I Leaf This With You

When MJ and J came home from seminary this morning they came running in the house beaconing me outside to see their new friend.  This little guy hitched a ride all the way home.  He started loosing his grip about half way home so they drove really slow to make sure he stayed on the car so they could show me.  

That really has nothing to do with what I'm about to say, but....oh well...who says this has to make sense? :0)  I think I have some "final thoughts" on anger, love and the refiners fire......I do reserve the right to change my mind later though :0)

I just love when I get to witness things come together.  It makes the gospel exciting and joyful.  It reassures me that I'm not crazy or way off base.  It gives me hope and conviction.  It deepens my knowledge and ultimately my conversion.  

I have been studying faithfully every morning the scriptures since MJ started seminary 2 years ago.  Does this mean that I don't miss some days or that during the summer was much more challenging, no.  I had some great bouts with diligence in reading before, but nothing long lasting.  I did well when I had to study to give a lesson or made a new resolution, but it would always ebb and flow in its regularity.  

I decided to take on the OT and would read 2 chapters from it along with 2 chapters from the BOM every morning.  It would always be so cool when I would read something in the OT and then read in the BOM again about that very principle and they would testify of each other.  The BOM is much smaller in comparison to the OT and NT.  This means that I can read through the BOM a couple of times while studying the bible. 

This morning I had one of those mornings where everything lined up in a perfect line.  I was reading in Matthew 5,6,7 and Luke 6 for my study of the NT.  

Here's the perfect line.  I have been thinking a lot about anger and love and justice and mercy and here it all is laid out.  The entire chapters are excellent and need to be read in context.  To save from pasting the entire chapters here I will post this portion of Matthew 5

44 But I say unto you, ^aLove your ^benemies, ^cbless them that^dcurse you, do ^egood to them that ^fhate you, and ^gpray for them which despitefully use you, and ^hpersecute you;

 45 That ye ^amay be the ^bchildren of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth ^crain on the just and on the unjust.

 46 For if ye ^alove them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

 47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

 48 ^aBe ye therefore ^bperfect, even as your ^cFather which is in heaven is ^dperfect.

What gets even more awesome is that when I went to read in my BOM I was in 3 Nephi 12 and 13  What are those chapters about?  Matthew 5 and 6

How did I land so perfectly in my personal study of the BOM with the NT?  What are the odds of that?  What make the odds even more astounding is that when I was in Ether 9....which is just about the end of the BOM... I decided to start all over again with my yw to do a 90 day summer challenge with them (that didn't go so well since school started and I'm only in 3rd Nephi).  It about killed me to stop there and start over because I hate not finishing something, but I did.  If I hadn't I wouldn't have been there in 3 Nephi 12 and 13 this morning.  

We are studying in Sunday School this year the Doctrine and Covenants which is where this journey of love and hate began.  Going over again the trials of Joseph Smith being imprisoned and the persecution of him and the saints, the mormon battalion etc.  The one thing I keep thinking about the most is one of the times Joseph was being taken to the courthouse to be tried and the mob was there and as he walked up the steps he turned, tipped his hat at the mob members and said something about it being a lovely day.  

That's what I'm striving to do.  In the face of hatred and anger to be able to have the attitude of The Savior while hanging on the cross

34 ¶Then ^asaid Jesus, Father, ^bforgive them; for they know not what ^cthey do. And they parted his ^draiment, and cast lots. Luke 23:34

To be able to stand as a witness at all time and all things is to not turn from God's ways in order to do that.   You have to be reading and studying His word to know what those ways are.  You have to be praying and fasting, attending the temple and doing the work for your dead.  You have to be about his business.  Going where he wants you to go, doing what he wants you to do and then will he make all things known unto you.

One last cool thing in this converging of events was that yesterday in an online magazine that I get there was an article entitled "Are you valiant or merely honorable."  Good stuff!