MustardSeed Posted June 14, 2021 Posted June 14, 2021 Addiction is the devil because it leads people to hurt themselves and others- It steals joy. That said, I know plenty of addicts that I believe are far better people than I. I still recall my parents sitting me down in (1972?3?) and telling me that the prophet said no more coke. So as a 4/5 year old my belief was that coke was the devils drink. Thank goodness my dad continued to enjoy an occasional coke so that I was introduced to nuance at an early age.
SeekingUnderstanding Posted June 14, 2021 Posted June 14, 2021 6 hours ago, jkwilliams said: If there is a devil, his most effective tools are judgmentalism, tribalism, intolerance, and selfishness. You seem to have left off love and compassion on that list. 1
InCognitus Posted June 14, 2021 Posted June 14, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 5:36 AM, AtlanticMike said: So, in your opinion, what are actual tools of the devil Apparently he has a whole catalog: 3
Islander Posted June 15, 2021 Posted June 15, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 6:36 AM, AtlanticMike said: Over on the social Hall there's a thread talking about the Word of Wisdom, is it a commandant or not. And the past few days I've been asking myself is the WoW a commandment or just advice for Mormons to follow and show dedication to the Lord and his teachings. When I was young, my siblings, Mormon cousins and Mormon friends were taught that the devil had certain tools he used to tempt us and if he was able to persuade us to partake of what he was offering, we would be under his power of influence and be living a life of sin. I'll admit, it scared the crap out of me. Up to my late twenties I believed 100% that coffee, tea, tobacco, caffeinated soda and especially any kind of alcohol were tools of the devil. Partaking of any of these substances was giving in to the power of the devil and his minions. Now looking back, I realize I was using these substances to harshly judge anyone who used them in their daily life, I automatically saw anyone who used them as sinners and under the devil's influence. I can remember the day my eyes were opened and I started viewing "sin" in a different light. Just after I was married, the bishop asked me to go on a camping trip and be a chaperone for a young man whose dad was out to sea in the Navy. There was 12 of us on the camping trip, the bishop and a young man he was looking after, two days with two sons each, one dad with his son and me with the young man I was looking after. At around 10 pm three of the boys walked to the bathroom that was probably 300 yards away. The bishop and I were sitting at the fire talking when all of a sudden he looks at me and says, do you see that?!?! We're staring in the direction of the boys walking back and every few seconds we could a little tiny orange glow that went out after about a second. And then all of a sudden, the bishop realized the glow was a cigarette, and it as if the devil and his minions were tunneling up from hell and trying to swallow up the three boys walking back from the bathroom. When the boys get close, they immediately gather around the fire throwing wood on it, stirring the coals and trying to get as much smoke as possible I guess to cover up the smell of the cigarettes. Well, the bishop pulls me and the boy I was chaperoning aside with the father of the other two boys who were smoking and starts to grill the 3 young men asking who was actually smoking. The young man I was chaperoning handed over a pack of cigarettes and apologized to the bishop and the other dad for bringing cigarettes on the camping trip. A few minutes later the bishop told me to take the young man home and he would deal with the situation later. This was the first time in my life I actually looked at any man in the church who had authority and said, NO, I'm not taking him home, he misses his dad dearly and I'm not going help you ruin this young man's camping trip. I walked over to the tent we went to sleep and the next morning even though things were a little tense, nothing else was said. From that day, I have taught myself how not to judge people so harshly because of something they might be doing that I consider a "sin". What's weird, for some reason, me standing up to the bishop started my path of always having a calling in scouts. The bishop was a good man, I think he realized he was a little too upset over the cigarette incident and was glad I calmed him down by just saying no, calm down man. He and I had a wonderful relationship after that. So, in your opinion, what are actual tools of the devil and have we along with other Christian denominations misunderstood some of the Lord's teachings over the years since his mortal ministry? The devil can and does use everything and anything as a tool, and that includes anyone. Spending 10 hours a day glued to a screen if awfully bad, even if you are not looking at porn. Gossiping about the struggles and challenges of others is as much a tool of the devil as any other sin. And we hear it everyday in what it pretends to pass for benign concern. Lies. In America, our very lifestyles have become tools of the devil. The desire for wealth accumulation, leisure, comfort, individualism, self-agrandasing and the prevalent narcissism in most people's lives in their obsession with social media, fashion, popularity and entertainment. Those are the prime weapons of the devil in our society. He has successfully nullified the work of the Lord in this country to the point that most wards in middle America are dying. The allegory of the boiling frogs come to mind. The frogs don't know they are being boiled. In fact, they scream vociferously from inside the scolding pot: "it ain't so". The WOW was not given as a commandment but it was elevated to such in ages past to the point that it became a cote d' armor for past generations of Latter-day Saints; a "badge of honor" of sorts. Sadly, they failed to (and still do) heed to the word of the Lord when it comes to the true evidence of discipleship. "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man." At the end, what is sin but that which is common to man? Some preach self-styled "righteousness" while devouring with their eyes the teenage girl in shorts across the street. But in their self-justification, that is just not that bad as drinking a coke or some ice tea. Just like the judiazers of old, they strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. 1
Esrom Posted July 9, 2021 Posted July 9, 2021 I still struggle with the idea that coffee and tea (natural God created plants with documented health benefits) are a no no while artificial monster drinks, mountain dew, 5 hour energy drinks are not technically a violation.
mfbukowski Posted July 12, 2021 Posted July 12, 2021 On 7/8/2021 at 7:51 PM, Esrom said: I still struggle with the idea that coffee and tea (natural God created plants with documented health benefits) are a no no while artificial monster drinks, mountain dew, 5 hour energy drinks are not technically a violation. Caffeine is not mentioned in the revelation of course. I think the commandment is more of a social one than a health commandment- it is to mentally set us apart from non members or make us think twice about who we are in social occasions. The two earliest social activities when people first meet each other, in the world, are "grabbing a cup of coffee" or "going out for a drink". Before I was a member I wanted to get to know an LDS girl, so I asked her out for a drink. Nope. "Well ok then, let's just grab a coffee somewhere...." Nope. I ended up marrying her in the temple. True story! 2
mfbukowski Posted July 12, 2021 Posted July 12, 2021 On 6/13/2021 at 8:54 PM, MustardSeed said: Addiction is the devil because it leads people to hurt themselves and others- It steals joy. That said, I know plenty of addicts that I believe are far better people than I. I still recall my parents sitting me down in (1972?3?) and telling me that the prophet said no more coke. So as a 4/5 year old my belief was that coke was the devils drink. Thank goodness my dad continued to enjoy an occasional coke so that I was introduced to nuance at an early age. In my old world I HOPE "coke" had another meaning than it did for me .....
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