Gratitude 1 Thessalonians 5:18

I love sunsets.Do you know what makes a beautiful sunset? Clouds. The darkest clouds bring the most vibrant of color. I like to think that sunsets are how God takes the conflicts and the darkest moments of our day and frames them with his divine light. We first think that the day is ending but in reality if we follow the color,, the color that is created by the reflection of the sun's rays, His sun, it will lead us into another glorious day of brightness and hope. I like to think that a beautiful sunset, bathed in deep reds and oranges, framed by majestic hues of purple is not and ending, but God's way of reflecting his love across the horizon of all of our tomorrows. 

A well of water - the Lord's living water Gen 21:19, 25

But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.John 4:14

In a recent trip to New Orleans  my husband and I took a ghost tour that guided us through much of the French Quarter. The tour guide shared animated stories of death and destruction, the necessary prerequisites for ghosts.  It turns out that one of our ghosts was the cause of the 1788 fire that destroyed nearly 80% of the city.

The story of  the New Orleans fire gave me reason for pause, for within this story comes the reason for the cities “well(s) of water.” But as it turns out New Orleans wells did not provide the promise of life or  protection from death that Spanish rule hoped they would. They in fact proved quite the opposite. 

As a prominent government leader and resident of the French Quarter Army Treasurer Don Vincente Jose Nunez had on a religious alter within a second story bedroom of his home, a large number of lit candles, and was prayerfully observing Good Friday when his servant called him to lunch. While downstairs the wind blew the curtains into the room full of candles causing fire to rapidly spread throughout the room.  Aware of the fire he ran 3 doors down to the church to sound the town fire bells. Within minutes the Cedar framed house hewn from the nearby swamps and used to construct almost all of New Orleans exploded. The resin that served to make cedar impervious to water also made it highly flammable.  The tragedy of the story is that the fire bells used to warn the town of just such a danger had been wrapped in silence in observation of Good Friday. With no warning and the match-light qualities of the homes, the fire consumed, within five hours, 856 of the 1100 structures.

To prevent such a catastrophic event from ever happening again, Spain decreed that all new structures must be built of brick, have iron railed balconies and courtyards that contained an inner well of water. So it is that every home within the reconstructed New Orleans had a well whereby water could be drawn for the use of cooking, drinking, bathing and most importantly putting out fire. 

The full tragedy of the fire comes not from the destruction of the town but in its rebirth. The twenty-eight years between 1789 and 1817 represented years of reconstruction. No one could have conceived that the wells of water that were placed to prevent death and destruction would prove to be the cause of the cities massive deaths. As stagnant bodies of water they  became the breeding grounds for mosquitoes, the transporter of Yellow Fever.  No records exist that allow the cataloging of death before 1817 but between the years of 1817-1905 more than "41,000 people died from the scourge of yellow fever in New Orleans." 

Not all wells of water bring life. Not all wells bring truth. As an Egyptian raised on the mighty Nile, Hagar knew the important relationship between water and life. Having been cast into the wilderness of the desert, Hagar believes what her life has taught her that without water she and her son will perish. 

Hagar stood but a short distance from a well of water that promised to save her and Ishmael and could not see it. What was Hagar's well of life? The water? Or was it her ability to hear and obey the voice of the Lord? What is it that helps us to see "the well of life" that God has provided for us? What is that we must do to help us open our eyes and find the truth that will not only fill our physical needs but also lead us into eternal life? 
  
The Lord had made a promise to her that her son would become "a nation." (21:18) Within the Lord's promise came the well of living water. Indeed the well of living water for Hagar was the covenant and promises that she and Ishmael had made with Lord when they partook of the Abrahamic covenant. Hagar's life was not spared by the existence of a well of water but by her faith in the Lord who directed her to "open her eyes" and see the well of water. 

Alone and forsaken Hagar could not see the promise of the Lord. Why? Why do most of us not see what God has promised us? In her most dire state Hagar was like most of us when life turns against us. She was angry and: 

         1. Separated (14) from all the family she had ever known.
         2. Grief stricken and left to wander in the wilderness (14).
         3. Without water (15) or food
         4. Alone (15) separated herself further from Ishmael
         5. Distraught and overwhelmed by her circumstances(16) waiting to die.
         6. Fearful (17).
         7. Given to prayer of desperation and weeping (16 & 17)

From the talk by Aileen H. Clyde I found these words about truth, living water, and Hagar. 

Consider the Savior’s image when he spoke of the necessity of discerning truth. He likens knowing the truth to receiving “living water”; that is, water that is fit to drink: pure, running water. He tells the woman at the well: “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water” (John 4:10). 

When I think of lifesaving water and of wells, I also think of Hagar (see Gen. 21:14–20). Hers is a complicated family story. She is forced alone into the wilderness of Beersheba with her young son, Ishmael. In due time the water and bread she has taken with her into the desert are consumed, and thirst and hunger overwhelm her and her little boy. Because she cannot bear to hear the cries of her son, the record tells us that she puts him in a shaded place and goes “a good way off” (Gen. 21:16). There, she lifts up her voice and weeps. In response, an angel of God speaks comfort to her and reminds her that she is not forsaken. Then, we are told, “God opened her eyes, and shesaw a well of water” (Gen. 21:19; emphasis added). We, like Hagar, are required to see “a well of water.” We, like the woman at the well, must ask of the Lord: “Give me this water, that I thirst not” (John 4:15). This is the purpose of Relief Society. It teaches us as daughters of God how to see and how to ask for that which we need of the Lord so that we need not thirst again. Remember the Prophet Joseph’s promise to us that through this society we “shall rejoice, and knowledge and intelligence shall flow.”

Hagar's life was saved and restored because of her faith in the Lord. The Lord offers each of us a well of living water. We can choose to drink of it and live. But water abounds in our life, how do we choose wisely which water will save us? How do we learn to know the living water of truth and let it be our guide?


The Spanish believed that the answer to their survival relied on the physical existence of water within a close proximity to danger.  They believed their source of water would alone aide in their survival. They could not see that their "water" had become their most imminent danger. Stagnant, separate, preserved, and unable to be cleansed, their wells served as breeding grounds for the mosquito and ironically their own death. 


Living water flows with life, action, and truth. It inspires and leads us to share and interact with one another. With each drink we are renewed and refreshed. It cannot be preserved but must be shared. Living water delivers us not only by offering our bodies its required need but by feeding our soul with its pure, clean principals. Hagar found living water when she prayed and wept unto the Lord. She again found living water when she opened her eyes to the promises that the Lord had made to her and Ishmael. Her living water filled her when she once again served herself and her son by returning unto him and sharing her knowledge not only of the well but of the angels message. She accepted the Lord's gift of love and allowed his promise to be fulfilled. Later the same well that served to save them from death becomes the means for their promised inheritance of Beersheba. Did Abraham know how this would work out when he turned Hagar and his son into the wilderness? I don't know.  But he had faith that the Lord would provide. He had faith that the Lord would keep his promise unto his seed that came through Ishmael.

This story portrays the difficulties that Hagar and Ishmael had to face before remembering the Lord's promise to them. Their life was hard. They faced challenges that at times seemed overwhelming, but when they remembered the gospel principals of prayer, obedience, service, etc. their life became filled with promise. In the 2008 General Conference Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge of the First Quorum of the Seventy spoke to the choice that we have when facing life's challenges. He says,

 The Lord’s way is not hard. Life is hard, not the gospel. "There is an opposition in all things," (2 Nephi 2:11.) everywhere, for everyone. Life is hard for all of us, but life is also simple. We have only two choices. (Moroni 7:15-17.) We can either follow the Lord and be endowed with His power and have peace, light, strength, knowledge, confidence, love, and joy, or we can go some other way, any other way, whatever other way, and go it alone—without His support, without His power, without guidance, in darkness, turmoil, doubt, grief, and despair. And I ask, which way is easier?

2008 October General Conference, The Way

In addition a talk entitled the Abundant Life helps us understand that our living water comes from the acceptance of the spiritual. Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Quorum of the Twelve talks about some of the characteristics that will help us recognize the Lord's promise in our lives.

 Today, I want to list a few of the characteristics that the happiest people I know have in common. They are qualities that can transform ordinary existence into a life of excitement and abundance. First, they drink deeply of living waters. Do you seek peace of mind? Drink deeply of living waters. Do you seek forgiveness? Peace? Understanding? Joy? Drink deeply of living waters. The abundant life is a spiritual life. Too many sit at the banquet table of the gospel of Jesus Christ and merely nibble at the feast placed before them. They go through the motions-attending their meetings perhaps, glancing at scriptures, repeating familiar prayers-but their hearts are far away. If they are honest, they would admit to being more interested in the latest neighborhood rumors, stock market trends, and their favorite TV show than they are in the supernal wonders and sweet ministerings of the Holy Spirit. Do you wish to partake of this living water and experience that divine well springing up within you to everlasting life? Then be not afraid. Believe with all your hearts. Develop an unshakable faith in the Son of God. Let your hearts reach out in earnest prayer. Fill your minds with knowledge of Him. Forsake your weaknesses. Walk in holiness and harmony with the commandments. Drink deeply of the living waters of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

2006 April General Conference, The Abundant Life

As I think about water and its significance in our lives, I am filled with the idea that water alone is not enough to save us. In the town of New Orleans their stagnant water protected them from fire but invited an unseen death.  Hagar's ability to live depended not on drinking the water but on finding the water. The idea that God has made promises to me and that I must not despair but must drink daily of his living water through service, obedience, inspiration, joy, kindness, understanding, and through accepting all the blessings the gospel brings. When we partake of the Lord's covenants, his promise to us becomes our well of living water. And it flows within us. It cleanses us. It renews us and brings us Joy. 

"to do justice and judgment"- Genesis 18:17-33

Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do? 

Why would the Lord God ask such a question? As I read through this chapter I believe I felt that this one verse became the most significant verse of the entire chapter. 


Consider that when Abraham pitched his tent he built an alter to the Lord. When Lot  pitched his tent, its toward Sodom. Lot was not Abraham's equal. 


God knew this. But Abraham loved Lot. He had traveled with Lot from Chaldea, through Egypt, and finally to the land where, rather than quarrel they separated themselves from one another.  Abraham had sacrificed both for and with Lot. He had risked his life to return Lot from a life of slavery. (Gen 13) Was it hard for him to consider the Lord's "justice and judgement?" (vs 19) In my mind when he asks the Lord, "Wilt thou also destroy the righteous and the wicked," he is asking what the Lord will do with Lot and his family. 


As I read this chapter I did not consider that before the negotiation began, God knew how it would end. But when you think about it, as a God of mercy and love, God knew how he would answer Abraham. So for me, it is more about Abraham's tutelage in justice, judgment and mercy than it is about the destruction of Sodom. 


Consider these points as you read: 

• Abraham's covenant was sure: He had just been promised that Isaac would be born to Sarah. vs 16  
• God trusted Abraham:  the Lord acknowledges this in vs 19
• Devotion verses justice: Abraham was perplexed for his love and devotion to Lot. He knew that Lot and his family resided in Sodom. He did not want them to perish. And mostly he did not want to believe they were to be counted among the evil of Sodom. 
• Justice verses Mercy: The Lord had a responsibility to justice and mercy because "the cry was great and their sin very grievous." 
• Protection: The Lord is trying not only to give lesson to Abraham but to also protect Abraham from destruction. Evil that is not controlled will eventually destroy its host. Verse 18 and 19. Seeing that Abraham will surely become a great nation. AND THAT ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH WILL BE BLESSED BY HIM. The evil that lurked in Sodom threatened the blessings that Lord had for Abraham's family. 

Consider how the lesson evolved: 

1. God considers weather to tell Abraham about Sodom. v 17
2. God weighs the perspective of his choice. Who exactly will be affected by Abraham's lesson on justice and judgment. v 18.
3. God considers what he knows Abraham understands: v 18 
4. God considers how he himself is constrained in bringing to Abraham what he is promised vs. 18   "that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him."  Genesis 18:19
5. God considers that he must weigh out the cry of Sodom against what is actually happening. He says he must go down and see for himself and "he will know." In other words their actions will speak for themselves. 
1. If the commission of sin is great. And the omission of doing the right thing is great. What is it to both commit grievous sin and to omit righteous action from your life? 
6. The prophets depart and Abraham stands beside the Lord. God grants Abraham audience. 
7. The Lord does not speak. He allows Abraham to learn on his own ground. 
8. Abraham questions "wilt thou destroy the righteous with the wicked?" 
1. This would have been a good time for the Lord to describe what he defines as righteousness, but he does not speak.
2.  He allows Abraham to bargain for the lives of the righteous thus gaining a deep understanding of the Lord's mercy and love. v 23.
9. God teaches Abraham a valuable lesson on mercy. When Abraham asks if the Lord would save Sodom if he could find 50 righteous the Lord says Yeah.. I will and so on until Sodom is saved for the righteousness of ten. In this process God is teaching Abraham how to ask for mercy. Mercy is granted. If it had not been asked for .... would God have granted it? 
1. The key is that God allowed Abraham to act in a merciful way by asking. 
2. In asking for the lives of the righteous, Abraham learns to judge those who show their love for God by their actions.
10. God teaches us how to ascertain the correct justice for righteousness. Can you put a number on righteousness? What is the worth of one soul? Abraham asked for the lives of ten, but only 4 were found? And these four did not obey willingly, they had to be lead from Sodom by the hands of the angels. Once away Lot's wife turns back and his daughters bring the immorality of Sodom with them and cause Lot to unknowingly commit incest. Was Lot the only righteous man? 
11. God teaches Abraham about righteous judgment. Is it based on familial association? Is it based on obedience? Is it based on which way we pitch our tent? So great was the sin of Sodom that it threatened the hope of a righteousness nation (Abraham's). 

Love the Sinner. Condemn the sin. 

Sin has the capacity to destroy hope. When sin overtakes the balance of our life we are no longer able to obey the Lord's commandments. In order to be rescued we must be led by the hands of angels from evils influence. Think of a bad habit. One that has hold of you and you cannot let it go. You must let go and take the hand of the Lord as He leads you to higher ground. 

One more point. In discussing this with my husband, he found it interesting that Abraham chose to start high and go low. In most negotiations or bargaining you start low and go high. Think of buying a car or a house. Would the story have played out differently if Abraham had asked God, If we can find but one person will you still destroy Sodom? 

The answer is that in teaching Abraham about mercy he also emphasizes the Lord's love for each one of us. If the Lord will save 50, he will save 1. Mercy knows no number but 1. You cannot bargain for the worth of soul as you do for merchandise and as children of God we are not merchandise.

God's love is for all of us. God's mercy comes to us as we bestow and pray for mercy for those we love. Those that are entrapped in the walls of sin. Those that need help in walking to higher ground.
God's love knows no boundary. But justice does. When our sin becomes so powerful that it deafens our ears and numbs our ability to act for ourselves then we have lost God's ability to save us. He will not save us at the risk of overtaking our agency to act for ourselves.

After These Things (Genesis14- 15:1)

After These Things: Believe, Hope and Endure

Abram refuses Bera's rewards and accepts blessings of Melchizadek

We all have trials. It is not that we have them but rather how we choose to deal with them. Abram chose to believe not in the arm of man but rather in God, to hope not for riches but for the blessings of heaven, and to endure his time of challenge with a strength and fortitude that promised him sacred opportunity, wisdom, perspective and promise.

Ancient Irrigation Techniques 

I have had many trials in my life. I imagine that many of my trials have not been too different from what Abram endured. The scenes and props may change but personal trials tend to be the same. We know from history that his time in history was one of where man attempted to gain control over mother- nature and create a sense of stability in his life.  As man gained a sense of understanding over crops, water and weather, he still had to deal with himself.  Through all of the innovations, inventions and discoveries and after all of this time, I have to wonder how much the true nature of man with relation to one another has changed?    Has the human condition improved? I believe Abram understood that the ability to truly change the human condition began with a faith in a power greater than his own.

Abram’s story of faith began in Genesis 14. As I was reading Genesis 15 my mind caught the words, “after these things.” What things? I went back to Genesis 14 and discovered a few important things that Abram had done. (because the chapter deals mostly with the wars between the 9 kings, it is easy to miss Abram’s important role) These things were prerequisite to his vision where “the word of the Lord came unto him.”

Before I delineate Abram’s role I want to set the stage.

There were 4 kings  that  “made war” with 5 kings. The four kings I will call Team A (for Amraphel king of Shinar).  The 5 kings I will call Team B for Bera king of Sodom

Team A: Shinar, Ellasar, Elam and Nations (Geneses 1)

Team B: Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, Zoar (Geneses 2)

Who: Team A make war with Team B in the vale of Siddim near the salt sea.

Why: They had served Chedorlaomer (king of Elam) 12 years, but in the 13^th year they rebel.

What: 14^th year Chedorlaomer  comes with his 3 other kings and plumaged and smote the REphaims, Zuzims, Emims, Horites, the Amalekites, and the Amorites. In other words they were on rampage as a rebellion.

The five kings joined together to stop the slaughter. (Genesis 14:9) They came together at the vale of Siddim where there were slimepits. A slimepit is a plot of earth that is soft and mucky, usually of clay or very moist mud. The point of this reference is to help us understand that the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah could not take a stand because the ground would not allow for it. It was a very precarious place to stand a fight against the confederate forces. They fled.

The confederates come and take the spoils of war: all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, all the food, and all the people for slaves.  And a ally of Abram comes to tell him of Lot’s capture.

What did Abram who dwelled in the plain of Mamre the Amorite  do:

• ·      He armed his trained servants (318 of them)
• ·      He pursued Chedorlaomer and his 4 kings to the land of Dan
• ·      He divides himself with his servants and attacks them at night and pursues them to Hobah
• ·      He slaughters Team A (all 4 kings) at the valley of Shaveh (the kings dale)
• ·      He then brings back all of the spoils that had been taken, “all the goods, his brother Lot, the women, and the people.” (Gen 14: 16)
• ·      He receives a blessing from Melchizedek
• ·      He pays his tithes
• ·      He gives credit to his  “most high God”.  (Genesis 14:22-24)
• ·      He meets out his reward with justice and in such a way to give recognizes the true source of his strength and virtue.

In Abram’s time the kingdoms vied for security through power struggle’s and war. Abram chose to follow a different path that allowed him to discover the power that faith in a true and living God brings.  When I considered what he had done and why he had done it, I was moved to understand the true nature of his faith.

Abram rescues Lot

Abram’s only heir was Lot, so that when he heard what had happened to him he took strength to defend him, but in defending his family the Lord gave him opportunity to testify and declare his allegiance to his God.  When Bera, the king of Sodom, wants to glorify Abram and give him the spoils of war, Abram refuses him, “lest thou should say, I have made Abram rich.” 

Abram who had left his father’s land and dwelled in the land of the Amorite, who at this point was childless, who had refused the traditions of his family and had returned to the God of Adam and Enoch and Noah, felt very much alone in the world. But yet he knew from whence his strength and power came.

And it was “After these things”, or after the trial of his faith that the Lord will bless him with a vision for his future.  After these things… after he stood strong for what was right, after he fought with strength born of virtue and faith, after he defeats all of the rebels using the tactics of division and nighttime warfare, after he uses the power of the Holy Ghost to help him outsmart the rebels in the valley of Shaveh, and after he refuses his “victors glory” and chooses to humbly give credit to the Lord, he is able to sit and contemplate just exactly what his faith has brought him.

While he is resting from his conquest and considering what he has in life, he is given a vision that brings him hope and a promise. 

Erin's Pie In The Sky

Erin’s Pie in the Sky

The day started

With a deluge as

Water poured from the sky.

Deep from the night it began

And it ran and ran 

Down our streets and

Into our porch.

On into the late afternoon

It swam,

Filling our apartment and our hearts

With a soggy hope of deliverance.

But a thoughtful daughter

With a frame of beauty

Found in the kitchen

A place of refuge where

Damp doubt could not reach.

She took task and

Measured and cut

Butter into peas

Until she had transformed

Gloomy skies

Into a tartlet of shinny 

Round criss-crossed comfort.

That at the end of the day

Warmed all of our tummies

And our hearts

With the idea

That rain may wash

Through our hopes and our dreams

Or if we choose

It can wash away troubles

And renew us.

Like her flour and summer fruit

That turned us, all tart and sour

Into a circle of laughing,

yummy peach pie,

That smiled until

The clouds flew away

Like a flock of

Blackbirds

Linda Conkey Shaw July 28 2011

The summer has been filled with family, fun, hot sunshine, and moments when all seemed lost. But alas there is the role of family and how we can rely on someone to help us see what we will not. 
We were vacationing in a beach house when the "tropical" rainstorm managed to dump 8 inches of rain upon our island town. Electrical wires fell, water rose, roads were closed and eventually we were evicted from our rental because of sewer backups. 
We held it together and took the opportunity to ride our bikes in the rain, help Sam's lifeguard class find joy in the a battery powered radio, and soon after the sun came out (about 3) we were able to relocate our posse. And when we did we had such a wonderful 
pie to warm us. 
Thanks to Erin's culinary skills. 
Today marks her graduation from school and her movement on to new pathways. 
With love from Mom. 

Peace in the Land through Gratitude Helaman 11: 17-22

Seven o'clock, time to wake. Time to get the son out of bed. Time to eat breakfast. Time to shower and dress. Time to go to school. Time to ...... What makes it all bearable?

Our lives run in cycles. One clear message of the Book of Mormon is that there are many cycles in our lives. Cycles of nature and cycles of human nature. Unlike nature that lives a course bound to preprogramed cycles, we have within us the ability to recognize the cycles and correct them, but only if we will heed the lessons of history, the lessons of scripture.

When my son looks up at me and says, "Good Morning." When he reaches out for that one hug that he needs to energize his determination. When my husband gives me one last snuggle before charging into his day. When I feel appreciated for all that I do, I feel peace. Gratitude brings the "energy of peace" to my life.

Gratitude is not a cycle of nature. Gratitude comes to us as a virtue. To garner it we must purposefully reach deep inside and seek it out. We must identify it, label it and then share it. We share it through smile, attitude, gesture, manners, kindness, selflessness, words, prayer, body language, and communication. We find it by receiving gratitude as it passes like a spark of electricity from one human to another.

Gratitude is something that tends to be easily forgotten in the day to day trials and responsibilities of life. Gratitude tends to be wrung out from us in the cycles of life, but it need not be. We can learn to balance our lives and find the daily joy that gratitude can bring. When we find the balance, we find peace.

The people of Nephi's time had lost all sense of their gratitude towards God and towards their fellow man. They had allowed the cycles of their lives to put them into holding patterns of "greed and need." Only when God intervened and helped them remember the importance of the basics of life did they once again find peace. Only when their lives were reduced to a form of basic functionality and almost death, did they remember to show gratitude first to God and then to one another.

Words and Phrases

vs 17 the Lord did turn away his anger - gratitude turns away anger. respect turns away anger. love for and appreciation for what others do for you turns away anger. service to others turns away anger. Remembering others turns away anger.

vs 18 the people did rejoice and glorify God, - They were happy to be alive. Happy to not have perished as did the thousands. Happy to have made it through a great trial of faith. But still they believe ... not because of Nephi's words, but because of his signs and miracles. I wonder how many years will pass before they forget? I wonder how convicted they are to the God who has saved them?

vs 18 they did esteem him as a great prophet - Look what he had to do for them before they would believe. I'm not so sure that Nephi should be happy with this, but he is and it is a good thing that they did not die by sword or famine. Finally he receives some respect and the people begin to see peace for the gratitude that is within their hearts.

vs 19 not a whit - not any less, not any lower than Nephi, but this is Nephi's story not Lehi's.

vs 20 began to prosper again - gratitude is a good thing... it brings blessings of esteem, respect, and honor to all people. Gratitude shares the wealth. Gratitude is about all people, not just one or one group. Gratitude teaches respect, honor, discipline, hope, love, communication, and understanding.

vs 21 exceedingly great peace - prosperity, gratitude, blessings, hope, = peace... no greed, no need, no stealing, not robbery, ... just a balance of life's cycle and gratitude.

vs 22 and also they had peace ... 3 years now they have known peace. 3 years of no grief, of no trial, of rebuilding their lives after the great destruction of famine. Three years? is that long enough? How do you keep the balance? Will they keep their gratitude? manners, respect, communication and love for one another.?

Desire : What desireth thou?

1 Nephi 11:1-22

Desire

All of us have desire. The question is what do we desire? How does what we desire affect our belief in God? What is the connection between what we desire, what we believe and what we know? How does this relate to our family?

(Words and Phrases)

ponder in mine heart (vs. 1)- Nephi desired to know what his father knew. He believed all that his father expounded to him concerning "the dream". He took his desire, added it to his belief and began to "ponder in his heart". He meditated, prayed, and thought deeply about all that he had been told. He loved his father and he recognized the love of God within his father and within his father's words.

DESIRE + BELIEF+ (PONDERING) = KNOWLEDGE

what desireth thou? (vs. 2) Over fifty years ago, my father had a desire to know God. The dark and dreary world had left him in dire circumstances, and he recognized that he needed God's love in his life. My grandmother had taught him of God. He believed in God. He took this belief coupled it with his desire and he asked God. He received his "vision" (answer) that opened up a new way of life for my father. As he followed that answer and learned to listen to the gift of the Holy Ghost, this particular desire changed his life.

His desire changed my life. I (like Nephi) desire to know all that my father knows, to believe the scriptures as he understands them, and to learn with the same power of the Holy Ghost that radiates so beautifully from his voice, his words, and his life.

He set a path for me, for my children, for his family. He set a path filled with the joy of God's love (vs. 22) when his desire spurred his belief to ponder a greater gift.

"thou shalt behold" the thing which thou desireth (vs. 6) God loves us. He has promised us if we will ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, he will manifest the truth of his love unto us. Nephi asked and he will receive (the next 4 chapters )of God's truth.

We all have our own personal "visions" of truth that are connected to our desires. Weather the truth we seek is of a spiritual, scientific, personal or political nature, it does not matter. God knows all things. He can help us discover what we seek.

I think that Nephi's formula has been used and known by many great men (not just prophets).

I think of the Wright Brothers and their desire to fly. They desired to fly + they believed they could fly + they pondered (studied) how they could fly + they asked God and all of their errors to help them learn the rules of flight + then they listened to the answers that came both in the whisperings of their minds, the experience and science of their experiments, and the power of their belief.

desire + believe+ ask+ study(ponder) + listen = success and learning of knowledge

Be careful what you pray for. Know your desires. Know your beliefs. Know your God.

to know the interpretation (vs. 11) - We don't always get what we are taught the first time. After Nephi saw the "tree of life" he said "I believe it is precious above all" (vs. 9) Nephi understood that what he saw was special. He knew what it did to his soul. But he also understood that he didn't understand.

When the angel asked a second time what he desired, he said to know what it means? The tree of life as we learn in vs. 22 represents the "love of God". This is why before explaining this to Nephi he took time to show Nephi the birth of Christ through his virgin mother Mary.

It is a great gift to understand that the love of God is "most desirable above all things".

I believe that when we desire... to have the love of God.... as the foremost desire in our life... everything else falls into place.

the most joyous to the soul (vs 22)-

When I was a young girl my father taught me of his beliefs. He taught me of his conversion and how God opened up "his mind" and took away the clouds of disbelief. He taught me how to read the scriptures and liken them to myself. He taught me to write things of great importance and to let God's love flow through me. He shared with me how the Holy Ghost inspired him, giving him hope and new ideas to help him solve his problems.

As I grew the desire to do and experience all that I have seen my father experiences grew in me. Like Nephi I recognized the love of God within my father's words. I desired to not only accept his belief as his belief but to make it my own.

Today I have a testimony of God's love. His love has carried me.....Because I desired to know. Because I believed in God.... because I pondered.... and studied... and put it to the test. I experimented with God's word and learned not only of God's love for me, but of its truth.

Life is rich with good things to know. There are many things in life that we can desire. God will answer all of our prayers and help us learn to desire for the good and wise things.

If we desire to become a doctor we set our life on a course to become a doctor believing that one day we will be a doctor. If we (like the Wright Brothers) have a desire to fly (or whatever has not yet been done) we need only to believe, to study, to ponder, and to ask for truth.

As great as the mysteries are amidst the fields of science, there is no greater mystery than to personally discover the Joy of God's love as it opens up our personal vision to a life filled with righteous desire.