On a more cheerful note (see previous post!)

After pages of war and destruction The Book of Revelations ends with two very hopeful chapters. John sees the New Jerusalem descend out of heaven to dwell on the earth with the Savior as king. He describes an incredibly beautiful, righteous city.

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." 21:4

"...And let him that is athirst come. and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." 22:17

After reading about the fall of Babylon in the previous chapters and feeling the weight of the sins of mankind being cleansed from the earth, it was such a relief to come to this victorious ending. By the way, in biblical language "white" is a symbol of victory. I thought that interesting as we usually associate it with purity. Perhaps the two are really the same thing.

Painting King of Kings by Danny Hahlbohm

Depressing, but something to think about....

I attended Richard Draper's class on the Book of Revelations last night at BYU Education Week. What caught my attention was the activities of Babylon (referred to as "she" or in other words the "great whore") A prostitute sells that which is sacred for $$. Babylon trades the sacred souls of men to promulgate her gargantuan economic kingdom. I thought chapter 18 sounded much like our time.

12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, (riches) and precious stones, and of pearls, (jewelery) and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, (fashion) and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble, (large and spacious buildings and home decor).
13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, (beauty and body care) and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, (delicatessens and gourmet foods) and horses, and chariots, (hot and fast transportation) and slaves, (addictions and those who are kept entrapped to produce merchandise) and souls of men (the cost of operating this sprawling economic kingdom.)

(New Testament | Revelation 18:12 - 13)

The saints of God love people and use things.

Those who resided in Babylon love things and use people.

John the Revelator says that all this materialism shall fall and that the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her (Babylon) for no man buyeth her merchandise anymore and in one hour is she made desolate.

It's made me think about the importance of "laying aside" our focus on material possessions and having our hearts placed on God and people, not things. The countenance of Babylon is manifest when we receive the mark of the beast in our foreheads (thoughts) and hands (actions). As I look around and see how many hours in our modern day are dedicated to getting and spending, (a Hugh Nibley theme) to consume upon our lusts, me thinks I see the Book of Revelations in full swing.

And not to be misunderstood - $ itself is not bad, but it's lustful acquisition and uses at the expense of what is truly sacred (the souls of men, both their physical and spiritual well-being), is what does us in. And I think we have to look very carefully at ourselves because the practice of putting our getting and spending (lifestyle) ahead of serving and helping others is very entrenched in our acceptable ways of living.

Training our Desires....

"The more we fill our hearts and minds with the message of the risen Christ, the greater our desire is to follow Him and live His teachings.  This in turn, causes our faith to grow and allows the light of Christ to illuminate our hearts."  

(President Dieter F. Uchtdorf April Conf. 2009)

I've been thinking of late about our desires and how they are at the core of our motivation.  If we want (desire) to do something even though it is difficult we usually can.  Conversely, things we would rather not do become difficult.    As I am caring for my father I notice the days I am chaffing at the bit to do something else are the most difficult.  Elder Neal A. Maxwell talked about "training our desires" so that the things we want the most are aligned with truth.  He quotes Brigham Young as saying:  “Do you think that people will obey the truth because it is true, unless they love it? No, they will not” (in Journal of Discourses, 7:55).  Elder Maxwell continues, "Thus knowing gospel truths and doctrines is profoundly important, but we must also come to love them. When we love them, they will move us and help our desires and outward works to become more holy."

And how do we come to love them?  We do as Elder Uchtdorf said and fill our hearts and minds with the message of the risen Christ which causes our faith to grow and allows the light of Christ to illuminate our hearts."  

One more quote from Elder Maxwell on the subject:

"Fortunately for us, our loving Lord will work with us, “even if we can do no more than desire to believe,” providing we will “let this desire work in us”. Therefore, declared President Joseph F. Smith, “the education then of our desires is one of far-reaching importance to our happiness in life”....Only by educating and training our desires can they become our allies instead of our enemies!"

F*A*M*I*L*Y

I've been thinking about all my children. I really think they are fabulous people. It has nothing to do with me - it's just who they are. And they have married fabulous people whom I claim as my own. They are all unique and different from each other. I love their individuality. I'm so intrigued by the fact that no two are alike. Isn't that just the most amazing thing! It's one reason why there's 11 of them.

We're off to see the wizard....

It's late Sunday night (or should I say early Monday morning) and I can't sleep. This seems to be a common problem for me. It comes in cycles, usually when my brain won't shut off. I've been lying in bed thinking about a myriad of topics ranging from eternal truth to the tasks at hand in the morning. I'm packing for a trip to Colorado with my three youngest children and my 87 year old Dad. That should give one pause for thought. My Dad seems even keel at the moment and last winter when we moved him from Denver to Provo I promised him that if he was still healthy in the summertime, I would take him back home to visit my mother's grave. He has profound dementia so he doesn't remember the promise, but I still want to keep it if possible. I pretty much have to be by his side when he is in my care so I might as well do that in the car. He left Colorado kicking and screaming (for all intents and purposes that is a true statement) last February so I'm hoping the return trip isn't in the same vein. We will stay two days and then wend our way back over the mountain. Wish me luck.

P. S. Eternal truth will have to wait for another night.

Natalie's Mission Call...

Londrina, Brazil

Natalie's mission call arrived in the mail a few weeks ago. (Yes, I know I am slow!) She will be leaving Nov. 17 for the MTC in Sao Paulo and will be serving in Londrina, Brazil. We are excited for her and proud of her as well. Way to go Nat!! Two of her good friends, (below) have received their calls as well - Carly(right) to Ohio, Shalynn (center) to Chile (or is it Peru?)

Grandpa and the soccer ball....

Cameron plays for a club soccer team, the Utah FC. They played a tournament last week and Grandpa and I were on the sidelines for most of the games. Partway through the first game Grandpa began to empathize with the soccer ball. "That poor ball," he exclaimed as he watched 8 to 10 players converge with kicking feet on one soccer ball. A few minutes late he said, "That ball is saying, 'Help! Don't kick me!'" A little later he commented, "All those boys after that one little ball." The next day he continued to see the ball's point of view. Every time there was a mass of cleated feet kicking from all directions at once, he would laugh ruefully and make a comment. I must admit I've never watched a soccer game from the ball's point of view before. It's a different perspective to say the least. I wondered if Grandpa feels a bit like the soccer ball - shuttled here and there by those of us who care for him, without any sense of control over his circumstances. He's at our mercy and we jostle him around and then pass him off to another team member to run with him for a while.

And I would bet if he were stranded on a deserted island he would give his soccer ball a name too. (Go Wilson!)

Cameron's team won the tournament by the way. Here's the pics to prove it.