A Wicked Man, Alma 46:10 by Ann Y.

"Yea, we see that Amalickiah, because he was a man of cunning device and a man of many flattering words, that he led away the hearts of many people to do wickedly; yea, and to seek to destroy the church of God, and to destroy the foundation of liberty whick God had granted unto them, or which blessing God had sent upon the face of the land for the righteous' sake."

A Wicked Man

One lone and very wicked man,

Who swept his eye across the land;

He dreamt of power, pursued command,

And held the sheep within his hand.

His words were cunning, full of praise;

Hopes of masses, he did raise.

He played upon their fears and rage,

And led them meek across the stage.

 Doubts, he very swiftly quelled,

With lies and rumors, he could tell.

With wisdom of the people felled,

Support for evil spread and swelled.

A few dissenters in their midst,

Were crushed beneath his iron fist.

"They have no right to mar our bliss;

Their naysaying we shall resist!"

"A new world order's what we'll make,

And God's commandments, we'll forsake,

We'll cause the very Earth to shake!

As ownership of all, we'll take!"

"The slothful will be uppercrust;

The rich we'll trample into dust!

Old institutions we will bust!

Vote for me; give me your trust!"

"Liberty is old--passe;

You'll have a king who'll keep you safe.

We'll rid ourselves of tired ways.

I promise you, new hope and change!"

Mostly that's true; the changes came,

And very little stayed the same.

Eden reached, but caused dismay;

The garden was in disarray.

And happiness soon ebbed away,

As no one could be found to pay,

For all the fun, and romp, and play,

That for a time, had ruled the day.

Scary when the people found,

This chaos not a cheerful sound.

And when the people looked around,

That rascal had them tied and bound.

The lesson here is watch and pray,

Lest ye be found to rue the day,

When thoughts to remake all old ways,

Will first be offered you as "change."

It's easy to be fooled by cunning men with flattering words. Remember, men of God do not always speak flattering words; they speak the truth. And men who seek to rule you do not have your best interests at heart.

Liberty is of God, monarchy is of man.

The Softened Heart; Alma 62:41, by Ann Y.

"But behold, because of the exceedingly great length of the war between the Nephites and the Lamanites many had become hardened, because of the exceedingly great length of the war; and many were softened because of their afflictions, insomuch that they did humble themselves before God, even in the depth of humility."

The Softened Heart Soliloquy

by: Ann Y.

This Softened Heart Soliloquy,

That's written and prepared by me;

I hope that you will test and see,

Tis everything you hoped it'd be.

Through Father's grace he doth provide,

The challenges that feign deride,

He uses to chastise and chide,

To humble me, remove my pride.

At temporal trials I balked and strained,

At blemishes that caused me shame,

I shook my fist and scattered blame;

In ignorance I did remain.

My hardened heart could not be bent;

I would not of my sins repent.

I'd suffer to my pride, no dent.

And thus in sadness, life was spent.

Until that moment, happily,

When all of my life's misery,

First wrought in me humility,

And forced me sobbing to my knees.

I pled forgiveness of my Lord,

With soul and heart in one accord.

In gratitude for faith's reward,

I promised to lay down my sword.

My heart was tenderized that day;

My foolish pride was stripped away,

And Satan's minions kept at bay,

The moment I began to pray.

Although the lesson here is free,

I must confess, twas hard for me.

Take nigh to heart my fervent plea,

This Softened Heart Soliloquy.

I think it is very interesting to note how the same experience can touch two people in very different ways. One person will insist on holding on to his pride no matter what the cost may be, and the more the Lord chastises him, the more angry he gets. Why? Because pride and anger go hand and hand, much as humility and charity go hand in hand. And then, another person, under the same difficult circumstances, will see the error of his ways and be brought to humble himself before the Lord. I hope that I will always remember that "pride goeth before the fall," and that no heart in anger is an acceptable offering before the Lord.

That being said, anger and pride are both things that I struggle with. I will have to work harder.

The Generations of Adam Genesis 5

I want to say that before I studied this chapter, I almost passed over it. I thought it's just numbers, years, a genealogy. Surely there can be nothing new to learn from this. And then I turned the pages in prayer. 

I am always amazed at how patiently truth waits.... for the searching souls. 

The Generations of Adam

Adam, in Hebrew, is a common noun. It means man or mankind.

In Genesis 5 we are given the "generations of Adam" or the Generations of mankind. Why?

Why is it important to remember these men's lives? The years they lived? The faith they passed on?

Think for a moment if this information had been lost? What if there was no connection back to Adam? Would we be less likely to believe his testimony? How is faith nurtured? Who do we depend on to nurture our faith? 

The Priesthood

The men in my family have the Priesthood of God. (My brothers, my son, my father and my husband, my son-in-laws)The Priesthood is the Power of God on earth. It gives men the power to Act for God as they serve, heal, and organize God's Kingdom. The Priesthood was given to Adam after he was cast from the Garden. Adam remembered the Garden, walking with God, having all of his needs met, etc. But would Adam's children remember God? Thus began the journey of faith for the generations of man. 

It is within the generations of Adam that we see the Power of the Priesthood transferred from one righteous priesthood holder to another.

45  God called upon Cainan in the wilderness in the fortieth year of his age; and he met Adam in journeying to the place Shedolamak. He was eighty-seven years old when he received his ordination.
D&C 107:44-45

This book is meant to not only give us a timeline of the days of earth, (Adam's birth represented the first day of man's life on earth and his death marked the 930th year of the world) but to also give us a lineage (history) of the priesthood. 

I found this quote from "Lectures on Faith. 

 "Lectures On Faith".

 36. For instance, Abel, before he received the assurance from heaven that his offerings were acceptable unto God, had received the important information of his father that such a Being did exist, who had created and who did uphold all things. Neither can there be a doubt existing on the mind of any person, that Adam was the first who did communicate the knowledge of the existence of a God to his posterity; and that the whole faith of the world, form that time down to the present, is in a certain degree dependent on the knowledge first communicated to them by their common progenitor; and it has been handed down to the day and generation in which we live, as we shall show from the face of the sacred records.
Lectures on Faith, Lecture Second

You can play with the numbers and figure out fun things like Noah's father, Lamech was 56 when Adam died. And you might realize that when Adam's testimony was not alone:  Adam, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Methuselah, Lamech and Noah all lived on the earth at the same time. Also it can be pointed out that Enos, Cainan, Mahaleleel, Jared, Methuselah and Lamech all knew Adam and Noah.

The 5th book of Genesis then shows us not only that the knowledge and faith of God came into the world through the Lord's Holy Priesthood first given to Adam, but that it was preserved, "it was retained in the minds of righteous men,"(Lectures) and it was communicated in righteousness down through "the generations of man." From the time of Adam's creation the truth of man's creation and the existence of God, a true and living God,  has been taught by and through the power of God's Priesthood first given to Adam.

23  And they were preachers of righteousness, and spake and prophesied, and called upon all men, everywhere, to repent; and faith was taught unto the children of men.
Moses 6:23
Adam.



The Voice of thy brother's blood ..The Voice of the Earth Genesis 4: 8-16 Moses 5:22-31

I'm sitting in the yard.. When... a beautiful slate gray bird hops upon the back of a chair at the end of my porch. He loudly sings. "Peter Peter" "Peter Peter"

He perches there for several measured notes, undaunted by my or my dogs presence. Soon this beautiful Tufted Titmouse flies off to another branch to continue his proclamation of joy.

I am reminded of once when a mother bird (don't remember the species) made a nest on backside of our basketball goal. We went to lower the goal and unknowingly caused the nest to loose a few of its baby birds. Wanting to correct my mistake I got a ladder and tried to put the babies back, (I was careful not to touch them.)

I could not believe my ears nor my eyes. I think every bird in my yard put out the word and before I could climb the ladder I was being attacked. Not just by the mother bird but from several other species of birds that lived in my yard. The sounds of warning were clear so I let them settle down and was later successful in getting the babies back to their mother, but not before I learned that the birds had a clear system of warning and communication that they used to help one another. When it comes to life, nature has a voice. Nature is God's creation. Nature is truth. God listens to the witness that nature brings.

The earth is alive with the Spirit of God. It is why when after a dark dreary winter, I am rejuvenated by the song of a bird or the bloom of a flower. It is why I can walk upon the shore of the beach and feel God's love reaching across the sands of time to envelope me and give me understanding. It is why the mere color of green brings me great delight and cheers my soul. It is why my Titmouse reminded me to respect God's love and that the Earth does have a voice.

Here is a video link that speaks to how mother earth has taught each of its creations to respect life. It shows that when it comes to mothering, species will respect life above differences. I have often been told that God is no respecter of persons. Here we see that God's Nature is not a respecter of different species.

Check out this video of how animal mother's respect life.  A Leopard and a monkey

Cain did not respect life. Cain did not respect the creator of life, our Heavenly Father. He chose in stead to serve Satan and to live his life in the land of Nod away from the presence of God, as a vagabond, desolate and misunderstood. When he chose to allow anger and pride rule his life, he chose to leave God's presence and travel alone. He won his brother's possessions but lost his feel for life. 

Cain lost the ability to feel the Holy Ghost when he denied his responsibility in Abels death and rejected the Lord's "greater counsel" (Moses 5:25). The only way to keep Satan from "having" us is to keep God's commandments and to choose the life that Mother Earth and our Father in Heaven have given us.

When do I feel the most alive? When I am near God's earthly creations, or when I am in the service of God. When I am learning about God, visiting with those who love God,  or teaching others.  Either of these translate to being able to feel the presence of God's Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost. I feel most alive when I am doing the errand of angels, and following the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

What drew me to this understanding? In reading about how the Lord cursed Cain, I was struck by the fact that the earth was so involved. The Earth is God's creation. We are God's creation. And when Cain chose to love Satan more than God, he basically chose to deny his sins and reject the Holy Ghost.  It became about selfish desire. His life aim became focused on selfish pleasure. And then he killed his brother.

Where did God hear about Abel's death? From the "voice of his blood which cried out from the ground." As I listened to my Titmouse proclaim his news this morning, I am convinced that the voice of the earth comes in the form of birds, animals, fauna who all inherently know truth.

 Note that in verse 36 the Lord tells Cain that he shall be "cursed from the earth" and that the "Earth opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood." And the cursing was that Cain would no longer be abel to have the "strength of the Earth" when he tilled the ground? Why? Because Cain showed blatant disrespect for life, life that Mother Earth has given us to esteem, to protect and to use for our eternal growth not for selfish secret combinations that bring Mahan and dearth.

So As I listened to my Titmouse proclaim her joy, I was glad that she felt Joy this day. Joy for life. Joy for her family. Joy for the other creatures that she shares the forest and the bird feeder with. I was glad to hear the Voice of the Earth and I was reminded how God's Earth will stand as a witness for  all that choose to serve him. My only wish is that I can sing my song as beautifully as the Titmouse. That I can learn to proclaim truth in such as way that it too will bring joy to all the earth.

Verses of Note 
9. "Am I my brother's keeper"  When we serve God, we learn that the strength of God is found in the strength of friendships, in serving, in loving. in listening.
10 - the voice of thy brother's blood - Is this possible. Yes. Why because we are all connected to the earth. We are of the dust of the earth. The earth was created and is monitored by God's love and laws.
11 - cursed from the earth - there are many ways the earth will curse those who choose not to respect life.
11- opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood - I am intrigued by this. I love how the Lord helps us realize that the Earth is a living breathing creation able to "open her mouth".
12- not yield unto thee her strength -  Respect begets respect.
14- from thy face I shall be hid - Cain had only to acknowledge his part in his brother's death. He refused. He chose instead to be cast from the presence of God. He lost all hope because he chose to love Satan more. There is always hope when we choose to love God and stay in his presence.
15- The Lord set a mark upon Cain - Why? He basically promised Cain that he wouldn't die and that living with the mark would prove to be a greater punishment than being killed by others for his part in the death of Abel. Cain is responsible not for the first death, but for the first premeditated murder to get gain. His mere presence would remind others of his purpose and insight in them the desire to kill him. But in doing so they would then be caught in the same trap that Cain had been trapped in. By placing a mark upon him, others are not only reminded of Cain's purpose and mistake, but of God's vengeance. Of the darkness that he brought upon himself when in choosing gain over God his actions keep him from the presence of God's love. 
I've wondered why God wouldn't just allow Cain to die. God has to follow the laws of the universe just as we do. If he had allowed Cain to perish then how would he have been showing mercy. God does show mercy when he choose to give him a mark that will set him apart and remind others and Cain of his mistakes.

Mercy Overpowereth Justice, Alma 34:15-16 by Ann Yoxtheimer

Very often, when I want to write about something, I find that what I want to write about is the subject of repentance. I'm fairy obsessed by it. The idea that we can be forgiven, and washed clean, by the sacrifice of a loving savior, and the mercy of a loving Father, humbles me to the bone.

I think a lot about mercy. When I see my little boy struggling to control himself, I think about mercy. When he lashes out at me in frustration, or boredom even, I think about mercy. I know that no matter what my children do, no matter how angry I am, I will forgive them if they're sorry (and sometimes if they're not!) Why? Because I love them. I love them so much, that I will never give up on them, even if they deserve it. And I am mortal. I am frail. I am subject to petty emotions, and mortal lack of understanding. I am not perfect, and yet I can love my children enough to forgive them anything.

One night, a few days ago, I sat in my bed to read before sleep. Most of the time, I don't pray before I read my scriptures. I know I should; I would get more out of it if I did. This night, however, I was seeking some sort of connection to my Father in Heaven. I do that sometimes. Sometimes I just pray to receive the knowledge that He is still there; He is listening, and He loves me. Like a little child asking, "Daddy, do you love me?" when she knows already what the answer is. She just wants to hear it. I do that. I want my Father to tell me that He loves me, because I am His little girl.

So I did just that. I prayed to feel His love, and I prayed to receive any inspiration that He felt like sending me that night. Then I opened up my scriptures, and I read.

I was reading chapter 34 in Alma, where he teaches the poor Zoramites the role of our Savior. He mentions the great sacrifice that our Lord will make for us, and then it says in verses 15-16:

"And thus he shall bring salvation to all those who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this las sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice, and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance.

And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercies no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption."

The words jumped off the page at me, and I started to cry. I felt that burning in my bosom, and I knew my Father in Heaven knew me, and that he did indeed love me. But I knew more than that. I received a personal revelation that almost knocked me over.

Let me preface this next part by saying that I spent a lot of time reading the Bible dictionary last year. I read it from Aaron all the way to Zipporah. Some where in the middle of this alphabet, is the word "miracles." I love the way the author describes miracles. I'm going to paraphrase here, but he says that miracles are not deviations of natural law. They are divine manifestations of a lower law being superceded by a higher law. That struck me then, as the verses in Alma strike me now, and I will never forget either. Why? Because I realized that evening, while reading, that our Father's mercy to us is the same thing as the definition of a miracle. It is the act of a lower law being superceded by a higher law.

I have often been told in church that there are higher laws and lower laws. In this life, we are given the opportunity to prove which law we will live. Those who will not be subject to--or live--the higher law in this life, will be subject to the lower law in the next. Suddenly, that all made sense. Those who will not have faith unto repentance--and thus receive mercy--in this life, will be subject to the whole law of justice in the next life.

If we connect the dots, we come to the inevitable conclusion that mercy is a higher law than justice! That makes goose bumps stand out on my arms. I have never heard such a thing before, but it really is right there in the scriptures, therefore it must be true.

Now, I do say all of this with care. I understand that it sounds controversial at first, because we have heard that God is a God of Justice. And that is absolutely, one hundred percent true. But God is also a God of mercy, and that is also indisputable.

Christ created this world, and he created the laws that govern it. One of these laws is the law of gravity. This is not an unimportant law. This law governs most of the cause and effect relationships between objects, so of course this law is important, to us and to the Savior. So when Christ walked on water, did he break his own law? No, the lower law of gravity was superceded by the higher law of the priesthood. So it is with justice and mercy. Justice is as important a law as gravity. It defines our very concept of right and wrong, of Heaven and Hell. But because of the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the law of justice can now be superceded by the law of mercy unto forgiveness.

The Celestial Kingdom is a kingdom of perfect righteousness. One cannot be spotted and enter in. But everyone is spotted with sin to some degree. How then can there be residents in the Celestial Kingdom? These people are people that have exercised faith unto repentance. These are people who are allowed to enter in because they have lived the higher law. They have been forgiven. They have been granted mercy unto forgiveness. Therefore, mercy MUST be a higher law than justice, because only by receiving mercy, can you enter into the Celestial Kingdom. Everyone else receives justice, to some degree.

I am so grateful for the law of mercy, that makes it possible for us to be forgiven of all of our sins, however grievous, if we truly exercise faith unto repentance.

Genesis 4: 8-27 Cain & Abel

Two Sons

One will credit the Lord

The other will spin fable.   

One will praise God

The other will honor Babel.

One will live by faith 

The other will kill to reign.

One will offer righteous sacrifice

The other will demand selfish gain.

One will teach God’s Holy way

The other will learn anger’s wrath.

One will follow his Father’s plan

The other will walk a worn path.

One will find peace from mother earth

The other will war in spiritual dearth.

One will reap God's blessings of love

We will call him  ….. Abel.

One will plot Mahan's curse of Cain. 

We will call him ....marked by his own label.   

                         Linda Conkey Shaw & Mark E. Shaw

Copyright May 5, 2011

Mark and I had a fun time writing this poem together. It is a deeper poem about the sons of Adam, Cain and Abel and it is about each of us. 

Abel was:  obedient, observant, respectful, favored, a sheepherder, a respecter of the earth, younger than Cain, close to his parents, 

Cain was: the older of the two. There really is no conclusive evidence to suggest that he was Eve's first born. In Moses we are told that Adam and Eve had both sons and daughters so that there was most likely a family. 

As I read through this several times, I was struck with how the story is really about the family of man. This story in many respects represents the first family feud, the first trial of anger, the first jealousy, the first temptation by Satan (outside of the GArden), so the first real trial of choice with a real understanding of all that was taught and without the constant companionship of the Father and his son, Jesus Christ. It was a trial of the Holy Ghost. 

We know from the book of Moses that Adam was taught how to find direction from God while outside of the Garden. He was instructed how to offer sacrifice and how to live by faith. He was to teach his children these things. The children were to learn from their parents. 

The first generation:  Here's the catch. Cain and Abel were never in the garden. They could only listen to stories their parents told. They had not experienced the joy, the peace and the desire to return to Father's presence would not have been as profound as it was in Adam's or Eve's life. What I am suggesting is that temptation came easier to those who did not have the experience to remember. And that is where the faith came into play. 

The first faith: Each of us must be born of parents who have lived lives of experience. We can choose to accept their advice or reject it. If we reject it then we must take responsibility for our own choice and the paths we trod. Each of us when we leave our homes are like Adam and Eve, we are cast from a garden where all of our needs have been met: food, clothing, shelter, love. We must learn to not only fend for ourselves with regards to food, shelter and clothing, job, etc, (the physical needs) we must also learn to love one another. 

Cain would have been the oldest. He would have experienced more of Adam and Eve's mistakes as they first left the garden. He would have seen and felt more of his parent's frustrations. His parents needed to make sure they countered these experiences with lessons of love and acceptance. I'm not blaming Adam or Eve.. I'm not blaming anyone. Life is meant to have experience. WE all must have it the experiences we need to grow. Each of our lives are custom created by a loving God to help us grow the most. 

This story of Cain choosing to walk away from all of the love of his mother is one to help us learn about not anger and murder, but rather the reasons anger comes. 

Why does anger come to you? Are you content? Are you frustrated by life's demands? Are you living in fear of not getting all you want or are you putting your faith in God to give you all you need?  

Anger comes to us all. It is part of being human, but anger only becomes a liability, a disability, a curse of mahan, when we allow is to rule our lives. Anger put to good use can be a good catalyst for change... or it can destroy ... relationships (families) , lives(Abel) , livelihoods (Cain lost his sacred trust with the earth and was called to be a vagabond) . It can become our label. or we can choose God and become able. 

First Blackberrys and the First Family. Genesis 4:1-7

     The three girls bounded across my lawn toward me. As I sat on my porch watching them I couldn't help but to marvel at their joy. Their mother held the youngest on her hip while the older two wrapped their long arms around two large round containers that brimmed with blackberries.  

    My neighbor had walked over with her girls to share her family’s harvest with us. I felt is was a gracious and generous gesture and one that God used to teach me a valuable lesson.

“This represents the first of our blackberry harvest." She said.  "We wanted to thank you for not cutting down the blackberry bushes last fall.”

 Her youngest momentarily overcame her shyness and peeked her head out from behind her mother’s legs.  As she did our eyes met and I found myself smiling with her.

   “ Is this true?” I asked the youngest. “Are these the veeeeeery first blackberries?”

Her young eyes widened and as she looked at her mother, she nodded yes.

   "Well then, I will have to make a blackberry cobbler. Or could I eat them with milk and sugar?” As I spoke I searched the girls for a response. They in turn were searching me for my response. As I thanked them I gave them the biggest smile I could and told them to check out my strawberry patch before they left. 

     I tried to explain to their mother that it wasn’t necessary for them to give us the first of their harvest.  But she was adamant. They were very grateful to my husband and son for not mowing down the blackberry bushes. It was about gratitude. 

     Last fall, my son, new and overzealous in his lawn mowing job, had decided that he would also mow the front portion of the vacant lot next to us.  He did not realize the strip was filled with succulent blackberry vines. Our neighbors had asked him to not mow the area where the blackberries flourished. He gladly complied. 

    I didn't think much about their gift until I was contemplating why the Lord became upset with Cain. And what happened that caused Cain's countenance to fall?  Why had our neighbor been so adamant that her girls bring us the first and best of their harvest?  It wouldn't have mattered to me, but it seemed to matter greatly to their mother. Why? 

    I think it has something to do with respect and wanting to be accepted. Cain was a tiller of the ground. His brother Able was a herder of sheep. Although the Lord had given Adam and Eve explicit instructions on how to show their respect to Him and how to offer sacrifices, I don't believe it mattered what you offered as much as how you offered it. God was not going to condemn Cain for his choice of profession, but he did question Cain on the lack of faith he showed when making his offering. 

    When my sweet neighbor girls came to me and offered the first of their blackberries, they searched my face for acceptance. They wanted me to acknowledge not so much the blackberries ( I will greatly enjoy them) but mostly the fact that they offered me a gift that was meant to show respect. We had respected their wishes to not cut the path of land where the berries grew and they expressed their gratitude for the respect we gave them in doing so. 

    Cain didn't do this. How do we know? Because God did not have respect for Cain's offering.(vs5) God loves all his children and is not a respecter of persons but if the offering that Cain offered showed disrespect, then the Lord God would need to correct the standard. 

    My three little friends offered their gift on faith. Faith helped them pick with the belief that I would be pleased with their gift. Faith helped them bound across my lawn in joy. Faith helped them receive the simple reward of neighborly friendship and a jaunt in my strawberry patch. 

    So what was so different about Cain's offering? I believe he offered not the first of his crop and possibly not the best. He did not make his offering in faith.  If you offer a sacrifice in faith you give the first and the best of your efforts. If you yield to Satan's temptations you are not seeking for the Lord's approval but rather for a "Zero Sum Mentality."...I.E. A zero sum mentality says that  if I give to you, the you have to give back full fold to me. If I do all that you ask, I get to choose all that I want. I am in charge. I get what I want and what I want is to have you respect me by giving me what I want not what you choose. 

   ' Zero Sum Mentality' represents selfish desires that put your wants above all else. It does not require faith in a loving greater being, but rather relys on the rules of fairness. Cain not only didn't offer his sacrifice in faith in the Lord but he chose to obey Satan above God. Zero Sum Mentality makes it really hard to find acceptance because the only person that you are really interested in is yourself. When we have faith in others and in God, however we are able to find acceptance in all that God has given us, in the love of community, and above all else in the Lord's commandments. God's love is our reward. 

   The fact that Cain was wroth with the Lord's response surprised the Lord. He had been given a commandment to offer a sacrifice in faith. Cain had offered it out of obligation and out of obedience to Satan's plan of selfishness. He had chosen what he had wanted to give and not given of the first of his fruits nor of the best. 

   I am grateful to the Lord for the many gifts I have. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve others and to live in such a way that I might offer my sacrifices to my Lord. I am aware that there are times when my own countenance falls, when the Lord reprimands me and says, "If thou doest well, thou shalt be accepted." It is in these times that I go to the Lord in prayer and seek forgiveness for my wanting fairness more than his love. 

Verses. 

1.  The First Family -  Adam knew Eve. The first pregnancy. The first son. Cain. The first gratitude... 

I have gotten a son from the Lord. 

2. The first professions. Able is younger than Cain. The First Family has difficulties in teaching two different spirits. And in Moses we are taught that they also had daughters, so we have the first community springing up. 

4. And he Lord had respect unto Able and to his offering. 

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. (Hebrews 11:4) 

 5But unto ^aCain and to his ^boffering he had not ^crespect.  - 

Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.( Jude 1:11)

5. The first anger. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

Anger actually has a cycle. 

1. Fear 2. Pain 3. Anger 4. Grief 5. Hatred 6. Revenge 7. Atrocity

Cain's anger begain with his fear of losing his crop. He loved his crop more than the Lord. 

6.  Why is thy countenance fallen? When you see someone who is angry, their soul is dark. They hold their head and shoulders low. They walk with a drag to their step. Anger is a heavy load to carry. 

 7If thou doest well, shalt thou not be ^aaccepted? and if thou^bdoest not well, ^csin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be ^dhis^edesire, and thou shalt rule over him. What does God mean to doest well? I think he is trying to teach us to live by faith. To Let Go and Let God! To love man more than increase. To practice the discipline of contentment. 

If thou doest well, thou shalt be accepted. And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door, and Satan desireth to have thee; and except thou shalt hearken unto my commandments, I will deliver thee up, and it shall be unto thee according to his desire. And thou shalt rule over him; Moses 5:33 

I will ever hold dear to my heart the precious memory of my young neighbors bringing the joy of their gift to me. A gift that was given in faith and in joy.