Cindy Jean: Fifty Shades of Betrayal: On my way home from work today, I saw a poster for LuvLand, an adult store. It read, "Fifty Shades of Grey: Let the fantasy become a re...
This is a draft from March 2015, it did not get beyond being a draft, but maybe it will have some value???
I wrote this, but did not publish it. A letter that I had written for someone, reflecting on the year 2021.
Good morning, my friend
I shared the following on YouTube after viewing Steve and Chelsea Scott sharing from Canada 'We Believe' in their post Come Follow Me (Articles of Faith, Official Declarations) WE BELIEVE (Dec 6 - Dec 12)
I really appreciate the effort that you put into sharing your testimony and insights with so many people. I learn a lot from you. I feel that it is important to share that I have learned lots of things from the Spirit that no man had taught me - and it is especially comforting when some of those things are then declared by someone in General Conference, sometimes decades later!
One of my most powerful learning experiences was when I was wondering why I was upsetting the apple carts of really good people when I taught them as a missionary that there were important things that they had not yet received. I received an answer through my own personal revelation through D&C 1:30 that it was absolutely appropriate for me to be teaching those good people because the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth with which He is well pleased, speaking unto the church collectively and not individually, for He cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance. This experience spanned a few days that went from real anguish to real peace. Now, nearly 50 years later the Spirit has taught me that there are many really faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, Jehovah, God, Allah, who earnestly strive to share the words of, and to do the works of, the God of Abraham and that, as Jesus said in both Mark 9 and Luke 9, those that are not against Him are for Him, and that they will not lose their reward for giving you or me a cup of water in the name of the God of Abraham. I really appreciate this expanding testimony that continues to grow as the decades pass - the more that I ponder and prayerfully seek personal revelation.I appreciate your comment that reminded me that the priesthood was not always held by every worthy male in God's ancient covenant people. I have grown up in South Africa among many faithful African people who have been so blessed by the declaration of 1978.I love the insight that I received that the person who stood on the banks of the Red Sea saying that Moses was deluded and that water is really dangerous and millions of people could not go across the waters! Well, he was not wrong, was he? But the Lord does wonderful things despite what might be 'right' or 'wrong' in our experience. Following the prophet when he says to obey the law and be vaccinated is a leap of faith for some and I grieve that some 'stone the prophet' when he says to follow various guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID.I really appreciate how gracious and merciful the Lord has been to the children of men from the creation of Adam down to this day and age. I love how we always study all of the Old Testament and New Testament as well as modern scripture so that we can be familiar with how merciful He has been, blowing on the faintest of embers of repentance to create a roaring flame that leads to forgiveness. He is indeed merciful.I have also seen really wonderful growing experiences as I have sat with members and others sharing the 13 Articles of Faith and asking them to sincerely and honestly declare their own personal 1st, 2nd on to 13th article of their faith. I remember one less active sister who started then to pay tithing and continues to do so, preparing for her next steps on the covenant path, including preparing to go to the Temple.One of the most important things that I have come to realise, among several that I have shared in my blog http://personaltouchworks.blogspot.co.za/, is that God is merciful to the individual that seeks to be His disciple, worshiping how, where or what they may, helping to prepare the way for His Kingdom to come and His Will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Our responsibility is to share the restored gospel - the true and living church - and to help those on both sides of the veil to receive the ordinances that will enable them to be welcomed by a loving embrace as they go back into the presence of God, the Eternal Father.
One of many special insights that I have gained recently is a love for people who are doing good, and a respect for the good works done by many such people in the world. They are helping to slow down the onslaughts of Satan and his minions. I was impressed to see that the Pope was moved as he listened to Andrea Bocelli singing 'The Lord's Prayer' and realising that the Pope has a love for and devotion to the Lord. Mother Theresa has often been cited as a true disciple of Jesus Christ. I know Jews, Christians, Muslims and others who have love for and devotion to the God of Abraham. I know some who may show their devotion better than I do.
I came to realise that, the Lord spoke of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints being the only true and living church on the face of the whole earth with which He is well pleased, 'speaking unto the church collectively and not individually'. In like manner, individuals in other religions that Joseph said he was told ‘I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.”’ can be righteous, speaking of them individually and not collectively.
Your and my task is now to do all that we can to help these wonderful disciples of the God of Abraham to receive a witness of the only true and living Church and receive the ordinances of salvation and exaltation, and to do what we can to help those who have passed on beyond the veil to receive the ordinances of salvation and exaltation that they did not receive while they were alive. If we omit to do these things, we will be the negligent ones.
I shared some thoughts with our ward yesterday that I feel are worth sharing here. We had sung the hymn Reverently and Meekly Now that always gives me pause to ponder as it is written as Jesus Christ speaking in the first person to you and to me.
I then shared some thoughts about the sacrament - I had a piece of bread about the size of a grape. You get small and large grapes, but this was sort of a medium sized grape. And the water was also a small quantity. These were really welcome as we were fasting, and the sacrament has particularly special meaning to me while fasting.
My mind turned to the experiences when Jesus Christ provided bread and wine for some people. In what we refer to as the Last Supper He probably broke bread into about 13 pieces and shared this bread and wine for Himself and His twelve apostles. That bread and wine might have been larger portions than a grape.
Then He broke bread and gave it to 5000 people, sharing but five loaves and two fishes, and the multitude did all eat and were filled. I wondered how long it took Him to break the bread and what size portions He broke. In His visit to the Nephites He administered bread and wine to apparently 2500 people as He introduced them to the sacrament. He first gave to the 12 disciples. After they had eaten and were filled from bread that He had broken, they were then instructed to serve the bread to the multitude who, in turn, had eaten and were filled. He then gave them wine and they did all drink and were filled. Them all being filled sounds as though the pieces of bread may have been larger than a medium sized grape.
I have often wondered what someone sitting at the edge of the crowd might have been thinking as the basket was passed around. Whether the basket was large with people reaching deep into them, or small with bread visible above the brim, might some have wondered - 'Will the basket have anything in it when it reaches me? Will it even reach me?'
It is remarkable that when He served, there was enough and to spare, with twelve baskets of fragments being gathered up after the multitude had departed following the feeding of the 5000. How often do we look at things and worry that we will not get anything, or that we will lose out, or that we cannot have enough for ourselves, let alone sharing with others? It takes quite a paradigm shift to get ourselves thinking in harmony with the way the Saviour taught, as in John 17:21-22, that we strive to become one with Father and Son. This goes even a leap further as we are each promised in D&C 84:33-38 'all that the Father has' as we enter into the new and oath and covenant of the priesthood. I was impressed when my brother pointed out that the Father does not only have everything that is in the Earth and all of His creation, but He also has the power to create all of those things. That is a mighty promise!
I think that many people focus on the concept that they can buy anything in this world with money rather than simply working to have sufficient for their needs, and then continuing to work 'by the sweat of thy face' to share of their surplus with others. I hope that I shall always be able to unselfishly share of my surplus with others and be confident that there is enough and to spare.
