Hype for April 2019 Conference

[The Nehor]

1 hour ago, stemelbow said:

I'm saddened in thinking about the moment disappointment strikes you.  But now I'm just more curious what you imagine is going to restored to give you that knowledge.  

I do not intend to be disappointed. Zion is amazing from what I have seen.

What will be restored? EVERYTHING! As the scriptures say a time when nothing will be withheld.

1 hour ago, stemelbow said:

Wait a minute, you think Enoch's city story is something known?  I thought it was just a cute story told long ago, as myth.  Do you then imagine the Jesus came down and dwelt in Enoch's city?  .  

Yes and yes. A perfect society built on Celestial principles lived well so that the Messiah could descend from heaven openly in power and dwell there. Not sure if he lived there full time but he could.

1 hour ago, stemelbow said:

  I don't see how that context explains how something never practiced before is a restoration of anything.  

Then I am saddened when disappointment strikes after you realize you slept through the restoration.  

[smac97]

4 minutes ago, HappyJackWagon said:

I second this. We made peach butter in the instapot and it was easy and delicious. Yay for technology.

Yay, indeed.  My two favorite pieces of technology, food-wise, are the Instant Pot and my in-home freeze dryer.  I have spent the last 2+ years freeze drying food on a regular basis, but only recently have I started prepping the food in the Instant Pot, then freeze drying it for long-term storage.

Last night I pulled out a batch of beans and rice which I had made in Instant Pot, then freeze dried.  I store it in mylar bags with an oxygen absorber, then heat-seal the bags.  In an emergency, all I will need to do is boil water.  Food prep in such circumstances goes from many hours to five minutes.  We also use freeze dried food for road trips, camping trips, etc.

Making beans has always been a hassle.  Not any more.

Thanks,

-Smac

[HappyJackWagon]

19 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Not necessarily?

Perhaps god - the master of the universe - might not be as concerned about what a small fraction of humans do on a small planet in one unremarkable galaxy.

Perhaps god - who loves our agency - is concerned about us, but he fully trusts men to lead men, and does not reveal much or anything to LDS leaders.

Perhaps god - who loves all his children - talks to other leaders of other churches, but not the LDS church because we have become too exclusive and have strayed from His will.

It is hard to comprehend how you see that either God talks to the Mormon leaders, or does not exist at all.  That logic does not make sense?

 

I'm glad I read your response before I wrote one because this is exactly what I was going to say as well.

Great minds...  

[Gray]

21 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Perhaps god - the master of the universe

Pretty sure that's He-Man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll see myself out.

[The Nehor]

34 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Not necessarily?

Perhaps god - the master of the universe - might not be as concerned about what a small fraction of humans do on a small planet in one unremarkable galaxy.

Perhaps god - who loves our agency - is concerned about us, but he fully trusts men to lead men, and does not reveal much or anything to LDS leaders.

Perhaps god - who loves all his children - talks to other leaders of other churches, but not the LDS church because we have become too exclusive and have strayed from His will.

It is hard to comprehend how you see that either God talks to the Mormon leaders, or does not exist at all.  That logic does not make sense?

 

While all possibilities the argument from size that the first statement uses is pretty ridiculous. That God only cares about big picture stuff and judges a brown dwarf to be more valuable then my nephew because it happens to be bigger?

Fortunately I do not have to deal with hypotheticals. God does give revelation to our leaders and I will exist and reign over creations beyond counting when the universe I live in now will be counted as an old story.

[SouthernMo]

13 minutes ago, Gray said:

Pretty sure that's He-Man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll see myself out.

By the power of Greyskull, you better get out.

[SouthernMo]

2 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

While all possibilities the argument from size that the first statement uses is pretty ridiculous. That God only cares about big picture stuff and judges a brown dwarf to be more valuable then my nephew because it happens to be bigger?

Fortunately I do not have to deal with hypotheticals. God does give revelation to our leaders and I will exist and reign over creations beyond counting when the universe I live in now will be counted as an old story.

Agreed. My arguments are pretty weak. They came fast and easy. But it does not take a strong argument to address a weak statement.

[smac97]

22 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Not necessarily?

Perhaps god - the master of the universe - might not be as concerned about what a small fraction of humans do on a small planet in one unremarkable galaxy.

Or perhaps He is concerned.  We are His children, after all.

"For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."  (Moses 1:39)

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  (John 3:16)

"Brothers and sisters, you can follow Peter’s counsel: Cast all your cares upon Christ, 'for he careth for you' (1 Pet. 5:7). Don’t be reluctant to do that. You may need to do it again and again. Christ told His disciples to catch a particular fish with a particular coin in its mouth in order to pay taxes, or tribute (see Matt. 17:27). Upon finding the fish, the disciples so did! Such incredible awareness about a single fish and a single coin should console us regarding the Master’s full awareness of the details in the lives of each of us."  (The Precious Promise by Elder Neal A. Maxwell)

"We can be so provincial and so self-concerned. God, who oversees the interlacings of galaxies, stars, and worlds, asks us to confess His hand in our personal lives, too (see D&C 59:21). Have we not been reassured about the fall of one sparrow and that the very hairs of our heads are numbered? (see Matt. 10:29–30; D&C 84:80). God is in the details! Just as the Lord knows all of His vast creations, He also knows and loves each in any crowd—indeed, He knows and loves each and all of mankind! (see 1 Ne. 11:17)."  (Encircled in the Arms of His Love by Elder Neal A. Maxwell)

So yes, I believe God is concerned with what His children do.

22 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Perhaps god - who loves our agency - is concerned about us, but he fully trusts men to lead men, and does not reveal much or anything to LDS leaders.

"He fully trusts men to lead men?"  Which leaders do you have in mind here?

And how is God loving our agency incompatible with Him revealing His will to prophets (Amos 3:7 comes to mind)?

22 minutes ago, SouthernMo said:

Perhaps god - who loves all his children - talks to other leaders of other churches, but not the LDS church because we have become too exclusive and have strayed from His will.

The Church spends vast amounts of time and money and effort in the missionary program.  We currently have 67,000 full-time missionaries spread throughout the world inviting anyone who is willing to join us. 

We have lessons constantly about members doing missionary work. 

The Church has published over 150 million copies of The Book of Mormon. 

The Church maintains an extensive web presence. 

The Church spends considerable amounts in producing multimedia material for the world. 

The Church has the longest-running non-news program on television: Music and the Spoken Word.  

The Church hosts open houses for its temples prior to their dedication / re-dedication.

The Church has 28,000+ units spread throughout most of the world.

And yet, in your view, the Church is "too exclusive?"

Thanks,

-Smac

[The Nehor]

15 minutes ago, Gray said:

Pretty sure that's He-Man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll see myself out.

Kind of like God. After all every episode had an important moral message at the end. Though I preferred these ones:

 

[SouthernMo]

5 minutes ago, smac97 said:

Or perhaps He is concerned.  We are His children, after all.

"For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."  (Moses 1:39)

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  (John 3:16)

"Brothers and sisters, you can follow Peter’s counsel: Cast all your cares upon Christ, 'for he careth for you' (1 Pet. 5:7). Don’t be reluctant to do that. You may need to do it again and again. Christ told His disciples to catch a particular fish with a particular coin in its mouth in order to pay taxes, or tribute (see Matt. 17:27). Upon finding the fish, the disciples so did! Such incredible awareness about a single fish and a single coin should console us regarding the Master’s full awareness of the details in the lives of each of us."  (The Precious Promise by Elder Neal A. Maxwell)

"We can be so provincial and so self-concerned. God, who oversees the interlacings of galaxies, stars, and worlds, asks us to confess His hand in our personal lives, too (see D&C 59:21). Have we not been reassured about the fall of one sparrow and that the very hairs of our heads are numbered? (see Matt. 10:29–30; D&C 84:80). God is in the details! Just as the Lord knows all of His vast creations, He also knows and loves each in any crowd—indeed, He knows and loves each and all of mankind! (see 1 Ne. 11:17)."  (Encircled in the Arms of His Love by Elder Neal A. Maxwell)

So yes, I believe God is concerned with what His children do.

"He fully trusts men to lead men?"  Which leaders do you have in mind here?

And how is God loving our agency incompatible with Him revealing His will to prophets (Amos 3:7 comes to mind)?

The Church spends vast amounts of time and money and effort in the missionary program.  We currently have 67,000 full-time missionaries spread throughout the world inviting anyone who is willing to join us. 

We have lessons constantly about members doing missionary work. 

The Church has published over 150 million copies of The Book of Mormon. 

The Church maintains an extensive web presence. 

The Church spends considerable amounts in producing multimedia material for the world. 

The Church has the longest-running non-news program on television: Music and the Spoken Word.  

The Church hosts open houses for its temples prior to their dedication / re-dedication.

The Church has 28,000+ units spread throughout most of the world.

And yet, in your view, the Church is "too exclusive?"

Thanks,

-Smac

Read my response to @The Nehor

[ksfisher]

5 hours ago, HappyJackWagon said:

For them, older, life-long members having served in every ward and stake leadership calling imaginable, and now as temple workers, The church has become a place where most people go for a little while on Sunday...and usually that's out of a sense of duty, not a longing for worship (their words).

I'm not sure I understand this.  One would think that increased temple service would help to emphasize the necessity of sabbath worship, not the other way around.

For myself, as I came to understand the temple more the importance of the sacrament was increased.

[Gray]

You heard it here first:

• No more crusts on the sacramental bread.
• Wall carpet to be replaced with more durable wall linoleum
• Soundproof glass rooms to be installed in every chapel. All children under 7 must stay inside during sacrament.
• New digital quad e-reader device to be mass-produced, to replace paper scriptures. It will include only the scripture mastery verses. Extra space will be filled with inspirational LDS youtube commercials.
• Chapels to be opened up for raves, multi-denominational weddings, bar mitzvahs, etc. throughout the week. Parking is free on Tuesdays. Every Thursday is ladies' night!

[ksfisher]

18 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

That God only cares about big picture stuff and judges a brown dwarf to be more valuable then my nephew because it happens to be bigger?

How tall is your nephew?  If a dwarf is bigger your nephew must be pretty short.  Your nephew isn't a hobbit, is he?

[The Nehor]

1 minute ago, Gray said:

You heard it here first:

• No more crusts on the sacramental bread.
• Wall carpet to be replaced with more durable wall linoleum
• Soundproof glass rooms to be installed in every chapel. All children under 7 must stay inside during sacrament.
• New digital quad e-reader device to be mass-produced, to replace paper scriptures. It will include only the scripture mastery verses. Extra space will be filled with inspirational LDS youtube commercials.
• Chapels to be opened up for raves, multi-denominational weddings, bar mitzvahs, etc. throughout the week. Parking is free on Tuesdays. Every Thursday is ladies' night!

Most of these are good ideas but your third item is clearly designed to turn our children into the most unholy of abominations, creatures so horrific that Outer Darkness is too good for them..............mimes!!!!

[The Nehor]

Just now, ksfisher said:

How tall is your nephew?  If a dwarf is bigger your nephew must be pretty short.  Your nephew isn't a hobbit, is he?

He is a toddler and I am pretty sure his feet are not hairy enough to make him a hobbit.

[HappyJackWagon]

1 minute ago, ksfisher said:

I'm not sure I understand this.  One would think that increased temple service would help to emphasize the necessity of sabbath worship, not the other way around.

For myself, as I came to understand the temple more the importance of the sacrament was increased.

This is how they view the culture within the church, not how they personally approach Sunday worship or the sacrament. Sorry that wasn't clear.

In essence the point is, as the church expects less and provides less opportunity for members to be together in holy places, people will continue to expect less of their church community. It will be a place of Sunday worship, and little else. Wards won't be families any more. They'll just be standard congregations that may or may not have their boundaries changed every 2 years. People come to church. People leave. The sense of community is lost. I hope that helps you understand the point a little more.

 

[blueglass]

10 minutes ago, smac97 said:

And yet, in your view, the Church is "too exclusive?"

Thanks,

-Smac

Exclusive is good I hear.  The majority of the human population live in the east, where people drink tea.  The church will not allow anyone who drinks tea to become a member.  Thereby the word of wisdom is a perfect way for the Lord to set his people apart and start up conversations about the deeper meaning of life and eternity.  

[SouthernMo]

3 minutes ago, Gray said:

You heard it here first:

• No more crusts on the sacramental bread.
• Wall carpet to be replaced with more durable wall linoleum
• Soundproof glass rooms to be installed in every chapel. All children under 7 must stay inside during sacrament.
• New digital quad e-reader device to be mass-produced, to replace paper scriptures. It will include only the scripture mastery verses. Extra space will be filled with inspirational LDS youtube commercials.
• Chapels to be opened up for raves, multi-denominational weddings, bar mitzvahs, etc. throughout the week. Parking is free on Tuesdays. Every Thursday is ladies' night!

A return to linoleum is not a wall covering change.

    It is not rebranding.

    It is not cosmetic.

    It is not a whim.

    And it is not inconsequential.

Instead, it is a correction. It is the command of the Lord. Joseph Smith did not cover the Church restored through him with carpet; neither did Mormon. It was the Savior Himself who said, “For thus shall my church’s walls be covered.”

 

And with that, I’m going to hell...

[Gray]

Just now, The Nehor said:

Most of these are good ideas but your third item is clearly designed to turn our children into the most unholy of abominations, creatures so horrific that Outer Darkness is too good for them..............mimes!!!!

Good point. Children should be neither seen nor heard. Maybe they can make the glass opaque.

 

 

[smac97]

3 minutes ago, blueglass said:

Exclusive is good I hear.  The majority of the human population live in the east, where people drink tea. 

And drink alcohol.  Many smoke, too.

3 minutes ago, blueglass said:

The church will not allow anyone who drinks tea to become a member.  Thereby the word of wisdom is a perfect way for the Lord to set his people apart and start up conversations about the deeper meaning of life and eternity.  

Having served my mission in Taiwan, I can attest to the challenge of addressing tea.  People can rather easily grasp the reasoning behind the prohibitions against alcohol and tobacco.  Coffee and tea seem innocuous, such that the prohibition against them seems odd and arbitrary.

Thanks,

-Smac

[The Nehor]

4 minutes ago, Gray said:

Good point. Children should be neither seen nor heard. Maybe they can make the glass opaque.

 

 

More of a fan of this fine institution:

[blueglass]

5 minutes ago, Gray said:

You heard it here first:

• No more crusts on the sacramental bread

Beware of the leaven of the pharisees.  Luke 12:1-3

For our ward conference bishopric meeting, the stake president chose to discuss a major controversy which arose in our ward over the types of bread permitted for sacrament.  Bishop wanted only plain white bread.  Other members were ok with any kind of bread and our stake high councilor told the stake president about the problem.  We spent 45 minutes discussing which sacrament bread will be permitted and which will not be and why.  

[Duncan]

I heard they are revamping stake conferences, still two a year but when a Visitor comes there are no more Sat. Evening sessions (what they'll do then I have no idea, maybe see a movie?!) and a restyled sat. aft. training session

[The Nehor]

Just now, Duncan said:

I heard they are revamping stake conferences, still two a year but when a Visitor comes there are no more Sat. Evening sessions (what they'll do then I have no idea, maybe see a movie?!) and a restyled sat. aft. training session

The two hour bloc should make people stop thinking of Stake conference as a break from three hour church.

[Gray]

Just now, blueglass said:

Beware of the leaven of the pharisees.  Luke 12:1-3

For our ward conference bishopric meeting, the stake president chose to discuss a major controversy which arose in our ward over the types of bread permitted for sacrament.  Bishop wanted only plain white bread.  Other members were ok with any kind of bread and our stake high councilor told the stake president about the problem.  We spent 45 minutes discussing which sacrament bread will be permitted and which will not be and why.  

Yikes!

We have a couple of young bakers in our ward who have been making up some really nice home-made bread for sacrament, of various flavors. I can't imagine arguing about what type is "proper"