn out unto the Lord, but they do swell with great pride, unto boasting, and unto great swelling, envyings, strifes, malice, persecutions, and murders, and all manner of iniquities.
23 For this cause hath the Lord God caused that a curse should come upon the land, and also upon your riches, and this because of your iniquities.
26 …if a prophet come among you and declareth unto you the word of the Lord, which testifieth of your sins and iniquities, ye are angry with him, and cast him out and seek all manner of ways to destroy him; yea, you will say that he is a false prophet, and that he is a sinner, and of the devil, because he testifieth that your deeds are evil.
27 But behold, if a man shall come among you and shall say: Do this, and there is no iniquity; do that and ye shall not suffer; yea, he will say: Walk after the pride of your own hearts; yea, walk after the pride of your eyes, and do whatsoever your heart desireth—( I deserve the best!) and if a man shall come among you and say this, ye will receive him, and say that he is a prophet.
28 Yea, ye will lift him up, and ye will give unto him of your substance; ye will give unto him of your gold, and of your silver, …and because he speaketh flattering words unto you, and he saith that all is well, then ye will not find fault with him.
29 O ye wicked and ye perverse generation; ye hardened and ye stiffnecked people, how long will ye suppose that the Lord will suffer you? Yea, how long will ye suffer yourselves to be led by foolish and blind guides? Yea, how long will ye choose darkness rather than light?
30 Yea, behold, the anger of the Lord is already kindled against you; behold, he hath cursed the land because of your iniquity.
31 And behold, the time cometh that he curseth your riches, that they become slippery, that ye cannot hold them; and in the days of your poverty ye cannot retain them.
32 And in the days of your poverty ye shall cry unto the Lord; and in vain shall ye cry, for your desolation is already come upon you, and your destruction is made sure; and then shall ye weep and howl in that day, saith the Lord of Hosts. And then shall ye lament, and say:
33 O that I had repented … Yea, in that day ye shall say: O that we had remembered the Lord our God in the day that he gave us our riches, and then they would not have become slippery that we should lose them; for behold, our riches are gone from us.
34 Behold, we lay a tool here and on the morrow it is gone; and behold, our swords are taken from us in the day we have sought them for battle.
35 Yea, we have hid up our treasures and they have slipped away from us, because of the curse of the land.
36 O that we had repented in the day that the word of the Lord came unto us; for behold the land is cursed, and all things are become slippery, and we cannot hold them.
37 Behold, we are surrounded by demons, yea, we are encircled about by the angels of him who hath sought to destroy our souls. Behold, our iniquities are great. O Lord, canst thou not turn away thine anger from us? And this shall be your language in those days.
38 But behold, your days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head.
39 O ye people of the land, that ye would hear my words! And I pray that the anger of the Lord be turned away from you, and that ye would repent and be saved…
Mormon 1: 17 Because of the hardness of their hearts the land was cursed for their sake.
18 And these Gadianton robbers, who were among the Lamanites, did infest the land, insomuch that the inhabitants thereof began to hide up their treasures in the earth; and they became slippery, because the Lord had cursed the land, that they could not hold them, nor retain them again.
19 And it came to pass that there were sorceries, and witchcrafts, and magics; and the power of the evil one was wrought upon all the face of the land,




.

9.03.2008

Marvelous Mollie

Don't tell me I'm crazy. I already know it. We just got dog number three!
Meet Mollie


Her name is Mollie Sue. She a Cocker Bishon hybrid. She's just adorable.
Mollie meets Ben


We worried about how George and Mollie would get along. Would George scare the bejeezes out of little Mollie? I don't think so. She wanted to take George for a walk! George followed her around and drooled like she was a steak!




Mollie just whispered sweet nothing in his ear and he was ready to go!


I think we have a match!



.

8.25.2008

On Being Content

More and more lately I feel like I'm on a merry go round. Except mine is on steroids!
I was afraid that working at a library would sap all my enjoyment of them, and sadly it is beginning to do just that. I find so many books I want to read, and I even take some home, but I can't possibly read them all. I wish my hours were more in line with my kids being at school. It really steals all the energy out of me to miss seeing my kids after school. By the time I get home all the things they wanted to tell me about school are forgotten. When I get home I have to make dinner and begin harping on them for chores and soon schoolwork.
But for now anyway we need the money so there is no other option. I keep hoping a job will open up that will have earlier hours. I applied for one, but I didn't get interviewed. I find myself wanting to be Molly Mormon. I really just want to take care of my house and family. And the better my relationship with my husband gets, the more I want it.
I just read this great article about priorities and feeling content. It's good food for thought. We too are trying to get out of debt. I find that I still crave "stuff" and wanting to just spend money on the fantasy of the perfect life. You know, the perfect bedspread, paint colors, curtains, and rugs, or the new kitchen gadget that supposedly will make your life easier. (Really it only gets harder, because then you feel obligated to use the stupid thing!).
I want time to have a garden, both flowers and food. I want to have an organized household. I want to make good decent meals that the family will gather to eat and talk. I want to do laundry and get all the spots out! But I also want to have time to enjoy those things. Who has time to enjoy their lives any more? Women are all trying to have their cake and eat it too. We want to have the expensive lifestyle and a career while having time to enjoy it. We just can't have it all! I just can't have it all. Somehow I need to accept that and be happy with what I do have...

8.21.2008

Home Sweet Idaho


I went to Idaho last week. It was so great. I wish I had more time to stay.
My Grandma seemed to really appreciate that I wanted to know so many things about her life. We went to a cemetery near her childhood home and took A LOT of pictures of headstones. When I have time I need to put them on a spread sheet. I found Cleverly's, Davies', Howard's, Tirrell's, and more. My aunt went with us. Here's my Great Grandma and Grandpa Davies headstone:
I loved her dearly. She was a Cleverly.
I got to have lunch with two sisters, and visit one afternoon with one of them later. (Her little boy is SOOO Adorable!)

The day after I got there we went to my Grandpa's oldest sister's funeral and I got to meet many of his 11 brothers and sisters. He had a tape that was made years ago of all of them talking. It was awesome to listen to. I visited another aunt on my bio dad's side, and a great aunt on my mother's mother's side. My grandpa taught Nick to weld and they made a cowboy and an owl.
I got to stay at my mom's cabin at Palisades too. I got to see a sister that lives in Kansas and her family and a niece too. We had a not birthday dinner and I got to see my uncle and aunt (whose not birthday it was) and two cousins.
All around it was a good trip and I go to see lots of people. I felt like I learned alot about my heritage. I interviewed my parents and both grandparents. I taped some of the funeral too. I took lots of pictures. Here is a picture of the house my grandparents rented the first year they were married.

It was a trip that filled my very empty bucket.




7.25.2008

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Series- John R Lee MD

It's a good thing I read this in the middle of my Biology class.
In the series of books that begin What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About... by Dr. John R.  Lee, he explains hormones, breast cancer, menopause, and pre-menopause, generally how hormones effect so much of our lives and daily activities. While there is plenty of good information even without a biology class, it was great to read it while learning about the very things he described. These books contains lists of symptoms arranged so you can diagnose your hormone problems better than your doctor. Sure enough my doctor's only option was to put me on the pill to regulate my fluctuating hormones. Dr Lee explains the dangers of patented hormones and why so called "natural" is not always better. His definition of natural blocks hormones that do not naturally occur in a woman's body (like those found in horse urine). He explains the balancing act of estrogen and progesterone and why synthetic hormones cause so much havoc in our bodies. He also explains the problem with xenoestrogens, which are false chemical estrogens abundant in today's chemical laden environment. (I can't wait to replace my carpet with wood floors now!)
Dr John Lee's series of books What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About... are great books, a must read for every thirty-something or older woman!

I'm Free!

Wow! I'm done with Biology. Whew! This class has been so hard. I am just not scientifically minded.

It was very interesting to learn about cells and specifically about cancer. The most useful thing though was to understand cell metabolism. I had more than one opportunity to need what I was learning within the last eight weeks. I read a book about hormones and the difference in drug patented hormones and normal hormones.(What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause by John R. Lee MD) It was an Ah ha moment. Now I know what happened to me when I took that Depro Provera shot after having Megan. It really threw me for a loop! My hubby would agree~ I was loopy~!
And I understand my son's diagnosis and why he looks yellow at times. It's amazing how God puts us in the right timing. I could not have understood all this before this class, and in a few weeks I will have forgotten most of it and would not have understood it. I thought I was procrasinating.... Really I just wasn't ready! I am glad I applied myself on this subject even though I thought it was not useful. It was hard to understand but very useful. Some of it I'm still fuzzy on (ok ALOT of it I'm still VERY fuzzy on).
Praise God for his wonderful timing on something that might seem so insignificant!

6.20.2008

Tag I'm IT!

Ok I'm it. Angela tagged me! So now I'm supposed to share six random things about me. Hmmmm.


1. I thought I would never leave Idaho Falls and look at me now. I've moved 15 times in 15 years of marriage!

2. I fall asleep when I read non-fiction. I can read fiction all night long (although not too many nights in a row!)

3. I played the violin for a few months in my youth. I hated it...

4. My daughter is beautiful and smart. Sometimes I just can't believe we made her!

5. My boys are so smart! Where did that come from?

6. I want to be like my parents.

Ok, Now I have to tag someone else, I think.


6.02.2008

Where Does Doctrine Come From Again?

I read an article in a San Diego paper that listed the stand on homosexual marriage of various main churches. What was interesting was the comments by more than one church that the court ruling had genuinely confused them or created hardship for their standards. One even mentioned that since the state says the ceremonies are ok, that now was a quandary for them. One female Methodist Bishop says:
“Our Book of Discipline says that United Methodist pastors are not allowed to perform the wedding ceremony, and yet the court says, 'Yes, these ceremonies can happen,' ”

I suppose when you ignore scriptures that say that women are not to lead in the churches then it would be a quandry when another obvious and blantant doctrine is challenged.
Another says this:
Presbyterian Church (USA): The equivalent of its supreme court recently reversed a censure of a pastor, saying the same-sex ceremonies she conducted were not technically marriages. The Rev. Clark Cowden, executive presbyter of the San Diego region, admits the ruling was confusing. “The bottom line of what they were saying is that, by definition, a marriage can only be between a man and a woman, and if you do a ceremony for two people of the same sex, you can't call it a marriage,” he said. “It has to be called something else.”

Call it something else? How aout a sin?
Even three out of the four tyes of Judaism will not oppose gay marriages.
Of the four branches of Judaism, Reform and Reconstructionist movements are the most accepting of same-sex marriages. Rabbi Lawson, of Emanu-El, said he uses the same criteria for both straight and gay couples: They need to be Jewish and go through prenuptial counseling. Rabbi Michael Berk of Congregation Beth Israel, another local Reform congregation, also conducts ceremonies for interfaith couples. The Conservative movement allows rabbis to do same-gender commitment ceremonies, but they aren't technically marriages, according to Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal of Tifereth Israel in San Carlos. Rosenthal said if same-gender marriage licenses are issued, he would have the couple get a civil marriage and then come to him for a religious commitment ceremony. Orthodox Judaism opposes same-sex marriages.

So as long as they get counseling they are accceptable to God? Huh?
I have only one question for these churches.
When did state or federal courts begin to decide your doctrine? I thought doctrine came from God.
What more obvious evidence do we need of having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof? I am sad that there are so many confused people out there. They have nowhere to look for guidance except peer pressure or group pressure. They seem to be unconcerned about how God sees them. The are like waves in the sea tossed to and fro.
What is the point of a church that does not uphold the most obvious and blantant standards in the Scriptures. There is no place in the scriptures that these churches can point to that says that homosexual practices are acceptable and as one leader offensively asserted "in God's image". In fact the Scriptures strongly condemn this practice in no uncertain words. It is a testimony to me of how we lose clarity of mind when we try to pick and choose which commandments we will obey.
How grateful I am for our Prophet! I am reminded of the last verse in "Follow The Prophet"
Now we have a world were people are confused
If you don't believe it go and watch the news
We can get direction all along the way
If we heed the Prophet- listen and obey!


5.31.2008

Don't Blink!

I heard Kenny Chesney's song this morning. How true! I feel like life has gotten so fast that I'm gonna get a ticket! (That's saying somthing for this leadfoot!)
It started accelerating when Ben got school age. Well maybe when Megan did. I began taking the kids to school rather than putting them on the bus, so we got a second car. I hadn't had a car of my own for years. That seemed to start the race. Since then there is always somewhere I need to be or something that I should be doing. Here's my list of things I "should" be doing:
Got to the gym
Take your vitamins
Eat balanced meals (preferably homemade rather than processed)
Got to work
Get your degree
Do your calling
laundry
cooking
grocery shop
get gas (ouch)
pay your bills
balance your chekcbook
brush the dog
walk the dog
bathe the dogs
get your food storage
genealogy
missionary work
check on my elderly neighbor
yardwork
mop the floors
wash the cupboards
wash the windows
dust
sew my clothes because I hate what the stores carry
go to the doctor
and on and on and on and on.....
This song "Dont Blink" reminds me to slow down and smell the roses. Others have told me that time will get faster the older I get. That scares me. I don't want this life to slip by and not enjoy it. I'm doing so many things that I want to do, but not enjoying them like I wanted to. I used to want to live to be 100 years old, but now I'm not so sure. I surely have enough things to do to last me that long, but this isn't what I expected! Why is it so hard to enjoy this life? I'll bet it's a universal problem. Somehow I need to be able to focus on the moment and not remember all the "shoulds" running in the back of my mind.

5.29.2008

A Living Sacrifice: Motherhood

I just read the most beautiful article about women giving birth. This is one I will reread and keep in my journal. Read it at Meridian here We need more such things to read as mothers these days.

5.28.2008

Those poor illegal immigrants who are just trying to feed their families.....

Yea right.... Read this article and see what one of these poor harmless illegals did and how it effected a hardworking red blooded American. You know it is happening millions of times- once for every hardworking illegal they tell us about. It has to be or they wouldn't be able to work here. It might be happening to you, but your government doesn't want you to know that.
This kind of thing is an outrage and Congress and the White House had better realize it soon. Of course John McCain will only say this is justification for a guest worker program so that these poor illegals don't have to use our social security numbers. VOMIT!
He wants to keep the 500 billion dollars that are anonymously coming into the social security system so it doesn't fail on his watch. Apparently that money doesn't go to the real owner of the social security number, it gets vaporized somewhere in the US budget because the names don't match. It's a typical government shell game! I've written to my Congressman (Doc Hastings) and asked him what he intendeds or has done to solve this enormous problem in America.

5.27.2008

Epicenter by Joel Rosenberg

I just finished Epicenter by Joel Resenberg. It is the most remarkable book I've read in a long time. He tells about the plot lines in his novels The Last Jihad, The Last Days, and The Ezekiel Option and how he came up with them. What makes them all remarkable plot lines is that major elements of the stories have come to pass very quickly after he wrote them. In Epicenter he recounts the many experiences he had interviewing world leaders, reporters, and not so average people. He focuses the chapters in Ezekiel 36-39, which talk about the last days, to come up with the premise that Russia and Iran will jointly lead a coalition against Israel and threaten her so badly that no other nation will come to her aid. God will save her and show all nations that He is the God of Israel.
Joel Rosenberg is an evangelical Christian, but also a Jew. He calls himself a Messianic Jew. That is a Jew who believes that Jesus was the Messiah and will come again to earth. He had traveled the world in many capacities and had many remarkable experiences that seem to have allowed him to see the fulfillment of the Battle of Gog and Magog. In Epicenter he shows the world events that are happening and how they might lead to the fulfillment of the prophecies in Ezekiel. His theories are not so far feched. While many people including world leaders, refuse to believe that these things could happen, many of them are happening right in front of us if we will see them. He has set up a website to continue to bring events to our attention.
It is a powerful testimony of a true believer and one that I think everyone who waits on the Lord should read, if only for another possibility.
Here are the books he cites that helped him in his discernment:
The Coming Peace in the Middle East by Dr Tim LaHayne
A Place Among the Nations by Benjamin Netanyahu
Hatred's Kingdom by Dore Gold
The Final Thrust South by Vladimir Zhirinovsky
Endgame: The Blueprint for Victory in the War On Terror By General Thomas McInerney
Saddam's Secrets: How an Iraqi General Defied and Survived Saddam Hussein by General Georges Sada
The Rise of Babylon by Charles Dyer
Light Force: A Stirring Account of the Church Caught in the Middle East Crossfire by Brother Andrew
Fear No Evil, and The Case for Democracy by Natan Sharansky

5.22.2008

The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker

This book is great! Mr deBecker knows his stuff and well he should. Growing up in a violent home, he learned very young how to handle violence. He is in the business of handling risk and his biggest ally is fear. He tells us to trust our senses to tell us when something is wrong and he uses many examples to show us what he means. Using examples of extreme crimes without the gruesome details he shows us how criminals work, how to have appropriate and helpful reactions to our modern society, and explodes the myth that violence is unpredictable and random. There is alot of useful wisdom here. I plan to educate my family with this book. He mentions other good books throughout his writing, and thankfully he has a list of recommended reading in the back, because I didn't want to stop reading to write all the titles down! I also read a small book that was new in our library called What Teens and Parents Need to Know About Sex Offenders by Bobbie G. Hopes, PhD which was timely to read with Mr deBecker's book. It can be a scary world out there if you don't understand that God gave us intuitive protective functions to help us protect ourselves, and best of all he gave us the Holy Ghost to warn us. This book shows us how fear properly respected and heeded can be a great gift.
Recommended reading from Gavin De Becker:
Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goldman
Fatherless America by David Blankenhorn
It Takes a Village by Hillary Clinton
Whoever Fights Monsters by Robert Ressler
Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher
Trust Your Instincts (Video)

5.13.2008

Easier To Take Children Than a Computer

It appears that in the State of Texas, it is easier to take children out of a home, than to take a computer or other evidence of a crime.

A second newborn baby has been declared to be in imminent danger of being married off. Texas stole the baby of an FLDS woman whom they think might be underage. The day the baby was born it was taken into CPS custody. She claims to be 22 years old.
Does anyone remember that annoying Amendment that had to do with search and seizure?
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Apparently that doesn't include children. According to precedent, a judge must give consent to the police going into a home and removing evidence of a crime. Did a judge consent to removing over 400 children? Was it because they were a certain religion? Was it because they were in imminent danger of being married off? Was it because they might be pregnant? Or that they might be having sex? (Without a state run sex education class? We all know how effective they are!)
I am so upset at what is happening in this situation. It is so wrong. These women and children are being victimized by the state.

5.09.2008

Cool Site About The Declaration

I found a site that has the text of the Declaration of Independence and a link to a biography for each of the signers. Cool!

What Liberals Really Think...

Don Feder gives a great illustration of the "two America's" that exist in America and the diffeence between what Liberals think and what Conservatives think. We need to study this list and be prepared to face its truth when we see it so we do not join it.
The left’s disdain for ordinary Americans colors its entire agenda. Because we’re too stupid to know how to spend our income, taxes should be confiscatory. Since we’re too improvident to plan for our retirement, Social Security must remain sacrosanct.

Because we’ll pass our bigotry on to the next generation, government needs to indoctrinate our children – with multiculturalism, skepticism and an appreciation for alternative lifestyles.

Due to our violent nature, we can’t be trusted with guns. So government should make it progressively harder for citizens to own them.

Because we won’t vote responsibly (for “progressive” politicians), increasingly, political power should be vested in the courts, which are insulated from the will of the people.

We are two nations divided by a cultural/ideological chasm the width of the Grand Canyon. One resides in San Francisco, Grosse Pointe, Manhattan’s Upper East Side and Chevy Chase. The other lives in towns two hours off the Interstate.

One thinks guns are more dangerous than criminals. The other thinks gun-control means a good grip and a steady aim. One believes in capital punishment. The other looks at a serial killer and asks where we, as a society, went wrong.

One feels for illegal aliens denied amnesty. The other feels for the black teens in Newark murdered by illegals last year.

One thinks abortion is a constitutional right. The other thinks it’s an abomination.

One thinks Islamism is a menace. The other thinks it might just have a point.

One thinks parents should raise their children. The other thinks the proverbial Village -- au pairs, Guatemalan housemaids and daycare workers– should shoulder the burden.

One believes society should support marriage. The other thinks it’s passé – except for gays.

One believes in moral absolutes. The other believes in relativism. One believes in free will and personal responsibility. The other believes in Sigmund Freud, Dr Spock and Oprah.

One believes in God. The other believes in government.

It’s hard to warm to a candidate who thinks you’re a malicious moron who takes solace in a .45 and a type of Shiite Christianity.

Global Warming and the War on Families

Don Feeder writes an excellent article exposing the Global Warming crowd’s real target- families and religion.

http://www.ldsmag.com//ideas/080501globe.html

 

 

5.07.2008

Texas FLDS Polygamy and Mormons

Apparently the New York Times has shown just how ignorant and lazy it is. They are saying that the LDS church in the 19th century was no different than the modern FLDS. The Church Historian put out a statement correcting the Times. The Deseret News article had a lot of comments about this, most universally condemning the FLDS and this "reporter" at the Times. One especially good comment was from Matthew:
Modern society considers it normal and acceptible for most teenagers to be sexually active. Modern society just doesn't want them getting married or having children. Modern society embrasses (embraces) serial polygamy (marry, divorce, marry, divorce, marry, etc.) Modern society encourages 15 year-olds to pose nude, drapped in a sheet and then criticises them for doing it. Modern society causes teenage girls to have eating disorders and teenage boys to use steroids. Modern society embraces abortion as a convenient form of birth control. Modern Society produces teenagers that want to, and try to, kill all of their school mates.

Even if all of Egan's falsehoods about 19th century Mormons were true, it would still shine in comparison to his precious modern society. Given that they are not true, he ought to be focusing his efforts on improving the society he is part of.


This is the point I akwardly tried to make in my previous posts. I responded this way:
Right on Matthew!
I have another observation. Everyone in America (some LDS included) are assuming that all the "reporting" on the FLDS is correct. They have been found guilty without even a shred of evidence.
I watched the interviews of the women who have lost all their children and it broke my heart. These families are being ripped apart by a prank phone call. There has been no evidence of any abuse- only the accusations and imaginings of reporters. Yet we all condemn them anyway.
We (LDS) need to watch out that we don't do the same things to them that we claim are being done to us.
In reading articles about the FLDS and LDS I have been cured of any trust in our media. They are biased, lazy and elitest and can't be believed anymore. We seem to be in a catch 22. Experience is directly at odds with what our media is trying to convince us of.
Certainly these two religions are not any more similar than Baptists and Catholics, but it's not necessary to convict them just to make ourselves look better. Government is abusing these folks.

Since I had limited words let me elaborate a little more.
What I see on these comment boards and occasionally in person is arrogance. We love to assert our righteousness and sometimes assert that because we are persecuted, we must be right! Well as one commenter pointed out the FLDS and many other groups could use that logic. We need to learn to talk to people without all the Sunday language. It's not testimony meeting. We need to talk about the doctrines. But we first must know them. Often we need to know our history. In this case a knowledge of our history is essential and those who don't know it only get in the way with their Sunday School answers. The world needs fact and doctrine without the condescension. What we think is common sense or obvious is not so to everyone. And too often I see LDS commenters assuming that what they "know" is commonsense and obvious to everyone, and anyone who doesn't get it must be evil or stupid. We should be the best defenders of other religions in the world. Instead, I see us whining about our own persecutions and participating in persecutions of others.
The government is abusing these women at this Texas ranch. We should be angry about that because it could easily happen to us. Instead, we are afraid of being lumped with them and so we willingly condemn them to protect ourselves. It's shameful. I certainly hope that when the time comes that LDS children are removed from their mothers for some prank phone call, that the Baptists, FLDS, Catholics, Muslims, and Buddists, will stand up for me!

Hold on tight
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