Miracles performed by the Artist and by His chisels

The unknown artist planned what the family with five children would look like and used a chisel and other tools to achieve the planned result. My son Richard Powrie planned the carving of the two wooden rings and set about using chisels to achieve the result. 

Without the artist, those chisels would not have achieved as good a result - if they achieved anything! 

I have also often thought that it can become quite uncomfortable being a chisel - hammered on one end against something hard on the other. But the results are wonderful...

 I suspect that we consider a lot of things to mean quite different things now to 2000 years ago. I would not be surprised if a number of conditions that people have for which man has developed interventions such as spectacles, hearing aids, wheelchairs, walkers, crutches, leg braces, laser treatment, surgery, transplants, prosthetic limbs, medication and any number of corrective practices enable us to consider those that would have been classified as 'lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner' to be relatively capable now. 

Those that have developed these interventions have been instruments in the Creator's hands enabling many to be healed to varying degrees of their afflictions. Do we give the credit to the Master or to the instrument? Do we praise the chisel or the artist for the sculpture?

A consequence of our interventions quite probably has resulted in an increased frequency of these conditions in the population. In previous millennia many of those that are genetically inherited would have been less likely to have been passed on to future generations because individuals with these conditions would not have survived to an age of having children. Some conditions would have caused mates to not have been selected. So, we have enabled those conditions to proliferate. And we enable non inherited conditions to have less impact and afflicted people can have greater ability to function. In a way this increases our personal responsibility to do and be more than we might have been capable of doing hundreds of years ago. 

Yeah - but, is it beyond reasonable doubt?

I had fun writing an article 'Beyond reasonable doubt' some years ago. That article is not in peer reviewed scientific literature, but was a 'popular article' in 'grey literature'. I had fun applying my mind to relating my experience in court with a friend who was on trial for what was apparently a fraudulent claim, to georeferencing...

I was thinking a lot this morning about my concerns about many of the 'conspiracy theories' in that, in my mind at least, they are not beyond reasonable doubt. 

When I do some fact checking I find all sorts of reasons to doubt many of the claims, and if many claims are not beyond reasonable doubt, then I wonder if each claim is beyond reasonable doubt?

I have been part of publishing many peer reviewed research papers and so I am not always confident with the outright derision of peer reviewed literature about vaccines or pesticides being biased - it might be true in many instances, but maybe not as many as some critics propose. 

I have been involved in computer modelling and know that there are usually many more variables involved than one can practically combine in a model, or for which values are known, and so conclusions are not absolutely conclusive, but simply suggestive. 

I have thought a lot about genetics and how many things might be far more prevalent in 2021 because we provide things like spectacles, wheelchairs, hearing aids and other things, and people live longer due to immunizations, and so there is more opportunity for genes causing disorders such as myopia, mobility challenges, and hearing challenges to be passed on because they are not 'selected against' or people reach an age when they can breed and they are more accepted by potential mates so that their genes have greater probability of being passed on than before these aids and immunizations. So - I do not deny the conclusions, but I do also recognise that there might be more variables involved than have been factored in the model and so maybe the conclusions are not beyond reasonable doubt. 

How many times have people sent me a sensational thing that they received on social media (especially when it says to 'pass it on to all of your contacts'!) and I send back a link to snopes.com or some other myth-busting post about that sensational thing that sheds doubt on it. I could send links to myth busting sites that debunk so many claims (I have not investigated all of the claims because that would simply take far more time than I deem appropriate), but I am not sure that the person who sent that item would read them with an open mind anyway. That person can do the same fact checking that I can do, perhaps better than I can do - I do not have tools available to me that are not available to them.

So - please accept that I look at what some of my friends send to me through my own filters and I have not been confident that the things with which they might be so passionately engaged are not beyond reasonable doubt. My wife Sal also looks at them through the filter of her personal experience seeing children that have died because they were not immunized. 

Let me share a scenario that came to my mind in the early hours this morning... Genes that lead to autism might be able to manifest themselves in 2021 when the condition is recognised and diagnosed simply because more people carrying those genes reach reproductive age because they were immunized, and they are not shunned by a potential mate who might also be a carrier of the genes because of things like spectacles, hearing aid, or some other life support aid, and so the genes are passed on to the next generation with more frequency than in previous years. So, double recessive genes manifest themselves more than they might have done, and they are discoverable, detectable, identifiable and describable, and so the frequency is more evident as well as more probable. If a computer model excludes certain variables, the conclusion can be drawn that there is a strong positive correlation between heavy metals in vaccines and the condition, whereas this might not be a causative, but simply a compounding factor. Then - people who do not consider the wider aspects of the scenario broadcast the conclusion of cause rather than coincidence and look for evidence to bolster their claims, and build up a really strong case that is accepted by hundreds of people who do not check the facts themselves, leading to stronger 'evidence' in favour of a misplaced conclusion. Then, the claim circulates widely on social media and fear is engendered where the whole claim really is not beyond reasonable doubt.

I hope that you will have a wonderful day and not be driven to fear by every one of those sensational scare stories that come to you. Please seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and I promise you that all those things that are of greatest value in this life and in eternity will be added unto you. I know that Heavenly Father has power to heal us should we have autism or whatever incidental problems might come because you or I might be one of the two or three out of a hundred people that is affected by immunizations or pesticides. If we are repentant and faithful, we can follow the prophet and put our trust in God's immeasurable divine power rather than putting our trust entirely in the arm of flesh. 

I hope that you are not offended by my being blunt in this. I hope that we can be one in Christ and agree to disagree... If you watched my YouTube  video about being one, then you will recall how passionate I am about the teachings of Jesus Christ in John17, John 15, Matthew 5-7, 3 Nephi 11, and so on 🙂

Some thoughts on Moroni 10:3

One of many thoughts that have been on my mind recently, I hope that you enjoy my musings about how merciful the Lord is - has always been...

Faith is a real part of life for atheists, agnostics or irreligious

I was thinking a lot in the wee hours of this morning about the fact that faith is a real part of life - for everyone.

We tend to think that we live without faith in some things, but let me share how faith in the unknown and unseen is a reality for all - whether they acknowledge it or not.

Each and every one of us lives by faith in so many different aspects of our lives

Some think that they can simply dispel any thought of God because they believe that science indicates that it is possible for life to exist without divine intervention. There are knowledgeable people like Darwin that argue sufficiently strongly that the power of natural selection might have enabled all life - the millions of species of plant, insect, bird, reptile, fungus, and every other class of organism - to have evolved without any intervention by some divine power. And so they live their lives without regard for the inconveniences of the commandments that they reckon impact on their freedom, comfort and convenience by requiring sacrifice of some sort or another at the request of some unseen being.

Let me share at least three aspects of life in which each and every one of us demonstrates faith, and how there can be an impact on our freedom, comfort and convenience should we fail to abide by associated rules.

Electricity

We enjoy the benefits that we derive from electricity without fully comprehending the complexity of exactly what it is, and what is involved for us to be able to use that light, heater, air conditioner, stove, machine, computer, mobile phone, game, television, refrigerator, or whatever device that we are so accustomed to using that enables us to enjoy freedom, comfort and convenience. We might even chafe at the suggestion that we should reduce our consumption by turning off unnecessary lights, computers, heaters, and so forth. We do not always consider the complexity of the electricity infrastructure that needs to be adequately supplying vastly more electricity than is required for demand at any given time. Electricity needs to be available in the network of power lines, cables and wires for us to be able to use any electrical device whenever we wish to flip the switch. 

We tend to not think of the fact that those administering the power grid have to be adequately prepared with increasing capability to generate excess power in order to meet the continually increasing demands due to consumption due to an ever increasing population, industry, leisure and other needs. The leaders in South Africa and in several other parts of the world have failed to adequately prepare for the need for sufficient generating capacity to cater for these increasing demands. They need to prepare for outages due to planned maintenance of the existing generating facilities as well as unplanned failures of generating facilities due to insufficient coal, water or other sources of energy, or simply disasters like leaking nuclear plants. We might object to paying taxes and tariffs that are levied in order to make it possible to have the generating capacity that we enjoy - especially if we see any dishonesty in anyone in any level of the hierarchy involved. 

It is highly commendable that many people have opted to generate some power using solar or wind in order to reduce demand and increase supply.

We, in turn, often do not exercise restraint to not consume more than we actually need. Then we complain when there is an unplanned power failure or planned loadshedding because it impacts on our freedom, comfort and convenience. We each have rights, but we also each have responsibilities to help reduce demand and facilitate increasing supply.

We have great faith in electricity despite our lack of understanding everything involved in it.

Water supply

We have recently had a serious impact in Cape Town due to a shortage of water.  There had been less rainfall in previous years than is the norm and so our storage facilities were emptying at a rate that was in excess of the rate of inflow to meet the demands for water. 

This is not new - I remember my sister telling us of the shortage of water in England when she was there in the 1970s because there had been less rain in preceding weeks that was the norm. I remember dams being very low in parts of South Africa in about every decade or two of my life, and the rejoicing that we had when they were filled to overflowing with subsequent rains.

Many of us use water without due regard for our responsibility to conserve this valuable resource. We might fail to turn off water when it is not needed, to use less, to repair leaks, to stop using wasteful water features. We often carelessly allow water to flow out into the drainage system that feeds into our processing plants or into rivers that simply flow into the sea. 

During the recent time of crisis there was much complaint about the impacts on freedom, comfort and convenience that the water restrictions caused. Many of us installed water tanks that enabled us to harvest rain that did fall and thus reduce demand on public water supply. But many did not consider the needs for the authorities to cater for increased demand by building and maintaining water storage facilities, desalination plants, or other means of providing an adequate supply of fresh drinking water to meet the demands of a growing population and industry. Once again, many grumble about paying taxes and tariffs that enable the authorities to prepare to meet anticipated demand, especially when there is any hint of dishonesty in anyone in authority.

Viral infection

The world has been impacted by the COVID-19 coronavirus that has seriously impacted on our freedom, comfort and convenience. We have been called upon to help reduce the spread of the virus by wearing masks, sanitising hands, exercising social distancing, reducing gatherings, staying at home, and many other serious impacts on our normal ways of living. We were initially required to stay at home in order to help the medical system to prepare adequately for meeting the demands for care, oxygen, and beds for those infected. Then we were asked to exercise personal responsibility in order to reduce the rate of spread of the virus due to thoughtless acts. Many complained about the costs to us in terms of taxes and tariffs, and the impact on freedom, comfort and convenience that has arisen, and too many have had super-spreader events or irresponsible behaviour that have caused the virus to spread to thousands of people who were particularly vulnerable due to age or specific health issues, and more recently the virus has been contracted by many younger people than was the case in the first wave in South Africa and other countries all around the world.

Conclusion

In each of these cases, we live by faith - faith in supply, faith in the planning of the authorities, faith in what we probably do not fully understand or comprehend, and what we certainly cannot easily see with our eyes. Those electrons moving in the power network, those impurities that are removed from our drinking water, those viruses that we cannot fully see or understand. We have to trust that other people have the required knowledge, understanding, foresight, wisdom, integrity, and whatever is required for us to be able to enjoy freedom, comfort and convenience. 

Despite our exercising faith in these ways, many ridicule those who live by faith in a divine plan, declaring it to be unreasonable. If we look carefully at what is happening in nature around us, we might be humble enough to acknowledge that we do not fully understand genetics, speciation, ecology, selection, and everything that is involved in order for a species to survive. We might also need to be humble enough to acknowledge that there might be a divine being who knows more than man does collectively. We might observe that we actually see a decline in species numbers over time and no evidence for new species forming despite the rapidly changing environmental niches that are supposed to have made it possible for new species to be selected and become established in the distant past. We do not necessarily have any personal experience with breeding flowers, rabbits, pigeons or anything to fully appreciate those selection processes described by Darwin for features like colour or size - let alone the innumerable characters that are not visible to the breeder and cannot be selected for, such as nuclear and mitochondrial characters that make species survive and thrive. But an all wise and knowing divine creator can select for these unseen characters.

Natural selection certainly is possible, but it is immeasurably improbable. It takes a certain amount of humility to accept that just maybe there is a divine power that has a plan and directs those selection processes that enable a species to survive. But - let's face it - man is really good at leading to the extinction of many species, resulting in a nett loss while we do not see the increase of species numbers through mutation, genetic isolation, mate selection, and ultimately the selection of new favoured races. 

All of these things denote to me that there is a God. I am comfortable in my mind that there is design and planning that has resulted in the wonderful freedom, comfort and convenience that we are able to enjoy on this planet Earth. I accept that I need to be responsible for enabling the provision of freedom, comfort and convenience for other humans and organisms by being careful in the choices that I make to not be wasteful, to not spread infections, to not be disrespectful of the freedoms, comfort and convenience of others. My living responsibly, paying taxes, tariffs, even tithes, is part of the way that I can help others to have a more meaningful experience in life, appreciating the abundant natural heritage that we do have and facilitating supply, rather than just demanding more and more in terms of freedom, comfort and convenience. I think often of that first instruction to man to be fruitful, multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over all living things.

I am grateful for the commandments and guidance through prophets that have taught us about the divine creator who desires our eternal freedom, comfort and convenience and wants us to have that eternal perspective that will enable us to be part of the supply of solutions rather than simply adding to the problems arising from an ever increasing demand.

I have observed many people that are atheist, agnostic or irreligious demonstrating an innate divine nature of faith, hope and charity in their responses to the challenges of electricity supply, water supply, and COVID. It is unfortunate that I have seen some religions people who have demonstrated a lack of faith, hope and charity in some of the things that they have done or said in these same situations that we are all facing. I hope that I continue to demonstrate faith, hope and charity. That is the desire of my heart, even although I fail at most times to be a perfect example of what I intend to be.

Images 

Ken Powrie: Vaal Dam overflowing, 1967
https://toursofutah.com/blog/christus-statue-salt-lake-city-tours/
Walking with masks: Les Powrie

https://www.polity.org.za/article/eskom-unit-1-of-the-koeberg-power-station-returned-to-service-2015-06-02

Why are so many Christians not united?

Jesus Christ is clearly identified as a focus of the worship at the Temple

I have done a lot of thinking recently about the desire of Jesus Christ for us to be one with Him as He is one with the Father. In John 17:11, 21 - 23 He says: 

11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

An essential part of this oneness is the love that Jesus Christ said His disciples should have one for another, even for their enemies. In John 13:34 - 35 He says:

34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. 

In Matthew 5:43 - 48 He says:

43 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

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

46 For if ye love 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 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

There are at least two thoughts that arise in my mind while reading these, the words of the Master, Himself. 

The first question that I discuss here is why Christians are so divided rather than united, at odds with each other rather than loving one another, even contentious rather than being in harmony, and to the point of killing each other in the name of Christ.

Using Google Maps to search for 'church' near my home shows 20 pins within a radius of 2 km. One includes 'Jesus' and one 'Christian' in the name.

The second thought is how anyone who reads these words of the Saviour can think that Jesus Christ was not quite clear in His mind regarding His being the Son of God, that He was one with His Father, but that His Father was not one entity with Him other than as a perfectly harmonious team of two individuals - exactly what He challenged us the be with each other. As I express this thought, I realise that the second thought is really one thought with the first thought...

Despite His commandment to love, and His prayer for oneness, Christians are terribly divided, even at war with each other. As we read in the 1820s, there were divisions, they were contending with each other, resulting in "a scene of great confusion" and "bad feeling ensued—priest contending against priest, and convert against convert; so that all their good feelings one for another, if they ever had any, were entirely lost in a strife of words and a contest about opinions." I grew up hearing about the war in Ireland where Catholics and Protestants were fully at war, killing each other. Although this may have been a political rather than a religious conflict, there was distinct division between people that was fueled by religious belief.  

As I drive around Cape Town where I live, I see so many different churches, not just the normal denominations mentioned above - Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptist, Catholics, Protestants, but all sorts of names of what almost seem to be franchises, almost commercialising Christianity. In about the 1960s I heard mention of about 3500 Christian denominations, and this number has multiplied greatly since then.

It appears that there are in excess of 2.5 billion Christians in 2019, comprising the world's largest religious group. This source also mentions that there are approximately 41 thousand Christian denominations and organisations. They also mention that, although there are many Denominations, there should be One Body of Christ

There are many denominations, but one body of Christ. Ideally, the church on earth — the body of Christ — would be universally united in doctrine and organization. However, departures from Scripture in doctrine, revivals, reformations, and various spiritual movements have forced believers to form distinct and separate bodies.

Every believer today would benefit from reflecting on this sentiment found in Foundations of Pentecostal Theology: "Denominations may have been God's way of preserving revival and missionary fervor. The members of denominational churches, however, must keep in mind that the Church which is the Body of Christ is composed of all true believers, and that true believers must be united in spirit to carry forward the Gospel of Christ in the world, for all will be caught up together at the Coming of the Lord. That local churches should band together for fellowship and missions is certainly a Bible truth."

And yet, I do not see one body in Christ, but what seems to me to be competition and argument. I have experienced this from many people who have contended hotly with me when I quote what Jesus Christ teaches and it does not agree with their beliefs, for example, what I have cited above about the Father and the Son being distinct from each other although perfectly united in heart and mind.

I got to thinking about the Jews and Muslims who also follow the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob -  the people of the book - and I researched these religions and do not find as much divisiveness among them. 

There are about 14.7 million Jews around the world, and it seems as though there are less than 100 movements, denominations, varieties, traditions, groupings, streams, branches, trends and such among the Jews.

There are apparently over 2 billion Muslims worldwide and there are less than about 60 sects or branches among Muslims.

Why would it be that the Christians who have such a direct command to love one another and to be one should be comparatively more divided than the Jews or Muslims? I have not compared the other religions, basically one of which is monotheist, and the others polytheist. There may be divisions among them, but it seems to me that Christianity exemplifies the opposite of unity rather than the epitome of unity. This saddens me - and I am sure that it saddens Heavenly Father. I very much doubt that it saddens Lucifer who I am confident is the one who sows the seeds of disunity. I remember something that my parents very often quoted - I suppose that, just maybe, they thought that their children demonstrated too much contention...

29 For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.

30 Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away.

Christ then proceeds to define His doctrine that hinges on the prefect unity between the Father, His son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, and describes how they are one. He explains that we should build on that doctrine and repent and become as little children and enter and continue on the covenant path.

This brings me back to the 17th chapter of John where Christ Himself says that "this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent". I believe that a lot of the disunity and contention arises from disagreement about the nature of the Godhead - certainly that has been where a lot of people have attacked my beliefs.

I am very grateful for the witness that I have received from the Spirit that has affirmed my belief in God the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost. I have come to love all men, regardless of the differences that there may be between us, I love them, appreciate them, and respect them. Those differences, as distinct as they may be, contribute to the strength of what we can accomplish as we work in synergy rather than in competition. Those differences do not necessarily imply right or wrong, superior or inferior, good or bad. A friend of mine said that Heaven would be very boring if we were all the same! I happily reassured her that 'equal' does not mean 'the same'... We are different with different talents, interests, passions, types and temperaments. I love that I saw on coins growing up in South Africa the motto Unity Is Strength, as on our previous Coat of Arms "Ex Unitate Vire" and on our current Coat of Arms "!ke e: /xarra //ke" that means "diverse people unite".

My humble prayer is that I might help to bring unity rather than division within my own life, family, community, and wherever I can within the circle of my influence. I pray that I may have "a godly walk and conversation", with "works and faith agreeable to the holy scriptures - walking in holiness before the Lord" - as is the duty of members after they are received by baptism.

I thought that I would share this on YouTube as well...

Debate, Decide, Determine, Deliberate

When I was very young and in the early years of my schooling, I was taught about weights and measures. We were taught about pounds and ounces (16 ounces in a pound) and feet, inches and yards (12 inches in a foot) and all that. I learned it well enough, but I remember being surprised that it was so complicated! Then, when I was in high school, I was introduced to the Metric System that worked in very clear and logical units and relationships - a decimal system where weights, measures, volumes and so forth were simply related to each other (1 litre of water has a mass of 1 kilogram at standard temperature and pressure, and the main units worked in thousands like grammes, milligrammes and kilogrammes). This gives a good example of a process of change in which there was discussion about the benefits of each system of weights and measures, and the benefit of fitting in with the International System of Units (SI). After debating the pros and cons of the options of remaining in the Imperial System or converting to the Metric System, a decision was made and there was a determination to set all things in order to use the new system, and I felt a relief or liberty from the complexity of the Imperial System following the deliberation in the use of the simpler Metric System. I continue to be amazed that the United Kingdom and the United States of America, leaders in the global stage, continue to hold to their ties to the complex Imperial System. I have known some older people in South Africa who would continue to calculate things in the Imperial System and then translate them to the Metric System in order to calculate weights or measures.

This brings me to my thoughts on four words and their parts in the process of change: Debate; Decide; Determine; and Deliberate.

De- as a prefix

The prefix de- means 'from, down, away, reverse, opposite', but I think that with each of the four words in the title, it indicates a choice between alternatives, perhaps 'opposite'. Let us look at the other uses of the root of each word. 

Using a search of Google Dictionary, it is interesting to note the possible root meanings of these words.

Debate looks at opposing arguments, and 'bate' seems to come from an angry mood, perhaps torment, or argument, 'debate' being derived from Latin, meaning 'the opposite of fighting'. The root word 'bate' might also be in 'probate' (from Latin for 'to test or to prove') and 'rebate' (derived from Anglo-Norman French meaning 'beat back').

Decide is attributed to the Latin 'off' and 'cut' or 'determine' and means 'to bring to a settlement'.  Although this is the only prefix used for 'cide', the root word seems to be in 'decisive', 'decision', and thence 'incisive' (cut into), 'precise' or 'precision' (relating to quality), all relating to choosing, making me think of the knowledge of good and evil, and our challenge to decide to choose good.

Determine seems to be related to inner quality as in 'firmness or purpose', by which one goes about 'establishing something exactly by calculation or research'. The root word relates to absoluteness such as 'determinate' that infers 'exact and discernible limits or form'; 'exterminate' that is final and total 'destroy completely or kill'. I also am struck by 'termination' relating to a destination or end-point, and my thoughts about 'determine' relate to acting on the decision to reach an end goal - with determination.

Deliberate relates to slow, measured, careful and conscious well-thought-through choice. Liberate is not used with any other prefixes, but I find it interesting to think of the Saviour's teaching that 'ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free' (John 8:32).

I thought of another word, but this does not seem to be a prefix, although it does relate to these four words and to what I am trying to convey in this blog - 'Divine'. If we use the process for ourselves whereby we debate (study something out in our minds), decide (discern good and choose to choose the good), determine (act on the decision), deliberate (reach the freedom that results from the former steps), we will achieve a divine nature. We will be fruitful branches on the true vine, divine in nature (see John 15:1-8).

The process of changes leading to liberation

I can think of some times in my life when I have sought to change something in order to achieve a better outcome. I recall a decision that I made years ago that was a blessing to me. 

A healthy choice - walking rather than driving

I worked at the Kirstenbosch Research Centre for its first 25 years. I took a decision during that time to park down the hill and walk about 500m each way to the office rather than driving. I debated with myself the pros and cons. Driving increased my carbon footprint; increased the wear and tear on the car due to added distance and speedbumps; it did not save significant amounts of time (it was simply the difference between walking 500m and driving 500m, and if I needed to attend meetings down the hill it took more time to use the car than simply the time of travel); the only advantage to driving might be in inclement weather - and I then had the option to walk or drive as opposed to many colleagues who used the bus and did not have the option to drive. The advantages of walking were in terms of reducing carbon footprint; added health; fresh air; enjoyment of watching the sunrise or sunset; watching the wildlife and enjoying the natural vegetation; noticing natural things that I would miss if driving; I would not be competing for parking spaces at KRC; I could park in the shade; getting to converse with others who were walking; and I had several other ideas that came to me as I walked that added to the list of pros and cons. I then decided to walk as the norm and driving would be the exception. I determined to arrange things so that there would be fewer disadvantages arising from my decision. I was then deliberate in following through with my commitment and I enjoyed the liberating experience of walking. I walked many kilometres, through forest, fynbos, nature, fresh air, sunrise, seeing insects, lizards, frogs, beautiful little flowers and several things that I would have missed if I had followed the practices of most of my colleagues. I truly rejoice in the decision that I made and the benefits of sticking to my commitment made to myself.

As I was thinking about this deliberate process of choice, I was struck by thoughts shared by Dieter F. Uchtdorf and Thomas S, Monson in October 2013, and Gordon B. Hinckley as I listened to talks referred to in the Come, Follow Me study of the week (and sometimes talks from the same General Conference following those cited talks). My testimony of the importance of studying out in our minds, then asking the creator of all things, the King of Heaven, He who has all knowledge, wisdom, power, if the thing be right. As we debate to consider the alternatives, decide to discern between good and error, or sometimes good and better, determine to follow a course, we will enjoy the liberation that comes from removing the burdens or bonds of doubt, fear, anger, hate, envy, and any number of negative things and replace them with the opposites of those negative things.

I am grateful for all that I have learned in this process. I still have a long way to be excellent in applying the recipe, but my experiments thus far have confirmed to me that it is good to enjoy the liberty that comes to us as we come to know the truth, and when the truth makes us free.

Sources

Enchanted Learning. Prefixes and Suffixes - Enchanted Learning. Accessed 20 Dec 2020.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf. 2013. You Can Do It Now! (churchofjesuschrist.org)

Thomas S. Monson. 2013. True Shepherds (churchofjesuschrist.org)

The road to Emmaus and me

I have done several two or more hour walks recently in various settings, including karoo, succulent karoo and fynbos. My most recent walk was a 5¾ hour, 14 km walk on the front of Table Mountain and Devil's Peak, marvelling at seeing probably about 250 plant, fungus and lichen species. I love living in this part of the world where I am able to walk in these wonderful ecosystems.

I am touched by the story told of two men who lived about 1990 years ago. They were walking and conversing in a landscape very similar to the karoo. They were joined by a stranger at some stage of their journey of about two hours, and were guided by this stranger in their thinking and interpreting of an amazing experience that they had just witnessed in their country. I hope that I may help others to have wonderful experiences as I walk with them and share some of my thoughts with them.

A couple walking in the Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden

These two men were walking in an area not vastly different to the semi arid winter-rainfall succulent karoo vegetation. They had just witnessed a dramatic event in their city and were discussing it as they walked. They had had close affiliation with a really impressive character that they thought was going to lead them to victory against a foreign oppressive colonialist regime that ruled their land. At the very least, they anticipated some dramatic outcome for their people following all that they had seen their wonderful hero doing on a day to day basis in their country. 

Even with all of their wonderful expectations, their hero had just been killed by the foreign imperialist regime that they despised. It is true that a lot of their own people had hated their hero and had called for his execution, despite their own antagonism towards their foreign rulers. Their own leaders did not want to be ruled by these oppressive foreigners, but they hated this upstart commoner who had such popularity with some of their people. They just wanted him out of the way!

These two people were presenting the thoughts and anticipations that they and some others had about their hero, and the sudden and unexpected anticlimax to the story that they had to share. 

They were about to be guided by this stranger in reinterpreting their observations. 

The stranger initially reprimanded them for being slow of heart to believe in their hero that had been killed. But - he was dead! What good could he do now for their cause? What good would his death do for their cause? This stranger then recounted things that had been said hundreds of years before about this hero and that his death was not a defeat, but actually a victory. This was the very way that the enemy would be defeated - by their hero being killed. This left them with much to ponder. They were not entirely sure what to think!

They had walked for a long time and it was approaching the end of the day so they invited the stranger to dine and spend the night with them. He did accept their invitation and as they were about to eat, he blessed the food and gave them each some bread, then he vanished out of their sight!

These two rather startled men reflected on this remarkable and unreal experience and recognised that their hearts had burned within them as the stranger had been talking with them during their walk. They felt comfortable with these strange things that they had heard, even if they could not comprehend them! 

I am always impressed that if these guys had just got on with their meal and chatted about the weather or the latest triumph of their favourite sports team, and had not reflected on the experience that they had with this stranger, they might have missed their precious feelings. 

They had evidently just walked about two hours. It was possibly already dark, or nearly dark. They immediately set off again to repeat the two hour journey to share their experience with their friends who were also distressed by the death of their hero. 

As they were once again with their friends, they tried as best as they could to explain what had just happened to them - what they had heard the stranger say, what they had felt, and about the stranger disappearing!

Even after being told of the experience that two of them had on the Emmaus road, the people of the assembled group were terrified and affrighted when their hero Jesus appeared to the group as they were trying to come to grips with their feelings and confusion. 

It appears that, as part of His way of making it absolutely clear that He was not a spirit, that He was not dead, but had risen from the dead, Jesus Christ gave a clear demonstration that the resurrection is the reuniting of body and spirit by asking if they had some meat for him. He would surely not have needed to eat, but the disciples would have needed to witness His ability to eat and participate in this regular social activity - that he was not a spook. 

I enjoyed watching the two videos portraying some of the events of the 24th chapter of Luke - the stranger joining the two disciples on the road, and then Jesus appearing to the gathered disciples in the room that was shut for fear of the Jews.

I am grateful for the insights that I have gained as I have pondered the stories of long ago in the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Book Of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, and the Pearl of Great Price. I am grateful that there are enough times that I have not simply chatted about the weather or sports and have been able to have the Spirit teach me things that no man has taught me. I have realised that my heart has burned within me as I have come to feel the complete harmony of truth in so many of the things that I have studied. I am grateful that this harmony of truth has extended to include some things that I was taught in my science and biology classes at university - helping me to see how things that are scientifically possible but absolutely unlikely without God can have occurred because I know that God is there with His divine oversight. 

How can I doubt when I know enough about genetics, ecology, physics, probability and other things that were taught to me at university to know that these things that are possible are almost certainly absolutely improbable without divine design? Beyond that, though, I do not only know about God - I know that God has made Himself known to me in undeniable ways. 

I have felt my heart burn within me on my road to Emmaus, and I hope that some of the insights that I have shared with others on their roads to Emmaus have caused their hearts to burn within them. I hope that I can be that kind of tour guide that does not only share information, but helps guests to learn things from the Spirit that no man could teach them.