Eternal Marriage

There are two things I've heard regarding marriage that I've found interesting.  One is marriage is a "old non-applicable" ideal that has died with the "evolution" of society.  I've also heard that marriage only lasts on earth and cannot last in heaven.  I'm here to say both ideas are wrong.  Marriage is not a dying idea and has eternal truth behind it.  There is a way for it to last beyond mortality, but certain measures must take place.

All of God's commandments have an eternal lifespan.  Marriage is no exception.  Marriages begin the foot work for the building of a family.  God's plan revolves around families because they have a great importance in carrying out his work.  The first marriage began with Adam and Eve.  They were married by God in Eden, and he gave them the commandment to have children.  There is not one instance in the Bible or the Book of Mormon where that commandment has been lifted.  When men come of age they are to leave their parents and marry a woman of his choosing.  Men are to love their wives.  They are to provide, protect and preside over their families.  They are not to exercise unrighteous authority over them, but are to lead and guide with love and compassion.  Women are to care for and nurture their children.  Both are to help and assist each other when needed.  Marriage is the basis for strong families.  Studies have shown that children born to a man and a woman, lawfully wed as husband and wife, have greater chances of success than those born out of wed lock.

How can marriage last beyond the grave?  There is a special power that God has given to man.  It is not some superpower you find in comic books.  This power is called the Priesthood and is only give to men qualified or worthy to carry it.  The Priesthood is the Authority to act in God's name and is very easy to lose.  When Christ was on the earth he gave this power to Peter, and with that is the power to seal.  When a marriage is sealed, by the priesthood, it is fused together for eternity.  This enables a man and a woman to be together for eternity.  This may sound like a curse rather than a blessing to some.  The problem is selfishness.  A marriage is not meant to be a passport to pleasure.  It one of the most beneficial service opportunities as a man and a woman learn to get along and work together.

If a marriage is broken and beyond repair there must be a way to end it.  This is divorce.  To often, however, this is used as a quick fix when there is all possibility to repair damages.  Divorce should only be used when a spouse is unfaithful, abusive, or if there is absolutely no hope in its preservation.  Divorce should not be used over spilt milk.  There are too many people that selfishly get divorced over that reason.  Divorces are damaging.  It hurts not only the individuals breaking up, but also their children and sometimes their other family members.  If marriage problems arise seek council from a licenced marriage counselor or religious leader.  Don't go to your friends.  As a couple bring your problems before God and follow his direction through prayer and listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

Marriage is a wonderful thing.  It is going to be hard, but everything that has a strong value comes at a great price.  Gospel study will help strengthen marriage only if those principles are applied and if married couples selflessly serve one another.  God has promised joy in marriage and will assist when needed.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks addresses marriage in these two videos below:

Marriage:

Divorce:

Hear "regular" people talk about selflessness in marriage:

Want to strengthen your marriage or family? Go to http://mormon.org/family and learn more. You can also look at the Family Proclamation given by the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to learn the basic structure of the family.

Escaping Enemy Territory

I love learning about my family.  My grandfather told me some stories about a relative who served during WWII as a paratrooper.  This story is one of my favorites:
"Asael Lyman was part of the 82nd Airborne which went in behind the German lines into Holland. They were in wooden gliders and lost a third of their men before they even got on the ground. Only a handful of men survived this campaign.

"He goes from an innocent country boy to a battle hardened soldier in a matter of three days or so. He told me about trying to dig with his nose because he was in a partially dug foxhole and the Germans were trying to dig him out with a machine gun. Bullets were going through his clothes. The Americans were eventually pinned down and captured and put in a prison camp after riding for several days in a train boxcar where they could not lay or sit down so many were crammed into the cars.

"While in the camp, he saved the cigarettes he was supplied by the Red Cross in his mattress until he had enough to buy a few potatoes which he traded over the fence with the locals for a map, and compass, and two Italian worker's uniforms. He and an Italian man walked right out the front gate and hid in barns and other places until they got back to friendly forces.

"His parents didn't know he was alive for 6 months until he called from New York on his way home."
(W. Wilcken)

Aseal reached the Allied forces by listening to the Machine Gun fire of the two opposing armies.  You may not think they would be different, but because of the abilities of both armies, they manufactured different equipment.  Being trained to go behind enemy lines, Aseal knew what to look for.

We are in enemy territory right now.  Sounds stupid but think about it, Satan rebelled against God.  He is going around trying to destroy the souls of men, and we are stuck on his ground.  But it's not hopeless.  Even though we have a lot of opposition in our way, we can still make it back, even those under Satan's grip.  Our search for happiness or even truth will help us receive certain tools needed for the journey back home.  God has given us the scriptures for a map so as to have an idea what we need to do.  Heartfelt prayer provides direction in our journey, much like a compass.  As we pray, truly seeking God's help, we are given direction through the quiet whisperings of the Holy Ghost.  You can go ahead and ignore it if you want, you are not going to get everything you want following the Holy Ghost. But you will be the happiest.  The road is going to be rough, and you are guaranteed to experience opposition along the way.  But as you press forward towards your eternal goal (heaven), you will make it home.

Something I've found fascinating about the world around us, is everything has a certain "voice" or "feeling" telling us what it is.  This is better known as the Light of Christ.  We are born with the ability to tell good from evil.  No one is born bad.  As we try certain activities we will get a certain feeling about what it is.  When an activity is bad, our conscience will give us a bad feeling to warn us.  Because the rate of fire on a German machine gun is faster than an American one, Aseal was able to tell which army he was near.  When we feel good, it must be the place we are at is good.  If we get a bad feeling as we near a certain place, it is wise to stay away from that place.

God has given us the tools we need to make it home.  Christ has provided us a way to make it home.  We are separated from God here on earth.  He wants us home.  Can you imagine the homecoming when we make it to heaven?  Our job is not to sit there and wait to be rescued.  Often times it requires us to rise up and go, because Christ cannot save us in sin.  He asks us to leave our nets, follow him, and he will give us eternal life.  As we follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost we are able to stay away from destructive influences that will tear us down.  The gentle promptings will only be felt so long as we invite it into our lives.  The spirit is neither loud nor forceful, but it's impression is greater than anything man has created.  That is what will lead us home.

President Boyd K. Packer tells us what the Spirit is there for:

Finding direction is most important.  See how to filter the voices:

Don't go under the Tank.

I read a rather interesting book once.  It was written by a Vietnam War Vet and his experiences.  The writer was in a tank crew, and every new replacement was told to never sleep under the tank.  It rained constantly in Vietnam, it was tempting to go underneath the tank for protection.  For their own health and safety it was told not to go under.  One threat was bullets would ricochet off the thick metal.  But there was one a little more subtle.  One night, a new soldier decided he wanted to get out of the rain and decided to go under the tank, despite the constant warning not to.  As it continued to rain he feel asleep.  The next morning, the Sergent started looking for him and couldn't find him.  With the possibility of an enemy attack and they delayed the search for a couple hours.  After the threat passed, the writer began calling for the soldier only to hear a call for help behind the tank.  They soon discovered the soldier pinned underneath the tank as it was slowly, but surely, sank into the mud.  He was unable to get out.  The Sergent and the driver proceeded to drive the tank off the soldier.  It was incredibly painful for them to get the tank off the soldier.  Part of the tank ended up being dragged across the soldier.  When they got the tank off him, he was still alive.  But his clothes were in shreds, and he was skinned and bloody.

The world would pressure us to "get under the tank".  It will rain ideas to us which are exciting, but unhealthy.  They will seem appealing and exciting, but it results in pain and misery.  You will hear things like: dress immodestly, indulge in drugs and alcohol, look at pornography, each pushing you towards that which is degrading and unstable.  Slowly, but surely, the weight of our choices eventually sinks down on top of us, pinning us down making it hard to progress.  It is very easy to escape the rain by going under the world's wing.  The world will then put us to "sleep" so that you don't realize what it is doing to you.  Have you noticed ads involving drinking or smoking?  They do a great job at making it look fun, safe, and exciting.  It will also make you think you are in complete control.  But it reality it steals your ability to chose wisely leaving you in miserable and in with a dangerous consequence (2 Nephi 26:22).  If the soldier was awake, he would have noticed that his space was getting smaller and smaller.  He would have left his shrinking space.  But he fell asleep and couldn't escape.  Not without the painful experience of having that tank dragged across him.

The Prophet Alma talks about being "harrowed up to the greatest and racked with all (his) sins."  Acts that he had done brought incredible misery to his soul.  What does harrowed mean?  A harrow is a tool used by farmers to break up the ground.  It is dragged behind a tractor.  Imagine having one of those dragged over you. It would hurt.  Sin is like a harrow, it breaks apart our soul.  Sin, or the act of doing wrong, does not bring good, it leaves us in a broken miserable state.  You can say your soul would look like that soldier after having that tank dragged across him. A mess.  But there is hope.  Alma, in his anguish called upon God begging for forgiveness for the things he had done wrong.  His burden was lifted off him and his joy was as great as his pain and he couldn't remember it anymore.  Repentance helped relive the pain he felt as he cast his burden upon the Savior.  So long as we repent and sin no more, the Atonement of Jesus Christ is able to lift our troubled soul out of captivity of the devil.  This makes our joy greater than our pain.  Strive to follow the example of the Savior and allow his Atonement to work inside you.

Wrong doing is painful to get out of.  Unless you stop the behavior before it settles in.  If you are guilty of doing something wrong stop immediately.  If you have been doing it for some time, seek help and get out.  It may be hard and painful, but it is better than being crushed by your guilt and is worth the few scrapes and bruises to stop.

How do you repent? Click here.

Still not enough?  Maybe this will help:

A Land of Liberty

I love reading about history and going through the Book of Mormon.  I find it absolutely fascinating how everything is repeated over and over again.   Often the patterns don't change.  Sure, the event may be different, but the cycles are not.  A repeated phrase in the Book of Mormon is, "inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land." Who's commandments?  Not an earthly government's, but God's commandments.  Why?  God is the ruler of heaven and earth.  He created us and wants us to be happy.  However He will not support us in wickedness.  Now pull out your Bible, Book of Mormon, or your grandpa's history book and read through it.  How many nations rise and fall?  Every single one, except for maybe a few today.  Israel rose and fell multiple times.  So did Babylon, Rome, and every other nation has repeated this pattern.  A common way this happens is the nation will grow lazy, evil/wicked/corrupt, and begin to do things God asks (not demands) us not to do.  Because God will not support Wickedness he leaves them to their own devices till they come to him repentant.  A nation that ONCE was a good nation that CHOOSES to leave God cannot and will not prosper.

Another thing promised in the Book of Mormon that the land which the inhabitants lived in, would be a land of liberty (2 Nephi 1:7, 2 Nephi 10:11, Ether 2:12).  This is not only applied to the American continent, even though it would feel that way.  All nations are promised prosperity so long as they OBEY and FOLLOW God's commandments.  God will help preserve your liberty so long as you obey his Commandments.  This can be applied to a national/global level or brought down to the level of an average human being.  The concept is the same; obey God and prosper.  It is never the other way around.

At the formation of the American nation, after the Constitution was ratified, a woman asked Benjamin Franklin what type of government they made.  His response was, "A Republic," as long as you can keep it.  Now before you throw a political label on me, I am not supporting any political party in anyway shape or form.  Mr. Franklin made a very important point.  Freedom does not come without responsibility, neither does Salvation.  We are given Freedom so long as we are willing to preserve that which we treasure most.  A person that gives a gift only for it to be trampled on will never again give any gift to that person.  The American nation has been tested and proved.  It has weathered many storms and will continue to do so so long as it's people are willing to keep the Commandments of God.  Independence Day is a day set apart to remember the sacrifices of our predecessors and what God has done for us in preserving a Free Nation where we can live in safety.  Never forget your responsibility and God will never leave you defenseless.  This promise remains in effect today and will remain that way until the people turn from God.

Repentance

What does it mean to Repent?  You've probably run into that word reading a book of some kind or a movie with some preacher giving a "crazy" sermon.  To Repent is to turn from our old destructive behavior to a more healthy behavior.  It is turning back to Christ and allowing him to work with us.  True repentance is more than feeling sorry or being told you've done wrong.  It is an act of faith to change yourself for the better.  You repent by:

1. Recognizing you've done something wrong. If you don't know realize you have done wrong, you are not going to change.  A moral compass (conceince) helps here.
2. Feel remorse (sorrow) for what you have done wrong. If you don't recognize the weight of the problem you are still not going to change and will go right back to the very thing that got you in trouble.  You're behavior will be, "Oh, I've done something bad.  But it wasn't that bad."  Not a good thought process.
3. Quit the behavior. Get out and stay out before it's too late.  Feeling sorry and knowing you've done wrong requires action against the behavior.  If your house was on fire are you going to let it burn?
4. Confess your wrong.   Depending of the gravity of the mistake will depend on who you need to confess your wrong to. A simple wrong against yourself, you confess to God in Prayer, and make an effort to fix it.  (Refer back to 3.)  Against someone else, you admit your wrong to the person you've done wrong to. Anything involving morality, addictions, or civil law; you better talk to your spiritual leader (bishop), parent or a trusted individual who can help you get help to resolve the problem.  It is important not to go back to the thing that got you in trouble in the first place.
5. Make restitution. Repairs will need to be made whether with yourself or someone else you need to make sure everything is restored to order.  I read a quote once that said, ‎"Until we take responsibility for what we have done, the Atonement can't help us."  Unless you clean up the mess it is still a problem.  It hinders your ability to progress.
6. Resolve never to do it again. just because the problem is fixed doesn't mean you won't come back to it. You need to decided NOW that you will never ever do that again for you own health and safety.  You are not going to have a snake bite you after getting treated for it the first time.  You should treat bad behavior the same way.

Sin is not being caught in the act and feeling bad. Sin is breaking a law.  God has set down rules for our prgression, not damnation.  As we obey these rules it makes it possible to excel. There isn't a grey area between justice and mercy.   You have done something bad or good.   Sometimes we make a mistake out of ignorance, that's okay.  Just don't do it again and everything will be fine.   Repentance is a way to become a more perfect person. 

One type of behavior that is just as destructive is saying "I can repent (or clean it up) later."  Such behavior makes a mockery of Christ's sacrifice for us because we are indugling in degenerate bahavior and expecting good to come from it.  Christ said, 'be ye perfect.'  Christ make it possible for us to be perfect.  But we need to become perfect ourselves by becoming a better person.  You can't turn refuse back into something good.  You have to remove it.  We just need to cast out burdens on him and follow him.  Christ had already paid the price for sin.  We need to take advantage of this gift NOW, so that we can enjoy the blessings of exaltation.  Once you are freed from your burdens you can enjoy life much more fully.  You become a more perfect person and are no longer held down by your past mistakes.

Purity: a Healthy Spirit

One of the stories of the Savior is when he comes across a leper who called on him saying, "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean."  Without hesitation the Savior said, "Be thou Clean."  Instantly the man was healed of his leprosy.  Someone who was a leper was often shunned from society.  The body was literally unclean, which explained the cause of leprosy.  The neglected body was taken over by the disease.  We all know the benefits of a healthy body.  The activities you can participate in are endless.  However, when the body is neglected by poor eating, lack of exercise, or exposure to harmful substances like drugs will destroy it.   Purity is caring for the spirit.

What is Purity? Obviously cleanliness, but it is in a perfect form.  Purity in spirit is being clean from sin.  But why is purity so important?  Every culture in the world has some method of purifying their people.  Even Atheists, but that is a civic thing.  Purification is a process in which the body/spirit is cleansed in order to prepare the person for a special event such as marriage or entering manhood to name a few.  In Ancient Israel, the Levites had to be purified because they handled the Priesthood (God's power) and were given charge of handling sacred objects, such as the Ark of the Covenant.  Prophets were subject to purification too.  The process was not some crazy ritual where there were tom-toms and chants all through out.  It was more of a process of the heart, a change of character.

The same thing applies today, and the process remains the same.  Before we can handle anything sacred was must be pure before God.  This does not mean become a germ-a-phobic just so that you can be clean on the outside.  A clean body is good, but a filthy spirit will keep us from God.  The Prophet Isaiah said to abstain from the unclean things of the world and to be clean in order to bear the vessels of the Lord.  The vessels of the Lord could be the Priesthood, positions of leadership or even raising children.  If we are not pure in heart why should we be allowed to touch those things that are important to God?  Someone who is impure will abuse the privileges and powers God gives them.

One of the great responsibilities of having a pure heart before God is to help others reach that point.  One way is to be an example to others.  Even though you seem to remain anonymous, there are people who are watching you.  If you follow the commandments given to us by God, others will see in your actions that you are special.  This will inspire them to change, because obedience to God brings happiness and everyone wants to be happy.  One of the changes that may come on you is you will want to see others succeed as well.

One thing that is guaranteed to happen when you purify yourself before God is you will abhor sin.  Everything the world has that is degrading and unhealthy to your soul will be rejected.  Just like a healthy body is more able to fight sicknesses and infections when it is healthy, your spirit will reject evil by telling you this is not good so long as it is pure.  The Holy Ghost can help play a role in that too.

The most important part of becoming pure is the Atonement.  No one can take away the effects of sin alone.  Just like a regular person cannot fix a broken bone with out medical help, we cannot cleanse ourselves from sin without the Savior.  Jesus Christ suffered in Gethsemane and took upon himself the punishments for sin.  Because of that we are purified so long as we repent of our sins and resolve never to do it again. Being unrepentant is like finding a black widow and having it bite you after getting treatment for it the first time.

In my studies I have discovered to know that purity before God brings a very special gift from Him.  In Doctrine and Covenants 50:28 it says that those who are pure can have possession over all things.  This does not mean you are entitled to riches and pomp.  But you are able to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God to which brings the greatest wealth, even greater than all the gold on this earth.  This is something that can only be obtained by the Holy Ghost which only available when one is obedient to God and lives worthy of the accompaniment of the Spirit.  Through Prayer, Diligent Scripture Study, Repentance and Obedience to the Commandments of God makes it possible for everything that God has promised is ours.  But only if we remain pure can this happen.

READY!

As a youth I used to participate in simulated combat games. We used toy guns that fired small plastic BB's at each other in a game of domination.  We had rules set out for our safety and protection so that everyone could enjoy themselves.  All of us would buy our own gun and cared for that gun.  All of us carried a certain amount of ammunition in case our guns ran out of shot.  I myself would carry extra magazines for my guns and extra bottles of BB's and gas so that I could reload my guns.  Before and during the game I would constantly check my magazines and ammo to make sure I was ready to play.  Often my friends would see me checking my rifle magazine by spinning a small wheel that would reload my gun.  Sometimes I'd be spinning it for up to thirty seconds just to make sure my gun was loaded.  Because I was always ready I was able to stay on the field much longer than most of my friends.

Everyone of us are experiencing life in different ways.  Not all of us will lead the same life.  However certain principles apply to all of us.  Some of us just try going through "the motions" in our daily activities.  We go around doing what is expected of us because that's what everyone wants to do.  There are also people who just don't care and do what ever they want because it gets them in the "popular" crowd.  Often those people are left alone and miserable.  There is an proper form of attitude.  It does not just involve going through the basics, but instead of just going through them we live them.

There are points in the gospel that are pretty basic: go to church, read scriptures, obey the law, etc.  People who don't care will do everything they are counseled not to do because they are "free" without these restricting laws.  There are those that will follow these principles but only do it to stay out of trouble.  You can benefit the most from it by asking yourself, "How does this apply to me? How can it make me grow stronger and find happiness."  They then take a leap of faith and live the principles instead of just doing them.  Nephi was always ready to work.  He said I will go and do what God has asked of me, because he has a plan for me.  He showed a proper attitude of Faith.  What is that?  The proper attitude of Faith is not: "How bad can I be and still know Thee?" or "How good do I need to be?" But rather, "What do I need to do so that I can know Thee and find Joy?"  He didn't say "do I really have to do this?" or "I'll do it only because I have to."  He said "I will go and do what God has asked me, because I want to."  No one is forcing you to do anything.  But Obedience is a life long pursuit.  There are no short cuts, no breaks, no hall passes, and no vacations.  If you don't want to do it then don't do it.  But you are missing out on a lot of rewards from not keeping God's commandments.  Going through the motions is not directly breaking the commandments, your just refusing the reward that comes.  You are carrying only a little ammo and leaving the game early because you are out.  By exercising faith and being obedient to God's Commandments we are able to sufficiently "arm" ourselves so that the world doesn't bring us down to our knees.

The winners are not the guys who simply sit down and wait or take the "easy route" in life.  Winners do everything in their power and possession to make sure they succeed.  I can assure you it wasn't easy carrying all that stuff while playing combat games with my friends, but It helped me a lot when I got in a tight spot.  It is going to be hard just trying to live around in the world.  But a strong testimony and faith in God really helps.  Especially when the pressures really begin to come in.  You are not going to find exaltation on doing what you are supposed to do, but doing everything you can to obey the Lord because of your love for him.  And that makes all the difference in the world.