Some of My Favorite Scriptures

"And this Zeezrom began to question Amulek, saying: Will ye answer me a few questions which I shall ask you? Now Zeezrom was a man who was expert in the devices of the devil, that he might destroy that which was good; therefore, he said unto Amulek: Will ye answer the questions which I shall put unto you?

And Amulek said unto him: Yea, if it be according to the Spirit of the Lord, which is in me; for I shall say nothing which is contrary to the Spirit of the Lord. And Zeezrom said unto him: Behold, here are six onties of silver, and all these will I give thee if thou wilt deny the existence of a Supreme Being.

Now Amulek said: O thou child of hell, why tempt ye me? Knowest thou that the righteous yieldeth to no such temptations?

Believest thou that there is no God? I say unto you, Nay, thou knowest that there is a God, but thou lovest that lucre more than him.

And now thou hast lied before God unto me. Thou saidst unto me—Behold these six onties, which are of great worth, I will give unto thee—when thou hadst it in thy heart to retain them from me; and it was only thy desire that I should deny the true and living God, that thou mightest have cause to destroy me. And now behold, for this great evil thou shalt have thy reward."

-- Alma 11:21-25

"Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself."

-- 2 Nephi 2:27

"And I will come unto you, and if there be any among you that has a desire for freedom, yea, if there be even a spark of freedom remaining, behold I will stir up insurrections among you, even until those who have desires to usurp power and authority shall become extinct."

-- Alma 60:27

Me and My Dad - Live to Learn

I have learned a lot from growing up.  I didn't always want to learn anything, but my Dad taught me somewhat whenever we did anything together. (1 Nephi 1:1) What I gained the most is what I need to do in order to survive the trials that come after me all the time.

So this is me and my Dad.  He is teaching me the ways of the master chess player.  He is also teaching me the ways of life.  I think I was losing at this point, but that would depend on what losing is.

Losing to me is not learning from what you did wrong last time.

Losing to me is not being happy that you got to play the game in the first place.

Losing to me is not playing again just because the other guy is better than you.

WINNING on the other hand, is when I would intentionally get every piece killed off without putting my King in jeopardy, just because Dad took my Queen on his third move.

WINNING is saying, "Dad you're better than Me, but I am going to play anyway."

WINNING is when the conversation goes something like this...

"I beat you." - Dad
"I took your Queen." - Me
"Queen doesn't matter if you don't protect the King." - Dad
"So, maybe he was a stupid King and I wanted you to destroy his entire army and take him out of power because he didn't do his job right." - Me
"I still beat you." - Dad
"So, I got rid of the stupid King so now I get a Smart King and then I can beat you." - Me

That is a WINNING conversation in my book.

While I was growing up me and my Dad played chess all the time.  I remember one day we were supposed to be fixing the sprinklers in the backyard but we took about 4 hours and eat Sandwiches, play chess, and watch M*A*S*H.  Mom was a little less excited when she got home and nothing was done, but me and Dad were happy because we spent time doing something we enjoyed.

I also remember times in school when the only way I knew how to explain something was through chess.  If it didn't have something to do with taking out that guy in order to move in on the King then it didn't matter.  Everything I ever used I had learned from my Dad.

About a year ago, before my mission, me and my Dad started playing Starcraft together.  Almost every morning I would get up, eat breakfast, and turn on the computer to get on FaceBook.  After about 20 or 30 minutes, I would hear almost the exact same thing,

"READY TO DIE?" - Dad
"Sure." - Me

We would then play Starcraft for about 4 hours, and then go do chores.  My Dad should probably stick to chess, because playing 4-5 rounds of Starcraft a day, for about 2 months, he only ever 'won' about 30 games, while I 'won' about 200 games.

However my Dad won every single time to me.  Even though the game said he lost because I had killed off all his little army dudes, he never stopped playing with me.  He was always ready to say, "you cheated, do it again", even when he knew I didn't cheat he was alwasy trying to learn how I was beating him.

So as long as you learn from what you fail at, you never fail at all.  You never 'lose' if you 'Won' some knowledge.

"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ,

we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ,

and we write according to our prophecies,

that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins."

-- 2 Nephi 25:26

This is what I have learned from My Dad.

Armor of God -- Fight for Your Life

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:"

-- Ephesians 6:10-17

Loins girt about with Truth.  In Biblical times to 'Gird up your Loins' would be to wrap the bottom of you cloak into your belt, and by doing so you would be more able to move about and perform the days labor.  You really don't want your clothing to limit your movement in battle.

The Breastplate of Righteousness.  The Breastplate covers your Heart and Lungs, as well as other vital organs.  When the scriptures say that in the last days, "men's hearts shall fail them", (Luke 21:26) it is because they do not have their Breastplate protecting them.  Your Righteousness, which is your diligent obedience to the Commandments of God, will protect you from having your heart fail you.

Feet Shod with Preparation of the Gospel.  When the Hebrews were 'Preparing' to leave Egypt they were told to eat the Passover.  This was done with their Shoes on their feet and their staff in hand, and you ate while standing.  This is because even though they had not yet received permission to leave Egypt, they were planning on going somewhere.

Whenever I go home for anything my Mommy always gets frustrated with me because I never take my jacket off.  This has several reasons behind it, but the first and foremost reason is because I like having my jacket on, even in the middle of the summer.  Then there are the reasons that are actually logical, like my jacket is somewhat a safety object and i am more comfortable around people when I am wearing it.  My jacket has all my stuff in the pockets, my keys, my iPod, my phone, and an assortment of other things for the day.  My jacket is what prepares me to go do what I need to later, and I don't take it off just because I am going to sit down for a few minutes.

 

A Shield of Faith.  You must have Faith in order to be equipped with your best defense, your Shield.  This Faith is required because when you put your Shield up you cannot see your enemy.  You cover your head and most of your upper body to block the opponents sword, but also block him from your eyes.

Much like when Luke Skywalker puts the BlastSHIELD down and cannot see the remote, but must follow the promptings within, or his instinct, to know what to do.

 

The Helmet of Salvation.  The Helmet protects YOUR BRAIN.  There are a few things we need to know in order to return and live with our Heavenly Father.  First is that Jesus Christ is His only Begotten Son in the Flesh.  Second is the Plan of Salvation.  Once you have a Knowledge you must protect it and continue learning.

The Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  The only offensive weapon you have in the Armor of God is the Sword of the Spirit.  In combat your sword is your life, you need it in hand if you are to fight the foe. 

If you do not have your sword and you go up to battle anyway, your only option is to try and block the blows of your enemy.  Sure you have your other Armor, but how long can your Shield last when it is being beat upon repeatedly.  How long do you think it would be before your breastplate either came loose, or perhaps had a small gap between the plates where the enemy's sword found a way through.  How long before your legs grew tired and you trip over your own feet.

The answer, not very long at all.

Without the Spirit you begin to lose faith (Shield), it is harder to keep the commandments (Breastplate), and you become less prepared for the fight (Feet Shod).  Once you lose these other pieces of Armor you are an easy target and then POOF, you die.  When it comes to the Armor of God you die Spiritually, and Christ is the Light and Life of the world, therefore the only way back is through His Atonement.

So remember to always have your Armor, and be on Guard.

God will protect you, IF you are doing what is Right.
 

"And it came to pass that I said unto them 

that I knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, 

according to the truth; 

and the righteous have I justified, 

and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; 

wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, 

for it cutteth them to the very center."

-- 1 Nephi 16:2 (emphasis added)

The Scriptures are the Word of God.  Both the Bible and the Book of Mormon.  God teaches only Truth, and therefore the Wicked take the Scriptures to be Hard.

Keep the Commandments, Read the Scriptures, and do whatever it takes to truly have the Spirit with you at all times, in all things, and in all places.

The Sword of the Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.
Truth will fight your battles for you, as long as you keep it close by, and in your Heart.

Why Does it Feel so GOOD to be Baptized??

So this post comes from abyss of my minds' twisting nether.  Mostly I have a mental 'filing cabinet' where everything to do with gaming or movies and TV shows gets dumped.  It's probably the biggest filing cabinet in my brain.  But, once upon a time I was watching a movie called "Stargate", where a group of US Air Force guys use an alien device which creates a stable wormhole to another location, usually a planet, and when you pass through the event horizon, (point at which the wormhole is located), it transports you almost instantly, (about .2 seconds or something), to the other side.  No one had ever recorded being able to turn it on before.  So when they go through the first time it has a cool Computer Generated visual sequence with some intense sound effects.  You then see one of the characters standing on the other side and he says, "What a rush."  After a few minutes go by everyone calms down and they go about securing the area and doing their military thing.

Well, I'm not military, but that is kinda the best way to describe how I feel when someone follows Christ into the waters of Baptism.  I feel this RUSH every time someone comes to the waters of baptism.  However just like in the movie, a few minutes go by, or for me it is a few days, and then everything is normal again.  Nice and pleasant where I know what I need to be doing and can do so with confidence.  This is one way that the Lord prepares us for future trials in life.  He gives us a taste and when we handle it well, we prove that He can trust us.  He then trusts us with a little more the next time.

 "For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept;
line upon line, line upon line;
here a little, and there a little"
-- Isaiah 28:10

"For behold, thus saith the Lord God:
I will give unto the children of men line upon line,
precept upon precept,
here a little and there a little;
and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts,
and lend an ear unto my counsel,
for they shall learn wisdom;
for unto him that receiveth
I will give more"
-- 2 Nephi 28:30

I know that as we follow the lord, we will be able to have that RUSH of Happiness, that EXCITEMENT within our soul, so that we will be sustained in our trials and carried through all our afflictions.

Military = The Gospel

All branches of the military have some differences in rank but the purpose is still the same. The General gives his commands and it goes through the ranks ensuring the message is sent. The organization still needs to be there to ensure that every soldier can return home safe and to have accomplished their objective. When at war, the soldiers need to work together as a unit to accomplish the goal. The information comes through the chain of command. Without that organization, the army would fail and wouldn't win.

Physical weapons are used to destroy the enemy of the people. 

Spiritual weapons are used to destroy the enemy of our soul.





Air Force Ranks



Everyone has their own rank and their own duties, but without each one of them the army would fall.

The Lord has always called those to stand as officers.(2 Chronicles 23:18)  In the church, there is the Prophet, who acts as the leading General under the direction of Jesus Christ.  The Prophet has two counselors (Exodus 17:12) who would stand as Lieutenant Generals.  The the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles would be Major Generals.  Those who hold the office of Seventy (Luke 10:1) would be Brigadier Generals.  Stake Presidents are like Colonels, with their counselors being Lieutenant Colonels.  Bishops would stand as Majors, with their counselors being Captains.  An Elders Quorum President would be a 1st Lieutenant, and his counselors standing as 2nd Lieutenants. (Matthew 21:23) This is the design that has been established by God to govern the affairs of His church, and just as in a worldly army it all starts at the top and then filters down.



U.S. Military Seals

Each branch of the military specializes in its own field of combat.  You don't usually see an Air Force pilot as a crewman on a Submarine.

Christ has set up His church the same way, there are several organizations designed to best help the people in that area.  They include the Elders Quorum for men over 18, Relief Society for women over 18, Young Mens and Young Womens for ages 12 to 18, Primary for the kids 2 to 12, and a Nursery.

"The Lord's house, is a house of order."

(John 2:13-16 and Doctrine and Covenants 109:8)

The Book of Mormon and the Bible each teach and testify of Christ.  It is by reading these books of scripture which were written by Prophets, or Spiritual Generals, that we learn the battle plans and how to follow our Savior.