2010 August

Priesthood and Family

Aug 22

During the Elders Quroum meeting today in Church, the talk was about the Priesthood and family. The speaker used a talk given by Apostle Boyd Packer at the April 2010 General Conference entitled, “The Power of the Priesthood”.

I remember reading this speech from Boyd Packer in the May 2010 Ensign magazine, but at that time when I read it, I did not receive any sudden insights or revelations or sudden clarity about any spiritual or scriptural subject, but this time it was different.

The elder in class today quoted the words from Apostle Packer,

The priesthood does not have the strength that it should have and will not have until the power of the priesthood is firmly fixed in the families.¹

This time those same words that I read before, suddenly struck a note and I began to realize the impact of these words from Boyd Packer. Those words impressed me so much, I pulled out my insight journal that I normally take to Church and made notes as the inspired impressions flowed into my mind and heart.

Revealed was the importance of the Priesthood for the Church and for building Zion. It all made perfect sense.

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Exclusion

Aug 10

Commentary, Mormon Protection

I read a recent August 2010 – Ensign article entitled, “Being Worthy to Enter the Temple”. It was a basic article on temple worthiness but the word “worthy” stood out in this article. As I focused on that single word, the word “exclusion” came into my mind.

I then began to pondered why many Non-Mormons attacked this LDS Church since the first day they heard the words from Joseph Smith speak about his First Vision and what God said to him. As I pondered, I began to see a pattern appear and the single word that would describe this pattern is the word “exclusion”. The word “exclusion” is to omit or to exclude.

What God said in the First Vision about other Christian churches was in fact, an act of exclusion by God and that appears to have triggered the sour resentment by others. There were others since Joseph Smith who claimed prophecy from God, but none have suffered the persecution and attacks more than this LDS Church, because none of the others have “excluded” other Christian creeds to the extent that God had in the First Vision and none received any visions equal to the First Vision by Joseph Smith.

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