Over Christmas, I watched family home videos with my family. We played a video from 1994, a few months after my sister Adie was born. I was four at the time. I was singing to Adie.
Early in the video, I was singing Humpty Dumpty, Old Mcdonald, and Jack and Jill. Then I started singing Follow the Prophet.
Adam was a prophet, first one that we know.
In a place called Eden, he helped things to grow.
Adam served the (King!) Lord by following his ways.
We are his descendants in the latter days.
Of course, at that age, I stumbled through most of the song and got many prompts. King was my confident guess at who Adam served. My answer was as right as the correct lyric anyway.
I don’t remember singing that song to Adie when I was four, obviously. But that song is so ingrained in my heart and soul, it’s a part of my being. Watching that video, it’s a physical, emotional, and spiritual remembering. As an adult now, thinking about that song, it feels like it’s always been a part of me. After watching that quick video, I know why.
Parenthood is infinite tiny moments. I know that every day provides thousands and thousands of opportunities to have an impact on Ivy and Sage. I’m grateful for the thousands and thousands of moments my parents impacted me.
My parents have flaws just as I do. I pray to Heavenly Father that, despite my many shortcomings and flaws, I can have a positive impact on Ivy and Sage, just as my parents had on me.
If you’ve read the themes in my writing, you know there are three things ingrained in me that I know to be true.
I have a divine inheritance; I am a child of God.
I am loved.
I am watched over.
I hope to ingrain these same truths into the hearts and minds of Ivy and Sage. I wish to remind them here of what their souls already know. That is the greatest gift I could give them.
On November 19, 1823, a young man named Alvin Smith died. The Smith family asked a Presbyterian minister to officiate at Alvin’s funeral. “As Alvin had not been a member of the minister’s congregation, the clergyman asserted in his sermon that Alvin could not be saved. William Smith…recalled: ‘[The minister]… intimated very strongly that [Alvin] had gone to hell, for Alvin was not a church member, but he was a good boy and my father did not like it.” (Teachings: Joseph Smith, 401, 403).
On January 21, 1836, while in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, the heavens were opened up to a still young man named Joseph Smith. It was recorded:
1 The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell.
5 I saw Father Adam and Abraham and my father and my mother; my brother Alvin, that has long since slept;
6 And marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time, and had not been baptized for the remission of sins.
7 Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying: All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God;
8 Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom;
9 For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.
10 And I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 7 of the Joseph Smith translation has an important clarification:
1 Now these are the words which Jesus taught his disciples that they should say unto the people.
2 Judge not unrighteously, that ye be not judged; but judge righteous judgment.
“President Dallin H. Oaks explained these teachings and their application, basing his comments on the principle “that there are two kinds of judging: final judgments, which we are forbidden to make, and intermediate judgments, which we are directed to make, but upon righteous principles:
“First, a righteous judgment must, by definition, be intermediate. It will refrain from declaring that a person has been assured of exaltation or from dismissing a person as being irrevocably bound for hellfire. It will refrain from declaring that a person has forfeited all opportunity for exaltation or even all opportunity for a useful role in the work of the Lord. The gospel is a gospel of hope, and none of us is authorized to deny the power of the Atonement to bring about a cleansing of individual sins, forgiveness, and a reformation of life on appropriate conditions.
“Second, a righteous judgment will be guided by the Spirit of the Lord, not by anger, revenge, jealousy, or SELF-INTEREST(my emphasis added). …
“Third, to be righteous, an intermediate judgment must be within our stewardship. We should not presume to exercise and act upon judgments that are outside our personal responsibilities. …
“Fourth, we should, if possible, refrain from judging until we have adequate knowledge of the facts. …
“A fifth principle of a righteous intermediate judgment is that whenever possible we will refrain from judging people and only judge situations. … We can set and act upon high standards for ourselves or our homes without condemning those who do otherwise. …
“Sixth, forgiveness is a companion principle to [this] commandment. … In modern revelation the Lord has declared, ‘I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men’ (D&C 64:10).
“Seventh, a final ingredient or principle of a righteous judgment is that it will apply righteous standards” (“‘Judge Not’ and Judging,” Ensign, Aug. 1999, 7, 9–12).”
I will refrain from judging that minister at Alvin’s funeral who failed in almost all these points laid out by President Oaks. I will leave that judgement to God for such behavior.
What I will say is this: the hateful, vengeful God that condemns young children and the ignorant to eternal hellfire, is not my God. My God doesn’t create someone, give them a body, send them to earth, only to condemn them to eternal damnation because they never committed to a God they never heard of.
Where is the justice, mercy, and LOVE of that God? There is no love in that God. That is not my God.
My God loves all His children.
1 Peter 4:6 “For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”
How can it be, then? How can men be judged in the flesh when their flesh has long since been laid in the ground and returned to the dust from which it was formed?
Salvation for the dead through ministering to the dead. Baptisms and ordinances for the dead. Ordinances that the dead cannot, once dead, perform for themselves. For we, without them, cannot be made perfect, as they, without us, cannot be made perfect (Hebrews 11:40, D&C 128:18).
Truth.
Pure.
Simple.
If this doesn’t make sense to you, please, re-read it. Then read it again, then read it again. New wine is difficult to fit in old bottles. Then ask me, and maybe I can explain in better. I know the missionaries can.
God doesn’t condemn you or your loved ones to hell because you haven’t met or been taught of the true Him. This is the great evil that Satan has perpetuated throughout Christianity.
THAT IS NOT GOD.
God is love. You, your father, your father’s father. He loves all of you. And you will all be able to hear the truth before any judgement is made. I love that God, and I am grateful for Him. And I am grateful for Joseph Smith for these pure, simple truths that he restored. And I am grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, who affords me all this: forgiveness, love, peace, eternity with my family. Because He suffered for me. Again, and again and again and again I say, thank you.
I had a dream last night. In it I was going down a stream. I had the feeling of leaving civilization for the wilderness. I came to a cliff. I climbed to the top and on the precipice there was a small and shabby tent erected. I went inside and there was an old prophet. I spoke with him.
A new prophet came. The new prophet was well dressed and well-kept, not like the old prophet living in a tiny tent on the edge of a cliff. The new prophet was respected, and I knew he came from a comfortable home. He was well regarded by society and lived comfortably in the world. He was told he had to take the place of the old prophet and live there in the wilderness, in a tent.
When I woke up from this dream, I had a feeling it was important, but I couldn’t figure out why.
What was this dream telling me?
I write down all my dreams. But this one felt important.
Was Russell M. Nelson the new prophet? Was he of the world? Was he flawed? What was the dream telling me?
As I meditated in the morning, I continued to ponder this question. On my drive into the office, I prayed to know if there was something I was supposed to glean from this dream. I asked specifically that if there was something important that I was supposed to learn to please allow my reading for the day to guide my mind to understanding.
I’m in Mosiah chapter 3 and Doctrine and Covenants section 133 respectively in my daily scripture study. A few hours later I was reading verse 71, exactly where I’d left off the day prior, of section 133, which reads:
“Behold, and lo, there are none to deliver you; for ye obeyed not my voice when I called to you out of the heavens; ye believed not my servants, and when they were sent unto you ye received them not.”
Alongside D&C I’m reading a commentary. The commentary for verse 71 said:
Why Are the Prophets Rejected?
President Spencer W. Kimball commented:
“Various excuses have been used over the centuries to dismiss these divine messengers. There has been denial because the prophet came from an obscure place. ‘Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?’ (John 1:46.) Jesus was also met with the question, ‘Is not this the carpenter’s son?’ (Matt. 13:55.) By one means or another, the swiftest method of rejection of the holy prophets has been to find a pretext, however false or absurd, to dismiss the man so that his message could also be dismissed. Prophets who were not glib, but slow of speech, were esteemed as naught.…
“We wonder how often hearers first rejected the prophets because they despised them, and finally despised the prophets even more because they had rejected them. Even so, why else is the record of rejection so complete? The cares of the world are so many and so entangling, even very good people are diverted from following the truth because they care too much for the things of the world.…
“Sometimes people let their hearts get so set upon things and the honors of this world that they cannot learn the lessons they most need to learn. Simple truths are often rejected in favor of the much less-demanding philosophies of men, and this is another cause for the rejection of the prophets.
“But while there are various excuses for rejection, there’s a certain cause for this sad record. It must not be passed over: the cares of the world, the honors of the world, and looking beyond the mark are all determined by a persuasive few who presume to speak for all.…
“The holy prophets have not only refused to follow erroneous human trends, but have pointed out these errors. No wonder the response to the prophets has not always been one of indifference. So often the prophets have been rejected because they first rejected the wrong ways of their own society.
“These excuses for rejection of the prophets are poor excuses. The trouble with using obscurity as a test of validity is that God has so often chosen to bring forth his work out of obscurity. He has even said it would be so. (See D&C 1:30.) Christianity did not go from Rome to Galilee; it was the other way around. In our day the routing is from Palmyra to Paris, not the reverse. Just because something is in our midst does not mean that we have been in the midst of it. We can daily drive by a museum or an art gallery but know nothing of what is inside.
“The trouble with rejection because of personal familiarity with the prophets is that the prophets are always somebody’s son or somebody’s neighbor. They are chosen from among the people, not transported from another planet, dramatic as that would be!…
“Of course, rejection of the holy prophets comes because the hearts of people are hardened, as people are shaped by their society. Yet even when the hardening is swift, it can also be subtle. Who, for instance, a scant twenty years ago would have foreseen the massive use of abortion in society today? Like all the diseased doctrines of the devil, the practice is pleasing unto the carnal mind.
“Prophets have a way of jarring the carnal mind. Too often the holy prophets are wrongly perceived as harsh and as anxious to make a record in order to say, ‘I told you so.’ Those prophets I have known are the most loving of men. It is because of their love and integrity that they cannot modify the Lord’s message merely to make people feel comfortable. They are too kind to be so cruel. I am so grateful that prophets do not crave popularity.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1978, pp. 115–16; or Ensign, May 1978, pp. 76–77.)
It wasn’t until the very end of that statement from Spencer W. Kimball that it hit me, and I remembered – I asked for guidance in what I read today to help with my dream. I dreamed of prophets, now I was reading a long commentary from a prophet about why prophets are rejected.
I thought back on my dream. I had correctly believed that Russell M. Nelson was the “new prophet.” What I incorrectly interpreted was that Russell M. Nelson was “of the world” or wrong in some way. My dream gave me a feeling that he was flawed. That he was attached to the comfortable home and respectful world he lived in.
After reading that comment from Spencer W. Kimball, I realized there was no flaw in Russell M. Nelson.
The attacks on prophets are starting to escalate in our current society. See the recent backlash against Jeffrey R. Holland as an example.
The eternal and correct view of prophets on gender, marriage, and the importance of the family is under attack. Prophets will not deny truth. They will continue to speak truth even as they are rejected by the world.
Nobody embodies a “loving man” more than Jeffrey R. Holland. If you’ve ever watched one of his tear-filled and tear-jerking General Conference addresses, you know that the man emanates love for us, for followers of Jesus Christ and for all of God’s children.
“Those prophets I have known are the most loving of men. It is because of their love and integrity that they cannot modify the Lord’s message merely to make people feel comfortable.”
No statement has ever fit Jeffrey R. Holland more accurately.
I started making connections between my dream and what it was trying to tell me, so I went back and re-read where I was at in Mosiah 3:18, 19 (the verses I read before D&C that day). It reads:
18 “For behold he judgeth, and his judgment is just; and the infant perisheth not that dieth in his infancy; but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children, and believe that salvation was, and is, and is to come, in and through the atoning blood of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.
19 “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”
“And the infant perisheth not that dieth in infancy.”
“but men drink damnation to their own souls except they humble themselves and become as little children.”
“For the natural man is an enemy to God.”
“And becometh as a child.”
“even as a child doth submit to his father.”
“Who, for instance, a scant twenty years ago would have foreseen the massive use of abortion in society today? Like all the diseased doctrines of the devil, the practice is pleasing unto the carnal mind. Prophets have a way of jarring the carnal mind.”
I think my dream was reminding me what I already know to be true. We are in the time where our society has fully rejected the prophets. The attack on them is going to increase. Russell M. Nelson has been a respected heart surgeon, kind, gentle, grandfatherly figure. I believe we are quickly approaching the time that he will be cast into the wilderness and hated by a world that has always hated prophets. I believe this is what my dream was telling me.
Those of us with faith in Jesus Christ and His anointed servants must keep firm in our faith in Him, and in His servants. Don’t be shaken by the attacks on His chosen servants. If you do, your faith in Him (Jesus Christ) can be shaken next. Trust in whom He has chosen. Follow them as you follow Him. The Lord’s prophets will not lead us astray. Russell M. Nelson is the Lord’s anointed and he is our prophet. As the world turns on Jesus Christ’s prophet, we must support and protect him from a world that will hate what he and our Lord stand for.
For more on this topic, I read this blog post that elaborates on the dangers of choosing what we do and do not want to believe from prophets. Click the image below to read the post:
Recently I was trying to do something I had no idea how to do. Let’s call it HTML coding. The point I need to stress here is I was starting at point 0. I’d done little to no coding and didn’t understand HTML, and still don’t.
It’s not my job to know HTML so it was fine, it was just something I had to figure out.
I was doing some research and trying to understand the format needed for what I was trying to create. Looking at the code I made some assumptions. For example, I thought a symbol at the beginning indicated “this is the start” and a symbol at the end indicated “this is the end.”
I spent a lot of time struggling with this. As I thought I was figuring something out, I’d test it, and realize I was getting farther away. I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong.
I finally engaged someone I worked with. This person knew almost nothing about HTML. If I was a 0 this person was a 1. He also knew very little about HTML but he immediately recognized something. The part at the beginning that I thought indicated the start wasn’t needed at all. It could be removed.
I removed the beginning and it looked exactly how I needed it to.
He knew little, but the little he knew made a huge difference.
I realized something from this. I saw how devastating ignorance can be. If I knew just a little, I could have completed this task very quickly. Instead, I spent a lot of time going in circles.
Why is knowledge so important? Because ignorance kills.
I think we see this principle amplified in our society today. We are surrounded by misinformation and while we’re in the age of technology and information is at our fingertips, false information is as easily accessible as true information.
What this makes me appreciate is the truth and knowledge of God. There is no misinformation with Him. There is no ignorance. God knows our yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He is all truth.
I’m glad that what we learn here goes with us. I’m glad the knowledge we gain here stays with us and helps us. This is one of my favorite principles of the gospel.
Nearly everything I write is a testimony of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Today I had a thought that I wanted to write a particular testimony.
As I read church history, which I’m doing a lot of at the moment, I’m often inspired by the testimonies borne by the early adopters of the faith. People like Orson and Parley Pratt, Brigham Young, Sydney Rigdon, Orson F. Whitney, and Heber C. Kimball come to mind. Of course, there are countless others. Early men and women of the church were not only of devout faith, but of great courage in proclaiming the gospel.
Parley P. Pratt
Times have changed. But have they changed so much that we can’t powerfully declare the truth of the restored Gospel to all the world? Missionaries are throughout the world, in every corner. They proclaim the truth of the gospel. Christ’s Church has always been a missionary church.
There are roughly 16 million members across the globe.
Imagine if all 16 million of us were as outspoken about the truth as Parley P. Pratt was. In D&C 49 we see an example of the boldness of Parley P. Pratt. He was sent, by revelation, to the Shaker faith to give them a message. Parley P. Pratt believed, and knew, that this revelation came from Jesus Christ Himself. When he arrived at the Shaker church and learned those that had come ahead of him were passive in their declaring of the message, Parley wasn’t having it. According to Elder Pratt, “they had come with the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the people must hear it.”
Sometimes I think I take for granted, or forget, the veracity of the message I have been sent to this earth to deliver.
Sometimes I’m ashamed of my lack of boldness.
I’ve been meeting with a small group of guys to study the Bible. I have only met with them a couple times but have loved both meetings immensely. These few gentlemen come from different faiths than me. Mostly non-denominational Christianity.
In these discussions so much light, knowledge, and truth is exchanged. I know we are all edified by the discussion. I know that I benefit greatly from the faith and example of these men. Especially as the youngest in the group, I can look to these family men as examples of raising faithful families, striving for truth, and striving to be better. In the couple meetings I’ve had, I’ve come to admire these guys.
I had a thought today that struck me.
So much goodness is happening in these meetings, no doubt. Studying the Bible will seldom lead anyone astray.
My thought recently was this – I’m basically a secret agent in the group. The person who invited me knows I’m a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But does he know what that means? Have I shared with him my testimony that I have what he’s been searching for: the message of his Lord and Savior, the message of Jesus Christ’s restored Church.
Maybe this friend that has invited me has let the others know my faith background. It’s no secret. The “secret agent” part comes from my demeanor. Throughout the discussions I’ll drop things here and there that show I’m peculiar. I have learned different things in my faith journey. I understand different things. Why? Because of revealed truths that prophets in THIS dispensation have revealed. Because a prophet in the 1800s saw Christ on the right hand of the Father and restored Jesus Christ’s Church.
It occurred to me recently what I should do.
At the end of one of these meetings I should thank these men for all they teach me and how I grow by learning from them.
Then I should share what Jesus Christ has commissioned me to share.
Here is the testimony I imagined giving:
“Thank you, guys, for another great meeting. I always learn so much from you. I have something I need to share. What you’re seeking, what you’re studying in the Bible, what we’re studying in the Bible in each of these meetings, the truth you’re seeking, it is here. Christ’s Church, as it was in the meridian of time, has been restored. The principles taught by Christ are here on the earth today: faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists. The Church of Jesus Christ exists today. It is led by a prophet, just as Christ left the Church in the hands of his prophet, Peter, before he ascended to heaven. A man saw God the Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ. Christ’s kingdom exists today, and it is growing. All the ordinances of the gospel are restored. The second coming is upon us, and the long-prophesied gathering of Israel is taking place. Today thousands gain the testimony of Jesus Christ and His restored church and unite themselves with the Saints of the Lord. The gathering is happening as tribulation in the world continues to increase and come upon us. As a member of this church, fully aware of this truth I have been blessed with, I would be a selfish, abominable person, if I didn’t share with truth-seekers like yourselves this great and important message. Christ lives! And He leads His church. The heavens are not sealed and blocked. God has not forsaken us. He is our Father, and He loves us. The time is coming that we all must unite and gather under one banner. The strength of Zion is increasing. It’s my responsibility to share this with you.
You don’t need to take my word for it. A book exists that will testify of this truth. The Book of Mormon is a book inspired of God just as the books of Moses, the Book of Acts, the Book of Revelations, the Book of Isaiah, all the books that were written by men of God and brought forth to help us, these many books are all from the old world, Jerusalem. What of America? History now tells us God had millions of His children on the American continent. Are we to believe Christ was only sent to the old world? Are we to believe that the word of God was never shared with those on another portion of the earth? God loves all His children; how could it be?
Read the book. Please. Don’t take my word for it. Read it. If it doesn’t touch your heart and scream of the power of the spirit of God that you have spent your lives cultivating the ability to hear and feel, if it doesn’t spur your spirit to know that it is true, then set it aside and continue in your faith. But read it. Please. Determine for yourselves.”
Do I have the boldness to say these words?…
I don’t know.
I’ve written them.
Maybe I’ll share it with these men.
For I am on this earth with the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the people must hear it.
No Coincidences 