No Coincidences

Tag: jesus christ

  • Sidney Rigdon Miracle

    Sidney Rigdon Miracle

    21 August, 1842. 

    Apparently, it had been thought that Sidney Rigdon meant “to renounce his faith in Mormonism” when he took the stand on 21 August 1842.  Instead, he “appeared to bear his testimony of its truth, and add another to the many miraculous evidences of the power of God.”

    I stumbled upon this story while reading a commentary on Doctrine and Covenants section 124 verses 103-110.  In these verses Sidney Rigdon is admonished to continue to stand by the Prophet Joseph Smith, along with other commandments, and “if he will hearken unto my voice, it shall be well with him” (verse 110).

    Smith and Sjodahl remark that, “Sidney Rigdon, according to a generally prevailing impression, was more or less under the influence of a spirit of apostasy.  It is related that, in Liberty jail, he declared to his fellow-prisoners that the sufferings of the Lord were nothing compared with his, and while the faithful Saints were straining every nerve to complete the Nauvoo Temple, he had no word of encouragement to them.  As a consequence of his disposition, he did not have good health.  Like the Corinthians who partook unworthily of the Sacrament (1 Cor. 11:30), he was ‘weak and sickly.’  The Lord, therefore, points out to him the cause of his ailments and promises to heal him, if he will do his duty and stand by the Prophet as a true counselor.”

    The admonition from the Lord in section 124 was given on January 19, 1841 so it was 19 months later that he took the stand to detail the miracle he had experienced to those gathered.

    As mentioned, given Sidney’s recent state of apostasy, I’m sure the gathered congregation was expecting to see some potential fireworks.  They got fireworks, but not the apostasy-themed ones they were expecting. 

    Sidney told the congregation that his daughter Eliza died.  She was pronounced dead by a physician.  I will quote the story from the Joseph Smith Papers.  “after a considerable length of time she rose up in the bed and spoke in a very powerful tone to the following effect in a supernatural manner: she said to the family that she was going to leave them (being impressed with the idea herself that she had only come back to deliver her message and then depart again,) saying the Lord had said to her the very words she should relate; and so particular was she in her relation, that she would not suffer any person to leave out a word or add one.  She called the family around her and bade them all farewell with a composure and calmness that defies all description, still impressed with the idea that she was to go back.  Up to the time of her death she expressed a great unwillingness to die, but after her return she expressed equally as strong a desire to go back.  She said to her elder Sister, Nancy, ‘it is in your heart to deny this work, and if you do, the Lord says it will be the damnation of your soul.’  In speaking to her sister Sarah she said, ‘Sarah, we have but once to die, and I would rather die now than wait for another time.’  She said to her Sisters that the Lord had great blessings in store for them if they continued in the faith, and after delivering her message she swooned, but recovered again.”

    It goes on to say that she continued in a near death fashion for 36 hours before she called her father, Sidney to her.  Continuing from the Joseph Smith Papers: “the Lord had said to her, if he (Sidney) would cease weeping for his sick daughter, and dry up his tears that he should have all the desires of his heart; and that if he would go to bed and rest, he should be comforted over his sick daughter, for in the morning she should be getting better and should get well.”  Sidney had wept and prayed for his daughter’s life.  His daughter told him the Lord had commanded her to stay for Sidney’s prayers.

    The account continues, (Sidney speaking), “It has also been rumored that I believe that Joseph Smith is a fallen prophet.  In regard to this, I unequivocally state that I never thought so, but declare that I know he is a prophet of the Lord, called and chosen in this last dispensation, to roll on the kingdom of God for the last time.  He closed by saying as it regards his religion he had no controversy with the world, having incontrovertible evidence, that through obedience to the ordinances of the religion he now believes, the Lord had actually given back his daughter from the dead.”

    There is so much to unpack here.  A few things that caught my attention –

    Sydney being weak due to taking the sacrament unworthily. 

    The statement potentially made by Sidney Rigdon to the effect that the Lord’s sufferings were nothing in comparison to his, blasphemous indeed. 

    Interesting that Eliza was commanded to give the precise words of the Lord.  Shows the importance of the Lord’s words, when He speaks, we listen and when we relay His message it must be precise.

    Also, interesting that Eliza at first didn’t want to die, but once she had met the Lord, she didn’t want to come back to life.  Why did she ultimately come back?  Because the Lord commanded her.  I believe this not to be out of duty to Him (though of course it was) but out of love.  The Lord doesn’t force. 

    My concluding thought is on the cunningness of the devil.  I haven’t studied the life of Sidney Rigdon much after he officially left the church.  After reading this story I looked a little more into Sidney Rigdon.  Apparently, after Joseph Smith’s martyrdom Sidney went on missions to the East to preach and gather followers to his new church.  Sidney called it, “the most successful mission he had ever undertaken.”  Where is this church today?

    What I thought about the cunningness of Satan is this: Sidney Rigdon appears to never have denied the faith. Maybe that source exists and I haven’t seen it.  What Sidney did instead was claim the authority as his own.  He was misguided and pride took over.  He believed the authority rested with him and so, instead of denouncing the faith, he tried to promote it in his own way.  God had chosen his prophet.  Sidney Rigdon couldn’t upheave that.

    I believe there is a lot to be learned from this story from Church history. I noted just a couple of the interesting points that could result in their own post. Ultimately I settled on this important point –

    I’m not sure where Sidney Rigdon’s church is today.  I know where the Church of Jesus Christ is today.

  • Drugs

    Drugs

    *Author’s note:  I asked Beth to proofread this before sharing.  I put off posting it for weeks because of my hesitation in sharing something like this about my past.  Beth’s response, “Why wouldn’t you share it?  It’s what got you here.”

    “Cocaine takes your soul.”  A statement I heard a while back on a podcast.

    I’ve long wanted to write a “drugs” post, but I haven’t known how to approach it. It was a big step for me to start sharing publicly about how I used to drink.  Now I use my past experiences with drinking to understand the struggles others can have because I’ve been there.  It makes me really uncomfortable to share something like, “I used to do drugs.”  Vulnerability, uncertainty at how people I love will take this information, Ivy reading this one day… Admitting something like that was never something I thought I’d do.  But Beth’s comment was right.  Those choices led to where I am today, so why not share it?  If I’ve truly changed, why do those past decisions matter that much?  If I truly believe Christ has washed away my sins through His Atonement, what am I hiding?  Maybe somebody can benefit from my experience. 

    So, before I continue, let’s get this part out of the way: All my LDS friends and family take your moment to *gasp.  All my college friends and family take your laugh (that some of my friends and family never knew this about me).

    I bounced back and forth with writing a generic, boring post about how drugs are bad.  Really, we’ve heard that before.  What can really make a difference, I think, is my personal experience with drugs.  In the Church (of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), along with other churches, I think talking about past drinking or drug use is pretty taboo.  It’s like many other topics I want to write about and haven’t yet addressed.  Where I come from, how I was raised, I kind of adhere to the ‘pretend like it doesn’t exist’ camp.  Drugs?  How about we not discuss it. 

    But then recently my 13-year-old brother mentioned a kid coming to his soccer practice clearly high.  First thought, “My youngest brother is exposed to weed already????”  Then I realized, he’s 13, of course he’s exposed to it.  I know a lot of kids that started experimenting with drugs at 13.  It’s crazy to think my youngest brother is 13.  It’s crazier more to realize it when he talks about the drug use around him.  Drug use is happening.  In the world we live in today, it’s more prevalent than ever.  If we stick our head in the ground, refuse to talk to our kids about it, and pretend like it’s not happening, someone else is talking to them about it.  News flash parents:  Your most sheltered latter-day saint babies have seen, heard of, been around, and maybe even experienced drug use.

    If I was seeing it in 2003 (I’m old), you better believe 13-year-olds are seeing it in 2021.  Recently I drove down a street in Las Vegas near my old home.  A street I’d driven down many times.  I did a double take when I passed what I can only describe as a big, bright, pot emporium.  Drugs are becoming mainstream.  A scary thought.

    So what are my experiences with drugs?

    First let me say, I was lucky that drugs never quite became like alcohol for me.  I don’t think drugs ever controlled me the way alcohol did.  I think part of that is luck in never trying the wrong substance.  There was a time when I was on a precarious cliff, one wrong step could have led to debilitating and life destroying addiction. 

    I’m going to try my best to be as ambiguous as possible about my drug use for obvious reasons.  By that I mean, I’m not going to tell you what drugs I have done (it’s not many).  But sometimes I may be clear about drugs I haven’t done.  For example, I never tried cocaine.  I had to say that since you’ve probably been wondering that since you read the first line. 

    What’s my experience?

    From a very young age I was aggressively opposed to any substance I believed was bad.  Legend has it I used to pour out my mom’s Coca Cola’s.  Growing up I always said I would never drink alcohol.  When asked I would say it was due to my faith and the Word of Wisdom.  The Word of Wisdom, for those who don’t know, is guidance provided by the Lord to Joseph Smith in 1833 about what should and should not be put into the body.  Over the years the Word of Wisdom, as followed by many members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has adapted and changed.  This is a natural occurrence.  Joseph Smith wasn’t yet warned about vape pens and methamphetamines in the 1830s.  I encourage everyone who wants to learn more to read Doctrine and Covenants Section 89.

    My excuse for not drinking or partaking in drugs was always the Word of Wisdom.  Like I said, from a very young age I remember taking that guidance very seriously.  As I grew up, and my church activity waned, that excuse changed to, “I’m an athlete.”  In high school “no thanks” seldomly worked.  You needed a reason.  Similar to Happy Hours across the country today, most of the time you can’t just say no.

    So what happened when I had neither?  What happened when my church activity was zero and I was no longer an athlete after high school?  It’s amazing how soon after losing those two identities that I waivered on this principle I had stuck so firmly to.

    I still remember my first sip of alcohol.  It was a big moment.  We laugh at the joke that meth addiction starts with one puff or one sip, but doesn’t it?  Of course, there are exceptions, but would someone who has never had a sip of alcohol try a harder, more dangerous substance?  Usually not. 

    What happened after I’d taken one sip?  Well, my excuses of church and basketball were no longer existent, I no longer had my shield against peer pressure.  It’s no wonder when I went off to college for the first time I started drinking, then trying other stuff. 

    I was never a big drug user, as previously stated.  Most of what I tried wouldn’t even be considered drugs by most people today.  That’s the problem though, isn’t it?  Drugs are drugs.  Marijuana is a drug.  It is habit forming, it changes your focus, it changes what you care about, and ultimately it changes you. 

    I had some extremely, extremely scary experiences with drugs.  The last time for a particular substance I said would be the last time I’d try anything.  Being stuck in your mind is a terrifying thing, there is no escape.  These substances are mind-altering.  Sometimes they’re mind entrapping. 

    This is the point I want to get across and I think is important.  It’s the point I make to anyone who asks about certain drugs or drug use.  You almost never know what you’re putting into your body and it’s often from a sketchy source.  What happens when you can’t escape your mind and you think something will never end?  I had a friend once tell me he considered killing himself one time during a particularly bad drug experience.  My thought was, “why would you put that in your body????”  Then, years later I had that something in my body. If it wasn’t for very trusted and caring friends being around me to calm me down, who knows what could have happened. Never before in my life had jumping off a balcony crossed my mind. It did that day. Drugs are not a joke.  This is the message, more than anything I’d like to get across.

    I consider myself lucky that I avoided most of the more dangerous and addictive substances out there.  I never touched a cigarette.  I was too afraid it would become a habit.  That fear kept me from putting myself in a dangerous position with many other drugs.  I was always afraid of man-made, synthetic substances.  I was raised to believe that man was conspiring against my freedom (D&C 89:4) and I believe that might have saved my life.

    How am I with drugs today?

    When I had my accident, they tried to prescribe me some sort of Oxy something or another pain medication.  I refused.  I got over the counter Advil and avoided taking that as much as I could.  I saw too many friends almost kill themselves over those pills.  I hope I can avoid ever touching one.

    Today I’ve cut out drugs, alcohol, caffeine, and juice.  Yes, juice.  I feel happier and healthier for it.  I see coworkers come into the office and walk like zombies to the coffee machine first thing in the morning.  I’ve never had that crutch and I never will.

    People talk about the Word of Wisdom like it takes away your freedom.  My experience tells me that drugs and alcohol, and yes, even caffeine take away our freedom, not expand it.  How many people can’t start their day without coffee?  How many people can’t start their weekend without liquor?  How many people are enslaved by substance abuse?

    I am so grateful for my upbringing and the protection I had against these dangerous substances in my life.  Even when I dabbled, I escaped the direst consequences.  I was lucky.  Why chance it?  I’m happier today than I’ve ever been now that I depend on no substance for that happiness.  The Word of Wisdom is a protection and despite my slip-ups through my growth, it did protect me, and I’m grateful for it.

  • Temple Miracle

    Temple Miracle

    I don’t recall a good temple miracle story for myself.  I love the temple.  I feel peace in the temple.  The truth is, I’ve felt like I have a difficult time after the temple.  The idea that you can take the temple with you and feel peace in the world after leaving, I’ve personally not experienced that.  My experience has been more that as soon as I leave the temple Satan doubles and triples his efforts to bring strife and impatience into my heart.  I feel the world engulf me when I leave that peaceful home.  Of course, those are probably my own shortcomings.

    So, if you asked me my best “temple story”- a story where I felt overwhelming peace, or received a profound answer to prayer, or something drastic in my life changed after a visit, I wouldn’t immediately have an answer.  That’s not to say those things haven’t happened.  I believe if we don’t write down the miracles we experience we seldomly remember them.  What a sad thing to forget miracles.

    Salt Lake Temple

    Which leads me to writing this, to be sure I don’t forget this subtle, but profound and important miracle.

    Recently Beth and I went to the Mesa temple open house.  It was an extraordinary experience.  It was my first time doing a tour of a temple.  I’ve obviously been in the temple many times, but never taken a tour.  Also, it’s been a while since I’ve been to the temple.  Since Covid, I’ve only been to the temple once, for my sister’s wedding, aside from this recent open house visit.

    Touring the temple was amazing.  Every picture inside the temple was spectacular.  I had a hard time not pausing to stare at every picture of Jesus Christ I encountered.  I would have held up the tour if I had done so, but I love staring at any depiction of Christ and trying to fathom who He is.

    The beauty in every detail of the temple is awe-inspiring.  It is a place of pure peace.  I kept tears at bay as I walked through the halls and eternally significant rooms as I realized how much I had missed that place. 

    This leads to my miracle.  It’s small, almost unnoticeable, but significant.

    Beth and I had been having some difficulty the few days, maybe week, leading up to this open house visit.  Normal marriage stuff.  Strife, snippy comments, unkindness, our house hadn’t been a super peaceful and happy place.  I say this with the vulnerability of knowing we (as people, society, etc.) don’t often admit these things, but it’s important to understand what happened after the temple.

    There was something I realized I needed to say to Beth earlier that day, but it was difficult to say because it’s extremely difficult for me to be “touchy-feely” or “lovey-dovey.”  Wasn’t how I was raised. So there was something I needed to say but it was going to be difficult.  Then, after the temple, it came out so naturally and easily.  I believe the temple brought it comfortably out of me. Maybe because being in the temple had reminded me of the covenants I made there with Beth.

    On our drive home from the temple I told Beth this:

    “Things have been hard the past few days but that’s marriage.  It’s not always going to be great.  It’s going to be difficult and we know that.  But I need to remind you, and I need you to know, I’m not going anywhere.  I’m never going anywhere.  And neither are you.  We are here for each other no matter what, no matter how hard it gets.  We made covenants to each other and I plan on keeping mine and I know you plan on keeping yours.  And throughout any challenge we’ll become closer, and more united, and stronger for those challenges.”

    This led to a conversation about the covenants we made and how important our faith is to us, and to our relationship.  I know Beth and I will always be together because I know what our relationship is centered on.  Our relationship is centered on Jesus Christ and a covenant we made with each other that included Him.  Without that rock, without that stable foundation, the world is just too shaky and full of turmoil.  But I know we will grow through any challenge because we made eternal covenants and we plan on sticking to them.

    Where Beth and I were sealed for eternity

    I believe being in the temple in some subconscious way reminded me of the covenants we’d made and made it so easy to have that deep, emotional, and important discussion.

    I’m grateful for the temple and the covenants I’ve made there.  Life and marriage is difficult enough.  With the option of walking away, too many do.  The temple is God’s house and I know that to be true.  I know it is a beacon in a dark world.  I know it is where peace can be found.  I know it is where eternal covenants and a welding link can be established.  I am eternally grateful for that home. I am grateful for the miracle it provided me that day. I am grateful for the miracle the temple is in my life every single day, whether I visit it or not, due to the covenants made there.

    San Diego Temple
  • Divine Nature of Children

    Divine Nature of Children

    I dusted off this post I wrote 3 months before Ivy was born, but never shared. Seemed inspired to post it after just sharing about how much I learn from Ivy every day.

    Matthew 18:1-5

    1At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?

    2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,

    3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

    4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

    5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

    As the birth of my daughter approaches, I think more about children and why we’re admonished to be like them.  I’ve been thinking a lot about the divine nature of children.  We are so blessed to have children in our life.  We have been given the extraordinary privilege of welcoming and guiding a life into mortality.  What a gift this is.

    I think the divine nature of children should impact every parent.  I don’t have my own child yet (3 months and counting!), but I grew up with many siblings.  I know the struggle it is to always appreciate a child.  Kids can be so obnoxious!  I know throughout day-to-day life it can be difficult sometimes to remember how precious our children really are, how much of a gift children are to us.

    I think if parents stopped and considered the responsibility of raising a life, teaching and nurturing a young mind and spirit, it should add an intense reverence to everything we say and do around kids.

    I cringe when I see adults swear around young kids.  It makes me uncomfortable.  Kids soak up everything we say and do.  A moment in the life of a busy adult that seems insignificant can be a defining moment in a child’s life.  If all parents took a moment to understand that, to ponder it, and to appreciate the impact they have on their kids, I think the world would be a much better place.  Parents have the ability to teach kindness and sensitivity.  These are things kids pick up on.

    If parents took a moment to consider the responsibility of teaching one of God’s children, that should be another sobering moment for all adults.  God has given you the opportunity as a parent to cultivate and protect a spirit, His child.  What greater responsibility is there in the world?

    In 3 Nephi 26 verses 14 and 16 we read:

    14 “And it came to pass that he (Christ) did teach and minister unto the children of the multitude… and he did loose their tongues, and they did speak unto their fathers great and marvelous things, even greater than he had revealed unto the people; and he loosed their tongues that they could utter.”

    16 “…and they both saw and heard these children; yea, even babes did open their mouths and utter marvelous things; and the things which they did utter were forbidden that there should not any man write them.”

    I’ve been pondering on this significant moment in scripture.  Christ is in the Americas ministering to His people and their young children are present.  What we’re told is something so spectacular it’s difficult to comprehend.  We read that the children did speak “even greater (things) than (Jesus Christ) had revealed unto the people.”

    Think about that for a moment.  Here was Christ, the supreme creator, Son of God, our Lord and Savior, ministering and teaching the people.  He loosed the tongues of young children and they spoke things greater than Jesus Christ Himself had revealed.  Verse 16 goes on to tell us the things the babes spoke were so sacred that they were forbidden to write their words.  This is similar to the prayer of Jesus Christ to the Father.  These children were saying such sacred things it could not be written.

    I believe something important was being shown to the ancient Nephites.  Perhaps more than opening the mouths of babes, the Lord was opening the eyes and ears of their astonished parents.  Those parents had been granted the extraordinary gift of a glimpse into eternity and of beholding the identity and premortal stature of their children.  Would that not forever change the way the parents saw and treated their children? 

    I like this variation of a quote attributed to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: “The way you see [a child] is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is [who] they [will] become.”  To remember a child’s true identity helps us to guide them to their divine destiny.

    I hope we always remember how precious children are.  Even when they’re at their peak of obnoxious-ness, let’s remember that they are gifts.  They are special.  Most of all, we’re supposed to be like them. 

    I’m excited to have a daughter soon and be able to marvel daily at the gift God has given me and how lucky I am for the blessings He continues to give me.

  • 100th Post

    100th Post

    100 posts!  I thought it warranted a special post.  You never know when you start something like a blog if you’ll actually stick to it.  Here I am a year and a half and 100 posts later, with hundreds still to go.

    I figured as part of my first 100 posts I could mention the top 5 most read:

    1. Facing Death
    2. RIP Coach
    3. Ivy James Quackenbush 12/4/20
    4. Don Leedy-Resting in Paradise
    5. An Angel

    It’s interesting what this list shows.  Life and death.

    It was scary starting a blog.  It’s basically a public diary.  I’m excited for Ivy to read it one day.  Thank you to everyone who has read and supported.  The primary motivation in writing and sharing these posts has always been to share my faith story and hopefully help others in some tiny way.  If my story or my thoughts have helped one person think about life or come closer to Jesus Christ, then a million hours (close to how much time I’ve put into this) is worth it.

    I re-read my first post to prepare for writing this.  In reading that, I was kind of surprised by how open and vulnerable I made that.  It inspired me to share another more personal post.

    As I read that very first post I was reminded why I decided to write this.  I had my own very unique journey back to God and I hoped it could help someone, whether that be back to God or to God for the first time.  During those years where I removed God completely from my life, I feared every day I was away from Him that I’d never be able to return.  I know there are so many people out there that feel the same way.  There are also people that have never known God, prayer, repentance, all these things some of us take for granted.  These are abstract concepts to many, I know. 

    I want to share that I believe God is for everyone.  As the world screams at us, “You have your screens, your technology, your books, universities, learning, society with its conveyer belt of packaged food, water always, peace, prosperity.  Watch Netflix!  Relax!  All is well (2 Nephi 28:21).  Set aside thoughts of life, death, and purpose.  You have your purpose, live and let live.”  The world is telling us that despite the chaos around us, everything is fine, and we don’t need God.  I testify that all is well IF we have God.

    I want to tell everyone, there is more than what the world screams at us is important.  There is much, much more.  I want to tell everyone who will listen, God is for you.  If you’ve ever known Him, if you’ve never known Him, if you consider Him a complete foreign concept, if you consider Him a myth, He is for you and He is there for you.  You can come to Him, and when you do, your life changes. 

    That’s what sticks with me most when I think about those years away from God.  I removed Him, but He was never gone.  We can’t remove our Father.  This makes us accountable; it can be a frightening concept if we fear Him.  We don’t need to fear Him.  He is only there out of love.  He will never leave us.

    I bear my testimony of the most important things:  God is our Father, and He does love us.  Jesus Christ did something unimaginable.  Would you die for your child?  Would you suffer the punishment for the sins of your child?  Probably.  Would you die for the person torturing you?  Christ did.  He suffered for all of us, really suffered and felt.  I have been blessed to have the Holy Ghost be a part of my life when I’ve made good choices, since it was conferred upon me when I was 9 years old.  Joseph Smith did see Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  He translated the Book of Mormon from ancient records.  The temples that are now dotting the earth are God’s temples. The temples are clean and holy.  I can be with my family forever because of what Christ did for me in Gethsemane and on the cross.

    I know this to be true.  This knowledge brings purpose and understanding to my life.  It doesn’t make trials go away but it makes them understandable. 

    I wish everyone would consider the great plan of salvation, The Plan of Happiness.  But we are distracted. 

    I have been so blessed by God and I ask Him constantly what I’ve done to be afforded so much.  The least I can do is share it with others, and I am glad to do so.

    I leave this testimony for my daughter, and my family, and all those I care about to read- forever.  I leave it in the name of my Redeemer, my Savior, my King, Jesus Christ.

    Amen.

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