By Alan on Feb 10 in Blog tagged apostles, authority, healing, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, miracles, priesthood, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Thomas S. Monson | Comments Off

Miracles Are Everywhere To Be Found

Miracles are everywhere to be found when the
priesthood is understood, its power is honored
and used properly, and faith is exerted.

The divine, magnifying, and strengthening power can
come to us through priesthood blessings by those
who have been ordained and given the Priesthood.

Jesus Christ Ordained His Twelve Apostles
to be his closest disciples and helpers
during his ministry on earth with
the Priesthood.
Luke 6:13; John 15:16

He sent them forth to represent him and to minister
for him after his ascension into heaven.

Both anciently and in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
in the restored Church today, an Apostle is a
special witness of Jesus Christ in all the world to testify
of his divinity and of his resurrection from the dead.
Acts 1:22; D&C 107:23

John the Baptist conferred the Aaronic Priesthood
on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in
Harmony, Pennsylvania
D&C 13; JS—H 1:71–72

The Melchizedek Priesthood was restored to the earth
in these last days by the ministry of Peter, James, and John,
who literally came to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery
in the spring of 1829 and conferred this power and
authority upon them (D&C 27:12–13).

Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery
in the Kirtland Temple. Moses, Elias, and Elijah
appeared and conveyed priesthood keys (see D&C 110).

Today - Miracles Are Everywhere To Be Found!

By Alan on Jun 21 in Daily Inspiration tagged abominations, be saved, believe, bretheren, destroy, Doctrine and Covenants, dwindled, Fathers, Gold Plates, His name, His people, iniquity, Ismaelites, Joseph Smith, knowledge, Lamanites, Lemuelites, Nephites, of The Lord, preserved, records, repentance, rhe promises, testimony, The Book of Mormon, the gospel, the Lord, the promises, very purpose | Comments Off

What Was The Purpose Of The Gold Plates Found In New York?

 ”And this testimony shall come to the knowledge of the Lamanites, and the Lemuelites, and the Ishmaelites, who dwindled in unbelief because of the iniquity of their fathers, whom the Lord has suffered to destroy their brethren the Nephites, because of their iniquities and their abominations.”   D&C 3: 18

Learn More . . .
For The Family

By Alan on Jun 19 in Blog tagged Americans, apostles, beliefs, challenges of worshiping, conscience, convictions, faith, Joseph Smith, LDS, legal provisions, legal shifts, liberty, Mormons, organizations, priveliege, protection, religion, religious liberty, rights, social, statements, supress, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Thomas S. Monson | 2 Comments

 Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have great reason to revere religious liberty. From a history that at times has involved religious persecution, Mormons have a special appreciation for the freedom to speak and live according to their convictions and faith. Religious liberty, in fact, has been significant for Mormons since the beginning. Church founder Joseph Smith was a strong and generous proponent of this principle, and he recognized that it was critical for all parties to reciprocate in upholding it. “I am bold to declare before Heaven” he said, “that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbytarian [sic], a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination.”

In a 19th-century Mormon settlement, Smith also underlined the importance of religious freedom by introducing a city ordinance that guaranteed religious freedom for inhabitants of all faiths. Freedom of conscience and religion were incorporated into the Church’s Articles of Faith, which explain, “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.” [2] Mormons are steadfastly committed to religious liberty and to its protection.

The mounting challenges to religious freedom

The condition of religious liberty and freedom of conscience in the United States is not as dire as it is in some areas of the world. Today, American people of faith and conscience do not generally face the physical violence or coercion sometimes experienced in other nations. However, freedom of religion and conscience in the United States are nonetheless at risk. Social and legal shifts are squeezing this liberty in new and deeply problematic ways. Americans who have long taken it for granted are being reminded of its value.

Challenges to religious freedom are emerging from many sources. Emerging advocacy for gay rights threatens to abridge religious freedom in a number of ways. Changes in health care threaten the rights of those who hold certain moral convictions about human life. These and other developments are producing conflict and beginning to impose on religious organizations and people of conscience. They are threatening, for instance, to restrict how religious organizations can manage their employment and their property. They are bringing about the coercion of religiously-affiliated universities, schools and social-service entities. They are also resulting in reprimands to individuals who act in line with their principles — from health practitioners and other professionals to parents. In these and in many other circumstances, we see how religious freedom and freedom of conscience are being subtly but steadily eroded. And of equal concern, the legal provisions emerging to safeguard these freedoms are often shallow — protecting these liberties only in the narrowest sense. In many aspects of public life, religious freedom and freedom of conscience are being drawn into conflicts that may suppress them.

Selected Beliefs and Statements on Religious Freedom of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

By Alan on Jun 07 in Blog tagged a ship, Alan Osmond, animals, artifacts, baptism of fire, barley, before Columbus, Bountiful, breatplates, buffalo, burials, civilization, conspiring men, constitution, Cumorah, DNA, earthworks, evidence, geography, government, grapes, Heartland Mounds, Hebrew, hope, Hopeland, intellectual bias, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, Lamanites, land of promise, law of Moses, Lehi, lunar calendar, Meso-America, Mormon, native America, Nephites, North America, Old Testament, origins, other sheep, promised land, ramps, Rod Meldrum, ruins, Satan, savages, semetic, sheep, smallpox, Smithsonian, starve, Suzanne Osmond, swords, The Book of Mormon, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, vineyards | Comments Off

New “Hope” For Understanding

Native America Origins.

There is so much evidence and so many things that occurred in the Heartland model of America that corresponds beautifully with The Book of Mormon events and its people.  Those of us who have been on this tour wish to share our feelings with you.

Suzanne and I went on a tour to see these things for ourselves.  Here are some opinions and testimonials of those things our group saw and felt that convince us on our Heartland Mounds Tour that these things truly took place in North America.

“The Book of Mormon clearly writes of a ‘Land of Promise’, a land of choice above all other lands.  That could only refer to the land of America!  The Heartland model offers far more evidence and artifacts that match up with the Book of Mormon descriptions of the ancient civilization than the Meso-American model ever has.  Chris Humpherys

 “The Lamanites have not gone. They are still here!”   D. Wayne Thornock

“It is very clear after viewing the complexity of the existing ruins, that there was a great civilization in the Heartland of America.  I know of only one description of this complex of a civilization.  That would be The Book of Mormon.  Dee Ray Olson

 “I just wish all LDS people would have the advantage to truly investigate the geography of The Book of Mormon.  It is inspiring to learn such details and it enhances one’s testimony.  Don’t be afraid of learning more and beware of intellectual bias regarding The Book of Mormon geography.  Louis Erickson

“I am so impressed with the amazing remains of the Hopewell people who we believe are the Nephites / Lamanites.  They appear to be very advanced in their building and craftsmanship.  Seeing breastplates of copper and other things mentioned in The Book of Mormon convinces me that they did live in the North America setting .  One Cumorah!”  Laura Erickson

“I am deeply impressed with so many of the evidences that have come forth and that will yet come forth showing strong correlations with The Book of Mormon history.  The Lord promised Joseph Smith that he would cause the ground to bring forth evidence and he has truly done that. To see first hand ancient metallurgy with breastplates, swords, and many implements of commerce and trade is remarkable.  I am thrilled to see bones of all the animals mentioned in The Book of Mormon and they are the same animals that were in the Holy Land where Lehi’s colony came from.  These were clean animals, not the unclean as those in Mesa-America.  It is humbling to hear of the many gravesites of huge burials of hundreds and thousands of men, women, and children, thrown in.  I love the possible sacred site of Bountiful and the sacred feelings of that place.  I love this land – the Promised Land – One Cumorah!”  Marsha Burnside

“My testimony has been strengthened by standing in sacred places and by learning about the history of my people.  As  a Native American, I know that life is a sacrey journey and I know that we are sons and daughters of a loving creator.  We live in the land that is the most choice land of our Heavenly Father.  It is a promised land.”

‘For the eternal purposes of the Lord shall roll on, until all His promises shall be fulfilled.’  Mormon 8:22  Andrea Barlow – Shoshone – Bannock Tribe

“I haven’t been so excited about something like the Heartland Model in a long time.  From the great mound civilizations, the finding of mass graves near Hill Cumorah, the Michigan tablets, the DNA story, all The Book of Mormon geography references, to the history of the political intrigue, it hasn’t done anything but add to my testimony of The Book of Mormon.”  Paul Winter

“When I was a missionary in Peru, I was able to see many incredible sites of ancient peoples.  But, it was not until the Hopeland Model that I had information about the United States of America that I ‘knew’ when I first read The Book of Mormon.  I ‘knew’ The Book of Mormon talked about the USA except for Adam-Ondi-Ahman.  Many things are never talked about and yet when you see these sites, the spirit confides what The Book of Mormon testifies.  This is the Promised Land!  And, the Nephites came here!”  Joyce Winter

“It is exciting to participate in a tour in which physical evidence matches and fits so closely to what we read in The Book of Mormon.  One’s testimony of the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon and the divine call of the Prophet Joseph Smith is strengthened when you view all the wonderful geographical evidence.  To me the spirit testifies more strongly the truthfulness of the people.”  Rusty Barlow

“I’ve always believed that this land, the U.S.A., is the specific land referred to in The Book of Mormon as the ‘Promised Land’.  Our constitution was brought about for this purpose.  The physical evidence of this tour was overwhelming in it’s proof of a civilized society who lived here during The Book of Mormon times.  They knew and wrote Hebrew and believed in God.  This land also had all the ores, animals and seeds spoken of in The Book of Mormon.  This was so informative and inspiring.”  Susan Iverson

“This has been a very informative trip.  I knew very little about the Hopewell civilization.  What I have been experiencing this week and how it ties into The Book of Mormon brings a good feeling to me.  I want to learn more!  Rod Meldrum does a good job in presenting this information to us.  The trip has been very inspiring.”  Joan Iveson

“The information given us about the Heartland Model for The Mook of Mormon land is very convincing.  The artifacts, the way the animals, plants and mounds match up to the information in The Book of Mormon is amazing!  The oral history given by Native Americans also fits the Heartland Model.  This trip has been very informative and exciting.  I love the way this backs up the claims of our wonderful scriptures!”  Robyn Pearson

“I have been particularly interested in the complexity of many of the geometric earthworks in Ohio and also the immense size.  To me this demonstrates the sophistication and large size of the Hopewell civilization.  Also, the recovery of the ‘Holy Stones’ from some of the mounds shows powerful evidence that they had religious traditions as the people of the Old Testament.  I believe those people were brought here by God and have provided us with a second witness, even The Book of Mormon.”  Lee Pearson

“This information is amazing.  I am astonished that this information has not been taught throughout my life.  I am certain that any person that even modestly studies this history will be convinced of its validity.  Future history will look at this information and acknowledge its substantial impact on converting people to the truth of The Book of Mormon.  I would like to thank Brother Meldrum for his diligence and research.”  O. Van Thornick

“This tour has been a further testament of how main-stream archeology continues to verify and validate the claims of The Book of Mormon.  Would anyone argue that Native Americans were misunderstood and their history was largely ignored as they were driven from their lands and put onto reservations?  The Book of Mormon prophecies reveal that these people who are the covenant people of the Lord will one day become a mighty people.  What a thrill to see so many faithful Church members who are becoming very knowledgeable about these evidences which prepares them to better defend The Book of Mormon and thus the gospel and the Church.  My hope is that members, once armed with the powerful new research, will be emboldened to share the gospel with millions of others, resulting in the gospel rolling forth with greater success.  The gospel is the most powerful and realistically is the only method of correcting and returning God’s children to righteousness.  My prayer is that this research and these evidences will play a significant part in bringing about a re-commitment to gospel principles.  I feel honored to be privileged to associate with such tremendous seekers of truth!”  (I would like to especially thank Alan and Suzanne Osmond for their time, talents and spirit of adventure and desire to pursue truth relating to this research.  I have grown to love and respect them immensely.)  Rod Meldrum
Get Rod’s latest book with picture evidences! 

“I love to find truths and to share them with others.  When Suzanne and I met Rod Meldrum and learned about and then saw additional truths, we both felt compelled to go and see for ourselves many of the existing evidences of those who came to this promised land of America before Columbus.

Through The Book of Mormon, we knew that Lehi’s family left Jerusalem, built a ship and by the hand of God were led to this blessed land which was saved and prepared for them.  Their history was recorded on gold plates and translated into the book by Joseph Smith known as The Book of Mormon; Mormon is the name of the prophet who abridged a room full of ancient records into the final plates that got translated.

There are definitely two forces in this world.  One is for good and the other is for evil.  Oh, how I hurt inside for those who followed the evil one and destroyed so much of the Native American History!  Oh, how I try to understand why government, the Smithsonian, and wicked and conspiring men tried to erase the Native American history and to label them as savages; to kill them, starve them by killing their ‘beasts’ or buffalo that provided them with food, and to those who offered  them blankets infested with smallpox which took many lives of their men, women and children is unbelievable.  Only God can fix and mend the pain, the tears, and those oh so many broken hearts.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a ‘Mormon’, I pray to my fellow brothers and sisters in the gospel that you will open your eyes, hearts, and minds to these evidences in the Heartland of North America; the place where Adam and Eve first dwelt; the promised land that was preserved for a righteous people and a free nation; the place where these people’s ancient history and records were revealed in Palmyra, New York by an angel; one of the places where Jesus Christ appeared to His “other sheep” after He was crucified for our sins; the place where the New Jerusalem will soon be built to prepare for the return and second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ where He will dwell for a thousand years with those who survive the  world’s ‘baptism of fire’ fulfilling all righteousness.

I am so thankful that we ignored those who tried to discourage and persuade us not to come on this tour to see these mounds and evidences of these most intelligent and humble people who knew geometry and astronomy and built these amazing earthworks.  Their works testify of their beliefs and willingness to serve their Creator and to defend their families in righteousness.  They built a land of prosperity and security, working with precious ores and mining copper, zinc, silver and gold with machines confirming that there were horses, elephants, the ‘giant’ people of the Jaradites.  They were able to continue living the Law of Moses which they could not do in Meso America for many reasons like the fact that there were no sheep, no barley nor wheat or grapes/vineyards.  They did not use a lunar based calendar but a solar calendar, their weeks were not seven (7) days but 13 or 20 days (short count and long count) weeks, they used steps in stead of ramps as indicated in scripture for their temples for modesty, they had no horses or elephants, and no evidence for Semitic DNA ancestry/lineage, all of which are indicated by The Book of Mormon.

While all these things are lacking in Meso-america, all of them have been verified by non-Mormon sources in this Hopewell Civilization we have been learning about on this tour!  They were all available in North America!  The evidence continues to support the claims of The Book of Mormon, which is the foundation of the gospel in these latter days.

I have a testimony of The Book of Mormon.  Until our living prophet, Thomas S. Monson, tells us where The Book of Mormon actually took place, and the reasons for so many evidences of the Hopewell civilization and Native Americans that were recorded in that book, then I invite you to “seek and ye shall find” answers to so many questions about North America.  Satan, and those who follow him have laid traps and snares to stop us and continually try to stop and destroy us and God’s work and Glory which we are.

May our Native Americans forgive those who have hurt them and their posterity.

Alan Osmond

 For The Family

Get a FREE copy of The Book of Mormon HERE!

By Alan on May 26 in Blog tagged America, Apostles and Prophets, baptized, blind to see, brightness of the sun, chief cornerstone, Christ, creator of the earth, despised, doing good, eternity, fulness of times, goodwill, Gordon B. Hinckley, He is the Messiah, He lives, he who was slain, His Church, His example, His priesthood, immortal, James E. Faust, Jesus Declares, Joseph Smith, LDS, message of peace, messiah, of God, only begotten, other sheep, premortal existence, purpose of life, raising the dead, Redeemer of the World, Risen, sinless, son of God, sons and daughters, taught truths, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the first, the First Presidency, the Great Jehovah, the last, the life, the light, the living Christ, The Son, the testimony of the Apostles, Thomas S. Monson | Comments Off

Jesus Declares He Is The Messiah

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The Living Christ: The Testimony Of The Apostles

As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth.

He was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). Though sinless, He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38), yet was despised for it. His gospel was a message of peace and goodwill. He entreated all to follow His example. He walked the roads of Palestine, healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. He taught the truths of eternity, the reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the potential for the sons and daughters of God in the life to come.

He instituted the sacrament as a reminder of His great atoning sacrifice. He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvary’s cross. He gave His life to atone for the sins of all mankind. His was a great vicarious gift in behalf of all who would ever live upon the earth.

We solemnly testify that His life, which is central to all human history, neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the flesh, the Redeemer of the world.

He rose from the grave to “become the firstfruits of them that slept” (1 Corinthians 15:20). As Risen Lord, He visited among those He had loved in life. He also ministered among His “other sheep” (John 10:16) in ancient America. In the modern world, He and His Father appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, ushering in the long-promised “dispensation of the fulness of times” (Ephesians 1:10).

Of the Living Christ, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying:

“I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (D&C 110:3–4).

Of Him the Prophet also declared: “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

“That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C 76:22–24).

We declare in words of solemnity that His priesthood and His Church have been restored upon the earth—“built upon the foundation of … apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20).

We testify that He will someday return to earth. “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (Isaiah 40:5). He will rule as King of Kings and reign as Lord of Lords, and every knee shall bend and every tongue shall speak in worship before Him. Each of us will stand to be judged of Him according to our works and the desires of our hearts.

We bear testimony, as His duly ordained Apostles—that Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son.

 Gordon B. Hinkley

Thomas S. Monson  -  James E Faust

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

By Alan on May 07 in Blog tagged baptism, cornerstone, dedication, didicated, for eternity, in Missouri, Indian territory, inside the temple, Joseph Smith, Kansas City Missouri Temple, magnificent, Mormon, native Americans, ordinances, President Thomas S. Monson, purpose, sacred work, stately, The Church History, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the light of the gospel, the light of the Savior, unite families, work of God | Comments Off

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Kansas City Missouri Temple Dedicated

The Kansas City Missouri Temple was formally dedicated Sunday in three sessions by President Thomas S. Monson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon). The dedicatory sessions were broadcast to congregations of the Church within the temple district.

President Monson said this “stately and magnificent temple in the lovely part of the country, really the heartland of America, … will shine as a beacon of righteousness to all who will follow its light — the light of the gospel, the light of the Savior.”

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Elders William R. Walker and Donald L. Hallstrom of the Seventy accompanied President Monson during the weekend’s events.

The purpose of a temple dedication ceremony is to set aside the building for the work of God. A Latter-day Saint dedication ceremony includes a special prayer designating the building for Church use and asking God to bless the structure and grounds. A dedication ceremony generally also includes music and talks from Church leaders.

Prior to the dedication, President Monson sealed the temple cornerstone, a tradition marking the end of construction and the beginning of the sacred work inside the temple. 

The Kansas City Missouri Temple is the Church’s 137th temple worldwide, 67th in the United States and second in Missouri. The temple will serve some 45,000 Latter-day Saints in 126 congregations throughout Kansas, Missouri and small portions of Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Plans for a temple in Kansas City were announced by the First Presidency of the Church on 4 October 2008. Construction began with a formal groundbreaking on 8 May 2010.

While tens of thousands of Church meetinghouses are open to all people who wish to attend religious services there, temples, like the Kansas City Missouri Temple, are open only to faithful Latter-day Saints after they are formally dedicated. (See a Mormon Newsroom article explaining the difference between the Church’s chapels and temples.)

Latter-day Saint temples differ from the meetinghouses or chapels where members meet for Sunday worship services. Temples are considered “houses of the Lord” where Christ’s teachings are reaffirmed through baptism and other ordinances that unite families for eternity. In the temple, Church members learn more about the purpose of life and make covenants to follow Jesus Christ and serve their fellow man.

The Church’s History in Missouri

The Church has early roots in the Kansas City area. Six months after the Church was organized in April 1830, Joseph Smith called missionaries to travel to the frontier of western Missouri to preach to Native Americans living in Indian Territory (Kansas).

Joseph Smith arrived in Independence in July 1831 and designated the area as a gathering place for Latter-day Saints. Thousands of followers soon arrived. Over the next few years, the Mormon settlement expanded beyond Jackson County into the area that is today the Country Club Plaza. In 1833 the Latter-day Saints left Jackson County, heading north into Liberty in Clay County. They later settled in Daviess and Caldwell Counties, created by the Missouri legislature specifically for the Mormons. About 15,000 Mormons left Missouri in 1838-39, settling in Nauvoo, Illinois, until 1846, when they began their journey across the plains to the Salt Lake Valley.

The Church returned to Kansas in 1895, when an office for the Central States Mission was established in St. John, Kansas. This regional office was moved to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1900 and then to Independence in 1907. Since that time, local Church membership in the metropolitan area has grown to over 22,000.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

For The Family

By Alan on Apr 17 in Blog tagged ancestors, angels of God, Brigham Young, constitution, crickets, George Osmond Jr, God, hard work, history, Indians, Joseph Smith, labor, legacy, mobings, mountains, persecutions, pioneer, promised land, star valle, The Church of Jesus Christ, traditions, virtues, war, Wyoming, Zion | 2 Comments

Remembering our Pioneer Grandfather, George Osmond Jr.

Called to serve as first LDS Stake President in Star Valley. Wyoming by: Brigham Young
…………(1836 – 1913)

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Our Priceless Pioneer Legacy

By Ezra Taft Benson

The historian Lord Macauly said, “The people who do not revere the deeds of their ancestors will never do anything to be remembered by their descendants.”

We hope the present generation will continue to be reminded by sermon, song, eulogy, and family traditions of the noble virtues of their pioneer ancestors and to recognize that it was by and through the hand of God that they were delivered from their oppressors and that the settlement in Ephraim’s mountains took place.

Though others have said more eloquently what my tongue or pen could express, I deeply desire to pay reverent tribute to these heroes of the past, to their faithful deeds, their noble lives, and their lasting lessons of courage, faith, self-reliance, stamina, industry, and integrity. All generations have need of these virtues.

We stand today as beneficiaries of their priceless legacy to us, a legacy based on the solid truth that character is the one thing we develop in this world that we take with us into the next.

And what is that legacy?

The pioneers came to the Salt Lake Valley with credentials that spanned the centuries, a bloodline coursing through their veins from illustrious parentage: Abraham and Sarah; Isaac and Rebekah; Jacob and Rachel. Theirs was a bloodline preserved through four centuries of Egyptian captivity; an exile and exodus from the land of their captivity that lasted forty years—a time necessary for a new, less-enslaved generation to develop; and then a settlement in a promised land, which lasted over seven centuries of migrations that brought their sifted lineage into northern Europe and Great Britain.

When the tyranny of European governments disallowed freedom of religious worship, God prepared a new land of promise—the United States of America—where such freedom was eventually guaranteed by an inspired Constitution. Some of the progenitors of the pioneers came before the gospel’s restoration, such as the ancestors of Joseph Smith, but most came following the restoration. They came with a self-identity that led President Brigham Young to exclaim on one occasion, “You understand who we are; we are of the House of Israel, of the royal seed, of the royal blood.” (Journal of Discourses 2:269.)

They came with the faith that God had “set his hand a second time” to restore the house of Israel; that to accomplish His purposes and design, the Church of Jesus Christ had been restored again on the earth through the instrumentality of a latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, Jr.; and that following the martyrdom, the keys of the priesthood had been continued through Joseph’s ordained successor, Brigham Young. They believed themselves to be God-directed and prophetled. That was the conviction which inspired their sacrifices.

They came with indomitable courage, following incredible suffering and adversity. Who can forget those almost insufferable conditions during their exodus? While they were encamped at Sugar Creek, Iowa, in February 1846, a raging blizzard left twelve inches of snow on the ground. Following that storm, the temperatures fell to twelve degrees below zero. On one of those cold nights nine babies were born. Eliza R. Snow provides this vivid account:

Mothers gave birth to offspring under almost every variety of circumstances imaginable, except those to which they had been accustomed; some in tents, others in wagons—in rainstorms and snowstorms. I heard of one birth which occurred under the rude shelter of a hut, the sides of which were formed of blankets fastened to poles stuck in the ground, with a bark roof through which the rain was dripping. Kind sisters stood holding dishes to catch the water as it fell, thus protecting the newcomer and its mother from a showerbath as the little innocent first entered on the stage of human life; and through faith in the great ruler of events, no harm resulted to either.

Let it be remembered that the mothers of these wilderness-born babies were not savages, accustomed to roam the forest and brave the storm and tempest—those who had never known the comforts and delicacies of civilization and refinement. They were not those who, in the wilds of nature, nursed their offspring amid reeds and rushes, or in the recesses of rocky caverns; most of them were born and educated in the Eastern States—and there embraced the Gospel as taught by Jesus and his Apostles; and, for the sake of their religion, had gathered with the Saints, and under trying circumstances had assisted, by their faith, patience and energies, in making Nauvoo what its name indicates “the beautiful.” There they had lovely homes, decorated with flowers and enriched with choice fruit trees, just beginning to yield plentifully. (Edward W. Tullidge, The Women of Mormondom, pp. 307-9.)

In March of that same year, four hundred wagons set out toward the Rocky Mountains, but now a spring thaw had turned the ruts into a quagmire of mud.

Under these testing conditions Orson Spencer’s wife, a young woman of thirty-five, succumbed to this inclement life, leaving six children under fifteen years of age. Shortly before her passing, she opened her eyes and, seeing her children huddling by her bed, burst into tears, sobbing: “Oh, you dear little children! How I hope you will fall into kind hands when I am gone.”

Not a murmur escaped her lips. . . . The storm was severe, and the wagon covers leaked. Friends held milk pans over her bed to keep her dry. Her daughter states that shortly before her mother departed this life, that she rallied and whispered to her husband: “A heavenly messenger appeared to me tonight and told me that I had done and suffered enough, and that he had now come to convey me to a mansion of gold.”

After kissing each child in turn, she whispered to her husband: “I love you more than ever!—But you must let me go!” It was enough. Orson Spencer sorrowfully dedicated her to her Father in heaven, and a moment later she was gone to her crown of glory. (Carter Grant, The Kingdom of God Restored, Deseret Book Co., 1955, pp. 344-45.)

But all was not sorrow. “We outlived the trying scenes,” wrote John Taylor. “We felt contented and happy—the songs of Zion resounded from wagon to wagon—from tent to tent.” (Millennial Star 8:7.) It was under these conditions that William Clayton penned the verses to “All Is Well,” a poem that became an anthem of faith for the Latter-day Saints.

We’ll find the place which God for us prepared,Far away in the West,Where none shall come to hurt or make afraid;There the Saints will be blessed.We’ll make the air with music ring,Shout praises to our God and King;Above the rest these words we’ll tell—All is well! all is well!—Hymns, no. 13

Little did Brother Clayton realize that his hymn would be sung by the 400-voice Tabernacle Choir before the president of the United States and other dignitaries at the commemoration of our nation’s two hundredth birthday.

The pioneers came west with a devotion, patriotism, and loyalty to the nation that had silently sanctioned their expulsion from their homes and the loss of their possessions. History records no modern parallel to their epic exodus from Nauvoo, so it is little wonder that the situation of these modern Israelites was likened to their ancient ancestors exiled from Egypt. In fact, President Joseph F. Smith said that the pioneer feat of modern Israel exceeded that of their progenitors:

“A wonderful event has occurred in these last days among this people, an event many times more wonderful than the marching of the children of Israel from Egypt to the holy land. It is only a short distance from the River Jordan to the land of Egypt—only a few hundred miles—and yet they wandered about for forty years seeking the goodly land. . . . What has happened in this dispensation? This people have crossed deserts that are beyond comparison with those traversed by the children of Israel. They were not fed by manna it is true, although they were fed with quails in great abundance on at least one occasion, and they performed a journey nearly four times as great as that performed by the children of Israel—which occupied them forty years—in the course of a few months. . . .

“We were led out of bondage by the power of God. The angels of God and the power and presence of the Almighty accompanied us, so much so that notwithstanding the country was covered with sagebrush and crickets, presenting the most forbidding appearance, President Young was enabled to point out where the Temple and city would be built. He said, ‘You may go north and south, east and west, and explore the country all over, but when you have done it, you will come back and say that this is the spot where we are to settle.’” (Journal of Discourses 24:155-56.)

It is ironic that in the course of their exodus, this same government that stood by while they were forcibly expelled from Illinois should now come to them with a request for five hundred able-bodied men to fight in the war with Mexico. So disproportionate, inequitable, and unjust in terms of their numbers and their situation was the request for manpower that President Brigham Young commented later:

“Look . . . at the proportion of the number required of us, compared with that of any other portion of the Republic. A requisition of only thirty thousand from a population of more than twenty millions was all that was wanted, amounting to only one person and a half to a thousand inhabitants. If all other circumstances had been equal, . . . our quota of an equitable requisition would not have exceeded four persons. Instead of this, five hundred must go, thirteen thousand percent above an equal ration.” (Journal of Discourses 2:174.)

But they did comply with the request—an extraordinary example of loyalty to their nation.

And what prompted such loyalty and patriotism? Not fear of reprisal, not servile obedience to their overlords, but a recognition that compliance with this request was the “interposition of that all-wise Being” who was bringing about their deliverance. “Thus,” said Brigham Young, “were we saved from our enemies by complying with their . . . unjust and unparalleled exactions; again proving our loyalty to the Government.” (Ibid.)

During the times of mobbings and persecutions, the revelations of God had prescribed the course of action they should take: importune for redress—at the feet of judges, at the feet of the governor, and at the feet of even the president of the United States. These steps were followed without relief, reparation, or redress. Under these conditions I’m sure they questioned as did Joseph in Liberty Jail: “O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place? How long shall thy hand be stayed? . . . O Lord, how long shall [thy people] suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions?” (D&C 121:1–3.)

They, who had suffered so much from oppressors, were to see that God takes His own retribution in His own time and in His own way; for as Lincoln said, “Nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishment and . . . may we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be but a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins. . . .” (A Proclamation by the President of the United States, March 30, 1863.)

While the Saints dwelt securely outside the boundaries of the United States, the nation was engaged in its most costly war in terms of lives lost, a civil war. No doubt these words of the Lord were recalled: “If the President heed [thee] not, then will the Lord arise and come forth out of his hiding place, and in his fury vex the nation.” (D&C 101:89.)

It is a matter of history how truly those words were fulfilled.

Their loyalty to the nation extended not only from patriotism. It came also from a conviction that God had reserved this land for His purpose. It was a choice land above all others. The Constitution of this country had been established “by the hands of wise men whom [God] raised up unto this very purpose,” and they were under divine commandment to maintain that inspired document “for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles.” (D&C 101:80, 77.) And so, when they settled in this western haven, they fashioned a civil government in accord with the Constitution, which, in the hands of good and honorable men, would afford them and others their rights and liberty.

They came, with faith and industry, and carved an Eden out of a desert. Their promised land has become a prosperous valley. Commodious brick homes and apartment dwellings have replaced the log cabins. Luxuriant greenery, gardens, trees, and flowers flourish where once sagebrush and parched soil thrived. A tabernacle and magnificent temple have replaced the Bowery and Endowment House. Elaborate meetinghouses of worship fill the valley. Schools, seminaries, institutes, colleges, trade schools, and a university provide for secular and spiritual education. Stores, banks, factories abound. Truly, we live in the lap of luxury amid an unbounded prosperity, and all this because of the philosophy of self-reliance, initiative, personal industry, and faith in God.

Our forefathers gloried in hard work, but at the same time they drew liberally upon their prodigious spiritual reserves. They did not place their trust “in the arm of flesh.” They were strong and courageous in the Lord, knowing that He was their defense, their refuge, their salvation. Strengthened by this faith, they relied on their cherished independence, their frugality, and honest toil. And history records that even the climate was tempered for their sakes, and their humble untiring efforts made “the desert to blossom as the rose.”

Their faith was renewed by two of Isaiah’s remarkable prophecies concerning the last days—the days in which they knew they were living. In the first of these Isaiah announces: “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.” (Isaiah 35:1.) And again: “For the Lord shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.” (Isaiah 51:3.)

And while their natural eyes saw only their log cabins and immediate surroundings, they envisioned the day when the words of Micah would be fulfilled: “But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Micah 4:1–2.)

We have witnessed the fulfillment of these remarkable prophecies. But today, a contrary philosophy has come into the land. It is one that espouses that government benefits should replace the fruits of individual initiative and labor.

Such a philosophy can result only in the shackling of man’s liberties—in the eventual destruction of our freedom. Had the early settlers throughout the land lived by such a philosophy, this glorious nation of ours would be a vast untamed wilderness known only to the Indians who had lived here for centuries before. I earnestly pray that this important lesson of history shall not go unheeded.

Yes, they came to the valleys of the mountains—first a trickle, the advance party on July 21 and 22, and then, on the 24th, the main caravan of 143 men, three women, and two children. The trickle of immigrants was followed by the hundreds, then the thousands, so that by 1869 more than 68,000 Mormon pioneers had crossed the plains. They came with their faith, loyalty, courage, industry, and integrity. Their legacy to us may be summarized in these fitting words by the late President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.:

“God has never worked out his purposes through the pampered victims of ease and luxury and riotous living. Always he has used to meet the great crises in his work, those in whom hardship, privation, and persecution had built characters and wills of iron. God shapes his servants in the forge of adversity; he does not fashion them in the hothouse of ease and luxury.” (Address delivered at dedication of “This Is the Place” monument, July 24, 1947; in Improvement Era 50:573.)

However outmoded some of these standards may be considered today, they are nonetheless enduring truths without which no character worthy of the name can be built. We have respectfully called them pioneers, because they prepared the way for us to follow. May we possess courage to direct our lives in accordance with the enduring values so represented by their lives.

(Source: Ezra Taft Benson, This Nation Shall Endure, published 1977)

Thanks to Brian Mecham
http://latterdayconservative.com
For The Family

SEE MORE OSMOND ANCESTORS HERE.  ARE WE RELATED?

http://osmond.org

By Alan on Mar 29 in Blog tagged Elder L. Tom Perry, faithfulness, happiness, holiness, Joseph Smith, object and design of our existence, path of virtue, positive things, right and wrong, things good church members do, things we just don't do, You Can't Do Wrong When You Do Right | Comments Off

You Can’t Do Wrong When You Do Right

“Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God”.  Joseph Smith

We live today in a world so full of choices. Television offers both the good and the bad. Bookstores are full of publications offering the right and the wrong. Very few movies are worthy of seeing because of the profanity, violence, and immorality that fill them. Advertising is full of enticements to lead us to violate the body with stimulants. Some music, with its monotonous rhythms, beats illicit thoughts into our heads.

Consider some wise counsel:

“Now may I make a recommendation? Develop discipline of self so that, more and more, you do not have to decide and redecide what you will do when you are confronted with the same temptation time and time again. You need only to decide some things once. How great a blessing it is to be free of agonizing over and over again regarding a temptation. To do such is time-consuming and very risky.

Likewise, my dear young friends, the positive things you will want to accomplish need be decided upon only once—like going on a mission and living worthily in order to get married in the temple—and then all other decisions related to these goals can fall into line. Otherwise, each consideration is risky, and each equivocation may result in error. There are some things good church going  members do and other things we just don’t do. The sooner you take a stand, the taller you will be!”  Spencer W. Kimball

We are at a time in the world’s history when Satan is marshalling all his forces to lead the people off the strait and narrow path. Fortunately, most Christian are clear about who it is that they will serve. Like Joshua of old, they proclaim, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15).

I hope and pray that you great young people will have the courage to consistently choose the right! Moreover, I suggest that each of you find or create reminders to help you and your loved ones choose the right when a choice is placed before you. There is power in a white dress hanging in the closet if we associate them with our desires for purity and righteousness. Even more important than physical reminders is to have the conviction deep down in our hearts to live the kind of life that will cause us to make the right choices, not only for peace and happiness in the world right now, but also for peace and happiness eternally.

I promise you that you will receive everlasting happiness if you consistently choose to do what is right.

“Say unto this people: Choose ye this day, to serve the Lord God who made you.”  
Moses 6: 33

By Alan on Dec 20 in Blog tagged a living force, an intelligent force, Believing is Seeing, causes things to happen, faith, functions ordinarily, God performs His works, Joseph Smith, Larry Barkdull, more than belief, principle of action and power, Seeing id believing | Comments Off

To The Family, from a friend.

I wanted to send you a gift–an article that I have been researching over the last six months. The title of the article is “Faith–An Intelligent Force.” The position is likely one that few people have considered. This article will become a part of an upcoming book that I will write next year. I hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas from the Barkdulls!

Faith—An Intelligent Force

By Larry Barkdull
Pillars of Zion

In my life, I have witnessed many extraordinary acts of faith. I would like to single out one. Last summer, Jason, my son-in-law, had a strong feeling that he needed to immediately move his family from Florida to Utah. The feeling drove him to the temple, where, for six hours, he sat in the celestial room pondering and praying. When finally he received a confirmation, he returned home and began to make calls to secure employment.

Jason’s window of opportunity was four weeks[KP1] ; in just twenty-one days, he would have to find a new job, sell or rent his house, and move his family. If he failed, he would have to wait until the end of the coming semester or perhaps as long as a year.

Clearly, the move would be no small feat—not in this economy. Jobs are scarce, particularly for teachers in Jason’s field. To compound the challenge, he would have to apply for a job long distance without the advantage of a face-to-face interview. Then there was the obstacle of selling the family home during a recession. The home was located in a depressed area of Florida, where few house had moved for several years and unsold real estate inventory was high.

Undeterred, Jason began to make calls[KP2] ; he contacted everybody he knew, whether he thought they were in a position to help him find a job or not.

Imagine what Jason’s wife (Katie) was thinking while she watched her husband make plans to move the family. She went to her knees, and while pouring out her heart, she received an impression: Support your husband[KP3] and his answer. Dutifully, she got up and went to work. “If we’re leaving in four weeks” she thought, “we had better get ready.” [KP4] And that is precisely what she did! She began sorting through toys, clothes and other belongings in an effort to trim down to the bare essentials.

By the end of the third week, Jason had found no job opportunities in Utah. Moments like these are often when our faith folds, but Jason and Katie held firm. Then Monday morning, out of the blue, [KP5] Jason received two employment opportunity calls. He interviewed by phone. Both potential employers said they would let him know by Thursday. After the interviews, Jason and Katie acted again in faith by boxing up their remaining belongings, selling their second car and extra furniture, and arranging for a moving truck.

On Wednesday, Jason was offered both jobs, plus a part-time adjunct professor position at BYU. He chose the job in Utah Valley and the BYU position. That same night, a single sister in their ward appeared on their doorstep asking if she could rent their house. On Friday, the moving truck loaded their belongings, and on Saturday, Jason, Katie and their three children headed for Utah. The following Monday, Jason began work in his new positions.

More than Belief

What is this faith, which Joseph Smith called the first principle of action and power?[i] A common answer is faith is a strong belief. Respectfully, I disagree. According to President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., faith is “an intelligent force,” and belief is a means by which we access that force. “Faith is not trust,” he said, “faith is a living, and I think an intelligent, force, by which God himself performs his work.”[ii]

On a later occasion, President Clark repeated his definition of faith and added a profound observation:

As I think about faith, this principle of power, I am obliged to believe that it is an intelligent force. Of what kind, I do not know. But it is superior to and overrules all other forces of which we know.[iii]

President Boyd K. Packer concurred, describing faith this way:

There are two kinds of faith. One of them functions ordinarily in the life of every soul. It is the kind of faith born by experience; it gives us certainty that a new day will dawn, that spring will come, that growth will take place. It is the kind of faith that relates us with confidence to that which is scheduled to happen….

There is another kind of faith, rare indeed. This is the kind of faith that causes things to happen. It is the kind of faith that is worthy and prepared and unyielding, and it calls forth things that otherwise would not be. It is the kind of faith that moves people. It is the kind of faith that sometimes moves things. Few men possess it. It comes by gradual growth. It is a marvelous, even a transcendent, power, a power as real and as invisible as electricity. Directed and channeled, it has great effect….

In a world filled with skepticism and doubt, the expression “seeing is believing” promotes the attitude, “You show me, and I will believe.” We want all of the proof and all of the evidence first. It seems hard to take things on faith.

When will we learn that in spiritual things it works the other way about–that believing is seeing?[iv]

Notice the descriptive phrases of these two prophets:

• a living…intelligent force by which God himself performs His work

• “superior to and overrules all other forces of which we know”

• “causes things to happen”

• “calls forth things that otherwise would not be”

• “moves people”

• “moves things”

• “a marvelous, even a transcendent, power, a power as real and as invisible as electricity”

Harnessing the Power of This Intelligent Force

That faith is “an intelligent force” “as real and as invisible as electricity” shatters the notion that faith is merely strong belief. Faith is so much more than “the power of positive thinking or a great exertion of emotion.”[v]

Imagine that faith as electricity and belief as the electrical plug that taps into that power. Belief would motivate you to take the action of plugging in to access the power of electricity. Then voila!—all the lights would go on! Energy would surge! Suddenly, you would have power to do or create things!

Clearly, belief is essential to connect to the intelligent force of faith: “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.”[vi] The opposite is true of unbelief:

And the reason why [God] ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust. Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth.[vii]

Joseph Smith made another observation about faith. He taught that the mind of Man is the mechanism that accesses and harnesses this intelligent force. The mind is the organ of creation, and words, he said, are what set faith in motion. Thoughts and words–specifically authoritative words—unleash faith’s tremendous power.

What are we to understand by a man’s working by faith? We answer–we understand that when a man works by faith he works by mental exertion instead of physical force. It is by words, instead of exerting his physical powers, with which every being works when he works by faith.[viii]

God has constructed the mind of Man to mimic His own: “the development of the mind of man…is after the order of the mind of God.”[ix] That is, God has fashioned Man’s mind to be the organ that contemplates and initiates all creation. The mind has the capacity to envision something that does not yet physically exist, then tap into the power of faith and cause things to manifest. This Godlike ability is a creative phenomenon of the mind that is often called “seeing with the eye of faith.”[x] The mind can “[look] forward with an eye of faith to [harvest] the fruit thereof.”[xi]

Hope is another word that describes the mind’s capability to envision and create. Alma explained the connection between hope, faith and creation: “And now as I said concerning faith–faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.”[xii]

The mind of Man, blessed with the DNA of Deity, is able of envisioning futuristic, substantive things. The mind sees through eyes of hope; it gathers evidence about things not yet visible[xiii] that reside in Man’s future. The mind’s power to envision or to foresee allows Man to garner courage to declare with words what he hopes for and sees in his mind’s eye. But the use of words implies more than a wish or an observation of the future. The use of words must contemplate taking a stand and making a promise; that is, Man must place his integrity on the line that he will succeed. “I will go and do,” Nephi declared.[xiv]

Thus begins the process of creation. The intelligent force of faith perceives then responds to the mind’s vision and Man’s declaration. Like plugging into an electrical socket, faith infuses energy into the vision to begin the process of making the declared thought a reality. Then things and people commence to move, resources start to gather, and the creation begins to take shape. The Gods have perfected the process. Faith “is the principle by which Jehovah works, and through which he exercises power over all temporal as well as eternal things.”[xv] And so can faith become for us.

Jason and Katie envisioned the future as vividly as if they were recalling a memory, and that future recollection gave them power to act in the present and cause their future to manifest in the physical world. Faith, someone said, is acting as if you had knowledge. Jason and Katie acted as if they had knowledge of the future, and by so doing, they tapped into the power of the intelligent force of faith.

Mormon said it this way: “Now this was the faith of these of whom I have spoken;…their minds are firm, and they do put their trust in God continually.”[xvi] Such people have “power given them to do all things by faith.”[xvii]

Creation Gone Awry

However, because there is an “opposition in all things,”[xviii] faith, as it is defined as an intelligent force, can work against us. This idea might seem counterintuitive, but it is nevertheless true. No child of God can escape the fact that his/her mind is a creative organ patterned after the mind of God. By its construction, the mind is always creating its present and future realities. Every thought—absolutely every good and bad thought—that issues forth from the mind of Man initiates a respective creation. Understanding that negative thoughts create destructive realities, King Benjamin warned,

But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts,

and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not.[xix]

As children of God, we are independent agents, endowed with the ability to choose the ways we think, speak and act. Consequently, substantially everything that exists in our world is of our own creation. We are not always as victimized as we would believe. As creators, we are responsible for our personal reality. Whether we like it or not, the thoughts we think and the words we say instantaneously plug into the intelligent force of faith and commence a creative process that will manifest physically, unless we counter with new thoughts and new words.

Little wonder, then, that “we shall be judged by our thoughts, our words and our deeds.”[xx] Invariably, they form our reality. Of the mind’s ability to create both good and bad realities, Elder Orson Hyde taught:

Let the mind be concentrated, and it possesses almighty power. It is the agent of the Almighty clothed with mortal tabernacles, and we must learn to discipline it, and bring it to bear on one point, and not allow the Devil to interfere and confuse it, nor divert it from the great object we have in view…. If a person trains his mind to walk in the spirit, and brings his whole mind to bear upon its operations, and upon the principles of faith which are calculated to put him in possession of the power of God, how much greater will be his facilities for obtaining knowledge than those which any natural man possesses.[xxi]

Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t–you’re right.”

Hope and Faith

Faith typically is accessed by a desire or hope: “If there must be faith there must also be hope.”[xxii] Like a seed, hope embeds in our soul when we are introduced to something that piques our interest. “Faith cometh by hearing.”[xxiii] The seed of hope is discernable, almost tangible, and we react favorably to it. Alma described the sensation as “delicious.”[xxiv]

When we nourish the seed with even a “particle of faith,” it has power to grow into a great tree that bears abundant fruit. Therefore, Alma encouraged us to immediately embrace the tiny seed of hope or desire: “yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you.”[xxv]

As the tiny seedling takes root in the soul, we sense beneath the surface subtle vibrations of new life. These “swelling motions”[xxvi] cause our vision of a bounteous harvest to increase. The vision motivates us to nurture the seed and stay the course of hope. As time passes, our vision of future success becomes more real and detailed. Although we “hope for things which are not seen,” in a remarkable way, we can see them; they “are true.”[xxvii] “Believing is seeing![xxviii]

Now that the creative process is fully engaged, the only way that the creation will fail is if we unplug from the intelligent force of faith and interrupt the flow of energy. Alma warned,

But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.

Now, this is not because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable; but it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof.

And thus, if ye will not nourish the word, looking forward with an eye of faith to the fruit thereof, ye can never pluck of the fruit of the tree of life.[xxix]

Declarations, Envisioning and Emotionalizing

Hope-filled thoughts and hope-filled declarations are powerful creative devices. Reggie Brooks, a motivational speaker, who teaches the power of the mind, points to studies that demonstrate exponential creative power when declarations are coupled with envisioning and emotionalizing.[xxx] Assuming that the seed of hope is now planted in your soul, Brooks lists the following three steps:

1. Declare. If you declare your goal—take a stand and make a vow to succeed–you have a 10% chance that your goal will manifest, even if you do nothing but make the declaration. If you precede your declaration by expressing gratitude and making a formal request of God, the chance for success increases.

2. Envision. Then if you focus your attention so that you envision your goal—that is, if you envision your goal with an “eye of faith” —you have a 55% chance that your goal will manifest, even if you do nothing but declare and envision. The act of “seeing” is using your imagination to visualize the future and view “things which are [yet] not seen, which are true.”[xxxi]

3. Emotionalize. Finally, if you engage your other senses to emotionalize your goal, you have a 100% chance that you will achieve it. Beyond envisioning your futuristic goal, you are also imagining what you experience by tasting it, touching it, smelling it and hearing it. In other words, you are making your goal so real that you will recognize it when it becomes a physical reality. Alma the Younger described emotionalizing this way: “Behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves–It must needs be that this is a good seed…for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.”[xxxii] Of course, emotionalizing suggests engaging the entire soul to take action to achieve your goal; otherwise, the exercise is futile, because “faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.”[xxxiii]

Father Alma laced his description of future judgment with language of visualizing and emotionalizing: “Do you look forward with an eye of faith… I say unto you, can you imagine to yourselves that ye hear the voice of the Lord…. Or do ye imagine to yourselves that ye can lie unto the Lord…. Or otherwise, can ye imagine yourselves brought before the tribunal of God….I say unto you, can ye look up to God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands? I say unto you, can you look up, having the image of God engraven upon your countenances? I say unto you, can ye think…? …. how will any of you feel…?[xxxiv]

Consider how God and prophets have learned to harness the power of faith with thoughts and words. “There is nothing that the Lord thy God shall take in his heart to do but what he will do it.”[xxxv] “God said, ‘Let there be light: and there was light.’ Joshua spake, and the great lights which God had created stood still. Elijah commanded, and the heavens were stayed for the space of three years and six months, so that it did not rain…. All this was done by faith…. Faith, then, works by words; and with [words] its mightiest works have been, and will be, performed.”[xxxvi]

But negative results can also take shape around declaring, envisioning and emotionalizing.

• Declare. If you declare negative things, and if you compound those negative declarations with murmuring, the chances are good that a negative reality will begin to form up.

• Envision. Then if you envision a negative future and you allow your imagination to migrate to dark places, the chances of manifesting a negative future increase almost six-fold.

• Emotionalize. Finally, if you add negative emotional responses to your negative declarations and negative imaginings, in other words, if you succumb to depression or become despondent, critical or cynical, or if you emotionalize the present or future with any number of negative emotional patterns, you have a 100% chance of creating a nightmare.

The intelligent force of faith is impartial; it will create whatever you declare, envision and emotionalize. It has no choice. Like electricity, it can be used to create the good and bad conceived in the mind of the creator. The intelligent force of faith is the indiscriminant tool of the creative mind of Man.

Planting a Garden

As an example of the creative power of faith, let’s imagine that you desire to plant a garden. How would you plug into the intelligent force of faith to make your desire a reality?

1. Declare your hope or desire. “I am going to plant a garden.”

2. Envision what the garden will look like at every stage. “I can imagine in my mind the red tomatoes, the tall yellow corn, the plump butternut squash, and the rows of green beans and crimson radishes.

3. Emotionalize the results; involve all the senses. “I can imagine rising early on an August morning when the dew glistens on my tall tomato plants. I reach for one and hear the snap as I pluck it from the vine. I squeeze it gently to test its ripeness. Then I lift it to my nose and smell its distinct aroma. I take a tiny taste. It is both tart and delicious. The meat is crab-red and firm. The flavor invites me to take another generous bite, and as I do so, juice spills onto my chin.”

4. Move toward your desire and vision. “I’m going to plant my garden!” And surely, the garden will take shape, just as you have declared, envisioned, and sensed. Mormon said: “According to their faith, it was done unto them.”[xxxvii]

Following this pattern gives us confidence to work by the power of faith. But we “don’t go out and try to move mountains” right away, taught Bruce R. McConkie. Rather, we “start in a small degree to do the things that [we] need to do…to get what [we] ought to have temporally and spiritually…and by degrees [our] power or influence will increase until eventually, in this world or the next, [we] will say to the Mt. Zerins [see Ether 12:30] in [our] life ‘Be thou removed,’ {We] will say to whatever encumbers [our] course of eternal progress, ‘Depart,’ and it will be so.’”[xxxviii] Such is the undiscovered power of faith.

Faith and the Name of Jesus Christ

If faith “works by words,”[xxxix] as Joseph Smith taught, no words carry more weight than Jesus Christ. Thus, we are instructed to not only believe in Him,[xl] but also in His name.[xli]

When we enter into the new and everlasting covenant through baptism, we begin the process of taking upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ. Worthy men take upon themselves the name of Jesus Christ again when they are ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood.[xlii] Both men and women take upon themselves the name of Jesus Christ yet again and more fully in the temple.[xliii]

The new and everlasting covenant allows us the right to yoke to Jesus and make our requests and declarations in His name. When, with reverent permission, we invoke the authoritative words of Jesus Christ, we tap into the great intelligent force of faith and creation ensues, which has always been the pattern.

Imagine receiving an impression from the Holy Ghost, not as “a perfect knowledge of things,”[xliv] but rather as a seed of an idea. You desire to infuse the power of faith into the seed to help it grow. You begin by expressing gratitude for what you have received, then you ask to see the future of the seed through your mind’s eye of faith. The envisioning process, as guided by the Holy Ghost, is called prophecy. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”[xlv]Now you ask for permission to invoke the name of Jesus Christ, then you boldly declare in the name of Jesus Christ what you see and your intention to pursue a course of action that will manifest your vision. And most certainly, the future we have contemplated will form up.

Ours is the covenantal right to use the same “word of God”—Jesus Christ—that the “Word of God”[xlvi] employed to create everything in the immense sidereal heavens. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God.”[xlvii] The power of faith when unleashed by the word of God is immeasurable. The Book of Mormon prophet, Jacob, exulted that brethren in his day were able to “command in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey[ed them].”[xlviii] If our purpose is based on truth, as taught us by the Holy Ghost, the elements must obey! “God spake, chaos heard, and worlds came into order by reason of the faith there was in him. So with man also.”[xlix]

Faith and Other Authoritative Words

There are other authoritative words that access the intelligent force of faith, which, when coupled with the name of Jesus Christ, are matchless in power. We learn these words and use them only in holy temples. Consider the power that Enoch achieved when he tapped into the force of faith by means of authoritative words:

And so great was the faith of Enoch that he led the people of God, and their enemies came to battle against them; and he spake the word of the Lord, and the earth trembled, and the mountains fled, even according to his command; and the rivers of water were turned out of their course; and the roar of the lions was heard out of the wilderness; and all nations feared greatly, so powerful was the word of Enoch, and so great was the power of the language which God had given him.[l]

Faith—The Tool of the Gods

Faith is the intelligent force by which the Gods work. Consequently, because we are children of and apprentices to God, we are placed in this mortal experience, which is designed to help us discover and live by the principles that govern faith. When we find ourselves lacking, cognizant of the fact that faith is the only power that can change our circumstances or create another reality, we appeal to God to access His greater level of faith: “Lord, I believe. Help thou my unbelief.”[li]

The request for divine intervention summons grace, the enabling power to become more than we are and receive more than we have. When grace adds faith to ours, the resulting faith is sufficient to set in motion a creative process that will result in a miracle.

“Earth life,” wrote Catherine Thomas, “has been configured in such a way as to present each person with the dilemmas he particularly needs in order to grow in the power of Faith. The Lord has set out to perfect us and, since we don’t develop in a vacuum, He provides a laboratory with problems to work on. Through the solving of problems with the Lord’s help, a person takes on the powers and attributes of God Himself: ‘When men begin to live by faith they begin to draw near to God; and when faith is perfected, they are like him.’”[lii]

Conclusion

God has endowed us with a mind like His own. This organ of creation has but to think a positive or negative thought and it immediately connects to the intelligent force called faith, which permeates the universe. When we speak words in the form of a declaration or a promise, we add fuel to faith’s power, and when, by permission, we speak authoritative words, which are the words that formed every creation, we energize the power of faith so that it becomes immense. Finally, when we emotionalize our thoughts and declarations and if our goal is based on truth, our power in faith is immeasurable.

Elder Gene R. Cook wrote: “All you need to be a God is in you right now. Your job is to take those crude elements within you and refine them.”… In other words, the Lord is saying, ‘Take the reins. Take charge under the direction of my Spirit. Don’t wait for someone to tell you everything to do.’ … You prevail over people, things, and situations by your faith.”[liii]

If we stay the course, substantially every thought that we think or see in our mind’s eye and each declaration that we make, will find fruition. The Lord declared of the Man of faith,  “Wherefore, he is possessor of all things; for all things are subject unto him, both in heaven and on the earth, the life and the light, the Spirit and the power, sent forth by the will of the Father through Jesus Christ, his Son.”[liv]

Such is the power of the glorious, intelligent force of faith.

By Larry Barkdull
Pillars of Zion
For The Family

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References: [i] Lectures on Faith, 1.

[ii] Conference Report, October 1954, 39.

[iii] Conference Report, April 1960, 21.

[iv] Boyd K. Packer, Faith, 42, emphasis added.

[v] Catherine Thomas, Light in the Wilderness, 246.

[vi] Mark 9:23.

[vii] Mormon 9:20-21.

[viii] Lectures on Faith 7.

[ix] Anthony W. Ivins., Conference Report, October 1917, 66-67.

[x] Alma 5:15; 32:40; Ether 12:19.

[xi] Alma 32:40.

[xii] Alma 32:21, emphasis added.

[xiii] Hebrews 11:1.

[xiv] 1 Nephi 3:7.

[xv] Lectures on Faith 1.

[xvi] Alma 57:27.

[xvii] 2 Nephi 1:10.

[xviii] 2 Nephi 2:11.

[xix] Mosiah 4:30, emphasis added.

[xx] Bruce R. McConkie, “Think on These Things”, Ensign (CR), January 1974, 45.

[xxi] Journal of Discourses 7:153, 155-56.

[xxii] Moroni 10:20.

[xxiii] Romans 10:17.

[xxiv] Alma 32:28.

[xxv] Alma 32:27.

[xxvi] Alma 32:28.

[xxvii] Alma 32:21.

[xxviii] Boyd K. Packer, Faith, 42, emphasis added.

[xxix] Alma 32:38-40.

[xxx] Brooks, Reggie, From Poverty to Prosperity, Power Publishing LLC, 53-76.

[xxxi] Alma 32:21, emphasis added.

[xxxii] Alma 32:28, emphasis added.

[xxxiii] James 2:17.

[xxxiv] Alma 5:15-22.

[xxxv] Abraham 3:17.

[xxxvi] Lectures on Faith 7.

[xxxvii] Alma 57:21.

[xxxviii] “Lord, Increase Our Faith,” BYU Speeches of the Year, 31 October 1967, 9, 11.

[xxxix] Lectures on Faith 7.

[xl] 2 Nephi 25:23.

[xli] D&C 35:2.

[xlii] Abraham 1:18.

[xliii] “Taking upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ,” Ensign, May 1985.

[xliv] Alma 32:21.

[xlv] JST Hebrew 1:1.

[xlvi] John 1:1.

[xlvii] Hebrews 11:3.

[xlviii] Jacob 4:6.

[xlix] Lectures on Faith 1.

[l] Moses 7:13, emphasis added.

[li] Mark 9:24.

[lii] Catherine Thomas, Light in the Wilderness, 247, quoting Lectures on Faith 7.

[liii] Gene R. Cook, Living by the Power of Faith, 89-92.

[liv] D&C 50:27.

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[KP1]Four weeks

[KP2]Yeah, he pretty much called, emailed, contacted everybody he knew, whether he thought they were in a position to help him find a job or not.

[KP3]Yes, this is right. To be clear, I DIDN’T get the answer, “You’re family is moving to Utah.” But I got the very firm answer, “Support your husband, support his answer.” You don’t have to go into that in this article if you don’t want to.

[KP4]Well, actually, what I did then was start to thin all the kids toys and go through their clothes. I worked hard on getting the home in complete order and getting rid of any extra or unnecessary things.

[KP5]Jason got the three job offers and the offer for our friend to rent our home came on Wednesday. We moved on Saturday. So only THREE days before our deadline!

By Alan on Nov 21 in Blog tagged America, Bill of Rights, blessings, celebration, christianity, churches, for Religious Freedom, further light, Joseph Smith, LDS, liberty, Other churches, pilgrims, ready to die, Thanksgiving, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Thomas S. Monson | Comments Off

A Thanksgiving for Religious Freedom

They sought to breathe a freer air,
To worship God unchain’d —
They welcomed pain and danger here,
When rights like these were gain’d.
—Author Unknown

As the United States celebrates Thanksgiving, citizens across the nation gather with family and friends to commemorate the shared gratitude between the English pilgrims and the local Native Americans. During this season, many recount the history of these English pilgrims.

Persecuted, arrested and fined for their form of Christianity, these so-called separatists fled their beloved mother country to find what the governor of Plymouth, William Bradford, called “freedom of religion for all men.” After a ten-year sojourn in Holland, the separatists prayerfully decided to depart for America.

Some members of their congregation, including the group’s long-time preacher, John Robinson, stayed behind in Holland. Edward Winslow, a fellow worshipper, recorded Robinson’s tender farewell address: “[Robinson] charged us before God and his blessed Angels … [that] if God should reveal anything to us by any other instrument of his, to be as ready to receive it, as ever we were to receive any truth by his Ministry: For he was very confident the Lord had more truth and light yet to break forth out of his holy Word.”

According to the account, Robinson also commented on the reformed churches of the day, stating that “though [Calvin and Luther] were precious shining lights in their times, yet God had not revealed his whole will to them: And were they now living … they would be as ready and willing to embrace further light, as that they had received.”

For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), Robinson’s premonition that “the Lord had more truth and light yet to break forth” proved prophetic. Latter-day Saints believe that the pilgrims, among many others, helped create the environment of religious freedom in the United States that paved the way for a restoration of Christ’s ancient church.

Speaking to the body of the Church in 2005, Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles recounted that as “religious persecution in England continued … many were prompted to seek freedom in new lands. Among them were the Pilgrims, who landed in the Americas in 1620.”

“Other colonists soon followed,” he continued, “including those like Roger Williams, founder and later governor of Rhode Island. … Williams said that there was no regularly constituted church of Christ on earth, nor any person authorized to administer any church ordinance, nor could there be until new apostles were sent by the great Head of the church, for whose coming he was seeking.”

In the 18th century, the founders of the United States established religious freedom for all citizens through the Bill of Rights. This newly secured liberty allowed for the lawful establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In 2009, Elder Dallin H. Oaks stated, “‘For the rights and protection of all flesh’ the United States Constitution includes in its First Amendment the guarantees of free exercise of religion and free speech and press.”

“Without these great fundamentals of the Constitution,” he continued, “America could not have served as the host nation for the restoration of the gospel, which began just three decades after the Bill of Rights was ratified.”

Though The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began in 1830 with only six members, today it is a global religion with more than half of its 14 million members living outside the United States.

As a result of the Church’s global membership, the Thanksgiving holiday is not celebrated by most of its members. Yet the pilgrims’ historical role in fostering religious freedom and their example of gratitude resonate with people around the world, especially Latter-day Saints.

In 1843, Joseph Smith said with regard to religious liberty, “I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbytarian [sic], a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination.”

More recently, Latter-day Saint Apostles have frequently emphasized the importance of religious liberty (see a list of discourses here), and the current president of the Church, Thomas S. Monson, has highlighted the Thanksgiving holiday’s theme of gratitude.

“A grateful heart … comes through expressing gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His blessings and to those around us for all that they bring into our lives,” said President Monson in a 2010 address. “This requires conscious effort—at least until we have truly learned and cultivated an attitude of gratitude. … When we encounter challenges and problems in our lives, it is often difficult for us to focus on our blessings. However, if we reach deep enough and look hard enough, we will be able to feel and recognize just how much we have been given.”

In the United States of America and many other nations around the world, people are grateful to God for their blessings during this time of year; among these blessings is that of religious freedom.

“We believe that religion is instituted of God; and that men are amenable to him, and to him only, for the exercise of it, unless their religious opinions prompt them to infringe upon the rights and liberties of others; but we do not believe that human law has a right to interfere in prescribing rules of worship to bind the consciences of men, nor dictate forms for public or private devotion; that the civil magistrate should restrain crime, but never control conscience; should punish guilt, but never suppress the freedom of the soul.” D&C 134: 4

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
For The Family